2018-2019 Harvard Medical School

[stine97]

Should I write about how my close relationships with the members of the community I grew up in translated into my compassion to the patients that I served in the hospital?

I feel like this is not within the parameters of the things they listed they want to hear about. I'm prolly in a similar position to you in that those things they listed don't apply to me, but I don't know if coming up with a creative answer is what they want. Sucks to not be the traditional definition of diverse, doesn't it! Any other opinions?

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[zimzamzoop]

I feel like this is not within the parameters of the things they listed they want to hear about. I'm prolly in a similar position to you in that those things they listed don't apply to me, but I don't know if coming up with a creative answer is what they want. Sucks to not be the traditional definition of diverse, doesn't it! Any other opinions?

I'm in the same boat as you guys. To me, they seem to be only looking for "traditional" diversity as you said, not so much diversity of thought. I'm fairly sure I'm going to be forced to leave this blank lol

 

[Lazy Surgeon]

I'm in the same boat as you guys. To me, they seem to be only looking for "traditional" diversity as you said, not so much diversity of thought. I'm fairly sure I'm going to be forced to leave this blank lol

the question is really ambiguous. It offers to talk about any aspect of personal identity that is unique. And all people are unique in some sense. But then it says that not everyone needs to answer it as you have to be from a traditional nontraditional minority which puzzles me

 

[BarryO43]

Just wondering, how strict are they about the "you need a LOR from all your PIs" rule? Is anybody applying without letters from all their PIs?

 

[reddyice]

Just wondering, how strict are they about the "you need a LOR from all your PIs" rule? Is anybody applying without letters from all their PIs?

I mean I probably wasn't getting in anyway but I'm not, hopefully a committee letter supersedes some of these requirements

 

[zimzamzoop]

the question is really ambiguous. It offers to talk about any aspect of personal identity that is unique. And all people are unique in some sense. But then it says that not everyone needs to answer it as you have to be from a traditional nontraditional minority which puzzles me

The use of the phrase "aspect of your personal background or identity", inclusion of the sentence "Many applicants will not need to answer this question", and the list of examples they give made it really seem only focused on identity based/personal background diversity (aka not diversity rooted in unique traits, experiences, thoughts, etc.) Based on past threads I browsed, this was what other people interpreted it as too. I would say if you feel you could write a strong essay that conveys a unique part of your identity and background, go for it!

I didn't think my diversity essay or background was compelling enough so I went ahead and submitted. Its not like I'm even getting an II anyway so whatevaaa

 

[Dr_Yankee]

Question! I submitted my secondary yesterday 7/19. Never got a completion email but its been less than a day so I'm not freaking out. There's a green checkmark next the letters of rec on the home page but when I click on document status it says "missing reference" next to my committee letter. Is anyone else seeing this?

 

[tanbrucewayne]

Question! I submitted my secondary yesterday 7/19. Never got a completion email but its been less than a day so I'm not freaking out. There's a green checkmark next the letters of rec on the home page but when I click on document status it says "missing reference" next to my committee letter. Is anyone else seeing this?

+1, submitted 7/16 but no need to freak out

 

[medappnervousomg]

The use of the phrase "aspect of your personal background or identity", inclusion of the sentence "Many applicants will not need to answer this question", and the list of examples they give made it really seem only focused on identity based/personal background diversity (aka not diversity rooted in unique traits, experiences, thoughts, etc.) Based on past threads I browsed, this was what other people interpreted it as too. I would say if you feel you could write a strong essay that conveys a unique part of your identity and background, go for it!

I didn't think my diversity essay or background was compelling enough so I went ahead and submitted. Its not like I'm even getting an II anyway so whatevaaa

I'm debating whether to answer this question as well.... I think my diversity essay is strong but it is based on my experience living in another country...

 

[testaccount123]

Same here

+3

 

[beproudofyourself]

For the activities since graduation essay, is anyone actually hitting the 4000 character count? I graduated in May so I have some stuff to talk about.... but if I stretched it out for 4000 characters it certainly wouldn't be "brief." I'm thinking the 4000 was designed for non-traditional applicants who may have years of activities to discuss. I feel like 1000-1500 characters would be plenty for me to describe my gap year job.... any thoughts?

 

[Hi_I'mPaul]

For the activities since graduation essay, is anyone actually hitting the 4000 character count? I graduated in May so I have some stuff to talk about.... but if I stretched it out for 4000 characters it certainly wouldn't be "brief." I'm thinking the 4000 was designed for non-traditional applicants who may have years of activities to discuss. I feel like 1000-1500 characters would be plenty for me to describe my gap year job.... any thoughts?

