Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A

By Ryan Gray

Education Medicine

What's Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A about?

The Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A podcast is an "almost daily" audio version of the Facebook Live videos that Dr. Gray does on the Medical School Headquarters Facebook page. If you can't watch the videos, or like audio more, this is for you! Dr. Gray covers everything under the sun, answering your questions. Call them in to 617-410-6747.

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LAST EPISODE

117: How to Stand Out When ...

01.13.2021

How should someone who is underrepresented in medicine approach the medical school application process? My advice? Don't worry about standing out—be yourself!

Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A episodes:

01.13.2021 117: How to Stand Out When Underrepresented in Medicine How should someone who is underrepresented in medicine approach the medical school application process? My advice? Don't worry about standing out—be yourself!
01.06.2021 116: Do I Need to Retake C/D/F Classes to Get Into Med School? Do you need to retake C/D/F classes from earlier in college? Listen to find out why you may not need to retake classes and what you should consider instead.
12.30.2020 115: Can I Get Into Medical School if I Dropped Out of College? Our caller today dropped out of college during her first semester. Now, she's finishing her degree and wants to know how to share her story with med schools.
12.23.2020 114: Do I Have Enough Clinical Experience as a Nontrad? How do you find the time to get enough clinical and shadowing experience as a nontrad premed while balancing work, life, and school? Let's discuss!
12.16.2020 113: When Is It Appropriate to Apply Early Decision? You have strong ties to a medical school, but should you apply early decision? Today, we talk about how to show your dream med school they're your #1 choice.
12.09.2020 111: How to Move Forward After Bombing the MCAT This student went all in on MCAT prep but her score didn't meet her expectations. What should she do next?
12.01.2020 110: How to Discuss Childhood Trauma in Your Personal Statement In today's podcast, I share my top dos and don'ts for discussing childhood trauma and related events in your personal statement.
11.18.2020 109: How to Conquer Imposter Syndrome and Know You Belong Imposter syndrome never really goes away, but today, I'll share a few ways you can turn anxiety into excitement.
11.11.2020 108: Do You Need a 3.0 to Apply to Med School? Today we talk with a nontrad premed who has questions about in-person vs online classes, gaining volunteer experience as a nontrad, and GPA cutoffs. Join us!
11.10.2020 107: Eye-Opening Conversation About the Med School Personal Statement This premed has a question about how to show resilience in your med school personal statement. Our conversation reveals a whole mindset shift he needs to make! Links:https://medicalschoolhq.net/adg-107-eye-opening-conversation-about-the-med-school-personal-statement/ (Full Episode Blog Post) https://medicalschoolhq.net/meded-media/ (MedEd Media) https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb0fnUyoo-8NIjd9276ah0rd3S6rKRWbm (Application Renovation Series on ...
10.28.2020 106: Which Activities Should I Emphasize on My Med School App? This nontrad has been out of school and working for a decade. She's done so many things, she's wondering what to highlight vs combine on her med school app!
10.21.2020 105: How do Med Schools View Nontrads With Limited Clinical Experience? How do Medical Schools view nontraditional students with limited clinical experiences due to other commitments. Dr Gray discusses the importance of this topic.
10.14.2020 104: How Do I Know if I Am Competitive Enough to Get Into Med School? How do you know if you are competitive amongst other applicants? Dr. Gray breaks down this students stats to help him know if he is 'good' enough?
10.07.2020 103: Can I Be a Stay-at-Home Mom and Get into Medical School? Can you be a stay at home mom and still get into medical school? Will admissions committees look down upon you for staying at home as a mom?
09.16.2020 102: How to Write About an Academic Suspension and Cheating? Do you have an institutional action? Maybe an academic suspension? Or a dismissal from a class or program? How do I write about this on my application?
08.19.2020 101: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Applying to Med School with a Mug Shot Can you get into med school if you've been arrested? Will it come up in your interview? What should you disclose about it in your application?
08.12.2020 100: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: How to Choose Your Premed Major What's the best premed major for you? Will med schools actually care what you majored in? What factors should you consider? That's what we're covering today!
08.06.2020 99: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Am I Too Old for Medical School? You're NOT too old to go to medical school—and today, I'm explaining why. I'm also addressing HOW to tell your story on your application.
07.29.2020 98: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Is This GPA Really THAT Bad? What is the GPA cut-off at most medical schools? And what can you do if you're worried about a low GPA number from your past holding back YOUR application?
07.22.2020 97: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: How to Approach the MD/PhD Essay? Should your tone and writing style in the MD/PhD essay differ from the personal statement? Should your MD and MD/PhD personal statement be written differently?
07.15.2020 96: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Should I Retake My Old Prerequisites? Our caller's prereq grades were pretty bad—but he's in a Special Master's Program doing much better now. So does he still need to retake old prerequisites?
07.08.2020 95: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Disclosing Mental Illness When Applying Should you mention your history with mental health issues in your medical school application? Plus, what issues often affect disadvantaged students and URMs?
07.01.2020 94: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Advice Premeds With an Institutional Action How do med schools view institutional actions like alcohol violations? Are they red flags that will get your app thrown out? How does it vary between schools?
06.24.2020 93: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: MD or MD/Phd—Which Is Right for You? You're interested in a career that offers the best of both worlds—a few days a week seeing patients and a few days of research—but, is an MD/PhD the best option?
