Thread for BSMD Applicants 2019

Pre-Med & Medical School Multiple Degree Programs
82

Could anyone give me any points for my resume so far?
I am a rising junior.

I am also a terrible test taker. I had an A in AP Bio both semesters (first student ever to do so in the last 4 years), but shookingly recieved a 3 on the AP exam. And to add insult to injury, scored a 750 on the Bio M Subject test. Will this hurt the chances of me getting in?

SATs: have been hoovering around high 1400s on Khan Academy, but will prep intensively and hopefully get a solid 1500+ score.

Rank: 1/300ish, 4.0 U/W, 4.3W

Great essays, good rec letters
 hopefully

Medical ECs: Cancer research $5000 stipend, 100hrs at ucla hosptial, pre med scholars program, 300hrs at local hospital, nuerogist shadowing, IYNA staff, published article on nueroscience. Main EC: started a pre med club at school, raised 800hrs+ through various internships, programs, volunteering oppurtunities. Raised $500 through halloween and christmas fundraising for medical research and charities. Planning on using the cancer research stipend plus help from dad’s work (water solution company) to travel to india and help with water pollution and build water piping, etc.

Other ECs: speech and debate (qualified for regionals both years of high school, science bowl (bio guy) placed 3rd locally, aca deca (scored highest on math and science, which was biology, on b team), volleyball (really love this sport!!!) league champs this year!, leadership (was in charge of multiple programs ie pink day.

Awards seem week: few gpa school awards, president awards, certificates for completing med programs, cpr certified, most improved for vball, nothing to crazy.

Anyways, kinda went off on a tangent
 will a 3 on bio coupled with a 750 on the bio m test severey hinder my chances of getting into a bs/md program. Ive had my eyes set on drexel, case western, northwestern, and bu. I plan on taking APES next year (hince my plan on going to india), and will self study for math 2 and chem subject tests.

I know I still got junior year ahead of me, but I am set on becoming a doctor. However, if you see anything that you want to point out, please let me know. College confidential is a great place, and has helped me have a great sophmore year. Thank you

83

@MaybeIvy2020 you are certainly a very strong applicant. don’t worry so much about the future, have fun during your high school years!

84

Ok, oops idk how it posted 2 comments. How can i delete it?

And I am still super worried about my Bio score


85

Would someone mind chancing me for these bs/md programs?

Stats:
ACT: 33
GPA (UW): 3.96

AP’s: AP Gov, AP European History, AP US History, AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Calc AB/BC, AP Language, AP Literature

SAT Subject Tests: yet to be taken, but determined to get an 800 in Bio and Math II

Extra Curriculars:
Key Club member for 4 years
Volleyball player for 2 years
Lead dance instructor for 5 years, with performances for charity
National Honors Society member
Second language graduate
American Cancer Society Social Media Advisor
Biology Olympiad member

Volunteering:
Key Club
Hospital (200+ hours)
Dance (400+ hours)

Research:
Currently doing a research project with one of the UC’s, with a paper that will be published.

86

What scores did you get on your APs?

87

@rk2017 @futuremd07 should I include my ap scores on my college apps? Especially for bio, as I will need to obviously take the university’s bio course


88

@MaybeIvy2020,

I think I answered this earlier in this thread. Technically you don’t have to report your score or even take the AP test for that matter. But on the common/universal applications they have sections asking you to list all your AP and subject tests scores. If you don’t mention your scores there, the admission folks can potentially notice from your high school transcript that you did take AP course(s) but haven’t mentioned the score in the section. So they can conclude that either your score wasn’t good enough like a 2 or something or you didn’t take the test at all. May not happen with every school/program, but very likely with some some of the well known ones that you mentioned you are interested in.

And yes, depending on the program you may not get credit for Biology or even more courses regardless of your AP, subject test and high school credentials. In case of D, her program doesn’t allow any credit for Bio, Chem and Physics courses though she had 5s in all APs and 800s in subject tests. Since they feel their introductory college courses in these areas are at a level higher than AP courses (and taught by some of the tough profs). They only give credit for Math/Statistics/Comp Science APs. Of course she could make use of her AP economics credits if she wants to minor in that, but she is not too keen anyway.

And don’t be so fixated on this AP score for the time being for your own good, it can be counter productive. You still have chance to rectify that. And what is the worst that can happen? Having to go through the traditional route? Most people going to med school do it that way, so not a big deal.

89

@MaybeIvy2020 DD did get into OU Medical Humanities program but chose to attend a different program closer to home. It is advisable to take introductory Bio, Chem and Physics classes during the first/second year. Some folks who get AP credits, do take higher level classes in the same subject. This whole BS/MD process is a crap shoot and it is futile to compare oneself to any past applicant.

