2016-2017 Duke University Application Thread

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Secondary prompts:

Describe the community in which you were nurtured or spent the majority of your early development with respect to its demographics. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions that you hope to make to your community as a medical student and to your career in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the described community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician/leader? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Describe an experience when you were confronted with an individual or group whose values differ from yours? How did you resolve the conflict/ challenge? Describe at least one outcome that the experience created.

Describe a situation where you failed. What did you learn from the experience? Describe at least one functional impact of the experience.

All above are 600 word limit

Additional prompts for those pursuing the Primary Care Leadership Track:
Describe a successful leader. What type of leadership skills do you want to cultivate in your training experience and how do you envision doing that? 250 words

Have you engaged with community in the past? How do you hope to understand and impact communities in the future? 250 words


Good luck to everyone applying!

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Incoming MS-1 for the Class of 2020 (still feels surreal to be saying that) - feel free to ask any questions, I definitely would not have made it here without the advice of those who went through the process, so I would love to help out in any way possible!

I attached the tentative schedule for each year below for anyone interested!
 

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Incoming MS-1 for the Class of 2020 (still feels surreal to be saying that) - feel free to ask any questions, I definitely would not have made it here without the advice of those who went through the process, so I would love to help out in any way possible!

I attached the tentative schedule for each year below for anyone interested!

Do you know if there's any leeway with the new psychology & sociology prereqs?
 
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Do you know if there's any leeway with the new psychology & sociology prereqs?

From what I heard, DukeMed does not really have requisites anymore, stating that the diversity of undergrad studies is constantly increasing. If you're still in school, it wouldn't hurt to pick up a course in something you're interested in that relates to those fields, but by my understanding its not a consideration to admissions
 
From what I heard, DukeMed does not really have requisites anymore, stating that the diversity of undergrad studies is constantly increasing. If you're still in school, it wouldn't hurt to pick up a course in something you're interested in that relates to those fields, but by my understanding its not a consideration to admissions
I've heard Duke doesn't like to see CC prereqs. Do you have any input on that?
 
Really hoping the secondary isn't like last years.
 
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Does Duke change its secondary prompts each year??
I don't know but someone that applied last year told me it took them a week of hard work to complete the secondary. If you find out if it's worth prewriting some essays deffo let me know / post in this thread
 
They may change the questions, but the nature of the application will likely stay the same. Duke prides itself on using its essays to really get to know an applicant!
 
Can anyone comment on what a competitive MCAT score range is for this school? Just a ballpark would be awesome. Also, is submitting in July/August considered late for Duke?
 
Can anyone comment on what a competitive MCAT score range is for this school? Just a ballpark would be awesome. Also, is submitting in July/August considered late for Duke?
From previous years, MSAR reported the median matriculant's MCAT around 35 or 36, so probably around a 516 on the new MCAT. Generally speaking however, if you have above a 512 or 514, which is the 88th and 92nd percentile respectively, that would be considered competitive for any top 10 school. Anything above that would have a marginal advantage. At that point, it's your other things (GPA, personal statement and essays, extra curriculars, and then interviews) that really set you apart. Check out the MSAR for more data for all schools.
 
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From previous years, MSAR reported the median matriculant's MCAT around 35 or 36, so probably around a 516 on the new MCAT. Generally speaking however, if you have above a 512 or 514, which is the 88th and 92nd percentile respectively, that would be considered competitive for any top 10 school. Anything above that would have a marginal advantage. At that point, it's your other things (GPA, personal statement and essays, extra curriculars, and then interviews) that really set you apart. Check out the MSAR for more data for all schools.

Thank you!! That helps a lot!
 
do you guys know if your amcas primary has to be verified before duke sends you a secondary or do their send a secondary to everyone who has submitted amcas?
 
I'm prewriting from the prompts last year, and one of the optional essays is " What is the toughest feedback that you ever received? How did you handle it and what did you learn from it?". Would it be okay to write about tough feedback I received in high school? I know for the "challenge" essay it's recommended you find something more recent, but I feel like tough feedback is less common than challenges. Thanks!
 
Prompts:
Describe the community in which you were nurtured or spent the majority of your early development with respect to its demographics. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions that you hope to make to your community as a medical student and to your career in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the described community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician/leader? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Describe an experience when you were confronted with an individual or group whose values differ from yours? How did you resolve the conflict/ challenge? Describe at least one outcome that the experience created.

Describe a situation where you failed. What did you learn from the experience? Describe at least one functional impact of the experience.

