New York City has one of the most competitive collections of medical schools anywhere in the country. Within the five boroughs, you can apply to NYU Grossman School of Medicine, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Weill Cornell Medicine, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University College of Medicine, CUNY School of Medicine, and Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Harlem.

If you are trying to figure out which NYC medical school is the hardest to get into, NYU Grossman School of Medicine is probably the strongest overall answer. NYU combines an exceptionally small entering class with thousands of applicants, a median MCAT around 523, a median undergraduate GPA around 3.98, and the additional applicant demand created by its full-tuition scholarship program. However, Columbia, Weill Cornell, and Mount Sinai are close enough that I would not describe any of them as meaningfully “easy” compared with NYU.

There is also an important problem with comparing medical school acceptance rates that I want to address before getting into the rankings. Many websites divide the number of students who eventually matriculate by the total number of applicants and call that the acceptance rate. Those numbers can be useful for understanding competition for seats, but they are not true acceptance rates because medical schools typically make more offers than the number of students who ultimately enroll.

When I was building my own medical school list, it was easy to become overly focused on numbers like GPA, MCAT, and acceptance rate because those were the easiest things to compare. Those statistics are useful, but they become much more helpful once you combine them with class size, interview selectivity, curriculum, research opportunities, cost, and mission fit. That is the approach I am going to use here.

Which Medical Schools Are Actually in New York City?

One thing that many New York medical school comparisons get wrong is treating New York City and New York State as though they are interchangeable. Schools such as New York Medical College, the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook, and NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine are excellent New York medical schools, but they are not located within New York City itself.

For this comparison, I am focusing on medical schools physically located in the five boroughs:

NYC medical school	Borough	Degree
NYU Grossman School of Medicine	Manhattan	MD
Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons	Manhattan	MD
Weill Cornell Medicine	Manhattan	MD
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai	Manhattan	MD
Albert Einstein College of Medicine	Bronx	MD
SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University College of Medicine	Brooklyn	MD
CUNY School of Medicine	Manhattan	BS/MD pathway
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine – Harlem	Manhattan	DO

CUNY deserves a separate explanation because its primary physician-training pathway is a seven-year BS/MD program rather than the traditional process of completing college, taking the MCAT, and then applying through AMCAS. Because of that structure, it is not directly comparable with NYU, Columbia, Cornell, Mount Sinai, Einstein, or SUNY Downstate for a traditional premedical applicant.

TouroCOM is also somewhat different because it awards a DO rather than an MD. Students interested in considering both pathways can use my list of accredited U.S. MD medical schools while building a broader school list.

NYC Medical School Admissions Comparison

Medical schools do not all report their admissions information in exactly the same way. Some publish applicants and acceptances, others publish applicants and matriculants, and several rely on the AAMC Medical School Admission Requirements database for current GPA and MCAT information.

That makes it important not to treat every number below as if it came from an identical dataset. Instead, the table is meant to show the overall competitive landscape using the most recent school-published information available along with recent reported academic profiles.

Medical school	Recent applicants	Entering class / positions	Recent MCAT	Recent GPA	Overall difficulty
NYU Grossman	8,000+	About 100	523 median	3.98 median	Extremely difficult
Columbia VP&S	7,677	140	About 522 median	About 3.95	Extremely difficult
Weill Cornell	9,000+	106	About 518–519 median	About 3.90–3.94	Extremely difficult
Icahn at Mount Sinai	9,149	128 MD/MD-PhD students	About 519–520	Around high 3.8s to 3.9s	Extremely difficult
Albert Einstein	8,897	Roughly 180+ MD students	Around mid-to-high 510s	Around high 3.8s	Very difficult
SUNY Downstate	6,000+	About 200	Around 514	Around 3.8	Very difficult

If you want to compare these numbers with schools elsewhere in the country, I also built a searchable U.S. medical school GPA and MCAT database that can help you compare programs while building your application list.

