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Canadian Accepted to US Med. School-Ask Me Anything


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My daughter is studying at Queen's and it is very difficult to get letter from Science/Non-Science professors as there are hundreds in each class and profs. don't know the student personally. How do students manage to meet these specific requirements in such situation. 

 

Your daughter has to approach their profs during office hours, or send them emails or stay behind to ask them questions or do research with them. The more face time you have with your prof the better the potential letter. 

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My daughter is studying at Queen's and it is very difficult to get letter from Science/Non-Science professors as there are hundreds in each class and profs. don't know the student personally. How do students manage to meet these specific requirements in such situation. 

It's up to her to take the initiative to make it happen. Students in every school face those challenges, and we all find a way to make it happen if we really want it. I get that you want to help, but if she does want to go to med school than she really needs to assume responsibility for her own future and be accountable for her own actions.

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How important are interest/update letters? 

 

A bit about me: LizzyM 72, 16 US MD applied, 2 interviews, 7 pre-II rejections, rest are silences or holds

 

I read stories on SDN of miracle II or acceptances because someone took the time to write a letter. For me, I have sent one update letter to all the schools so far but it hasn't yielded anything fruitful :(

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How important are interest/update letters?

 

A bit about me: LizzyM 72, 16 US MD applied, 2 interviews, 7 pre-II rejections, rest are silences or holds

 

I read stories on SDN of miracle II or acceptances because someone took the time to write a letter. For me, I have sent one update letter to all the schools so far but it hasn't yielded anything fruitful :(

If you have something useful to share like updated grades or big achievements then they're useful. Otherwise its straight to the trash bin.

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How important are interest/update letters? 

 

A bit about me: LizzyM 72, 16 US MD applied, 2 interviews, 7 pre-II rejections, rest are silences or holds

 

I read stories on SDN of miracle II or acceptances because someone took the time to write a letter. For me, I have sent one update letter to all the schools so far but it hasn't yielded anything fruitful :(

 

 

You have to be realistic this late in the cycle. Please do not have expectations - your 2 IIs are your chances here. In the mean time, prepare for reapplication. Broader would help you. The majority of schools with silences at this point, are rejections.

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Hi! I am a Canadian citizen wishing to attend medical school in the US in the future, and I am currently selecting a pre-med school. 

I am choosing between UCLA, Rice university, UBC, U of T, and McGill. It will be a lot cheaper for me to attend a Canadian school for undergrad, but

a lot of my friends told me that going to US for undergrad will increase my chances of getting in a good US med school. I don't know if I should save the money for undergrad then spend them on medical school or go to US for undergrad because I can benefit from the resources there (i.e Rice is across the Texas Medical Centre). I am really worried because I need to pay for my deposit in just 2 weeks. Any help will be appreciated!

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Hi! I am a Canadian citizen wishing to attend medical school in the US in the future, and I am currently selecting a pre-med school. 

I am choosing between UCLA, Rice university, UBC, U of T, and McGill. It will be a lot cheaper for me to attend a Canadian school for undergrad, but

a lot of my friends told me that going to US for undergrad will increase my chances of getting in a good US med school. I don't know if I should save the money for undergrad then spend them on medical school or go to US for undergrad because I can benefit from the resources there (i.e Rice is across the Texas Medical Centre). I am really worried because I need to pay for my deposit in just 2 weeks. Any help will be appreciated!

I would not spend all that money just to go to a US undergrad. Honestly, I think there's more benefit to staying in Canada, even beyond financial. US schools it seems are less likely to give out 4.0's than Canadian schools, because they are bigger fans of bell-curving to keep a certain portion of the class at each grade point. So you might be more likely to get a 3.9+ in Canada, it seems like. 

 

The fact that the medical center is near the university means nothing. It's also not unique to the US to have hospitals affiliated with universities..

 

That aside, I think it would be a huge waste of thousands and thousands of dollars to do a US undergrad AND medical school. Your looking at 400K for med school with the exchange rate, and add on another 200K for undergrad and you would likely graduate with half a million in debt. Even if you (aka your parents) have lots of money, spending half a million dollars on the same education you could get in Canada for 200K max would be a bit ridiculous, in my opinion

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Thank you very much for ur reply sunnyy! May I ask which school u attended for undergrad and medical school? Just out of curiousity. :)

And as for Canadian schools, which one do u think will prepare better for medical school? I heard from a lot of people that it is really hard to get volunteering experiences in UBC hospital because so many people want the positions and you can only work at the gift shop, not really learning things related to medical practice. That's the original reason I wanted to  go to Rice because I get a lot more opportunities.

