How Baylor Medical School Let You Know About Acceptance

How hard is it to get into the Baylor College of Medicine? Learn the Baylor Medical School acceptance rate, admissions requirements, and read Baylor secondary application essay examples

baylor college of medicine is ranked #22 by us news and world report for research

Part 1: Introduction

If you're considering applying to a world-renowned institution that has a far-reaching reputation from research, community service, and clinical perspectives, Baylor Medical School is a worthy addition to your list. As a Baylor medical student, you'll study at the world's largest medical college, where you will have the opportunity to rotate at several different patient care sites including the Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center, the Texas Children's Hospital, and the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Houston.

Baylor medical students are high-performing. The admissions website notes that in 2019, 100 percent of the medical school's students passed the United States Medical Licensing Step 1 Exam. It should come as no surprise then that the Baylor College of Medicine is highly selective with an acceptance rate of 5.3 percent.

Fortunately, our team has nearly 20 years of experience helping students gain admission to Baylor Medical School. In fact, we routinely receive messages like this:

"Although I originally accepted the alternate status at Mayo, I have decided to go to Baylor! Thank you both so much again for all of your help throughout this process. I am so grateful for how this process has gone and could not be happier to be in Houston for the next five years. Your help, support, and encouragement made this process totally painless despite what everybody warned me about, and I am extremely happy both with how the cycle went as well as with the results. Y'all are the best!"
STUDENT ACCEPTED TO BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE

 If you hope to earn a coveted spot in Baylor Medical School's upcoming class, read on. In this guide, we will provide an overview of the school's programs, admissions statistics, and examples of responses to the Baylor College of Medicine secondary essay prompts so you can maximize your chances of getting in.

Part 2: Baylor Medical School MD programs

There are a multitude of ways to obtain an MD at Baylor. You can either pursue the traditional four-year MD program or opt to combine your MD with a second graduate degree via one of the four dual degree offerings. The dual degree programs are detailed further below:

• The MD-PhD program is for those interested in training to become physician-scientists in partnership with the Baylor College of Medicine Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

• The MD-MBA program is for those interested in training to become leaders in healthcare, entrepreneurs, or administrators through a partnership with Rice University. Individuals interested in this dual degree program will apply after they have been admitted to or accepted by the Baylor College of Medicine.

• The MD-MPH is for those interested in making an impact in the public health realm through a partnership with the University of Texas School of Public Health. This is a five-year program during which students will pursue both medical and public health curricula in their first three years of graduate school, exclusively public health classes in their fourth year of graduate school, and exclusively medical school classes in their final year.

• The MD-JD is for those interested in understanding both the clinical and legal aspects of the healthcare system and occurs in partnership with the University of Houston Law Center. To apply to this program, interested students apply during the regular admissions cycle for each institution and take the LSAT in addition to the MCAT. They should expect to finish both degrees in six years.

Baylor Medical School tuition

The cost to attend Baylor Medical School will differ if you are a Texas resident or a non-Texas resident. First-year tuition for Texas residents is listed as $27,842.75 and tuition for non-Texas residents is listed as $40,942.75; this information can be found on Baylor's website. In addition to tuition expenses, Baylor estimates that students will also incur approximately $26,000 in indirect educational expenses per year; these expenses include room and board, transportation, and other miscellaneous expenses.

Part 3: How hard is it to get into Baylor College of Medicine?

Baylor College of Medicine admissions statistics

The Baylor College of Medicine acceptance rate is currently 5.3%; however, Baylor's in-state vs. out-of-state acceptance rates vary considerably. In recent years, the in-state acceptance rate has been around 13% and the out-of-state acceptance rate has been approximately 1%.

Some recent admissions statistics for the Baylor College of Medicine Class of 2024 include:

• Applications: 6,260

• Interviews: 840

• Matriculants: 186 (83.9% Texas residents; 16.1% out-of-state residents)

• Median GPA: 3.93

• Median MCAT score: 518

There is no minimum GPA or MCAT requirement to apply to the Baylor College of Medicine. Please note, however, that MCAT scores for the 2021–2022 application cycle will be accepted if the examination was taken between September 2018 and September 2021. You can use the average GPA and MCAT score to determine if Baylor is a good target school to which you should apply.

Baylor College of Medicine admissions requirements

Like other highly competitive medical schools, Baylor has several prerequisites to ensure medical students are adequately prepared for the rigor of the pre-clinical and clinical curricula at the renowned institution.

Coursework that is required includes:

• Mathematics: 3–4 semester hours (biostatistics is preferred)

• Expository writing: 3–4 semester hours (examples include English, history, public policy, political science, or any course that required intensive writing)

• Humanities / behavioral sciences: 12 semester hours (examples include psychology, sociology, foreign language, etc.)

• Organic chemistry: 6–8 semester hours (organic chemistry lab is not required)

• Biochemistry: 3–4 semester hours (biochemistry lab is not required)

• Biology: 3–4 semester hours (biology lab is not required; however, courses in genetics, cell biology, and molecular biology are highly recommended)

In addition to the above coursework, Baylor Medical School recommends that applicants have taken Spanish, given the large Spanish-speaking patient population at Texas Medical Center. Baylor does not require applicants to have a science major; in fact, the admissions website states that they welcome all applicants from different educational backgrounds.

Beyond coursework, Baylor looks for applicants with these qualities listed on their website:

• Diversity to strengthen the Baylor institution and student body

• Intellectual ability

• Demonstrated interest in medicine

• Integrity

• Exposure to numerous opportunities and experiences

• Leadership

• Commitment to service to others

All applicants must also complete the Casper test in order to apply to Baylor Medical School.

