does anyone know if the next committee meeting is still the last monday of the month, or if its sooner given interviews are over and to give people an opportunity to attend (virtual) second look?
2019-2020 Loyola
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They meet every 2nd/4th Monday of the month, but unsure what their meeting schedule is like now with everything being shut down.
coffeeluvr
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Can any current students talk about what they like and don’t like about the school, curriculum, if it is p/f or if you can get honors, and if living in the city would be a difficult commute. I really like this school and think I’m leaning towards Loyola rn and any additional info would be helpful 
thanks in advance!
thanks in advance!HolyGuac2019
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When is Loyola gonna send out the Rs for those of us who haven’t received IIs?
@coffeeluvr Keep in mind this is just my view (M1)- but here it goes.
PROS:
- Loyola leaves you alone, for the most part. Not that many mandatory things (after the first semester, that is). This is incredibly important to me, as if you have other obligations (long-distance s/o, etc) you can fit that into your schedule a lot better than most medical students can.
- They do genuinely care about their students. Admin may sometimes act like hardasses, but they are not. They will be flexible when you need help.
- Upperclassmen mentorship. M2s and M3s will literally drag you thru some classes if you need help.
- M1 year is slowly ramped up. They don't throw you into the curriculum too hard right from the bat, which allows for you to adapt to the speed of med school a bit, especially if you took a few gap years like I did. Maybe curriculum will be changing (don't even know the details about this as it doesn't affect me lol) but I would assume Loyola will maintain the slow progression to the volume of material.
- phenomenal facilities. Our gym is incredible.
...I know this does not seem like many "pros" but trust me, holy **** it saves so much stress. I spend most of my days at home studying. You can study the way you want and the way that works for you. Don't like class lectures or feel like you don't understand wtf your professor is saying? Screw it and start using board review material and you'll do well-enough (it's a P/F preclinical curriculum lol) to pass the in-house exams. In the end, you can tailor your learning to the way that works for you. This is why I love that I chose to go to Loyola.
CONS:
- the few mandatory things that you have to go to will probably piss you off. they seem pointless. but it's ok lol just fight through it.
- tuition is not cheap. this was not really a deciding factor for me bc all the schools I got accepted to were equally as expensive. but keep this in mind.
- Don't think it's a con- I just think anywhere you go, you will find people who will try to bring you up and people you will try to tear you down. So far, I've found most people in my class perfectly fine and pleasant people. But when people tell you about Loyola's "friendliness" for the most part they are right. But in the end, you are going to be spending most of your day studying (probably alone). I just wouldn't really take this too much into consideration when making your decision.
- Location. It's about 30-40 minutes from downtown via Green/Blue line trains. I really wish it was closer, but for M1 year you'll have more than enough time to go party/roam around the city. I know a few of my classmates that commute from downtown. I can't really say much on that topic. Personally I would rather take the short commute and extra sleep, so I live in Forest/Oak Park area (~3-4 miles from Stritch)
OVERALL: I would recommend Stritch. So far, no regrets. Wish I was closer to family, but in the end, I'm almost 1/4th of the way done and it really does fly. I don't feel like I'm in hell like some other med students at other med schools say they are. M2 year is supposed to ramp up, but pretty sure this happens throughout the country as everyone preps for Step 1.
PROS:
- Loyola leaves you alone, for the most part. Not that many mandatory things (after the first semester, that is). This is incredibly important to me, as if you have other obligations (long-distance s/o, etc) you can fit that into your schedule a lot better than most medical students can.
- They do genuinely care about their students. Admin may sometimes act like hardasses, but they are not. They will be flexible when you need help.
- Upperclassmen mentorship. M2s and M3s will literally drag you thru some classes if you need help.
- M1 year is slowly ramped up. They don't throw you into the curriculum too hard right from the bat, which allows for you to adapt to the speed of med school a bit, especially if you took a few gap years like I did. Maybe curriculum will be changing (don't even know the details about this as it doesn't affect me lol) but I would assume Loyola will maintain the slow progression to the volume of material.
