thank you.Hopefully what is the best for you will come to you as soon as possible
I'm literally so confused by ABP. I called and they just seemed rude/uninterested. I'm sure they get many calls but I honestly don't know any more what the deal is. I was told about 4 days ago that there were no second rounds sent. An email in early April confirmed that 2nd rounds for UCD will be sent "late April or early May"...so to hear that they are now done with second rounds is frustrating.
I was around a GPA of 3.4-3.5, and mcat score 507. I applied to RCSI, UCD, and TCD. I got interview for RCSI and then rejected. I am assuming UCD rejected me since I have had no offers from them. I can't think of anything else further to mention, if you have others questions, I will try to answer.
Congratulations again for TCD. Do you have any research experience/publications? Which is school is your top choice? Also, you might still get an acceptance from UCD. No response can simply mean you are on a waiting list. I would assume ABP would need to send an official rejection notice from the school, I might be wrong. What is the deadline given by TCD to accept the offer and pay the deposit?
I have two years research experience, but did not end with any publication (The experiment did not succeed). But I have lots of volunteer experience. Initially my top choice was RCSI, however TCD was my second choice. The deadline for TCD to pay the deposit is may 12. Last year I applied, they send the rejections letters in august.
All med schools put mcat above all. Except Caribbean school.
I have 7 1st author publications, 2 contributing author publications, a masters with 3.84, but a weak mcat score (verbal was low, rest were high). But i was rejected from every US MD school. So every school will put MCAT above the rest.
I don't think work experience is a big factor considering I have worked as a pharmacy assistant, have 3 years of research experience now and currently work as a full time quadriplegic care attendant -_- I just don't understand what they're looking for..
yes it is.Congratulations! That is awesome.If you don't mind me asking, how much is the deposit for TCD? Is it really around 9000 euros?
D
deleted158872
9000 euro? wow!
do they refund any of it if one ends up not going?
do they refund any of it if one ends up not going?
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hopefully you get into what is best for youThank you for clarifying that and congratulations on your acceptance. I better start saving just in case
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Nope, that's the point of a deposit - to deter someone from not going at the last minute, leaving them with an empty seat that someone else could have gotten.
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I'm applying to the 5 year, so I'm guessing that's different.
Honestly, if they get an overflow of emails and calls, its their fault. Clearly they are giving out vague, and sometimes misinformed or contradictory information. If their process was more nuanced and thorough, they wouldn't be having this problem. That, along with Ireland's incredibly drawn out application procedure is very frustrating.
I think it comes down to the 1 or 2 studies that showed some correlation between MCAT and STEP scores. At the end of the day MD school is a business like all other schools. There is no advantage to having any type of personal life skills or experience which might make you a better doctor. Comes down to how much you can memorize and spit out. Sucks that other people with other skills can't be given a chance to prove themselves.
Guess I will have to go DO
Guess I will have to go DO
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Hey I have also been accepted into the same program.
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deleted158872
i don't see the point.
if someone got accepted to US MD at the last minute, he'd forfeit 9000 deposit anyway. it's not gonna deter him.
if someone is going, he'll go anyway.
now the only people left are those with multiple offers from ABP: if another school they prefer accepts them, 9000 is forfeited.
i only see that the expensive deposits benefit the schools.
Because not all of the schools give you offers at the same time, and the deadlines to accept and place a deposit are about 2 weeks from initial notice. For example, RCSI sent out offers way ahead of most from the other schools, and those offers expired shortly before UCD sent out their first round offers. So if your first choice was UCD... but you got accepted to RCSI, you'd probably want to pay the RCSI deposit in the event UCD rejects you. If/when UCD does accept you, you'd have to pay their deposit as well.
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^ remember it's also a business. Schools know they can charge app fees and deposits because getting into a medical school is a high stake game. Just likey any high stake system (olympic sport, dealing with large sums of money, etc) there will be people who want to benefit from the process and who don't have your interest in mind at all.
The game is not as "fair" as it seems publicly - this I know from an MD who worked admissions for a couple of decades for a very big school. There are quotas, there are people who get in below cutoffs because they have a very important connection or donation at the school. This will never be public and doesn't happen all the time, but goes to show that it is not as fair as we think.
The game is not as "fair" as it seems publicly - this I know from an MD who worked admissions for a couple of decades for a very big school. There are quotas, there are people who get in below cutoffs because they have a very important connection or donation at the school. This will never be public and doesn't happen all the time, but goes to show that it is not as fair as we think.
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deleted158872
i have heard from adcoms themselves that this has been happening at US med schools! donate a six-figure and you're in!
i prefer Europe admissions standard. i feel that it's fair that way. at least i can accept that i don't get in because my numbers are not as high.
