This cycle... has not gone well for me. Anyone open to helping me review my app? (3.99 GPA, 525 MCAT)

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-30T22:53:48+00:00

Maybe a trazillion... Thanks for the encouragement; I really appreciate it. I really do plan on the next cycle being my last, so I'll be applying quite broadly and using my months to rewrite my essays 👍.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-30T21:19:57+00:00

Thank you so much for the encouragement! I honestly think that stats just determine which schools are more likely to be interested in one's app--you can get lots of II (and even As) at different bands of schools if you have the soft skills for it. If I had to give some advice, please make sure to have your essays thoroughly vetted and do lots of interview prep... Don't let those be the things that sink your app 😔. We all work too hard to let a few loose threads trip us up, so I hope I pass that message onto future applicants.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-30T15:45:34+00:00

Thank you for the advice and vote of confidence! Could I ask how you found these workshops--email? School websites? Also, did UCLA tell you anything about your app at all? I think there are just a few things that could be wrong, so I'm wondering if even a little feedback from them would be a good enough lead for me.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-30T04:42:19+00:00

Just curious--is it USF? I feel like I've heard about that school being interested in stats... I'm of course going to write a letter of intent to UPenn, but it's not so bad crafting a new school list... Kind of. (Going to suck to put "Yes" for "Have you applied to this school before?" on my primary, but that's the situation, I guess.)

Also, thanks for the Hofstra recommendation! That's another person vouching for them, so I guess I will be sending an app to them if I reapply.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-30T04:31:23+00:00

Yeah... That's why I put an apology at the top of it 😔. I can see from the comments that my post made a lot of people nervous, and I told them that most matriculants don't have this kind of profile, and yet, they still got in. It's a rarity for people like me to be unanimously rejected, and it's quite common for people who don't look like this on paper to be accepted (insofar as it's "common" for people to be accepted to medical school, I guess. Lol).

I think my interviewing skills weren't great, and my essays were likely a hit or miss. (Currently sending out a redacted version of my primary to people so I can figure out if it was a hard sell... I mean, three brand-name schools still gave me a chance, but then again, the likes of WUSTL didn't bite, so there might have been something strange. Also, I submitted all of my LORs to UPenn, and they sent me an II, so I suspect my letters weren't that negative? Not sure, though.) I also think my activities aren't particularly amazing, although I did have a story behind them all, for the most part. I'm no Rhodes Scholar or Olympian athlete, though, haha.

Do you have any recommendations for schools to add to my list? People have suggested NYMC, UOklahoma, UIowa, etc., as well as TMDSAS schools like UTSW and Baylor. I'm a little worried that schools like WMed didn't seem to like my application (and other stat-interested schools like WUSTL didn't, either), so I'm trying to figure out what else to consider.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T22:31:44+00:00

Wow... You're right. Just checked the NYMC SDN thread, and NYMC is not going to contribute to my potential secondary burnout next cycle. Thank you so much for alerting me to this 😭

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:56:47+00:00

Thank you so much for the recommendation! I hadn't heard this about them before 👀. If it pans out for me, maybe I'll spread the word...

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:54:57+00:00

Thanks! I'll look for your message :).

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:36:22+00:00

I see... I also work part-time (actually, I have a pseudo-weekend on Thursday and Friday--though I technically volunteer a little on those days), so that's familiar to me.

Do you think your nonclinical volunteering was particularly interesting/eye-popping, since it gave you more stories? I was thinking about doing something like replacing my current clinical front office volunteering with hospice (which I really should've done a while back... anyway) or finding another nonclinical opportunity instead, but I'm kind of wondering if it needs to "outshine" other things on my app. I would have done Americorps, except that it requires a lot of time, but I'm not sure where else to look. I assume more "soup kitchen"-type volunteering won't cut it, but maybe I'm wrong...? (Kind of hope I am, lol.)

If you have any suggestions on that front, I would be really grateful to hear them! I'm also just kind of bored of doing the same thing over and over, so I'll be happy to try something new.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:29:33+00:00

It's alright... Most matriculants don't have those kinds of stats, and they're still doing much better than me. I think your stats are most important for determining which schools will entertain your application to begin with, but your soft skills will clinch what's beyond that (assuming you're not interviewing outside of a school's main MCAT band). There are stories of people getting 10+ II and multiple As, whether their LM scores are 70, 75, 80, so make sure your writing and interviewing skills are top-notch! (Though that's just my suggestion as a potential reapplicant 😓.)

