Levere%  House  Resident  Pre-­‐Med  Commi%ee:    

Jonathan  Abraham  Amy  Chen  

Manjinder  Kandola  Shervin  Tabrizi  

Overview    

 Completed  

   

Coming  Up    Pre-med courses

MCAT Extracurriculars

Letters of rec Lev pre-med packet AMCAS application

Interviews

Introduction

Overview    

 Completed  

   

Coming  Up    Pre-med courses

MCAT Extracurriculars

Letters of rec Lev pre-med packet AMCAS application

Interviews

Introduction

Applying  to  Medical  School  � Medical  school  admission  is  competitive:  in  2013,  48,014  students  applied  and  20,055  were  accepted  (41.8%)  

�  Competitive  medical  schools  have  low  acceptance  rates.  Top  10  lowest  rates  in  2013  ranged  from  1.6-­‐3.8%  

� However,  Harvard  students  traditionally  do  very  well!  �  96%  of  Harvard  applicants  with  GPAs  >  3.5  were  accepted  in  2013,  compared  with  87%  of  Harvard  applicants  overall  and  44%  of  national  applicants  

� Harvard  students  are  accepted  with  lower  science  and  overall  GPAs  compared  to  their  national  counterparts  (science  3.53  vs  3.63;  overall  3.59  vs.  3.69  in  2013)  

Overview    

 Completed  

   

Coming  Up    Pre-med courses

MCAT Extracurriculars

Letters of rec Lev pre-med packet AMCAS application

Interviews

Introduction

3

medical school requirements for admission(as of july 2014)

I. Course Requirements• One year of general or inorganic chemistry with lab• One year of organic chemistry with lab• One year of general physics with lab• One year of biology with lab• One year of English

It is recommended that you complete these courses before taking the MCAT and before applying to medical school.ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Over 50 medical schools require one or two semesters of mathematics (college math, calculus, and/or statistics).

• Currently the following 30 medical schools require one semester of biochemistry. We expect this number to increase over the next several years.

University of Arizona College of Medicine, PhoenixUniversity of California, Irvine School of MedicineCase Western Reserve University School of MedicineGeisel School of Medicine at DartmouthDuke University School of MedicineFlorida State UniversityUniversity of Florida College of MedicineHarvard Medical School (new requirements only)University of Hawaii at Manao, John A. Burns School of MedicineIndiana University School of Medicine (new requirements only) Johns Hopkins University School of MedicineLouisiana State University Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine in ShreveportUniversity of Michigan Medical SchoolMayo Medical SchoolUniversity of Miami Miller School of MedicineUniversity of Missouri-Kansas City School of MedicineUniversity of Nebraska College of MedicineUniversity of Nevada School of MedicineUniversity of New Mexico School of MedicineNew York Medical CollegeState University of New York-Upstate Medical UniversityOhio State University College of Medicine and Public HealthOregon Health and Science UniversityTexas A&M Health Science Center, College of MedicineTexas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of MedicineUniversity of Texas Medical School at San AntonioMedical College of WisconsinUniversity of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public HealthMarshall University-Joan C. Edwards School of MedicineYale University School of Medicine

medical school requirements for admission

http://www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu/students/careers/medicine/premedguide14.pdf  

MCAT  

5

The following diagram summarizes changes in the structure and format for MCAT 2015:

In preparation for MCAT 2015, we recommend that students take an introductory psychology course such as SLS 20, and Sociology 10 or any of the Sociology 20-series courses. As Harvard courses are not designed specifically to prepare students for the MCAT, there may be some topics that are included on the MCAT but not covered in your courses. Depending on your background, you may find it necessary to learn certain concepts on your own or through a review class.

Note: In collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the AAMC, Khan Academy has created Khan Academy MCAT Collection, a collection of educational tutorials for concepts that will be tested by the MCAT 2015 exam. You can find the available tutorials at: www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcatThe tutorials are also included in the Pre-health Collection of the AAMC’s MedEDPORTAL® iCollaborative: www.mededportal.org/pre-health

medical school requirements for admission

� To  prepare,  recommend  taking  after  finishing  pre-­‐med  Bio,  Gen  Chem,  Orgo  requirements  (Physics  series  may  not  need  to  be  completed  if  strong  Physics  background  in  high  school)  

� Recommended  to  take  intro  Psych  course  such  as  SLS  20,  Soc  10,  Soc  20  

 

MCAT  Dates  ¡  For  2017  cycle:  latest  MCAT  June  2,  2016.  

