FAQ: What are my chances?

[3change]

...

[ow1234]

Yep, wrote on the 19th. I was planning to void if I didn't "feel" like I could get a good score, but then reasoned that even being able to apply IP to Alberta/Calgary was greater than the chance I have at Queen's/Mac with my old MCAT. 

[3change]

.

[skey]

Hi all,

 

I'm planning on applying to MD and MD/PhD programs this fall and am looking for some feedback. I'm from northern Ontario, entering fourth year at Laurentian University. My stats are as follow:

 

Academics

 

Degree in progress: B.Sc. (Hons) Kinesiology with minor in biochemistry

OMSAS GPA: Approximately 3.9 (difficult to determine; my school recently switched from percentage grades to letter-based grades)

wGPA (Toronto formula): 3.90

MCAT: 10/10/10 (written October 2014)

 

Work Experience

 

- Tim Hortons (4 years; three years during university at roughly 16 hours/week)

- Barista at a local coffee shop (second half of this past year; roughly 30 hours/week)

- School orientation day leader (welcoming students to the School of Human Kinetics; one weekend)

 

Extracurriculars

 

- Concert band (3 years in university, extension of high school activity - baritone saxophone player)

- Choir (2 years in university; extension of elementary and high school activity)

- Vocal lessons (six months in first year)

- Chamber choir (six months - ongoing activity)

- Soprano performer in a rendition of Hildegard von Bingen (semester-long project)

- Paddler on a dragon boat team (this summer; fundraiser for the Northern Cancer Foundation a P.E.T. Scan Fund)

 

Volunteering

 

- International volunteering experience in Fiji (one month in 2013) - This had two distinct components

• First, we spent time living in a traditional village, improving the local school and installing eco-friendly waste management and water catchment systems. We also taught classes on proper hygiene.
• Afterwards, a smaller group of us made our way to a volcanic island to work on reforestation efforts, coral reef rehabilitation, and marine life quantification with a local marine biologist.

- Board member and pianist for a children's choir (two years; board responsibilities include coordinating social media efforts and attending meetings)

- Founding team member of the LU 2015 Snowshoe for a Cure event hosted in partnership with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation Ontario (in charge of social media and sourcing sponsors; involved in set-up and takedown of event)

- Soccer coach for a U-14 Girl's recreational team (two summers, ongoing)

 

Clinical and Research Experience

 

- Clinical shadowing (general surgery)

- Research assistant in a biomolecular lab at NOSM (summer 2014 to present, continued continued over the past school year)

- Third authorship on a literature review (accepted; awaiting publication)

- Attended the Canadian National Perinatal Research Meeting 2015 (my name was on three of the posters presented due to research contributions to these; not sure if that counts for anything)

 

Awards

 

- Dean's List (every year)

- Student's Choice award for peer tutoring in chemistry

- Francophone Excellence Award

 

Hobbies (not to be included on application specifically, but might appear in autobiographical sketch/essays)

- Yoga, paddle boarding, hiking, alpine skiing, reading and writing experiential essays/fiction, concert piano (I'm working towards my ARCT), domestic and international travel, to name a few.

 

Schools I'm looking at applying to:

- IP: U of T, Ottawa, McMaster, *NOSM

- OOP: *Dalhousie, UBC, McGill.

 

*I know that I want research to be an integral part of my career. I've looked into MD/PhD programs extensively and have weighted the pros and cons; I am confident in my decision to pursue this path. If I were to get into an MD-only program, my intent would then be to pursue a PhD during residency.

 

My main concerns are my GPA and my extracurriculars/volunteering. I know that Ontario schools are typically very GPA heavy; I believe I am still competitive for Ottawa because I can apply through the francophone stream. My context score for NOSM is also very good (being that I'm both francophone and from Sudbury). I'd love to go to Toronto due to the nature of the research being done in reproductive sciences (my main area of interest), but am not sure if I'm quite competitive enough given my average, especially with the ever-increasing trend in average accepted GPA. As for extracurriculars, I tend to take on a lot of long-term projects that are relatively time-consuming (I'm definitely a case of depth over breadth), and my overall clinical experience is somewhat limited. I'm passionate about music as an addenda to my science-focused curriculum (as one might note from my ECs).   

