Medical school admissions
Alexander Sanjurjo — Columbia MD/MBA student and founder of ADS MedPrep

About ·

Hi, I'm Alexander Sanjurjo.

Fourth-year MD/MBA student at Columbia Vagelos. I started ADS MedPrep to give pre-med students the kind of guidance I wish I'd had when I was applying.

Background

Medical school
Columbia Vagelos College of Physicians & Surgeons
MD/MBA candidate, 2027
Undergraduate
University of Miami, 2022
B.S., Neuroscience
Intended specialty
Oncology
Based in
New York, NY
In person in the NYC area or virtually on Zoom

My story

As the first in my family to apply to and attend medical school, I knew next to nothing about the application process when I started. I learned what I could from several mentors at my school, my undergrad pre-med office, Reddit, and SDN threads. It was difficult to know who to trust as I often received conflicting information about best practices and did not have anyone that had specifically accomplished what I was trying to achieve: get admitted to a top medical school. I had no idea how competitive my application was. Ultimately, it was one of my mentors that pushed me to apply to top schools, and I ended up receiving acceptances (and a few scholarships) from several top medical schools, including Columbia, Johns Hopkins, Yale, Vanderbilt, and Cornell.

Although my MCAT and GPA were competitive, it was not until midway through the cycle that I realized what had separated me. Interviewers consistently hinted at how my personal statement, application, secondary essays, and interview answers all came together into a single memorable theme. As an aspiring oncologist, my story was one that combined the difficulties of participating in research for the treatment of glioblastoma, one of the most devastating cancer diagnoses, and the passion I had for serving the very families affected by cancer within my own community.

I started ADS MedPrep to pass on my learnings and give students the kind of help I wish I'd had when I was navigating this process on my own. Rather than a large consulting company run by professionals charging $15,000 a cycle, I am someone who has been through the process recently and will work with you to get the specific help you need at different points on your path to medical school.

Research & awards

Medical School Research Publications

  1. Sanjurjo, A. D., Pro, B., & Cherng, H. J. (2025). Highlights of American Society of Hematology 2024–lymphoma. The Oncologist, 30(6), oyaf166. doi:10.1093/oncolo/oyaf166
  2. Tolu, S. S., Gribbin, C., Chen, Z., Seshadri, M. R., Orlando, E., Grenet, J., Toor, R., Sanjurjo, A., Cherng, H. J., Sawas, A., Phillips, A., Shore, T., Martin, P., Leonard, J. P., Inghirami, G., van Besien, K., Pro, B., Amengual, J. E., & Ruan, J. (2025). Outcomes of relapsed/refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma in the modern era. Leukemia & Lymphoma, 1–11. doi:10.1080/10428194.2025.2540437
  3. Orlando, E. H., Gould, P., Cuzzo, B., Ford, M., Chen, Y., Sanjurjo, A., Jain, S., May, B., … Pro, B., Cherng, H. J., & Amengual, J. E. (2025). Posttransplant rituximab exposure and risk of PTLD in solid organ transplant recipients with EBV DNAemia. Blood Neoplasia, 2(4), 100160. doi:10.1016/j.bneo.2025.100160
  4. Gu, K., Kim, D. K., Kleidermacher, L. E., Berhe, A. D., Sanjurjo, A. D., Leone, R. M., … Devlin, M. J. (2024). Operations of a Student-Run Asylum Clinic: Frameworks, Challenges, and Recommendations. Journal of Human Rights Practice, 16(3), 981–994. doi:10.1093/jhuman/huae015

Undergraduate Research Publications

  1. Di, L., Shah, A., Mahavadi, A., Eichberg, D., Reddy, R., Sanjurjo, A., Morell, A., Lu, V., … Ivan, M. (2022). Radical supramaximal resection for newly diagnosed left-sided eloquent glioblastoma. Journal of Neurosurgery, 138(1), 62–69. doi:10.3171/2022.3.JNS212399
  2. Di, L., Wang, C., Shah, A., Eichberg, D., Semonche, A., Sanjurjo, A., Luther, E., … Ivan, M. (2021). A Cohort Study on Prognostic Factors for Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy Success in Newly Diagnosed Glioblastoma. Neurosurgery, 89(3), 496–503. doi:10.1093/neuros/nyab193
  3. Shah, A., Mahavadi, A., Di, L., Sanjurjo, A., Eichberg, D., Borowy, V., … Komotar, R. (2020). Survival benefit of lobectomy for glioblastoma: moving towards radical supramaximal resection. Journal of Neuro-Oncology, 148, 1–8. doi:10.1007/s11060-020-03541-5
  4. Di, L., Heath, R., Shah, A., Sanjurjo, A., Eichberg, D., Luther, E., … Ivan, M. (2020). Resection versus biopsy in the treatment of multifocal glioblastoma: a weighted survival analysis. Journal of Neuro-Oncology, 148. doi:10.1007/s11060-020-03508-6

Awards

  • American Society of Clinical Oncology 2026 Clinical Oncology & Research Experience Grant recipient
  • American Society of Hematology 2025 Abstract Achievement Award
  • American Society of Hematology 2024 HONORS Award
  • American Society of Clinical Oncology 2024 Annual Meeting Research Award
  • 2023 NIH T35 Grant recipient

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