<p>BDM is completely correct in that many students take these programs as a chance to relax, and therefore experience mediocre results. For example, this year they cut back seats in the HPME program because the HPME students were at the bottom of the class at Feinberg. I assume that similar results from most programs.</p>
<p>But, there is definitely a flip side to this issue. Some students actually excel at these programs because they know that they have a safety net. They learn the material to actually learn, instead of learning it solely to regurgitate on a test. And these students apply out from these programs into great medical schools. There are probably countless examples, but one that comes to mind are that this year, 3 usc bacc/md students were accepted at yale, 10 at ucla, and others at various other top notch schools.</p>