- phenomenal facilities. Our gym is incredible.
...I know this does not seem like many "pros" but trust me, holy **** it saves so much stress. I spend most of my days at home studying. You can study the way you want and the way that works for you. Don't like class lectures or feel like you don't understand wtf your professor is saying? Screw it and start using board review material and you'll do well-enough (it's a P/F preclinical curriculum lol) to pass the in-house exams. In the end, you can tailor your learning to the way that works for you. This is why I love that I chose to go to Loyola.
CONS:
- the few mandatory things that you have to go to will probably piss you off. they seem pointless. but it's ok lol just fight through it.
- tuition is not cheap. this was not really a deciding factor for me bc all the schools I got accepted to were equally as expensive. but keep this in mind.
- Don't think it's a con- I just think anywhere you go, you will find people who will try to bring you up and people you will try to tear you down. So far, I've found most people in my class perfectly fine and pleasant people. But when people tell you about Loyola's "friendliness" for the most part they are right. But in the end, you are going to be spending most of your day studying (probably alone). I just wouldn't really take this too much into consideration when making your decision.
- Location. It's about 30-40 minutes from downtown via Green/Blue line trains. I really wish it was closer, but for M1 year you'll have more than enough time to go party/roam around the city. I know a few of my classmates that commute from downtown. I can't really say much on that topic. Personally I would rather take the short commute and extra sleep, so I live in Forest/Oak Park area (~3-4 miles from Stritch)
OVERALL: I would recommend Stritch. So far, no regrets. Wish I was closer to family, but in the end, I'm almost 1/4th of the way done and it really does fly. I don't feel like I'm in hell like some other med students at other med schools say they are. M2 year is supposed to ramp up, but pretty sure this happens throughout the country as everyone preps for Step 1.
WaitlistQueen
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I'm wondering if COVID-19 will slow down adcom processes indefinitely? I interviewed at Loyola 2/27 and am climbing the walls waiting for an email or phone call.
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I interviewed over a month before you and I’m REALLY climbing the walls
D
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I interviewed a month before you and I’ve stopped worrying about it. Haha.
coffeeluvr
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@MKO Thank you so much for that detailed response! Really helpful! Additionally,
1. Do you have any info on foundational classes, from talking to current M1s at other schools these foundational classes in the 1st semester tend to be the harder classes and where curriculum could be improved. How was your experience?
2. Also are Loyola's exams NBME based or professor written or a mixture of both? If it is professor written do you feel that it correlates to Step material well?
3. (This q is directed at other M3/M4s): How do you feel that loyola prepares you during clinical years? Do you feel like you have the mentorship to pursue most specialties if not all?
4. Can someone talk about the Match list for Loyola? I've emailed admissions but they won't give me a list of programs like other schools do. Is it generally strong?
5. If you have a car, is living in the city feasible?
Thanks in advance!! I really appreciate current students giving such detailed answers. Really unfortunate that we won't have second look to ask these questions but glad to see that the community at Loyola is so strong and people are stepping up to help us newbies out Good luck to everyone waiting to hear back post interview and on the waiting list! Stay strong (I just got off the CC list last week if that gives anyone hope!)
1. Do you have any info on foundational classes, from talking to current M1s at other schools these foundational classes in the 1st semester tend to be the harder classes and where curriculum could be improved. How was your experience?
2. Also are Loyola's exams NBME based or professor written or a mixture of both? If it is professor written do you feel that it correlates to Step material well?
3. (This q is directed at other M3/M4s): How do you feel that loyola prepares you during clinical years? Do you feel like you have the mentorship to pursue most specialties if not all?
4. Can someone talk about the Match list for Loyola? I've emailed admissions but they won't give me a list of programs like other schools do. Is it generally strong?
