Session 608

Dr. Ryland Spence, a first‑generation physician who once “skated by” in school and bounced between careers, shares how he reshaped his life to earn an acceptance to Brown Medical School. This episode reveals how authenticity, grit, and unlikely mentorship (including YouTube) can turn a nontraditional path into a powerful medical school story.

For more podcast resources to help you with your medical school journey and beyond, check out Meded Media.

Listen to this podcast episode with the player above, or keep reading for the highlights and takeaway points.

Realizing His Path to Medicine

Ryland didn’t grow up knowing he wanted to be a doctor. He was an average high school student who “skated by” without much effort or activities. After graduation, he backed out of a planned Air Force enlistment because he wasn’t ready for the long commitment. He started working at McDonald’s and then enrolled in community college to figure out his future. There, he tried different paths and majors, testing what might fit.

Ryland grew up wanting to do anything but what his parents did. His mom was a nurse and his dad an HVAC mechanic, so he ran the other way. In community college, he tried business, HVAC, computer science, and more, helped by free tuition. That freedom made school an “academic sandbox” where he could experiment without debt, live at home, and explore.

Shadowing and volunteering in healthcare felt different. It was natural, meaningful, and more fulfilling than anything else he’d tried. He became a phlebotomist and seriously prepared for PA school. But at UMBC, as he weighed PA versus medical school, he noticed something important. The parts of being a PA he loved most – diagnosing, treating, and especially the idea of operating – were really the role of a physician. That’s when he realized he didn’t just want to be “like a doctor.” He actually wanted to be a doctor.

Hesitation, Background, and Finding Role Models

Ryland wasn’t sure he could be a doctor, and he thinks part of that came from his background. No one in his family was a physician, and he grew up in a rough neighborhood with a lot of crime until his parents worked hard to move the family to a safer area with better schools. That move showed him what hard work could do, and he believes it shaped his work ethic and drive in a way many applicants don’t share.

Without real-life role models in medicine, he hesitated – he went online instead, turning to YouTube for guidance, watching application breakdowns and learning what mistakes to avoid.

Struggling in Science, Then Coming Back Stronger

Academically, Ryland didn’t start out strong in the sciences. As a business major in community college, he took early science classes and earned a C in chemistry and a B in biology. That made him think science “wasn’t his thing,” and he used that as evidence that medicine might not be for him. He stepped away, tried other fields, and took time to mature.

Later, when he returned to the sciences with clearer motivation and a deeper “why,” he started doing well and realized he could handle the work. That second pass, fueled by purpose rather than guesswork, is what allowed him to truly commit to medicine.

Taking the Long Way Through Undergrad

Ryland’s undergraduate path wasn’t four years. It was almost six. He graduated high school in 2013 and started at community college the same year. There, he first finished a business transfer degree before he ever committed to premed.

In 2016, he transferred to UMBC, switched into biology, and added a philosophy minor, which he loved and now jokes he should have majored in. He also took a semester off when he felt burned out and unsure, doing only one course while he reset. 

All of this meant extra time and extra credits, especially because many of his earlier business courses didn’t count toward his final degree. He finally graduated from UMBC in 2019, then later started medical school in 2021.

Gap Years, Data, and the Power of Mentorship

After graduating, Ryland took two gap years. These weren’t accidental; they were strategic. He used that time to volunteer, do research, and polish every part of his medical school application.

A lot of his insight came from YouTube. He watched videos of applicants who didn’t get in the first time and studied what made a “successful applicant.” Then he compared that to his own profile and identified what he needed to improve.

He also built a strong mentorship network. At UMBC, Dr. Mark Martin became his first real academic mentor and gave him leadership roles in a research lab, with a track record of helping students get into medical school. As a phlebotomist at Hopkins Bayview, Ryland worked with Dr. Timothy Amukele then chief of pathology, who helped him especially with essay writing and refining his story. Ryland believes that, in today’s competitive environment, this kind of support is almost essential.

Why His Story Mattered More Than His Stats

Ryland believes a big part of his acceptance to Brown came from his background and story. His parents worked hard to move the family out of a dangerous neighborhood, and that experience shaped his work ethic and motivation.

