New York Medical College: How to Get In

Mission Statement

The NYMC School of Medicine improves health through medical education, biomedical research and service to patients, their families and the community. This is accomplished through the skill and dedication of our faculty, learners and staff in true partnership with diverse stakeholders and supporters.

Available Programs

Along with the four-year MD degree, New York Medical College also offers two dual degree options for students who want to combine their medical education with graduate level research in a specific area of specialization. Besides the two dual degree programs described below, they also offer a Medical Ethics certificate.

MD/PHD

New York Medical College School of Medicine offers an MD/PhD dual degree in conjunction with the New York Medical College (NYMC) Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences. This rigorous program is aimed at students who wish to be physician-scientists and pursue high-level research in their area of specialization while also gaining the medical training required to be a doctor. The areas of specialization include:

Students interested in this dual degree must apply and gain admission to the MD and PhD programs separately. Students enrolled in an MD degree and interested in pursuing an MD/PhD can only formally apply for the PhD program in November of their 2nd year of med school. They will only be accepted into the PhD program if they have performed well academically in med school. The admission is contingent upon their passing the USMLE Step 1 exam at the end of their second year. Additionally, MD/PhD applicants at NYMC are strongly encouraged to complete research experience during their first 2 years of med school, ideally in the summer between the 1st and 2nd year. The Medical Student Research Elective Program even provides a stipend for this purpose.

The MD/PhD program at NYMC can take between 6.5 to 8 years to complete, depending on the pace of the student’s research progress. As mentioned above, the first 2 years are dedicated to the medical school curriculum, as students cannot formally apply for the PhD program till their 2nd year of med school. Once accepted into the dual degree, students begin their PhD curriculum from the summer after their 2nd year. It typically takes 3 years to complete the PhD research studies, though some students could take 4 years while others may complete it in as little as 2.5 years. After defending their dissertation at the end of this period, students return to their MD curriculum to begin their clinical rotations for the 3rd year of med school. Before beginning their rotations, students may be required to take refresher courses for their clinical skills. Students will receive both their degrees together at the end of the 4th year of medical school.

Students receive a full tuition scholarship for their PhD degree along with a stipend for the period dedicated to their PhD research and studies. The scholarship does not cover med school tuition nor does the stipend extend to the med school years. You can look for separate medical school scholarships and financial aid to cover med school costs.

MD/MPH

This New York Medical College dual degree combines an MD degree from the School of Medicine and an MPH degree from the School of Health Sciences and Practice. The goal of this program is to provide students with a broader perspective on the theories and tenets of public health, including delivery of public health, operation of public health systems, community engagement, patient care, etc.

The areas of specialization include:

• MD/MPH in Health Policy and Management
• MD/MPH in Health Behavior and Community Health
• MD/MPH in Epidemiology
• MD/MPH in Environmental Health

Only students who are already enrolled in the MD program can apply for the dual MD/MPH program. You must apply for and gain admission to the MPH program separately.

As part of this program, students complete 5 core MPH courses in the summer after the 1st or 2nd year of med school. The rest of the MPH coursework can be completed online or on campus, by taking a gap year and completing an accelerated 1 year MPH curriculum. Alternatively, students can complete their MPH coursework over the course of the remaining years of med school. However, note that you can’t take any online courses during the 3rd year medical clerkship.

NYMC offers a 30% discount on the MPH degree tuition for students enrolled in the dual degree program. Also, you can seek MPH specific scholarships or financial aid to finance this degree.

Academic Curriculum

The curriculum at New York Medical College School of Medicine is focused on providing students with a thorough theoretical grounding in medical science and on building their practical skills via early exposure to patient-care and clinical experience.

In the first year, students receive large classroom lectures in the foundational concepts of medical science, including gross anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, neurosciences, foundations in clinical medicine, etc. The second year curriculum transitions to small group discussions and active learning as students learn about pathology, medical pharmacology, medical microbiology, epidemiology, biomedical ethics, and clinical medicine.

One of the most unique aspects of the MD curriculum at New York Medical College is that students get the chance to gain early clinical experience in primary care settings under the mentorship of faculty mentors in their first 2 years of med school. This allows students to integrate their theoretical learnings with practical skills and on-the-job learning and to gain patient care skills as well as medical knowledge.

