Rosalind Franklin BMS 2016-2017

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Any recommendation for housing?
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Hey cptnjack I lived in a very nice house last year with other Rosalind franklin students. Its affordable, furnished, and near campus. If you would like me to provide you with the landlords contact info let me know!
 
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cptnjack said:
Any recommendation for housing?
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I just did single bedroom student housing because I've been so busy with other things this summer, and I just wanted to get it over with and not have to deal with finding roommates. But definitely look into other options because I know it's significantly cheaper. There's a Facebook group going with different offers.
 
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Ellerin said:
I just did single bedroom student housing because I've been so busy with other things this summer, and I just wanted to get it over with and not have to deal with finding roommates. But definitely look into other options because I know it's significantly cheaper. There's a Facebook group going with different offers.
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I didnt see too much on the BMS 2016-2017 facebook for housing, is there another page elsewhere?
 
Can anyone comment on when the last day of classes is going to be for the program? Trying to see the dates for leasing an apartment
 
Hi everyone,

Did anyone have stats similar to - cGPA: 2.85 (includes a couple of pre-reqs I repeated, both original + new grades), MCAT 510 - namely a cGPA under 3.0?
Everyone seems to have at least a 3.0 cGPA and it gives me the feeling that it is an unsaid cutoff.. am I screwed?
I have strong extracurriculars, lots of clinical experience, some research, strong LORs.

Thanks!
 
can anyone who's been rejected share their stats?
 
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sgh8 said:
Hi everyone,

Did anyone have stats similar to - cGPA: 2.85 (includes a couple of pre-reqs I repeated, both original + new grades), MCAT 510 - namely a cGPA under 3.0?
Everyone seems to have at least a 3.0 cGPA and it gives me the feeling that it is an unsaid cutoff.. am I screwed?
I have strong extracurriculars, lots of clinical experience, some research, strong LORs.

Thanks!
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I don't think there's a 3.0 cutoff, I've have seen people with 2.9 GPA's been accepted into the program. It helps if you have an upwards trend too.
 
first week of orientation over! how is everyone feeling??
 
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Can anyone in the program currently, or have matriculated into CMS, give me more information regarding this program?

I'm curious if it's true that 40-50% of students are guaranteed an interview? Is this considered an academic enhancement program?

Would really like to hear about this program and your experiences!
 
gibranmd2 said:
Can anyone in the program currently, or have matriculated into CMS, give me more information regarding this program?

I'm curious if it's true that 40-50% of students are guaranteed an interview? Is this considered an academic enhancement program?

Would really like to hear about this program and your experiences!
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Everyone in BMS who meets the prereqs and are passing their classes gets an interview. Typically 60-70% of those are accepted. Yes to academic enhancement, they tell us to forget about everything pre-BMS and just focus on our grades in the program. BMS takes 4 classes side by side in the same class as M1s, in addition to a few interprofessional healthcare courses and online classes in the concentration of your choosing. CMS curriculum is changing in the next few years, so there may be changes in the structure of BMS, not entirely clear how that will work because it won't affect my class. Today was the second day of classes, so far, I am very happy here.
 
BlastedHeath said:
Everyone in BMS who meets the prereqs and are passing their classes gets an interview. Typically 60-70% of those are accepted. Yes to academic enhancement, they tell us to forget about everything pre-BMS and just focus on our grades in the program. BMS takes 4 classes side by side in the same class as M1s, in addition to a few interprofessional healthcare courses and online classes in the concentration of your choosing. CMS curriculum is changing in the next few years, so there may be changes in the structure of BMS, not entirely clear how that will work because it won't affect my class. Today was the second day of classes, so far, I am very happy here.
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thank you!
do you mind sharing your stats entering the program? and when did you apply?
 
gibranmd2 said:
thank you!
do you mind sharing your stats entering the program? and when did you apply?
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I applied in early March, but wasn't complete until 4/5, was accepted 4/19. I applied without an MCAT, GRE 158/160/4.5, cGPA 3.08, sGPA 2.59. However after applying I was granted a retroactive withdrawal from a semester 7 years ago, bumping my GPA up quite a bit to cGPA 3.25, sGPA 3.09. Took the MCAT in June and received a 513.
 
say i apply and get accepted into the BMS program starting Fall 2017, am I able to start at CMS fall 2018? If invites for admissions are given in January or so, what does CMS use to evaluate if you're a good candidate? the first semester's scores?
 
gibranmd2 said:
say i apply and get accepted into the BMS program starting Fall 2017, am I able to start at CMS fall 2018? If invites for admissions are given in January or so, what does CMS use to evaluate if you're a good candidate? the first semester's scores?
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basically, im a current BMS student right now, they say they wont look at the past too much, your scores taht got you into BMS are good enough for CMS. If they arent and u got in, it seems like u have to do some extra academic enrichement work if im not mistaken, but they also want everyone to be involved. and then your grades from the first two quarters are basically what they use to decide if u get in
 
cptnjack said:
and then your grades from the first two quarters are basically what they use to decide if u get in
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Grades in your last quarter matter as well. They will at least look at your first Neurosciences exam before making decision on you. We had quite a few students in our class last year got their decisions put on hold or out right rejected after poor performances on the 1st Neuro exam.
 