I took the opportunity to tell them what I did the last year and my plans for this upcoming year. Took about 2500-3000 characters still. Doesn't matter tho, I'm mentally prepared for that Harvard reject lololololololol

 

[testaccount123]

For the activities since graduation essay, is anyone actually hitting the 4000 character count? I graduated in May so I have some stuff to talk about.... but if I stretched it out for 4000 characters it certainly wouldn't be "brief." I'm thinking the 4000 was designed for non-traditional applicants who may have years of activities to discuss. I feel like 1000-1500 characters would be plenty for me to describe my gap year job.... any thoughts?

I wrote just under 2000 characters. Some people have worked 3 jobs in three different industries since graduation and will need the space, but for those of us taking one or two gap years, it's probably not necessary. They do use the word "briefly" so I take that to mean say what you need to say and don't make it any longer

 

[Lucca]

anyone else having trouble accessing the portal? Trying to copy paste my essays but I get a server error . Did when I tried this morning too

 

[sherlock_obsessed_m&m]

I'm debating whether to answer this question as well.... I think my diversity essay is strong but it is based on my experience living in another country...

Same here! I don't know whether it's worth using or if the point I make is too "typical"

 

[testaccount123]

If a parent completed their residency and fellowship at Harvard Medical School and affiliated children's hospital, would they be considered an HSM Alumni?

This is an interesting question, but I think the answer is no because that's a distinct program that you apply to separately. It's affiliated with HMS no doubt, but I think they're looking for alumni of the actual medical school here. But it does not hurt to call and ask if you're not sure!

 

[neurodata]

Are there any questions on the secondary aimed at individuals who are re-applying this year?

 

[Twinkle786]

Are there any questions on the secondary aimed at individuals who are re-applying this year?

Yes, there is a question asking how the reapplicants have improved/

 

[sarahishappy123]

Question! I submitted my secondary yesterday 7/19. Never got a completion email but its been less than a day so I'm not freaking out. There's a green checkmark next the letters of rec on the home page but when I click on document status it says "missing reference" next to my committee letter. Is anyone else seeing this?

+4

 

[Asparagus2446]

Anyone still waiting on a secondary?

 

[risexPanda]

Do you guys think it will hurt if I use almost 4000 characters for the summarizing activities since graduating?

 

[Hi_I'mPaul]

Do you guys think it will hurt if I use almost 4000 characters for the summarizing activities since graduating?

lmao, I want to hear your logic as to why using their character limit would hurt you. Of course, if you're adding fluff and b.s. to hit the limit, then it would hurt. But if you have a lot to talk about that has substance, then I don't understand why you asked the question hahaha. Good luck, sorry for the slight roast, but I feel like this is a wayyy too neurotic question

 

[risexPanda]

lmao, I want to hear your logic as to why using their character limit would hurt you. Of course, if you're adding fluff and b.s. to hit the limit, then it would hurt. But if you have a lot to talk about that has substance, then I don't understand why you asked the question hahaha. Good luck, sorry for the slight roast, but I feel like this is a wayyy too neurotic question

Chill bruh
it says briefly in the question that's why I am asking. And 4000 chars is not very brief. That's my logic.

If you have already graduated, briefly (4000 characters max) summarize your activities since graduation.

 

[Hi_I'mPaul]

Chill bruh
it says briefly in the question that's why I am asking. And 4000 chars is not very brief. That's my logic.

If you have already graduated, briefly (4000 characters max) summarize your activities since graduation.

And that is why I said to not add fluff!!!!!!!! and if you aren't doing that and still are at 4K characters then it's fine! lmao. TL;DR = you're fine with 4K characters. Don't overthink these minute details. ADCOMS aren't like "this kids essay was great, but we did say brief and they wrote 3900 characters."

 

[nostradamus2019]

in your opinion, how optional is the "optional essay" from what you felt?

Did you get a reply to this?

 

[boneitis]

Did you get a reply to this?

If it says optional, it’s optional. They aren’t trying to trick you and you’re not at a disadvantage by not answering it.

 

[DoctahGal]

How many days did it take for you guys to receive the secondary after designating HMS on AMCAS? LM of 83, designated 5 days ago, still haven't received any word...

 

[Dr_Yankee]

How many days did it take for you guys to receive the secondary after designating HMS on AMCAS? LM of 83, designated 5 days ago, still haven't received any word...

HMS was one of my last secondaries to arrive. Took about 1.5 weeks for me to get it.

