Session 50 In this episode, Ryan basically talks about picking medical schools to apply to and whether you should apply to out-of-state public schools. This is another question pulled out from the forums over at the OldPreMeds.org which you should check out, if you haven't yet, so you too can start joining the discussions or post any questions that you have related to your medical school replication. OldPreMeds Question of the Week: Poster is talking about applying in the upcoming cycle and curious about how to go contacting admissions at a state school which generally offers an extremely low number of interviews to out-of-state (OOS) applicants. Poster lived in this state for less than a year in the last five years with immediate family in the vicinity of the school. Poster is drawn by the school's commitment to service in the community and its leadership in the field of medicine and its proximity to family. Who do you contact at the medical school with the application season coming up? And what should you say considering a complicated residential history? Here are the insights from Ryan: Where do you want to go to school? State schools in other states Dig into the state schools that you're looking at in other states because there is a high likelihood that they give extreme preference to in-state applicants. State medical schools are funded by the state and are there to train students who hopefully stay and work in that state. Private schools Majority of private schools don't give any preferential treatment to in-state applicants. What are your chances? To not apply to a public out-of-state school because your premed advisor told you not to is silly. There is always a chance. But you should have a good reason why you want to go to that public OOS school. What are your ties to the state? Having family in that area is the perfect reason why you want to go to that school so you can have that support structure. Talk more about the living in the area and staying there and the more likely you're getting an interview. It boils down to having ties to the state so you can sell yourself to the admissions committee. How do you reach out to the school? There is really no need to reach out to the school. Instead, just put together a well-thought out personal statement and talk about your reasons for applying there. They're going to ask about it on your secondaries so be prepared as well. Links and Other Resources: www.mededmedia.com The Premed Years Podcast www.medicalschoolhq.net