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Any more people that can tell their stats, GPA and MCAT?
Were you accepted? Rejected?
 
wannabeadoc23 said:
Hi iRezaDH, what entails advanced standing in the program? And how many classes do we take in the BMS program that we also take as CMS M1? I have just begun applying to the program so will these changes be effective for the BMS 2017-2018 program also? Thanks!
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The application has opened up for BMS?
 
2016-2017 is the last year that the BMS cohort will have M1A standing i think
 
cptnjack said:
2016-2017 is the last year that the BMS cohort will have M1A standing i think
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what does M1A standing mean? and does this affect the "linkage" with CMS in anyway?

edit: nevermind. the answer to my first question is written on the first page.
 
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I hope the linkage rate is still solid even if the curriculum changes. I'm a bit worried about this.
 
nolifer93 said:
Can one of you guys elaborate? Do you have more information?
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I don't think the linkage rate will be changing. They've made it pretty clear that BMS will continue to be a priority for the school, but the new curriculum doesn't line up as well, which is the reasoning for getting rid of M1A status. I suspect that they also want to make it easier for M1A students going into board exams. With the way it is now going from BMS-->Step 1 is almost 3 years that they haven't dealt with some of these topics and a few of the M2s that I talked to expressed difficulty in having forgotten everything. Getting rid of M1A will make it so that all med students are on the same page. That is completely my conjecture though after talking to a very small number of other students.
 
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Superrambo said:
I think I am on the lower-tier of applicants. I want to attend the BMS program very badly. Should I make sure to apply as soon as the application opens up? Or before January at least?
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What are your stats?
 
Superrambo said:
2.9sgpa, 3.15 cgpa, 512 mcat, good clinical work experiences, volunteering, and shadowing
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Well your mcat score is good so you might have a decent chance.
I'm applying with similar stats, 3.04 sGPA and 3.32 cumulative. My MCAT is in January so I'm studying for that atm.
The lady at the admissions office did tell me the sooner you apply the better since it is rolling admissions.

Are there any people here who got in with a sGPA <3.0?
 
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wannabeadoc23 said:
Hi cptnjack! If you don't mind me asking, are you starting at CMS now? Did the interview committee ask you about your undergrad performance? Thanks!
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The interview is an mmi featuring 8 stations with random ethical questions. There is no discussion about previous academic performance.
 
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Has anyone applied for this app cycle yet? What do you think are my chances with a 3.2 sGPA, 3.45 cGPA and 501 MCAT? I have 2 years of research experience (no pubs, but this is my honors thesis, so I have presented it 2-3 times), good leadership experience and volunteer hours. Do you think I should take the MCAT again?
 
Stress100 said:
Has anyone applied for this app cycle yet? What do you think are my chances with a 3.2 sGPA, 3.45 cGPA and 501 MCAT? I have 2 years of research experience (no pubs, but this is my honors thesis, so I have presented it 2-3 times), good leadership experience and volunteer hours. Do you think I should take the MCAT again?
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I think you have a solid shot. When I was in the bms there were a handful of people with lower mcat scores and similar gpa. However, if you only took the mcat once it isn't a bad idea to try and boost it. Especially since you have several months before they'll make decisions.
 
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KingD said:
I think you have a solid shot. When I was in the bms there were a handful of people with lower mcat scores and similar gpa. However, if you only took the mcat once it isn't a bad idea to try and boost it. Especially since you have several months before they'll make decisions.
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are you at cms currently? what were your stats?
 
Hi guys

I am in my 5th year of undergrad.

So everyone I'm in a bit of a dilemma, not sure exactly what to do. My current sgpa is 2.98 and my cgpa is 3.3. I am taking my mcat on january 18th, but I'm not sure I can do as well as I want to on it.

Option 1: Take the mcat on jan 18th and april 22nd and apply with sgpa of 3.0 and cgpa of 3.31. Take 1 course during second semester.
Option 2: Take the mcat on jan 18th only take 4 science courses (repeats) and apply with sgpa 3.1 and cGPA of 3.36.

