UIC College of Medicine Class of 2009

[Penelope1]

Online it has my apt # and when I talked her she told me I lived in Apt 8... i was like cool. Then I got the postcard and the post office added a sticker...

"Get ALL that's coming to you. To insure delivery of ALL your mail, please use you apt number on ALL your corresponsence."

I wouldnt care but I think the post office is getting pissy And I havent heard of this deleting the first digit if it is zero... that is just bizarre

I checked my envelope, and sure enough, the leading 0 was missing. I still got it though, somehow.

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[nimer1456]

I called the office and the lady seemed confused; as though she forgot she had planned this second look weekend. She said that we will likely have to RSVP so imagine we will be getting more info in the near future.

 

[sga814]

So I just got an interview offer from Rush and am wondering whether or not to even go. Other than its status as a "private" school, I was wondering if anyone knew whether or not Rush is better or worse than UIC. I hear their match list is comparable, but obviously their tuition is not. Is the instruction better at Rush? I heard they have fewer exams, but I'm the type of person who needs lots of exams to stay on top of things.....

 

[bloHaZaRd]

I have been accepted to both UIC and Rush.

If tuition is not an issue, which school would you guys prefer. I am just worried about the fact that everyone I talk to says that the first 2 years at UIC are really bad, while at Rush they are much more relaxed.

I'm really confused right now

I'm also interested in research, but since I went to UIC undergrad and did 3 yrs of research there, I'm hoping I will be able to join some UIC lab even if I go to Rush.

 

[redruby]

I have been accepted to both UIC and Rush.

If tuition is not an issue, which school would you guys prefer. I am just worried about the fact that everyone I talk to says that the first 2 years at UIC are really bad, while at Rush they are much more relaxed.

I'm really confused right now

I'm also interested in research, but since I went to UIC undergrad and did 3 yrs of research there, I'm hoping I will be able to join some UIC lab even if I go to Rush.

I just remember that when I interviewed at Rush, the students there were talking about how they all get 8-9 hours of sleep every night, have time to watch tv, and are "babied" by their professors, compared to UIC students who seem much more stressed. Are you assigned to the Chicago campus? I'm probably headed for Urbana/Rockford. I know the first year is supposed to be tough, but you only have class from 8-12 once you hit Rockford, so it can't be that bad.

That said, if tuition wasn't an issue, I would probably pick Rush. Their students did seem a lot happier and private schools always have better resources for their students.

 

[blingblah]

if tution was a non issue, I would go with RUSH; the kids are much happier, great hospital, facilities blah blah.

the atmosphere at UIC is mostly how life in general is gonna be when you are working. to each his own, I figure as long as you have the opportunity to succeed at a particular school; thats all that matters! good luck yo!

 

[bloHaZaRd]

Thanks for the reply

I'm assigned to Urbana-Peoria right now. If I don't get Chicago, I'm sure I won't be going to UIC. I don't wanna leave Chicago.

Another pro of UIC, which I have heard is that it has a better reputation even outside Chicago, and their students match well into residencies (maybe better than Rush??). Also, I went to Rush's second look day last week and I had a lot of fun, but was a bit dissapointed that I didn't see a lot of diversity there. It was drastically diff from UIC undergrad's student population which is very diverse
Of course it's not a big deal... but it felt awkward after getting used to UIC for so long.

Getting 8-9 hrs of sleep every day sounds very tempting I've heard horror stories about UIC students getting 3-4 hrs of sleeps during some weeks.

That's scary, but worth it if UIC is beneficial in the long run.

 

[greeneclipse]

hey

yea Rush

 

[JuanRafia]

Honestly, all it says is that UIC's second look is on April 22nd from 10AM-2PM. It also says there's more information coming so you haven't missed much

I haven't received anything. Is the second look weekend only for those assigned to the chicago campus?

 

[nimer1456]

I haven't received anything. Is the second look weekend only for those assigned to the chicago campus?

