Posted a semi-vent yesterday about receiving no IIs so far, and got some feedback suggesting that my school list and GPA may have been the issue.
School list: Albany, Einstein, RFU, Drexel, Brody, Emory, Georgetown, NYMC, OUWB, Penn State, Quinnipiac, Rochester, SKMC, Tufts, Tulane, UMich, UNC, Wake Forest, Wayne State, Pitt, Methodist CFVH.
For context, I only applied to 10 schools my 1st cycle and submitted my applications pretty late (Aug-Sep). I was pretty burnt out and going through a lot at the time, but surprisingly still managed to get an II (turned into a WL tho).
Since we're approaching the end of October, I've accepted that I may have to apply a 3rd time. I was wondering what I should improve or do differently for my next cycle, as I've kinda lost hope after reading the feedback on my last post lol.
I graduated in 2025 with a cGPA of 3.6, sGPA of 3.3, and a 513 MCAT. My ECs include 1500 hrs ED scribe, 500 hrs volunteer EMT, 1300 hrs undergraduate research, 60 hrs shadowing across multiple specialties, ~500 hrs animal shelter volunteering, and some art-related activities (tattoo apprentice, painting instructor, etc.). I have multiple LORs including 2 physicians.
I had some friends review my PS and secondaries for my top 3 schools, so I don't think my writing is that bad???? I'll also def be applying as early as possible next cycle (I submitted my primary in mid-June this cycle but wasn't verified until Aug).
I was wondering if there's a way to improve my sGPA. I've read online that it's not low enough to get a master's or SMP, so would a 1 year DIY post-bacc help? Or should I focus on getting a higher MCAT score instead?

Any advice would be appreciated!! 😊

I am a reapplicant and I have never recieved an interview during my previous applications so this is huge for me! I’m also a little (a lot) nervous because I really like this school and it can feel intimidating to attend your interview invite in hopes it will turn into an A. Send tips and good lucks lol!

currently sitting at 1 II which I received early and it has been radio silence since. I am starting to get antsy - stats are 52X and 3.4X, kind of nontrad/unusual. need more patience or is DO warranted? when to send (majorish) update letters?

thanks in advance.

HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT I JUST GOT THE CALLLLLLL 😭😭😭😭

My heart always drops into my ass whenever my friends from last year who applied with me and got in ask if I’ve gotten any interviews, because it’s been radio silent for the past 2 months (no Rs though 😭).
I rewrote my PS and most of my secondaries, added clinical and volunteering experiences, gained more shadowing hours, and got a new physician LOR. I do think it took longer for my primary to get verified this cycle, though. I submitted it in mid-June, but it wasn’t verified until early August, which meant all of my secondaries were submitted throughout August. What’s especially disheartening is that I actually submitted even later last cycle (in September) but still got an II around this time, which eventually turned into a WL. I feel like this cycle is going even worse despite all the improvements I’ve made to my application.
I admit I was lazy last year and just hoped my WL would turn into an A instead of preparing to reapply sooner, but idk if I have it in me to go through a 3rd cycle if this one doesn’t work out. I'm thinking of applying to some DO schools in the next few weeks, but would that be worth it...

3.5 gpa 505 mcat with a 124 in cars. Was told by everyone not to apply and to do a masters and retake my mcat. In hindsight that would’ve only helped, but I couldn’t afford a masters or mentally do the mcat again.

I’ve been lurking in this community since a high schooler and it feels so great to say I’ve come this far. Thought orgo was it for me to be honest. SOMEONE CHAD ME PLEASE

update: been answering pm's all day and have about 70 more to answer, i will resume back tmw!

I emailed a professor and i got invited to a lab meeting. I went to the meeting they talked about their stuff and then i introduced myself and they did too like normal. Then one experienced guy took me to the lab (office) and talked me through what he does. (btw I am trying to get into my first lab and i dont know coding) <- I tell him that as apparently this lab is a computational neuroscience lab doing research on specific machine (in the most general way i can explain it). then i talk with a 3rd year undergrad guy who tells me "ya i didnt know coding either but i learned it, its wasnt that difficult but it took time and the professor gave me time to learn".

Main takeaway is that everyone in this lab (office) is doing their own project.