90

Gotcha. Thank you!

91

@MaybeIvy2020 You can’t change the AP score, and having the test done during the 10th grade, a “3” is not the end of the application process. That said, I’d strongly recommend you to take either the ACT or the SAT to achieve ACT 36 or SAT 1560+ for the likes of CWRU/UCLA. What other AP classes are you taking - you should have AP Chem AP Physics (ideally) AP Lang/and or/ Lit, AP AB, Plus AP Psyc if possible. There is no general requirement for how many APs you should have, but you are competing other well qualified applicants in the pool and they all have strong GPAs, strong ACT/SAT, so the kind of APs you have do matter. Once you are through with the academic screens, you need to make sure on the WHY portion of the application. Why do you want to be doctor? Esp. why a BS/MD path vs a more traditional path and Why a particular program. The “Whys” should fit what you have done with your ECs, the medical hours, and your other interests. The “Whys” are very important. I notice you have packed a lot of medical related hours, so, “DEEPLY reflect” of a situation or two during those hrs on what a medical profession mean to you. It is not enough to say, wow, I wanna be a doc because I wanna help people, help the world etc etc. It needs to wrap whatever insights you have about the professional into your own story. Those things will come up either in your essays or during the interviews (and the invited interviews are very selective). Each BS/MD program has a different take and requirement, make sure you understand what they are, and kinda loop-back to the Why “us” question. Wife and I are both docs and been thru the Med school process many years ago. We didn’t take these BS/MD paths and even for our first D, we advised her not to take this path. We want her to explore the broad opportunities a college student should have, instead of a narrowly focused path and have the blinders on. So make sure the path you have chosen, at your age, is indeed what you are committed to do for the next decade (if not for life). JMHO.

92

@Mickey2Dad

UCLA doesn’t have a direct med program. So I believe you were alluding to the traditional route. Choosing which school to attend via traditional route is a whole other ball game. I don’t have direct knowledge but have read posts last year that UCLA is not an ideal school for med school aspirants because of grade deflation and ultra competition.

Separately, based on the statistics from a somewhat reputed carribean med school that I read some time ago, of the top 5 US schools that send students there, 4 are UCs and if I remember correctly UCLA tops it. So that gives an indication of how tough the students graduating from there to find med school placements here.

Of course brand name and prestige of the undergrad school does help in med school selections but can’t offset much of a grade deflation.

93

Hello, everyone! I was a BS/MD applicant during the 2017-2018 school year, and I will be attending the 7-yr Penn/Jeff program in the fall! I have some downtime before college begins, so feel free to ask me any questions.

94

@rk2017 Oops
 Read the OP too quick and have the UC schools in my head early in the morning. I don’t disagree the concerns of UCLA’s vigor. I happen to know a couple of kiddos throughout the years who have gone through the program. I assume OP is from California based on the info. given, so the UC med schools should be the highest priority (and thru the traditional route) if the BS/MD combo didn’t work out. That being said, the couple of kiddos I knew who went thru UCLA/UCB system and with strong GPA/MCAT (3.85+, 520+ eqv) end up in UCLA, UCSF and Stanford Med schools.

Back to the original BS/MD and the AP score matter, IMO, it is something the OP can not change. I would reco. against not reporting since it is a lose lose case. Immediate assumption for not reporting is the score being less than a “3” - that’s the perception anyways. Better to disclose it and let the chips fall wherever. I know the CaseWestern PPSP program is extremely difficult to get in
 so is UPitt’s GAP - with those places, being an ORM will not help as well. [Drexel/Temple could be a slight bit easier]. I think an ACT 36, SAT 1560+ plus the strong GPA will negate the weaker AP score factor. Try to “Ace” AP Chem (5), Chem SAT (780+) to buffer things up a bit. If possible, retake the SAT BIO(M) with a 780+ as well.

The acceptance rate for BS/MD program is very low, so have a backup plan on the type of schools you want to do through the traditional route. Our D went thru UMich for UG and end up in Hopkins for med. We were strongly against her to go through the BS/MD route back then (and she probably didn’t have the scores nor the medical hours to make her application compelling enough for top programs) and that turned out to be a great decision for our family (and D). JMHO


95

@Mickey2Dad

Agree with you. In fact I suggested to take AP Chem asap on the other thread in place of AP ES. Good to hear the success stories of the kids you knew and your own D as well. Wonderful. But also statistically there have been more painful stories than success lately. I also happened to come across this 4 year old article on newyork times on carribean med schools that came up during my earlier post. The link below, rather long article but may give some insights.