As far as I can tell the second look is for the chicago campus. If you want to go to a second look at one of the other campuses I think you have to contact them and set up a time.

 

[paradiselost]

As far as I can tell the second look is for the chicago campus. If you want to go to a second look at one of the other campuses I think you have to contact them and set up a time.

Does anybody know if there's a dress code or anything for the second look day? Kind of a silly question, but I don't want to be the only one in jeans... or a business suit.

 

[Illuminatus]

anyone got the award letters yet? It's less than a month left before the May 15 deadline for withdrawal.

 

[JuanRafia]

anyone got the award letters yet? It's less than a month left before the May 15 deadline for withdrawal.

WTF are the awards letters?

 

[DrThom]

WTF are the awards letters?

Financial Aid Award letter...

And no, I haven't gotten mine yet. It is starting to irritate me.

 

[sga814]

Well- at least you know you'll probably be paying less than anywhere else in IL (that is if you're a resident)...

And yeah- I got a "more information needed" letter from financial aid, which I hastily replied to...

And also... I can't freakin decide... Rush or UIC!! Well, at least it's a good type of dilemma...

 

[sjashark]

Hey guys, sorry to be a little off topic.....but I'm dying here....

I've been "on hold" at UIC since february....i interviewed in champaing for md/phd 2 months ago, got rejected from md/phd program, but have not heard a word from the medical school in chicago....I call the admiss. office, and they just tell me I'm on hold....I so want to go to UIC...anyone here have any tips? Is there a way I would talk to the dean of admin. and try to get off my "on hold" status? Anyone have any advice????? thx.

 

[sga814]

Hey guys, sorry to be a little off topic.....but I'm dying here....

I've been "on hold" at UIC since february....i interviewed in champaing for md/phd 2 months ago, got rejected from md/phd program, but have not heard a word from the medical school in chicago....I call the admiss. office, and they just tell me I'm on hold....I so want to go to UIC...anyone here have any tips? Is there a way I would talk to the dean of admin. and try to get off my "on hold" status? Anyone have any advice????? thx.

Well- think about it this way- UIC gives out something like 500 - 600 acceptances for 300 spots. A majority of the people who decide NOT to go to UIC probably do so around May 15th. This, coupled with the fact that UIC only interviews like 800-900 applicants, gives you a decent chance of getting accepted if you're on the waitlist.

Just my two cents...

 

[Illuminatus]

I heard UIC COM is giving out $5000 scholarships. anyone got that email yet.

 

[maygirl]

I heard UIC COM is giving out $5000 scholarships. anyone got that email yet.

Yeah, I got it a few days ago, but it was just a notification that i was a finalist and a request that I reply by April 27th if I want to receive final consideration. It's $5000 for the first year, and $2500 for the following years.

Unfortunately, I think I'm withdrawing from UIC b/c it's in-state tuition is not that much different from tuition at private schools.

Good luck guys!

 

[sga814]

Yeah, I got it a few days ago, but it was just a notification that i was a finalist and a request that I reply by April 27th if I want to receive final consideration. It's $5000 for the first year, and $2500 for the following years.

Unfortunately, I think I'm withdrawing from UIC b/c it's in-state tuition is not that much different from tuition at private schools.

Good luck guys!

Huh? You must be joking!!! UIC is like 22K, minimum private school tuition i've seen is at least 30K.. most are around 35K... (Rush is gonna be 38K next year).

 

[bloHaZaRd]

How was the second look day? What did I miss

I know the weather was garbage today, cold and icy rain *ugh*

 

[maygirl]

Huh? You must be joking!!! UIC is like 22K, minimum private school tuition i've seen is at least 30K.. most are around 35K... (Rush is gonna be 38K next year).

I think uic is 26k. I guess what I meant is that compared to many other state schools, uic is expensive. Private schools range from 30K to 40k. As a matter of personal preference, I think I wouldn't mind paying another 5K or so a year to go to a school that I prefer. I unfortunately didn't like UIC as much as many people did.