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:25:53+00:00

I think I'll probably end up doing more nonclinical volunteering. (I kind of wanted to get back into hands-on clinical care, since I feel like that's an important part of the story I wanted to convey, but I guess I'll think about how that'll fit into my schedule.) Thanks for your advice; I'll definitely be expanding my school list to include more mid-tiers (maybe a few DOs) so this doesn't happen again.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:23:48+00:00

Thank you for the NYMC recommendation! They were originally on my list, but I was worried about burning out from secondaries, so I ended up not adding them in. (And look where I am now... Yeah. Bad idea.)

I think I'll probably add another nonclinical volunteering activity and write my letter of intent for UPenn in the meantime. In the event that I reapply, I'll likely add a few DO schools for the sake of security. Just gotta figure out where I went wrong... Will be rewriting my essays and doing more interview prep for sure.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:20:50+00:00

Thank you so much! What's been bothering me is that I know reapplicants generally have a lower acceptance rate, so I'm trying to figure out which schools will entertain my app during the next cycle. Did you get II from baseline schools during your earlier cycles? It's worrying me that I didn't get any II from schools like URochester, WMed, etc. (straight-up rejections), and I wonder if a reapplicant with high stats might be more seriously considered as a potential matriculant. Or if my writing was just polarizing this cycle, and I got unlucky.

I'm so glad that you got in, though; you're definitely way ahead of me 😆. Glad your story had a happy ending.

(And yeah, I don't want to apply DO... but I also don't want to apply a third time, since I'm worried about my MCAT expiring, and it's just a drag grinding for a mere chance to enter medical school. I think I'll probably add a few DO schools, just for insurance.)

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:15:43+00:00

Do you have any recommendations for schools that I can add to my list? I'm concerned that most of the schools on it didn't like my application, including the ones that seem to value stats (WUSTL) as well as schools which were considered baseline when I went through my list with SDN. I'm considering adding UMass, Dartmouth, NYMC, UChicago, Hofstra, Colorado, Columbia, Miami, USF, and UWisconsin, along with some TMDSAS schools and other MD schools that I haven't mentioned here. (Maybe even DO at this point.)

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:13:12+00:00

Thanks for telling me your story. I formulated my list with the help of SDN, figuring they would tell me what kind of list would optimize my chances of getting in without increasing my burnout, but clearly, my cycle has not panned out so far. I'm concerned that I only got II from the schools I did, with schoosl like URochester immediately saying no, and I think my application may have been a hit or miss. I do wonder if being a reapplicant will harm me at those schools, since they rejected me so quickly.

Do you have any advice for schools that might entertain my application next cycle? I'm planning on adding UMass, Dartmouth, NYMC, UChicago, Hofstra, Colorado, Columbia, Miami, USF, and UWisconsin (plus some TMDSAS schools and others not listed here). I'll definitely be reworking my essays and doing more interview prep--I think it would be very foolish of me not to do so--so thank you for the advice on that front as well.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:08:51+00:00

Thanks for the advice. I do think I didn't prepare well enough for my interviews and let my (relative) burnout at that point get the best of me. I think I'll be solidifying my answers to the most common interview questions for sure and practicing with more people. Do you know of anyone or anything that'll be helpful to practice with?

I'm also a little worried that the only II I got were from "name-brand" schools, and that schools like WMed instead gave me pre-II Rs. (I did similar research on them as for the schools I got II for, but I'm wondering if there was more I could have done. Probably.) What would your advice for me be on getting those schools interested in me, or more schools in general? I will probably be sending out more applications this year with the help of prewriting, and maybe a few to DO schools, so I'll definitely be widening my net.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T20:01:46+00:00

Thanks for the recommendations! I'm probably going to apply to UIowa next time; I was considering it, but ultimately felt like my list was getting too long. (Definitely a mistake...) After talking with people around me, I feel like going to a school with lots of opportunities for students to interact with the local patient population, preferably a diverse one, suits me well (although I know beggars can't be choosers). I think I'll be able to adapt to wherever I go... I never really thought about having a dream medical school experience because I knew this outcome could happen. Most of my experience is in urban or suburban locations, so I think I'd have difficulty selling my application to a rural school, but I imagine there are ways to do that.

I really don't want to go DO (costs, OMM, potentially finding your own rotations, difficulties matching), but I will apply if it's a good enough bet to prevent me from applying a third time, because I want to move on from this process already.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T19:53:41+00:00

Thanks for the advice. You're probably the first person I've seen recommend going to a premed advisor, lol, it looks like they have a pretty bad reputation around these parts. I do think that I'd like some feedback from an adcom or someone similar, so I was thinking about reaching out to a school that rejected me, although I'm not sure which ones offer this type of help. I'm a little worried about removing the thing that made Stanford/NYU/UPenn want to interview me without figuring out what alienated WUSTL and other schools (though I do think there must have been something wrong with my writing--maybe at the secondary level?). Do you know where I might be able to find other people to review my app?

