2006 Non-Trad Applicants' Progress Thread

[titoincali]

My crappy day has been redeemed by a UCSF interview invite! I think I almost had a heart attack when I got the email

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[blee]

Congrats tito!

In other news....now I'm really in disbelief. Georgetown sent me a thin envelope today with an acceptance in it! That's every one of my interview schools now.

 

[QofQuimica]

My crappy day has been redeemed by a UCSF interview invite! I think I almost had a heart attack when I got the email

Wow, congrats to you both!

 

[fiddler]

that's so awesome.

congrats guys. now you just have to figure out where you want to go.

fiddler

 

[unfrozencaveman]

Congrats tito!

In other news....now I'm really in disbelief. Georgetown sent me a thin envelope today with an acceptance in it! That's every one of my interview schools now.

Jeeze. I just forgot I interviewed there and was waiting for a decision until I read this. They take forever!!!!

 

[MoosePilot]

Congrats tito!

In other news....now I'm really in disbelief. Georgetown sent me a thin envelope today with an acceptance in it! That's every one of my interview schools now.

Awesome!

 

[MollyMalone]

My crappy day has been redeemed by a UCSF interview invite! I think I almost had a heart attack when I got the email

Whooo!!! Congratulations! I'm going to be there the week before you... let me know if there's anything you want me to share.

And blee, that's just amazing and fabulous and inspirational!! Are you leaning towards anyplace in particular or are you waiting on finaid awards to decide??

 

[blee]

Whooo!!! Congratulations! I'm going to be there the week before you... let me know if there's anything you want me to share.

And blee, that's just amazing and fabulous and inspirational!! Are you leaning towards anyplace in particular or are you waiting on finaid awards to decide??

I can't believe my success. When I started to fill out my AMCAS, to say that I had doubts about my chances would be a huge understatement.

I think I'm leaning towards VCU at the moment, but both GU and WFU have some very good things going for them. For that matter, so do Drexel and EVMS. I honestly don't know where I would go if I had to pick one tonight. I plan to narrow down the list significantly by the end of the year.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

I can't believe my success. When I started to fill out my AMCAS, to say that I had doubts about my chances would be a huge understatement.

I think I'm leaning towards VCU at the moment, but both GU and WFU have some very good things going for them. For that matter, so do Drexel and EVMS. I honestly don't know where I would go if I had to pick one tonight. I plan to narrow down the list significantly by the end of the year.

It's really fantastic!!! Congrats! And send those interview secrets around...

 

[lanzarlaluna]

Got an interview invite today for UT-San Antonio on 11/28. I've got four interviews so far. Surely at least one will let me in.

 

[QofQuimica]

Got an interview invite today for UT-San Antonio on 11/28. I've got four interviews so far. Surely at least one will let me in.

congrats and good luck. Ojala que lanze la luna.

 

[anxious_ashez]

Hello All,

I am so glad to have found this forum!! A little late in the application process (I wish I had found it sooner) but not too late. Kind of like my secondaries.... just finished (ok i'm still working on a couple but have completed applications to 6 schools).

Awesome to hear that people are IN!!! Congratulations!!

Has anyone got waitlisted for interviews (and got off like CMS)?

 

[QofQuimica]

Has anyone got waitlisted for interviews (and got off)?

Welcome and glad that you found SDN. Speaking for myself, no, I have not ever been put on interview hold. I've either been rejected outright or invited to interview.

 

[blee]

Welcome. I was placed on a pre-interview hold at GWU, but I sentt them a withdrawal letter today.

 

[QofQuimica]

Welcome. I was placed on a pre-interview hold at GWU, but I sentt them a withdrawal letter today.

blee, when I saw you had posted, I figured you were going to tell us about school #6.

 

[fiddler]

Welcome and glad that you found SDN. Speaking for myself, no, I have not ever been put on interview hold. I've either been rejected outright or invited to interview.

I know how you feel, Q. they either love you or hate you.

fiddler

 

[anxious_ashez]

Thanx for the welcomes guys

 

[blee]

blee, when I saw you had posted, I figured you were going to tell us about school #6.

They'll have to interview me first.

I will post an update anyway. I sent out a bunch of withdrawal letters yesterday, leaving only three schools I'm waiting to hear from. I withdrew from Drexel, too, so maybe one of our Drexel hopefuls will receive good news soon.

