I do not believe it has changed. But you should know that program is highly competitve and they favor those students who generally have parents in medicine.
How do you know they favor parents in medicine?
Hi all,
My dream program is the Penn State Jefferson 7 year med program
I understand having a favorite program is risky since the odds of getting into the specific program are very low, but recently I have just been so stressed on getting in that I would like to know if I even have the stats.
Here is my profile, please let me know if you think I have a good chance 
GPA: 97.06 UW (out of 100). When reported to colleges it is also converted to a 4.0 UW out of 4.0
SAT 1580
School does not report class rank, but probably 5/80 (top magnet school in NJ)
Sat subject tests: Math 2: 800 Bio: 800 Chem: 760
Residence: NJ
Male
Income: >200,000
Indian American
IB Classes (IB school that offers very few APs)
History (SL, 12th grade)
Math (SL, 10/11th grade): Received 7/7
Spanish (SL, 11th grade): Received 6/7
Physics (HL, 11/12th grade)
Bio (HL 11/12th grade)
Language and Literature (HL, 11th/12th grade)
AP classes
AP Comp Sci A (12th grade)
AP Calculus BC (12th grade)
Other things:
Conducted 2 research experiments through school (10/11th grade), competed in Jersey Shore Science Fair (10th grade won honorable mention, 11th grade won second place), qualified for Delaware Valley Science Fair 11th grade and won honorable mention
National Merit Commended Scholar
2 NJ TSA competitions that I placed decently (13th place and 4th place)
Class Council secretary freshman year
Captain of my towns travel soccer team freshman year of high school
2 years varsity soccer
2 years JV track and field both spring and winter
Member of local indian cultural association for 9 years and participated in dances and conducted a spring festival as an MC
Member of local EMS (2 years)
Graduated EMT class (not certified, waiting till 18 to take certification exam so I can be nationally certified rather than state)
AHA Certified BLS CPR instructor
American Red Cross local chapter volunteer 2 years
Local hospital volunteer 3 years (in which I did a mini med program through during the summer)
Peer tutor in Spanish and Physics
Member of religious temple (Hindu)
Member of local chapter of Swadhyay (hindu/gujarati cultural group)
1st degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do
Member of school JSA chapter
Member of school academic team
National Honors Society 2 years
I am mostly concerned that my extracurriculars don’t set me apart enough; I don’t think I have any hooks besides having played soccer my entire life. My essays demonstrate my interest in medicine and are related to soccer. My essay skills aren’t the best. I probably rate my Common App essay a 7/10 along with my supplementals. I think I have a great personality; I am sweet and I am a fluid talker, so my interviews will hopefully be an 8/10
Thanks guys, appreciate the help
any shadowing experience? Some programs place emphasis on that
No, no shadowing experience sadly. I hope graduating EMT school, volunteering at a hospital, being a CPR instructor, doing independent research, and volunteering for the red cross are sufficient for med experience. It would have been nice to have shadowing experience, however
@Dreamingteen3221 Don’t worry about anything at this point. Simply do your best and apply to schools of your choice. Though you like PSU, apply to NJMS and its feeder schools, though NJ is ultra competitive since you are NJ resident.
All: Some general comments. Just my take, every one can differ with their views.
You don’t have give too much personal information on a public forum. Keep things very minimal. The only reason in the medical field any one wants to know URM, ORM or netiher since admission has some bearing on that. But you can simply state URM or ORM if applicable. Same thing on Salary. It is know if need based or merit based opportunity exist or not. So don’t mention anything about salary.
Folks, I just submitted Baylor supplementals (3 questions) and received no confirmation from Baylor or any indication of how they would tag it with my Rice application. There is no way to track it. Is it normal? I am thinking of calling Baylor but wanted to check before I do so. Thanks!
@neurochic
She applied 3 weeks back.
@neuronchick FYI @Mimic17 got in to NW HPME in 2017 cycle. He/She posted in 2017 Result thread.
There is no advantage in BS/MD process (as you claim) of having a MD parent.
03-28-2017 at 2:04 pm
I got into NW HPME, announced on Sat Mar 18, 2017
@Dreamingteen3221 You have excellent Stats and ECs. IMHO, you should get a few interviews. Do not worry about shadowing. You can still do 40-50 hrs of shadowing before interviews, There is NO magic combination of medical related ECs.
@neurochic FYI @Mimic17 got in to NW HPME in 2017 cycle. He/She posted in 2017 Result thread.
There is no advantage in BS/MD process (as you claim) of having a MD parent.
03-28-2017 at 2:04 pm
I got into NW HPME, announced on Sat Mar 18, 2017
HPME undergrad requirements have changed:
HPME students need to maintain GPA requirements in their science courses (3.55 or above) and overall academic courses (3.7 or above). This is higher than last year GPA for science - 3.5 and overall 3.65.
Notes:
- HPME has been increasing the GPA requirements every year for the past 3 years.
- If they continue at this rate, their program will become like WashU - practically unattractive & counterproductive - such that very few students would want to apply there.
- GPA of 3.65 translates to graduating with an “A-” under a system where grades are curved.
@Dreamingteen3221
Your profile appears to be strong but remember we do NOT know what the admissions team look for in a candidate.
You will be competing with other students with similar or better profile.
Remember 3000 to 5000+ students will apply for the 4, 6, 8, 12, 20, 30 or 60 spots available at various colleges.
So, please do NOT be over-confident.
Right now focus on applications. Worry about interviews post December.
So, apply to dozen+ schools and pray to God that you get interview calls from your dream school plus other schools.
@neurochic
HPME gives practically no preference to students whose parents are doctors.
They do give tremendous weightage to why you want to do medicine.
@RedMan108
Yes, that is normal for Baylor.
In fact, you will NOT hear from Rice/Baylor until March.
@pun2018
NO. CaseWestern looks for your score in the SAME sitting for its BS/MD program.
@kyrietonyk
Stevens is a feeder school to NJ Medical School (Rutgers).
Expect it to be very competitive.
@futuredoctor5580
Most undergrad colleges will INSIST on you staying on campus for first 1 or 2 years. Very few colleges will give you waivers to stay off-campus.
Question for you to ask yourself: Do you WANT (really really WANT) to pursue BS/MD or do you want to be close to home?
Does med school prestige really matter? Or is it just the score you get on the Step 1?