If you are interested in getting help with medical school admissions I am sure you have seen some of these companies that use doctors as their consultants. It seems to make sense to have a consultant that has actually gone through the process, right? But if you look at this issue a little closer you will see why you don’t need a doctor advising you. In fact, you probably don’t want one of these doctors.
A doctor who has applied to medical school knows one way to get admitted. The way they took. However, there are thousands of ways to get admitted and if you just understand one way, you may be missing out on other ways that would be great for the student you are helping. I often see this when talking to students that have used one of these companies: you need to do this kind of clinical volunteering; you must write about this activity; don’t talk about this at the interview. These things may be great advice for one student but it is not the best advice for all students.
What do these doctors know about the various medical schools around the country? They know about the one they attended but there are many medical schools out there, all of which are a good choice for a particular student. We regularly visit medical schools around the country to talk with their admissions officers and stay current on what the various medical schools are looking for.
What experience editing essays do these doctors have? Probably very little to none. I have had several of my old students work for some of these companies and frankly, they were often not strong writers and had no experience editing essays. And yet there are dozens of essays that most students need to write when applying to medical school. We have edited many thousands of essays over the years and have successfully helped our students get admitted.
What experience do the doctors have with the interview process? They might have had a few interviews if they were admitted to multiple medical schools. We have prepared more than 300 students for all of the different interview types required by medical schools. At virtually all of the medical schools in the country.
And when are these doctors available? If they are practicing as a doctor when do they have time to do advising? When nothing else is going on. At College Admissions Partners this is our full time job and advising students interested in attending a medical school is all we do. And we have worked with hundreds that have been successful getting admitted to medical school.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. I have some colleagues who are doctors for whom medical school advising is a full time position and who are very well qualified to help students applying to medical school. The key to this is that you want someone for whom medical school advising is a passion and not a part time job that they do when they can get to it. At College Admissions Partners, medical school advising is our only job and we strive to make sure that you get the best advice for your specific situation.
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