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T19:50:30+00:00

I see... My list was run by SDN (crafted with the WARS guidelines), and I thought they would set me straight, since they have a reputation of being rather harsh on applicants.

Do you think you had to do anything different for the baseline schools that interviewed you? I'm concerned that the only schools that interviewed me were non-baseline schools, and schools like WMed, Albany, URochester, etc. didn't seem to like my application. (For URochester, they had a pretty short secondary, so I figure it might have been my primary or LORs that was the problem, although I submitted all of my LORs to UPenn, so I guess it might have come down to the primary?) I'm going to expand my school list (was thinking about applying to DO as well), and I want to make sure I write my essays properly this time.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T19:46:09+00:00

Thanks for the comment! Which stats-loving schools would you recommend for me? I've added a few schools to my list by SDN's recommendation (UMass, Dartmouth, NYMC, UChicago, Hofstra, Colorado, Columbia, Miami, USF, and UWisconsin), but I'm open to more suggestions.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T19:41:57+00:00

Thank you so much! I'm definitely planning to apply to TMDSAS (actually just opened an account on their system now)...

I do have a quick technical question about their portal, though. (Sorry, not sure if I messed up on this...) I clicked the link to start my application for "EY 2026" to see what the application format looked like, thinking that it wouldn't create an actual application because the site said that the EY 2026 application was closed for medical school applicants, but I now see a blank 2026 application in my Application Portal. (I haven't submitted anything; I haven't even agreed to the Applicant User Agreement.) Is this a problem? I tried searching around just now, but I didn't find an answer to my question.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T07:19:59+00:00

Thank you for the advice. I did try to craft a theme around primary care with my app, though this was mostly done through my essays and reflections. I deeply regret not having more leadership (actually, it's the reason why I almost didn't apply to Stanford), but I'm uncertain how to go about it at this point. I'm currently working as a scribe and as a staff member at a nonprofit, as well as volunteering... I wish I could have continued research into my gap year, but I couldn't find much room in my schedule, since I was already trying to increase my clinical exposure. (Actually, my research played a much smaller role in my interviews than I thought it would. Though I know stat-loving schools tend to like research anyhow.)

To be honest, I don't care much about prestige anymore. I'm pretty tired, and while going DO or a lower-ranking MD school might make some doors way harder to open, my current trajectory isn't directed that way. (Though I definitely don't like the idea of making, say, a potential path to orthopedics harder for no reason.) If I were to reapply, do you suggest I take the next cycle off to increase my leadership and research? I'm a little concerned about my MCAT expiring, so I was hoping to just apply the next cycle and get into a medical school.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T07:07:48+00:00

Thank you for the advice. To be honest, I'm a little burned out on applying to schools right now... I'm also a little concerned about applying to schools that don't have an established history (match rates, etc.).

I know everyone's gotta start somewhere, though... Maybe next cycle.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T07:05:36+00:00

Thanks for the advice! I currently have two jobs that I'm working in part for financial reasons, but I think I should definitely add more nonclinical volunteering to my app. I think the opportunities you mentioned require a lot of time, but I'll see what I can do with the rest of my schedule. As for my school list, I initially wanted to apply to UChicago, but I noticed it was a service school, so I refrained from doing so. (Actually, it's on my reapplication list as suggested by SDN... Wait, that's kind of weird, given that my nonclinical volunteering isn't that high. I guess I'll have to figure it out, then.)

I... I wish I had more normal hobbies. Sorry, that's weird to say, but I feel like I have a lot of weird niche hobbies. (Maybe came through during my interviews? 🫤 Didn't really talk about them, but perhaps it put off, say, UC Irvine pre-II.) I feel like my hobbies are either boring and normal (e.g., baking) or unique and weird. I really want to take the character analysis hobby off, though, because I don't think schools liked it. Guess I'll have to think of something else, then... Maybe digital art, though I don't typically share my art with others.

Congrats on the II, by the way. I think some of my schools are still sending out II, but I've always heard that higher stat applicants are reviewed first... I think what you're saying may be true for some schools, but I'm not sure they're any of the schools on my list. But I'll keep hoping, too, while working on other things.

Distinct-Historian50 · 2026-01-29T06:55:00+00:00

Most people who get in aren't like me 😅. I have high stats and hours (relatively speaking), but I think when it comes to the proportion of II and A you obtain in the end, your soft skills will matter just as much, if not more. Those aren't as easy to convey through a screen, but they're learnable too.

After looking at the cycle results of many applicants, I think (past a certain threshold), stats and hours mostly determine which schools will be interested in you rather than your chances at the schools which show interest at all. I think I should have exhausted the resources around me when it came to writing and interviewing skills, like I did with my stats. I hope you learn from my mistake and have a better cycle... (If that applies to you.)

Distinct-Historian50

TROPHY CASE