 

[QofQuimica]

They'll have to interview me first.

I will post an update anyway. I sent out a bunch of withdrawal letters yesterday, leaving only three schools I'm waiting to hear from. I withdrew from Drexel, too, so maybe one of our Drexel hopefuls will receive good news soon.

Trivialities and technicalities.

I am also getting ready to start withdrawing from some more schools soon.

fiddler, that has definitely been my experience, other than a few schools which have completely just fallen off the radar altogether.

 

[SailCrazy]

I am also getting ready to start withdrawing from some more schools soon.

Great! More additions to the Official 2006 Wall of Drain

 

[titoincali]

Just got the acceptance call from UCSD which makes 4 for 4!

I also have 2 weeks to relax before the interviews start again which deserves 2 thumbs up!

 

[QofQuimica]

Just got the acceptance call from UCSD which makes 4 for 4!

I also have 2 weeks to relax before the interviews start again which deserves 2 thumbs up!

All right, tito! Boy, you are going to have some tough decisions to make this spring, girl.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

Ooh. My first taste of rejection today... Dartmouth. It was well worth terrorizing the office manager, who on most days, gets to stuff scary looking thin envelopes into my mailbox without me noticing. Today I intercepted her nervously holding the very obvious rejection... She ran off with her hands over her ears going "I dont want to know... I dont want to know!!!".

 

[.edu-MD]

[Expired]

 

[MoosePilot]

Ooh. My first taste of rejection today... Dartmouth. It was well worth terrorizing the office manager, who on most days, gets to stuff scary looking thin envelopes into my mailbox without me noticing. Today I intercepted her nervously holding the very obvious rejection... She ran off with her hands over her ears going "I dont want to know... I dont want to know!!!".

Awwww....

 

[blee]

Woohoo, I just withdrew from 7 schools!
Thank you Wayne for making it all possible!

Go Big Red!

 

[anxious_ashez]

Anyone know if its reallly too late.......... I started submitting my secondaries mid sept alll the way to last week (thats about 6 schools). I have more to go, but I'm wondering if I have a chance still. Any advice?

 

[MoosePilot]

Anyone know if its reallly too late.......... I started submitting my secondaries mid sept alll the way to last week (thats about 6 schools). I have more to go, but I'm wondering if I have a chance still. Any advice?

You still have a chance if you turn in your materials by their deadlines.

 

[QofQuimica]

Ooh. My first taste of rejection today... Dartmouth. It was well worth terrorizing the office manager, who on most days, gets to stuff scary looking thin envelopes into my mailbox without me noticing. Today I intercepted her nervously holding the very obvious rejection... She ran off with her hands over her ears going "I dont want to know... I dont want to know!!!".

I don't know why, but this really cracked me up. I think it's b/c I can picture the scene vividly in my head. Anyway, caveman, I'm sorry that it was a thin letter, but it's definitely their loss.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

I don't know why, but this really cracked me up. I think it's b/c I can picture the scene vividly in my head. Anyway, caveman, I'm sorry that it was a thin letter, but it's definitely their loss.

It was pretty funny. I had to console her on my rejection- I've obviously set this poor woman up for disaster. She has to walk down this long hall way to deliver my mail, executioner style. And then apparently she thinks I'm going to go nuts and burn the office down or something that warrants running at a good clip away from me. Obviously in my few short months here, my true colors as a maniacal tyrant have shown.

 

[QofQuimica]

It was pretty funny. I had to console her on my rejection- I've obviously set this poor woman up for disaster. She has to walk down this long hall way to deliver my mail, executioner style. And then apparently she thinks I'm going to go nuts and burn the office down or something that warrants running at a good clip away from me. Obviously in my few short months here, my true colors as a maniacal tyrant have shown.

Poor lady. My mailman doesn't like me much either. He doesn't run away, though. He just grunts at me when I try to find out whether he might have one or two more letters for me somewhere in that truck of his.

 

[DrHuang]

Ooh. My first taste of rejection today... Dartmouth. It was well worth terrorizing the office manager, who on most days, gets to stuff scary looking thin envelopes into my mailbox without me noticing. Today I intercepted her nervously holding the very obvious rejection... She ran off with her hands over her ears going "I dont want to know... I dont want to know!!!".

HAHAHA, sorry for the rejection but they way you told it is too funny!

 

[.edu-MD]

.