Which NYC Medical School Is the Hardest to Get Into?

NYU Grossman School of Medicine is the hardest NYC medical school to get into overall. The strongest reason is not simply that NYU has a low acceptance rate. It is the combination of applicant volume, class size, extraordinary academic statistics, national applicant interest, research strength, New York City location, and full-tuition scholarships.

NYU’s school-published admissions data provide a particularly useful example of why I prefer looking beyond applicant-to-matriculant ratios. For one recent class, NYU reported 8,271 applicants, 821 interviews, 208 acceptances, and 106 matriculants. That produced an actual acceptance rate of approximately 2.5%, while only about 1.3% of the original applicant pool ultimately matriculated.

Those numbers describe two different things. The approximately 2.5% figure tells us how many applicants were offered admission, while the approximately 1.3% figure shows the number of students who ultimately enrolled relative to the original applicant pool.

NYU’s academic profile makes the competition even more apparent. Its latest incoming class has a reported median MCAT score of 523 and median undergraduate GPA of 3.98, placing its students near the top of the medical school applicant pool academically.

However, I would strongly caution against reading those numbers as unofficial admissions cutoffs. A 523 MCAT and 3.98 GPA do not guarantee an NYU interview, while an applicant somewhat below those medians can still present an outstanding application through research, clinical experience, service, leadership, life experiences, and strong alignment with what NYU values.

Why Is NYU Grossman So Hard to Get Into?

NYU was already an extremely competitive medical school before introducing full-tuition scholarships for all MD students. Removing tuition from the equation made the program even more attractive because applicants no longer have to choose between attending an elite private medical school and taking on several hundred thousand dollars in tuition costs.

The financial difference can be enormous over four years. If you are comparing medical schools partly based on affordability, my medical school tuition and cost of attendance guide explains why tuition and total cost of attendance should be considered separately.

Free tuition is not the only reason NYU receives so much interest. Students also gain access to NYU Langone Health, extensive biomedical research, a major academic medical center, specialty and subspecialty exposure, and opportunities across one of the most diverse patient populations in the United States.

The combination creates something unusual in medical school admissions: a school that is simultaneously one of the most academically prestigious medical schools in the country and one of the least expensive in terms of tuition. That naturally attracts applicants who might otherwise divide their applications among multiple elite institutions.

Is Columbia or NYU Medical School Harder to Get Into?

NYU Grossman appears slightly harder to get into overall, particularly when academic statistics and the extremely small entering class are considered, but Columbia is close enough that the distinction probably should not change whether a qualified applicant applies.

Columbia’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons reported 7,677 applicants, 745 interviews, and 140 incoming students for its Class of 2029. That means fewer than 10% of applicants reached the interview stage, even before the admissions committee narrowed the group further.

Current Columbia admissions information also reports that students offered admission during the 2026 application cycle had GPAs ranging from 3.53 to 4.0 and MCAT scores ranging from 508 to 528. I actually think those ranges are valuable for premeds because they illustrate something that gets lost when we focus exclusively on medians: not every student entering an elite medical school has a 4.0 GPA and 525 MCAT.

The difference is that applicants below a school’s median typically need the rest of the application to give the admissions committee compelling reasons to interview them. Outstanding research, unusual life experiences, sustained community service, meaningful clinical exposure, leadership, or exceptional alignment with a school’s mission can all influence that evaluation.

How Hard Is It to Get Into Weill Cornell Medicine?

Weill Cornell is another medical school that belongs in the same extremely selective group. The school currently states that it receives more than 9,000 applications for only 106 positions in each entering class and generally interviews around 700 to 750 MD applicants.

That means somewhere around 8% of applicants receive an MD interview in a typical cycle based on those numbers. Even reaching the interview stage at Cornell is therefore a significant accomplishment.

