<p>I was doing some research on what I would want to do once I graduate from Cornell. On Google, I found this very interesting page made by Princeton for its undergraduate students who were interested in medicine and dentistry. Basically, it provides a compiled list of opportunities for pre-med and pre-dental students. They even have counselors that will help you through the application process and write letters of evaluation when it comes time to apply for graduate school.</p>
<p>I think I got an email every single day about some pre-med information meeting or seminar. Even some of my professors held optional talks on how to get into med school each week. It was actually kind of annoying- especially considering that I was a bio major who was never pre-med. I never got any information on how to apply to PhD programs...o well.</p>
<p>Cornell's health careers advising is really really good. Judy, who is the health careers advisor, is very knowledgeable. Some colleges use only a generic advisor but Judy has advice specific to med and dental schools. She gives around 8 seminars every year covering various aspects of the application process: how to interview, how to get LOR's, what med schools look for, etc. For example, a couple of months before the AMCAS applications came out, she went through a sample AMCAS application page by page with us to tell us how to fill out each page. She is available by appointment or walk-in and she always answers questions via email very quickly.</p>
<p>Cornell's HCEC committee is a godsend. The HCEC committee rec letter will allow you to bypass any medical schools' individual LOR requirements. For example, some schools will want one letter from a science professor, one from a non-science professor, 2 science/1 non-science, 2 science only, etc. You don't have to worry about that. The HCEC only wants 2-3 rec letters (no requirements; they can be from supervisors, research mentors, professors, volunteer directors, etc.) after which they'll write you the committee letter (after an interview to get to know you better). Some schools' premed committee requirements are very stringent (asking you to provide 5 or more letters) so it's nice to have a committee that is light on the LOR requirements. Some schools, like Stanford, don't have a committee at all. You'll have to assemble a combination of letters that'll satisfy the requirements of all potential med schools.</p>