 

Any/all advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[Bambi]

You are good to go. Kill your ABS and Narratives!

[...]

.

[skey]

Thanks guys!

 

rijn, thanks for the heads up! It's very much appreciated. I should have a few other (non-primary) publications by the time I apply, and at least one primary authorship by the time I graduate, though that won't help very much with this application cycle. I'll just keep working and see what happens.

[...]

.

[chem391]

Applying this cycle to UBC (IP) and University of Toronto and possibly others though I don't feel I have the stats to do so.

 

MSc Student (will finish by summer 2016)

 

cGPA: 87.9% (3.78)

wGPA: Does not qualify

 

Note the percentage takes into account my graduate grades (since UBC counts them). The cGPA does not (since UT does not).

 

MCAT: 9 VR, 13 PS, 11 BS, S Writing (This kills my chance at Queens)

MCAT 2015: Did not take

 

Research (Masters):

1 Second Author paper in a top chemistry journal (Done in coordination with Merck)

1 Second Author paper in a respected chemistry journal

-Will not make UBC cut off, will make UT cutoff (publishing dates)

Productivity: exceptional by university committee (rarely given).

Gave a poster presentation at a national conference (misses UBC cutoff date, not UT's)

Gave a talk at my school (Presentation competition)

 

Research (Undergraduate)

No papers (Honours research being continued by another undergrad, judging by current progress, no anticipated publications any time soon)

Undergrad thesis

2 NSERC/University summer fellowships

1 semester of paid research

1 semester of volunteer research

Gave a talk at a undergraduate conference (national)

Gave a talk at a undergraduate conference (school)

 

ECs(ongoing):

 

Church: Currently a presider at my church, while working all the A/V stuff and lead a youth group. Currently president of my Church club on my campus. Was a piano player previously for 8 years in the church.  Also responsible for planning and setting up our conferences.

Over 3500 hours (Counting hours since ninth grade in high school).

Hospital Desk Volunteer: 450 hours, 3 years

Care home Volunteer: 180 hours, 1 year and 5 months

Graduate Student Society: 8 months, 15 hours (Committee Meetings are called once a semester, I volunteer for 3 committees)

TA work: 2 semesters

 

ECs(Past):

Volunteering at a tech conference as an exec: 2 years, 400 hours

Small amount of tutoring (paid)

Undergraduate TA (1 semester)

Notetaker (1 semester)

Pharmacy Volunteer 30 hours, 5 months (Stopped because I realised I had no desire to work in a pharmacy)

Founder of a community sustainable strategy (won a award from the city of coquitlam)

Club exec 1 year, around 100 hours

Had some high school stuff that I don't know if I'm going to put in like volunteering at camps, playing in honour bands, science team, etc.

 

For what it's worth, in 2014, UBC gave me a score of approximately 25/50 without most of my undergrad honours/masters research and a significant number of ECs and awards

 

Awards:

NSERC CGS M (17500)

NSERC undergrad awards x2 (5650)

Award for Excellence in Organic Chemistry (nominated and awarded by members of the department) (1000)

Graduate Entrance Scholarship (4000)

Scholarship by Christian Scholarship Fund (2000)

Undergraduate Entrance Scholarships (2000 + 5000)

 

I don't hold much hope for UT since it's a GPA heavy school. UBC I'm a bit more optimistic for.

 

Any feedback, including other schools to apply to, would be appreciated.

 

Hey, was wondering if anyone could give me feedback. Any would be great.

[...]

.

[YorkMD]

Looking for some feedback on chances for Ontario schools and OOP schools as an Ontario resident. As of now I'm considering applying to Dal, Manitoba and Saskatchewan for OOP. I'm done my first three years as an undergrad and am starting my last year in September. I've taken full course loads for every year so I am eligible for all of the weighting formulas.