But anyway, one more spot in the Chicago campus will become open soon. Hope those of you waiting get in!!!!

 

[rjb]

hey guys, i missed second look. how was it?
i dont remember mucb about uic except that its old?
how do the girls look haha

))

 

[icecream4me]

Hi everyone,

I know that these posts are common on SDN so I apologize in advance for any annoyances, but I really need some feedback here. Right now, I am currently waiting to see if I have that slim hope of getting transferred into the Chicago campus post-May 15th (acc. to ADCOM) - Otherwise, I will be at Rockford/Peoria/Champaign (I hear that its relatively easy to transfer to Peoria, and less so to Champaign).

The problem is, I am very interested in urban health and research, so I don't want to go to a school that doesn't embrace these two areas. This is the reason why I am being indecisive about UIC UPR track vs VCU. Of course, In-state tuition is always an attractive option, but I won't even know my financial aid from VCU until post-May 15th (acc. to FIN AID).

Obviously, these two schools aren't giving me much to work with here.

Any suggestions? I would really appreciate some input, since I've been going mad trying to decide in the past few months, and it seems that the deadline is coming sooner than I expected!

Thank you

 

[sga814]

Hi everyone,

I know that these posts are common on SDN so I apologize in advance for any annoyances, but I really need some feedback here. Right now, I am currently waiting to see if I have that slim hope of getting transferred into the Chicago campus post-May 15th (acc. to ADCOM) - Otherwise, I will be at Rockford/Peoria/Champaign (I hear that its relatively easy to transfer to Peoria, and less so to Champaign).

The problem is, I am very interested in urban health and research, so I don't want to go to a school that doesn't embrace these two areas. This is the reason why I am being indecisive about UIC UPR track vs VCU. Of course, In-state tuition is always an attractive option, but I won't even know my financial aid from VCU until post-May 15th (acc. to FIN AID).

Obviously, these two schools aren't giving me much to work with here.

Any suggestions? I would really appreciate some input, since I've been going mad trying to decide in the past few months, and it seems that the deadline is coming sooner than I expected!

Thank you

Tough Call- I think if your reason for transferring is compelling enough (dire family situation, etc), you'll probably switch tracks. If not- like you said, the chances are slim. Personally, I believe that if you stay on the UPR track, you can still pursue your "urban" dream during residency. After all, residency is when you get the most hardcore training- med school is there to prepare you for the challenges of residency. Also, from what I'm aware, neither Peoria nor Rockford emphasize "rural" healthcare over "urban" healthcare, but rather "community" medicine- which is a principle that can easily be applied in a highly urban setting.

Also, does VCU emphasize "urban" medicine? I don't think so- I think the school was actually founded to create physicians for underserved areas in Virginia (which are mostly rural). Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyways, I think the point of my whole spiel is that regardless of which med school you go to- if you have a desire to become a particular type of doctor, you will have the right foundation.

 

[sga814]

Just trying to keep this thread alive by moving it up front... pretty please- don't post new UIC threads- I think this one has a lot of good info and shouldn't be trashed..

Anyways.. post stuff about 2nd look if you went.

Peace

 

[IllinoisStudent]

Dana Ersland said in the email: As of right now, we do not have any information to send out to people who miss this day, but I will keep those folks posted.

Seems like nothing imp happened and so she has no information to mail out, or maybe she forgot, or she might be busy.

On the other hand, has anyone got any fin aid info lately? I want to find out how much loans I need to take?

 

[DrThom]

On the other hand, has anyone got any fin aid info lately? I want to find out how much loans I need to take?

At the 2nd look, they said they should mail letters out that weekend so they should be coming sometime this week.