What do you guys think?????
 
Hi, looking to apply here and just wondering what the schedule is like. Do you have classes 8-5 mon-fri? Are all classes mandatory? Are they all lectures? Do you guys find that you have much free time on the weekends or do you spend most of them studying? Have you gotten involved in any extracurriculara? Thanks!!
 
wannabeadoc23 said:
Hi, does anyone know a person who did well in the program (maintained the GPA requirement, got an interview) and still did not get accepted? I am worried that I will start this program and the admissions committee will still thoroughly look through my undergraduate GPA since I have retaken many classes.
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if you can get into the program and excel in the classes and do well in the interview, then your past performance will not be scrutinized much, from what I heard from the past BMSers
 
wannabeadoc23 said:
Hi, does anyone know a person who did well in the program (maintained the GPA requirement, got an interview) and still did not get accepted? I am worried that I will start this program and the admissions committee will still thoroughly look through my undergraduate GPA since I have retaken many classes.
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I've heard of people bombing the interview and not getting in despite good grades, but not the undergraduate record tanking them. They accept you to BMS, they should be willing to accept you to CMS, assuming you do everything right in the BMS year.
 
iRezaDH said:
Hi everyone,
I am currently an M1 at RFUMS who got into Chicago Medical School (CMS) via the BMS program. I understand that many applicants may have questions about the program and may come across statements things that aren't true. I will write about my experience here and hopefully it will help future applicants from getting confused.

The program:
This is a one-year masters program where students take four courses taken by first year medical students at RFUMS.
Biochemistry; 6.5 credits; Fall/Winter
Clinical Molecular Cell Biology(CMCB); 3.5 credits; Fall
Medical Physiology; 14 credits; Fall/Winter/Spring
Medical Neuroscience; 7 credits; Spring
Addition to the medical school courses, BMS student take 4 online courses for certificates in nutrition, health care administration, healthcare education etc.
There are BMS exclusive courses Topics in Physiology (TiPs) and Healthcare Inter-professionalism (HIPS).

Link to the medical school:
Assuming a BMS student is passing all courses and applied to the program of their choice (CMS mostly), they are guaranteed an interview. For my year, all interview invites were sent by January and the interview dates were between December and April. The starting class size was about 111. Graduating number of students was little over 90. I know out of the 90 students graduated not all applied to the medical school. Some applied to PA schools, some Podiatry and few who didn't apply for medical school for the same application cycle. The estimate number of students that applied to medical school for the same year and got accepted would be around 55/85.

What the Medical school looks for:
When considering BMS students for admissions to the medical school, the admissions committee doesn't take into account the students' undergraduate GPA or MCAT. They look at students' performance during BMS, THE WHOLE YEAR. One huge advantage the BMS students get is that when their grades are being sent to CMS, they don't send letter grades, they send percentage. So if a student misses an A by getting 89%, would still be consider a great student. Furthermore, even though C (or a low passing grade in general) is not an ideal grade, in the past, students who got C in CMCB or biochem but later on did really well in physiology and neuroscience, were still accepted to CMS.
The interview is also very important. In the past students with mediocre grades that did well on their interview got accepted and students with straight A's who did bad in interview got rejected. So it is not something to be taken for granted.

Other Advantages:
BMS students are also privileged to update their application even after sending their secondary application to CMS. RFUMS offers many variety of extracurricular activities for all their students and BMS students usually get very involved. These activities can be used to improve application.

I hope that this is helpful information for future applicants. Good luck!
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Thank you so much for this information, this is the most helpful info I have found yet. I have accepted an offer to study in the BMS program this fall and I'm very excited!! I am currently at a crossroads about retaking my MCAT in preparation for this application cycle- I'm aware that MCAT score is not considered for BMS students and the point of the program is to prepare BMS students to matriculate into CMS (or other programs) the following year theoretically, but I am contemplating applying to other med schools this cycle as well just to leave my options open in case worst case scenario CMS doesn't work out. Did many other BMS students apply to other med schools in your year, or did most try solely for CMS? Thanks! I appreciate any advice :)
 
r_z_med said:
Thank you so much for this information, this is the most helpful info I have found yet. I have accepted an offer to study in the BMS program this fall and I'm very excited!! I am currently at a crossroads about retaking my MCAT in preparation for this application cycle- I'm aware that MCAT score is not considered for BMS students and the point of the program is to prepare BMS students to matriculate into CMS (or other programs) the following year theoretically, but I am contemplating applying to other med schools this cycle as well just to leave my options open in case worst case scenario CMS doesn't work out. Did many other BMS students apply to other med schools in your year, or did most try solely for CMS? Thanks! I appreciate any advice :)
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Unless things have drastically changed since two years ago, CMS takes your entire application into account, including your MCAT score. However, they place the greatest emphasis on your BMS grades and the interview. The general idea is that if they let you into BMS, your stats are at least good enough to not keep you out of CMS - assuming you do well enough in classes and on your interview. The way I look at it is if you have a stronger AMCAS application, it may allow you slightly more buffer in your BMS performance. I personally studied and retook my MCAT before BMS to maximize my chances, but it is by no means necessary.

