How to Apply to Medical School

1. How to Apply to Medical School There and Back Again: A Student’s Tale Austin Park 3/24/2013

3. Outline Timeline So you want to be a doctor Preparing to apply The MCAT Primary application Secondary application Interviews Acceptance (or not) Encouragement

4. Disclaimer The following is the advice I can give concerning the process of applying to medical school There is more that one way to do this I might not have the best way This is not gospel

5. Timeline • January to September: Take the MCAT • May 1: AMCAS primary application opens • June 4 to ~ December: AMCAS primary application opens for submission • Schools have differing deadlines for submission • July to ~ January: Secondary application submission • September to ~ April: Interviews • October to August: Acceptance/waitlist/rejection

6. Before We Get Ahead of Ourselves • APPLY EARLY • This CANNOT be said enough

7. So you want to be a doctor Here’s what you can do now: • Make sure you meet the requirements for ALL schools you apply to usually: • 1 year General Biology with lab • 1 year General Chemistry with lab • 1 year Organic Chemistry with lab • 1 year Physics with lab • 1 year English (Literature or Composition) • 1 year Math (Calculus or Statistics) • Schools have different requirements • Check each school for individual requirements

8. So you want to be a doctor Here’s what you can do now: • Shadow Physicians • Find a doctor you can shadow • Explore different specialties • Volunteer • Schools place HIGH value on volunteerism • Volunteer clinically in hospitals • Doesn’t need to be medical related • GFU James Project, Urban Outreach • Be Involved • Clubs, Athletics, ASC • Pro Tip: Whatever you do, show commitment

9. So you want to be a doctor Here’s what you can do now: • Research! • Helps familiarize you with the scientific process • Understanding primary literature • Running experiments • Grant proposals • Some medical schools require scholarly projects (AKA research) • Publications look great on resume • Get to know faculty better

10. So you want to be a doctor Here’s what you can do now: • This process is expensive. Start saving now • MCAT: $270 • Primary Application: $160 base, $34/school • Secondary Application: $50-$150 each • Flights and Hotel: $200-$500 depending on location • Getting into medical school: Priceless • AMCAS has Fee Assistance Program • Start thinking about your personal statement and which schools you might attend.

11. The MCAT

12. The MCATBasics • Medical College Admissions Test • Last eligible MCAT for the year you are applying is in September • Try to take it before you apply • Pro Tip: You don’t *need* your MCAT scores to submit your primary application • Scores are good for three years • Format is changed for 2013 and will change again 2015

13. The MCATBasics • National median: 27 • Median for accepted students: 32 • Scores over 30 are considered competitive • Better to score 10/10/10 than 14/8/8 • You can retake the MCAT • Generally, your most recent score is the one used in evaluations

14. The MCATBasics

15. The MCATPreparation • Pay attention in your classes • Don’t take classes to “study” for the MCAT • That being said, Biochemistry and Developmental biology helped me on the test • The AAMC has ~8 practice tests you can take • For a fee, of course, 1 is free • These WILL help you study, 100%, no doubt • Kaplan, Examkracker, Princeton Review • Prices range from $100-$2000 • May or may not help • That being said, I shelled out for a Kaplan Course

16. The MCATFormat: 2013 & 2014 • Three sections • Physical Sciences: Physics and General Chemistry (50/50) • Verbal Reasoning: Excerpts from written works • Biological Sciences: General Biology and Organic Chemistry (75/25) • Writing was taken out • Lucky punks

17. The MCATFormat: 2013 & 2014 • Physical and Biological • 52 questions over 70 minutes • 39 questions based on passages • 13 free standing questions (like your gen bio tests) • Verbal Reasoning • Considered the hardest section for us science folk • 40 questions over 60 minutes • 7 passages • Pro Tip: Passage based questions are different from those on your science tests. You are not expected to be an expert on the passage information, only able to understand and apply it.

18. The MCATFormat: 2015 and beyond • A different horse indeed • Disclaimer: I don’t know much about these changes • 4 Sections • Chemical and Biological Foundations of Living Systems • 67 questions over 95 minutes • Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems • 67 questions over 95 minutes

19. The MCATFormat: 2015 and beyond • 4 Sections cont. • Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills • 60 questions over 90 minutes • Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior • 67 questions over 95 minutes • HOLD UP • That’s right ladies and gentlemen, The MCAT WILL test psychological and sociological concepts

20. Primary ApplicationBasics • Opens May 1, available for submission June 4 • Sent to all schools • 9 different sections • Some take longer than other • It takes 4-6 weeks for the AMCAS to verify your application after you submit it

22. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 1) Identifying Information • Name, Social Security, Place of birth, ect • 2) Schools Attended • High school, any undergraduate institutions (including community college!) • Institutional action • Don’t pay a visit to student life • 3) Biographical Information • Citizenship, languages spoken, criminal record • You designate yourself as disadvantaged in this section • Underrepresented in Medicine (URM)

23. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 4) Coursework • Every. Single. Class. You’ve. Taken. • Also your class grades • 5) Work/Activities • List up to 15 activities, given 700 characters to describe them. • Volunteering, research, clubs, ect • List up to 3 activities as “most meaningful experience” • Given 1325 additional characters to describe why you designated activity as most meaningful • My meaningful: Rock climbing, Organic Chemistry TA, and OHSU research

24. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 6) Letters of Evaluation • Most schools require 3-5 letters of recommendation • Some schools require letters to be sent with the primary application, others with secondary • Almost all schools participate in the AMCAS Letter service • Who writes the letters • Remember those doctors you’ve shadowed and researchers you’ve worked for? Ask them. • Basic science faculty • Some schools require one letter from non-science faculty • Employers • The more your recommenders know you, the better • Include resume • Give plenty of time (1-2 months)

25. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 7) Medical Schools • Designate which medicals you send primary application • Also designate which letters of recommendation to send to which schools • Apply to a wide range of schools • Things to consider: • Cost, geographical location, public vs. private, research vs. primary care focus • Students *usually* have a home state advantage (sorry Oregonians)

26. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 7) Medical Schools Cont. • MSAR: Medical School Admission Requirements • Resource put together by AAMC • Costs ~$35 (as applying isn’t expensive enough) • Tells you school stats, programs, entering GPA/MCAT score, selection factors, ect

27. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 8) Essays • AMCAS Personal Statement • 5200 characters including spaces • Prompt: “Use the space provided to explain why you want to go to medical school” • You MUST address the two golden questions • 1) Why do you want to go to medical school? • 2) Why are you a good medical school candidate? • This is a good space to differentiate yourself from the pack • I compared myself to SamwiseGamgee from “The Lord of the Rings” • Pro Tip: Don’t talk about your most meaningful activities (that you listed earlier), you would get bored reading the same thing twice too

28. Primary ApplicationSection overview • 9) Standardized Tests • See the results of your MCAT test.

29. Secondary Applications • Schools either: • Review your primary application and then decide whether or not to send you their secondary • Automatically send you secondary application • Completed Online • Usually require 0-5 more essays • Why X school? Give us a brief autobiography of your life. What do you want to do in medicine? How will you contribute to this school’s diversity? • More biographical info required • Deadlines range from 3 weeks (fromtime of receipt) until ~December

31. InterviewBasics • Invitations to interview can come from October – April • Good opportunity to check out campus • Some schools will assign you a date, others will let you choose one • Choose the earliest possible interview • Schools may have option to stay with student host • Great way to see the school from the students’ eyes • Save money on hotels • Interviews are an excellent indicator that the school likes you (duh)

32. Interviewing • Arrive early; helps reduce stress • Interviews can take on many forms: • One on one • Panel • Group • Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) • One on one and MMI interviews are most common • You can be interviewed by both students and/or faculty

33. Interviewing • Interviews can be conversational or question-answer • Dress to impress • Know and understand the basics of current issues in medicine as well as ethical scenarios • Health care reform, euthanasia, stem cells, ect • Be ready to address any troublesome aspects of your application • Poor GPA, institutional discipline from our pals at student life, contradictions in application, ect • Have a couple well thought out questions • Pro Tip: Consistency is good, so is answering questions based on your life experience, it shows depth of character

34. InterviewingPreparations • Set up mock interviews with GFU faculty • Look up possible interview questions on the internet • Helps get you in the right mindset • Research the school before you go • Understand unique aspects of the curriculum • The function of the interview is the same as the personal statement • Why would you make a good doctor? • Why should X school want you in their program?

35. Acceptance • Congratulations! • Be sure to send in acceptance paper work to reserve spot • Schools require a non-refundable deposit • Not due until late in the summer (July) • You may hold multiple acceptances until May 15. • If you are definitely not going to a school, politely decline to free up your spot for another student

37. So You Didn’t Make It In... • I’m sorry. It sucks. • Some schools offer workshops to improve application for the next cycle • Most schools looks at re-applicants favorably • Try to improve upon weak portions of your application • Volunteer • Shadow • Take more science classes

38. Encouragement We can all agree that the process is awful Hang in there, keep your eye on the prize You can overcome a poor GPA or bad MCAT score

39. Acknowledgements • John Schmitt • Paul Chamberlain • Jeff Vargason • GFU Faculty

40. Questions?