Brief Profile:
I am a pharmacology/toxicology major (don't know which category this technically falls under). The major is a unique one that places emphasis on both drug pharmacology and toxicity in a human system. Both my parents are immigrants from Southeast Asia and are not college educated. Despite this, I grew up in what I would consider a middle-class household (lived in the city then moved to the suburbs). I am not only the first in my immediate family to go to college but also the first to go into medicine.
Clinical Experience: - Two summers worth of volunteering at a local hospital about four hours a week for two to three months - Two summers worth of shadowing, once with a nurse and another time with a cardiothoracic surgeon, spent over eighty hours in the OR - Prior summers of volunteering at the same hospital in high school - Summer research internship in a local trauma center, spent about an hour a day in the ED, about forty hours a week total, three of the abstracts I worked on were accepted for conference presentations and one manuscript I worked on was accepted for publication in a well-known clinical journal - Volunteered for a semester at a Hispanic clinic once a week in an underserved area translating for patients and doing other miscellaneous tasks
Other Experiences: - Spent a semester volunteering in a library of an under-served school in West Philadelphia, about three hours a week - Have been spending the last two years as a mentor to freshmen - Have been treasurer, vice president, and now president of the Pre-Med Society on campus - Am a black belt in Tang Soo Do and have trained since I was twelve - Am a student representative of the campus conduct and grievance committees
Academic: - a part of the honors program at my school - awarded four competitive academic scholarships from the school over the course of my undergrad - part of two honor societies (ALD and AX) - was published last semester in the school's creative writing journal
// Applications //
Application Cycle One: 06/04/2012
Undergraduate college: University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
Total MCAT SCORE: 513
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 127,
C/P 127,
CARS 130
Overall GPA: 3.86
Science GPA: 3.78
Summary of Application Experience
This was my first application cycle. I applied as a college senior to fourteen allopathic schools (as per the fee assistance program) all on the east coast. I considered myself as having a fairly strong application. I had several interviewers comment on my personal statement, which I felt was a very compelling part of my application. In addition, I had a committee letter that was a cover letter to six faculty letters (four science, two non-science), all of which I believed to be strong.
Numbers-wise, I think both my GPA and my MCAT score were due to the fact that I really found my own way of learning in college and stuck to it. I paid close attention in class (critical thinking is key), did some supplemental reading when needed, and briefly went over my notes in preparation for exams.
My preparation for interviews was minimal. Aside from some basic research on schools and giving myself an idea of what I would say to some tough questions, I really went into the interview process as a blank slate. I think the key is to stay relaxed, confident, and true to yourself. Medical school interviews (for the most part) are not out to get you and really just want to get a bigger picture of you as a person. It's more of a conversation than anything.
Going into the experience, I really do owe a lot of debt to SDN. I had to basically learn about the entire process on my own, and SDN helped me profusely. It's a great resource for information, tips, and tricks (granted you know where to look). If you use SDN and find it useful, please consider donating!
Application Complete, Rejected
University of Pittsburgh
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: 07/01/2012
Secondary Completed: 07/02/2012
Interview Invite: No
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: 08/30/2012
Summary of Experience:
Honestly, I was not expecting to get into Pitt, so this wasn\'t much of a surprise at all.
Summary of Experience:
Figured it was pointless to wait for an II here since I've already got a couple of acceptances under my belt. Withdrawn in December.
Summary of Experience:
Application withdrawn before interview -- I didn\'t feel that strongly about BU to begin with and am confident enough about gaining an acceptance at a school higher up on my list
Summary of Experience:
Medium interview group (15 students). I wasn't too let down or too impressed by TCMC. No doubt, the new building is beautiful, and the curriculum, especially the longitudinal integrated clerkship sounds innovative, but I didn't really get a good feel for it. I guess the fact that the school is so new was a little off-putting.
Summary of Experience:
Very small (10 people) and personal interview day. I absolutely loved the admissions presentation and the explanation of cura personalis. The school truly does embody this theory. There is only one interview (with either a student or faculty). I was interviewed by an associate professor physician, and, for me, it was purely conversational with only one really "tough" question that I thought I answered pretty gracefully.
Summary of Experience:
Large-ish number of interviewees (two groups of eight). I had an amazing time at PSU. Their admissions staff made a very good impression on me, as well as all the staff and faculty I talked to. Everyone here is extremely nice, which is very typically of an area like this (I grew up in Lancaster). There are two faculty interviews that are about thirty to forty-five minutes. They are very relaxed and focused on getting to know you and what you want to highlight about your application.
Summary of Experience:
Medium group (13 students). Pretty relaxed interview day. The medical building is beautiful, and the student tour guides were M2s that were very helpful with answering any questions. My student interview was as expected -- laid back and relaxed, while my faculty interview was less so and more of a "standard" medical school interview (i.e., Why medicine? Why Temple? Why you? etc.).
Summary of Experience:
Very large interview group (30 people) but very relaxed and welcoming. I went in having a neutral view about Jefferson, but it has now jumped up to one of the three schools that I will have to decide between. One faculty and one student interview that were both extremely laid back.
Summary of Experience:
Large interview (17?) and somewhat of a hectic interview day. The admissions presentation was not all that exciting but certainly informative nonetheless. During the tour, some of us had to step out to catch a shuttle to the hospital for our interviews. There were both faculty and student interviews, with the latter being much more relaxed and conversation; I did not consider it a real "interview" at all.
Withdrew my acceptance due to COA and the fact that I wasn't really "feeling it" at Drexel.
