2017-2018 Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons

Getting into Med School is Hard? Not with BeMo.
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fishyscent said:
This is kind of neurotic but Im going to ask it anyways. I uploaded my resume (I know, its not a CV) as a word doc do you think it matters that its not a PDF? I can't remember if that section asked for it in PDF or not but I know for all additional supplemental items they are supposed to be in PDF form. The application doesnt make it visible once you click submitted, so I have no idea if it went through or not. Thanks for the thoughts.
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It doesn't matter whether it's PDF or word. You are good.
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For the question regarding working for compensation, should I include a monthly research stipend?
 
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stompy890 said:
Also on the work for compensation question - do you think we're obligated to include all jobs we had during college? I worked as an RA for ~2 months before getting fired halfway through the semester. I'd prefer not to list it at all because I think it would look weird to list that I worked the job for less than a full semester. I have plenty of other jobs from college to talk about. Also the RA job wasn't a normal hourly wage job - I got paid a stipend so it didn't even feel like employment.

Also, I'm a non-trad and this happened 6 years ago so I can't imagine it would be a big deal to leave it out... But I'm paranoid/want to be able to sleep at night and I feel uncomfortable having even the smallest lie on my application.
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Tough call because it doesn't sound like it will leave a gap in your history. But I'd feel weird as well. Can you call anonymously and ask if everything needs to be included?
 
stompy890 said:
Also on the work for compensation question - do you think we're obligated to include all jobs we had during college? I worked as an RA for ~2 months before getting fired halfway through the semester. I'd prefer not to list it at all because I think it would look weird to list that I worked the job for less than a full semester. I have plenty of other jobs from college to talk about. Also the RA job wasn't a normal hourly wage job - I got paid a stipend so it didn't even feel like employment.

Also, I'm a non-trad and this happened 6 years ago so I can't imagine it would be a big deal to leave it out... But I'm paranoid/want to be able to sleep at night and I feel uncomfortable having even the smallest lie on my application.
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I'd say if you don't want to list it then don't. I'm including a job that I had for about 2 months and then another 4 month summer job.
 
For the EC question, did y'all list dates along with the name of your EC? I'm finding it hard to stay under 400 characters with dates
 
Brah of Science said:
For the EC question, did y'all list dates along with the name of your EC? I'm finding it hard to stay under 400 characters with dates
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I you have previously mentioned them on your amcas with some explanation it's better to just write down the names of the EC in bullets points no need for specific dates and details.
 
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For :is there anything else you would like us to know? Are people writing a why columbia essay or is that unnecessary?
 
snail12345 said:
For :is there anything else you would like us to know? Are people writing a why columbia essay or is that unnecessary?
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i'm an mstp applicant and used the space for publications and project descriptions since there wasn't other space for it. included why columbia in one of the phd-oriented prompts.
 
shadow522 said:
i'm an mstp applicant and used the space for publications and project descriptions since there wasn't other space for it. included why columbia in one of the phd-oriented prompts.
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Is MSTP different from the regular MD secondary or are they the same? I'm deciding whether to go for the MSTP there (I'm not a strong applicant) - having a hard time deciding. I need to apply tonight or tomorrow


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snail12345 said:
For :is there anything else you would like us to know? Are people writing a why columbia essay or is that unnecessary?
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I will probably write one. I go back and forth - on the one hand, you want to give them plenty of evidence that you like the school, you're a great fit for the school, and you would matriculate if they accepted you. On the other hand, it's just one more essay for Adcoms to read, right?
 
DBC03 said:
I will probably write one. I go back and forth - on the one hand, you want to give them plenty of evidence that you like the school, you're a great fit for the school, and you would matriculate if they accepted you. On the other hand, it's just one more essay for Adcoms to read, right?
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True, but if they don't want to bother they can skip it! I think I will write something very brief just explaining that it is one of my top choices and why.
 
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snail12345 said:
True, but if they don't want to bother they can skip it! I think I will write something very brief just explaining that it is one of my top choices and why.
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True! I am hesitant to give up any opportunity to not tell each school why I want to go there (I'm currently the only person who was really glad Mayo sent two essays)
 
If you leave the fields in the "Basic Information" section blank, does it continue to count the Basic Information section as incomplete?

**EDIT I went back and just put "N/A" in the boxes that didn't apply and it marked it as complete now. Idk if that's what other people did but it seems like an okay move**
 
DBC03 said:
I will probably write one. I go back and forth - on the one hand, you want to give them plenty of evidence that you like the school, you're a great fit for the school, and you would matriculate if they accepted you. On the other hand, it's just one more essay for Adcoms to read, right?
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i have a feeling that initial reviewers will not read the additional info essay when just trying to decide whether to give an II (compared to the rest of their stack of apps) if the rest of your application is sufficiently compelling. obviously if the rest of your app has not wowed them then they'd be inclined to take a look. and then of course the adcom member who presents your app to full committee will likely read everything in detail right before the committee meets for the purpose of convincing everyone else that you're worth the time.
 