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Thank you very much for ur reply sunnyy! May I ask which school u attended for undergrad and medical school? Just out of curiousity. :)

And as for Canadian schools, which one do u think will prepare better for medical school? I heard from a lot of people that it is really hard to get volunteering experiences in UBC hospital because so many people want the positions and you can only work at the gift shop, not really learning things related to medical practice. That's the original reason I wanted to  go to Rice because I get a lot more opportunities.

That's not true at all...there are thousands of Canadians who get into medical schools every year from Canadian undergrads and the truth is, there is not one school that prepares you better than others. 

 

You are not 'limited' at Canadian schools. If anything, you'd be limited in the US, particularly for research, because you wouldn't qualify for many research scholarships, etc. The idea that you would be 'limited' is a bit ridiculous. Do you think all the students in Canada are limited? 

 

There is NO undergrad that will get you into med school. It's 100% what YOU do while your there. There are not more opportunities at a school like Rice. Vancouver in particular is not 'limited'. What you mentioned, even if you did volunteer in a hospital, is one teeny part of an application. And I can assure you that there are options to volunteer in a hospital outside of a gift shop in vancouver. Again, no worse than in the US

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Going to the US for the sole purpose of attending a US medical school is a bad choice.   The only (marginal) advantage this gives you is a composite letter of recommendation from your premedical advisory committee, which some schools like to see. 

 

As one poster mentioned above, you will find it very hard to get a 3.8+ GPA at a top US college.

 

This could be an issue if applying to Canadian schools where astronomical GPAs are the norm. For reference,  I went to an Ivy undergrad, and I believe the average GPA/MCAT of our MD-school applicant pool is around 3.6/4 and 33 (old scale).   This GPA wouldn't get you very far in Canada, but around 80% of applicants from my college get into US medical schools on their first try...

 

I disagree that a Canadian at a top US institution would be disadvantaged when it comes to research / funding at the undergrad level.  This has not been the case for me at all.

 

One final thing I will note about US vs Canadian admissions:  undergraduate program reputation does indeed matter in the US with regards to medschool admissions.  So, attending Rice over a relatively unknown Canadian undergrad could be advantageous in this regard.  However, the Canadian schools you're considering all have strong international reputations, so this wouldn't be a factor.

 

source: attended Ivy League undergrad + Ivy League PhD; now considering medschool

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Ac

 

Going to the US for the sole purpose of attending a US medical school is a bad choice.   The only (marginal) advantage this gives you is a composite letter of recommendation from your premedical advisory committee, which some schools like to see. 

 

As one poster mentioned above, you will find it very hard to get a 3.8+ GPA at a top US college.

 

This could be an issue if applying to Canadian schools where astronomical GPAs are the norm. For reference,  I went to an Ivy undergrad, and I believe the average GPA/MCAT of our MD-school applicant pool is around 3.6/4 and 33 (old scale).   This GPA wouldn't get you very far in Canada, but around 80% of applicants from my college get into US medical schools on their first try...

 

I disagree that a Canadian at a top US institution would be disadvantaged when it comes to research / funding at the undergrad level.  This has not been the case for me at all.

 

One final thing I will note about US vs Canadian admissions:  undergraduate program reputation does indeed matter in the US with regards to medschool admissions.  So, attending Rice over a relatively unknown Canadian undergrad could be advantageous in this regard.  However, the Canadian schools you're considering all have strong international reputations, so this wouldn't be a factor.

 

source: attended Ivy League undergrad + Ivy League PhD; now considering medschool

Actually going to the US for undergrad has the advantage of having a more known/quantifiable education for US medical schools. Some medical programs will actually consider you as out of state instead of international if you did your undergrad in the US. This is a small advantage though, as you would still be international for things further down the line.

But i agree, it is absolutely unnecessary to do a US undergrad for the obnoxious price tag, when you can get an equivalent education for much cheaper in Canada and then go onto medical school just fine.

