***Official Thread for 2020 BSMD applicants***

[srk2017]

@grtd2010

@liketobeed

Can you also explain VCU question please - one of my DD’s school upper-class student got into VCU and said that there is no MCAT requirement. But when we read now, MCAT score is req. Did it change for this year you think or are we mis-reading it?

“Students are required to complete the MCAT no later than August 1 of the year prior to the year you plan to begin medical school. Students must earn a total score of 505 or better overall.”

Thank you in advance.

Do not be afraid of MCAT while making a list of BS/MD programs to apply next year. This should be very easily achieved if one has taken all the pre-requisites courses in college and given ample time to prepare and practice. MCAT is also an endurance test that lasts more than 7 hours. This will a good practice for the USLME Step tests 1,2,3 and other professional certification tests taken during a long medical career. The tests never end.
FYI, average MCAT is around 512 for a MD matriculant. The maximum is 528 and median is around 500.

My S finished all 4 practice tests in 4.5 hrs each time and I told him to slow down for the real one but that didn’t make any difference

[grtd2010]

[quote=“junebug20, post:3823, topic:2054445”]

[quote=“grtd2010, post:3821, topic:2054445”]

@srk2017

@junebug20

@mi2019

Medicine is long journey and we do not want these high school kids to burn out early in the game .

On this forum as a parent how we can reduce their burnout ?? any suggestions

I agree that getting a 3.75 GPA should not be difficult for a talented student who got into the BS/MD program at Univ of Pittsburgh. Every university has office dedicated to research functions. Any one can find about research done by various professors and contact them for available opportunities. Professors love free labor of undergraduate students. There may be paid opportunities available to do research during summer. It all depends upon individual initiative. My D has done paid research during summers.

Oh well, he toured Pitt and did ask the prehealth professor he met with. The answer was that it’s hard to maintain a 3.75 science GPA at Pitt. It has a top-tier med school; it would make sense that they pound premed science on their premed. I read a few articles about their own premeds got weeded out through the lecture-hall science courses. It’s also fair that the 3.75 requirement is replacing an MCAT requirement. He also cited another reason he’s not that excited about Pitt: it just didn’t seem diversed enough for him. It’s my C application, not mine. I didn’t want to insist. But I did suggest him to apply to the PA Guarantee program there as his backup plan since the scholarship he got makes it inline with our state flagship cost. We also have a great non-BSMD UG that we’re happy with. So. by April, we may have 1-3 BSMD results to consider and a great UG alternate, plus a direct-admit PA program if he got Pitt’s offer. C just wants to work in derm. Can’t wait til April!

All pre-med courses at large public universities are weed out courses. Typically one will find 400-500 students in lower level pre-med science courses. The A’s are limited by university and departmental policies. The competition is tough to get A’s ( regardless whether you are a BS/MD or regular MD student). If one has good time management skills and studies regularly, a great GPA can be achieved. Good luck to your son.

[junebug20]

@grtd2010
Thank you. It’s been a long year.

[MDhopetoget]

Till when does NJMS give out interviews or are they done for this year?

[SAYSA]

@Viola9

Any more invites or any rejections from NU-HPME?

@Viola9 in the same boat, still waiting.

[junebug20]

@MDhopetoget

Till when does NJMS give out interviews or are they done for this year?

C is also waiting. Someone here said they give 4 weeks for arranging travel and the acceptance/rejection communication starts around the end of March give and take a few days. What that means to me is that every day we get close to the end of Feb, it seems less likely that more interview invites will come out.

[srk2017]

@grtd2010

@liketobeed

Can you also explain VCU question please - one of my DD’s school upper-class student got into VCU and said that there is no MCAT requirement. But when we read now, MCAT score is req. Did it change for this year you think or are we mis-reading it?

“Students are required to complete the MCAT no later than August 1 of the year prior to the year you plan to begin medical school. Students must earn a total score of 505 or better overall.”

Thank you in advance.

Do not be afraid of MCAT while making a list of BS/MD programs to apply next year. This should be very easily achieved if one has taken all the pre-requisites courses in college and given ample time to prepare and practice. MCAT is also an endurance test that lasts more than 7 hours. This will a good practice for the USLME Step tests 1,2,3 and other professional certification tests taken during a long medical career. The tests never end.
FYI, average MCAT is around 512 for a MD matriculant. The maximum is 528 and median is around 500.

I have been preaching same for last 3 years

[MDhopetoget]

@junebug20

@MDhopetoget

Till when does NJMS give out interviews or are they done for this year?

C is also waiting. Someone here said they give 4 weeks for arranging travel and the acceptance/rejection communication starts around the end of March give and take a few days. What that means to me is that every day we get close to the end of Feb, it seems less likely that more interview invites will come out.