 

[QofQuimica]

Anyone know if its reallly too late.......... I started submitting my secondaries mid sept alll the way to last week (thats about 6 schools). I have more to go, but I'm wondering if I have a chance still. Any advice?

Get them done as soon as you can, aa. But like Moose said, they will still consider you if you get in before the deadline.

This morning I received an acceptance from U Miami.

 

[MoosePilot]

Get them done as soon as you can, aa. But like Moose said, they will still consider you if you get in before the deadline.

This morning I received an acceptance from U Miami.

Congrats

Have you sent your reply yet?

 

[QofQuimica]

Congrats

Have you sent your reply yet?

Jeezus, the email just came today. I haven't received the actual packet yet.

 

[MoosePilot]

Jeezus, the email just came today. I haven't received the actual packet yet.

Just thought you might want to get back to them promptly. They took a little longer to accept you, they must be prestigious!

Sometimes I think schools do that. If they want someone, they make them work for admission, knowing that pre-meds equate struggling with worth. If a school doesn't take you right away, they must be good.

 

[QofQuimica]

Just thought you might want to get back to them promptly. They took a little longer to accept you, they must be prestigious!

Sometimes I think schools do that. If they want someone, they make them work for admission, knowing that pre-meds equate struggling with worth. If a school doesn't take you right away, they must be good.

lol, well, the admissions director there told me that they had hurricane issues. Hurricane Wilma really did hit Miami the week that the committee was supposed to vote on me.

 

[.edu-MD]

.

 

[anxious_ashez]

You all may already know this, but my pre-med advisor recommended writing a letter to the schools that put you on hold. If you are interested in the school this letter is a chance to inform that you are happy that they are still considering you.

 

[QofQuimica]

Interesting thought. I considered it too but decided schools don't have time to play mind games like that too much. I figured I'm lucky enough to have schools that obviously liked what I had to offer on their first review of my app. If I want to go anywhere, it'd be those places since I'd probably fit best there (going on the assumption the adcoms know the types of students they want and who would fit in at their school). I don't really want to be somewhere where they had placed my file on hold on the initial review because chances are I wouldn't be as good a fit. So that's how I'm making my withdrawal decisions.

This is basically how I feel as well. So if Moose is right, that strategy is going to backfire big time.

 

[AZCOMstudentdoc]

"At a recent meeting of the Committee on Admissions your application was carefully reviewed. I regret to inform you that the Committee has decided that we are not able to offer you an interview and therefore cannot offer you a place in the class entering in the Fall of 2006."

...and then there were three. I am waiting on possible interviews at Brown and Harvard (insane longshots...I know), and an admission decision at the University of Arizona. I am accepted at AZCOM.

I only applied to 8 schools total...which is probably a big part of the problem...but, with the obvious exception of my single acceptance, it seems like I am getting rejection after rejection. It's really hard not to get down on myself. Of course, GW softened the blow by telling me that there were over 11,000 applicants to their program up until this point in the process, and they grant interviews to "approximately" 1000.

Clinical hands-on volunteer experience, training, and an ER preceptorship; back-to-school (BS 1990) with a rigorous MS program in Biochemistry and a smokin' 3.8 graduate GPA (re-took all pre-reqs within last 2 years with a straight 4.0); a very interesting back-story (although this could work against me too, I am sure, with some adcomm members)...the whole nine yards...except a darned mediocre MCAT (27P). I think the MCAT could be my application's achilles heel.

When it all comes down to it, I need to attend the U of A for the sake of my family (in-state, state school tuition; no out-of-state relocation required). So I guess I shouldn't be so concerned.

One thing I have going for me is that 1 out of 4 interviewees are offered a spot in the class at the U of A...so the odds are not too bad.

I have heard mixed reviews on the importance of the MCAT scores. What is the real deal? Is the 27 really hindering me that much?

 

[QofQuimica]

I have heard mixed reviews on the importance of the MCAT scores. What is the real deal? Is the 27 really hindering me that much?

I'm sorry to hear that, mid30. But I'll keep my fingers crossed for U. of AZ for you. When are you supposed to hear from them? BTW, the accepted to interviewed ratio is actually higher than 1:4, b/c some acceptees will be accepted at other schools and will choose to attend them instead of U of AZ. I don't know about U of AZ, but some schools have to accept as many as twice their class size in order to fill their class.