 

My best two years happen to be my last two years as I have been raising my GPA each year (1st year = 3.73, 2nd year = 3.83, 3rd year = 3.92). I've only taken one summer school course in the summer which was a full year of physics which I got a 4.0 in.

 

I took the MCAT in the summer between my 2nd and 3rd year (summer of 2014) and don't plan on rewriting unless absolutely necessary.

 

cGPA: 3.84
2yrGPA: 3.88
wGPA for Ottawa: 3.86
wGPA for U of T: 3.92
 

MCAT: P 12/VR 11/BS 11

 

I consider my ECs to be pretty middle of the road but here they are: 

 

- hospital volunteer for 2 years

- on one of the student newsletter committees at the hospital

- volunteer for an elementary school science outreach program for ~2.5 years

- helped develop curriculum for this outreach organization

- involved in various science activities in my community (judge/organizer for science fairs/competitions)

- Private tutor for a semester (~4 months)

- held a part time job at a grocery store for 4.5 years

- Work Study/Research Assistant job at my university for ~ 2.5 years,

- Did some loose research during my time as a work study but nothing with a publication, working on getting my name as an author on a paper by the end of the summer but there's a chance it won't be finished until after applications are due.

- Other smaller volunteer activities (help out with charity drives, did habitat for humanity for a couple weekends etc.)

 

- No notable awards other than the standard GPA scholarships + Dean's list for University. 

 

I did apply last year (going into 3rd year undergrad) and did not receive any interviews which I assume was due to my GPA and not being in the last year/completed my program.

 

Any input is appreciated, Thanks!

[virgil]

Looking for some feedback on chances for Ontario schools and OOP schools as an Ontario resident. As of now I'm considering applying to Dal, Manitoba and Saskatchewan for OOP. I'm done my first three years as an undergrad and am starting my last year in September. I've taken full course loads for every year so I am eligible for all of the weighting formulas.

 

My best two years happen to be my last two years as I have been raising my GPA each year (1st year = 3.73, 2nd year = 3.83, 3rd year = 3.92). I've only taken one summer school course in the summer which was a full year of physics which I got a 4.0 in.

 

I took the MCAT in the summer between my 2nd and 3rd year (summer of 2014) and don't plan on rewriting unless absolutely necessary.

 

cGPA: 3.84

2yrGPA: 3.88

wGPA for Ottawa: 3.86

wGPA for U of T: 3.92

 

MCAT: P 12/VR 11/BS 11

 

I consider my ECs to be pretty middle of the road but here they are: 

 

- hospital volunteer for 2 years

- on one of the student newsletter committees at the hospital

- volunteer for an elementary school science outreach program for ~2.5 years

- helped develop curriculum for this outreach organization

- involved in various science activities in my community (judge/organizer for science fairs/competitions)

- Private tutor for a semester (~4 months)

- held a part time job at a grocery store for 4.5 years

- Work Study/Research Assistant job at my university for ~ 2.5 years,

- Did some loose research during my time as a work study but nothing with a publication, working on getting my name as an author on a paper by the end of the summer but there's a chance it won't be finished until after applications are due.

- Other smaller volunteer activities (help out with charity drives, did habitat for humanity for a couple weekends etc.)

 

- No notable awards other than the standard GPA scholarships + Dean's list for University. 

 

I did apply last year (going into 3rd year undergrad) and did not receive any interviews which I assume was due to my GPA and not being in the last year/completed my program.

 

Any input is appreciated, Thanks!

You're pretty set. Based on last year's cutoffs for Sask, you'll get an interview if you're over 34 and 11 VR. Shame about BS, if it was one higher you'd get a Western interview too. Your chances for Mcmaster are pretty good though. Ottawa might be tough with your GPA, but you should be good for Toronto. Dal is possible if you write a good essay and have a lot of clinical experience, especially if you have connections to the Maritimes. May as well apply to MUN too if you're going to apply to Dal. You should apply OOP to UBC too. Manitoba is out because typically it's 37+ MCAT for OOP. Alberta schools need the new MCAT.