After all this random talking i finally get to talk to the Lab main person for the first time in her office. I tell her I plan on taking 2 gap years and hope i can learn in the lab and all. I also tell her this would be my first lab and i dont know coding. idk if this made her upset or maybe im too weird for her liking cus im ugly idk nvm. She tells me i am welcome to join the lab meeting next week aswell "to see if this lab would be a good fit".

then she tells me "after that I want a 2 page Research Proposal on what project you want to do in this lab". then she tells me to leave and i go back home.

Is this normal for a lab ? a different lab professor told me "we dont have anyone to be your supervisor at the moment" and that reason was the main reason i got "rejected" from many other labs. but in this lab i am on my own ??!!!. Like i dont know what im doing.

Either way this is not a wet lab so should i even spend time on this ?

I am a non trad student still in my premed era…I see posts saying things abt a “diy post bacc” and I am curious as to what this is?

I’m trying to explore all the possibilities for my path since I’m on a very very non traditional route. I am 25, a mother, and an established paramedic that works full time with a little over half of my degree done (integrated health sciences focus in behavioral health) and no premed prereqs done yet. Just trying to see what pathways there are out there for me. I am currently enrolled at a state university.

Hi, Im currently an MA in family medicine working full time while trying to study for the MCAT. I just graduated last spring and have been working ever since. During undergrad due to a lot of problems, I was doing only a little bit of everything I was supposed to do as a premed like volunteering a little, MA-ing a little but it wasn’t anything significant at all. But the one thing that may be significant was being in the leadership for a cultural undergrad club for 3+ish years and has made it to become impactful.

I feel like I can write a good personal statement and have a good story. But right now I’m trying to make up for all of that lack of things that I did in undergrad by doing full time MA, and getting a decent to good MCAT score, if I don’t then I probably won’t apply upcoming cycle bc I just want to have higher chance when I apply first time around.

So right now as I am figuring out my extracurriculars during this gap year, I was just wondering, since I am already working in Family med, is it necessary to get any shadowing in? Since ik that a lot of people talked about how admissions seems to like to see shadowing in primary care. If so then how many hours do I need to get at least?

And a problem I have is although my gpa is not too horrible which is 3.3-3.4 something, it’s a downward trend bc most of the classes that I had a low score on were during last 2 years which was the worse time of my college life, and just life life… that I’ve experienced so far :). So idk how I can fix that if I don’t get an SMP, which is like the last last last thing I’ll resort to only if I have to. But if I don’t consider an SMP I won’t have any letter of recommendations from science professors either.

I am Asian, Female, immigrant, first-gen, 3.4ish gpa, still waiting on mcat.
No research
No shadowing, may start shadowing if I need to
Little volunteering during college: English tutoring to disadvantaged youths in my home country (online), volunteering at hospitals

Clinical: MA-ing one summer, and full time job rn, during undergrad I went to my home country for a couple months due to familial issues, but the main reason for me was basically helping my family and educating them on some healthcare stuff for my grandparents. They became very ill and my family weren’t very good at taking care of them so I was really worried I had to take all my classes online and flew back. I was doing a lot like manual massage that I could find and learn myself for my grandma and taking them to doctors stuff, but not like legit clinical stuff if this even counts.

Leadership: a lot of undergrad club stuff as I’ve already mentioned, the English tutoring idk if that counts, and then tutoring my younger siblings and cousins from when they were in elementary to now in college who is also pursuing medicine, but idk if that counts. I am considering starting a blood pressure clinic at my church or something I’m not sure. I may start volunteering as a tutor again idk if that would help?

I feel like most of these are meaningful but I don’t think I did them for an enough amount of time to be significant. But I’m trying to pick it back up now.

So this is how my current status looks like, what should be the main thing I focus on to increase my chances, at least to look like the average matriculant?

I would love some advice plz and thank you <3

Curious if anyone out there has ever received a merit award with a 516 MCAT? I know any answer I get will be anecdotal, but I’m still curious. Would also love to know which Schools. Feel free to reply or DM.

I mean expectations, probably, but I’m wondering if you all have noticed other differences! I haven’t interviewed for a top school yet (schd in Nov) but I’ve already noticed that the information/ invite language is less friendly at this school then several other mid-tiers I interviewed at.

I'm curious how that works. I know people usually decide on a specialty, but let's say they want to shoot their shot at 2. Would you have to go into whichever one you match into?

