UBC MD Interview Invites/Regrets Thread - 2021/22

[BonJovi]

Just checked my score using inspect tool, looks like my NAQ score dropped from last year even after adding thousands of hours from work and volunteering experiences after getting rejected last year. Oh well...

[Clockwork21]

Oh I'm having some trouble finding the raw NAQ scores using the Inspect Tool. Could someone please explain where they found their number after getting into the code? Thank you!

 

Edit: Actually all good, I just found them as the percentages in the code.

[Fingerscrossed17]

8 minutes ago, BonJovi said:

Just checked my score using inspect tool, looks like my NAQ score dropped from last year even after adding thousands of hours from work and volunteering experiences after getting rejected last year. Oh well...

This seems to be a common theme this year

[teachdoc]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): 8:35 PST, Dec 15
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Reject
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 83.5%
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 511
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs: non-traditional applicant, 5+ years as a teacher, lots of hobbies and personal commitments along with some typical pre-med experiences from undergrad
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75-100% 

4th time applicant, 2 interviews so far and waitlisted both times previously. My gpa has gone up over the years as I have continued to take courses on the side and my while some of my NAQ entries have stayed the same a few have gotten better (imo) as I have switched out some 10+ year old entries to more recent, relevant ones. Last year I was in the middle of the IP and OOP sliding scale and this year it seems like its about 1-2 points below, despite a 2-3% jump in GPA.

I'm very disappointed, especially after being waitlisted twice and I am not really sure how to move forward to be honest. I am trying to think of what could've gone wrong but I think that's just wasting mental energy.

This year I did add one university level research presentation and one poster day thing, both from my undergrad thesis which I previously haven't included... could this have bought my scoring down? Do they deduct points if you include something that doesn't meet their criteria?

 

 

[AnotherHopeful]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec. 15, 8:34am PST
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Regrets
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 84.7% 
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 515
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies):

2yrs of volunteering with a community group helping people with disabilities, a couple shorter volunteer activities as well.
Research: 4 posters and 1 oral presentation, no pubs. 
Lots of employment experience in biotech and also in healthcare interacting with patients.
Leadership role with a largish union for 1yr, TA for undergrad classes.
Varsity athlete for 5yrs

NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in):  75th-100th

Total Score: 50

Was 10 points away when I applied two years ago with a 0-25th NAQ so happy to see some progress at least, but still disheartening not to get an interview. The 84.7% GPA is killing me and impossible to change at this point.

This cycle I had my first publication (1st author) in mid-June so it barely missed the date cutoff... Unlikely that would add 3 points but still hurts.

[ubcquestions]

Sorry if this is a stupid question but is there any reason your GPA would change between this year and last years applications if there haven't been any changes to your transcript? My wife's application this year shows her GPA dropping by 2.73 and her adjusted GPA dropping by 1.87 from last years.

She graduated from U of A a few years ago so nothing would have changed on her transcript. Do GPA calculations change from year to year if your courses were from out an out of province university?

[immune]

2 hours ago, Fingerscrossed17 said:

We have very similar stats and my score also went down this year… even though we’re 75-100 quartile, I feel like we’re at the low end of that… I got an interview last year with the same stats

Agree with you....although I didn't even get an interview last year haha. Always felt like I was sitting closer to 75. What a disheartening process! I took more courses and added thousands of work hours and more experiences and my TFR went down! 

[dreizehn]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): 1:21pm December 14
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Invite
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): not sure how to calculate this. I think I qualified for AGPA
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 515
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): OOP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies): finishing up my MSc. I honestly don't think they're that strong. A bit of variety.

[Anon_premed]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): 10:21 am PST 
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Invite 
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): ~90
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 127/129/132/132 (520)
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies): research (no pubs), 2 employment entries, hospital volunteering, Canucks Autism network volunteer, some other volunteering/commitments, mostly put a lot of hobbies and wrote about how I was Asian. tbh I feel like a lot of the people who got regrets had better ECs than I did so definitely a lot of luck involved in the process.
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): last year 25-50
Your Result (i.e. relative to interview cutoff): last year 47 (cut off IP was 53)

[reece.enberg]

Hey everyone,

I've created a Facebook for group prep, resource sharing etc. for those who got interview invites for this year's application cycle. Feel free to join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/635713384452973/

[merpitymerp]

4 hours ago, BonJovi said:

Just checked my score using inspect tool, looks like my NAQ score dropped from last year even after adding thousands of hours from work and volunteering experiences after getting rejected last year. Oh well...