[science1000]

I guys, wondering if you could give me an update on my chances. I'm a 3rd year IP for UBC. Also, do you guys think it would be acceptable to put very old and insignificant volunteering jobs/experiences just to fill up the application or would it be better to leave it blank? And out of my long term activities, I only currently still do one of them and my only other current activities are shorter term, does that look bad?

 

GPA: 92.8%

MCAT: not written yet

 

Awards: about 4k worth of scholarships from gr 12 and first year university

Research: 2 posters, 1 international level conference, 1 university level

 

ECs: 

summer camp leader, 175 hrs,

senior home volunteer, 30 hrs, 9 months

volunteering with swimmers with special needs, 80 hrs, 9 months

thrift shop volunteer, 50 hrs, 9 months

soccer coach, 1000 hrs, 4 years

soccer player and multiple awards, 3000 hrs, 9 years

piano, 3000 hrs, 10 years

chinese class, 2000 hrs, 10 years

summer leadership camp, 300 hrs

canadian cancer society volunteer, 60 hrs,

soup kitchen volunteer, 124 hrs, 3 years

psych lab research assistant, 200 hrs, 9 months

vancouver olympics volunteer, 59 hrs

guitar playing, 400 hrs, 2 years

Employment: lifeguard 3 yrs, mcdonalds 2 yrs

[Artier]

3.87 cGPA, 10/12/11 (PS/VR/BS) MCAT, 3rd year applicant, IP in ON

 

EC's are probably not relatively as strong (but I do have hospital volunteering, senior home volunteering, tutoring, etc.) since I'm just going into 3rd year.

 

I'll definitely apply to McMaster, any other universities I should consider or is it a long shot everywhere else? I'm open to any suggestions (IP or OOP; although I know AB is out of the question because they won't accept the old MCAT). Where do you guys think I'd have a decent chance?

[EM4me]

Dal means low as in close to failing-not low as in a B-

send in an app anyways!

 

although Dal is LAST 2 years, or cGPA, whichever is better. I don't knw if that helps or makes it worse, but year year evaluated has to be 3.7 (not 3.7 overall)

I don't remember reading this on the website! Glad you posted it here. Thanks! Do you know if this is strictly enforced? Say I have a 60 on my transcript in my second year, but have a strong upward trend and a 3.95 2YGPA, will Dal toss out the application?

[penguin04]

I don't remember reading this on the website! Glad you posted it here. Thanks! Do you know if this is strictly enforced? Say I have a 60 on my transcript in my second year, but have a strong upward trend and a 3.95 2YGPA, will Dal toss out the application?

Dal is actually last 2 year GPA or best 3 year GPA (for students applying after undergrad) whichever is better. If you're applying straight from undergrad, it's last 2 year GPA - you don't get a choice. I hope that clarifies things!

[EM4me]

Dal is actually last 2 year GPA or best 3 year GPA (for students applying after undergrad) whichever is better. If you're applying straight from undergrad, it's last 2 year GPA - you don't get a choice. I hope that clarifies things!

 

But is the rest of the transcript still assessed? If I submit and ask them to look at my last two years for GPA calculation (3rd and 4th year), will a bad grade in second year negatively affect my chances? Thanks 

[FrankTheTank]

But is the rest of the transcript still assessed? If I submit and ask them to look at my last two years for GPA calculation (3rd and 4th year), will a bad grade in second year negatively affect my chances? Thanks 

 

Nope, Dal won't even look at it. They'll only look at the GPA calculation that you choose for them to look at.

[EM4me]

Nope, Dal won't even look at it. They'll only look at the GPA calculation that you choose for them to look at.

Awesome!! Thanks penguin and FrankTheTank

[AAAmeds]

I am starting my 4th year at UBC.
 
