The Top 8 Mistakes Applicants Make When Trying To Get Into Medical School
We all know that getting into medical school is becoming harder and more competitive. The average GPA and MCAT for applicants to allopathic medical schools in the 2022-2023 application season was 3.62 and 505 respectively whereas for the applicants of 2021-2022, the average GPA and MCAT were 3.59 and 505.9. However those that actually matriculated into MD schools had a GPA and MCAT of 3.75 and 511.9; a small jump from the entering class of 2021-2022 when it was a GPA of 3.74 and a MCAT score of 511.9.
For osteopathic schools, the data is less up to date but in the 2020-2021 application cycle, applicants' average GPA and MCAT were 3.48 and 502.8 respectively, whereas the matriculated average for incoming osteopathic medical students was a GPA and MCAT of 3.56 and 504.6 respectively. This is a minor jump from the 2019-2020 application cycle where the average applicants’ GPA and MCAT were 3.46 and 502.8 respectively and the matriculants’ average GPA and MCAT were 3.56 and 502.8.
You can see that in just one year, the competitiveness has increased, and I don’t think it’s going to plateau anytime soon! There is so much that goes into the medical school process but in this post, I want to highlight the top 8 mistakes that applicants make that even with strong scores, can end up hurting the applicant from proceeding to an interview and subsequent acceptance.
Mistake #1: Relying on your MCAT score and GPA as a “guarantor” for acceptance into medical school
The biggest mistake I see time and again is applicants relying on their strong MCAT and GPA too much. I have seen applicants with a 4.0 GPA and a 526 MCAT not get one interview, and I’ve seen applicants with 3.3 GPA and a 509 MCAT get interviews at their top-choice medical schools. I can’t stress enough that scores aren’t everything, despite what you might hear on social media, or from family and friends! Medical school Admissions Committees (AdComs) use a holistic approach to applicant files. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t pay attention to your GPA and MCAT, but it’s one of several factors that are taken into account. Other things that are equally important include:
Clinical experience +/- shadowing
Shadowing is great initially but medical schools are looking more at how you interact with patients and what you learn from these experiences
Community service and volunteering
+/- Research
This can be a tricky one because you don’t need research experience to get into medical school (unless you’re applying to MD/PhD programs) but it is an opportunity that could be helpful for your application
Leadership positions
Activities/Clubs you’ve participated in, regardless of whether they are related to medicine
Secondary application essays
Interviews
I’ll be going into more detail about each of these areas in upcoming posts. There are a lot of myths about how many hours you need for each experience, whether you should do research, or when you need to shadow; I’ll do a deep dive into all of these soon!
Mistake #2: Applying to too many schools
In my time helping applicants, I have seen many students that are so nervous about applying to medical school that they spend thousands of dollars and endless hours trying to apply to 30, 40 and sometimes 50 schools! You just don’t need to and if you are that worried, maybe you need to review your application with a professional or academic advisor to see if you are ready to apply.
You should apply to 15-25 schools; anything less than 15 and you really slim down your chances of getting accepted, and anything more than that, you might hit not only financial and personal exhaustion, but a rate of diminishing return. Once you hit that sense of personal exhaustion, the quality of your work may decline and you may start to turn in poorly written applications and end up giving sub-par interviews.
So how should you think about the number of schools to apply to?
3-5 reach schools
6-8 target schools
6-8 “likely safe” schools
+/- 3-4 “definitely safe” schools
Mistake #3: Not giving your personal statement enough time
Many people still believe that your scores outweigh everything in your application and underestimate the value of their personal statement. Don’t fall into this trap! Your personal statement is one of the most vital pieces of your application and it deserves a lot of time and attention. This essay gives you the opportunity to not only share your journey to medical school, but provides you the ability to really delve into your authentic self. Just know that this might be the more challenging part of the application process, especially if writing isn’t your strong suit. Expect that the first few drafts are going to feel awkward to write and may just flop - that’s OK! It can take a few months to craft a well-written and polished personal statement, so give yourself enough time before the application cycle opens to really work and hone in on what you want to say. Write a draft and then put it aside. Come back to it at least one day (if not more) later. Show it to a few trusted advisors and friends, and be open to feedback. And lastly, really enjoy the journey of sharing your story - this is a creative and inspiring opportunity to share whatever parts of you that you are proud of, and show the AdCom why you are the perfect applicant for medical school.
Mistake #4: Trying to write your personal statement and secondary application essays to match what you think the AdComs are looking for
Many of our students have asked us, “what should I include in my personal statement (or secondary essay) that would appeal to AdComs?” and I give the same answer each time: you’re not writing to make the AdComs happy, you’re writing to show them who you are. This confuses many students because they think that AdComs are looking for specific things that will ensure them an interview or an acceptance. However, the reality is that AdComs are just looking to see who you are; what qualities and characteristics make you the kind of person that will be able to handle the rigor of medical school, but also have the ability to be a caring and compassionate future physician.
