<p>37 MCAT 3.5 GPA so far. Should go up a bit probably to a 3.6.</p>
<p>Doing engineering thats part of the reason. Any chance to get into a middle-tier to top-tier medical school?</p>
<p>Need more information, but no reason to rule out, say, Case or Northwestern or something.</p>
<p>thats a damn good gpa for engineering. How did u manage that?
i have a similar plan of doing engineering and then going to med school....what type of engineering are u doing btw?</p>
<p>and the average med school gpa is around 3.5ish so ur set especailly with that score</p>
<p>3.5/37 are very respectable numbers for mid-tier schools.</p>
<p>I'm hesitant to answer because we don't know a lot of the relevant information, and because he hasn't told us what he means by his "tiers."</p>
<p>eecs is my major. second year UC Berkeley.</p>
<p>Tiers: saw it in NCG's post recently. I think he said top 30 med schools. Honestly, I would really like to go to Stanford or UCSF (location & prestige are great for me).</p>
<p>I can get my GPA up to a 3.8, but at Berkeley I don't see that happening...I only see a marginal improvement up to 3.6 (not making it up; courses get easier: lower div. courses rape gradewise). If its really important I can take easy classes to pad my GPA to get my choice of school. I am hesitant to do that though. I could probably spend my time better doing some relevant activities right?</p>
<p>I am about the average applicant in terms of research/activities--they don't set me apart but they are not scant either!</p>
<p>If it helps I have a LOR from a UCSF researcher.</p>
<p>EDIT: I might add that I am not a prestige-whore and I understand that much of the admissions process is out of my hands. I would love to get into med school itself, but I want to have a nice strong chance at Stanford/UCSF so I won't regret it if I spend 4 years at a less desirable location.</p>
<p>Then what GPA/MCAT are needed for top-tier schools like Harvard, if you're from a state or non-US school?</p>
<p>Non-US is unknown to me; I've never seen it attempted.</p>
<p>UCSF and Stanford are reaches. I don't think Top 30 Research is a stretch in the least. You can see averages for yourself in USN; there's no combination that will guarantee you anything at (say) HMS.</p>
<p>What's your intended career path? Why do you need UCSF or Stanford?</p>
<p>In my edit: I don't "need" UCSF or Stanford but that is where I would like to be. My parents are getting old and I like to spend time with them on the weekends, and our house is between UCSF and Stanford. That is one reason I went to Berkeley. </p>
<p>My intended career path is medicine--I don't know specifically what yet--but I majored in EECS because I was and am fairly passionate about EECS. I believed in doing what I liked. I did not like the MCB curriculum at Cal and shyed away from that route.</p>
<p>I know theres no combination, but is it in my interest then to work on my GPA to get it up to say a 3.7/3.8 if I am going to have the same odds at SF/Stan?</p>
<p>Anyhow, I was aware of the extremely fickle nature of admissions (courtesy mdapplicants) but was just wondering what I could do to better set me up for admission to those schools.</p>
<p>Right now I am in my fourth semester so I can change some things.</p>
<p>The GPA will be important, yes. The really crucial factor at a school like UCSF or (especially) Stanford is really getting your research into (bluntly) spectacular territory. UCSF can be aimed for with significant extracurriculars -- social organizations, etc. -- as well.</p>
<p>These two schools (along with Harvard) are generally considered very difficult to predict.</p>
<p>Yes: That seems very logical. </p>
<p>As a rising sophomore, how can I drive my research into spectacular territory? And what would you define as spectacular (a publishing)?</p>
<p>
[quote]
Non-US is unknown to me; I've never seen it attempted.
[/quote]
Then what if you're from a Canadian school?</p>
<p>I'm not really sure what to look for research-wise; it's mostly a combination of dedication and (more importantly) situation. Frankly, so far as I can tell, it's mostly something you stumble into unless you're willing to pour full-time work into a successful lab for a couple years. I'm guessing -- and this is really speculation -- that even publication isn't enough to do the trick until you're talking about a couple first-author things. That might not be true; I really don't know.</p>
<p>I don't know anything about being from Canadian schools. I've never seen it attempted, and therefore have never seen it either fail or succeed.</p>
<p>Thanks at the end of the day I will just be happy to get into a decent med school. You've helped me a lot though.</p>
<p>Could you also tell me some of the somewhat prestigious medical schools in the bay area? Does not have to be very prestigious, but I heard about some schools that were so unestablished that they were in danger of closing down.</p>
<p>There are only eight MD schools in California. USC, UCLA, Loma Linda, Stanford, UCSF, UC Irvine, UC Davis, UCSD.</p>
<p>How do you have a MCAT score as a rising sophomore?</p>
<p>Anyway, Stanford is ridiculously selective (maybe the most selective top tier school, outside of Mayo, due to its small size and its stature as the top private med school in the Western USA). UCSF is less selective for CA residents but still tough. If you don't have anything outstanding on your resume outside of the 37 MCAT, you're going to have a tough time even getting an interview.</p>
<p>My parents wanted me to get it done with early so that I could focus on research. I basically studied the whole summer. I am in my fourth semester right now. </p>
<p>In the event that you do get an interview, does that mean they ignore the numbers from that point onward? </p>
<p>I know its not related to medicine, but I have done some interesting projects more related to engineering. It may be irrelevent but it may cause me to stand out so far. </p>
<p>I never knew Stanford was so selective (mdapplicants did not do it justice I feel). So I shall just focus on my own application and worry about getting in later. </p>
<p>Thanks for all the help.</p>
<p>
[quote]
In the event that you do get an interview, does that mean they ignore the numbers from that point onward?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Differs considerably from school to school. Some yes, some no.</p>
<p>Most of the selective schools only accept 1/5-1/4 of everyone they interview. Most people generally have good interviews at these places so I'm pretty sure that, at most places, things like EC's, grades, scores, recs, etc. continue to be a factor even after you get an interview.</p>
<p>For example, I had a fantastic interview at NYU (my interviewer continually told me I would have no problem getting in and even responded to my thank you letter with the same comment) and I was still waitlisted. Most med schools don't use the interview as a "test." Rather, they ask you simple questions about yourself to determine if you would be a good fit. Hence, it's tough to really mess up an interview unless you're entirely socially inept.</p>
<p>Stanford's selectivity comes from the fact that it's the most well-known med school in the Western US. CA residents are in love with UCSF but schools like UCSF/UCLA carry less weight with out of state residents. So, the top out of state applicants who want to attend school in CA usually apply to Stanford. Plus, it's class size is only around 85 students, about half as large as that of Columbia or Northwestern, etc.</p>