Application Cycle One: 2008

• Undergraduate college: UCLA
• Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences

• Total MCAT SCORE: 517
• MCAT Section Scores: B/B 130, C/P 129, CARS 127   Detailed Breakdown
• Overall GPA: 3.85
• Science GPA: 3.90

Summary of Application Experience

I am going to UCLA Med! Woohoo! =D

My main advice is: whatever you are involved in, pursue it to the fullest. It looks a lot better to have few activities if you spend a lot of time on each and have awards or a bombass letter of rec or publications to show for it. Also, don't pursue anything just because it looks good on your resume and amcas...seriously. Between an honor society or a rock climbing club, it will look much better to be in the rock climbing club!!! [provided you demonstrate motivation to be a doctor in other activities!]

Also, Davis has a strict English requirement; it can only be from English, Classics, or Comparative Literature department. All requirements are supposed to be completed by January of the year you'd matriculate. I hope this information helps someone who is clueless like I was about that!

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it's been a stressful process... i just want to get into one school!!! i would be happy at any of these places. i didn't apply to many because i was advised that i didn't need to... but sometimes i feel like i should have added more schools anyway. at the same time, writing all those secondaries took me long enough as is, so i suppose i don't regret it. hopefully i will get into a school soon!

10/27 UCI - Great school - relaxed environment, beautiful campus, near my family. I loved it all until my student and faculty interviewer... I had kept hearing amazing things until my med student interview - he seemed a bit negative, told me it was difficult to find research and that many didn't get what they wanted. Faculty interviewer grilled me on research and on my knowledge of migraine... I was really surprised, given that the whole day otherwise had been so chill. I still would be happy to go here!

10/28 USC - Great school once again! I had really good interviews (so I think) and everyone here is so nice. As soon as I pulled out a map to figure out where I was, someone came to me and immediately asked if I needed help. I can see the difference it makes in terms of public vs private school. Research opportunities are abound, and faculty really looks at you as a peer rather than a lowly medical student. I also liked the county hospital + private hospital experience. I would be happy to go here, although my heart is still set on UCLA / a UC med school...

11/06 UCLA - I LOVE UCLA! I hope they take me. Although the admissions office put no effort in making me feel welcome, my interviews went great (at least my faculty one did). The interviewer told me that he would serve as my 'lawyer' and he would do his best to defend me, provided that I gave him good information. It was really relaxing, and I felt that he was on my side. I really, really hope the whole committee likes my application when they review it and decides to accept me. I would turn down ANY other schools for UCLA!

Since then, I have interviewed at UCSD and UC Davis. UCSD - waitlist. and Davis won't give me decisions til March. However, I think all my schools are going to give me the waitlist, so it's going to be a longer wait than I thought.

6/1/09 UCLA accepted me off the waitlist! I never thought the day would come. I am going to be a doctor!!!!!!! =) =) =)