All 600 words
 
Anybody else shocked to see that email say that their mean MCAT is 513?


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I was surprised. I'm guessing that this information was added when the new MCAT was relatively new and no one new exactly how to correlate the new scores to the old ones. A 518 would be more realistic since that correlates to the 36 average. A 513 is closer to the average for some mid-tier schools.
 
So much writing...


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I feel your pain. Just when you thought prewriting secondaries would get you ahead, here comes the Duke secondary. I feel like if I am able to complete this, I can conquer the world, or something.
 
I'm tempted to say that one of my core values is brevity, but then I couldn't be as verbose as I normally am


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Prompts:
Describe the community in which you were nurtured or spent the majority of your early development with respect to its demographics. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions that you hope to make to your community as a medical student and to your career in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the described community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician/leader? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Describe an experience when you were confronted with an individual or group whose values differ from yours? How did you resolve the conflict/ challenge? Describe at least one outcome that the experience created.

Describe a situation where you failed. What did you learn from the experience? Describe at least one functional impact of the experience.

All 600 words
Thanks ! Are they all required though, is there any optional essay at all ?
 
Thanks ! Are they all required though, is there any optional essay at all ?

Prompts:
Describe the community in which you were nurtured or spent the majority of your early development with respect to its demographics. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions that you hope to make to your community as a medical student and to your career in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the described community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician/leader? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Describe an experience when you were confronted with an individual or group whose values differ from yours? How did you resolve the conflict/ challenge? Describe at least one outcome that the experience created.

Describe a situation where you failed. What did you learn from the experience? Describe at least one functional impact of the experience.

All 600 words

Additional prompts for those pursuing the Primary Care Leadership Track:
Describe a successful leader. What type of leadership skills do you want to cultivate in your training experience and how do you envision doing that? 250 words
Have you engaged with community in the past? How do you hope to understand and impact communities in the future? 250 words

@Ismet @WedgeDawg
 
Prompts:
Describe the community in which you were nurtured or spent the majority of your early development with respect to its demographics. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions that you hope to make to your community as a medical student and to your career in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the described community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician/leader? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Describe an experience when you were confronted with an individual or group whose values differ from yours? How did you resolve the conflict/ challenge? Describe at least one outcome that the experience created.

Describe a situation where you failed. What did you learn from the experience? Describe at least one functional impact of the experience.

All 600 words

Thank you for sharing! 600 words is actually not that much...
 
Thanks ! Are they all required though, is there any optional essay at all ?

All the ones above are required. There is another one that asks for additional information that you can share, but this one is optional.
 
This secondary is an absolute monster. My goodness.


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This may have been asked before, but I cannot find it in older threads. Does Duke send secondaries to everyone or do they screen beforehand?
 
I think it is sent out to everyone
 
Yes they send it to everyone
WOW! That is a lot to read, considering how many applications they receive...plus...considering how many people apply with lower stats and try their luck anyways. I guess they just toss secondaries with low stats and keep the sweet $$? LOL
 
Am I the only one that gets really stressed out that the button to save each section says "submit"? :nailbiting:
 
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Hello guys, where can i find a copy of my AMCAS Fee Waiver confirmation?
 
Submitted and application complete! I feel like I just barely scraped through a couple of those secondary essays. This school is a long shot for me by far, so I hope that completing this encyclopedia volume of a secondary is worth it in the end.
Maybe I can use the completion of the Duke secondary as my example of a struggle/obstacle overcome in my other secondary applications. Guaranteed acceptance, right?
 
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Can someone tell me what an average week is like at Duke? Specifically, how much time is spent in lecture or other scheduled school required activities? I am wondering how much time is available in the curriculum to study/do ECs as I do better studying the material outside of class than I do in, so I would be against an 8-5 type of schedule
 
Can someone tell me what an average week is like at Duke? Specifically, how much time is spent in lecture or other scheduled school required activities? I am wondering how much time is available in the curriculum to study/do ECs as I do better studying the material outside of class than I do in, so I would be against an 8-5 type of schedule
I am the exact same way - we just got our MS1 schedules and our days vary, some days its 2:30, other days its closer t0 6:30
 
Eh, I guess the secondary is pretty tough, but honestly I like the questions. They seem very well-thought-out and meaningful. More than I can say for a lot of other schools' prompts.
 
I agree. These were the most thought provoking questions I've had to answer on a secondary. This, of course meant that I had to put a lot more work into it than other secondaries, but I think it gives people more of an opportunity to stand out as individuals based on their experiences.
 
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