Recent school-published data for the Class of 2028 listed 7,345 applicants, 801 interviews, 106 entrants, a median MCAT of 518, and median undergraduate GPA of 3.90. More recent applicant volume has risen above 9,000, which makes Cornell particularly interesting because applicant growth can make the program more selective even if its academic profile remains relatively stable.

Cornell also explicitly emphasizes meaningful extracurricular involvement, exploration of medicine, research, service, character, emotional maturity, and personal depth rather than presenting admissions as a statistics contest. The school states that it does not use an MCAT cutoff, which is another reason applicants should interpret its median as a description of the class rather than a minimum score necessary to apply.

How Hard Is Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai to Get Into?

Mount Sinai belongs in the same broad selectivity tier as Cornell, Columbia, and NYU even though the academic numbers reported by different sources vary somewhat.

Icahn reports 9,149 MD, early assurance, and MD-PhD applications during its 2025 application cycle, with 910 interviews conducted. Its entering class included 118 MD students and 10 MD-PhD students.

Those figures reinforce why comparing simple applicant-to-matriculant percentages can be misleading. Icahn has multiple admissions pathways, including its FlexMed early assurance program, which means not every entering seat is necessarily available through the traditional AMCAS route in the way an applicant might initially assume.

Mount Sinai also directly tells applicants that there is no single trick for standing out. Its admissions office emphasizes the applicant’s path to medicine, story, experiences, and attributes that would make that person an excellent physician.

That is especially relevant at highly selective schools because numbers eventually stop differentiating applicants very effectively. When thousands of applicants have strong grades and MCAT scores, experiences, writing, recommendations, interviews, and institutional fit become increasingly important.

How Hard Is Albert Einstein College of Medicine to Get Into?

Albert Einstein College of Medicine has become an even more interesting admissions case since announcing that tuition and fees would be covered for all MD students through the David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Scholarship Fund.

Einstein currently reports approximately 8,897 applicants, which already places it among the most heavily applied-to medical schools in New York City. Because tuition is now covered for MD students, I would not be surprised if applicant interest remains extremely high.

The effect is similar to what happened at NYU. When a respected medical school removes one of the largest financial barriers associated with attending medical school, students who might previously have hesitated because of cost suddenly have another compelling reason to apply.

Einstein is also closely connected with Montefiore and provides students with extensive exposure to patients throughout the Bronx. For applicants who have meaningful interests in urban medicine, underserved communities, health disparities, research, or caring for diverse populations, that clinical environment can be a major attraction.

For that reason, I would be cautious about using older Einstein acceptance-rate data to predict future admissions difficulty. The financial structure of the school has fundamentally changed, and applicant behavior may change with it.

Is SUNY Downstate Easier to Get Into Than NYU, Columbia, or Cornell?

SUNY Downstate is easier to get into statistically than NYU, Columbia, Cornell, or Mount Sinai in the sense that its entering class is substantially larger and its median academic statistics are somewhat lower. That does not make SUNY Downstate an easy medical school to enter.

The school enrolls approximately 200 students in its entering class and receives thousands of applications each year. Recent reported data place its MCAT around the mid-510s and GPA around the high 3.8 range.

Downstate also has a very different institutional identity from the private Manhattan medical schools. Its Brooklyn location and public medical school mission provide students with substantial exposure to diverse urban communities and patients who may experience significant barriers to healthcare.

That distinction matters when you are deciding whether to apply. An applicant with a 520 MCAT should not automatically assume that Downstate is a better admissions bet than a more selective private school if their experiences and goals have very little connection with the populations or mission the school serves.

This is why I encourage premeds to think of medical school lists as combinations of statistical fit and mission fit rather than dividing schools into simplistic categories of reach, target, and safety. There really is no true safety medical school.

What About CUNY School of Medicine?

CUNY School of Medicine should not be ranked directly beside the traditional NYC medical schools because its main physician pathway operates very differently.

