<p>I’m not pre-med, nor did I read the thread entirely, so I apologize if this has already been mentioned, but to those talking about how to maintain a 3.8 and a 36 alongside research and other stuff: the whole point of having guaranteed acceptance is to take out the stress of applying to med school. At least the way I see it, that doesn’t mean slacking academically or performing poorly on test scores (though “slacking” and “poorly” are relative here considering Wash U’s elite status as far as med school goes), but rather that it takes away all of the other BS associated with med school admissions. I think not having to complete ridiculous amounts of extracurricular activities, research and fellowships on the side, and several applications to various schools including essays and whatnot is the benefit of being a University scholar. </p>
<p>It’s by no means easy, but I think even maintaining a 3.5 at a school and still having to do ECs, internships/research fellowships/etc., and dealing with the stress of the application process is harder than just doing the straight shoot for a 3.8/36. After all, a 3.8 is not easy by any means, but if all you have to do every day is just study without anything else weighing on your mind, I would say it’s entirely doable.</p>