06.17.2020 92: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Clarifying Clinical Experience—What Counts? What counts as clinical experience? How many hours should you have when applying to med school? And is it okay to keep working a non-clinical job as a premed?
06.11.2020 91: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Will the Changes to the USMLE Affect COMLEX? Will DO and international medical schools be adversely affected by the changes to USMLE Step 1? What does the NRMP survey data say? Listen and find out! Links:https://medicalschoolhq.net/adg-91-ask-dr-gray-premed-qa-will-the-changes-to-the-usmle-affect-comlex/ (Full Episode Blog Post) https://medicalschoolhq.net/meded-media/ (Meded Media) https://medicalschoolhq.net/thepremedyears/ (The Premed Years Podcast) ...
05.28.2020 90: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Should I Apply Early Decision to Med School? When is it a good idea to apply early decision to med school? And what are you committing to when you check the "I'm interested in rural medicine" checkbox?
05.28.2020 89: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: When Should You Say "No" as a Premed Today's premed is considering a gap year. She's only a sophomore! We talk about how important it is to be selective with extracurriculars and how to say no!
05.13.2020 88: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: I Submitted a Committee Letter, But Now... Committee letters are typically comprised of several LORs from professors and faculty in a single packet. What do you do when you only receive a summary letter?
05.06.2020 87: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: How Are Gap Years Viewed by Med Schools? Are you making the most of your gap year? We'll talk about how med schools view gap years (spoiler: they don't care), interview day experiences and more!
04.29.2020 86: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Her 3.4 GPA isn't the Problem! Our caller today wants to know what she should focus on to enhance her med school application: GPA, MCAT prep, or clinical experience. I'll help her prioritize!
04.22.2020 85: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Should I Push my Med School App Back a Year? Is it worth rushing to submit your med school application late in the cycle, or should you wait a year while you strengthen your application? The data says...
04.15.2020 84: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Is it Bad to Take Prereqs in the Summer? Time is a precious commodity when you're a nontraditional student like today's caller. How should you spend your time as a nontraditional premed?
04.09.2020 82: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Discussing Caregiving on the Med School App In many cases, caregiving is an amazing way to gain clinical experience in a non-traditional setting. How should you talk about it on your med school application?
04.08.2020 83: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Writing About Obstacles in Your Application If you've faced adversity on your path to med school, you aren't alone! Today, we'll talk about how to discuss obstacles in the med school application process.
03.25.2020 81: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: 8 Common Med School Application Mistakes Not getting any medical school interview invites? Let's look at the 8 most common areas students make mistakes in their medical school application.
03.18.2020 80: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Masters vs Postbac to Raise Your Premed GPA How do you decide between a special Master's program (SMP) and a postbac? Today, I share why I think a postbac is the better choice for this student.
03.11.2020 79: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: What Counts as an Upward Trend in Your GPA? Today's caller had a mediocre GPA from her undergrad in business. Now, she's on the premed path taking prereqs and her GPA is improving—but is it enough?
03.04.2020 78: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: How to Deal With Imposter Syndrome Everyone experiences imposter syndrome as a premed, medical student, and resident physician. Today, I share how to deal with these feelings on the premed path.
02.27.2020 77: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A - What's the Best Way to Prep for the MCAT? Should you start thinking about the MCAT as you're still taking prerequisites? Today's caller is getting started early. Dr. Gray talks timelines and prep.
02.19.2020 76: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Mentioning Mental Illness in Applications There are ways to touch upon mental illness in your application that are more discreet. But what if it's a major part of your story? Dr. Gray answers.
02.17.2020 75: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Postbac vs Masters to help a low GPA? If you have a low GPA, first ask yourself why. Before picking between post-bac, masters, and SMP programs, be honest about where you need to improve.
02.12.2020 74: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: Giving Up on My Med School Dream What do you do when a premed advisor recommends a drastic change of course? Should this caller call it quits on US MD and DO schools?
02.10.2020 73: Ask Dr. Gray: Premed Q&A: How To Pull in the Reader Help your reader inhabit those important "why medicine" moments with you. Show your experiences through anecdotes and appeal to their senses.
02.05.2020 72: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: I Have a Low GPA, Should I Do a Postbac? What's the magic number for an MCAT score that will outshine your low GPA (spoiler: there is none), and when is it time to do a post-bac degree?
02.03.2020 71: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: MD vs DO Applications? The AMCAS and AACOMAS are slightly different application services. Do you need to tailor your personal statement to each of them?
01.29.2020 70: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: What Can I Do to Boost My Apps During the Application Cycle? Our caller is a working dad with a DIY postbac and tons of shadowing and bench work experience. What else can he do to elevate his application?
01.27.2020 69: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: Does Having a Nursing Background Hurt Me? Do nursing courses count toward your medical school prerequisites, and is there any truth to low medical school acceptance rates for nurses?
01.22.2020 68: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: Non-traditional Routes to Medical School Our question comes from an applicant who has taken a somewhat winding path during her premed career. We'll sort through grades, trends and more.
01.20.2020 67: Ask Dr. Gray Premed Q&A: Dual Bachelors, SMP, or Something Else? Today's caller asks: if she has a long academic record, below average GPA, and an average sGPA, should she take a leap and apply?

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