The Sophie Davis Biomedical Education Program is an accelerated seven-year BS/MD program. Students enter after high school, complete a three-year biomedical science undergraduate curriculum, and then progress into the four-year MD portion if they meet the program’s progression requirements.

The program also removes the traditional MCAT barrier, meaning its admissions process cannot reasonably be compared with NYU or Columbia using MCAT medians or AMCAS acceptance rates.

CUNY reported 123 students accepted from 1,349 applicants for one recent entering BS/MD class, but even that statistic reflects an entirely different applicant population composed largely of high school students rather than college graduates applying to medical school.

For students considering accelerated pathways earlier in their education, CUNY can be an excellent program to research. It simply answers a different admissions question than the one most traditional premedical students are asking.

Does the Highest MCAT Mean a Medical School Is the Hardest to Get Into?

Not necessarily. MCAT and GPA statistics tell you how academically accomplished the students who matriculate at a school tend to be, but they do not tell you everything about admissions difficulty.

A medical school can receive enormous numbers of applications because of its location, cost, reputation, or applicant-friendly policies while having somewhat lower academic medians. Another medical school might receive fewer applications but enroll students with much higher academic statistics.

For example, NYU’s median MCAT around 523 makes its academic profile particularly intimidating. Mount Sinai and Cornell may have somewhat lower reported MCAT medians, but both receive enormous applicant pools for very limited numbers of seats.

That is why I would evaluate at least four variables together: applicant volume, interview rate, actual acceptance information when available, and the academic profile of entering students.

You can then add mission fit as the fifth variable, which is the one that is hardest to quantify but often matters the most for the individual applicant.

Medical School Acceptance Rate vs. Matriculation Rate

This distinction is especially important when researching the hardest medical schools in NYC because I repeatedly see these terms used interchangeably online.

Imagine that a medical school receives 8,000 applications, accepts 200 students, and ultimately enrolls 100. Its true acceptance rate would be 200 divided by 8,000, or 2.5%.

However, the entering class represents only 100 divided by 8,000 applicants, or 1.25% of the original applicant pool.

Calling 1.25% the acceptance rate would therefore make the school appear twice as selective as it actually was.

NYU gives us unusually useful official data because it has published applicants, interviews, acceptances, and matriculants together. Its reported 8,271 applicants and 208 acceptances produce an approximately 2.5% acceptance rate, while its 106 matriculants represent approximately 1.3% of applicants.

Neither number is useless, but they answer different questions.

This is also why my medical school post-interview acceptance rate guide focuses separately on what happens after you have already earned an interview. Once an interview invitation arrives, the probability you are trying to understand is very different from the probability you faced when initially submitting your application.

Which NYC Medical School Has the Highest MCAT?

NYU Grossman appears to have the highest current median MCAT among the major NYC medical schools, with a reported median of approximately 523.

Columbia follows closely with recent reported medians around 522, while Mount Sinai and Weill Cornell generally fall around the upper teens to approximately 520 depending on the class and reporting year.

Applicants should be careful about comparing statistics from different cycles, though. A 519 median from one school’s 2024 entering class should not necessarily be interpreted as directly comparable with another school’s 2026 entering class.

The broader conclusion matters more than the exact ordering. NYU and Columbia sit at the very upper end of national MCAT performance, while Cornell and Mount Sinai also enroll exceptionally strong academic classes.

Which NYC Medical School Has the Highest GPA?

NYU Grossman again appears to be at or near the top, with a reported median undergraduate GPA of approximately 3.98 for its latest incoming students.

Columbia, Cornell, and Mount Sinai also enroll students with extremely strong academic records, although the precise figures vary by year and by whether a source reports a mean, median, or range.

This is another place where I would avoid interpreting small differences too aggressively. A 3.95 versus 3.98 median does not mean one school expects applicants to have exactly 0.03 more GPA points.

Once GPAs reach that level, there is very little room left for differentiation through grades alone. Research, clinical exposure, service, leadership, letters, essays, personal background, and interviews become essential parts of the decision.