Seeing this from applicants pretty frequently this year. Last year I was 52% (cut off 53%) and this year I dropped to 48% even though I've reworded things and added new accomplishments. What gives?

[MissionUBC]

26 minutes ago, merpitymerp said:

Seeing this from applicants pretty frequently this year. Last year I was 52% (cut off 53%) and this year I dropped to 48% even though I've reworded things and added new accomplishments. What gives?

I believe (my personal opinion) is that NAQ/AQ score has to do with relative pool of applicants. When the pool is weak or strong as compared to other years, scores might vary either way. I could be wrong but this is what I feel. All the best

[shrubbae]

7 hours ago, NoMedulla said:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): 8:34 PST
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Regrets
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 93.2
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 518 (131/126/130/131)
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): OOP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies):

RA 2 yrs, 1 poster. Student affairs volunteering and work 3 yrs. Varsity athlete and competed in national championships. High school volunteering +500hrs. Play instrument and in university band. Probably need to diversify a little to be honest, most of these are high commitment and took too much time. 

NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in):50th-75th

Total score 62 percentile, 1 below cutoff 63 lool

How were you able to find your total score percentile? I'm just seeing the NAQ range 

[RiceCake]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec 14, 10:21 & 10:55 
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Invite
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): ~86
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 507
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP

Non academic activities: Varied and diverse
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75-100% (last year)

I got an invite to a rural panel interview to further assess rural suitability, in addition to the the regular mmi. I haven’t seen anyone else post here about that — I’m curious how many of us there are?

[IceT]

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec 14, 8:34AM
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Regrets
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 79%
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 515 (130/128/130/127)
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies):

Non-Trad, 3 yrs research, 2 publications. Minimal academic awards but handful of leadership and research presentation awards. 10 lines of employment ranging from tradesperson (400+ hrs) to service worker (600+ hrs) to MCAT teacher tutor (1000+ hrs). President of student association representing 1500+ students, crisis responder (200+ hrs), high school sports, club organizer, general recreation, cooking, pets, politics.
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75 - 100
Your Result (i.e. relative to interview cutoff): 11 points off (Using inspect tool)

Not surprising considering my GPA, and first time applicant, so I'm happy to see that my NAQ is relatively strong. Unfortunately this likely means that the only logical way for me to get to an interview would be to return to school for a minimum of 2 years and ace courses, which isn't necessarily financially feasible for me. Trying to take it all for what it's worth and hopefully improve for the next time I'm able to apply!

[maybetomorrow]

-

[frenchpress]

10 hours ago, mototo said:

just to confirm, if i went to a school that gave a+, wouldn't a 4.0 turn into a 95? mine says 94 ... 

they don’t just convert your overall average gpa. Each grade gets converted individually and then they take the average of those. So you must have some course where you didn’t get an A+ that are pulling it down. 

[frenchpress]

8 hours ago, ubcquestions said:

Sorry if this is a stupid question but is there any reason your GPA would change between this year and last years applications if there haven't been any changes to your transcript? My wife's application this year shows her GPA dropping by 2.73 and her adjusted GPA dropping by 1.87 from last years.

She graduated from U of A a few years ago so nothing would have changed on her transcript. Do GPA calculations change from year to year if your courses were from out an out of province university?

It shouldn’t, unless there was a change in how some grades were included because of covid. Would be reasonable for her to check she entered all the grades the same between applications, and to contact UBC if there’s a discrepancy. 

[nt2324]

8 hours ago, AnotherHopeful said:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec. 15, 8:34am PST
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Regrets
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 84.7% 
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 515
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies):

2yrs of volunteering with a community group helping people with disabilities, a couple shorter volunteer activities as well.
Research: 4 posters and 1 oral presentation, no pubs. 
Lots of employment experience in biotech and also in healthcare interacting with patients.
Leadership role with a largish union for 1yr, TA for undergrad classes.
Varsity athlete for 5yrs

NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in):  75th-100th

Total Score: 50

Was 10 points away when I applied two years ago with a 0-25th NAQ so happy to see some progress at least, but still disheartening not to get an interview. The 84.7% GPA is killing me and impossible to change at this point.