¡  30  days  to  receive  scores.  

¡  Take  once  (unlike  SATs)  

MCAT  Resources  � Examkrackers  2015  series  � Kaplan  2015  series  � Berkeley  Review  for  Critical  Reading  practice  � AAMC  practice  tests  (two  currently  released)  � Old  MCAT  practice  tests  

MCAT  Validity  � Q:  How  long  are  MCAT  scores  valid  for?  

�  A:  From  the  AAMC  website:  “in  general,  most  schools  require  that  your  MCAT  scores  not  be  more  than  2-­‐3  years  old.”  

� Q:  How  can  I  find  out  an  individual  school’s  policies?  �  A:  Call  the  school  directly,  look  on  their  website,  or:  https://www.aamc.org/students/download/398586/data/mcatexampolicy.pdf  

�  2017  application  cycle::  accept  both  but  prefer  new  MCAT  �  2018  application  cycle:  most  schools  will  accept  only  new  

Extracurriculars  � Explore  medical  interests  

�  Clinical  exposure  (shadowing)  �  Research  experience  (basic  science,  clinical)  �  Volunteering  (hospital,  nursing  home,  palliative  care)  

� Explore  non-­‐medical  interests  �  Seek  out  leadership  opportunities  �  Excel  at  something  you  are  passionate  about  

Overview    

 Completed  

   

Coming  Up    Pre-med courses

MCAT Extracurriculars

Letters of rec Lev pre-med packet AMCAS application

Interviews

Introduction

2016-­‐2017  ApplicaNon  Cyle  

2015   2016  Oct   Nov   Dec   Jan   Feb   Mar   Apr   May   June  

No#fy  Pre-­‐Med  commi0ee  of  inten#on  to  apply  Oct  15  

Advisor/applicant  pairings  sent  out  Oct  31  

First  dra=  of  personal  statement  to  advisor  

March  25  

Premed  Ques#onnaire  due  to  House  Office   First  day  to  

submit  AMCAS  

Recommended  submission  deadline  June  30  

Meet  with  NRT  advisor  Timeline  for  applicaNon  MCAT  date  and  preparaNon  LOR  Important  ECs  and  leadership  Issues  (grades,  probaNon,  etc)  Time  off  (if  applicable)  

Meet  with  NRT  advisor   Work  on  AMCAS  applica#on  

Preliminary  list  of  schools  Ideas  for  personal  statement  

April  8  

LORs  to    House  Office  April  22  

June  1  

Assemble  applica#on  materials  Personal  statement  Premed  quesNonnaire  LOR  

Spring  Pre-­‐Med  Mee#ng    

Meet  with  NRT  advisor  AMCAS  primary  Secondaries  

Declare  IntenNon  to  Apply  

�  Fill  out  the  following  form:  

Personal  Statement  � Arguably  most  important  part  of  AMCAS  application  �  5,300  characters  (~1.5  pages)  � Addresses  questions:  

� Why  medicine?  � What  makes  you  an  excellent  candidate?  � What  other  info  should  med  schools  know  about  you?  

� Tips  and  sample  personal  statements:  here,  here,  and  here.  

� Rough  draft  due  to  NRT  by  3/25/2016  for  feedback  

Le%ers  of  RecommendaNon  

�  3-­‐5  for  MD,  6-­‐7  for  MD/PhD  � At  least  2  science,  1  non-­‐science  � Ask  TF  to  write,  professor  to  co-­‐sign  �  Letters  due  to  House  Office  by  4/22/2016  

Le%ers  of  RecommendaNon  � http://leverett.harvard.edu/wiki/Premed:Welcome  

Lev  Pre-­‐Med  Packet  � Available  on  Leverett  pre-­‐med  website  �  Fill  out  information  to  help  with  first  draft  of  committee  letter  �  Basic  demographic  and  high  school  info  � Harvard  academic  and  non-­‐academic  activities  �  Classes  and  GPA  �  Short  answer  questions  �  Personal  statement  

