Successful students will make many friends and will have an enjoyable experience as an undergraduate, but they have the added satisfaction of having made a record that will form the basis of future success. As a person matures it becomes increasingly obvious that real happiness and true satisfaction come in large part from the esteem of peers, which is earned by hard work, high ideals and good judgment. True satisfaction is not achieved by self-indulgence. In the opinion of the author of this little treatise, nothing could be further from the truth. As a group, medical admissions committees take their enormous responsibility very seriously.
Most committees spend hundreds of hours selecting each class.
It would be difficult to find a more dedicated or intellectually honest group. However, we must recognize that admissions committees look for the person who will make the best physician. This is not always the same person who would make the best scientist and not necessarily the person who is the best student. If applicants were admitted to medical school only on the basis of GPA and MCAT scores, there would be no need for an admissions committee. The entire class could be chosen by a properly programmed computer.