hi all, Ive applied for the class of 93 at quite a number of schools (20)
and have gotten 13 rejects, 4 interviews and 3 no responses.
Any one know when the heck these people send out their acceptance letters?
According to the med school admissions book theyre supposed to send out
the number of their class in acceptances by mid March. Whats going on... I
am losing my sanity checking my mailbox every day.

Also does anyone have some useful alternatives in case i dont get in, i
kind of looked into Chiropractic and Podiatry but they really dont
interest me. Thanks.

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         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                

If you are on a 'wait list', your entrance into medical school
is dependent upon some other applicant withdrawing their
acceptance.  This can happen as late as day -1 of starting
classes.  

If you still want to be a medical doctor, determine how you
can improve your application.  A letter of recommendation from
a professor who knows you well and can give an honest positive
recommendation is far better than one from a 'big-shot' famous
professor who only vaguely remembers your face.  Also, don't
be afraid to ask these people if they can give you an honest
and positive recommendation; give them a chance to say 'no,
sorry' instead of the medical school saying 'no, sorry'.  I
have turned down writing recommendations for some students
because I did not know them well enough to make any meaningful
comments, and some because I honestly could not recommend them
at that point.  

Rewrite your personal statement; take it by an English
professor or some other friendly person with skill and
experience in writing and proof-reading and get their
criticism, both about what you are saying as well as how you
say it.

Review your academic accomplishments.  If your grades are poor
in some area, don't be afraid to spend some time in further
coursework.  Evidence of determined committment will help
here.  If you filled your pre-medicine curriculum with gut
courses, it usually shows.

Look at your extracurricular involvements.  Participating in
local philanthropic or service organizations is a plus;
substantial leadership roles in an organization help also.
Beware of 'resume padding'; such things are not difficult to
spot and weed out.

Overall, a clear conception of where you wish to head and why
you want to get there, combined with an honest self-appraisal
of skills and aptitude, will be the best path to take in
applying to any program, medical or what-have-you.

Good luck with the process -- as Tom Petty says, 'the waiting
is the hardest part', at least emotionally. :)

Bob Schmieg

I'm a fellow applicant and my situation is not too much better.  I applied
to about 20 schools, got two interviews, got one offer, and am waiting to
hear from the other school.

Let me be honest about my experiences and impressions about the medical
school admissions process.  Numbers (GPA, MCATs) are not everything,
but they are probably more important than anything else.  In fact, some
schools screen out applicants based on these numbers and never even look
at your other qualities.  Of course, when this happens, don't expect a refund
on your $50 application fee.

But, the fact that you got four interviews tells me that you have the numbers
and are very well qualified academically.  You mentioned one response, was it
an acceptance, denial, or wait-list?  If I assume the worst, that it was a
denial, then you still have a great probability of acceptance somewhere.  How
did your interviews go?

As for how long you have to wait, I've called a few schools who never contacted
me for anything.  Many of them told me that the interview season for them was
over and that if I haven't heard by now, I can assume a denial.  Many rejection
letters are not sent out until May or as late as June.  But some schools are
still interviewing. I really don't think you should worry.  Don't become
fixated on the mailbox, go out, have fun, be very proud of yourself.

What do people think of the medical school admissions process?  I had a very
mediocre GPA, but high MCAT scores, and I have been working as a software
engineer for two years.  I majored in Computer Science at Stanford.  Still,
I think the profile of the person who has the best chance of getting admitted
is something like this:

VERY IMPORTANT
--------------
GPA:    3.5 or better
MCAT:   top 15% in all subject

MEDIUM IMPORTANCE
-----------------
Writing/Speaking ability
Maturity
Motivation for going into medicine
Activities

LESS IMPORTANT
--------------
College or University
Major
Work experience
Anything else you want them to know

Anyway, you are in good shape.  I think admissions committees are bound in
many ways by the numbers, but would like very much to understand each
person as an individual.  Sometimes thats just not practical.  But getting
four interviews is an indicator that you have the numbers.  Hopefully, you
were able to impress them with your character.

Good luck,
Jeff