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Thank u guys for ur opinions! I'm more leaning towards staying in Canada now. But I'm not sure which of those 3 schools to go tho because they r all equally good. However, if I happen to decide not to do medicine anymore I think going to UBC will give me a harder time to find jobs because Vancouver has limited job opportunities and a lot of people with a microbiology or life science degree ends up working at a bread store or clothing store, seems to me that will be wasting all the years studying because I can do those works with a high school degree.

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Thank u guys for ur opinions! I'm more leaning towards staying in Canada now. But I'm not sure which of those 3 schools to go tho because they r all equally good. However, if I happen to decide not to do medicine anymore I think going to UBC will give me a harder time to find jobs because Vancouver has limited job opportunities and a lot of people with a microbiology or life science degree ends up working at a bread store or clothing store, seems to me that will be wasting all the years studying because I can do those works with a high school degree.

Lol, you have a lot to learn. Just pick the school you want to attend and feel comfortable at. All of them will have similiar opportunities. For jobs you are not tied to the city you do your training in. People move around all the time.

 

 

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Ac

 

Actually going to the US for undergrad has the advantage of having a more known/quantifiable education for US medical schools. Some medical programs will actually consider you as out of state instead of international if you did your undergrad in the US. This is a small advantage though, as you would still be international for things further down the line.

 

 

This is true -- familiarity with the institution/system is a plus.

Premedical advisors at some US schools also have good communication channels with USMD adcoms. They can advocate on the applicants behalf in some cases (ie waitlisted applicant / special circumstances etc). Everything else being equal, I believe a Canadian from a US undergrad probably has a slight advantage when applying to US MD programs over a comparable applicant from a Canadian UG.  

 

That said, there may be very good reasons to attend College in the US depending on the individual student's interests and circumstances -- I had a fantastic experience overall and don't regret attending an Ivy UG. However if I had been gunning for a Canadian MD-seat at the time, this is probably not the path I would have taken.  The average MD applicant from a top US college will have at best a marginal GPA for Canada, and Canadian adcoms could care less about the prestige of your UG.

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This is true -- familiarity with the institution/system is a plus.

Premedical advisors at some US schools also have good communication channels with USMD adcoms. They can advocate on the applicants behalf in some cases (ie waitlisted applicant / special circumstances etc). Everything else being equal, I believe a Canadian from a US undergrad probably has a slight advantage when applying to US MD programs over a comparable applicant from a Canadian UG.  

 

That said, there may be very good reasons to attend College in the US depending on the individual student's interests and circumstances -- I had a fantastic experience overall and don't regret attending an Ivy UG. However if I had been gunning for a Canadian MD-seat at the time, this is probably not the path I would have taken.  The average MD applicant from a top US college will have at best a marginal GPA for Canada, and Canadian adcoms could care less about the prestige of your UG.

Agreed, besides the cost is absolutely not worth it unless you get a huge merit or financial package.

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Are more traditional pre med activities like hospital volunteering, charity work in a third world country, physician shadowing, etc... pretty much required for applying to the US? I had a few interviews in Canada this year but don't have any of those types of activities on my application but I do have a lot of other volunteer work. Should I even bother trying for US schools?

 

GPA ~4 and 519 MCAT

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Are more traditional pre med activities like hospital volunteering, charity work in a third world country, physician shadowing, etc... pretty much required for applying to the US? I had a few interviews in Canada this year but don't have any of those types of activities on my application but I do have a lot of other volunteer work. Should I even bother trying for US schools?

 

GPA ~4 and 519 MCAT

If you had a few interviews in Canada, then you have absolutely no need to apply to the US. Save your money. You'll probably get into at least one of the schools you interviewed at. If not chalk it up to luck and reapply.and keep improving your interview skills.

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Thank u guys for ur opinions! I'm more leaning towards staying in Canada now. But I'm not sure which of those 3 schools to go tho because they r all equally good. However, if I happen to decide not to do medicine anymore I think going to UBC will give me a harder time to find jobs because Vancouver has limited job opportunities and a lot of people with a microbiology or life science degree ends up working at a bread store or clothing store, seems to me that will be wasting all the years studying because I can do those works with a high school degree.

