Every year around this time, students begin preparing for college applications. For those with a dream of someday becoming a physician, many start to wonder if they should be applying to BS/MD programs. As a mentor, I have seen hundreds of successful BS/MD applications. While many companies or consultants would lead you to believe that applying to BS/MD is always worth the 1% chance of getting in, my approach is different. Because BS/MD’s are so competitive, it’s important to assess your candidacy to know whether BS/MD or traditional pre-med is the right option for you. With applications already being so time-consuming and stressful, BS/MD’s are only worthwhile to apply to if you have the right application.
If you want to work with me on BS/MD applications or premed planning, click the link here to get started.
Stats (Grades and Scores)
When looking at an application, I will often first ask candidates about grades. While grades are not the utmost important part of an application like you may be led to believe, grades and SAT/ ACT scores can still act as a barrier for your application to be seriously considered.
Most of the successful BS/MD applicants that I have worked with had a minimum of 3.8 unweighted GPA and usually over a 4.3 weighted GPA. The weight of GPA does vary for each school, as each high school has variable amounts of honors and AP classes. On average, most of the students who matriculate into these programs have often taken at least 10 AP and/or IB courses. Therefore, as long as you are challenging yourself with higher level courses offered by your school and performing well in them, your grades will likely be competitive.
For AP exams, I often get questions about how much this matters. They do matter to some schools. George Washington BS/MD, for example, does like students who score 5’s on their AP exams. If you scored anything below a 4 or 5, I don’t recommend sending those AP scores in.
SAT and ACT are often one of the most stressful barriers for applications. My minimum thresholds for applicants is SAT 1500+ and ACT 35+. Programs like UPitt BS/MD, REMS BS/MD, and Penn State PMM BS/MD all seek candidates with high scores, so students who are upwards of 1550 tend to be more preferable candidates. However, that doesn’t mean lower scores can’t get accepted too. I have seen 1470-1490’s still get accepted into various programs as well. I posted more specific success stories about low scores in the link below.
Read More: What I Learned From the 2023-2024 BS/MD Application Cycle
Volunteering and Community Service
This next category should be of no surprise for those applying to BS/MD— it’s already expected for most undergraduate programs. One of the mistakes I often see is students only engaging in volunteering or service through organizations within their schools. Their hours, therefore, are scattered between various projects like food banks, tutoring, homeless shelter etc. However, because the hours were not acquired by a select few activities, it doesn’t show consistency. Spending 10 hours in 5 different activities does not have the same effect as spending 50 hours in one activity. Although they share the same number of hours, one shows much more dedication and perhaps provides stronger experiences to recall from while writing the application.
The total number of hours spent volunteering will largely depend on the schools you apply to. Research-focused schools may have a lower threshold of hours that they would like to see. On the other hand, community-focused schools will want to see upwards of 400 hours to be considered competitive.
The quality of your volunteering of service also matters. When applying to BS/MD programs, I usually like to see two types of service: medical and non-medical. Note that clinical shadowing does not count as volunteering or service, but it does count towards clinical hours.
Our Guide: Resume Writing Guide + Template
Research
Research is another aspect that I see students stress over. While the internet may tell you research is an absolute must, I don’t emphasize research all too much. Research can be important for an application, but only if you are trying to demonstrate yourself as research-focused.
Length of Research
Unlike many other counselors, I don’t believe in doing the premed checklist. This makes you appear the same as every other applicant who has done something similar. In the full scope of an application, if you would like to convey yourself as someone who is passionate about discovery and innovation, then having years of research to support that message can bolster your application. However, a 4-week internship (that probably also costs thousands of dollars) does not necessarily add as much value as you would think. On the contrary, having 2-3 years of longitudinal projects at the same lab (or across 2-3 labs) is much more impressive.
Publications
On the topic of research, I frequently see students trying to publish anything and everything. What I wish students realized is that at a high school level, or even a premed level, it is not common for students to publish. You can absolutely get into BS/MD without research (but with the right application, of course). In fact, one of my favorite stories to tell is of a student who got into Case Western BS/MD with 0 hours of research. Publications in predatory journals (journals that may cost a lot of money and are un-indexed/ poorly indexed) also do not appear favorably as schools know that you likely paid your way to a publication. This severely undermines the importance of publications as a whole.
