What are my chances - from a long-time lurker

[DubZteR]

Hey All,

 

Thanks for your input. I''ll try to respond to each of you in turn.

 

AnxiousBoy, what others schools are on your list? What were your stats and outcomes (rejections, acceptances, etc.)? Insofar as looking into class stats, I'm assuming the best way to go about this would be to visit each school's website. I agree with the angling bit - as I said, I was frankly shocked to get waitlisted at UBC (in a good way), and I think the only way I got that was by submitting a unique application. Though of course for your application to work it's literary magic you at least need to have the baseline MCAT/GPA so your app doesn't go straight to the toilet. Whether or not I have that, we'll see. Thanks for the encouragement.

 

Mlbn, yep I've thought of re-writing the MCAT. Shortly after I usually think about vomiting. I know my score is low - especially PS - so I'm prepared to write it again. With a solid low 30s MCAT I'd be much more competitive. Something to think about for next cycle, as it's too late for this one. Thanks for the heads up on EVMS. SLU would be nice (my dad went there), but escrow is a no-no for me. Also, is there a reliable way/agorithm for me to predict my AMCAS GPA?

 

Deathvvv, thanks for the list..I keep hearing SUNY, Wayne, and GWU. I'll have to investigate. I tried to find that spreadsheet, but was led back to these boards with a link to this (much more entertaining than excel):

Is it possible you can upload it or PM me? Thanks.

 

Moo, I'm a WASP. Guess Meharry's out. Thanks.

 

Genemo, I think I know what you're getting at (i.e., that US schools don't have a strict cutoff, but rather a higher GPA/MCAT standard for Canadian applicants relative to American ones). Can anyone else verify this? I've certainly heard this before. Are there US schools that are blind to Canadian citizenship? Average accepted CPA necessarily implies that there's people with sub-3.7 who get in (probably not much south of 3.6, I would think); whether or not these are Canadians would be nice to know.

 

For everyone: generally speaking, how are graduate degrees looked upon by American schools? I'm considering doing one in Austria, Holland, Germany or Alberta. Also, I know that reapplication without drastic improvement is strongly discouraged at most American schools. Am I shooting myself in the foot by even applying to schools this year with my relatively poor MCAT? Would I be better off to wait until next year and apply with a stronger MCAT, or would a re-write of say 32Q be enough improvement (in addition to some other NAQs). I may yet do a masters.

 

Thanks again in advance.

 

If your dad went to SLU for med school you should def apply there. Many US schools offer legacy interviews to children of their graduates.

 

Also, applying to the US with a 29 MCAT and a GPA <3.7, most schools would not consider you a strong applicant. Some schools limit the # of times you can apply and many clearly state on their website that unsuccessful applicants are strongly discouraged from reapplying unless their credentials have significantly improved, so ideally, applying to medical school should be considered a hit em with your best shot approach.

 

g'luck!

[Jojef]

Thanks all for the input.

 

Dub, my dad DID go to SLU, but not for medicine. He did philosophy. Does the legacy interview bit still apply considering it's a different faculty? If so, how would I go about this? I know he was a strong student/keener, not sure if he should attempt to get in touch with any of the faculty - seems a bit sneaky? Interesting ...

[deathvvv]

The legacy effect mostly works if its the same department (ie medicine with med applications). But even then, if your Stats are significantly weaker than average, they wont just accept you based on legacy (unless your dad is rich enough to donate an international airport to the university, in that case, why are you going to medicine? )