In the 3rd year of their MD degree, New York Medical College students complete mandatory clinical clerkships. Students get the chance to train at a variety of clinical settings: rural, urban, suburban, ambulatory care facilities, university hospitals, etc, in many different locations. Their 4th year electives, which allow students to explore their interest in specific medical specialties, can also be completed in huge number of affiliated hospitals, clinics, and medical centers.

New York Medical College also offers an elective “Area of Concentration” program. Students enrolled in this program complete additional coursework in their special area of interest in addition to the MD curriculum. They also complete a senior capstone project. NYMC awards a certificate to all students who compete these requirements. The “areas” students can specialize in include the following: biomedical research, biomedical ethics, medical education, global and population health, children’s environmental health, and nutrition and culinary medicine.

Students are also encouraged to take on research projects and explore their scientific interests with additional research papers and projects. The NYMC School of Medicine Medical Student Research Forum is an annual event where students can present and discuss their clinical and basic science research papers/projects. They also offer a limited number of fully funded Summer Research Fellowships for first-year students with a good academic record.

Grading

All 1st and 2nd year courses are graded as Pass/Fail, while clinical clerkships in the 3rd year, as well as direct-care elective courses in the 4th year, are graded as Honors/High Pass/Pass/Fail. All other elective courses in the 3rd and 4th year are graded as Credit/No Credit.

Application Timeline

New York Medical College School of Medicine uses the AMCAS portal to process med school applications. It’s crucial that you follow the medical school application timeline for all the schools you’re applying to. Any missed deadlines could result in your application being disqualified and you could end up losing the year! So, make sure you submit your application components as early as possible.

The following diagram shows the application timeline for New York Medical College School of Medicine. Make sure you check their admissions portal or MSAR to confirm the exact application dates.

New York Medical College School of Medicine has a rolling admissions policy for their regular admissions cycle. Applicants that are part of the regular admissions cycle receive their admissions decisions between November and April, within 6 weeks of their interview, on a rolling basis.

For their Early Admissions Medical Program, all accepted students are notified by October 1.

Admissions Statistics and Eligibility

Eligibility

New York Medical College School of Medicine accepts applications from US citizens, US permanent residents, or DACA status applicants from all 50 states. They do not accept international applicants with the exception of Canadian citizens. Applicants must have a Bachelor’s degree at the time of matriculation from an accredited American or Canadian university.

All applicants must submit their MCAT scores, which should not be more than two and a half years old. The specific dates for MCAT eligibility change every year so you should check the NYMC admissions website to confirm if your MCAT score is eligible.

Check out this infographic for more on NYMC admissions statistics and interview formats:

Recommended Courses

New York Medical College School of Medicine does not have any preference when it comes to applicants’ majors in college. However, they strongly recommend that applicants complete high-level coursework in science, with lab components, with a few mandatory prerequisites:

Tuition and Debt

As a private institution, New York Medical College charges the same tuition for all students, irrespective of their residential status. There is no difference between the tuition of in-state, out-of-state, and international students.

Funding Opportunities

New York Medical College School of Medicine offers a variety of financial aid options for medical students to fund their degree. The NYMC Office of Student Financial Planning is well-known for its excellent financial aid and debt management counselling for graduate students. They provide financial planning guidance, tools, and resources to students before, during, and even after medical school. As a result, their graduates have among the lowest student loan default rates in the US.

Students can access the following funding opportunities to fund their degree at NYMC:

Need-based grants

NYMC offers need-based grants for students with a good academic standing who can demonstrate financial need. To apply for these grants, you will have to submit your family and spousal (if applicable) financial and employment information. You also have to borrow a minimum “unit loan”, the amount of which changes from year to year, to qualify for these need-based grants.

NYMC Scholarships

NYMC also offers scholarships covering 1 to 4 years of medical school costs for students who demonstrate financial need and have a good academic standing. These are funded by external donations and the alumni network and used primarily to meet the strategic goals of the school. This is reflected in how they select the awardees. These strategic initiatives could be related to a demographic, social cause, or specific area of medicine, and they can change from one year to the next.