If you are going to apply to other schools and your MCAT is a weakness in your application, it may not hurt to study and retake it. But only retake it if your practice tests suggest you will do better than your original score (obviously). There is some benefit to reviewing the basic sciences before BMS, but it's pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, so don't do it just for that.

To answer your question, I think a number of BMS kids apply to other med schools, but it's a pretty small number who actually matriculate to schools other than CMS.

Good luck next year!
 
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Blob229 said:
Unless things have drastically changed since two years ago, CMS takes your entire application into account, including your MCAT score. However, they place the greatest emphasis on your BMS grades and the interview. The general idea is that if they let you into BMS, your stats are at least good enough to not keep you out of CMS - assuming you do well enough in classes and on your interview. The way I look at it is if you have a stronger AMCAS application, it may allow you slightly more buffer in your BMS performance. I personally studied and retook my MCAT before BMS to maximize my chances, but it is by no means necessary.

If you are going to apply to other schools and your MCAT is a weakness in your application, it may not hurt to study and retake it. But only retake it if your practice tests suggest you will do better than your original score (obviously). There is some benefit to reviewing the basic sciences before BMS, but it's pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, so don't do it just for that.

To answer your question, I think a number of BMS kids apply to other med schools, but it's a pretty small number who actually matriculate to schools other than CMS.

Good luck next year!
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Thank you! I appreciate the feedback :) When did you retake your MCAT? Since I'm only planning to apply to CMS this cycle, I'm thinking of taking it late-summer (probably July) before classes start. Does that sound like an okay time?
 
Hi everyone, I just got accepted to RFU BMS program for 2017-2018!! I want to ask... How did any international students like me (Canadian) get the US Student Visa...? Also, does "BMS students are guaranteed interviews for CMS" hold true for internationals as well?
 
For those that have not been accepted despite overall good BMS grades, do you feel it was your undergraduate cum/sci gpa and mcat that played a part? or even perhaps your extracirriculars? the avg gpa for the CMS class states 3.5, and avg mcat 508. So I'm curious as to what extent that plays a part in the admissions decision. It makes no sense to me how those with lower stats in the program, more B's would get in over those with more A's. Understandably, medical school is a competitive process, so I'm wondering as to what gives certain students an edge over others. Perhaps this is where AMCAS application comes to play.... Any thoughts?
 
Looking for some answers from previous BMS students and not sure if this was asked already!

What are your thoughts on living in Chicago and taking Metra for the commute? Do you think maintaining good grades with this commute is doable, or do you recommend just living in the area?
 
sportyazn113 said:
Looking for some answers from previous BMS students and not sure if this was asked already!

What are your thoughts on living in Chicago and taking Metra for the commute? Do you think maintaining good grades with this commute is doable, or do you recommend just living in the area?
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I know of a few students who commuted, a couple ended up moving closer to campus over the school year. You can commute and its doable, but you have to be incredibly organized with your time management. Best bet is to just live in the area, study groups, review sessions, all of those happen all the time at school and its really convenient to live close to campus bc of that
 
sportyazn113 said:
Looking for some answers from previous BMS students and not sure if this was asked already!

What are your thoughts on living in Chicago and taking Metra for the commute? Do you think maintaining good grades with this commute is doable, or do you recommend just living in the area?
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I would agree with what @cptnjack said. It's possible to commute. That said, your priority in BMS is school. You're taking an expensive gamble to try to get into CMS (or another, similar, program) there is no reason to jeaprodize it. If you've got a really good reason to live in the city, go for it. If not, suck it up and move to north Chicago. It's not exciting up here, but it's good for studying. (You'll be able to go into the city post-exam with friends anyway.)
 
Hi guys. I'm in my 5th year of undergrad and will be applying to the BMS program for the 2017-2018 year. I really want to do the program, but just a little worried about how I'm going to pay for it. How are some of you guys paying for the program? I think the only way I'm going to pay for the program is with loans.
 
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