So what actually does stands for research? Usually university-based or biotechnology internships are more impressive. Students who had hands-on experience with a project and/or presented a poster often stand out above those who took a basic research course or have a “pay-to-play” publication. For those who have published, I usually only consider publications that were published in academic journals.
Clinical Experience
Unlike research, clinical experiences are an absolute must for your application. Without having clinical experience, it is very difficult for those applying to BS/MD to demonstrate a solid understanding for the expectations of your career in the future.
There are many ways to gain clinical hours. Shadowing is by far the easiest to do, but probably the hardest to obtain as a high school student. Typically, I recommend having at least 100 hours of shadowing across any specialities. Clinical hours can also overlap with your volunteering and community service. These activities can include hospital volunteering, nursing homes, or hospice. Typically, I expect my students to have over 200 hours of experience in the medical field at minimum.
Passion Projects
Perhaps the most important distinguishing factor of an application is a passion project. Passion projects do not need to have a medical focus, but they should tie in seamlessly with the overall theme of your application. Engaging in a passion project allows those applying to BS/MD to cultivate well-rounded skills, such as leadership, teamwork, and time management, which are essential for success in the medical field.
While it is possible to get in without a passion project, it does make it more difficult to stand out. Passion projects, while difficult to initiate and carry out, can show a student’s motivation and proactiveness. They demonstrate that a student has taken the opportunity to creatively explore interests beyond the premedical checklist. These projects are rooted in advocacy, service, education, or more. By pursuing a passion beyond the general expectation of a typical BS/MD candidate, these students have the potential to bring unique qualities and perspectives to the cohort.
What else matters for applying to BS/MD?
If there is not an obvious theme exhibited through your activities, your application may not be as competitive as other candidates’. Again, this is not to say that it would be impossible to get into a program. Your essays, in this case, would be your saving grace in tying together a cohesive application.
I always look at the resume first when reviewing applications is to see the natural story it tells. Is the applicant interested in advocacy? underserved medicine? neurology? Without reading anything from the applicant, I like to see what impression their resume gives me on its own. While many candidates have completed the activities mentioned above, I always consider if it gives off the impression of a premed checklist.
What’s interesting about applying to BS/MD or medicine is that there are certain expectations for completing all of the things on the premed checklist. However, your application should not come off as the premed checklist. I tend to categorize candidates in two ways: those who completed the checklist based on their passions (therefore, showing a cohesive theme), and those who only sought to complete the checklist to apply (no clear theme).
Essays can heavily support an application, too. While many stories can be drawn from the resume, sharing personal experiences can shed insight into who you are as a person. A thoughtful reflection will be key to show your purpose and maturity.
Read More: Where to Start For A College Personal Statement
Our Guide: A Guide to Crafting a Powerful “Why Medicine” Essay
Should you apply for BS/DO?
As an DO myself, I have mixed feelings about the BS/DO programs. Funny enough, all of my premeds only attend MD schools!. While this is a viable fallback option, matriculation rates at many of these programs are not great. From what I’ve seen, students in some of the programs may have difficulties keeping up with the academic rigor that is expected of them prior to matriculating into medical school.
However, I think BS/DO can be a great option for students who have a strong academic and extracurricular foundation. Students who have challenged themselves academically and personally will continue to excel in BS/DO programs.
Still, I don’t advise many of my students to apply for BS/DO programs. While DO schools can help them become a physician, it may limit their potential. Seeing their academic rigor, I usually recommend the premed route if they are unable to obtain a BS/MD acceptance. With a good work ethic and proper premed planning, they can still earn a spot at a US MD program. Ultimately, I don’t want my students to limit themselves before they even begin their medical career.
Final Thoughts
Although I would never stop someone from applying to BS/MD, I often urge students to seriously consider their candidacy. BS/MD’s are competitive and often seek candidates who have demonstrated commitment medicine early on. While not applicants are great candidates for BS/MD, the premedical track is not as scary as people think. With in-depth planning, you may end up at an even better medical school program in the future.
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