Brief Profile:
There is a lot I wish I had done differently. I wish I had paid attention to my grades in college so I wouldn\'t end up 1 or 2 standard deviations lower than the mean GPA of many medical schools. I wish I didn\'t have to carry around Bs for biochem and orgo. I wish I had not submitted AMCAS in September and my secondaries in November/December. I will post my stats after the season ends but they are blah. But I did end up wanting to become a doctor. I\'ve got what I did, so I knew I must make the rest spotless. I did have interesting ECs throughout college and beyond (will post after the season), and I edited my essays at least 10 times and threw it at friends\' friends to see 1) if they feel like they knew me after reading, and 2) if they feel like they, too, want to become doctors after reading :) I hope this profile will inspire everyone who thought they\'re shooting for the moon with a slingshot to give their best, keep up good cheer, and enjoy the ride.
// Applications //
Application Cycle One: 09/01/2010
Undergraduate college: Top Ten University
Total MCAT SCORE: 519
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 129,
C/P 130,
CARS 130
Overall GPA: 3.40
Science GPA: 3.40
Summary of Application Experience
Be early! Be early! Be early! Early birds get all the slugs in suburban backyards! Seriously, I submitted AMCAS in September and most of my secondaries in November/December, which made it very difficult to stay optimistic and confident. Fortunately I had a supportive team that put up with night after night after night of poring over my essays and encouraging/forcing me to apply to schools I thought I had no chance. Thanks :)
Invited for Interview
Albert Einstein of Yeshiva University
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: Yes
Secondary Completed: Yes
Interview Invite: Yes
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: No
Summary of Experience:
I <3 New York but conditionally... sort of like how I <3 sunshine but would not wish to bake in the Sahara. I\'ve heard many good things about this school, but it\'s late in the cycle and I\'ve already made plans to travel abroad, so I\'m twiddling my thumbs on the fence about this one... we\'ll see...
Summary of Experience:
I don\'t know how other people I\'ve run into at interviews do it... you know, the ones who look all rosy and chipper even after 7 interviews... but I need to conserve money + time + energy at this point. UCI is gorgeous and has an outstanding pediatrics department, but I just can\'t keep pace with all the traveling :p
Summary of Experience:
Withdrew after Ohio acceptance. Would have loved to check out this school, especially given its optional rotations through Cleveland Clinic and location in Cleveland instead of Columbus, but I just can\'t afford any more travel. My plane skidded on the Chicago Midway runway while en route to Ohio State. At that point I wimped out and promised self to not fly to cold places again unless absolutely necessary :p
Summary of Experience:
Aw, thanks UCLA!! Complete late October, thought I had missed the train. Interview invite was such a sweet surprise. Made parents + aunt + cousin + grandma happy too that I have one more shot at staying close to home!
UPDATE: ah well, another one of those unrequited loves...
Summary of Experience:
Wonderful school, warm people, a real roaring fire in the admissions office and such a welcome despite the deep freeze. Would love to come here. Post-interview, the long, long wait commences... as long as the snow season in a deep pocket of New Hampshire...
update 2/1: in the \"acceptable pool\" aka unranked waitlist. Good thing I\'m going abroad. That\'s what people have always done to mend a broken heart or to die of consumption. But not before I send them an update letter -- gotta do whatever you can to sway their opinions! And I recommend this proactive approach to anyone else in the same boat. Good luck!
UPDATE: accepted off the wait list! Miracles do happen! Proof that having your mom dad cousin and aunt burn jasmine-scented incense sticks really does work. Matriculating here. So excited.
Summary of Experience:
Accepted! Super :)))) and honored to receive a vote of confidence from a school so on top of things. Decision Monday is the admissions of the future. I was eating dinner with SO and potential in-laws and moving onto dessert when the phone rang. The news sent everyone on a champagne search. We danced and celebrated and dozed off in front of the TV watching the incomprehensible \"Gosford Park.\" Good times :) Dean Capers works wonders as an ice breaker, thank you!
Summary of Experience:
Happiest, nicest, and smartest bunch I have met. The students I spoke with genuinely love the school, love what they\'re doing, and were brimming with ideas about improving health care delivery at every level. It would be such an honor to call them classmates this fall. Thank you for the good times!
Update: flipped on my laptop and checked for online status the instant I got back from UCLA interview... accepted!!! I am probably one or two standard deviations away from the mean GPA but my essay, ECs and interview went really well and as a result... one morning I\'d wake up thinking, yeah, I can still go to Pitt, and by nighttime I\'d inflict reality checks on myself i.e. nah, I don\'t stand a chance. So work hard with what you\'ve got and stay optimistic. It\'ll all work out :)