This cycle I had my first publication (1st author) in mid-June so it barely missed the date cutoff... Unlikely that would add 3 points but still hurts.

Hey OP, just wanted to share I’ve been in the same situation… this is my 4th time applying and I was 9, 6, and 1 point off the cutoff in the past 3 years. GPA barely increased. Just keep adding hours onto your ECs, that’s pretty much what I did. 
 

Next year’s your year, don’t give up

[nt2324]

4 hours ago, merpitymerp said:

Seeing this from applicants pretty frequently this year. Last year I was 52% (cut off 53%) and this year I dropped to 48% even though I've reworded things and added new accomplishments. What gives?

Hey, I’ve seen this happen with my friends over the years - sometimes the rewording tends to hurt rather than help, really depends on who ends up reading your application. Two friends of mine who applied in 2019 were off by 1 point and then off by 10 in 2020 after rewording and adding activities… 

I haven’t reworded my entries in the past 4 years and score has steadily gone up, not sure if it was just by chance.

[teej88]

5 hours ago, RiceCake said:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec 14, 10:21 & 10:55 
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Invite
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): ~86
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 507
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP

Non academic activities: Varied and diverse
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75-100% (last year)

I got an invite to a rural panel interview to further assess rural suitability, in addition to the the regular mmi. I haven’t seen anyone else post here about that — I’m curious how many of us there are?

I received the same invite. 

[Brockolli911]

1 hour ago, teej88 said:

I received the same invite. 

I did too. 

[FF20]

I have been a long time lurker here, and I never thought I would one day post my stats but here it is:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Around 10 am on Dec 14th
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): invite
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable):  90.6%  (based on my calculation)
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 510 (129/126/128/127)
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies): Diverse if you want the details just send me a message. 

NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): I don't know (Last year I was rejected pre interview because of not meeting MCAT CARS cut off)
Your Result (i.e. relative to interview cutoff): 

I am worried about my MCAT hurting my chances post interview but I will do my best to prepare for the interview, if you guys could let me know how to prepare I would appreciate any advise.

[SmileyMed]

7 hours ago, RiceCake said:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec 14, 10:21 & 10:55 
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Invite
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): ~86
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 507
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP

Non academic activities: Varied and diverse
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75-100% (last year)

I got an invite to a rural panel interview to further assess rural suitability, in addition to the the regular mmi. I haven’t seen anyone else post here about that — I’m curious how many of us there are?

wow congrats! do you mind please sharing some of the activities that you wrote in your application NAQ portion? 

I am trying to decide whether I should go back to school for a bit, or take this time I have until next June to work? 

 

I have roughly the same GPA as you based on my calculation 85~ at this point I don't even know if that will be competitive enough for next years application.

[coolbeansdog]

19 hours ago, IceT said:

Time Stamp (i.e. include date and time): Dec 14, 8:34AM
Result (i.e. invite or regrets): Regrets
GPA/AGPA (i.e. whichever is applicable): 79%
MCAT (i.e. total score and breakdown in the order of CP/CARS/BB/PS): 515 (130/128/130/127)
Geography (i.e. IP or OOP): IP
ECs (i.e. brief rundown of Research Pubs/Presentations, Awards, Employment, and Non-Academic Activities - also Rural stuff if you want/if it applies):

Non-Trad, 3 yrs research, 2 publications. Minimal academic awards but handful of leadership and research presentation awards. 10 lines of employment ranging from tradesperson (400+ hrs) to service worker (600+ hrs) to MCAT teacher tutor (1000+ hrs). President of student association representing 1500+ students, crisis responder (200+ hrs), high school sports, club organizer, general recreation, cooking, pets, politics.
NAQ Range (i.e. what quartile you fell in): 75 - 100
Your Result (i.e. relative to interview cutoff): 11 points off (Using inspect tool)

Not surprising considering my GPA, and first time applicant, so I'm happy to see that my NAQ is relatively strong. Unfortunately this likely means that the only logical way for me to get to an interview would be to return to school for a minimum of 2 years and ace courses, which isn't necessarily financially feasible for me. Trying to take it all for what it's worth and hopefully improve for the next time I'm able to apply!

How do you plan on improving your grades at this point? I am in a similar boat with the same NAQ range.