 

[willowdesi]

hey all, i just got on this network today, but i'm also uic class of 2009. so hello~

 

[chitown82]

hey all, i just got on this network today, but i'm also uic class of 2009. so hello~

welcome

 

[willowdesi]

welcome

are you guys all excited about coming to uic? because i think that if we all can be, or at least pretend to love it through the things that might suck, we'll have a fab time.

 

[chitown82]

are you guys all excited about coming to uic? because i think that if we all can be, or at least pretend to love it through the things that might suck, we'll have a fab time.

yea man im pretty psyched...hopefully our class will be pretty cool and not a bunch of tools.

 

[blingblah]

yeah yo, herez to hoping!!!!

but to each his own!!!

 

[willowdesi]

yeah yo, herez to hoping!!!!

but to each his own!!!

Where are you guys all from? (IL, other schools?, nontrad.? ) is that all in this already?

 

[NEATOMD]

Honestly, I was a bit suprised by the UIC tuition when I got that packet from them last week. I don't remember quite what it was, but I'm thinking it jumped quite abit (like the rest of UofI tuition) from about 11k a year or so ago to just under 15k per semester for tuition. Then again, I don't have the packet sitting in front to me right now.

 

[DrThom]

Honestly, I was a bit suprised by the UIC tuition when I got that packet from them last week. I don't remember quite what it was, but I'm thinking it jumped quite abit (like the rest of UofI tuition) from about 11k a year or so ago to just under 15k per semester for tuition. Then again, I don't have the packet sitting in front to me right now.

Packet, what packet????!!!

 

[blingblah]

Where are you guys all from? (IL, other schools?, nontrad.? ) is that all in this already?

split time between north suburbs and champaign (def ILLINI!!!)

 

[Illuminatus]

split time between north suburbs and champaign (def ILLINI!!!)

another ILLINI!

Z, u seem disappointed by the gunner pop at UIC..heh?

Not one of my best days

 

[LoveDoc]

DID ANYONE FIND HOUSING DURING THE 2ND LOOK ?

how much does a 1bdrm near the school run?

 

[nimer1456]

another ILLINI!

Z, u seem disappointed by the gunner pop at UIC..heh?

Not one of my best days

An Illini here too! There will be a lot of us UIUC kids at UIC this fall; 7 that I can think of off hand.

Should be a fun class... and who cares about the gunners; they can sit in the front while we sit in the back and laugh at them cause we have friends

 

[Illuminatus]

An Illini here too! There will be a lot of us UIUC kids at UIC this fall; 7 that I can think of off hand.

Should be a fun class... and who cares about the gunners; they can sit in the front while we sit in the back and laugh at them cause we have friends

Yup...lotta U of I kids there. It will be fun time..can't wait!

DID ANYONE FIND HOUSING DURING THE 2ND LOOK ?

how much does a 1bdrm near the school run?

I didn't go to 2nd look weekend, but here is wat I have found out
http://www.housing.uic.edu/ (if you wanna stay on campus) You should apply now if you wanna stay on campus. They fill up pretty fast.

http://www.housing.uic.edu/offcampus (Off campus housing - You can get Net ID by calling them if you haven't got one)

http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/osa/M1Year/housing.htm More on Off-campus

From what I have heard, one bedroom ranges from 600-1100. Your best bet is to go for 2+ people apt. if you are looking for cheap & good housing. My friend shares apt w/ 2 friends and pays $400 excluding utilities.

 

[NEATOMD]

Packet, what packet????!!!

Did anyone else get a manilla envelope last week? I got one that had the projected costs for next year on it. It also had a few letters in it that said something about them being glad that I've chosen them. It was pretty big. I didn't read it all yet. I've been too busy with work and stuff. I think it might have had a reminder about immunization stuff, orientation dates, and first day of class. It got sent to my family's address and I left it there...so I'm going by memory from a quick glance at all of it.

