2010-2011 Case Western Reserve University Application Thread

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RoboChicken said:
To the current students:

I'm not a super experienced city driver, and I'm from CA so driving in snow scares me a bit. That being said, how easy is it to get the hang of driving in Cleveland?
Also, have you guys heard of anyone leasing a car rather than just purchasing a used one? I feel like it may be more expensive in the long run, but if anything happens to your car and you need to fix it, the leasing option lets you just get it fixed at the dealership....whereas fixing a used car may get to be pretty pricey. Any thoughts?
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IMO, Cleveland isn't that hard to navigate, actually I think it's quite easy. Yes they have rush hour and if you're going in the wrong direction at the wrong time, it will take you longer to get there. BUT when I think of the insanity of LA freeways, or Chicago for that matter, there is just no comparison.
I've never been a fan of leasing cars because I'm too cheap. I think you're better off doing reseach and selecting a quality used car. With leasing you have mileage restrictions and get hammered if you drive too many miles. If you buy a good quality used car, you can hang onto it for many years, drive it til the wheels fall off and save yourself a bunch of money. If I'm paying a bunch for repairs, then I didn't do a good job of analysis on selection. Today, there are a lot of decent quality makes to choose from, the only problem is that with $4+ gas, used cars that get good mileage are going at a premium. Hope this helps, good luck and enjoy Case!:luck:
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It never makes sense to lease a car. Find a lower mileage used car and have it inspected by a mechanic before you buy it.

I am also concerned/weirdly excited about driving in the second snowiest city in the US (behind only Denver). Can any current students speak to this? Are the roads plowed regularly? Are students living farther from campus ever unable to make it to the school due to the snow?
 
barcoderider said:
It never makes sense to lease a car. Find a lower mileage used car and have it inspected by a mechanic before you buy it.

I am also concerned/weirdly excited about driving in the second snowiest city in the US (behind only Denver). Can any current students speak to this? Are the roads plowed regularly? Are students living farther from campus ever unable to make it to the school due to the snow?
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The further east you go from downtown, the more snow they get due to lake effect snow coming from good ol Lake Erie. 20 miles east of downtown they can get a 12-18" of snow at a time while downtown may only see 3-4". So the further east you live, the more potential you have for significant snow events that may make travel impossible until the road crews get it under control. Current students can speak to whether they have snow days or not, but my guess is that if they do, it's very rare.

Driving in snow is different, but not bad. The problem where driving doesn't work is if it gets deep enough that the snow reaches the undercarriage of the car. Then it doesn't matter if you have the worlds best snow tires or not, you're not going anywhere. The thing that scares me in winter driving is ice. You can get pretty decent traction on snow, not so on ice. Stopping on ice is problematic as is steering. Best to avoid driving if the roads are icy. Black ice is the worst because you don't see it. It appears as though the road is clear, until you hit a patch of black ice and suddenly you're spinning in circles down the road. I don't say this to freak you out because it's rare, but it does happen and you need to be aware of it. If you hit a patch, just take your foot off the accelerator so you maintain some steering until you get off the ice. You can practice driving in the snow in a store parking lot after hours. You'll get the hang of it, no worries.
 
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Midfieldrulz said:
You can practice driving in the snow in a store parking lot after hours. You'll get the hang of it, no worries.
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You mean you can practice spinning cookies in school parking lots? ;)

Midfieldrulz has some great advice, and as someone who learned to drive in Minnesota, I can attest to the fact that you need to be worried about ice, not snow. If you're going to buy a car, get one with anti-lock brakes. All wheel drive is useful but not necessary; front wheel drive will do just fine. DO NOT get a rear-wheel drive car.

If you're going to have to drive in snow, my feeling is that you might as well do so in a city that gets a crap ton of snow every year--chances are they have the infrastructure to deal with it. The snowier a city is, the less likely it is that snow will significantly interrupt your daily activities. Roads will be cleared, stores and schools will remain open, and you will proceed about your business as if it were the most normal thing in the world to be standing next to a snow drift the size of a semi truck.
 