Federal loans

International applicants are not eligible for federal loans. Eligible students can submit an application with the NYMC Office of Student Financial Planning to claim one of the following federal loans:

• Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan
• Federal Direct Grad PLUS Loan

Federal loans have a lower interest rate and more flexible repayment options.

External scholarships

There are plenty of scholarships, funded by private and public organizations, that aim to help medical students pay for med school. If you’re looking for financial aid for med school, it’s important to thoroughly research your options and apply to all the external grants and scholarships that you’re eligible for. While many external scholarships are need-based and target specific demographics, there are also quite a few open, merit-based scholarships you can apply for. External scholarships tend to be very competitive since they receive such a high volume of applicants. Some scholarships, such as the National Health Service Corps Scholarship, aid students with tuition and living costs in exchange for a service commitment, for instance,

Private loans

If the above options don’t work out, then you can consider applying for private loans from corporations, financial organizations, banks, etc. Private loans generally charge a higher interest rate than federal loans.

The Office of Student Financial Planning will review the amount of financial aid you receive from any other sources including religious organizations, parent’s employment, corporations, and so on, and if the amount exceeds the maximum assigned financial aid “Cost of Attendance” , the student must return the excess amount to the highest interest loan (if applicable).

Check out our blog about how to pay for medical school to learn more about your funding options.

Selection Factors

New York Medical College School of Medicine uses the AMCAS portal to complete their application reviews. Additionally, their admissions committees focus on conducting a “individualized holistic review” of all applicants. This means giving each applicant a balanced consideration, reviewing their foundational experiences and personal attributes as well as academics, medical school extracurriculars, and the other typical medical school requirements. This helps them get a more comprehensive evaluation of each candidate and make their decision based on applicants’ overall suitability for medical school.

Additionally, one of their key policies is to ensure that their medical school student body is diverse, with respect to gender, socio-economic background, culture, ethnicity, and life experience. They consider how each applicant, on a case-by-case basis, fits the essential qualities of the four core competency categories for new medical students as defined by AAMC – interpersonal, intrapersonal, thinking and reasoning, and science.

In general, they are looking for candidates who demonstrate superior communication and intrapersonal skills and have the maturity, academic prowess, motor function, integrative skills, and conceptual skills required to be a humane and skilled physician. You can check the NYMC School of Medicine Technical Standards for Admissions and Continued Enrollment to better understand the exact qualities and skills they are looking for in their ideal applicant.

Here are the specific medical school requirements you’ll need to apply to the New York Medical College School of Medicine:

GPA

Academic competence is a key attribute that the NYMC admissions committees are looking for in applicants. It’s not enough to simply complete the mandatory coursework we listed above. They highly recommend applicants to take on a variety of science as well as humanities and social sciences coursework to build the cognitive and communication skills required for med school. It’s also crucial that you maintain a good GPA throughout your undergrad as that proves your academic prowess and ability to take on the tough medical school curriculum.

The average accepted GPA at New York Medical College School of Medicine is 3.72. This doesn’t indicate a strict cut-off, and some students with a GPA lower than this may be admitted if other components of their application are impressive. However, to have a better chance of being accepted at this school, you should aim to have a GPA of 3.72 or higher.

MCAT

All applicants to New York Medical College School of Medicine have to submit their MCAT score as part of their application. The score should not be older than 2.5 years. The specific MCAT score validity requirement at NYMC varies from year to year so you should check the NYMC admissions website to confirm this data for the year you’re applying. Additionally, while they prioritize applicants’ most recent MCAT score, if you’ve retaken the MCAT, they will ask to see all of your previous scores as well.

The MCAT score is an important indicator of an applicant’s academic capability, foundational scientific knowledge, and readiness for med school coursework. The average accepted MCAT score of matriculants at New York Medical College is 513. Though this isn’t a strict cut-off, having a great MCAT score does substantially increase your chances of acceptance, so make sure you give it your best shot. It takes a few months of intensive study to prepare for this exam, so you’ll need to create an MCAT study schedule that works with the rest of your undergrad commitments. If you’re struggling with specific sections or need more personalized instruction, you can consider professional MCAT prep. And of course, don’t forget that the AAMC offers some excellent free resources to help students prepare for the MCAT exam.