On paper, he had a solid but not “perfect” application: a 510 MCAT, strong GPA, and decent extracurriculars. What set him apart was being first‑generation, working jobs like McDonald’s and Walmart, and bringing a nontraditional path into medicine.

He also leaned into vulnerability in his essays, sharing personal details about his upbringing instead of trying to sound “perfect.” He argues that this authenticity helps committees truly connect with an applicant.

One-and-Done Applications, Cost, and the Silver Lining of Virtual Interviews

Ryland applied to medical school once – and got in on that first cycle – but this was intentional, not lucky. He knew the process was expensive and emotionally heavy, so he refused to rush it. He spent years preparing so that when he finally applied, his application was as strong as he could make it.

COVID unexpectedly helped: all his 12–14 interviews were virtual, which made them financially possible. He’s clear that, without virtual interviews, he likely couldn’t have afforded to travel to that many schools.

Now, looking back after in‑person residency interviews (funded largely by credit card points), he sees virtual interviews as one of the true silver linings of the pandemic – even as he worries that AI‑driven cheating could threaten that progress.

Finding the Balance With AI in Medicine

Ryland wonders how much doctors will need to personally know if AI can handle more of the information and pattern recognition. He’s thinking about safety, effectiveness, and where to draw the line between human knowledge and AI support.

He believes change is coming fast and that AI won’t replace surgeons, but will make them safer and more efficient. He shares an example from pathology, where AI can analyze individual tumor cells, see how they interact with nearby cells, and help identify which cancers are more aggressive and how best to treat them.

For him, that’s the exciting side of AI – tools that push diagnosis and treatment far beyond what humans alone could do.

The Moment Everything Became Real

After years of doubt and hard work, Ryland still didn’t know if he was “good enough” to get into medical school. He remembers being in the lab – pipetting, checking an incubator, maybe scribbling notes – when his first interview invite came in, likely from Jefferson in Philadelphia.

In that instant, all of the uncertainty turned into a rush of relief, pride, and excitement. It was the first real sign that everything he’d invested in this path might actually pay off. He was overjoyed and immediately called his family to share the news.

Rethinking Admissions: Beyond Scores and Rankings

When asked how he’d change premed and medical school admissions, Ryland focuses on two big ideas: predicting success better and valuing motivation more. 

In a “magic wand” world, he’d want a tool that could reliably predict who will do well academically in medical school – not just who scored highest on the MCAT. That would free committees to look past pure numbers and focus more on the person: their story, values, and genuine motivation for medicine.

He’s seen firsthand on the Brown admissions committee that there’s “a lot more to folks than test scores.” He believes many strong future physicians may be missed because their stats don’t look perfect on paper. 

If schools could identify applicants who will succeed academically even with lower scores, they could admit more people with unique stories and motivations who would truly enrich the field.

The Problem With Rankings, Transparency, and ‘Top 20’ Obsession

Medical schools already have the data to show which GPAs and MCAT scores are “good enough” to pass their curriculum – but they rarely share it. Instead, many schools chase better rankings in U.S. News & World Report, which rewards lower acceptance rates and higher average stats.

That incentivizes schools to favor 520s over 500s, even when both types of students could succeed. It also fuels the unhelpful student obsession with “top 20” schools, built on ranking systems designed to sell magazines and clicks, not to measure who becomes a compassionate, effective physician.

Ultimately, the students who truly want to be there – those with authentic, durable motivation – are the ones most likely to thrive in medicine and in life.

Final Words of Wisdom – “There’s No Such Thing as a ‘Science Person’”

Ryland’s core message to students is simple but powerful: you can do it. He remembers thinking he “wasn’t a science person” after struggling in early biology classes, and he wants listeners to know that this label is a myth – there’s no fixed “science person” or “math person.”

What matters is motivation, time, and persistence. If you truly want to become a physician (or pharmacist, or anything else), you can get there by putting in consistent effort, seeking help, and taking things one step at a time. He shares advice inspired by his dad: you can do anything you put your mind to, regardless of your background, your parents’ jobs, or how long it takes you.

Struggling doesn’t mean you’re incapable; it usually means you need more time, better strategies, or support like tutoring. And if your path is longer – extra semesters, gap years, retakes – that’s okay. Your timeline is yours, not a race against anyone else.

Links:

Meded Media

Blueprint MCAT