@TheElusiveGod

Good to see you back here after a pause. It is so Godly :slight_smile: of you to offer to answer questions and help. Good luck with your fall semester and beyond.

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/03/education/edlife/second-chance-med-school.html

96

@rk2017 Haha, thank you! Always happy to help :slight_smile:

97

[QUOTE=""]

But also statistically there have been more painful stories than success lately.

[/QUOTE]

Should have added in the previous post, that even highly meritorious kids I came across, even the top cream of the nationally well known high schools like Stuyvesant and Thomas Jefferson (TJHSST) are willing to commit to direct med programs (any, not necessarily so called top tier) than go through regular route and face the unknown. Kind of taking the approach of Bird in hand is better than 5 in the bush.

No right and wrong approach, the students and their parents will have to weigh in all the factors, risk, comfort level, finances, instate vs oos or private, and the whole nine yards and come to a conclusion. Should not have any regrets later on no matter what they may choose and just focus on the task at hand.

98

Wow, thank you so much for the reply. Ill make sure to reflect my medical experience into my essay and interviews. As far as my AP scores, I have been told to retake Bio and try to atleast get a four, and I will probably be able to retain lots of info as I will be doing bio olympiad and science bowl. But will retaking the exam increase my chances by that much? I will obviously be majoring in bio if I do take the traditional route, so there wouldn’t be a point of using the ap credit to skip it
 With that in mind, if I dont retake the AP test for bio, should I even mention I got a 3? Again, I wouldnt be needing the credit anyways. As far as subject tests are concerned, I will be retaking the bio test, and am pretty confident in getting above a 780.

Also, for some bs/md programs, it is recommended to take a certain Math subject test? I was planning on taking math level 1 in August with bio. I just finished Algebra 2, so taking math 2 would be hard for me in August, but will certainly take it after Junior year.

Here are the APs that I plan on taking:
Next year (Junior): AP Enviromental Science, AP Lang, AP US History, AP Comp Sci/ pre calc, college class, and leadership.

Senior Year: AP Chem, AP Gov, AP Econ, AP Lit, AP Calc/ college class, Aca Deca

(Our school doesnt offer AP econ, but I can self study for it, as it comes up frequently in Aca Deca).

I will take the Chem Subject test and Math Level 2 (if recommended) August of 2019, as I probably won’t have the chance to submit the AP score for it.

I can’t take AP Physics or Chem next year due to schedule conflicts with sports and other APs :(. My school is very small and offers a couple to a few AP classes of each subject
 so its difficult for people like me to take multiple APs. On average, juniors next year are taking 2-3 APs, while sophmores this past year were high recommended to only take one


99

@MaybeIvy2020 College Board does provide alternative AP testing date(s), generally 2-weeks later than regular testing date(s) for various schedule conflict. Check with your school and see if they offer this option. You may need to pay additional $45 for each AP test taking on the alternative late date with some exceptions. Google ‘College Board AP late testing policy’ will give you more details.

You may also consider taking AP Chem and Calc B/C in junior year & move other APs like Env Sci and Comp Sci to senor year, so you can take both SAT Chem/Math2 after you complete your AP courses.

100

@MaybeIvy2020

Agree with @biomeds - AP Chem is far more important than APES for a pre-med/med-type applicant. See if you can make a switch. If your school has limited AP offerings, make sure your GC mentions it and your application will be reviewed within that context. In general, strong scores in BIO(M), CHEM, MATH2 will only help. If you are not ready for these, don’t rush. Get 780+ for these is more important than timing of the test. I know kiddos taking these during May/June/Aug and they have everything ready by Oct-Dec and send in the application. Retaking AP Bio is an option, just make sure if you have better preparation this round, and the extra effort will not drag the other important subjects down. Best of luck.

101

@TheElusiveGod Hey! I want to apply for some bs/md programs and was wondering what I should improve on to do so.

Stats:
ACT: 33
GPA (UW): 3.96

AP’s: AP Gov, AP European History, AP US History, AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Calc AB/BC, AP Language, AP Literature

SAT Subject Tests: yet to be taken, but determined to get an 800 in Bio and Math II

Extra Curriculars:
Key Club member for 4 years
Volleyball player for 2 years
Lead dance instructor for 5 years, with performances for charity
National Honors Society member
Second language graduate
American Cancer Society Social Media Advisor
Biology Olympiad member

Volunteering:
Key Club
Hospital (200+ hours)
Dance (400+ hours)

Research:
Currently doing a research project with one of the UC’s, with a paper that will be published.