My stats (GPA follows the OMSAS scale):
 
Year 1: 3.89
 
Year 2: 3.99
 
Year 3: 3.90
 
Overall:

 

UoT GPA (3.92; can't do wGPA)

Queens 2YGPA (3.95)

uOttawa wGPA (3.93)
UBC GPA (91.5%; IP for UBC)

McMaster cGPA (3.92)

Dal cGPA (3.96)

Manitoba wGPA (4.40)

Saskatchewan GPA (91.5%)
 
MCAT:
 
PS/VR/BS: 13/8/13 (Total: 34)

Not planning to take the new MCAT this summer.

Alberta and Calgary are out because of the old MCAT. Does not meet minimum mark for Western
 
ECs:

2 years (~800 hrs) research experience (volunteer, work study, summer studentship; no pubs; no conference yet)

100 hrs volunteering at hospital

250 hrs volunteering at a fundraising organzation (mainly data entry)

50 hrs tutoring to students with disabilities

50 hrs volunteering for Canucks (raising money for Canucks fundraising network)

a few small leadership roles

no club exec role yet

no clinical experience (how can I get shadowing, etc.?)

Won quite a few awards and scholarships in high school and university

 
Please let me know how I can strengthen my application (especially non-academic I feel like) and which med schools I should be aiming for with my stats in this cycle. Thanks a lot in advance. 

[Flit]

.

[harolvilla]

I've seen several posts showing volunteering experience at rehabs. Volunteer experience at addiction treatments centers are valued only if they are at good rehab centers. There are a lot of mock-ups around town. For Mac, U Toronto and Queen’s you’ll need solid volunteer experience and reference letters. This Canada rehab reviews page - http://www.canadarehabreviews.com/rehab-programs/ lists rehab centers that you can volunteer at. Look and ask around for good rehab center reviews and zero in on a few before applying. 

[AAAmeds]

I am starting my 4th year at UBC.

 

My stats (GPA follows the OMSAS scale):

 

Year 1: 3.89

 

Year 2: 3.99

 

Year 3: 3.90

 

Overall:

 

UoT GPA (3.92; can't do wGPA)

Queens 2YGPA (3.95)

uOttawa wGPA (3.93)

UBC GPA (91.5%; IP for UBC)

McMaster cGPA (3.92)

Dal cGPA (3.96)

Manitoba wGPA (4.40)

Saskatchewan GPA (91.5%)

 

MCAT:

 

PS/VR/BS: 13/8/13 (Total: 34)

Not planning to take the new MCAT this summer.

Alberta and Calgary are out because of the old MCAT. Does not meet minimum mark for Western

 

ECs:

2 years (~800 hrs) research experience (volunteer, work study, summer studentship; no pubs; no conference yet)

100 hrs volunteering at hospital

250 hrs volunteering at a fundraising organzation (mainly data entry)

50 hrs tutoring to students with disabilities

50 hrs volunteering for Canucks (raising money for Canucks fundraising network)

a few small leadership roles

no club exec role yet

no clinical experience (how can I get shadowing, etc.?)

Won quite a few awards and scholarships in high school and university

 

Please let me know how I can strengthen my application (especially non-academic I feel like) and which med schools I should be aiming for with my stats in this cycle. Thanks a lot in advance. 

Can someone please provide me some feedback? I am in a hurry!

[sdj78we9jtf2o3mgfvj298j]

My opinions:

 

Your GPA is great. Maybe a little low for Ottawa but you still have a chance.

 

You definitely should reconsider your MCAT. Last year I applied with a similar MCAT and basically the same GPA (and similar ECs, mine were a bit worse) and I got no interviews. I honestly believe it was because of that 8 verbal.

 

You've already identified what your deficiencies were in your ECs. Try to get a conference/publication, clinical experience, and a club exec role. It's a little bit late for that stuff but honestly I think they're fine as it is.

[Bambi]

Can someone please provide me some feedback? I am in a hurry!

McGill