***Official Thread for BSMD Applicants 2018***

Pre-Med & Medical School Multiple Degree Programs
161

@Zairi786, couple of observations and comments. Firstly, I don’t know much about texas 7 year programs, so guess others more knowledgeable will chime in. But I understand some of these programs have intakes of 5 or 6 a year. Wonder what is the rationale behind having such tiny programs, for me a program with not enough critical mass is no program at all.

Wonder why you mentioned your teacher recommendations to be above average, thought some one with your profile would easily get great letters. Also I wish you had done chemistry earlier on so you could present an impressive SAT II or AP score for consideration. Chemistry is perhaps more important than even Biology for some schools (Northwestern and Boston for example, ask the SAT chemistry scores and Math2 only).

Perhaps you want to give another shot at SAT I for a perfect score on Math? Good luck.

162

@philiplaw You can search and locate any posts from any thread. Here is info you are seeking about the student @kybron. But note this student is an outstanding student!

Hey! I’ve been accepted into GWU, VCU, Boston SMED, NWU, UNR, and REMS and will be attending REMS in the fall. Message me if you have any questions!

Also the stat and details in this thread, post # 259 in page 18.

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/19921045#Comment_19921045

163

@misophoniax Heya! thanks a lot for helping us out… I am actually lost… So I really wanna go to a bs/md program… I would appreciate if you could mention ur stats and also how many bs/md programs did you apply to. Thank you!

164

Hey guys! I had a couple of questions… First do you think I should take sat subject tests even if they are not required? Also, since its senior year… I dropped out of taking bio AP… I did that because the class is an actual joke and it basically consists of the teacher giving out random packets to fill out by reading from the textbook which contain answers from online. In conclusion, this class is a whole lot of crap and is very time consuming… I though it would be better to take scientific research and design as it is more time efficient. And also I can concentrate better on college apps when I dont have much to do
Except for that all my classes are AP and scientific research and design which is an honors class. I also took an off period
I am taking honors organic chemistry next year and have already taken freshman honors bio, honors chem, ap physics 1, ap chem, ap environmental science.
Also, is there any point to start shadowing a doctor or do different research at this point? I’m already an incoming senior… do you think colleges will care if you start doing these things this late?
I would appreciate any feedback you guys can give me regarding this

165

@Nabs1234 “First do you think I should take sat subject tests even if they are not required?”

It depends on the bs/md programs you apply.
for example
Northwestern University (HPME)
requires
SAT Subject Tests (Math Level 2 and Chemistry)

Boston University (Seven-Year Liberal Arts/Medical Education Program)
requires
SAT Subject Tests in Chemistry and Math 2. No substitutes for the required tests will be accepted SAT Subject Test in Foreign Language is also recommended.

If you have good scores on SAT subjects, why not send them in?
(Good SAT subject scores only let admission admin know how good you are.)

166

@Nabs1234 regarding the AP courses you take

As I understand, admins see AP classes as challenges for applicants.
If you take AP courses, you “usually” take AP exams as well.
Good AP test scores will help you in bs/md competitions.
(It is not important how many AP courses you have; it is important how good AP scores you have.
some students study AP courses by themselves and get 5s in AP tests.)

167

Let me also add, apart from the scores in them, what APs taken also may be looked into. BCPM may weigh in the most - Biology, Chemistry, Math (Calc) especially followed by Physics (preferably C level, Calc based).

Went through some profiles where the kids were going all over the place with the APs, it may sound to the admissions folks of these programs that they were doing it more for the number of APs under their belts, to impress them, and not out of real interest, which may prove counter productive.

168

Also wanted to add, there is no consistent AP policy across the board. Have personally come across kids with not so good AP scores (3s) still getting called for interviews and even offered admissions. So let AP scores not demotivate anyone. Its good to have as close to perfect scores as possible, but not a deal breaker otherwise. If the programs are picky and choosy they will let it known upfront one way or other, like Northwestern for example where they will review the applicant’s entire academic track before even deciding whether or not to send the application link. Also you can check with the admission counselors where and when you visit.

169

Thank you @rk2017 for encouragement, but should she self-report all scores 3’s to 5’s for transparency, since the transcript itself shows the classes?

170

@ppst, hmm, tough question since we did not face the situation, the kid had 5s in all the 4 A.P.s she had by end of junior year, so we reported all (BCM and Micro Economics). So not sure what the ideal thing to do would be. But taking an AP course does not mean the AP exam has to be necessarily taken right? Some kids may simply want to do the AP course(s) to boost their weighted GPAs. So guess it may be ok to leave out the scores you are not happy with or not directly relevant to the intended major of study. But again, that is a guess.

