Sunday, December 22, 2013

The Re-Applicant

After 3 application cycles, I cannot stress enough how good it feels to finally have an acceptance into medical school! I first applied in 2008, and you can definitely see the growth in my applications from then and now. The first time I applied, I could not afford to apply to many schools, and I was lucky enough to receive an AACOMAS fee waiver. This allows for an individual to apply to three osteopathic schools for free, so I picked my three very carefully and hoped for the best. I have no idea what I was thinking applying at the time though because there was nothing notable about my application. While I did have shadowing experience and a letter of recommendation from an osteopathic physician, I had very little extracurricular activities, research, or volunteering experiences mentioned in my application. I think I may have even mentioned job experiences and extracurricular activities from high school. On top of that, my MCAT score was only a 21 and I had a GPA that was below a 2.5. I received rejections from all three schools around May of that year, but due to not passing a biochemistry class that was only offered once a year and having to extend my graduation date, I would not have been able to attend anyway. Needless to say, I was still very upset and not quite sure about my future.

After graduating in the fall of 2009, I took a job working full-time in a somewhat medically-related research field and I also worked on building my resume. By the time 2011 came around, I felt that I was ready to re-apply to medical school. This time, I applied to three allopathic schools and they were all HBCUs. I also re-took the MCAT, but my score literally only increased by one point. I think the only noteworthy thing about my application was that I included all of my experiences, and I completely re-vamped my personal statement to really reflect me. Unfortunately, I was also rejected this cycle without any interviews. Looking back, I can say that my main problems this cycle were the fact that I definitely did not apply broadly, I took the August MCAT, I applied somewhat late, and I still had not proved to the schools that I could handle a heavy course load and succeed.

Fast-forward to 2013, and this time I was going all in. On top of all the extracurricular activities noted from my previous years, I also upped my shadowing experiences, started volunteering every week at my local hospital, and now had research publications under my belt. By the grace of God I was accepted into a graduate program in the summer of 2012, and I was doing better than I had ever done in my academic career. This was a risk in itself because graduate courses are not considered in the same fashion as post baccalaureate classes, but I wanted an extra degree to fall back on just in case this application cycle did not work out as well. My graduate classes were not easy either and I think taking classes like chemical thermodynamics, pharmacology, and toxicology really raised some heads. I re-took the MCAT twice this year (yes, that makes a total of four times), but my scores still remain low with a 20 and then a 21. I also applied very broadly within two weeks of the application cycle opening, and I submitted all of my secondary applications within two weeks of receiving them. This cycle, I have applied to 26 schools total, and these include both allopathic and osteopathic schools. As of today, I have 1 acceptance, 2 holds, 13 rejections (plus 2 never sent a secondary), I withdrew from two, and I am complete at the others and waiting. I interviewed and was accepted to my first choice school, so I can say confidently and happily that the application cycle is over for me. I have chosen not to withdraw from the other schools that I am still waiting to hear from because I would like to see where this goes.

I am living proof that anything is possible despite any shortcomings that you may think you have, and my advice to any re-applicants is to not give up and keep pushing for what you want. If you cannot see yourself doing anything else in life, then don’t be afraid to take risks and go for it. You’ll be happy you did.  


12 comments:

  1. I don't even know you and I'm proud of you! I hope one day to achieve such. I have one Master's and in a weird spot in my second Master's program so the thought to re-apply to med school has definitely been on my mind today and I ran across your blog. Thanks and I wish you all the success.

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    1. Thank you! All the best to you as well, and I'm rooting for you to be very successful in your endeavors. I really do appreciate you taking out the time to read my blog.

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  2. I am zooming through your blog and I am already hooked. You are simple divine and I am very proud of you. I am 23 years young, married and in my 5th year of Ugrad. I came across your post in a forum and I believe that you are a sign. I have a GPA below 2.0 and I am still trying to make it. I do not have a mentor or support group. This is because I work full time while going to school full time.I really appreciate all success and I too will make this happen. Thank you!!

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    1. Thank you so much for your kind words! I believe you can make it happen too! Just keep the faith and don't be afraid to take more time to put in the hard work needed to succeed. As for the mentor or support group, don't be afraid to build relationships with your boss or professors. I was in the same situation, and those are the people who I relied on for my support. Thanks again for reading and all the best to you :-)

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  3. "If you cannot see yourself doing anything else in life, then don’t be afraid to take risks and go for it. You’ll be happy you did."

    I'm SOOO quoting you for that one ^^^ :D

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  4. Congratulations on all your hard work and success! You are truly an inspiration for me!

    I am a 26 yr old AA female with a gpa below 3.0 and a slew of C's in the pre-reqs. I'm in a MS program now but also working full-time. Did you work full-time while you completed your masters? If not, did you have to take any loans/accrue debt while in school?

    I currently work in healthcare, clinical cancer research, but I'm nervous about quitting work and going to school full-time because of the financial burden (aka student loans). However, I believe that getting a masters within a science discipline will probably be better for me in the long run in terms of strengthening my GPA and my candidacy for DO school.

    On the other hand, I can opt to just re-take the basic pre-req courses at a public university (no upper level) and continue working full time, but 1) it'll be years before I take the MCAT in that case (~3) and 2) balancing FT work and school may jeopardize my chance for optimal success (getting all As).

    Sorry for the long response, but any thoughts? Would love your feedback :)

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    1. Thank you for the kind words and for reading my blog! I'm not sure if you're the one who e-mailed me, so I'll answer the questions just in case:

      Yes, I worked full-time while completing my masters but I also work in a research lab that allows me a bit of down time to study in between experiments. I also took out loans AND accrued debt from undergraduate loans while I pursued my masters degree.

      I would not recommend quitting your job, but you have to do what works best for you. Also, medical schools will want to see upper level courses. Don't worry about the amount of time it takes because you are still young and even if you start med school at 30, you will probably end up practicing for another 30-40 years.

      Hope this helps, and if you want to know anything else, please feel free to send me an e-mail (address in disclaimer section)

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  5. Your story is such an inspiration and a voice of hope for so many! Thank you for being open and honest about your journey!

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    1. Thank you, Dr. Gray! It really means a lot to me. I started all of this to be an inspiration, and the positive feedback lets me know that I am on the right track. Btw, you have a super awesome website! Thank you for all the hard work you put into it!

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  6. I am so glad that I came upon this. Just took me second MCAT and only went up 3 points, to a 19. I've been looking over my history though and I'm not anything if not persistent. Thank you for writing this! I really really needed to see it.

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    1. I am happy that you found this and glad it could help! Please stay persistent! The MCAT is nothing more than a minor hoop to jump through in the medical school admissions game, and from my experience, it is a horrible indicator of how well you will do in medical school. Best of luck to you and thanks for reading! :-)

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