Which NYC Medical School Is the “Easiest” to Get Into?

Among the traditional MD programs discussed here, SUNY Downstate generally has somewhat more accessible academic statistics and a larger entering class than NYU, Columbia, Cornell, or Mount Sinai. However, I would not call SUNY Downstate easy to get into.

It still receives thousands of applications from qualified students, and successful applicants generally have strong academic records and substantial preparation for medicine.

A more useful question is whether Downstate is realistic for your particular application. A New York applicant with meaningful clinical experience, strong service, a solid academic record, and experiences that align naturally with Downstate’s patient population may have a very different admissions outlook from an applicant with higher statistics but little demonstrated interest in the communities the school serves.

Students worried about being below the averages at many MD programs can also look through my guide to medical schools with lower GPA and MCAT requirements rather than building a school list entirely around elite NYC institutions.

Does Being From New York Help at NYC Medical Schools?

It depends on the school.

NYU, Columbia, Cornell, Mount Sinai, and Einstein are private institutions and generally recruit nationally rather than reserving their classes primarily for New York residents. Cornell specifically states that it does not give admissions preference based on state residency, while Mount Sinai similarly states that New York residents are not treated differently in admissions.

SUNY Downstate is a public New York institution, which makes state residency more relevant to understanding its applicant pool and mission. Out-of-state students can apply and are accepted, but the context is different from applying to a private medical school with no state-supported mission.

This is another reason I would not recommend applying to New York City medical schools simply because you live in New York. At several of the most selective programs, your state residency will not provide the kind of advantage that applicants sometimes receive at their own public medical schools.

Should You Apply to NYU With a Lower MCAT or GPA?

Potentially, yes, but I would treat NYU as a major reach if your academic statistics are significantly below its current medians.

One thing I like about looking at ranges rather than just medians is that they show us that admissions committees do admit students who fall below the middle of the class academically. Columbia, for example, reports accepted applicants in its 2026 cycle with MCAT scores extending down to 508 and GPAs down to 3.53.

That does not mean a 508 automatically makes Columbia realistic. It means that at least some applicants with statistics well below the school’s median had other qualities compelling enough to earn admission.

The right takeaway is therefore not that statistics do not matter. They matter enormously, particularly at NYU, Columbia, Cornell, and Mount Sinai, but they are not the complete application.

If you have a lower MCAT or GPA, your school list should contain programs across a much wider statistical range rather than relying heavily on NYC’s most selective medical schools.

Why Mission Fit Matters More at Highly Selective Schools

Mission fit can sound like vague admissions advice until you consider the math behind these applicant pools.

NYU can receive more than 8,000 applications for around 100 entering students. Cornell receives more than 9,000 applications for just over 100 positions. Columbia receives more than 7,000 applications for approximately 140 entering students, while Mount Sinai receives more than 9,000 applications across its pathways.

These admissions committees therefore have thousands of applicants who are academically capable of succeeding in medical school.

Your application has to help them understand why your experiences, values, interests, and goals make sense at their particular institution.

For one student, that connection might involve extensive biomedical research and an interest in academic medicine. Another may have years of work serving underserved urban communities, while another may have developed a strong interest in health policy, advocacy, global health, entrepreneurship, or a particular area of clinical investigation.

I would rather see an applicant apply to a selective school because they can identify several meaningful reasons they fit the institution than because the school’s name appears high on a ranking.

How I Would Rank the Hardest NYC Medical Schools

Taking applicant volume, academic profile, interview selectivity, entering class size, national applicant interest, and overall admissions competitiveness together, I would roughly organize the traditional NYC MD programs into the following tiers.

NYU Grossman sits at the top overall, particularly because its 523 median MCAT, approximately 3.98 median GPA, small entering class, full-tuition scholarship, research strength, and location create extraordinary demand.

