bane Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 hey all, this thread is wicked. thanks to everyone who's contributing and its my first addition to it.... i would like to know, please, when should i be thinking about applying to US med schools? i will be writing the MCAT this summer and will have all the time in the world after that to work on applications. "40hrs a day" kind of thing. (classes can go to hell). i understand that sooner is always better for US schools, but will waiting until august/september/october really hurt my chances??? i could email the schools, but i'd also like to hear some people who have been through this. please let me know! thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 hey all, this thread is wicked. thanks to everyone who's contributing and its my first addition to it.... i would like to know, please, when should i be thinking about applying to US med schools? i will be writing the MCAT this summer and will have all the time in the world after that to work on applications. "40hrs a day" kind of thing. (classes can go to hell). i understand that sooner is always better for US schools, but will waiting until august/september/october really hurt my chances??? i could email the schools, but i'd also like to hear some people who have been through this. please let me know! thanks! Depends on your stats, really. If you got like a 3.85+ and your MCAT will be strong, I think you'll be perfectly fine applying in August or later, providing you apply to a large # of schools. If you are not very competitive, this will work against you. October is REALLY pushing it. They start sending out offers at this time, so by then, the class is often half full. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostintime Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 If you get an offer in October, does that mean you have to write off Canadian schools that give offers in mid May? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 If you get an offer in October, does that mean you have to write off Canadian schools that give offers in mid May? No, you just put down a deposit to secure the offer, and then if you get a Canadian offer and choose to remain in Canada, you just forfeit your deposit and then your spot becomes available to the waitlist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostintime Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 No, you just put down a deposit to secure the offer, and then if you get a Canadian offer and choose to remain in Canada, you just forfeit your deposit and then your spot becomes available to the waitlist. But isn't the deposit a lot of money? Like $1000? But I guess it's "worth" it in the long run? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 But isn't the deposit a lot of money? Like $1000? But I guess it's "worth" it in the long run? Yeah, in about 2 months you're gonna make that up in tuition difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madz25 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 No, you just put down a deposit to secure the offer, and then if you get a Canadian offer and choose to remain in Canada, you just forfeit your deposit and then your spot becomes available to the waitlist. You get your deposit back if you forfeit your seat before May 1st or May 15th ...cant remember the exact date - definitely sometime in May. Sony can clear that up. bane - the later you apply, the better your stats should be! no one can say that you'll completely kill your chances, but why lower them if you can help it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostintime Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 Maybe the MCAT makes a difference for some people? I know that it's pointless to apply early if I'm going to sacrifice the MCAT and do crummy. That defies the whole purpose of applying early. So I worked out a compromise to write in July as opposed to August, and I think I made the right decision judging by the lovely AAMC delaying MCAT registration and saved myself a lot of headaches worrying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 You get your deposit back if you forfeit your seat before May 1st or May 15th ...cant remember the exact date - definitely sometime in May. Sony can clear that up. bane - the later you apply, the better your stats should be! no one can say that you'll completely kill your chances, but why lower them if you can help it? Its BEFORE May 15th. Also the last day you can hold multiple acceptances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bane Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 to all the great people who have commented on my earlier comment, thanks a lot since i wont know my mcat score till prolly about mid september, do you think i should look into applying earlier like May? since i'm not really doing ne thing this summer, i was going to do the mcat and while studying for it, work on applications to different US schools. and find out the deal for what they expect from me. i'm expecting to get a mid-30 MCAT, since i'll be just studying. like 5hrs a day, 7 days a week kind of studying. the big con is that i will be working on applications without knowing my official score (practice tests will give me a guide). my gpa is ok i guess, 3.8ish. anyone understand my pickle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 to all the great people who have commented on my earlier comment, thanks a lot since i wont know my mcat score till prolly about mid september, do you think i should look into applying earlier like May? since i'm not really doing ne thing this summer, i was going to do the mcat and while studying for it, work on applications to different US schools. and find out the deal for what they expect from me. i'm expecting to get a mid-30 MCAT, since i'll be just studying. like 5hrs a day, 7 days a week kind of studying. the big con is that i will be working on applications without knowing my official score (practice tests will give me a guide). my gpa is ok i guess, 3.8ish. anyone understand my pickle? If your GPA is high, you have to worry less so of applying early. Unless your MCAT is less than 30. but if your GPA is 3.8+ and MCAT is 30+ (especially 33+). Applying late wont hurt you as much. Working on apps while studying for mcat is a great idea. because once the score comes out you will be "in the review pile". