Brief Profile:
Cookie-cutter applicant with arguably the easiest majors at my school (bio and psych) and a couple unique experiences. ~3 years volunteering in Emergency Department of VA Hospital ~3+ years of research in school lab, 1 pub (not first author), several abstracts ~3 years in leadership position of 2 unique student orgs ~2+ years as TA for various bio classes 1 summer in Japan for research project 1 summer research internship at UCSF ~20 hrs shadowing
I had a very very good recommendation letter from my PI from my main lab, and pretty good letters from org faculty advisor, a couple science profs I TA'ed for, a philosophy prof, and my PI from summer.
// Applications //
Application Cycle One: 07/15/2013
Undergraduate college: UC
Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences
Total MCAT SCORE: 523
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 131,
C/P 132,
CARS 129
Overall GPA: 3.97
Science GPA: 4.00
Summary of Application Experience
Med school admissions are a total crapshoot, but I've been extremely lucky this cycle. I really have no idea how the heck schools choose who to interview, accept/waitlist, or offer scholarships to, since everything has been so random for me.
Application Complete
University of California, Los Angeles
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: Yes
Secondary Completed: 08/06/2013
Interview Invite: No
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: No
Summary of Experience:
Just waiting for my rejection letter (c'mon guys!)
Summary of Experience:
I wrote my secondaries here in less than an hour and some of my frustration about the secondary application process might have shown through in some snarky responses.
Summary of Experience:
Honestly I'm not too surprised about the rejection, I know literally nothing about the area or the school (and maybe that came across in my essays). Not all that disappointed.
Summary of Experience:
Rejection from my own alma mater kinda hurts (especially since I know a few friends who've gotten in), considering all my recs and experiences have been at UCSD. At this point I have no idea what went wrong, and my secondary essay probably wasn't the reason (the same exact essay got me into Vandy). Ah well, I loved my time here and UCSD has been nothing but wonderful and nurturing to me -- time to leave La Jolla!
Summary of Experience:
I didn't realize this was a "turn in your money ASAP" secondary, and put it off for two weeks. Idiotic decision on my part as I basically just gave up $100 and revealed lack of interest. Not complaining though as I've been lucky to get an acceptance at a better NYC school.
Summary of Experience:
Withdrew after Vandy. Since one of the main draws of Cleveland Clinic was the free tuition, and I'd gotten lucky already at Vandy, I decided it wasn't worth interviewing there (especially since one of my friends is in Cleveland now and not a huge fan of the city).
Summary of Experience:
withdrew after Vandy offer. I have a friend here who isn't terribly enthused about the school, plus I've heard the financial aid isn't great.
Summary of Experience:
Withdrew after Mt Sinai acceptance. I didn't feel too thrilled about Chicago after visiting for UChicago (although I now realize they are in totally different neighborhoods. Ahh well!)
Summary of Experience:
Did not enjoy my interview day here (and flying here directly from a week of debauchery probably didn't help matters). I only had one interviewer here and she seemed completely uninterested in what I was saying (she'd ask a question and I'd only get a few words in before she'd jump to a completely unrelated question). The students seemed like a lot of fun (and were very attractive!), but the location isn't great and neither were the dorms.
Summary of Experience:
Rejected NP and HST. Brilliant people all around, Boston is an awesome city, and can't beat the prestige here. I felt at a definite disadvantage since everyone else seemed to be in the hard sciences, had massive amounts of research, or did incredible and amazing things, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to meet so many insanely successful people.
Summary of Experience:
No idea why Davis even gave me an interview (I had practically no community involvement), but the rejection came back quick! My MMIs were a complete mess
Summary of Experience:
Fast turnaround, that's for sure. Riding the bus from Midway to UChicago completely disillusioned me about the school though -- Southside definitely is not a very nice area, and I wasn't feeling too thrilled about living in Chicago. Pritzker is very nice though!
Summary of Experience:
Interviewed here two days after the polar vortex. On the bright side, I got to see how beautiful Michigan looks covered in snow! The people are also incredibly nice. I asked to split a cab with someone on the plane, and instead got a (free!) ride directly from the airport to the pizza dinner (thanks, awesome people from UMich!). A faculty also offered me a lift the next morning as I hiked my way through snow to the admissions office. The facilities are pretty nice and it's great that UMich has so many excellent departments. With no ties to the midwest, I'm not surprised about the waitlist here.