In answer to your question, I think a lot of it is that some of the schools where you applied are not very good fits for you. If the school does not believe that you fit in with their class and mission, they will reject you no matter how good your MCAT is. I can tell you that the schools that were interested in me invited and accepted me very quickly; U Mich in particular sent out emails at 12 AM on Oct 15 to the acceptees. I can also tell you that the schools that were lukewarm toward me or downright not interested also wasted little time in letting me know that. Of course, there are also the schools that just let you sit around and rot with no word for months....I've got a few of those, too.

 

[jesswise]

Well shucks, gang, it's been so long since I posted all the people who might remember me are MS-2s. At least.

Here in The People's Republic of Canada, we don't even get our applications until September, interviews in Jan/Feb, and acceptances March-Aug. Yes, you can get your offer from the waitlist the SECOND DAY OF CLASSES. Be prepared.

But after a year off from the application cycle, I'm back on the roller-coaster, re-reading admissions essays that are already in my file, wondering if this year is FINALLY going to be the one... my magic 8-ball says "ask me later"

But in my prickling anxiety, the one source of comfort is... SDN. No one else at my little university campus (99 students, I kid you not) has any med school ambitions, so I have no one to commiserate with in person. So here I am posting my 2006 status: awaiting interview, again. The good news: I'm guaranteed an interview, they interview all qualified applicants from the local geographical pool. The bad news: that means nothing, since it's a foregone conclusion with no predictive value.

In case all of this is uninteresting to those of you down south from here, I'll add one tidbit sure to tantalize you: Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia received 555 applications TOTAL last year for 90 spots. How ya like me now?

Jess

 

[ShyRem]

mid30, I feel your pain. I haven't heard boo from my state school (or three others), but I was fortunate to get an interview at VCU very early. I'm hoping to be offered a place there, but I got into UNECOM should that not pan out. My state school would be perfect, but it's getting almost as hard to get into CU as into the California schools these days. I too have a ton of medical experience, I'm in my 30s (ok, late 30s), my recent GPA is a 3.5 (but previous crap brought it down to a 3.23), and my MCAT is a 29. So we're pretty evenly matched, I think, and getting about the same results. Except it seems you got an interview at your state school, and mine is patently ignoring me. I think they are using my app for their daily dose of humor.

Hang in there, mid30. I'm sure it will all work out for us and we'll end up exactly where we should be. We should take comfort in the fact we have somewhere to go no matter if we get to make a choice or not.

 

[AZCOMstudentdoc]

So we're pretty evenly matched, I think, and getting about the same results. Except it seems you got an interview at your state school, and mine is patently ignoring me. I think they are using my app for their daily dose of humor.

I agree, we are. My getting an interview at my state school is mitigated by the fact that they interview ALL in-state applicants...regardless of their standing as a potential medical school graduate and future physician. This is because they only accept AZ residents, with the exception of applicants from certain WICHE states.

Hang in there, mid30. I'm sure it will all work out for us and we'll end up exactly where we should be. We should take comfort in the fact we have somewhere to go no matter if we get to make a choice or not.

That's what I keep telling myself. Once the secondary is in and interviews are complete, we have done all we can do, to the best of our abilities, so far...now it's pretty much out of our hands...out of our control. Ironic...don't most pre-meds like to be in control?

It IS a huge relief to know that we have at least one option secured.

Does CU have a policy to interview all in-state applicants? Or are residents considered among all other applicants?

 

[ShyRem]

CU interviews about half of in-state applicants. Funny, I didn't get an interview from them last year either. Gee.... and to think I used to take them patients when I worked as a paramedic! I think they oughta get all the drunks from now on. Yeah. That sounds good.....

 

[AZCOMstudentdoc]

CU interviews about half of in-state applicants. Funny, I didn't get an interview from them last year either. Gee.... and to think I used to take them patients when I worked as a paramedic! I think they oughta get all the drunks from now on. Yeah. That sounds good.....

With their out-of-state tuition, they probably want to keep a good amount of that revenue stream flowing I think it's the highest in the country.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

F@#$@%!@#%!@###$$#@%^%@beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!!!!!!

I just called Penn to see what was going on with my status page and why my recs weren't being listed. Apparently, my advisor put Penn State in the VE's. So, now I'm dead before I could start at my alma mater, source of my publications, recs....

 

[.edu-MD]

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