� Due  to  House  Office  by  4/22/2016  

AMCAS:  Primary  �  Opens  June  1,  2016  �  Consists  of:  

�  Identifying  information  �  Schools  attended  (high  school,  college)  �  Coursework  and  GPA  �  Work  and  activities  (with  3  most  meaningful  experiences)  �  LOR  �  Medical  schools  to  apply  to  �  Personal  essay  500  words  (+  MD/PhD  essay)  �  MCAT  scores  

�  Try  to  submit  AMCAS  primary  before  end  of  June  because  of  rolling  admissions!  

2016-­‐2017  ApplicaNon  Cycle  

2016   2017  Jul   Aug   Sep   Oct   Nov   Dec   Jan   Feb   Mar  

Commi0ee  le0er  uploaded*  Aug  15  

First  AMCAS    primary  deadline  

Oct  15  

Consider  upda#ng  top  choice  schools  

All  applicants  no#fied  

March  15  

Work  on  secondary  applica#ons  

Interviews!  

No#fica#ons  of  acceptance,  waitlist,  rejec#ons  

Inform  OCS/Pre-­‐Med  Commi0ee  if  no  interviews  yet  

Lev  mock  interview  day  

*  We  commit  to  uploading  your  commi0ee  le0er  to  AMCAS  by  August  15  if  you  are  able  to  turn  in  all  of  your  required  materials  by  the  deadlines  (Premed  Ques#onnaire,  Le0ers  of  Recommenda#on).    

Meet  with  NRT  advisor  

Secondary  essays  Interview  Nps,  scheduling,  logisNcs  

AMCAS:  Secondaries  � Most  secondaries  are  automatic  � Expect  to  receive  secondaries  on  rolling  basis  after  AMCAS  primary  is  approved  (can  take  up  to  3  weeks)  

�  Secondaries  are  school  specific;  will  ask  additional  essay  questions  

� Research  the  school  and  tailor  essay  answers  to  each  school  

� Aim  for  3  week  turn-­‐around  time  � Try  to  finish  all  secondaries  by  mid-­‐Sept  

Interviews  �  Interview  invitations  sent  out  Sept  2016  –  Jan  2017  � Most  interviews  held  Mon-­‐Fri;  need  at  least  2  days  � Typical  format:  

�  Informal  social  event  night  before  � Option  to  stay  with  student  host  �  Interview  day:  information  session,  lunch  with  current  students,  1-­‐3  interviews  (with  committee  members  or  students)  

�  Traditional  interview  vs.  MMI  � Can  try  to  group  interviews  to  save  on  travel  costs  

Decisions  � Rolling  admissions:  6-­‐8  weeks  after  interview  date  � Non-­‐rolling  admissions:  mid-­‐March  � Decision  types:  accept,  deny,  continued  review  

� Can  hold  multiple  acceptances  until  end  of  April  2017  � Can  consider  sending  update  letters  

OCS  Resources  � Drop  in  hours  � Online  chat  sessions  � Workshops  

�  Selecting  LOR  �  Completing  AMCAS  � Writing  a  Personal  Statement  

� MSAR  (Medical  School  Admission  Requirements)  available  at  OCS  

�  If  you  are  not  100%  sure  you  want  to  practice  clinical  medicine,  don’t  apply  straight  from  undergrad  

�  If  you  are  sure  you  want  to  be  a  doctor,  think  about  taking  time  off  anyways  

� Harvard  has  great  resources  for  going  abroad  

In 2011, 71% of Harvard applicants applied as alums. Maturity and real-life experience can make you a better

doctor AND a better applicant

Take  your  Nme  

QuesNons?  �  Lev  Pre-­‐Med  Website  

http://leverett.harvard.edu/wiki/Premed:Welcome  

�  Jonathan  Abraham  (MD/PhD)  Jonathan_Abraham@hms.harvard.edu  �  Amy  Chen  Chen_Chen@hms.harvard.edu  �  Manjinder  Kandola  Manjinder_Kandola@hms.harvard.edu  �  Shervin  Tabrizi  Shervin_Tabrizi@hms.harvard.edu