UPenn is also located in a urban neighborhood in Philly.
@grtd2010 Thank you!
I chose cogsci/psych/neuro is because I did some psychology related research in a local university (with professors and PhD students) during my high school years. Iād definitely continue to pursue research opportunities as soon as I get into college, and Iām sure that will make an impact on the major that Iād choose eventuallyā¦
And Iām not sure if itās even possible to switch from CAS to Wharton at Penn.
I have posted my Dās stat and reflection in result thread. sorry for delay as we were still making final decision.
UPenn sounds daunting then :neutral:
I had a 4.97 W GPA and a 1590 SAT in high schoolā¦not sure how well I can do in college thoughā¦
Those are great stats. You should be fine at UPenn if you work as hard as you did in HS. It is just every one around you will as good.
@Vicky2019 , Thank you for the perspective.
@GoldenRock , Thank you. Child is connecting with few other students who graduated from UofA to med school to get a perspective this weekend. Really appreciate for taking the time to do some research on UofA.
Does the number 362 indicate total number of student admitted to Med school or total applied for Med school?
@rk2017 , Thankyou.
While I still consider UofA is a good option, if your C is really impressed by any of the private schools above (college visits, people known studying there, research etc) you can still consider if cost is not prohibitive and weather not a barrier. Rochester and NE are coming to same, so I feel NE will be better option. I wish they had given a better package (known to give up to 30k for their most competitive applicants). RPI transfers 32 credits from APs, so may be able to graduate in 3 years (but has to pay extra attention towards GPA there), take a gap year to further boost ECs, MCAT and applications. I wouldnāt recommend OOS public schools though.
DS connected with a kid who is in RPI recommended NE as well if RPI/NE is the choice reason being not many opportunity as NE.
Also after reading @NoviceDad comments DS seems to be interested in Pitt as well.
So the choices are narrowing down. We are definitely considering total cost in to consideration(UG + Medschool) but want to support the child.
If by any chance, you are planning to pursue engineering at UPenn, the chemical and molecular engineering there is a top program in the country. Something you may also want to factor in. But may be tough to major in that and have a great GPA.
To get into Wharton if you havenāt already been selected there, you need to compete as sophomore with others who are interested and go through application and selection process. They pick a handful, usually needs a 3.9+ gpa and doing well on the interview.
Most of the smart well prepared kids donāt have problem with a great MCAT score, as early as sophomore year. Since by then you would have finished all the requisites. The bigger hurdles, competition from the same school, gpa and ECs.
Policy seems designed for current matriculants to med school, starting M1 in fall. For current BS/MD, UG, Engineering, others acceptances it is not applicable as their M1 is few years away.
@BSMD mom ā Thanks for posting your Dās stats and your perspective. Congratulations on your acceptance to 3 BS/MD programs. Your D has very good stats (a strong BSMD applicant) and this is what resulted in her acceptance.
You bring up a good point that the BSMD process has become uber competitive. Inspite of stellar stats and leaving no stone unturned for ECs/medical experience, the # of rejections was surprising (it was same for us as well)
I especially thank you for discussing the topic about handling rejections. This has been hard for us as well. It took me a whole week to get over it and reconciled myself only because I didnāt want my child to feel bad! After all he did everything he possibly could in his high school. BSMD consultant might have made the difference. Atleast future applicants can keep this in mind.
Another topic (Strategy) that you brought up has been bothering me as well. In particular, I debated the need for applying to so many programs and undergrads - Quality vs Quantity in the number of applications. As the Quantity increases, it becomes very difficult for high school seniors to handle to load in addition to the AP courses and numerous activities that are involved in. College list is critical. I wish I had insight into what type of colleges would favor a certain type of kid (such as my kid or your kid). Big question is - what is the sweet spot?
Undergrad route (Top UG/IVY) to medical school can be very long and usually requires gap years. You need to be patient and need lots of determination. You can then achieve what you want. You may also realize that your dreams/aspirations have changed along the way. this is not at all bad. Every journey is interesting and we need all kinds of people in this world.
You mentioned management consultancy. I feel ivy league education paves the road well for this profession. I personally know (friends & relatives) who pursued this path and are very successful.
@ubsmd2020 - My pick would be RPI/AMC if you are determined to be a Doctor. If you have any doubts then by all means go to UPenn.
As I mentioned to @md2be2028 and to my son as well that undergrad route (Top UG/IVY) to medical school can be very long and usually requires gap years. You need to be patient and need lots of determination. You should also be open to pursuing other options.
Education is just one part of life. You need work-life balance.
Hi all, I am posting after a long time. My dc got into below schools and we are having tough time deciding which route to take. Your views and suggestions are appreciated.
Undergrad acceptances:
University of Michigan,Vanderbilt University ,University of Rochester,Rice and Case western.
BSMD acceptances:
Union/AMC, MSU DO, TCNJ/NJMS, still waiting to hear back from Cincinnati BSMD
I will post soon on the results thread once my DC makes decision, thanks everyone for being so helpful over the past year.
You need gap years only if you fail to get > 3.7 GPA. None of the kids I know who went Ivies took gap years. You need to have a plan and execute it. Donāt think you know everything since you are college and listen to parents 
Check my posting from yāday http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/22721300#Comment_22721300
It is only affecting upcoming M1 and ofc domino effects in following years, but nothing for high school seniors.
@Vicky2019 Thank you for your kind words.
As far as I can tell there is no magic recipe or Sweet Spot. You Work hard , make best informed decision, pray and hope for the best.
- You get perfect stat ( or close to perfect stat).
- Do medical related activity and research. Now a day this is not easy to get one has to work very hard to get this opportunities. even my husband being physician MY d had to work her butt of to get research mentor.
- Find a very well thought plan for which BSMD programs to apply. Quality vs Quantity. Hard balance to find as we all can see wider net has more chances of getting some interview. Being ORM , one need to apply very wide. when your net is wide, you putting a lot of work load in your plate. I would say one BSMD Application is equal to two regular undergrad application. So you have to pick and choose your battle.
- One thing you can not control is your applicant pool like how many students are applying from you school , your geography area. Each program has their set # how many they accept from particular group. I think this is where we had hard time. As we have large # of ORM in our area applying to BSMD programs.
5.Essays are important too. you need your story. And you might think my story is better as you know only your story.
6.Interview prep is also important.
One can mange to get #1,2
But if one first time applicant ( if this is your first child) ( like us) Guidance from Professional definitely ease out the other steps.
.
One thing I value the most is your mental sanity. We all high achieving kids and parent forget the stress we bring to us to achieve high. we really can not ignore this silent monster that will catch up to you later on.
So future applicant start your mindfulness practices now. Take break from your application process as needed. nothing wrong with taking few days off. Do not take any rejection so personal.when you get rejection move on to next thing.
good luck you all.
It is premature to assume, one way the other, based on those stats.
I am pretty sure Wall Street Journal and Times higher considered the institution as a whole while placing UPenn 4th on their list of college ratings, and not based on a sub section of it.
If some folks (not all) belonging to a particular school there have attitude issues, that is their problem, not yours. Let it not be a factor in the decision making.
Have already answered above about possible transfer to Wharton. One can still minor in interested areas I believe.
Competition will be a matter of fact considering the caliber of students there, especially from those who made it through RD.
But UPenn is not known to be a particularly grade deflated school like some others.
Yes, the campus is not that spectacular, typical urban campus.
Dukeās may be the most impressive of the three.