Are you wondering how many medical schools you should apply to? While there is no universally
ideal number, and in this video, we'll cover how many schools you should aim to apply to,
how to review create a short list of med schools, and other individual factors to consider to
maximize your chances of acceptance by focusing your energy on what will work best for you!
Hi! My name is Chris, and I am an admissions associate here at BeMo. Before we get started,
be sure to subscribe on whatever social media channel you re watching this from now,
so you don't miss any of our upcoming videos. If you would like us to help you apply to medical
schools, go to bemomedapplication.com to schedule your free initial consultation. As a quick tip,
check out the time stamps in the description of this video to navigate to specific sections of
the video that you are interested in. Here's what we are going to cover: * How Many Medical Schools
Should You Apply to * Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) * Additional Considerations *
Correct Question to Ask * Creating a Short-List of Medical Schools * Our Expert Response By the way
we're giving away $50 Amazon gift cards every week to best comments and questions - comment
below for a chance to win. There's this one thing that will dramatically assist with medical school
application - I'll explain in the end of the video, so keep watching to find out.
So, let s get started! how many medical schools should you apply to? For all the time and money
spent on applying to any and every medical school you can, you could be working much more
strategically, maximizing your chances at schools where your application will be most competitive.
So, asking the question, How many medical schools should I apply to? isn t the best attitude for
approaching the task ahead, and it s not the best question to ask at this stage of your education.
It s certainly not the best for you and your peace of mind, and it s not the best way to put forward
your best effort for scoring that key place in a medical program.
There s no magic number of applications that will work for everyone. If it were that easy to
game the system, then a lot more people would have figured it out by now! Rather, you need to do some
research about each school and program, to apply to the schools that make the most sense for you.
Yes, this means some work, but certainly not more work than creating applications for every medical
school under the sun! Here are our tips for creating a long-list of medical schools to apply
to, and how to whittle that down to an ideal short-list of medical schools to apply to.
Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) You ll need to look at each
school s admissions requirements and then compare these to your own qualifications.
The Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) is a database that will help you browse, search,
sort, and compare information about many U.S. medical schools, and participating
medical schools in Canada. Note that not all schools publish their information to MSAR,
so you may need to review this information on the individual school
websites. In reviewing admissions statistics and considering which schools to apply to,
you ll need to look at and compare things like the following: MCAT score Your MCAT
score versus the school s median accepted MCAT, as well as the spread of accepted MCAT scores.
If the lowest cumulative total MCAT score accepted last year was 509 and your is 507, then it s
unlikely your application will be given serious consideration, unless your application stands
out in other truly remarkable ways. There are however, medical schools that don't require MCAT,
this may be an opportunity worth considering. You may also want to consider re-writing the MCAT,
so review our blog to find out the MCAT test dates and release dates. GPA Your GPA (science
and cumulative) versus the schools median accepted GPA. Again, if the lowest GPA accepted last year
was 3.82, and yours is 3.7, it s not likely that you ll have a strong chance of acceptance.
Required coursework Your coursework versus the medical school prerequisites.
If you do not have, and do not have time to acquire, the necessary courses and pre-reqs,
then you may not meet even the most basic qualifications for an offer of admission. It
would not make sense to apply to such schools. Your residency status In-state/In-province versus
Out-of-state/Out-of-province status. Most schools show strong preference (and have
much lower medical school tuition) for students applying from within their state or province.
Unless you have a very high chance of acceptance in an out-of-state/out-of-province school,
it makes sense to focus your efforts where your chances are highest. Though it's an unpleasant
reality, remember: at this stage, they're looking for reasons to exclude applicants as much as - if
not more so - than they are for reasons to include applicants. One look at medical school acceptance
rates makes this much clear. Thousands of students apply for a relatively small number of spots,
and the application reviewers' short-lists need to be established quickly, so if there's a reason
to set an application aside, they usually will. It is worth noting that using the
Medical School Admissions Requirements (MSAR) database does require payment of a small fee,
but this fee is generally much less than the cost of applying to a very large number of schools.
So, using this tool will ultimately save you time, money, and headaches in the long run. Again,
some schools make this data available on their websites, as well, so you can see if any of your
long-list schools provide this information. In any case, in creating your short list of schools,
use these tools to work smarter, not harder. You ve got a lot of hard work in front of you, if you
re applying to medical school, so concentrate your efforts where they ll be most effective.
Additional considerations After reviewing this information, you should be able to put together a
long-list of possible schools. However, you re not done yet! A tool like a medical school rank list
and the related data are important, but there are other considerations besides
standardized test scores, numerical data like GPA, geographic status, and basic pre-requisites.
Using your long-list of schools where you meet such fundamental requirements, you ll now want to
look at each school s mission statement, including any priority student categories. For example,
if the school s mission statement specifically mandates prioritizing candidates from rural areas,
and you yourself are not from a rural area or have no experience in rural areas, it may not make
sense for you to prioritize such a school in your applications. Ask yourself the common question,
"Why do you want to be a doctor?" Do the schools your considering have the same priorities as you,
in that regard? You ll likewise need to consider your experiences and extra-curriculars as compared
to the experiences and extra-curriculars of past successful students, too.