Looking for tips on how to do well on the MCAT? Check this out:

Extracurriculars

New York Medical College School of Medicine prioritizes applicants who can demonstrate a strong prior commitment to medicine via their extracurricular activities. Specifically, they will be looking at the AMCAS Work and Activities section as well as the AMCAS Most Meaningful Experiences section to get a better idea of you as a candidate. Your experiences, as well as how you describe them and what you learned from them, indicate your key capabilities and qualities, and give admissions committees an idea of what kind of doctor you could be. Additionally, many extracurricular activities help you explore the medical profession and build skills that are essential to the practice of medicine.

These are the crucial extracurricular activities that New York Medical College School of Medicine is looking for in applicants:

·      Research: NYMC encourages its med students to explore research interests via various on-campus research initiatives as well as elective research components in their curriculum. This is also why any research experience on your medical school resume could go a long way to impress their admissions committee. You can consider presenting a research paper in a specific area of interest or working as an assistant or intern at a research lab in or near your undergrad university. These positions are typically long-term commitments, and they aren’t easy to obtain, since you’ll be expected to contribute to the research project with writing or lab work. If you’re applying for these kinds of positions, you’ll need to write an excellent research assistant cover letter to have a chance at being accepted.

·      Volunteer Experience: One of New York Medical College’s core tenets is a commitment to community engagement and social service. Impactful, long-term volunteer work, preferably in a medical setting such as a hospice or nursing home, demonstrates your commitment to community service and gives you a chance to develop key intrapersonal, communication, team work, and leadership skills. Remember that when it comes to volunteer experiences, it’s not enough to simply have a list of impressive sounding activities. You need to be able to describe your experiences in a meaningful way, showing your own personal growth and the impact that you made. Admissions committees prioritize sincerity and integrity in their applicants so make sure you pick volunteer activities that you truly feel motivated to perform, rather than just thinking of what might look good on your resume.

·      Clinical or Work Experience: The best way to explore your interest in medicine and re-affirm your commitment to the profession is to take on clinical experience at hospital settings. New York Medical College strongly recommends that applicants complete shadowing experience in a medical center. Wondering how many shadowing hours you need? There’s no definite requirement from NYMC, but it should be substantiative enough for you to be able to reflect on your experience in a meaningful way in your application. In fact, shadowing and other clinical experiences where you take on a more active role, are an excellent way to answer the question of “why do you want to become a doctor”.

Personal Statement

As part of their holistic admissions review process, New York Medical College considers applicants’ medical school personal statement as a key selection factor. The AMCAS personal statement for MD programs has a maximum character count of 5300 characters including spaces. This is a chance for you to talk about why you want to be a doctor, unique experiences that set you apart, special hardships and obstacles you’ve faced in your life and how you overcame them, and any other crucial information about yourself that you didn’t get a chance to communicate elsewhere in your application.

Remember that NYMC prioritizes diversity, inclusion, and equitability, and as such, they are looking for applicants who bring a diverse range of experiences to med school. Don’t just summarize the activities you’ve already talked about elsewhere in your application or treat your personal statement as a resume. Your personal statement is a chance to tell a story that distinguishes you from the other applicants. It should not only be well-crafted and well-written, but should further the narrative about your best self that you want the admissions committee to know.

Letters of recommendation

New York Medical College asks for at least 3 medical school letters of recommendation, and it accepts a maximum of 10. All letters have to be submitted via the AMCAS letter service and must be on the official letterhead with the letter-writer’s signature (electronic signature is valid) and include your AMCAS ID. Besides the 3 mandatory letters, optional letters can be sent directly to the NYMC Office of Admissions in a PDF format. They do not accept hard copies of letters sent via the US Postal Service.

New York Medical College School of Medicine accepts the following types of letters:

Besides these mandatory letters, NYMC welcomes additional letters from your non-academic mentors such as employers, research supervisors, supervisors at a volunteer clinic, etc. Letters from employment, volunteer, or research supervisors do not count towards your academic letter requirement but can be an excellent addition to your application as they demonstrate your extracurricular prowess. 