5. If you have a car, is living in the city feasible?
Thanks in advance!! I really appreciate current students giving such detailed answers. Really unfortunate that we won't have second look to ask these questions but glad to see that the community at Loyola is so strong and people are stepping up to help us newbies out
Good luck to everyone waiting to hear back post interview and on the waiting list! Stay strong (I just got off the CC list last week if that gives anyone hope!)
genie_o_glossus
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M1 hereCan any current students talk about what they like and don’t like about the school, curriculum, if it is p/f or if you can get honors, and if living in the city would be a difficult commute. I really like this school and think I’m leaning towards Loyola rn and any additional info would be helpful
To answer your questions: Right now, curriculum is traditional. I believe it may change, but have not yet been told what that may entail. M1 year is MCBG (molecular cell bio and genetics), anatomy, PCM (patient centered medicine), FHB (function of the human body aka physio), behavioral development (aka psych), and host defense (aka immunology). All courses are P/F with 70% being a pass. Honors gets introduced during 3rd year, but M1 and M2 year are pass fail.
Some of my friends live in the city. On a "normal" day, their commute is 30 minutes driving. On high traffic days or snowy days, they can be stuck in traffic for up to an hour. You can live in the city if you like, and there are plenty who make it work. The decision is totally up to you!
PROS
-Clinical education: If you ask PD's about Loyola medical students and residents, many will say that our clinical education is outstanding. Loyola is known for training excellent clinicians. We do SO much medical interviewing practice with standardized patients, and we begin this training really early. We also shadow M3s and are assigned a physician preceptor, where we get ample amount of practice with this too. Every year, they add on more skills. This year, we have done medical interviewing and physical exam OSCEs. Next year, they will build on this and teach us more pathophysiological skillsets, etc. When I shadow my M3, I am so amazed at how well they are able to interact with their patients and help the healthcare team.
-Programs: There are so many ways to cater your learning. You can get a master's degree in bioethics in 4 years alongside your medical education, you can take medical spanish/polish, community/global health, STAR research program, etc. They even let you do a STAR equivalence program where you can continue research that you did in undergrad/gap years and get research honors distinction on your dean's letter too. This has been so helpful for me since I had some unfinished projects I wanted to get published over the summer back home. Loyola also lets you jump in right away - as an M1, I already presented a research poster from my gap years at St. Albert's Research Day.
-Support: There is SO much student support from our administrators, ministry, ACE (academic counseling), admissions, and our professors. An example of this has been their response to COVID-19. They immediately made the decision to cancel in-person classes and small groups and go virtual through the end of the semester. On top of that, they decided to take some pressure off of us by breaking up some of our exams into small quizzes we can take each week, so that we can stay on top of material but also be able to take care of our families in case someone is ill. I have friends at other medical schools who are still required to attend preceptorships/shadowing without PPE in the hospital and if they do not do this, they will need to repeat their entire M1 year. I have friends who are still attending in-person small groups who are worried about getting exposed to COVID-19. Loyola's response has been really supportive.
-Student community: There is a Stritch Drive that has resources that students have made from previous years. There are study guides based on class lectures, anki decks, powerpoint slides that tutors have created with high-yield content, etc. that are absolutely invaluable resources. They save me so much time and help me focus on high-yield topics. And they just share their resources because they want to help us.
-Patagonias obvi
-Anatomy: This may be a pro for some and a con for others. Cadavers are prosected, meaning they are already dissected for you. Before I started medical school, I was bummed about this because I wanted the "full anatomy experience." Was I wrong!!! We spent 40 minutes in anatomy lab each day, giving us the rest of the day to study for our anatomy quizzes and exams and allowing us to perform really well. My other M1 friends spent 4-5 hours dissecting each day (most of that time is spent cutting skin and fat and a small amount of time is spent studying the actual structures) and would need to come home afterward to study, taking up so much time. At Loyola, your cadavers are prosected, but there are some cadavers that are not. You are still assigned an area of the body that you and your group get to do a dissection on, so you get to learn how to dissect. And the anatomy lab is open 24/7 for students to come dissect on their own if they are interested. Also our anatomy professors are HILARIOUS and so much fun!