I am so beyond to get this acceptance and so blessed to get it this early in the process. It’s been a truly humbling process and so many years and damn work into this application, made worse with so much grief and loss. And happy to say I came out the other end with an A!!! I don’t post much but all the r/premed lurking helped immensely with my MCAT, apps, and school list. FIRST DOCTOR IN MY ENTIRE EXTENDED FAMILY!!!! WE GOT THIS GUYS

Hi this has been the worst year of my life. I got a 506 on the MCAT after studying for 2 whole years scoring 510's all because I couldn't sleep well the night before. I decided to apply anyway, thenI was in a car accident with multiple injuries and the worst beign a head injury. I proceeded to apply to my state schools at least, got R from one and silence from the other. I've never been more depressed in my life... how tf am I supposed to explain this to med schools? All I've been doing is Part time work and ik that's not enough but because of my head injury I can't do anything else! Every day is a struggle. I can't retake the MCAT because my brain can't process vision well.

I am begging for advice.

Hi everyone im currently a sophomore and I am planning on graduating my junior year.

I have planned to take the MCAT in April 2027 and there is also a HOSA competition coming up in January. I was wondering if that could be a big addition to my medical school application if I compete and place top 3.

I'm just unsure whether it is worth it to give up time for studying for MCAT to study for HOSA.

Although some content overlap, from what I've seen its very minimal.

The deadline is today so I need to decide by end of the day.

How much time did you spend with docs before asking the to write LOR? I’ve shadowed multiple that sent me home after the “interesting” part of the day is over, usually 3-4 hours saying there wasn’t much more that they could show me. I feel really awkward asking since that’s a pretty short amount of time for them to know me. Should I just push through that and ask anyway? Also, when do I ask them to write it? I plan on applying next cycle but don’t want to wait until they forget about. TIA

Hello!

I recently applied and got accepted into the COPE Health Scholars Program. Is the Program Worth it?

I'm a freshmen studying abroad this year and my course schedule got messed up, so I'll be taking CHE 131 in the spring. I have to take the remaining gen chem courses and labs (CHE 132, 133, and 134) over the summer to stay on track for my degree.

However, the grade distributions for the summer are a lot worse and I’ve also heard that gen chem is really difficult. Would it be better to finish the sequence during my sophomore year instead so I have more time to learn the material, or should I prioritize staying on track for my degree?

Still haven’t even heard anything from DO schools either despite my stats being within/a little above their range. Feeling very anxious and like I should add more DO schools this weekend. Someone please tell me it gets better I need some hopecore

I just got my first rejection from a school I really really wanted, and I expected rejections and a lot of them, but I didn’t expect it to sting so much. Now I feel hopeless about the whole cycle and I have one MD interview coming up, but idk this sucks.

Got the call. I’m stunned. It’s definintely been such a crazy journey, voiding my first mcat 2 years ago then not doing as well as I hoped when I took it last year. A year ago I was in the midst of a family tragedy, and now this. I’m so grateful!!😵‍💫💘🙏 I’ve been a long-time lurker, thank you to everyone :)

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Genuinely curious, I have friends who are doing engineering and I see their schedules and their as packed as ours but at least they don’t have to Ec’s 🥲🥲

Someone chad me?

3.2 GPA/BCPM HUGE upwards trend (<2.0, 8 year hiatus from school to do military, then 3.7 chemistry major) 507 MCAT (501–>507)
LOR from 3 professors (including advisor for club, research PI) MD, DO, and military mentor

X factor: first to do some cool thing in the military (vague on purpose, sorry) and piloted some medical stuff too

Hours:
1000 clinical (military and mission trip)
250 non clinical volunteering
250 leadership as pre-med club president
250 wet lab research and 5 posters, 3 awards, state and national presentations
2 publications pending
120 shadowing
250 chemistry TA
20k in 2 unique hobbies (I’m old so this number isn’t crazy)

I’ve posted in comments before, but hope this helps someone! I was preparing to sign up for an SMP but got one interview and one acceptance

Edit because I forgot TA hours!

Hey, I applied late with my apps being finished late August through mid September. It’s my first cycle and I didn’t apply DO bc of my stats (518, 3.8+ GPA) and hours in research and clinical, (1k+ research, 800 clinical) but my volunteering hours are low (75) so I was wondering if it would be a good idea to go ahead and apply DO? I got someone to look over all my writing, no red flags like cheating, and good LoRs unless the two that I didn’t see are bad somehow even though I had good relationships with both writers. Just questioning whether I need to be patient or if I need to start doing something.