How competitive is medical school?

Question

Hey, I am still in high school but know I want a career in medicine. I have been looking into many good undergrad schools such as Tufts, NYU, U of F, Boston college, etc. All of which are great colleges. However, even if I were to go to lets say Tufts or NYU what would my chances be of also getting into a top medical school or dare I say and Ivy League medical school? I have like a 3. something GPA so I really need to bring that up and I will. However, let's say I get a 3.8/4.0 at NYU, how good of a shot would I have of getting into Brown University, Harvard, Columbia, Dartmouth or Cornell? I know at all of these schools they are looking for so much more than a nice round GPA. What does it take?

Answer 1

You want top tier then you better be top tier in grades and in MCAT, average GPA for Harvard is around 3.8 and MCAT is 36-37 (~97th percentile).  Your basic science GPA should be perfect.  

There are a number of candidates with those kind of grades and scores so you must add other distinctions to your application...great research experience (papers would be nice), volunteer experience, internships and summer positions.  What type of internship, research etc is up to you, my recommendation is do what you enjoy and be able to justify why you did XYZ vs. something else.  

That alone may not be enough unfortunately at this level it isn't just what you know but also who you know.  Getting good contacts of influential people (alumni or other highly respected folks) and having them help you out.  So bend every ear and exploit any family connections that can hook you up.    

I wish you the best of luck.  

Answer 2

It depends more on your GPA and other factors (MCAT score, community service, experience, etc.) than what school you go to for undergrad. Med school is extremely competitive, when I applyed there were about 3000 applicants and around 500 got interviews while only 180 of us were accepted. You need to concentrate on doing well in your science courses/science GPA & scoring well on the MCAT but a huge factor is also what experience you have had. Make sure you get good letters of rec, shadow as many dr's as you can, & volunteer for everything you can. You need to show that you are not just smart but also well rounded. Good luck.

Answer 3

most competitive ,