Secondary Application

New York Medical College School of Medicine sends supplemental applicants to all students once they submit their primary application. In order to work on your supplemental application, you’ll need to set up an email account and proceed to complete the required steps. The NYMC supplemental application does not include any medical school secondary essays. At this stage, students need to pay their application fee, submit their letters of recommendation, and complete their CASPer test.

The CASPer test, part of the Altus Suite, is an online, recorded situational judgement test. Students are presented with 12 scenarios and have 5 minutes to answer 3 questions per scenario. The test includes both written and spoken components. It’s designed to evaluate the personal characteristics of an applicant, and specifically to test if they have the qualities desirable for a future doctor, such as professionalism, a balanced outlook, communication skills, emotional maturity, ability think under pressure, etc. Remember that you won’t get to see your CASPer score – it’s sent directly to med schools.

NYMC considers the CASPer test a key part of their holistic admissions review process, as it helps them evaluate a candidate’s personal suitability for medicine. A common myth about the CASPer test is that you can’t prepare for it. In fact, CASPer test prep is crucial to help you get comfortable with the test format and develop strategies to tackle the different types of questions. With sufficient practice and expert feedback, you can develop the skills required to ace the CASPer test.

Interview Formats

At New York Medical College School of Medicine, the medical school interview has a dual purpose: for students to get to know the program and campus, and for the admissions committee to get to know the student better and judge their overall suitability for medical school. As part of their holistic admissions review process, they ask all applicants to complete the CASPer test and include a multiple mini interview or MMI section in their interviews.

Interview invitations are sent out via email from early August onwards on a rolling basis, with interviews actually being conducted between mid-September and March. Students get to choose from different interview dates, as per their convenience. “Interview day” starts at 8.30 in the morning and ends around 4 in the afternoon. It includes an informal breakfast with current medical students, group orientation, a lunchtime panel session, campus tours, and presentations on various topics of interest such as financial planning. Formal interviews take place after lunch.

The formal part of the interviews is in the “MMI” format. This style of interview involves students moving from one station to the next, interacting with various interviewers and answering different types of MMI questions including scenario-based, personal, acting, quirky, writing, collaborative, policy-based, etc. At New York Medical College, the MMI interview includes 8 stations, with 6 scenario-based stations, 1 application-based station, and 1 rest station.

The MMI is a situational judgement test and as such it does not test specific academic or clinical knowledge. It’s designed to help interviewers evaluate the applicants’ core competencies for medicine, such as reflectiveness, compassion, collaboration, critical thinking, and effective communication skills.

While the MMI format can be tricky to prepare for, it’s not impossible. They key is to practice with various sample questions and identify effective strategies to tackle the different types of questions. Many students get nervous and panicked during their MMI section simply due to the unusual format and style of questions. So, it’s a good idea to participate in mock MMI sessions in near-realistic conditions to get familiar and comfortable with the interview format. If you still feel you’re struggling to improve your performance, you can always get expert help to better understand your areas for improvement and how to address them.

Check out this video for more info on the MMI:

Acceptance and Waitlist Information

At New York Medical College School of Medicine, students receive their admission decision from October onwards on a rolling basis, within 4 to 6 weeks of completing their interview. To secure their spot, accepted applicants are required to provide a $100 deposit and sign a non-binding NYMC terms & conditions acceptance agreement within 2 weeks of receiving their acceptance. They also allow students to defer entrance requests on a case-by-case basis.

NYMC School of Medicine waitlists about 250 applicants per admissions cycle, and approximately 50 of them are eventually accepted. Waitlisted applicants start receiving their admissions decisions from mid-April to mid-July, as and when spots open. At NYMC, the medical school waitlist is not ranked, as admissions committees prefer to conduct a holistic review of each applicant and consider each student on a case-by-case basis before making their decision.

Contact Information

Official Website

Admissions Email: [email protected]

FAQs

To your success,

Your friends at BeMo

BeMo Academic Consulting

Disclaimer: BeMo does not endorse or affiliate with any universities, colleges, or official test administrators. The content has been developed based on the most recent publicly available data pro-vided from the official university website. However, you should always check the statistics/requirements with the official school website for the most up to date information. You are responsible for your own results.

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