Myuu said:
Confirmed! Panera, Jimmy John's, and Chipotle.
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JIMMY JOHNS! My BRB lunches will be rescued frequently :D
vc7777 said:
Double rainbow in cleveland this morning!!!
OMG!
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Myuu said:
So intense!

rainbow2.jpg
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Pics of that were on so many students' facebooks that morning XD
rhesuspieces said:
I obviously don't have a med student's perspective on the issue, but as someone who has owned a 15" macbook for four years, I'm going to go with the 13" this time around. The bigger model was just a bit too big and unwieldly to carry around with me on a daily basis. The one plus is that the bigger screen is nice for watching movies, but you can easily hook your mac up to a tv and stream whatever. Go with the 13"!
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+1 on this one. I have a desktop with a 19" screen, and like having a small laptop. That said, I got the Dell, I wish it were the mac - it's smaller and more sleeeeeek. But I wasn't willing to get used to a new OS - I've already spent a zillion hours troubleshooting Bill Gates' crap and at least know my stuff, and our other comps are pcs. Summary: the 13" Macs are sweetness, but if it's going to be your only computer, get a large monitor for home use.
 
barcoderider said:
It never makes sense to lease a car. Find a lower mileage used car and have it inspected by a mechanic before you buy it.

I am also concerned/weirdly excited about driving in the second snowiest city in the US (behind only Denver). Can any current students speak to this? Are the roads plowed regularly? Are students living farther from campus ever unable to make it to the school due to the snow?
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My brother only leases. I asked him recently since we're considering it if my 12 year old car dies. That said, it's a Toyota Camry, so it probably won't be going anywhere soon.
1. A car is never an "asset" - they depreciate so quickly, and you pay 3-4 times more for a new car than you could get back by selling it after the 5 year repayment - which is a standard car loan.
2. If you don't have the $ to buy a car in cash, you're going to end up with higher monthly payments than you would by leasing it.
3. There are huge leasing deals out there right now. There was a $99/mo Toyota Carolla, don't know if it's still going on, but that's pretty good considering there's a manufacturer's warranty along with it. You have to pay a downpayment of like $2.5k, though, which is what offsets that monthly fee. Otherwise, it's like $200+/mo. But that's still better than the $300+ of a car loan pmt.
That would work well for people on limited income for the time being. , but who will eventually be able to buy a car.

4. You can buy at the end of the lease term.
Leasing is good if you're not 100% sure of the kind of car you want to buy, also, since you're not stuck with it for more than 3 years if you don't absolutely love it.

I'm not 100% convinced, but one of the things I struggle with about buying used cars is it's not easy to tell how well someone has taken care of a car. For example, if they ran 8k miles between getting their oil changed, or let the tank run almost dry every time, that wears on the car but not necessarily in a way that you can appreciate by inspection.

These are just some points to consider. I still am not sure which way I'd go if my car died. In my own case, I'd be tempted to lease a hybrid for a few years, waiting in the hopes that there will be more availability of lower-priced hybrids and/or places to charge an electric car. Hate paying $4 for gas, and would love to support the movement away from primarily-oil-fuel-based vehicles. But that's me :D
 
Thanks for all the advice about laptops everyone. I really wanted to get the mac and really wanted the 15" but I couldn't justify paying $1200 more than the dell. So I went with the Dell. I couldn't pass up the warranty on both the laptop and battery. I've had my share of problems over the years with computers and like having that peace of mind.
 
Midfieldrulz said:
The further east you go from downtown, the more snow they get due to lake effect snow coming from good ol Lake Erie. 20 miles east of downtown they can get a 12-18" of snow at a time while downtown may only see 3-4". So the further east you live, the more potential you have for significant snow events that may make travel impossible until the road crews get it under control. Current students can speak to whether they have snow days or not, but my guess is that if they do, it's very rare.

