<p>I attend Northwestern University. I’m a sophomore. Right now I have a math and science GPA of around 3.16 and a total GPA of 3.4. If by the time I apply to medical school I can pull those up to 3.3 and 3.5 AT LEAST, respectively, will a better MCAT score compensate for this?</p>
<p>Something to consider: I do not intend on going to a top ranking medical school. I feel as though I made a mistake by coming to NU and I was blinded by the prestige and failed to consider how successful I would be able to be. I do not want this to happen again in medical school, lest it affect my chances of being accepted into a good residency program.</p>
<p>A high MCAT (35+ range) will only mitigate a low GPA to a certain extent. Many schools use a computer program to screen applicants. If your GPA is too low to get past the screener, then an exceptional MCAT won’t help you at all.</p>
<p>And before you ask–the minimum GPA varies by school and is closely held proprietary information (meaning you not going to see it published anywhere).</p>
<p>School dependent. There are more than a half dozen software programs used for screening by med schools and each is customizable. This means the numbers used and how they are weighted are going to be different at each school.</p>
<p>Rast
Unfortunately the competition at Harvard will not be much different from that at xyz. You will still be competing against the top students in the country.</p>
<p>That being said, some programs don’t look at your freshman year. If there is a reason your GPA is poor (you always wanted to take Chinese, but are terrible at languages, you can write an explanatory note which can help get by the secretary. </p>
<p>As to science vs non-science, with some exceptions, non-science may be more important than the science</p>
<p>You’re going to need to work on your GPA. That may mean doing a Glide Year so that your senior year grades can help improve your cum and BCMP GPA. </p>
<p>What is your major? </p>
<p>All US med schools expect strong GPAs. It’s not as if the Top 10 med schools expect high GPAs and the rest are accepting 3.2 students. The goal should be a minimum GPA of 3.5…but really more like 3.7…especially if you don’t have some hook.</p>
<p>I would strongly suggest very carefully selecting your courses and profs in the future. Of course you have to complete the req’d courses of your major, but if you have room in your schedule, include some BCMP courses that would be easier for you that can help pad your GPA.</p>
<p>You are counting birds that are NOT in your hands.
How in world you know that you will get a very high MCAT score?
Just do your best from now on (it would require to get straight As) and do your best on the MCAT. Then you will know your stats.<br>
If you do not know how to get your GPA higher, how you will have a skill to get the very high MCAT? MCAT is much harder than any of your class exams.</p>
<p>Don’t ever consider rankings when evaluating medical schools, they make absolutely no sense and are extremely counterproductive. Those rankings correlate more with research funding than with the quality of the education or the outcomes. No doubt you may have more competition to learn the same material at a more competitive school but focus on your current grades and then getting into ANY medical school. One step at a time to focus on the whole package you’ll present to your intended medical school. I would advise you focus on your state flagship medical school first before venturing to the large research institutions.</p>
<p>Frugaldoctor,
Is there any correlation between Med. School ranking and chances at the very competitive residency? I am asking because of the strange incidence of #1 ranked medical student (from non-ranked Med. School) NOT matched at all (Derm.). She somewhat caused her problem by going only to 3 interviews. On the other hand, would she had a better chance if she was coming from top 20 - 25 Med. School?
This is strictly a question, I am not stating any opinion here at all.</p>
<p>Of course there is, just like there is a correlation between HYPS undergrad and professional school admissions. Besides the prestige – which is unquantifiable – like HYPS undergrad (SAT/ACT), top med schools screen for and admit strong test takers (MCAT scores). Students who have been strong test takers throughout their lives, are bound to do well on Step 1.</p>
<p>“Is there any correlation between Med. School ranking and chances at the very competitive residency?” </p>
<p>Graduating from a “ranked ” medical school would be a positive, but is not a top 20 factor that surveyed PDs consider in offering interviews/ranking. There are too many factors when looked at individually and in the totality that PDs consider. There is simply no way to know what weight if any is assigned to any one factor at any one program by any one PD. Although coming from a “ranked” medical school may add a pebble to an applicant’s side of the scale, it’s just one of many pebbles.</p>
<p>I just don’t believe anyone can make the above correlation. I also think we are getting off topic.</p>
<p>Probably should emphasize the difference between the actual meaning of correlation and the more colloquial meaning of it. Given the fact that people aren’t randomly assigned to medical schools there is probably a greater than 95% chance that some 0<r<1 correlation between prestige of medical school and competitive residencies exists. It’s really not a stretch to assert that schools which recruit the top students are more likely to have students that go on to top residencies than the schools that don’t recruit the top students.</p>
<p>None of that contradicts the rest of your post though jug, which I do agree with.</p>
<p>Realize that those who get in with lower grades and/or test scores almost always have something else going for them: URM, exceptional life experiences or they were residents of a state that ‘protects’ its medical school seats for in-state residents only.</p>
<p>MiamiDap, the competitive residencies look at several factors. To obtain an interview, the applicants need to make the USMLE and GPA cut offs before they are ever considered. Once they have met these minimum standards, then the interviews, LORs, personal statements, and research experiences come into play. Being number one from medical school means nothing when it comes to a top residency program if you don’t have the USMLE scores and the intangibles.</p>
<p>I completed my residency at Johns Hopkins in a very competitive field. My director told me that they had a USMLE cut off at the 90th percentile. I attended a medical school ranked in the 70s but I received an outstanding education. I was one of three in my class who matched at Johns Hopkins in very competitive specialties. Most people chose to match within 150 miles of our school. The three of us did not.</p>
<p>As the interest for my specialty increased, my residency director raised the USMLE cut offs. By the time I was finishing, they were bringing in PGY1s who were MD/PhDs, already boarded in other specialties, had outstanding backgrounds, and had USMLE scores in the upper 5th percentile. But their medical schools were nothing spectacular. But let me add one other interesting note. The work ethics of the newer and “smarter” residents plummeted. They were bad. IMHO, the fancier their academic pedigree, the worse it was.</p>
<p>@Mom2CollegeKids - I am a Biology major. I have spoken to other students at my school who are also bio majors but are juniors and seniors. They say that the prereq classes for pre-med (which are entirely the same as the prereqs for the bio major) are very difficult but once you get into the 300 level classes it is easier to do well. I am also thinking of minoring in Spanish and Psychology if it helps you to know in any way. Also, what is considered a “hook” for medical school?</p>
<p>@Texaspg - I am from Illinois</p>
<p>@MiamiDAP - I was just curious. I see absolutely nothing wrong with asking “what ifs” just to gather more information. It’s not as though I am about to take the MCAT next month and am depending entirely on that one number. I still have over a year until I take the test and over a year to raise my GPA.</p>
<p>@M’s mom- Thanks for the spreadsheet, that was very helpful!</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the information everybody! I am not doing so well in my intro Physiology class this quarter but I know that if I work hard I can pull off an A- in Organic Chemistry which itself could potentially raise my math and science GPA to a 3.24 from a 3.16.</p>
<p>My guess is that you need to get to 3.4-3.5 by end of third year (unless you are waiting until after 4th to apply) in order to apply and probably be around 35 to have a shot med schools. With those and being from NU, there will be private schools out there which will look at you a bit kindly. </p>
<p>You should have a shot at some of the in state publics too.</p>
<p>I see Chicago Franklin listed at 3.45, 29.2.</p>