When admissions committees from medical schools look at your application, the reputation of your undergraduate institution is definitely not one of the first things they consider. If a student has a high GPA and MCAT, solid extracurricular activities, a strong personal statement, and thoughtful supplementary essay responses, his or her school’s reputation will have little bearing on admissions. A good applicant is a good applicant.
Let’s take a look at two applicants who theoretically have the same strong extracurricular activities and essay writing skills:
1. Brian goes to a state school that is not highly ranked. His school is known more for its parties than its science program. At this school, he pulled off a 4.0. However, he’s worried that prestigious medical schools would look down on him because his school is not very competitive. He takes the MCAT during the summer and gets a 38. Does his school’s reputation matter anymore? No, because 38 is in the 99th percentile. The high MCAT proves that he is able to compete in the big leagues. There is little uniformity in how students are tested in their prerequisite classes but the MCAT is the equalizer. Regardless of the school he attends, Brian is a great applicant and has a shot at every school in the nation.
2. Kelly attends Harvard. At the end of three years, she has a 3.5 GPA. Her MCAT is a 32, which is 88th percentile. Unfortunately, her numbers make her an average to slightly below average applicant. The fact that she goes to Harvard does not make up for her GPA and MCAT, rendering the name of her school insignificant.