Driving in snow is different, but not bad. The problem where driving doesn't work is if it gets deep enough that the snow reaches the undercarriage of the car. Then it doesn't matter if you have the worlds best snow tires or not, you're not going anywhere. The thing that scares me in winter driving is ice. You can get pretty decent traction on snow, not so on ice. Stopping on ice is problematic as is steering. Best to avoid driving if the roads are icy. Black ice is the worst because you don't see it. It appears as though the road is clear, until you hit a patch of black ice and suddenly you're spinning in circles down the road. I don't say this to freak you out because it's rare, but it does happen and you need to be aware of it. If you hit a patch, just take your foot off the accelerator so you maintain some steering until you get off the ice. You can practice driving in the snow in a store parking lot after hours. You'll get the hang of it, no worries.
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I live 5 miles E and a little N of campus, down Mayfield. Other than our little side street that got neglected sometimes, there has never been a time (except mid-snowfall) where the roads weren't plowed and salted. Even mid snowfall, they were working hard. The roads kind of suck in terms of potholes etc, but that's a small price to pay for being cleared all winter. I slid a little once or twice, but you get used to stopping earlier and not trying to turn onto the streets between traffic assuming you can get normal acceleration. There was actually a snow day this year, for the first time in a zillion years so I hear. But it was an active massive snow dump all morning. I'm so glad my friends texted me to let me know! Some people showed up at school anyways, not having checked their emails. I think dntpanic was one of them? Or maybe she just walked there since she lives almost on campus :p
 
Hello!

I am super excited about coming to Case, and started looking for apartments.
I was looking into Lewis Manor......
Does anyone have any opinions about it? Pros/Cons?

Any info is appreciated!
 
Gee, I see SDN is getting ready to launch the 2011-2012 thread. Guess that makes us yesterday's news.....:(:laugh:. Oh well, onward and upward as they say. Time to start freaking out about other stuff! Like apartments, roommates, loans, debt, new friends, exploring, and lots of new and exciting adventures!!! Can't wait!!:)
 
Any current students (I'm looking at you Auriga haha) or waitlisters who happen to have spoken with admissions and know if they're going to make offers this week?
 
Acoustic said:
Any current students (I'm looking at you Auriga haha) or waitlisters who happen to have spoken with admissions and know if they're going to make offers this week?
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I am very curious about this as well.
 
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Only appropriate time I could see to use this one haha.
:luck::luck:
 
I got the call this morning!!! I will be joining you all in a month and a half!!
 
barcoderider said:
It never makes sense to lease a car.
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It makes a lot of sense to lease a car if you're not going to drive it very much. I live less than a mile from the primary hospital where I'm doing residency, and if I put even half the mileage allowance on my car over the next few years, that will be a lot. Leasing is also a good option for people who like to trade in their car every few years, because the biggest amount of vehicle depreciation happens in the first couple of years. But if you're the kind of person who drives a lot and keeps the car for ten years, then yeah, buying does make a lot more sense than leasing.

Myuu, are you going ice skating without me? Next thing you know, I will be hearing about you and vc7777 making weekly pho runs without iceman and me. :cry:
 
I got the call this morning, as well! So excited to be joining everyone! Hockeyjunkie, I'm an ice hockey player, as well. We should have a celebratory skate for getting in on the same day.
 
Yay for people getting off of the waitlist :D

I seriously think my CCLCM application was dropped behind someone's desk.
 
yankeebeckham said:
I got the call this morning, as well! So excited to be joining everyone! Hockeyjunkie, I'm an ice hockey player, as well. We should have a celebratory skate for getting in on the same day.
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We should definitely do a celebratory skate!!
 
CCLCMer said:
It makes a lot of sense to lease a car if you're not going to drive it very much. I live less than a mile from the primary hospital where I'm doing residency, and if I put even half the mileage allowance on my car over the next few years, that will be a lot. Leasing is also a good option for people who like to trade in their car every few years, because the biggest amount of vehicle depreciation happens in the first couple of years. But if you're the kind of person who drives a lot and keeps the car for ten years, then yeah, buying does make a lot more sense than leasing.
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No offense, but I fail to see your logic here. Considering that you make the same payment each month whether you drive the car to the absolute limit of what the lease allows or don't drive it at all, it would make the more sense if you're driving the car frequently.