I interviewed at top 10 and top 20 medical schools in the states this year. You are best off going to McGill, 2nd best is UToronto, if you are serious about going to the US for medical school. In fact their reputations might be on par or better than Rice. Reputation matters a lot for the top medical schools, unfortunately. Out on the east coast a lot of faculty have never even heard of UBC! Surprising but that's the way it is.

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I interviewed at top 10 and top 20 medical schools in the states this year. You are best off going to McGill, 2nd best is UToronto, if you are serious about going to the US for medical school. In fact their reputations might be on par or better than Rice. Reputation matters a lot for the top medical schools, unfortunately. Out on the east coast a lot of faculty have never even heard of UBC! Surprising but that's the way it is.

Hi! Can I ask where did u go for undergrad? Also, will UCLA's reputation be better than all those schools in terms of applying for top US medical schools?

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I interviewed at top 10 and top 20 medical schools in the states this year. You are best off going to McGill, 2nd best is UToronto, if you are serious about going to the US for medical school. In fact their reputations might be on par or better than Rice. Reputation matters a lot for the top medical schools, unfortunately. Out on the east coast a lot of faculty have never even heard of UBC! Surprising but that's the way it is.

Lol this is completely wrong.

 

Many of the med staff i've met have done fellowships at top US universities in competitive fields lol.

 

N=1, just like your n=1.

 

Where you go for undergrad DOES NOT MATTER as a 1st criterion. Your grades, MCAT and profile will matter the most. Only if you had 2 candidates with equal everything, would it ever really come down to school, even then EXTREMELY unlikely, as the interview also plays a huge role in medical school admissions.

 

Go to any major Canadian University and you will be fine. Just don't necessarily go to brock or community college.

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Hi! Can I ask where did u go for undergrad? Also, will UCLA's reputation be better than all those schools in terms of applying for top US medical schools?

Dear god no.

 

Reputation is so far down the list.

 

UCLA is going to cost you a fortune.

 

Undergrad degrees are NOT the place to blow 200k on. Absolutely not worth it for a crappy Biology degree that serves you no purpose other than getting into professional school.

 

Go to a good school, get into a decent program and do well. Get involved. Grow as a person. Those are all FAR higher on the priority chain than what "brand name" your undergrad school is. Especially when you're considering Major canadian universities and not some Douglas College/ community colleges of Canada to the US top 10 MD schools.

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Hi! Can I ask where did u go for undergrad? Also, will UCLA's reputation be better than all those schools in terms of applying for top US medical schools?

I don't think UCLA would make a difference compared to Toronto or McGill.

 

Sure, your MCAT, GPA, LoRs, and extracurriculars are going to be the most important factors in your application. But reputation does play a role, particularly I would say for the top 10 schools (less so for the top 20). A bunch of my interviewers asked me why I chose the school I did (between #5-#10 in Canada whatever the rankings mean) since McGill is the "best" (or the only one they had heard of, along with UofT).

 

A few qualifiers:

1. I applied for MD/PhD programs so I think the bar is higher.

2. It worked out for me - I did get into a top 5 MD program (unfunded) and a top 20 MD/PhD program (funded). But based on comments from some of my interviewers and the surprise when I explained that Canadian schools for undergraduate studies are all about the same and similarly not selective - I think some of my waitlists might have been acceptances if I had attended McGill or UofT. At some of my interviews 90% of interviewees were from Ivy league colleges or Stanford/MIT.

I think sometimes people underestimate the strength of the applicant pool. And it's not like MCAT/GPA are plugged into a formula like in Canada. It's holistic - a type of admissions process where the school name plays a much larger role than in Canada.

 

Maybe if I went to McGill or UofT it wouldn't have made a difference. But if you look at UBC, McGill and UofT as all about the same why not give yourself the best chance?

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I need a backup plan though because it is not guaranteed that I will get into medical school for sure, so I need to go to a school that will have a good reputation in the work force internationally, but most of companies in Asia only heard of UCLA before, so this is one of my concerns as well. Or else I would love to save the money for undergrad.

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UCLA isn't that selective or prestigious regardless of whether companies in Asia have heard of it. Certainly not worth that much extra money. McGill/Toronto/UBC (if you are thinking about working in Asia then it is worth considering as well) won't hold you back.

 

Another thing - it is easier to get a high GPA in Canada because the grade scales are lower. I think the higher GPA + money should make up for anything you might think about UCLA.

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