Separately on a visit to RPI, the kid asked the admissions counselor what matters more, the school grade on the AP course or the score on the exam itself (since they have some pretty tough grading teachers in their school, sort of grade deflated school if you will). The counselor opined that the grade received in the school is more important since that shows the track record of the entire year and not how one performed in a 3 hour window of exam on a particular day. Also, I believe they have decent idea of easy grading vs. grade deflated and profiles of high schools in a given region.

171

Hello,
I am a prospective bsmd applicant’s parent. Below are his stats. Appreciate any feedback on his chances for bsmd and any suggestions for the programs best fit his profile. Thx.

GPA – 4/4 unweighted 4.8/4.8 weighted
SAT – 1580, ACT-35, SAT 2 – Math 2- 800, Chem – 770
Rank 1/325

AP (10 total upto junior year)
Biology, 5
Calculus BC,5
Calculus AB 5
English Literature and Composition 5
Computer Science A 5
Physics 1 5
United States History 4
Chemistry 5
Human Geography 4
World History 4

Senior Year AP – English Lang and Composition, Physics 2, US Govt, Statistics. Psycology

ECs / awards
Research at UCI in pre-med (published paper along with others) , summer 10th
Research at an institute in NeuroScience summer 11th
HOSA 9th to 12th grade. Received National 9th place, International 7th place and State 1st in HOSA event competitions.
Hospital volunteer 275 hrs
Shadowing multiple specialities 75 hrs.
National AP scholar
Expecting to be National Semifinalist (PSAT SCORE 1500/1520)
NHS
Highly Gifted.

172

@ConcernedDad2000 May be you should change your handle to GiftedDad2000!

Out of 6 key areas, 3 are very good (GPA, Test Scores and EC). So do the best for the remaining 3 areas (Essays, Interview and Luck). Apply to a variety of programs and also for good UG schools. Futile to chance. GL.

173

Thanks GoldenRock, for the reply and the feedback. I will share your feedback with my son.

174

@concerneddad2000 - your son has great stats and good ECs as @GoldenRock said. My son had similar profile last year and applied to few programs and got RPI and BU but chose to attend Vandrtbilt with full tuition scholarship. We are also from California and felt tha may have reduced his odds with these programs. Good luck to your son.

175

Hello all,

I went through the BS/MD application process the previous year (for the class of 2021). I will be starting school in the Fall of 2017 at UIC’s GPPA Medicine Program. College Confidential really helped me throughout my application process, and I hope I can be of some help to the future BS/ MD Applicants.

Overall, I would say that there is no one thing that determines whether you are qualified for the BS/MD programs. Each program has its own focus and mission; its most likely that you won’t be fit for all those programs.

I believe that if you are truly committed to medicine and really want to pursue your academic career through a BS/MD program, you can truly do it. I started off my application process by making a list of the BS/MD programs I would apply to (there are a lot of websites online that provide a full list of the colleges that have these kinds of programs). After filtering based on residency and average ACT/GPA, I narrowed it down to about 35 colleges. (I ended up applying to about 20 colleges - including undergraduate programs only)

Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.6
ACT Score: 34
SAT Subject Math 2: 800
SAT Subject Biology: 790

AP Classes:
AP Biology- 5
AP Chemistry-5
AP Calculus BC- 5
AP Macroeconomics-5
AP Microeconomics- 5
AP Art History- 5
AP Human Geography (self studied)- 4

I moved to the United States in the Junior Year of High School. I live in Naperville (West suburbs of Chicago). I had maintained all A’s in my 9th and 10th grade (completed in India), and continued to maintain straight A’s in my Junior and Senior years of high school in the US.

Professional Experience:

  • Dr. Rubin's Mini Medical School- Student (winter of 2015)
  • Teaching Assistant (summer of 2016 & winter of 2016)
  • Research at the University of Illinois at Chicago in the Molecular Biology Research Building (2 months- Summer of Junior Year)
  • Shadowing
  • Dentist (50 hours)
  • Gynecologist (20 hours)
  • Non Invasive Cardiologist (20 hours)

Volunteer Experience: (throughout Junior and Senior year)

  • Hospital- Emergency Room
  • Vibha Chicago (Non Profit Organization)
  • Buddy Break

EC’s:

  • Model United Nations- Mentor
  • Aspiring Medical Professionals Club - Executive Board Member
  • HOSA- Executive Board Member
  • Student Council- Executive Board Member
  • Indian Instrumental Orchestra - Mentor and Harmonium Player

Awards:

  • DPSSL Model United Nations Conference- Best Delegate Award
  • Zeste Model United Nations Conference- Special Mention Award
  • DPSN Model United Nations Conference- Special Mention Award
  • Greenwave Model United Nations Conference- High Commendation Award
  • Scholar Badge/ Academic Achievement Award consecutively for 9 years
  • Wildcat Pride Award
  • Honors Award
  • Sandesh Speech Competition- 2nd Place
  • Sandesh Music Competition - 3rd Place

Essays:
My essays were my ORIGINAL ideas and reflected my thoughts. and my own passion for medicine. I think your essay should have something that conveys something unique about you. My Junior friends often call me asking for help, and they always say, “…but I don’t have anything unique. I’ve never had anything unique happen to me.” Trust me, that’s what EVERYONE thinks during the essay writing time. Give yourself some time, and you will find the “unique and interesting” parts of your “mundane-seeming” life. I was sitting at a party, and the idea for my Common Application Essay just hit me. Look into the details of the big events of your life; you will find something that will make you smile, something that makes you unique.