It's true that leasing gives you the option to switch to a new car every 3 years (or however long the lease term is) but this is the only advantage, and you pay a lot for that privilege. Leasing almost always costs more than buying in the long run because you're paying for the depreciation.
 
yankeebeckham said:
I got the call this morning, as well! So excited to be joining everyone! Hockeyjunkie, I'm an ice hockey player, as well. We should have a celebratory skate for getting in on the same day.
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hockeyjunkie said:
We should definitely do a celebratory skate!!
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Maybe you guys can teach me to not-suck at hockey.:laugh::laugh::laugh:
 
^ So when are you going to throw us under the bus to go hang with the newbies? ;)
 
Midfieldrulz said:
^ So when are you going to throw us under the bus to go hang with the newbies? ;)
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Buses are such light highway fare. I'm sure I could find a nice freight train for you. :laugh:

I'm subscribed to both threads and will reply as needed. :)
 
Just withdrew from CCLCM--hardest decision I can remember. I hope one of you gets it!
 
barcoderider said:
No offense, but I fail to see your logic here. Considering that you make the same payment each month whether you drive the car to the absolute limit of what the lease allows or don't drive it at all, it would make the more sense if you're driving the car frequently.

It's true that leasing gives you the option to switch to a new car every 3 years (or however long the lease term is) but this is the only advantage, and you pay a lot for that privilege. Leasing almost always costs more than buying in the long run because you're paying for the depreciation.
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No offense taken. :)

I suppose I should have made clear that this frees up plenty of miles to take day trips, go visit friends, etc. I didn't mean that I wouldn't use the entire number of miles allotted to me, just that I wouldn't use them for my daily commute. But figuring out how to use up their extra miles isn't usually the problem that people have when they lease-it's much more common for people to go over their mileage, not under. That's a major way that the dealerships make money on leases.

The whole point of leasing is that you're not paying for the car in the long run. The car depreciates if you buy it just like it does if you lease it, but you're paying more up front for the car loan (and probably putting more money down at the signing as well). When I did the calculations, it seems like things even out after around five years or so, when you're done paying off the car loan but still having to make payments on a lease. So if you're going to keep the car longer than say, four years, you should probably think about buying, and a 5+ year lease is definitely not a good deal.

Xinlitik said:
Just withdrew from CCLCM--hardest decision I can remember. I hope one of you gets it!
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I think you made the right decision based on what you said in your other thread, and I hope you enjoy UCLA. Instead of feeling bad, look at it this way. The fact that you withdrew is going to let someone else whose top choice is CCLCM have the opportunity to go there. CCLCM doesn't overaccept, and now the school actually will accept another person to take your place. So you did a nice thing for someone else, and you made the right decision for yourself at the same time. Win-win all around. :)
 
CCLCMer said:
I think you made the right decision based on what you said in your other thread, and I hope you enjoy UCLA. Instead of feeling bad, look at it this way. The fact that you withdrew is going to let someone else whose top choice is CCLCM have the opportunity to go there. CCLCM doesn't overaccept, and now the school actually will accept another person to take your place. So you did a nice thing for someone else, and you made the right decision for yourself at the same time. Win-win all around. :)
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I think (hope) you're right. Thanks for the pep talk. :)
 
Myuu said:
Maybe you guys can teach me to not-suck at hockey.:laugh::laugh::laugh:
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I have been coaching kids how to play hockey for the last 2 years, I might be able to help you Myuu.

Myuu- you said you live in the triangle in a studio? How do you like it? I am thinking I might do that too.
 
Xinlitik said:
I think (hope) you're right. Thanks for the pep talk. :)
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Of course I'm right, and you have to trust me, because I'm a doctor. :p (vc7777 thought my always being right was annoying before, but now I'm going to be just insufferable. :smuggrin:)

No, but seriously, I agonized when I was deciding where to go to medical school too. I was so worried that I might make the wrong decision. In retrospect, I know now that it would not have mattered a whole lot in terms of how good my education was, how good my chances were for getting the residency I wanted (I got my first choice program), or how much I would have liked the city. I have already moved for residency, and there are some things I like better about this city and some things I miss about Cleveland, including my friends (even Myuu!). Financially I was like you, where there was some difference but not a huge six figure kind of a difference. It didn't seem like there was any clearly right decision.