Tried checking on last years thread when last interviews went out. No information there.
It’s a hard wait…

[grtd2010]

@MDhopetoget

@junebug20

@MDhopetoget

Till when does NJMS give out interviews or are they done for this year?

C is also waiting. Someone here said they give 4 weeks for arranging travel and the acceptance/rejection communication starts around the end of March give and take a few days. What that means to me is that every day we get close to the end of Feb, it seems less likely that more interview invites will come out.

Tried checking on last years thread when last interviews went out. No information there.
It’s a hard wait…

I think mid-March can be safely assumed the last NJMS invite chance. But as time passes by, the chances are decreasing day by day.

[SpeedSkater]

@2020admissions

Did anyone hear back from Sophie Davis/CSOM?

Got the interview invite for Sophie for Mar 3. Looks like they are still inviting.

[Nvidia20]

@Viola9

Any more invites or any rejections from NU-HPME?

Still waiting. Heard that the interview calls will be going out all the way till March 1st.

[rk2017]

@junebug20

@MDhopetoget

Till when does NJMS give out interviews or are they done for this year?

C is also waiting. Someone here said they give 4 weeks for arranging travel and the acceptance/rejection communication starts around the end of March give and take a few days. What that means to me is that every day we get close to the end of Feb, it seems less likely that more interview invites will come out.

Try calling the feeder school(s) to find out if they have any information specific to your case or if they can give more generic info like when can be the latest timeline for the interviews.

Since they announce the results end of March, feel they may want to wrap up the interviews by first week of March and then get into deliberations phase.

[junebug20]

@rk2017 C already emailed NJMS butstill didn’t hear back from them. NJIT forwarded his file on 1/28.

[grtd2010]

@junebug20

@rk2017 C already emailed NJMS butstill didn’t hear back from them. NJIT forwarded his file on 1/28.

Once the ball is in NJMS court, the feeder schools are only told about those who are selected by NJMS. In between, everyone is just in waiting mode.

[srk2017]

Here are Top 20 program directors list which is preferred by lot of USNWR haters on the other site. One flaw is this is based on survey and not all residency PDs may not participate. Seems like Pitt and Vandy gained more.

School PD Rank
UCSF 1
Hopkins 2
Penn 2
Harvard 4
Stanford 5
Michigan 5
WashU 7
UWash 7
Columbia 9
UCLA 10
Duke 10
Pitt 10
Vanderbilt 10
Mayo 14
Yale 14
Cornell 16
Northwestern 16
UNC 16
NYU 19
Chicago 19
Baylor 19
Emory 19

If anyone wants to know rank for specific school I can provide.

[rk2017]

[

[mi2019]

.
@srk2017 UCSF overall ranking is higher than Hopkins because of combined research and primary care. UCSF is a great school overall. Michigan has been always pretty good on this List than US news. Again rankings are deceptive.

Surprising not see UCSD on this list as I regard that as one of good ones from your state. Do you know why they discontinued BS MD Program at UCSD ?

[rk2017]

@NoviceDad

Parents know their kids and need to support appropriately and also know when to back off. There is no one answer but it is important for the child to know their parents have their back.

One biggest thing a parent can do is NOT let any “failures” get to the child, starting with the BS/MD process. For a lot of these highly talented kids, BS/MD process may be the first really competitive “failure” they may encounter and they should not let that get to the child.

Secondly, for prestige obsessed parents, it is important to learn and make kids learn how limited it may actually matter - choose a college where the kid is comfortable and can excel vs going after rank X school.

Thirdly, taking a gap year while pursuing a traditional route is OK. Don’t read too much into that.

Fourthly, while there are several advantages of having kid nearby but if possible, send the kid to a different city. That way they will grow and mature more independently.
They will also learn to live by their decisions.

Lastly but not the least, keep talking to the kids - that way they will share their problems.

@NoviceDad

You should seriously consider changing your name handle. To ExpertDad or something :-). Retroactively!

Also want to reiterate that parents should convey to their kids how proud they are of them for trying their best all these years irrespective of end results and assure that work ethic will take them far in life ahead.

[mi2019]

Regarding @NoviceDad below comment

Secondly, for prestige obsessed parents, it is important to learn and make kids learn how limited it may actually matter - choose a college where the kid is comfortable and can excel vs going after rank X school.
—————————-
I fully agree rankings are deceptive and a school which is good for some may not be a fit for other. kids are different.

we cannot generalize and Have to understand one of the parents comment to focus on right programs in regards to their comments to avoid WASHU and Upitt GPA requirements.

Thin line between challenging them vs pushing kids too hard.

[NoviceDad]

@rk2017
You are very kind.