 

[Potatoes&Avocados]

HMS was my last one to arrive as well!

 

[surfandturf1]

I have a question for anyone that is knowledgable about the HST program.

I took only one year of calculus and 1 year of physics for life science majors. Does anyone know if the calculus based physics and exposure to upper-level math is a hard requirement?

 

[curkholderia]

Did y'all get an email saying complete lol?

 

[art2018]

Did y'all get an email saying complete lol?

I got a "secondary application received" email

 

[looptheloop]

Are people trying to submit within 2 weeks? I know Harvard technically isn’t rolling?

Admissions is non-rolling, but that doesn't mean interview spots don't go on a rolling basis...
Harvard's secondary is one of the easiest/quickest IMO so I would try to just get it in and cross it off your list

 

[Pharaoh95]

Just donated $100 to Harvard

 

[violetwisdom]

Looks like one HMS II has been recorded on the 2018-19 II Tracker, for those who are following along! Congrats to those with IIs!

 

[medschoolzombie]

Looks like one HMS II has been recorded on the 2018-19 II Tracker, for those who are following along! Congrats to those with IIs!

I feel like this happened last year too and wasn’t accurate since this schools supposedly doesn’t hand out II until later down the line

 

[dodolol21]

Looks like one HMS II has been recorded on the 2018-19 II Tracker, for those who are following along! Congrats to those with IIs!

lol last year bunch of people trolling

 

[Lazy Surgeon]

lol last year bunch of people trolling

Yeah, I saw an II sent to a student with 490/2.4. That is, likely, trolling.

 

[pepstc]

Where's the tracker?

 

[tanbrucewayne]

Where's the tracker?

it's on r/premed on the sidebar

 

[dodolol21]

Theres two reported now, might not be trolling lol

 

[reddyice]

I don't think they send until September though according to past years and MSAR

 

[dodolol21]

I don't think they send until September though according to past years and MSAR

Yeah but a bunch of schools have been sending IIs earlier than MSAR would indicate like Northwestern, some Texas schools, and a couple others. On the other hand, some schools like Michigan and Yale seemed to have started a week late

 

[mdtobe1896]

Welp, submitted my primary here without realizing they require a statistics course (which I didn’t take take). Never really had a shot but a still bit disappointing

 

[medschoolzombie]

Welp, submitted my primary here without realizing they require a statistics course (which I didn’t take take). Never really had a shot but a still bit disappointing

Wait really! Aw crap. Where does it say this?

 

[mdtobe1896]

Wait really! Aw crap. Where does it say this?

I saw it on the website under requirements or prerequisites or something

 

[tanbrucewayne]

Wait really! Aw crap. Where does it say this?

"All applicants must complete a one-year mathematics sequence that includes calculus and statistics. One semester of statistics is required. Biostatistics is preferred.

Computational skills are an integral component of contemporary scientific literacy. Familiarity with calculus will prepare students for the quantitative reasoning demands of the contemporary medical curriculum and certain medical specialties, provide them with analytic perspective, and help them appreciate the uncertainties in evaluating biological systems. Adequate grounding in statistics is essential for understanding the literature of science and medicine. Students should focus their mathematics preparation on developing skills that are relevant to biology and medicine. Students have flexibility in meeting these requirements.

Examples: A semester course in calculus that covers derivatives and integration and a semester course in statistics; a calculus-based physics course and another science course that includes a firm grounding in biostatistics; or preferably, a unified two-semester course that covers important, biologically relevant concepts in calculus and statistics.

Advanced placement calculus credits may satisfy the calculus component of this requirement (Calculus AB and/or Calculus BC). A course in statistics will not satisfy the calculus component of this requirement."

Prerequisite Courses

Not sure how flexible they are in this, i.e. would research cover statistics competency

 

[dodolol21]

I saw it on the website under requirements or prerequisites or something

If you get admitted you can always take it before matriculation

 

[medschoolzombie]

If you get admitted you can always take it before matriculation

True lol. No point in worrying about it when the chance is so low

 

[oil_rig]

According to the secondary invite email:

The Medical School does NOT have rolling admissions; all applications submitted by the October 22nd deadline will receive full consideration. However, interview day scheduling becomes less flexible as the season progresses, so I encourage you to submit before the deadline rush, especially if you have scheduling restrictions.

So does this mean it's totally okay to submit like 3 weeks after receiving it (which would be around late August)?

Am really backed up on secondaries atm and would be a great relief if I could put this one on the backburner for now...