@grtd2010, Her senior got selected to NW, Brown, rutgers, tcnj, etc… Two things concerns me 1. SAT score 2. she is an Indian origin.
@grtd2010, just curious what is your DD stats?
–
Despite of a not so stellar SAT score, your D has a pretty impressive overall background. With this, I would suggest though to reduce the number of programs to apply for, since it involves considerable effort in terms of essays, interviews, travel and preparations. Also it will divert her time and resources from high profile traditional undergrad programs she may be interested in, which is a must for everyone applying to BS/MD as an alternative.
You may shorten the list by reconsidering some of the 8 year programs for example. Or the intake per each program or those with preference for in state and regional candidates etc. Better focus instead on fewer and higher quality programs with realistic chances of getting in. Refer to the 2018 results thread for more insights (such as for example someone mentioning no point applying to Pitt without a 1600 or 36, of course this can be somewhat subjective).
And yes do include NW in your list, it is perhaps the best BS/MD program out there and also shorter in duration. You will know right upfront whether or not you will be invited to apply for their program and so she won’t end up spending the time and effort unnecessarily.
@rk2017 thanks for your input…will include NW
@Mahikesh I agree with @rk2017 to reduce the number of programs to 6-8. You may want to include CWRU BS/MD. One strategy may be to apply 1-2 programs/state. Is there any time left for your DD in a day ? It does not matter which UG school you attend or your major in UG for a MD. How do you perform once you are in medical school that matters. I would not recommend HPME, PLME or Rice/Balyor for BS/MD, just my 2 cents.
Actually I feel both Rice/Baylor and Brown PLME fall in the category of unrealistic (one of the yardsticks I suggested while choosing where to apply)., the former because of very low intake of 6 with potential preference for TX residents (irrespective of what is posted on their web site) and the latter due to their ivy league overall admissions policies unfavorable to asian students (one of the concerns actually pointed to by @Mahikesh yesterday). You can read further on NY Times about recent federal department of justice’s endorsement of the law suit against Harvard by asian origin students who felt they had been discriminated.
Similarly UAB can be ruled out due to strong in state and regional preference, though they sparingly take others.
I think NW program doesn’t have these drawbacks and the med school is highly regarded world wide.
Of course you can still apply to above two if you want and see, but better not have high expectations and put too much effort. Feel free to private message me if you want me to share any other info I may have.
@rk2017 , @grtd2010 Thanks for taking time to reply my questions. What is normal average SAT for CWRU and Pitt?
The minimum for Pitt is a 1490/34. I’d assume the average is closer to 1580/35.
Does anyone have a list of deadline for these programs? Which one is due Nov 1 or earlier?
[QUOTE=""]
latter due to their ivy league overall admissions policies unfavorable to asian students
[/QUOTE]
Coincidentally this is the news today, with Brown being co-accused:
Has anyone gotten the Pitt GAP supplement?
Need suggestions please for college visits. My son is interested in direct BSMD programs but we need to also have back up UG pre med. He is a junior now and the only stats are UW GPA 3.98, Bio SAT 780, Chem SAT 790. He plans to take SAT in Dec and SAT Maths 2 in June. NY resident in a very competitive public school that sends about 10% (40 students) to Ivies. We want to start college visits and this is our list so far - please add/delete provide suggestions. We are looking for merit scholarship - will not qualify for need based. His interest are neuroscience/biochemistry/cellular molecular. He has been involved in research with the same professor in a medical school over the last 2 years (and will continue until HS ends) and takes research elective at school - so looking for a research focused university. And the bad news - he is South Asian male (ORM).
UG
Cornell (CALS)
Emory
Brandies
Northeastern
UPitt
Rovhester Univ
SUNY Binghamton
BS/MD
Boston Univ
U Pitt GAPP
Rochester Univ REMs
Albany/Union
StonyBrook
CUNY Sophie Davies
What do you all think?
@rk2017 @theperfectmed1 - question on BU - website says SAT Spanish is preferred - not sure my son will be able to take SAT Spanish before college apps - will it be a complete no no for BU?
Thank you all.
@brown2024 Sophie Davis requires students send both ACT and SAT. If you are truly interested, make sure your son studies for and takes both tests. They also require 5 letters of reccomendation.
Also, the research is great but make sure he gets significant clinical based volunteering at a hospital or nursing home. The schools want to see that he has had experience with patients. Volunteering with underserved populations is also a good idea. Finally, they really like to see some doctor shadowing to make sure that the kid actually knows what the life of a doctor really entails.
- Thought handle name suggests, the college your son wants to go and that is missing in your list! They do have a BS/MD also.
- BU has admitted in BS/MD who have not taken Spanish SAT.
- Always suggest every student to take both SAT and ACT. Since for many they are stronger in one of them, if not both.
- If distance is not a restriction you can consider Rice/Baylor, CWRU, NU for BS/MD
- If merit is critical, you may have to reconsider some choice in both BS/MD and Regular. For ex, chances are nil for BU (and it costs $Half Million). UPitt gives free tuition for UG. So you need to so some initial calculation to finalize the list.