CONS
-Mandatory stuff (*med student eye rolls across the globe*): Wellness lectures (4-5 times for the entire year), peer professionalism sessions (~4 times for the entire year), small groups (everyday for the first 8 weeks of school for MCBG, then once a week for second semester). The small groups at the beginning of the year are ways that you can meet people and make friends, and they also do this intentionally to make sure you are doing okay before letting you off on your own. Unfortunately, there's mandatory stuff at every school - some people hate it, some like it and need it more than others.
-Library is small. They are working on making even more study spaces.
-Parking situation: For M1s, we park in the gravel lot. This is ~5 minute walk to campus. The con is having to park outside when it's snowing and also potentially getting a flat tire in that lot. You are allowed to park in a parking garage if you come to school before 8am, so some people do that. But I like to sleep in so I am punished by snow shoveling
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2020 match list: You are welcome
medstudentneedshelp
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Loooking real good this year
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This might be a dumb question but what makes a match list good or bad?
medstudentneedshelp
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I think that varies to what each person is looking for. For me, i look mainly at which residency programs (as in the locations of the residencies as opposed to the specialities themselves) the students are matching at! I also like to see if they have a good amount of people matching into specialities I’m interested in but idk how much that can really tell me.
happyfeet26
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Will late interviewers hear back tomorrow?
WaitlistQueen
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Maybe, but I don't think anyone but the adcom team knows for sure!
shinedalgarno1001
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Anyone who interviewed the end of Feb still has the status "Thank you for scheduling your admissions interview"? Interviewed Feb 25 and wondering if people are in the same boat...
shakabrahh
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I interviewed the week before and also have this status...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
WaitlistQueen
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I interviewed on 2/27 and have "Your interview has been completed. We thank you for visiting us and for your interest in our program." I don't know why there would be a difference?
From what I remember doesn't yours status stay as "thank you for scheduling your interview" until your interviewers turn in their reviews, and then it switches to "your interview is completed" After they submit it? Not totally sure.
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Anyone hear back today?
I just got a phone call and got in
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You got the call 20 min ago? Congrats!
Around 5pm CST
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Yes congrats!! join the facebook group
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Yes congrats!! join the facebook group
do you know how many acceptances have been given out based on the fb group? Thanks!
shinedalgarno1001
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Congrats!!!! Do you mind sharing when you interviewed?
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Not a good metric. At this point in the cycle its almost definitely more than half. Because at this point moving forward its the Jan/Feb + CCers and then wait list.
Interviewed Feb 27
Haven’t been on Facebook in ages. Debating whether or not to reactive it just for this lolYes congrats!! join the facebook group
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Well if you want a room mate
happyfeet26
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Did anyone else hear today?
paddleswaddles2
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Has anyone not heard since their interview in late January?
Are you on continued consideration or have you just not heard anything?
paddleswaddles2
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I just haven't heard anything lol
doctor_coffee
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How long does it take to be verified/added onto the facebook group?
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its really fast.
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Can someone link the fb group? Didn't realize that was a thing haha
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Log into Facebook
Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.
www.facebook.com
And everyone if you are a guy PLEASE post ur info on the room mate for its like 21 girls and 4 guys hahaha
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Thanks friend. Will do.Log into Facebook
Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.
And everyone if you are a guy PLEASE post ur info on the room mate for its like 21 girls and 4 guys hahaha
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I spoke to them two weeks ago. They said they were planning on early April, but could be delayed by covid. So, I would assume it’s probably slowly down a little.
mustbecomedoctor
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Yup, I also set mine up. How does ur package look? Mine isn’t that impressive
greatjoyousday
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Yes I did as well! I was PUMPED to see a “SSOM Scholar Award” scholarship!! Does anyone know why these are awarded?
Mine is mostly loans with a 10k SSOM Scholar Award as well. I have no idea how they are awarded
D
deleted1039112
Hey guys what is "Allowance for Grad PLUS-SOM" cuz it is not under loan category. Is it cash money?
greatjoyousday
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Unfortunately Grad PLUS is just the Grad PLUS loan. You have to get approved to take one out, so the number they give you there is how much you’ve been approved to borrow through that particular loan.
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Anyone get a "SSM-Sygiel Medical Loan " and know what that means?
