- 3+ years of lab research experience (all of undergrad, with one middle author paper) - Unique extracurricular with leadership (too identifying to go into details; was a major part of many of my secondary essays, but did not come up as much as I expected it to during interviews) - Some physician shadowing and hospital volunteering (probably less than average, but I doubt MSTP cares too much about this) - Spattering of other minor activities (tutoring, clubs, etc.)
// Applications //
Application Cycle One: 06/10/2015
Undergraduate college: HYP
Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences
Total MCAT SCORE: 522
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 130,
C/P 129,
CARS 132
Overall GPA: 3.84
Science GPA: 3.84
Summary of Application Experience
General Timeline 6/11 - Submitted AMCAS 7/1 - AMCAS verified 7/2 - Secondaries start rolling in 8/12 - Finished my secondaries 8/19 - First interview invite! (Mt Sinai) 9/28 - First interview! (Emory) 11/30 - Last interview (Harvard) and first acceptances (WashU and Northwestern)! 3/8 - Waitlisted at Penn. Last school I was waiting to hear back from, so my cycle is now done (except for revisits I guess). 4/25 - Accepted UCSF's offer and withdrew from last remaining school (WashU).
General thoughts: - I applied during my senior year instead of after I graduated (aka I'm going straight through instead of taking a year off). I don't know if this was the right call. I had a great cycle, so I guess I can't complain about too much. That being said I now know for a fact that if I had waited I would have had 1 second-author paper (and maybe even 2). I can't help but think that this *might* have made a difference at some schools (I'm specifically thinking about Harvard, Hopkins, and Stanford). Also, a majority of the people I met on the interview trail had taken a year off. Not to mention applying when you're at the NIH or a similar postgrad program makes taking time off for interviews much easier than when you're in school or a "regular" job.
- I applied to too many schools (22 of 'em). I freaked out over some stuff junior year that made me doubt my candidacy. As a result, I massively expanded my school list (I was originally going to apply to only 15). Probably should not have applied to UMich, Vanderbilt, Baylor, Emory, or Mayo. One thing a lot of counselors don't realize is that most MSTPs aren't on a true rolling system like MD programs. With a few exceptions, I heard almost all of my results in Jan-March. As a result, you can end up going to a LOT of interviews since you might not have any acceptances until pretty late in the cycle. I think applying to 15-20 schools is a good range (though you might have to expand this if you are a weaker candidate, and this is just my opinion).
- MSTPs don't care as much about applying early. This makes sense since they have so few slots and want to see as many candidates as possible before making offers. I submitted my primary in early June, but I met lots of people on the interview trail who did not submit until well into July. I also missed the two-week recommended deadline for secondaries for a majority of my schools, and I doubt it affected my application.
Application Complete, Rejected
University of Chicago
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? Yes
Submitted: Yes
Secondary Completed: Yes
Interview Invite: No
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: Yes
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 7/16 R: 1/14 They usually give interview invites within 2-3 weeks of submitting secondaries (especially if you submit early in the cycle). For me, they put my application on hold in August, which I interpreted as a rejection. Officially notified me in January.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 7/16 R: 10/13 This one hurt a lot. Tri-I was probably my target school going in. I didn't expect to get IIs from schools like Harvard, Stanford, and UCSF. Tri-I had everything I thought I wanted: large program, well supported, strong cancer research (would have loved to be at MSK). Still a little bitter.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 7/21 R: 2/12 Knew I was rejected when I hadn't heard back by December, but they didn't officially notify me until February.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/15 SS: 8/4 II: 9/4 WD: 11/30 Withdrew after WashU acceptance. Only applied as an in-state safety. Honestly could not see myself going here. Withdrew within hours of getting accepted to WashU and Northwestern.