Wanting to Get Accepted into a US Medical Program? 3 Tips to Increase Your Chances

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, (AAMC), there were 830,016 applicants that applied for Medical School in the 2015-2016.  In 2017, there will be 21,434 medical students beginning their first year of Medicine.  The number of applicants have increased by 26% since 2002-2003 while the number of medical school slots have not followed suit so it should be evident that the competition to enroll into medical school has never been stiffer.  

With such a small number of opportunities to find a position in the US system, many students seek a Medical Degree elsewhere such as in the Caribbean medical schools, or other international venues.  Once you leave the US, it becomes a very difficult task to return for Residency so it is in your best interest to make sure you do everything in your power to get to make yourself as competitive as possible in the application process.  Although every Admissions Board is different, there are some common elements on every medical application that Medical School's gravitate towards so it is paramount that you focus on these 3 elements in Undergrad to increase your odds. 

Number 1:  Get the Highest Score Possible on the MCAT 

The most telling measure to quantify potential success in Medical School.  If you are not a good test-taker, unfortunately, that may seal your fate in Medicine because it will close a lot of doors for you if you are unable to write the exam successfully on the first try.  The MCAT is not the SAT, you do not have multiple attempts and they will not take the highest score from each section to determine your score.  It is an exam that covers elements of Biochemstry, Physics, Organic Chemistry, Biology, and Ethics and students must master each subject fully in order to do well on the test.  This is not a Final Exam though where you can memorize a few facts and expect to receive an adequate mark on the exam.   During one of my classes, we had an Admissions Director who wrote questions for STEP and the MCAT tell us that

"anyone can memorize facts if they are given enough time, we are looking for doctors who can use those facts in a practical setting."

He was absolutely right and you must be able to apply the information for the basic Science courses you take in Undergrad and use it in a Medical setting.  This is hard to do if you are not familiar with the types of questions you will be asked so my best advice is to make it simpler for yourself and enroll in an MCAT Prep course.  I have written a few articles in the past covering Kaplan, ExamKrackers, and Princeton Review and these are ones that you should turn to to prepare for the Exam.  

Eminem said it best in his famous song "Lose Yourself" where you only get

"one shot, one opportunity, to seize everything you ever wanted so for one moment, will you seize, or let it slip?"  

Whether you like rap or not, this is exactly what the MCAT represents.  

You have one shot to impress the Admissions Board and if you are unable to score MCAT highly, that will essentially close the door on a US M.D. degree program.  Take practice tests to make sure you are comfortable with the material and only after you feel content with your scores, sign up for the test.  You can push back the test as long as you need to.  Do not let outside pressure from your family, friends, and advisers dictate what schedule you should follow because if you take the test too early, you will "shot yourself in the foot," and have to look elsewhere due to the stiff competition you are facing in the US system realistically.  The average age for medical students is increasing every year so make sure you give yourself the best opportunity for success.  

Boost Your Chances of Getting Into US Med School 

Number 2:  Get Into a Strong Medical Research Group and Try to Get Published 

Spend one semester getting acquainted with the University but if you already have the goal of becoming a medical doctor in mind, it is best that you get into a Research Group as soon as possible.  This may be a difficult task depending on your University so talk to an adviser early on to determine the best way to find out how to discover research opportunities.  I completed my Undergraduate training at the University of Florida and this school is well-known for its medical research.  Luckily for me, our University provided websites that listed all the professors using UF funding for their research as well as their chief study.  This was extremely helpful in finding a topic that you are interested in and you are able to access the Principle Investigator's e-mail to inquire about a research position for an undergrad.

I was able to find placement in a very interesting study dealing with Neonatal Anesthesiology but I was only able to start 3 months after my initial search began.  The sooner you begin searching, the more opportunities you will have to be involved in the studies.  

It is also a good idea to make sure you research your PI before you agree to begin researching because you need to have multiple publications.   A strong differential between medical school applicants is the number of publications they have been a part of in high-quality journals.  A PI that writes a new journal article every 3 months is much more desirable than a PI who has had 1 publication in the last 3 years.  You need to get your name out there and make sure that your name pops up multiple times on MedScape or PubMed. Admissions Boards do put a lot of weight in this and I spent at least 10 minutes of my 30-interview going over my research studies and the roles I had in the projects.  

Even if it may seem appealing, do not try to find a position that gives a salary.  Admissions Boards will look at this as a negative and even if it is necessary to survive with some additional money in University, it is better that you find another method to get rid of your medical school debt. Medical Schools view a salary as an ulterior motive to motivate you to use your spare time for research so refuse a salary if you are offered one.  

Number 3:  Get to Know Doctors at Your University 

This is absolutely essential to try to get your foot in the door.  

Most students will all have strong bullet points so it can be hard to stand out in those situations.  If you spend a few days a week shadowing a doctor at your local University hospital, then you will be able to get valuable insight in a career you may want to do (or not want to do) in the future as well as meet important doctors that are on the Admissions Board. If you are asking intelligent questions and are enthusiastic about your learning, doctors notice that instantly. They will soon learn your name and some of the dreams you may have in Medicine and will help you network and may even put in positive words for you when you are attempting to get into the Medical School.  

All this effort will lead to your application having a flag on your file.  When a secretary, or resident is looking through your application, they will spend extra time actually looking at your information instead of just 3 quick bullet points.  You may have lower MCAT scores or maybe not as competitive an application as you would have liked, but if a doctor working for the hospital gives you strong support, that is a good way to get an interview to the school.  You can afford to give up one early Saturday every week to start rotations early in the morning so it is in your best interest to start this as soon as possible.  Rotate through multiple departments and eventually, you will meet a lot of influential people.