Bonus tip: when you approach your essays, think about the characteristics you want to showcase first, and then find those experiences in your life where you can show (versus tell) how you’ve demonstrated them. More to come on how to approach the personal statement in a later post.
Mistake #5: Submitting your application too late
AMCAS, AACOMAS, and TMDSAS open in mid-late May with the ability to submit shortly thereafter, and you want to be in that first cohort to submit. Many people underestimate how much time goes into entering all their data into these application systems and think they can do it one day when the actual commitment can take weeks. Most medical schools practice rolling admissions which means that the earlier you apply, the greater chance of more seats being open to you; if you apply too late, then you’re competing with a larger applicant pool for fewer seats.
Work on creating a schedule over the course of several months so that you can take the time to curate and revise the absolute best version of your application. Plan so that you are ready to submit by early-mid June. However, if you get to this point, and you get negative feedback about your readiness, or you personally feel like you’re not ready, do not submit your application!!! Your goal is to submit a polished application that you have spent time on and are proud of; if that means you submit at the end of June instead of the beginning, that’s ok! A well-written and reviewed application submitted later in the cycle will pay off far more than a poorly written and mistake-ridden one submitted on the first day.
Mistake #6: Thinking you can brush the interview off
The interview is a key piece to your application and many students have shared the myth with me that “you’re basically a shoo-in for the school as long as you don’t mess up!” No, nope, nope! Preparing for an interview takes practice and time to really hone your skills in being able to talk about a variety of topics within healthcare. And a lot of applicants don’t realize that preparing for your interview is different from rehearsing for an interview. AdComs aren’t looking for applicants that have the “perfect” answer to each question. Rehearsed answers can limit your ability to have a discussion about a nuanced topic such as healthcare policy because you’ve already memorized what you want to say. So when the AdCom tries to pivot in a different direction about the same topic, you’re unprepared because you’ve only rehearsed one part of the question.
In addition, many applicants just practice the “obvious” questions that they think will be asked during their interview. While you’re likely going to get questions like, “why us?” or “tell me ‘why medicine’?”, there are a variety of other types of questions that medical schools like to ask that range anywhere from personal questions about your strengths and weaknesses to healthcare policy to questions about ethical situations. We’ll focus on mastering your interview skills in another post but remember to put in the time to find out common questions asked by each medical school as you prepare. Do mock interviews with your college advisor, a professor, or a friend. Also don’t forget to check out what kind of interviews each school you’re applying to likes to do: MMI or traditional style.
Mistake #7: Not addressing setbacks in your applications adequately
Many applicants can get carried away trying to explain away a bad grade, a bad GPA, a withdrawal, or even a legal matter that happened in their history. They adopt a scarcity mindset and think that if they explain all the details that led up to that setback, that AdComs will give their application a pass. But the reality is that accountability and reflection eclipses everything. What do I mean by that? Well, the more you try to explain something, the more convoluted the details become, and it can come off to an AdCom that you’re trying to find excuses for what happened instead of recognizing the issue and sharing what you learned from the setback and how you intend to improve in the future. AdComs understand that we are all human and that sometimes, there are moments where we make mistakes or have a personal life event that can negatively impact our grades or our first go on the MCAT. When discussing such issues, don’t be shy; be bold and own whatever happened like this:
Share what happened and provide some brief context
Tell us what you learned from the experience
Explain what you've done to improve
You may experience shame or feel awkward sharing a personal setback, and your feelings are 100% valid. But it shows maturity and emotional intelligence when you show that you can critically think through a challenge you’ve been through, show how you resolved it, and plan for a strategy to tackle it if it were to come up again. And those skills are highly applicable to becoming a physician!
Mistake #8: Not reading through your application several times
I remember the long nights in the library trying to put my medical school application together. At some point, it just became tedious and frustrating, and I just wanted to hit ‘submit’ to be done with it. Unfortunately, many applicants experience burnout through the application process, and that’s before you even get any interviews! But the problem that can often occur is that you submit an application riddled with spelling, grammar, and informational mistakes. All that hard effort could be wasted in the span of a click if you don’t structure your time to revisit the application and read it through several times.
Send your essays to a handful of trusted advisors and readers who can look at your essays with objectivity and share their feedback around everything from content to spelling. Use your spell check feature in Microsoft Word, and use other apps such as Grammarly which is a free tool to check your grammar. AdComs are just as interested in well-written, thoughtful, and personalized personal statements and secondary essays as they are with your numerical stats, so show them that you took the time to give them just that!
Final Thoughts
While it may be tough to get into medical school, it is doable! Do not lose faith, keep your head down and keep your eyes on the goal. These 8 mistakes are crucial as you prepare your application and if you can follow these, you’ll have a leg up. Remember, you CAN do hard things!