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/16 SS: 7/26 II: 12/18 WD: 1/3 Withdrew after WashU acceptance. Would have certainly gone if they had offered me an interview earlier. All their interview dates are in Jan/Feb though, and I was tired of interviewing by December.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 8/12 II: 11/3 WD: 12/31 Withdrew after WashU acceptance. Finishing the secondary was such a struggle. I hated their essays. Ended up submitting it 6 weeks after I got it. Was honestly surprised to get an interview. Debated whether or not to withdraw for a while since Duke has such a strong reputation, but ultimately was tired of interviewing at that point.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/8 SS: 8/1 II: 9/4 WD: 11/18 Withdrew before any acceptances. Their interview dates kept conflicting with other schools I was more interested in. Would have been nice to go since they offered to pay and I've never been to Nashville.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/13 SS: 7/28 II: 10/29 IA: 11/30 R: 3/2 Rejected MSTP and Pathways. Waitlisted HST. Interviewed for Pathways, HST, and MSTP. Went in thinking I'd like Pathways better than HST. Coming out of my interview I definitely preferred HST. Also got my first acceptances (WashU and Northwestern) the first night of my interviews.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/15 SS: 8/1 II: 9/9 IA: 11/2 R: 12/20 Rejected MSTP. Waitlisted MD. One of my MSTP interviews went terribly (completely my fault) so the MSTP rejection was not a surprise. I thought I handled the MMIs really well though, so the MD waitlist was a little disappointing. Given the strength of the research program, Stanford MD and Harvard HST are probably the only MD-only programs I'd consider going to over an MSTP.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/6 SS: 7/22 II: 9/3 IA: 10/7 R: 2/1 Really liked the program and the people. Was pleasantly surprised by Baltimore given the negative perceptions I had going in. The rejection stung. Also, they sent the rejection by physical mail to my home address (not school) and gave no email notification.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 7/16 II: 8/27 IA: 11/5 W: 3/8 Loved Skip and the program staff. They clearly knew what they were doing and were very well organized. Very similar to WashU in terms of program size and breadth of support systems but with better location (Philly > St Louis).
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/10 SS: 8/7 II: 9/8 IA: 9/28 W: 3/4 WD: 3/8 Withdrew after UCSF acceptance. This was my first interview and I ended up liking Atlanta a lot more than I thought I would. They sent me an email in November asking if I was still interested in the program. I got into WashU and ended up not responding. Was honestly expecting a rejection.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/15 SS: 8/9 II: 8/19 IA: 10/5 W: 1/19 WD: 3/8 Withdrew after UCSF acceptance. When they waitlisted me, they asked me to let them know if I was still interested every 2 weeks, which I found a little odd. Overall, Mt Sinai is definitely the most unique med school in the country. I don't know if it would have been the best fit for me, but I would have liked to have the option. Unrelated note: they have the best housing in NYC hands down.
Summary of Experience:
[MATRICULATING] SR: 7/21 SS: 8/5 II: 9/16 IA: 10/27 A: 3/4 One of my favorite schools due to location and the people. Clicked very well here. Only concern is how well the Bridges curriculum will integrate with the MSTP timeline.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/2 SS: 7/17 II: 9/2 IA: 10/15 A: 11/30 WD: 4/25 Withdrew after UCSF revisit. Probably the best supported MSTP both in terms of funding and institutional backing. Very friendly staff and students. Also Brian sends wonderful update emails. St. Louis itself seems like a great city, but it's hard to get out of there to visit other places since it's in the middle of the country.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/20 SS: 8/9 II: 10/12 IA: 11/18 A: 11/30 WD: 3/8 Withdrew after UCSF acceptance. Loved Chicago, but the program left me with a "meh" feeling. Nothing exceptional.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/7 SS: 8/7 II: 9/3 IA: 11/20 A: 12/30 WD: 3/8 Withdrew after UCSF acceptance. Great program with lots of new buildings going up. Nothing about it stood out to me though and I just didn't click with the people.
Summary of Experience:
SR: 7/8 SS: 7/25 II: 9/18 IA: 10/22 A: 3/3 WD: 3/8 Withdrew after UCSF acceptance. Loved the location, but the program itself gave me a weird vibe. I could see myself there, but I clicked better at other schools.
