<p>Hey guys! I've been looking a lot online to find scenarios like mine, but I haven't really found something that has quite matched. I am really looking for some honesty from medical students or other pre-meds about my chances to get into an allopathic (MD) school. I have a 4.0 GPA, have worked in one lab for 4 years and a different lab for the last 2 years. I am involved with 2 clubs at school, I tutor disabled college students and elementary students, I am in the Honor's College, I do shadowing, and I am a dedicated long distance runner... I feel like I'm pretty well-rounded, except for the fact that I got a 28 on the MCAT (I was NOT happy!). I am looking into getting into the MD schools in Arizona, and am also looking at schools in the Chicago area or the south (I have family in these places). My backup plan is to get into the DO school in AZ because I feel like I'll be pretty competitive there, however this is my last resort. I'm looking into very competitive MD residencies, so I don't want to get into a DO school if I can get around it. Will a 28 make me competitive enough for MD schools in AZ or across the country? Thanks!</p>
<p>If I were you, I would study my butt off and retake the mcat. everything else is solid. a 32 would probably put you in a good position for your state school and the lower tier schools in the chicago area</p>
<p>RE: AZ allopathic schools</p>
<p>Are you a in-state for AZ? Are you willing to attend the Phoenix campus of UA? Do you speak Spanish with any reasonable degree of fluency? Do your ECs include working with underserved populations? (Rural, immigrant, Native American?)</p>
<p>Since your MCAT is slightly below their median (30), you need to have something extra to bring to the table that makes you an attractive candidate. Unless you have something in your ECs or personal background that will make you stand out—as an un-hooked applicant, it’ll be a crapshoot.</p>
<p>(But I do know an individual accepted at UA-Tuscon last year with the same MCAT, lower GPA, but she is both fully bilingual in Spanish and had a multi year track record of working with healthcare organizations dealing with Spanish-speaking immigrant/undocumented populations. She was not a URM, btw. And she was from OOS.)</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies! As much as I want a higher MCAT, I really don’t want to have to study for it again since I’m hoping to start getting my application material together in January and apply in the next round. (I’ll definitely retake it if I have to though… just trying not to!). WayOutWestMom, I am a resident in Arizona and my top school would be UA-PHX! I took Spanish for a couple years, but am far from fluent! I don’t really have history working with Spanish-speaking immigrants, but I do work with minorities at the tutoring center I work at… I don’t know, I guess I’m hoping my extensive research background will make up for a lower MCAT?</p>
<p>Research will not make up for a lower MCAT. (Unless it’s really something special like a first author in Nature or something.)</p>
<p>From UA-Phoenix’s mission statement</p>
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<p>UAP just isn’t a research focussed program</p>