For example, what percentage of accepted students had research experience? Does your own research
experience stack up? What percentage had volunteer experience, and what kinds of volunteer experience
did they have? Have you done similar work? What percentage had shadowing experience? And so on.
Note that not all schools differentiate these in the same ways, but most will have some data about
such activities for you to review. On top of all that, there are yet other considerations to bear
in mind, as you begin turning your long-list into a short-list. As you start narrowing your search,
you ll want to look at the actual curriculum, the school s prioritized teaching and learning styles,
advisory and mentorship opportunities, proximity or connection to local hospitals, and other
components of the educational experience at each school, to ensure they align with your own needs.
Not all medical schools operate identically, and education isn t a one-size-fits-all endeavor! By
this stage of your education, you likely know your needs and strengths better than others,
and it doesn t make sense to pursue a school that cannot support you and your educational needs
effectively. Correct question to ask All of this ultimately means that the answer to the question,
How many medical schools should I apply to? is going to be different for everyone.
This isn t a question with a simple, universalizable answer quite the opposite!
The point is to apply only to those schools where you have a realistic chance of gaining acceptance.
Instead of asking, How many medical schools should I apply to? ask, How many medical schools could
I realistically gain admission to? Yes, the Ivy Leagues are at the top of everyone s list,
and if you re a contender for those schools, then that s great. If your chances of admission
at such schools aren t high, however, that doesn t speak poorly of you, your educational experiences
to date, or the medical education ahead of you! There are so many fabulous schools with effective
programs, and a solid, accredited program is better than no program at all, right?
Using the techniques and considerations above, it s best to select 8-10 schools,
and focus your application efforts there. Any more than 8-10 schools and the complexity,
time commitment, and monetary commitment all become way more consuming than they need to be.
Remember, while there may be a central application for many schools (e.g., AMCAS, OMSAS), sending
your applications, transcripts, and standardized test scores to multiple schools is costly
even if not in terms of time, then certainly in terms of money. As well, let s say you
go totally wild and apply to 30 schools and in the supposed (and highly unlikely) best
case scenario you are asked to submit additional materials, like medical school secondary essays,
to 20 of them. Well, now, you need to complete secondary materials for 20 schools,
likely while also working on your current schoolwork and other commitments on top of that!
That is a monumental and unnecessary amount of work, if your chances of acceptance aren t high,
as these secondary materials are likely going to be different for each school.
This isn t a quick copy/paste job! It can take hours to complete even one school s secondary
requirements, let alone double-digit numbers. All of this adds up, and the more secondary elements
you re required to complete, the less likely you are to excel in any of them, simply because
you ll be pulled in far too many directions at once. Creating a short list of medical schools
A manageable short-list is one that contains a maximum of 8-10 schools. If you don t come up
with 8-10, you shouldn t add more to the list just for the sake of having more. The only schools that
should be on your list are those that you have a realistic chance of getting into, rather than
spreading yourself too thin unnecessarily. Learning to manage your expectations,
realistically evaluate your chances, and apply yourself in the areas that will yield
maximum return is all part of the growth, professionalization, and maturation process you
must go through as you work toward your goal of getting into medical school. Wherever you apply,
there will be limited spaces, and there s little sense in applying for already-limited spots
when your chances of admission are slim. There's no sugar-coating it - applying to
medical school is a lot of work, regardless of how you do it. At this stage, with all the pressing
commitments you already have, you need to ensure that you are working purposefully, intelligently,
and pragmatically. Casting the widest possible net is none of these and usually amounts to more work,
in the long run. Start by looking within your own region, exploring programs in your
own state/province, and reviewing the data and qualities outlined above, using MSAR and/or the
school s admissions website. Find those where you meet or better exceed the medians, in terms of
MCAT scores, GPA, etc. Ensure you have all the prerequisite courses they require, and see if
your profile matches those of accepted students. Review the structure of the program, the types of
advising available, the instructor-to-student ratio, emphasis on lecture vs seminar vs clinical
vs research work, and ensure all of these align with your own needs and wants. This is one of
the most important decisions you ve made in your life to this point, so make sure you get it right
and focus the most effort where you ll see the best returns. Check out our blog to learn more
about how many medical schools you should apply to. I have included a link in the description of
this video so you can find the blog easily. If you would like us to help you apply to medical
schools, visit bemomedapplication.com to schedule your free initial consultation.
Hopefully you enjoyed the video so please subscribe, like and leave a comment.
If you have any questions about medical school applications that I didn t cover in this video,
let me know in the comment section and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Don t forget that
we're giving away $50 Amazon gift cards every week to best comments and questions - comment
below for a chance to win. Thanks so much for watching this video, see you next time.