Are there agencies that match up applicants with appropriate schools?

[scungilli]

A few years ago, a family friend had difficulty getting accepted into med school and hired some sort of agency to help him get in, which he did, as a result of their services. Do such services still exist, and are they rip-offs or can they really help?

I've seen ads for companies purporting to be run by "former graduate program admissions directors," etc., and they claim to offer assistance with preparing applications, statements and the like, but I'm wondering if what is unspoken in the ads is that they go beyond the paperwork and counseling aspect of the application process and actually have personal contacts within the admissions director network who might look at their client's applications more favorably.

Any input would be appreciated.

[Quantum Buckyball]

I think I've heard about agencies like this before. I thought they just mostly give you advice about personal statement, study tips for the standardized exam, interview practices, etc. I'm not so sure about the personal contacts with the admission directors though (I would think that's illegal).

You can easily get accepted into a Caribbean medical school without a MCAT score, or have a low GPA. That's only if you, your friends or family members can help you out with tuition, 90% of the Caribbean medical schools aren't qualified for US Federal Student Loans, so you will need to take out personal loans from private sectors. (~ 200K+)

[fillyglory]

I don't know about the US, but there're a lot of these agencies in China, and they're blooming, which I think is because overseas grad schools are harder to get in from here and we are very unfamiliar with the whole process. Anyway, I don't think these agencies would be of much help to you. The way I see it, a lot of people go to these agencies in China because they can't write a great statement or CV on their own (cuz of the language barrier), you obviously don't have this problem. I consulted briefly with one of the biggest agencies here when I was applying (but ended up not using their services), and found the work they do is practically walk you through the application process. They can help you choose potential schools according to your GPA and standard test scores (and the schools are provided by ranking, NOT YOUR RESEARCH INTERESTS), help you with your material writing and GRE, even help you with your emails to POIs. My boyfriend's cousin actually used an agency this year, but the schools they chose for him were all below 50, he ended up choosing his own schools and got into a top 20, which the agency said never was gonna happen! Anyway, here I think they only get paid if you got an admission somewhere, so they like to play it safe, but apparently not in your best interests. I don't know what the agencies are like in the US, but some of it must be the same.

[child of 2]

^ sounds like outsourcing. apparently, these people overseas can do American things better than Americans can. I have heard of a story of a guy, who couldn't find a job, then hired an outsourcing agent in India, and was employed within a week.