<p>It looks like you’re a strong applicant and I have a feeling that with a well-crafted list, you’ll pick up an acceptance (and possibly multiple).</p>
<p>Let me throw some theory at you (apologies for not having many raw numbers/data). You may already know some/most of this, but just in case you don’t:</p>
<p>1) All MD-granting med schools in the US are wonderful and are capable of turning out fantastic doctors. Every single US med student must pass the same licensing boards, and the pass rate for first-time test takers nation wide is around 95%. At the same time, med schools vary slightly by what type of docs they tend to turn out (although I would argue you can become whatever type of doc you want regardless of where you go to school), so this is something you may want to take into consideration when you’re building your list (eg are you interested in primary care in your state? Becoming the next Surgeon General? Heading up a bunch of high-powered clinical trials? Doing bench research?). The approach to med school is entirely different from the approach to undergrad. I don’t get the impression you’re looking for prestige, but regardless wanted to mention that it’s far from the sine qua non of a medical career.</p>
<p>2) Your best chance for admission will always be your state’s state school. This is typically your least expensive option also. You should apply to every one of your state’s state schools unless you have an incredibly compelling reason not to. Occasionally the attitude on this board is that state schools are second rate or second tier or otherwise inferior to private schools; I personally disagree, and believe my training from my state’s state school has been both academically challenging and personally rewarding. I would encourage you to look seriously into your options in Illinois!</p>
<p>3) After your state’s state schools, your best chance for admission would be somewhere that fits your stats and your personality; I think this makes logical sense. While you may believe you could fit in in any med school culture and in any curriculum style, that’s probably not true. You should do some soul-searching to figure out what you’re looking for in a school (and recognize that your preferences are important!). I think good places to start are with class size (which generally breaks down to <100, ~150, >200) and curriculum style (ie traditional/lecture based, more innovative/problems based, pass/fail, etc). You should be able to find this information on their websites.</p>
<p>4) Another thing to keep in mind is that the likelihood of being accepted to any one school is dismal, regardless of how strong an applicant you are. The reason for this is that there are so many more qualified applicants than there are spaces; many highly qualified applicants are rejected every year simply because of space constraints. This doesn’t mean you’re a weak applicant or that you shouldn’t go to med school; what it means is that you should apply intelligently to a broad range of schools, and probably aim for 12-18 apps. Unless you have a compelling reason to do so, you should try to avoid putting all your proverbial eggs in one basket.</p>
<p>5) You are probably used to doing well in classes and on exams. I bet you write well and are an engaging conversationalist. You have clearly enjoyed competitive success, as you mentioned you’re a varsity athlete. All of these are awesome! However, it is very easy to go into this process assuming that you’re going to be part of the minority that is accepted to a top school because that’s how things have gone for you in the past. I would encourage you not to become complacent and to recognize that the competition out there is FIERCE. At the same time, you should recognize that you have a lot to offer, and that applying to med school is about finding the school that is the right fit for you–marketing yourself persuasively is crucial to your success. I am routinely impressed and amazed by the accomplishments of my classmates, and I am happy to be considered one of their peers. But realizing that this was a whole new ball game in terms of the accomplishments of the people I was fighting against took me a lot longer than it should have!</p>
<p>In regards to your list: if I were in your shoes, I’d go for most/all of the IL schools, a handful of privates that are within your stats ranges, and a handful of elite schools. I agree with you that your current list is pretty top-heavy, and I think you’ll find some useful suggestions from others on this board! Good luck!</p>
Add Emory. Add any reaches you want to add and can afford to add. Curl up with a MSAR or buy USNEWS online and look at the OOS/IS stats. </p>