- There are still some colleges give merit aid if National Merit finalist. So prepare a list of that schools, if they interest you, like UAB, OU, Tulsa etc
- None of the Ivy and many top 20 are need based only. So you will NOT get any merit. Few top who give merit aid are Vanderbilt, Chicago. Do your research and add and remove college for the final list based on these factors.
- Since he is only in Junior, make sure he spends time to help volunteering clinical and non-clinical (helped seniors, under served population), that is much more significant than research. Whether BS/MD or Regular MD, that is so important. Not only from admission point of view, but more for him to validate if that is what he wants to do all his life.
@gallentjill @GoldenRock
Thank you both for the input. Currently he is volunteering in hospital as patient escort (2yrs now) - waiting till he turns 16yr to move to another role. Will definitely look into underserved population volunteering.
He is not in Brown PLME league - he is not a liberal arts person - no hooks all. The school sends 1 a year to Brown UG - always legacy.
The only reason we have Cornel Cals is we get a break on fees due to NY resident/contract college.
He has shadowed a few doctors - will add more.
@brown2024. I’m curious why Brooklyn college isn’t on your list. It seems a good fit if you like Sophie Davis.
Looking at your username, I felt for a moment that you are a hard core Brown enthusiast who was going to blast me for posting that brown news :-).
Yes, I concur with your decision, no point wasting effort on Brown unless you are a legacy or URM.
Regarding BU BA/MD program, it is a liberal arts focused program, your son needs to minor (or double major depending on interest) in one of the liberal arts concentrations ranging from philosophy, anthropology, psychology … He can’t do so in biology or any of the affiliated areas. However they have a rigorous science curriculum which I think he will enjoy.
In terms of merit scholarships, BU is better than Ivies since it offers merit aid of about 20k to 5-6% of the incoming class, NMS finalist status may play an important role in that regard so he needs to prepare for PSAT which may be upcoming pretty soon. He can’t take it casually like most students tend to. You can check BU web site for now and even better ask the admissions folks directly regarding their scholarship criteria on your visit if you are planning one. I guess about 1% get what is called Trustee scholarship which covers entire tuition and fees for the undergrad. SAT language subject test is optional and won’t play a role in selections. He can take it even in senior year at the end of the academic year. Based on the score, they will waive the requirement of having to take a foreign language course once he is in BU. Worst case he may be asked to take a foreign language course.
Even if he doesn’t get any scholarship, he will still be saving a year’s tuition compared to other 8 year programs which tend to give some scholarship amount. Also if you consider the “opportunity cost” of he being able to earn during that saved year during residency instead of having to pay the med school tuition, it is not that bad. BU is a great research university and the location is the best one can imagine. Based on his motivation and interest he can even pursue his research interests at Harvard Med School and MIT besides BU even during his undergrad years.
Regarding other schools, Cornell is supposedly a grade deflated and ultra competitive school GPA wise for traditional route. You may want to take a note, however since he is already in such a school presently and doing quite well, he may do just fine. Emory is a grade school for traditional route, they may even award him merit scholarship.
UAB has a great BS/MD program of 8 years, but they tend to mostly take in state and regional candidates. Regarding UPitt’s program, it may already be a reach for him since it appears he missed perfect GPA (they don’t care about high school rigor or prestige). I know a student with a similar GPA as your son’s at one of the top STEM schools of the country who was wait-listed and eventually turned down by that program. Also, UPitt gives full tuition for only about 1% of incoming class in traditional route, so don’t count on it necessarily (check their common data set for more details, which I also shared earlier on this thread). And yes, you would definitely want to add North Western to your list of BS/MD programs. But if for any reason they don’t select him for the program, they will deny him admission in the traditional route also. I think RPI/Albany may be better suited for his background because of research focus and also saves a year.
@rk2017 thank you for the detailed response. Being a finance person I was having the same rationale of 7yr fees even if no merit:) we are ok to pay full as far as he is happy with the program and place. Yes Boston is a great place - my niece did UG at BU and is now working at Emory Bill Gates Foundation. He likes Psychology as it ties in well with his neuroscience interest.
I totally agree on Cornell - our school sends 20 to 25 kids there - I have been following the pre med kids - some of them are so upset because they can’t even maintain a GPA of 3.2. I will look into RPI/Albany. I didn’t put North Western since I thought it would be a stretch - will research it a bit more.
How about Penn State/Jefferson?
@gallentjill after you first note - we looked at Sophie Davis in detail and may take if off the list. He did both SAT/ACT prior to preparing in depth and doesn’t want to take ACT.
Sure, Penn State/Jefferson is a great program too. I personally feel Northwestern’s is the best BS/MD program with very realistic chances of getting in. I think Rochester takes less than 10 kids a year, so it may actually be a stretch, but you may want to research more.