justkeepswimming_ Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 My stats: MCAT: above cutoffs GPA: 3.99 ECs: diverse; exec for a few health promotion clubs, clinical research for the past 4 years with conferences, abstracts published, no first-author pubs yet but have heavy involvement in the different components of a study, several academic scholarships, long-term volunteering at hospitals, a few years of mentoring youth and university students. A mix of paid and volunteering ECs. Essays: Worked for more than a month on them, and had several people proof-read them. Felt pretty good about them and included a mix of personal experiences and the 4 clusters. References: Atleast two of the three were strong and personal. Year: 4th year IP I received my last rejection to U of T last week, and haven't received any interviews this year. Since I am graduating this year, I really do not know how I can possibly improve my application to get an interview. I am considering applying for a Master's two-year thesis-based program in clinical research, but I have read several threads that made me doubt whether this is a good idea. While I love conducting research, I do not know yet if I want research to be my entire career (assuming I don't get into med after master's). Ultimately, I want a patient-centred career, whether it be as a physician or dentist (considering dentistry as well but did not apply this year). Therefore, if I do a master's, it really would be to get into med (which I don't think is the best reason to do it). Another option would be taking a gap year, but I don't know what I could possibly do in one year to improve my application enough to get an interview. Any feedback and experience on what I should do for the next couple years would be greatly appreciated! I'm sure there are at least a few others who are in the same boat as me and would benefit from any advice. Thank you in advance for your feedback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hopelessphd Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Think about long term, think about your career as a MD, do you think you a masters will help you in the end? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justkeepswimming_ Posted March 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 5 minutes ago, hopelessphd said: Think about long term, think about your career as a MD, do you think you a masters will help you in the end? Ultimately, I do not see research as a central part of my career as a physician. That being said, I still do believe that I would learn valuable skills that would transferrable to my career as an MD (Eg. critical thinking, analytical etc.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captrex_501stlegion Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 2 hours ago, justkeepswimming_ said: My stats: MCAT: above cutoffs GPA: 3.99 ECs: diverse; exec for a few health promotion clubs, clinical research for the past 4 years with conferences, abstracts published, no first-author pubs yet but have heavy involvement in the different components of a study, several academic scholarships, long-term volunteering at hospitals, a few years of mentoring youth and university students. A mix of paid and volunteering ECs. Essays: Worked for more than a month on them, and had several people proof-read them. Felt pretty good about them and included a mix of personal experiences and the 4 clusters. References: Atleast two of the three were strong and personal. Year: 4th year IP I received my last rejection to U of T last week, and haven't received any interviews this year. Since I am graduating this year, I really do not know how I can possibly improve my application to get an interview. I am considering applying for a Master's two-year thesis-based program in clinical research, but I have read several threads that made me doubt whether this is a good idea. While I love conducting research, I do not know yet if I want research to be my entire career (assuming I don't get into med after master's). Ultimately, I want a patient-centred career, whether it be as a physician or dentist (considering dentistry as well but did not apply this year). Therefore, if I do a master's, it really would be to get into med (which I don't think is the best reason to do it). Another option would be taking a gap year, but I don't know what I could possibly do in one year to improve my application enough to get an interview. Any feedback and experience on what I should do for the next couple years would be greatly appreciated! I'm sure there are at least a few others who are in the same boat as me and would benefit from any advice. Thank you in advance for your feedback. Honestly, looking at your stats, i would say that you are a really good applicant. I would consider redoing the MCAT if one of the sections is a bit on the low side. However, if I were you I would also consider a master's. A master's gives you enough info and training about research without being too involved like a PhD and for competitive residencies, research is a pretty big plus. And from what I have seen, a master's in medicine is a really big bonus for your career. A lot of the students in my master's program are residents and physicians (I am part of the undergrad minority), and they all highly recommend one, which is why I just switched from a one year coarse based to the thesis stream. In all, a master's won't hurt you, just benefit you. In a 30+ year career in medicine, what's another 2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justkeepswimming_ Posted March 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Captrex_501stlegion said: Honestly, looking at your stats, i would say that you are a really good applicant. I would consider redoing the MCAT if one of the sections is a bit on the low side. However, if I were you I would also consider a master's. A master's gives you enough info and training about research without being too involved like a PhD and for competitive residencies, research is a pretty big plus. And from what I have seen, a master's in medicine is a really big bonus for your career. A lot of the students in my master's program are residents and physicians (I am part of the undergrad minority), and they all highly recommend one, which is why I just switched from a one year coarse based to the thesis stream. In all, a master's won't hurt you, just benefit you. In a 30+ year career in medicine, what's another 2 years. Thank you for your input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridian Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 I think you need to critique why you did not get any interviews. What is your MCAT breakdown. How widely did you apply ? No need to improve on a 3.99, so that is not the concern. Starting a Master's will delay your ability to apply to some schools. Maybe a year working and advancing some EC's is a better approach ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justkeepswimming_ Posted March 27, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2019 20 hours ago, Meridian said: I think you need to critique why you did not get any interviews. What is your MCAT breakdown. How widely did you apply ? No need to improve on a 3.99, so that is not the concern. Starting a Master's will delay your ability to apply to some schools. Maybe a year working and advancing some EC's is a better approach ? Thanks for your input! I am planning to re-write the MCAT to improve my scores and apply to more schools (I only applied to a few Ontario schools). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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