At some point, when there aren't any good major reasons to choose one awesome school over another, you have to just go with your gut and stop thinking what if. You are going to have a great experience at UCLA, and you should go hang out in the UCLA thread with your future classmates so you can all be excited together. Also, if you're in LA now, I suggest that you go to the UCLA bookstore and buy yourself a UCLA med school t-shirt. Today I bought a new med school t-shirt here for myself so I can be in the starting residency spirit. :D
 
CCLCMer said:
Of course I'm right, and you have to trust me, because I'm a doctor. :p (vc7777 thought my always being right was annoying before, but now I'm going to be just insufferable. :smuggrin:)

No, but seriously, I agonized when I was deciding where to go to medical school too. I was so worried that I might make the wrong decision. In retrospect, I know now that it would not have mattered a whole lot in terms of how good my education was, how good my chances were for getting the residency I wanted (I got my first choice program), or how much I would have liked the city. I have already moved for residency, and there are some things I like better about this city and some things I miss about Cleveland, including my friends (even Myuu!). Financially I was like you, where there was some difference but not a huge six figure kind of a difference. It didn't seem like there was any clearly right decision.

At some point, when there aren't any good major reasons to choose one awesome school over another, you have to just go with your gut and stop thinking what if. You are going to have a great experience at UCLA, and you should go hang out in the UCLA thread with your future classmates so you can all be excited together. Also, if you're in LA now, I suggest that you go to the UCLA bookstore and buy yourself a UCLA med school t-shirt. Today I bought a new med school t-shirt here for myself so I can be in the starting residency spirit. :D
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Well said. I think my gut was telling me to keep close to my family, and I'll be happier for it. I'm really glad to hear how well the process has turned out for you. With all the negativity flying around these forums, it's nice to see people coming out on the other side truly happy. Congratulations :thumbup:

And a bruin shirt is coming soon ;)
 
CCLCMer said:
You can apply for both programs, or UP only, or CCLCM only. First, choose Case Western on AMCAS. Case is a non-screening school, so once you get the secondary, you will have the option of applying to UP (regular four year program), CCLCM (five year research MD program), and/or MSTP (MD/PhD program). You can choose as many of the programs as you want for a single secondary fee. If you choose CCLCM, you will have to write a couple of extra short essays, and the research essay is required for CCLCM, as vc7777 pointed out. Also, as he said, after that point, all of the decisions are separate. If you apply to both UP and CCLCM, it is possible for you to be invited to interview by both programs, or only by one of them. This is fairly common--several people in my class were rejected pre-interview by the UP but accepted by CCLCM.

If you're thinking about applying to CCLCM, you should have significant research experience (1+ years), similar to what you would need to apply to MD/PhD programs. Many students come in already having graduate degrees or take some time off in between college and med school to do research full time. But it's not necessary to take an extra year for research if you do significant research during college.
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Xinlitik said:
Well said. I think my gut was telling me to keep close to my family, and I'll be happier for it. I'm really glad to hear how well the process has turned out for you. With all the negativity flying around these forums, it's nice to see people coming out on the other side truly happy. Congratulations :thumbup:

And a bruin shirt is coming soon ;)
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Naturally, you're also going to have to learn the 8-clap.
 
Myuu, do we need a car to play hockey? I was going to try and bring my car over from Seattle, but that is a long drive. I am still trying to close my ties with people here and want to stay as long as possible, but if I have to drive over it kind of takes 4-5 days to do it- but for hockey I am willing to do that. However, if I don't need a car to play hockey- I think I will bring my car over next year or over a long break.
 
If you teach me how to skate backwards more than .5 mph and without falling over, I will drive you to hockey. I want to play, as well. I'm driving from LA, but Californians without cars can get the D.T.'s. You should be okay coming from Seattle.
 
yankeebeckham said:
If you teach me how to skate backwards more than .5 mph and without falling over, I will drive you to hockey. I want to play, as well. I'm driving from LA, but Californians without cars can get the D.T.'s. You should be okay coming from Seattle.
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That is a deal. I might still bring my car, although in Seattle I usually only used it for driving to the ice rink. Either way if I can play hockey I'm happy.
 
hockeyjunkie said:
That is a deal. I might still bring my car, although in Seattle I usually only used it for driving to the ice rink. Either way if I can play hockey I'm happy.
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The rink is about two miles away from school, so you'll need a car or some generous person with a car handy. I will PM you about the triangle later today!
 
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