 

[nimer1456]

I did not! I want this packet... maybe

 

[Illuminatus]

UIC Fin Aid got a new website today !

http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/finaid/index.shtml

Well designed, easy to browse, and lot better than other UIC websites. If any UIC admin folks are reading this, I want to give them thumbs up

Downside is that as soon as you leave the site, you end up on UIC COM website which I find repulsive, mainly because of the red color and organization. Doesn't look professional at all.

 

[sga814]

Did anyone else get a manilla envelope last week? I got one that had the projected costs for next year on it. It also had a few letters in it that said something about them being glad that I've chosen them. It was pretty big. I didn't read it all yet. I've been too busy with work and stuff. I think it might have had a reminder about immunization stuff, orientation dates, and first day of class. It got sent to my family's address and I left it there...so I'm going by memory from a quick glance at all of it.

Yeah- I got that one too.. but like- WHERE IS THE ACTUAL AWARD LETTER?!?! Has ANYONE gotten it yet?

 

[willowdesi]

Yeah- I got that one too.. but like- WHERE IS THE ACTUAL AWARD LETTER?!?! Has ANYONE gotten it yet?

UIC lost my FAFSA!! you know what, i'm an undergrad at UIC too, and this is so typical of them and annoying. i apologize for dissing our future med school--- but you guys are going to see, UIC 'misplaces' quite a bit of paperwork. anyway, i really hope this doesn'tadversely affect my award letter, because i turned everything in by the priority deadline.

 

[bloHaZaRd]

UIC lost my FAFSA!! you know what, i'm an undergrad at UIC too, and this is so typical of them and annoying. i apologize for dissing our future med school--- but you guys are going to see, UIC 'misplaces' quite a bit of paperwork. anyway, i really hope this doesn'tadversely affect my award letter, because i turned everything in by the priority deadline.

haha that's so true.

BTW I'm still waiting for my award letter.. What's taking them so long.

 

[IllinoisStudent]

UIC lost my FAFSA!! you know what, i'm an undergrad at UIC too, and this is so typical of them and annoying. i apologize for dissing our future med school--- but you guys are going to see, UIC 'misplaces' quite a bit of paperwork. anyway, i really hope this doesn'tadversely affect my award letter, because i turned everything in by the priority deadline.

this is so true ! When I applied to UIC for undergrad, they lost my entire application. Fortunately, my experiences with medical school staff (admissions office & Susan Stuecheli in particular) have been all positive so far!

However, UIC staff definitely needs a lesson in organization & professionalism. They would do well hiring a team of professionals who can help them make things more effective and better organized. The hospital I volunteered at had that. Every year a team of professionals came to the hospital, and made suggestions on how things can be improved.

 

[willowdesi]

this is so true ! When I applied to UIC for undergrad, they lost my entire application. Fortunately, my experiences with medical school staff (admissions office & Susan Stuecheli in particular) have been all positive so far!

However, UIC staff definitely needs a lesson in organization & professionalism. They would do well hiring a team of professionals who can help them make things more effective and better organized. The hospital I volunteered at had that. Every year a team of professionals came to the hospital, and made suggestions on how things can be improved.

Yea, someone should seriously stick it to the man at UIC. Unfortunately, it would probably be one of the biggest project these professionals ever came across... & UIC would not pay for that :sigh:

 

[Illuminatus]

Yea, someone should seriously stick it to the man at UIC. Unfortunately, it would probably be one of the biggest project these professionals ever came across... & UIC would not pay for that :sigh:

I am ready to the job for free...they only need to waive my tuition off

On a serious note, I don't think money is a problem at UIC. The problem is with the way money is handled. There is a website ( http://www.uicsucks.org ) which has all complaints about UIC. Somebody needs to start addressing genuine issues on there. I am not that bothered by the bad organization at UIC than by the lack of initiative to change or improve.


Time for New Curriculum?

looking at threads of some other schools, I noticed that many schools are preparing new curricula for future classes. I wonder if UIC is doing any of that. I like the traditional curriculum at UIC, but maybe they can work towards reducing inclass time.