Summary of Experience:
1st tier waitlist -- I was a bit surprised because I'd thought this was my best interview I had all cycle (I actually chatted with my faculty interviewer for so long I completely missed the finaid and PBL demo). The people are really nice, facilities are beautiful, though I don't know how I'll feel living in Pittsburgh.
Summary of Experience:
The MMI is so not my friend. The school is pretty sweet, the location is ideal, it's as close to party-school as med school can ever get, and the Bellevue Hospital is a gem. I wasn't too surprised to get a waitlist here since I never signed up for any of the "Financial Aid" or "Learn more about these programs!" talks. If you're dead-set on a certain specialty and have the resume to back it up, NYU and it's 3-year-MD + guaranteed residency program is a no-brainer.
Summary of Experience:
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! UCSF has been my dream school ever since I knew I wanted to be a doctor. My interviews here were not good at all (I lost my sh!t halfway, completely forgot my own research after he asked me about it, and basically begged them to accept me like the sad pathetic person I am) and I was resigned to rejection. Receiving the email was a total shock! The school has everything: prestige, an amazing faculty, and a location in the heart of my favorite city (it's also close to home!). I feel so incredibly lucky to have gotten in! I did do a summer research internship at UCSF (which made me fall in love with the school), and one of my letters was from a faculty here, so maybe that's what helped me overcome the atrocious interviews. Regardless, I am beyond excited! Unfortunately the financial aid package leaves a LOT to be desired. After months of flip-flopping, I've decided the additional $100k of loans is worth it to attend my dream school (I hope!) -- ASW was awesome, the students and faculty are super chill and genuine, and I'm beyond excited about matriculating here in the fall!
Summary of Experience:
I loved the Yale system, really enjoyed my interview day (only 4 students! incredibly nice Dean who clearly knew our applications very well (and has occasionally sent individual emails afterwards!)), and the students were so CHILL yet brilliant. I also liked New Haven, or at least the parts of New Haven I saw. My student interviewer was ridiculously awesome and impressive. This was hard to turn down, but I feel like I would tire of the city fast and I don't think Yale is patient-centered enough.
Summary of Experience:
One of my best friends goes here, and I really enjoyed the down-to-earth vibe of the people here. Two short faculty interviews with very nice professors. So stoked about my first acceptance (lucky it came on Halloween)!! I love this school and its location right next to Central Park, and the dorms are pretty freaking amazing (more apartments than anything with very subsidized rent). I've heard they've recently trended towards high-stats applicants, so I feel like that might end up changing the character of the school for the worse. I'm also not sure if I'm ready for an East Coast move
Summary of Experience:
I had a beyond bizarre interview here, where my big-name interviewer only asked me for my MCATs, GPA, and even SATs and GPA from high school. He then informed me that he felt the interview process was wholly unnecessary (?!) and escorted me to the bus stop before I could regurgitate even one word of the "and here are my extracurriculars!" spiel I usually do on interviews. He also sent me a nice email after my acceptance encouraging me to be "a great student at Irvine, not an average student somewhere else." I'm not a fan of the curriculum (mandatory attendance!? You've got to be kidding me!), nor the dearth of hospitals (only two hospitals, 30 minutes away). Food options are great but after 4 years of La Jolla, I'd prefer a city
Summary of Experience:
75% scholarship offer 12/26 (!!) Totally floored, I'm definitely not the kind of student who'd typically receive scholarships! I got great vibes from this school and it completely exceeded my expectations. The facilities are beautiful, the campus is basically located in an arboretum, the 1 year pre-clinical sounds awesome, and the interviewers I had were super impressive. They also care a LOT about their students' well-being, and I feel that also came out in the way they did admissions: the lowest secondary fee ($50), and the best chance of getting in post-interview (so you're not just wasting money flying there for a miniscule chance at getting in), and the small class size (88) probably helps make each student even more cared for. Definitely top on my list. Turning down this school was a very hard decision but ultimately I don't feel I'd fit in very well in Nashville.
happycactus took the old MCAT and scored a which is in the percentile of all old scores.
We converted this to a on the updated scale which is in the percentile of the updated MCAT. We also converted happycactus’s section scores as follows:
happycactus scored a 14 on the Biological Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 131 on the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems.
happycactus scored a 14 on the Physical Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 132 on the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems.
happycactus scored a 11 on the Verbal Reasoning section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 129 on the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills.