Letters of Recommendation:

  • My teachers absolutely loved my determination and passion that I displayed in their classes. No one ever felt that I had moved from a different country so recently. I seemed to fit in really well, and the teachers really appreciated the efforts that I put in to succeed in their classes. Multiple teachers nominated me for various awards at the school level within my first year.
  • I also received a letter of recommendation from the professor with whom I worked with at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
  • Another letter of recommendation was provided by Dr. Rubin.
  • The dentist I shadowed also provided me with a letter of recommendation.

Interview:

  • For the UMKC interview, the format was the MMI format, which involved 10- 11 short interviews with professionals and faculty at UMKC. I prepared for the MMI's by watching mock interviews online and reading and learning about medical ethics. I loved all the questions the interviewers asked me! I made sure that I left the "me element" in all the short interviews.
  • At the UIC GPPA interview, I had a wonderful time! Most of our conversation revolved around my perspective on things and my values. I had a lot of funny stories about how I adjusted in the United States. I had so much to say in such less time.

Even though I applied to a lot of BS/MD programs, I only got accepted into 2 programs- UMKC and UIC. However, UIC was my number 1 choice from the very beginning as it is very close to home and is very well reputed.

I wish all of the aspiring BS/MD applicants a very good luck! BE YOURSELF throughout the application process! Let me know if you have any questions: I would love to help!

176

@collegeready101 Congratulations and best wishes at UIC. It is definitely an accomplishment and you deserve full credit for adjusted to US HS especially knowing you came only in junior year. At times adversity / tough situations brings the best out of human beings. I recall from my D’s school, there was a girl who came from India and started 9th and she has to go thru some adjustment. But at the end she is one of the only 2 students from that school to join Harvard.

It will be useful, if you can post this in the 2017 results thread also to help future students / parents. One more data will also help is , how many interviews you got out of the BS/MD programs you applied.

177

I hope a previous bsmd applicant, parent or a current applicant who knows, can help me by answering the following 3 questions:

  1. When listing medical related extracurricular activities in the common app, do you group 'shadowing" all under one heading, "medicine related volunteering" under another, " research activities" together so on and so forth? ( to save space).
  2. How did you have documentation of what is mentioned above? Letter from the hospital, physician, researcher? One nursing home my daughter volunteers at (not the main one), doesn't have a sign in sheet. Should we request a letter from them any way, or is that irrelevant?
  3. Did you use only the activities sections of common app to list these activities or provide a supplement with more details?

Thank you for your time.

178

@thetex Regarding your post (in the 2017 thread), there should be some options to specify the ‘academic’ concentration and select PLME programs. Then it will expect to answer few questions related to why that area of study and program etc.,

Use this year thread for all your future questions and others will respond and this thread will become active shortly once every one starts the application process.

179

@ttv2018 Here is the response to all your 3 questions. It is going to differ from school to school and program to program. From preparation point of view, suggest do the following.

  1. Prepare a resume / CV with every thing and keep it handy.
  2. Have an excel sheet with all your activities / clubs , awards, what ever. Sort them in the order of priority / significance and keep the list to 8-15 items.
    Activity Type Grade Year Total Hours “Hours/
    Week” “Weeks/
    Year” “From
    mm/yy” “To
    mm/yy” If held only during school break Org Role / Position Description
  3. Have your essay / prompts related to why medicine, why this school and why this program etc.,

Some schools / programs, will take only Common App and may not be any thing extra. But majority of them will have supplemental app and that will have list of additional questions and sections and sub sections etc.,
So you can cut and paste and edit depending on what each appl, supp app expects. Some programs will ask you to list every thing in one question / section. Some school will ask specific question just to list medical related activities and another question for community service,

For none you need any documentation or letter from the org for volunteer hours. Of course you will send test scores and school grade etc

180

@ REOSpeedwagon,
University of Pitt has 8 years direct dentistry program , it accepted about 50 students each year . Check up the pitt gap program
https://oafa.pitt.edu/explore/guaranteed-admissions-programs/
Click on dentsl link . The requirement is not as high medinice .