Columbia, Weill Cornell, and Mount Sinai form the next extremely selective group, although the differences between these schools and NYU are small enough that all four should be considered major reaches for almost every applicant.

Albert Einstein is also extremely competitive, and its transition to tuition-free medical education may make future admissions cycles even more competitive than older statistics suggest.

SUNY Downstate remains highly selective but is somewhat more accessible statistically, especially when compared with the exceptionally high academic profiles at NYU and Columbia.

This ranking should not be interpreted as a prediction of which school will be hardest for you personally. An applicant with exceptional research may fit one institution differently from an applicant whose strongest experiences involve long-term community health work, and schools may value those profiles differently.

Final Verdict: What Is the Hardest Medical School in NYC to Get Into?

NYU Grossman School of Medicine is the hardest medical school in New York City to get into overall. Its approximately 523 median MCAT, 3.98 median GPA, small entering class, enormous applicant pool, full-tuition scholarship program, research reputation, and New York City clinical opportunities combine to make it one of the most competitive medical schools not only in NYC, but in the United States.

Columbia is very close, while Weill Cornell and Mount Sinai also admit only a small fraction of their enormous applicant pools. Albert Einstein deserves particular attention going forward because its tuition-free model may continue increasing application volume and admissions competition.

The bigger lesson for premeds is that you should not use one acceptance-rate percentage to decide where to apply. Look at GPA and MCAT statistics, class size, interviews, curriculum, research, clinical opportunities, financial aid, residency preferences, and mission together.

When I was looking at medical schools myself, it was tempting to reduce everything to whether my numbers were high enough. The more useful approach is to ask two questions at the same time: “Am I academically competitive here?” and “Does the rest of my application make sense for this particular school?”

If both answers are yes, the school may deserve a place on your list even if its acceptance rate is intimidating. If you want to compare the same factors across other highly competitive systems, you can also read my guide to which UC medical school is the hardest to get into.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the hardest medical school in NYC to get into?

NYU Grossman School of Medicine is probably the hardest medical school in New York City to get into overall. It combines more than 8,000 applicants with a class of roughly 100 students, a median MCAT around 523, a median GPA around 3.98, and a full-tuition scholarship program that attracts applicants from throughout the country.

Columbia, Weill Cornell, and Mount Sinai are also extraordinarily selective, so the practical difference among these four schools is much smaller than a simple ranking might suggest.

Is NYU or Columbia medical school harder to get into?

NYU appears slightly harder overall when its current academic profile, entering class size, and applicant demand are considered together. NYU reports a median MCAT around 523 and median GPA around 3.98, while Columbia also enrolls an exceptionally strong academic class and received 7,677 applications for 140 incoming students in its Class of 2029.

Both should be considered significant reach schools for essentially every medical school applicant.

What is NYU Grossman School of Medicine’s acceptance rate?

NYU reported 8,271 applicants, 821 interviews, 208 acceptances, and 106 matriculants for one recent class. Based on those figures, approximately 2.5% of applicants received an acceptance offer.

The 106 matriculants represented approximately 1.3% of the applicant pool, but that figure should not be called the acceptance rate because more students were accepted than ultimately enrolled.

What MCAT score do you need for NYU Medical School?

NYU Grossman’s latest incoming class reports a median MCAT score around 523. There is no guarantee that earning a 523 will result in an interview or acceptance, and applicants below that score can still be considered.

However, because the school’s academic profile is among the strongest in the country, applicants significantly below the median should generally consider NYU a substantial reach.

What GPA do you need for NYU Medical School?

NYU Grossman’s latest reported median undergraduate GPA is approximately 3.98. That does not represent a formal GPA cutoff, but it demonstrates just how academically accomplished the typical entering class is.

Applicants should compare their GPA together with their MCAT, academic trajectory, course rigor, research, clinical experiences, service, leadership, essays, and other application factors.

Is Weill Cornell harder to get into than Columbia?

