Stephen C. Frederico

You have earned something most applicants never do. A seat at a top undergraduate institution and an acceptance into a BS/MD program. Both are legitimate achievements. Both represent years of disciplined work. And now you have to choose between them, usually by May 1st, at 17 or 18 years old, with imperfect information and real pressure from every direction. Most families approach this decision emotionally. They gravitate toward the BS/MD because the guarantee feels comforting, or toward the...

Most applicants think the worst outcome of a failed cycle is the rejection itself. The embarrassment. The gut-punch email. The awkward conversations with family asking how it went. That part is temporary. What follows is not. Reapplying to medical school is not a reset. It is not a mulligan. It is a fundamentally different experience, one that costs more than most people account for, and one that most people could have avoided with better planning the first time around. I spent years as a...

If I had a nickel for every time I have heard the term “holistic review,” I would probably be able to retire. Medical schools advertise it. Admissions panels reference it. Pre-med advisors repeat it. Applicants cling to it. But what does that actually mean? Applicants often interpret that phrase to mean: “If my GPA or MCAT is lower, they will overlook it because they consider the whole person.” That is not how holistic review works in practice. As a former voting member of a medical school...