Many questions about pre-med and the whole process

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
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<p>Hello...just found this section of CC. I am a mother and want to ask questions for my own benefit so I will be in the know and for my own piece of mind.</p>

<p>A little about the situation. My daughter is currently going to a small, private college here in North Carolina. She was accepted to many colleges, including UNC-Chapel Hill, but she turned them down in favor of a smaller college. She is currently doing very well, making all As in pre-med (biology major) courses. She graduated valedictorian of her HS class and is currently technically a sophomore in her first year of college since she had so many AP credits. She is planning on overloading (22 credits, college has approved) the next and following semesters in hopes to graduate in 3 years. I tried to talk her out of it, but she is driven and wants to do this badly so she can go ahead and get into medical school.</p>

<p>As a mother, I am not as knowledgeable about medical schools and the process it takes to get into one, scholarships, loans etc as I was of undergraduate colleges. She currently has a scholarship that pays half her tuition and R/B and we pay the other half (no debt). However, once she's in medical school, she will have to get loans or hope for a scholarship to pay most of it and we will continue to pay what we can. She wants to become a surgeon, so I see this being about a 12 year haul. This young woman is driven, intelligent and very ambitious and has so much potential. (if I do say so myself, lol).</p>

<p>She is doing her own research into all this, but I want to do my own so I will be knowledgeable about all this as well. I hope you can help me with some questions I have:</p>

<p>First, do you think she is doing the wrong thing by trying to graduate early? Your thoughts.</p>

<p>Do you think that by her choosing and attending a lesser known college that it will hurt her chances of getting accepted into med school?</p>

<p>How much do medical schools look at your involvement in community, extracurriculars in college and that sort of thing? Though she was heavily into extracurriculars in HS, she has not been so far in college and I think medical schools will look at that.</p>

<p>Is there much hope in scholarships for medical school?</p>

<p>How much is the average tuition of Med School, and if she lives on her own by then, can she get financial aid? (something she could not get with our income now).</p>

<p>Just what does it take to get into medical school?</p>

<p>I guess that's it just for starters. Anything you can tell me or any advice or info will be very appreciated. Thank you!</p>

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First, do you think she is doing the wrong thing by trying to graduate early? Your thoughts.

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</p>

<p>Yes. Many reasons for this: 1) Med schools prefer older applicants. 2) She will have one less year of EC's when she applies. 3) She will have one year less of coursework on her transcript when she applies. The easy solution to this, if she does not want to stay in school that long, is to simply take a year off after college and then apply during that year.</p>

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Do you think that by her choosing and attending a lesser known college that it will hurt her chances of getting accepted into med school?

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</p>

<p>The very best med schools will have a huge population of students from brand name undergrads so going to a lesser known college might hurt her there. The name of your undergrad is usually not a big factor however.</p>

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How much do medical schools look at your involvement in community, extracurriculars in college and that sort of thing? Though she was heavily into extracurriculars in HS, she has not been so far in college and I think medical schools will look at that.

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</p>

<p>EC's are very important in med school apps. You can get into a mid-level college on the basis of strong numbers alone. You will not get into med school without EC's and you will not get into mid or top level med schools w/o unique/good EC's (beyond the usual hospital volunteering, soup kitchen work, etc.)</p>

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Is there much hope in scholarships for medical school?

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Not much. Med schools have very little money to offer in the form of scholarships. There are some merit scholarships but they usually require outrageous MCAT, GPA, and EC's. </p>

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How much is the average tuition of Med School, and if she lives on her own by then, can she get financial aid? (something she could not get with our income now).

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</p>

<p>If you only want federal aid (in the form of federal student loans), you won't have to submit your (parents') financial information. If you want institutional loans/scholarships from the med school itself, you'll have to submit your financial information to the school and that information will be used to calculate an EFC. My EFC was calculated to be as high as $70,000 because of my parents' assets/income. Schools will be more than happy to give you more loans if you can't afford all of that EFC but there's zero way you can get need-based scholarships (and there aren't many) w/o submitting parental financial information.</p>

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Just what does it take to get into medical school?

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<p>Average stats for a successful white/asian applicant to med school were 3.7 college GPA (slightly lower science GPA) and a 31-32 MCAT. Top tier schools (the top 25 or so) essentially require 3.8/36. Mid-tier schools are around 3.7/32-33. Your best bet is your state med school unless you live in CA.</p>

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<p>
[quote]
First, do you think she is doing the wrong thing by trying to graduate early? Your thoughts.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>You'll find that the general consensus is that yes, it is a mistake to graduate early and immediately apply for admission to med school for the following year. Admission to medical school is about so much more than just grades that you simply can't get in any quality in three years.</p>

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[quote]
Do you think that by her choosing and attending a lesser known college that it will hurt her chances of getting accepted into med school?

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</p>

<p>Nope</p>

<p>
[quote]
How much do medical schools look at your involvement in community, extracurriculars in college and that sort of thing? Though she was heavily into extracurriculars in HS, she has not been so far in college and I think medical schools will look at that.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>This is absolutely huge for medical school admissions. "Clinical experience" and volunteering (not necessarily in medicine) is especially important. Basically, med schools want to see that you've experienced various aspects of medicine so that you can understand and speak cogently about current issues in medicine as well as why you want to become a doctor. Research is somewhat important, especially for some research-heavy schools, but is not required. You can have excellent grades and MCAT scores, but without quality ECs, you're not getting in.</p>

<p>
[quote]
How much is the average tuition of Med School, and if she lives on her own by then, can she get financial aid? (something she could not get with our income now).

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Depends on whether you're in state or out of state. I'm out of state at my med school and I pay approximately $65,000 a year ($45,000 of which is tuition). In state students pay about $43,000 overall. You get government aid, but it is in the form of loans. While some schools may offer scholarships, the government considers you completely independant of your parents on your FAFSA since you are in grad school.</p>

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Just what does it take to get into medical school?

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</p>

<p>Now there's the $64,000 question. It really is a crapshoot in many ways, but generally, you need a good overall and science GPA, 30+ on the MCAT, good ECs and LORs, etc. It really is the entire package, and different schools place emphasis on different things.</p>