Both schools are extremely difficult to enter, and the answer can depend on which metric you use. Cornell currently reports receiving more than 9,000 applications for only 106 entering positions, while Columbia reported 7,677 applicants and 140 students in its Class of 2029.

Columbia generally reports a slightly higher academic profile, while Cornell’s large applicant-to-seat ratio creates extraordinary competition. Neither should be considered meaningfully easier for an individual applicant.

How hard is Mount Sinai Medical School to get into?

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is one of the most selective medical schools in New York City. The school reported 9,149 MD, early assurance, and MD-PhD applications and 910 interviews during its 2025 application cycle, with 128 MD and MD-PhD students entering.

Because some students enter through pathways such as FlexMed, the number of positions available through the traditional application route should also be considered when evaluating its selectivity.

Is Albert Einstein Medical School hard to get into?

Yes. Albert Einstein College of Medicine reports approximately 8,897 applicants and is an extremely competitive medical school.

Einstein is now tuition-free for MD students through the David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Scholarship Fund, which makes the school even more attractive to applicants. For that reason, older acceptance-rate data may underestimate how competitive future Einstein admissions cycles will be.

Is Albert Einstein or NYU harder to get into?

NYU currently appears harder to enter based on its exceptionally high median GPA and MCAT, small class size, applicant volume, and national applicant interest. Einstein remains extremely selective, however, and its new tuition-free structure could increase applicant demand substantially.

Applicants should view both as competitive programs rather than assuming Einstein is a realistic backup for NYU.

Which NYC medical school has the highest MCAT?

NYU Grossman currently appears to have the highest reported median MCAT among NYC medical schools, at approximately 523. Columbia follows closely around 522 in recent reported data, with Cornell and Mount Sinai generally around the upper 510s to approximately 520 depending on the admissions cycle.

Small differences between medians should not be interpreted as admissions cutoffs because medical schools review applicants holistically.

Which NYC medical school is easiest to get into?

None of the traditional NYC MD programs is easy to enter. Among the major programs compared here, SUNY Downstate generally has a larger class and somewhat lower average GPA and MCAT statistics than NYU, Columbia, Weill Cornell, or Mount Sinai.

However, Downstate still receives thousands of applications and should not be considered a medical school safety.

Are any NYC medical schools tuition-free?

Yes. NYU Grossman School of Medicine provides full-tuition scholarships to its MD students, while Albert Einstein College of Medicine now covers tuition and fees for all MD students through the David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Scholarship Fund.

These programs can dramatically reduce the cost of becoming a physician, but they also make already competitive medical schools particularly attractive to applicants.

Does being a New York resident help you get into NYC medical schools?

Not necessarily. Private medical schools such as NYU, Columbia, Weill Cornell, Mount Sinai, and Einstein recruit students nationally rather than giving applicants the same type of residency advantage associated with many public medical schools.

SUNY Downstate is a public New York medical school, so residency is more relevant to understanding its admissions context. Out-of-state applicants are still eligible to apply and matriculate.

Should I apply to NYU with a 515 MCAT?

You can, particularly if other parts of your application are exceptional, but NYU should be considered a significant reach with a 515 because its current median MCAT is approximately 523.

Rather than deciding whether to apply based on one score alone, consider your GPA, research, clinical experience, service, leadership, essays, letters, personal circumstances, and overall connection with NYU. Your broader medical school list should also contain programs closer to your academic profile.

Are NYC medical schools harder to get into than other medical schools?

Several NYC medical schools are among the most competitive programs in the United States. NYU, Columbia, Weill Cornell, and Mount Sinai receive thousands of applications from nationally competitive candidates while enrolling relatively small classes.

However, medical school admissions difficulty varies throughout the country, and schools such as Stanford, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, UCSF, Penn, Vanderbilt, and others can be similarly selective. Comparing individual schools rather than assuming every NYC program is harder is more useful when building your application list.