Application numbers, road tripping3 min read

Amanda Xi

Oh, hey, were you looking for the preview of the OUWB Fall 2011 Schedule? [either click the lazy person link to go straight to the entry, or just scroll down]

Since I’m sure that a number of people are curious about the “numbers” for OUWB’s inaugural class, I thought I’d start by giving you a sample size of n=1 [and if you think about it, with a class of 50 people my numbers account for 2% — how many people can say that about their medical school?!]. You could have already been really SDN savvy and found that one post that I listed them, but not everyone is a forum expert [trust me, you’ll catch up real fast on that front]. Anyway, this post is going to be slightly more detailed.

Are you ready?

AMCAS overall GPA: 3.76; AMCAS science GPA: 3.75; MCAT: 31Q. But keep in mind that numbers really only get you so far.

How about another piece of information?

AMCAS verified: early September

How about one more?

The majority of schools that I received interviews from were the ones that I was complete the latest [in fact, I submitted OUWB’s secondary a couple of days before the deadline].

Say what?!

A couple of things I’m trying to get at here:

  1. A late application is not the end of the world [but more on that later]
  2. Numbers are not the only factor that schools consider [however, I did not say they were unimportant]
  3. Life experience matters.
I’d have to say that the medical school application process is one of my most humbling experiences. There is no such thing as a “shoe-in” for any medical school — in the end, it is kind of a crapshoot. All of the schools that I expected interviews from, failed me. The schools that I finally did receive interviews from, surprised me. Some advice for any pre-med about to embark on this journey: learn breathing exercises [especially for that first interview!], be prepared to discover who your real support network consists of [the people who can handle your 24/7 talk about the application process for a year or more are the ones you really should keep around], understand that patience is truly a virtue [after you hit submit, it’s all in the hands of the admissions committee — have faith in their ability to spot the prospective physician in you], and be confident in yourself [because let’s face it, if you don’t believe in yourself, how can you expect others — namely, patients — to?].

As promised on SDN, when we have the final class numbers I’ll be sure to disseminate the information [but don’t hold your breath since like most medical schools, our class has not yet been finalized, and probably won’t be until we start classes].

In other news… I’m going to be road-tripping to California! They say that the summer before you matriculate is your last chance to be free from the grips of medicine [okay, I don’t really see medicine that negatively, but I’m a realist], so I’ve been yearning for an opportunity to do something fun and finally found it! More on that later.

Comments are much appreciated. Even anonymous ones. Help me, help you! [wow, that was cheesy… I apologize.]