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bane Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 If your GPA is high, you have to worry less so of applying early. Unless your MCAT is less than 30. but if your GPA is 3.8+ and MCAT is 30+ (especially 33+). Applying late wont hurt you as much. Working on apps while studying for mcat is a great idea. because once the score comes out you will be "in the review pile". thanks for replying sonyvaio (i feel like i just said thanks to cmputer ).... what schools do you think i should look into. are good schools like Cornell and Yale out of the question? i think Cornell avg MCAT was 34. kinda tight. i really dont want to go to a school like SUNY or Buffalo. while i realize an MD is an MD to most people, especially if you dont have a clue about med schools, but i kinda would like to go somewhere on par with canadian schools. thanks again for the reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 thanks for replying sonyvaio (i feel like i just said thanks to cmputer ).... what schools do you think i should look into. are good schools like Cornell and Yale out of the question? i think Cornell avg MCAT was 34. kinda tight. i really dont want to go to a school like SUNY or Buffalo. while i realize an MD is an MD to most people, especially if you dont have a clue about med schools, but i kinda would like to go somewhere on par with canadian schools. thanks again for the reply. I personally think SUNY schools are pretty good actually. Some are located in **** areas though: syracuse, buffalo (btw you cant apply to buffalo), brookyln. Anyways, with a 3.8 and mid-35 mcat you can really apply to any top school. Usually averages for those schools are: 3.7+, 34+. But most top-teir ones look for a solid research record it seems, since they are heavily research based schools. This and solid extracuriculars really make the difference...which makes sense, since they get a **** load of top applicants, they have to weed them out somehow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikkey Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 Hey A deposit is typically 100$, not 1000$. If you decide to go to that particular school, the deposit will count towards your tuition fees. I thought that the deposit was refundable if you didn't attend, but that would kinda kill the purpose. So I guess it isn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madz25 Posted April 10, 2007 Report Share Posted April 10, 2007 HeyA deposit is typically 100$, not 1000$. If you decide to go to that particular school, the deposit will count towards your tuition fees. I thought that the deposit was refundable if you didn't attend, but that would kinda kill the purpose. So I guess it isn't. As sony mentioned a few posts above, the deposit IS REFUNDABLE if you withdraw BEFORE May 15th. I got my deposit refunded when I decided not to attend one of the American schools. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted April 11, 2007 Report Share Posted April 11, 2007 HeyA deposit is typically 100$, not 1000$. If you decide to go to that particular school, the deposit will count towards your tuition fees. I thought that the deposit was refundable if you didn't attend, but that would kinda kill the purpose. So I guess it isn't. Wayne State charged me $50 bucks, and thats not refundable. Apparently, reading SDN I found out the norm is 100 bucks, and most schools refund the money if you withdraw before May 15th. Anyways, consider yourself fortunate, because some "DO schools" charge close to 2K for deposits, with absolutely no refunds. And still nothing beats the UBC dentistry deposit. My friend told me she paid 9K to hold a seat there in Feb (before UofT dentistry even started interviewing). lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quintessence Posted May 13, 2007 Report Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hey! I'm new to these forums and had some questions about applying to the States. Right now I have a cGPA of around 3.57 but the majority of my grades aren't out yet for this semester so that could go slightly up or down. My mcat scores are 32Q...but I blew the PS section last summer (a 9) so am re-writing on June 15th and am expecting at least a 34. I'm not sure whether I should submit my primaries early in June (as everyone seems to be suggesting since my gpa/mcat isnt that great) or if I should wait until my new mcat scores are out (around July 13th)...any thoughts? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted May 13, 2007 Report Share Posted May 13, 2007 I think your MCAT is fine. You can rewrite if you want to, but review the AAMC data for retesters. It shows that if you had a 9 in PS, you only have a 38% chance of raising your score, and out of those 38%, 23% raise it only to a 10. The 10 is a decent score, but then you have to remember that your scores in your other 2 sections are a lot more likely to drop than to rise. E.g. from their data, it shows that if you had an 11 or 12 in VR, you have a 50-70% chance of scoring less. Same with an 11-12 in BS. So bottom line is - rewrite if you feel like you have made leaps and bounds in your prep for PS since the time you wrote it last and if you have been consistent with reviewing for the other 2 sections so you don't plunge 2-3 points on them when you rewrite. I've come across some hearsay on SDN that schools only pay attention to rewrites if you have made major improvements (more than 4-5 points on the whole thing and 2-3 on sections). Makes sense, I guess - if you studied your ass off for 6 months and only made a 1-point improvement, it's hardly a feat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quintessence Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Thanks Jochi! I'm about 99% certain that retaking the MCAT is a good idea =) (I ran out of time for PS and only finished about 6 passages...which had never happened to me on any mock!) plus I've already paid so....lol...but my question is, with mediocre stats (unless I manage to pull a 36 on the mcat in June), will it hurt me to wait until July to submit or should I submit in early June and hope that my MCAT turns out ok? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted May 18, 2007 Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 Thanks Jochi! I'm about 99% certain that retaking the MCAT is a good idea =) (I ran out of time for PS and only finished about 6 passages...which had never happened to me on any mock!) plus I've already paid so....lol...but my question is, with mediocre stats (unless I manage to pull a 36 on the mcat in June), will it hurt me to wait until July to submit or should I submit in early June and hope that my MCAT turns out ok? I have similar stats to yours - 3.51 and 32T, though I had double digits in everything. I also went to the US for undergrad, which helps a bit, and also opens 2 or 3 doors at places that don't normally accept Canadians. I'm submitting in late June. SDN folks say that as long as you submit by July 1st, it doesn't matter much if it's in the first or last week of June. However, once you get to July, timelines start to matter. If I were you, I'd submit before the score. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quintessence Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 aack applying to the US is going to be a very frusterating process I'm thinking! Have you narrowed down which schools you will be applying to. From what I gather, only about 15 schools actually accept Canadian residents, and many of those are Iveys...which I evidently don't have a shot at:P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alastriss Posted May 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2007 aack applying to the US is going to be a very frusterating process I'm thinking! Have you narrowed down which schools you will be applying to. From what I gather, only about 15 schools actually accept Canadian residents, and many of those are Iveys...which I evidently don't have a shot at:P Theres more than 15, check the list (its stickied) are you not a canadian citizen? I thought canadian permanent residents/citizens are in teh same boat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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