Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences
Total MCAT SCORE: 517
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 130,
C/P 129,
CARS 127
Overall GPA: 3.75
Science GPA: 3.76
Summary of Application Experience
Now that I have finished most of my interviews I'm trying to update my profile some more. I hope it is useful for other applicants! If there are any questions I could answer feel free to message me here or on SDN. It's a long, consuming process, so I like to do whatever I can to make it easier for people going through the cycle. I'll try and write about the differences that I've seen at the schools that I've been to, although as I go along I only notice that any medical school in the United States really can give you a fantastic education and experience.
Summary of Experience:
Pre-interview hold here so I might hear back from Davis in January.
Davis has the admirable focus of creating compassionate and talented doctors and there are many opportunities to work in the Sacramento community through over seven student-run clinics.
If I interview here, I'll be sure to add more details.
Update: Not offered an interview. Received final notice in March.
Summary of Experience:
Submitted secondaries with lots of errors here. The school was nice enough to reset my file but I'm sure that contributed to my rejection here.
Summary of Experience:
Einstein in is the Bronx, which is a tougher neighborhood. At the same time though, there is a huge range of patients to see in your preclinical and clinical years.
Some pros are very affordable student housing, and what seems to be a reputation for producing extremely capable residents. Einstein requires 4th years to do an extra sub-internship (where students essentially take the place of an intern) which many students felt was extremely useful in getting them ready for their residency.
There is a ton of research opportunities, and as well as opportunities to work in a general hospital setting and with underserved populations.
One thing that influenced me is that many of the students there didn't seem particularly happy, but it could have just been the few students that I met there.
Summary of Experience:
LA was far and away my favorite interview experience on the trail so far. Amazing facilities and faculty and every student I met seemed happy. The MMI was very relaxed, and the students and faculty, and incredibly supportive admissions staff did a great job of making the interview more conversational than anything else.
As far as pros go: students are guaranteed housing in apartments nearby the medical campus, and there are tons of opportunities available for students interested in research. From what I could tell, the students seemed cheerful, outgoing and upbeat; it was a great environment.
The curriculum is a mix of lecture and PBL, and free time is definitely available for other interests. The campus is right on UCLA's main campus, so all of its facilities are available for you too.
There are lots of ways to get involved in the community as a medical student, although the school didn't really sell itself to us that way on the interview day. Reagan Hospital is an amazing facility but you certainly wont see the underserved population of LA there. If you want to work closely with the underserved definitely consider applying to Charles Drew Program that the school offers (the curriculum is identical to UCLA in the first two years but in your rotations you'll spend more time with underserved populations in LA).
The 4th year of medical school is extremely flexible and designed to help you focus on your career interests (ie academic medicine track) before applying to residency.
Summary of Experience:
Case is an awesome school. Their big focus seems to be a balanced mix between PBL and lectures, but also an emphasis on giving students enough free time to pursue other interests. I sat in on a PBL session and it was a nice laid back environment where students would teach each other content after researching a topic on their own. Make sure your learning style suits group learning if you apply here!
Rotations seem fairly flexible, but also include a mandatory 3 month research block. There are tons of hospitals in Cleveland and only Case Western and the Cleveland Clinic for medical schools so there are lots of options open to you. Also, their children's hospital, Rainbow, is one of the best in the country and is an excellent opportunity for people interested in Peds.
Summary of Experience:
BU stood out to me in the sense that they really care about their surrounding community. The Boston University Medical Center takes any patient regardless of insurance or ability to pay, which I found inspiring. Since BUMC does such a good job taking care of the community, there isn't much in terms of community service besides working in a delivery service that provides meals for the homeless of the Boston area.
The school was just remodeled, and has beautiful facilities including a brand new apartment complex for medical students, and I was sincerely impressed with the kind nature of all the faculty that I spoke to on my interview day.
Boston definitely is a nice city, but also a center for medicine and biomedical research, certainly a good environment for someone interested in academics.
The only drawback that I noticed was the cost. Most graduates come out with ~200k in debt although they did say strong applicants could receive more incentives to go there.