Baylor College of Medicine application timeline

Though Baylor previously used the AMCAS application, as of the 2021–2022 application cycle, MD applications must be submitted through TMDSAS. Do note, however, that MD/PhD applicants will still use AMCAS. We encourage you to review our comprehensive TMDSAS guide for advice on how to submit a strong application.

Here is an admissions timeline that you can use to apply to Baylor College of Medicine:

• May 3, 2021: TMDSAS application opens

• May 17, 2021: TMDSAS application can be submitted

• June 1, 2021: Baylor's secondary application opens

• June 2021–December 2021: Applications reviewed

• August 2021–January 2022: Interviews conducted

• November 1, 2021: TMDSAS application deadline

• November 15, 2021: Baylor secondary application deadline

• February 18, 2022: Deadline to rank schools according to preference in TMDSAS

• March 4, 2022:TMDSAS match results released

• April 30, 2022: Applicants can hold only one offer of admission

(Suggested reading: The Ideal Medical School Application Timeline)

Part 4: Baylor secondary application essays (examples included)

After submitting your primary application through TMDSAS, you will be asked to write a secondary essay. No invitation is required to complete Baylor's secondary application.

The best place to highlight your unique qualities and your alignment with Baylor's mission is in your secondary application. To differentiate yourself from other applicants with equally strong test scores and academic achievements, focus on strengthening the qualitative aspects of your application: the essays. In addition to your medical school personal statement, the secondary essay is an opportunity to stand out among the sea of other competitive applicants and convince admissions officers that you'd be a perfect fit for Baylor College of Medicine.

In the 2021–2022 application cycle, Baylor's secondary application has just one essay prompt:

Indicate any special experiences, unusual factors or other information you feel would be helpful in evaluating you, including, but not limited to, education, employment, extracurricular activities, prevailing over adversity. You may expand upon but not repeat TMDSAS or AMCAS application information. (2000 characters)

This secondary essay prompt is open-ended, allowing you to approach it in a variety of ways. You'll likely be able to use one of your pre-written secondary essays here, such as your adversity, diversity, gap year, or "Anything else?" essay.

Here's an example of how one applicant answered this prompt:

I recall my first day as a summer biology teacher in the Lang Youth Medical Program in front of thirty unimpressed eighth graders. I stood at the front of the room with a neatly pressed shirt tucked into an A-line skirt, rattling off the agenda for the week. Excited to begin a summer of learning, I handed out a pre-assessment to all the students to better understand what subject areas we should focus on that summer. After ten minutes, I collected the forms, noting that almost 80% of them had no markings—the students had chosen to ignore my request.

When the bell rang to switch classes, I frustratedly ran to my dean's office to ask for advice. With an all-knowing smile on her face, she told me to scrap my plans for the week, and to instead spend time getting to know my students. I traded out my office clothes for colorful T-shirts, transformed my classroom into a "science laboratory" with various experiment stations, and started each day with a brain teaser. At the end of the week, I re-attempted the pre-assessment, but this time I included a section for student questions and feedback. The participation was 100%.

Through this experience, I recognized that it is easy to forget the most important facet of a student's learning or a patient's care: a meaningful relationship founded upon trust. Regardless of the hours spent lesson planning or memorizing facts out of pathology textbooks, if we as teachers or as healthcare providers cannot find a way to connect with our students or our patients, we will fail to provide them with the best education or care. As a Lang teacher, I developed skills that I will carry with me in my professional life as a physician: I will be dedicated to approaching problems from various perspectives, understanding each individual patient, and learning from not only my physician mentors but also my patients.

Why does it work?

• This essay shows a struggle that the writer faced, discusses how she identified her weaknesses, and shares how she overcame them by seeking out advice and developing new strategies. Her response works well for this prompt because she demonstrates growth and willingness to learn.

• She additionally relates the skills that she gained back to the field of medicine and draws a meaningful parallel between working as a teacher and serving as a physician.

Part 5: Baylor College of Medicine interview

In recent admissions cycles, Baylor's admissions committee has extended interview invitations to about 13 percent of applicants. Baylor uses a traditional interview format—applicants will have two thirty-minute, one-on-one interviews with members of the Admissions Interviewing Subcommittee, which include Baylor College of Medicine faculty, residents, fellows, alumni, and current medical students (at least one interview will be with a faculty member). During the 2021–2022 application cycle, these interviews will be held virtually via Zoom.

Because the interview process follows a traditional approach, you should have well-thought-out answers to: "Why Baylor?," "What are your most significant experiences that highlight your conviction towards medicine?," and "What makes you stand out from all the other interviewees?"

Furthermore, Baylor states that they use the interview as a way to learn more about the following:

• Your interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, including communication, teamwork, ethics, cultural competence, and self-awareness

• Your service to others, including altruism and humanism, community service, and social concerns

• Your learning experiences, including intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and problem-solving

• Your motivation and dedication to medicine, including what meaningful experiences you've had in healthcare

• Your cognitive skills, as assessed by your transcripts, MCAT, and GPA

(Suggested reading: How to Ace Your Medical School Interviews)

Final thoughts

The Baylor College of Medicine is a top-tier medical school that attracts high-performing applicants from all over the country. If you spend time crafting thoughtful responses to the secondary essay question and learning more about the program prior to your interview day, you will have a much greater chance of receiving one of the few Baylor acceptance letters during this application cycle.

THERE'S NO REASON TO STRUGGLE THROUGH THE MED SCHOOL ADMISSIONS PROCESS ALONE, ESPECIALLY WITH SO MUCH ON THE LINE. SCHEDULE YOUR COMPLIMENTARY 30-MINUTE CONSULTATION TO ENSURE YOU LEAVE NOTHING TO CHANCE.

How Baylor Medical School Let You Know About Acceptance

Source: https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/baylor-college-of-medicine

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