Reminder to write to LizzyM, and her response

On SDN (Student Doctor Network) there's a thread going around where LizzyM, an adcom at a top tier private university, is answering anyone and everyone's questions. Unfortunately, she's gone for the holidays just as I was about to ask her a question, so I'm posting it here so I don't forget to email her when she comes back.

In response to this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by h What is your opinion about applicants addressing weaknesses in their apps without being questioned during their interview?

If you address weaknesses in your application, you might not get an interview. You might get an interview and be asked about your weaknesses or you might not be asked about your weaknesses.

Frankly, I think that weaknesses are like zits. Almost everyone has one at one time or another. You can call attention to it or you can do something to take attention away from it. The reader/interviewer can see it and might be curious about it and might mention it or might look to see if it is addressed in your LOR.

I want to write this:

It seems like you stated that weaknesses shouldn't be addressed in the application because they are so common, but shouldn't a very spotty undergrad GPA that was somewhat fixed a few years later by an almost-perfect post-bacc be addressed since it's the elephant in the room? Should I not mention it in the app at all and explain myself in interviews if it comes up? If addressed, should that be in the personal statement or elsewhere? I have no good explanation for my bad grades except I wasn't mature enough to take school seriously and didn't consider my future at the time, choosing to live in the moment instead. No extenuating circumstances or anything. So addressing it would be limited to that comment.

And here is her response:

A small blemish is what I call a zit. Awhile back I got a PM from an applicant who had a college gpa <3.0 and post bac of 4.0 and MCAT >38. Here's what I wrote in response:

Your situation is not a zit, it is a scar that runs from your earlobe to your chin. The adcom will be begging to know what happened and how you survived.

The story is not so much how you got slashed but how you turned things around and came back against overwhelming odds and triumphed. It could be a great story and I hope you'll write it.

Congrats on the great performance on the MCAT and in the post-bac. Some post-bac schools will send great committee letters that will tell your story in a very sympathetic way (based on your interview with your advisor).

I recently got a nice thank you note from the applicant to tell me of great success this cycle.

While I no longer have the 4.0, I do expect to score about this high on the MCAT so I think I should be OK. I'm aiming for a 3.93 for the whole post-bacc experience, which is high enough according to another member of an admissions committee board (anything 3.8 or higher is awesome). Phew!