admissions formula??

[pappy846]

I will be a junior this coming fall at Pacific University in Oregon. I’m a molec. bio major and possibly a creative writing minor. I’m on the varsity golf team, take photos for the newspaper, volunteer in an emergency room and a hospice. My GPA however, is not there. It’s a 2.98 right now…all because I messed up my first semester as a college student. My semester GPAs are as follows: 2.4, 3.12, 3.24, 3.3. So it’s going up, slowly.

My question is concerning adcoms and they’re placement of importance academics vs. extracurriculars. The physician I shadowed in the emergency room explained to me that the way most med. schools consider applicants is that they plug their GPA and MCATs into a formula, and if it doesn’t meet a cut off, they don’t bother to even look at the rest of the application. Obviously, that would be a disadvantage to me. I have a fair amount of extracurriculars and am slowly improving my grades, but my GPA most likely won’t be up to the national average of 3.59 of entering med students.

As for the MCATs, I understand that it’s imperative to do well (>30), and I’ve already started studying for them.

Thanks for all the help!

-Patrick

[y82benji]

First, work on your GPA and keep trying to get it higher and higher. With a 2.98 you have some work to do – you should aim for at least 3.3, but don’t lose hope. It is important to remember that if the national average is 3.59, then at least 50% of admitted students have GPAs of 3.59 or lower.

As for the mysterious formula, unless you ask them yourself no answer can be 100% accurate, but here is the breakdown that my preprofessional advisor gave me (you should ask yours for his/her opinion, if you have one at your school):

GPA/Curriculum: 25%
MCAT: 25%
Experience with Medicine: 15%
Personal Essay: 10-15%
Volunteer Work: 10-15%
Other Activities: 10%

In my personal opinion, you have to first make yourself look like a good candidate, but then in your personal essay and your secondary application essays you have to also make yourself interesting. Don’t leave important stuff out, but make them want to interview you. Nail the interview and you’re well on your way.

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