DBC03 said:
Is MSTP different from the regular MD secondary or are they the same? I'm deciding whether to go for the MSTP there (I'm not a strong applicant) - having a hard time deciding. I need to apply tonight or tomorrow


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yes. the applications are different since the MSTP app gives an additional section with qs about phd goals, publications, honors, etc.
 
For the "What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them?," did anybody else only put down one challenge? I go to college in the city so I really have no clue what else I can write.
 
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Oddball1221 said:
For the "What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them?," did anybody else only put down one challenge? I go to college in the city so I really have no clue what else I can write.
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I put about 3 considering I'm from the burbs
 
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Oddball1221 said:
For the "What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them?," did anybody else only put down one challenge? I go to college in the city so I really have no clue what else I can write.
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I wrote about 2 challenges, 3-4 sentences each


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Anyone run into the problem of their "basic information" portion not being updating. Can't submit my secondary because my basic information section says its incomplete, when I've answered all the questions on it.
 
Boros said:
Anyone run into the problem of their "basic information" portion not being updating. Can't submit my secondary because my basic information section says its incomplete, when I've answered all the questions on it.
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Did you add your major and minor?
 
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JPmoleymole said:
Did you add your major and minor?
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That was it. Misinterpreted that question. Assumed it just was referring to the description of majors that was part of that question. Thanks!
 
@WedgeDawg or anyone else. so I want to include a diversity essay for the optional essay. I an am imam at a mosque and wrote a solid essay for diversity for michigan. do you guys think it would hurt me if I included it in the optional essay spot?
 
Did anyone include their cv? It feels really redundant to include in addition to the primary.
 
Longshot6 said:
Did anyone include their cv? It feels really redundant to include in addition to the primary.
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No. didn't include CV. AMCAS primary has all the information that is in my CV. Didn't want to have the same information in different orders/format.
 
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Longshot6 said:
Did anyone include their cv? It feels really redundant to include in addition to the primary.
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I haven't completed everything, but I plan to include my CV only because it highlights many projects I worked on that are not necessarily included in my application. I graduated 15 years ago, though, so there was a lot that I couldn't put in the application. I agree that it can be redundant for many students.
 
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Sorry if this is a dumb question, but would i be able to submit a resume instead of a CV? I'm not really sure what the difference is between the two..
 
lickerwhicker said:
Sorry if this is a dumb question, but would i be able to submit a resume instead of a CV? I'm not really sure what the difference is between the two..
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I think a CV is more academic and has related achievements while resumes focus more so on job history/skills


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"What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them?,"
Was this question supposed to have a medical connotation to it? Am I supposed to also talk about health problems that exist in urban environments that are typically not seen elsewhere?
 
Anonyme27516 said:
"What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them?,"
Was this question supposed to have a medical connotation to it? Am I supposed to also talk about health problems that exist in urban environments that are typically not seen elsewhere?
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just be honest and pick what would be challenging about living and work in a place like New York. you don't need to relate it to health. if your biggest challenge is adjusting to N.Y. bc you're from a rural town then by all means write that

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Hey y'all! Thinking way ahead but does anyone know about the MD/MS dual degree program?
 
Because it asks for collegiate ECs should we only include ones that took place at the college? I'm wondering if I should include a summer research experience at a different institution
 
hello311 said:
Because it asks for collegiate ECs should we only include ones that took place at the college? I'm wondering if I should include a summer research experience at a different institution
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I would!! Especially if you haven't expanded much on it (as part of your meaningful activities on AMCAS for example).
 
Guys... I'm complete here. I can't believe this is all happening. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!! :clap:
 
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Do you try to use every word? I know this is a good strategy for the personal statement and our activities, but what about these secondaries? We have 300 words to talk about "Did you work for compensation during college during the year or the summer?", but I think I did a good job in 90 words. What have y'all done?
 
MDinmythirties said:
Ha, 100 characters is all we get to describe our parents's work?! Glad I only have 2 parents...
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Dude, tell me about it. I was like "My parents go to work every morning. Thanks.":laugh:

About your other question, I used up a bunch of the space, but I did have like 4 different jobs throughout college. I included all of them + a very short description of them.
 
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MDinmythirties said:
Do you try to use every word? I know this is a good strategy for the personal statement and our activities, but what about these secondaries? We have 300 words to talk about "Did you work for compensation during college during the year or the summer?", but I think I did a good job in 90 words. What have y'all done?
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Why waste their time? I just put yes and detailed what it was and how many hours.
 
I did exactly the same as @7331poas and didn't even come close to filling the space.
 
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hello311 said:
Because it asks for collegiate ECs should we only include ones that took place at the college? I'm wondering if I should include a summer research experience at a different



Post made in error. Sorry
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Does Columbia send out its secondary in waves? Still haven't gotten mine and I've been verified since late June.
 
Incoming MS1 here. Happy to answer questions that I can help with


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sparksflyup said:
"If you took time off from your undergraduate studies, please briefly summarize your reasons for doing so."

Do you think this means during college, or after?
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I had the same question!
 
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