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Not everyone has the luxury of forfeiting $9000 and walking away like it's nothing. I can see someone who gets accepted to a USMD taking the hit and walking away, but would you forfeit $9000 to take an offer from a Caribbean/Australian/other European school. It's also there to deter someone from accepting an offer and then turning away last minute to take a year off to try Canadian/US MD schools again. That's generally the principle of a deposit for anything in life - to try and prevent you from backtracking on a commitment you made.
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Just a question. I have a below 3.0 GPA and recently got invited to an interview at RCSI Bahrain. I am caucasian decent and was pretty surprised with this offer. I have not heard back from any of the other Ireland schools, do you think I still have a chance from hearing back from them? It seems pretty late in the game now.. but I guess you never know!
It seems very good school, but heard they dont use real cadavers, but plastic models for anatomy labs.
wow, thanks for clearing that up!
I've been accepted to UCD's 4 year program and I was interviewed by them. It was a Skype interview and it was pretty informal compared to the RCSI interview.
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How long ago was your acceptance and skype interview?
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I called UCD's GEM program saying I will be applying this year (I have already applied) and that I want some info about the application process for an American. They said there are no interviews. Why the mixed messages are delivered is honestly beyond me.
I was also accepted into the 4 year GEM program at UCD. However, I did not have an interview. I just received a letter of acceptance in March.
It's weird that some people had an interview and others did not.
It's weird that some people had an interview and others did not.
No, but we should create one.is there a FB group yet for TCD?
Here is a link to the Facebook page I created for us internationals attending Trinity
https://www.facebook.com/TCDMedicalGraduates2021/?skip_nax_wizard=true
https://www.facebook.com/TCDMedicalGraduates2021/?skip_nax_wizard=true
Don't be too discouraged I think a bit of it comes down to luck, two people can have very similar applications and one gets accepted and the other doesn't. I've heard of people with similar stats to yours, getting accepted this year. Remember a lot of students will forfeit their spots if they receive other acceptances (from US, Canadian, or other Irish schools), so you still have until August to be accepted. Best of luck!
I finally figured how to create a group for the trinity students:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/847030232107969/
If you request to be added can you also add the request to this site just so I know?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/847030232107969/
If you request to be added can you also add the request to this site just so I know?
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Is there anyone else on here who applied to but STILL has heard nothing at all back from UCC or UCD?
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Yup. Haven't heard anything at all from any of the 5 I applied to for the 5/6 year program.
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Also still waiting to hear back from the 5 year programs. According to AB, they said the second round offers will be released end of May..
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I have not received any word on any of them. Not the 4, 5 or 6 year program, from any of the following schools: RCSI, NUIG, TCD, UCC, UCD and UL.
I applied through AB and asked for a follow up two weeks ago. They said that my application was still in 'open' status. I am seeing some of you have been interviewed? I feel as though I should have at least received a rejection letter to confirm this?
I applied through AB and asked for a follow up two weeks ago. They said that my application was still in 'open' status. I am seeing some of you have been interviewed? I feel as though I should have at least received a rejection letter to confirm this?
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Me. I've interviewed for RCSI-Bahrain but I haven't heard anything
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What were your stats if you don't me asking??
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I spoke to ABP last Friday. Here is what I learned:
1. Only FIRST ROUND offers have been sent out for UCD and UCC. Even though some people seem to have heard weeks before others, the person at ABP states they are still all FIRST ROUND.
Second round will come out at end of May - it may be 1 or 2 spots or 10 or none. It is impossible to know and depends on too many factors.
2. Until you hear about a rejection, you can assume you're still in the game. People in USA may be waitlisted and get in to a school off the waitlist in June or July at which time a spot might become open.
3. In terms of MCAT -> 60% on each section is considered a minimum desirable score. If you have a section where you score less than 60%, this is likely why you haven't heard anything or are being rejected. Why Trinity seems to have accepted people with MCATs in the low 20s (as per these forums anyway), is beyond me.
4. In terms of GPA. Your marks in science pre-req courses are most important, so if you have a lower overall GPA (say due to tough engineering courses as part of your program) but your prerequisitite bio, chem, physics grades are good, then this will have higher value in the admission process.
I will assume, if by this point you have heard nothing - you're not really a "competitive applicant" this time around, and the person on the phone said they had an unusually high number of applications this year, making it a more competitive year.
Lastly, for anyone who has been out of school - I have talked to advisors and been told numerous times that schools want to see recent coursework. If you graduated 3 years ago and now are deciding to reapply, you better have been taking some night courses in the last 3 years. If you haven't been doing so, this might be the roadblock in your application. If you're serious about reapplying, I would suggest enrolling in some classes at your local university and doing these while you work. Schools want to make sure you can still study and succeed academically. Some people wonder about this, but honestly for me it took some getting used to being in class again with homework, assignments, labs, due dates. It really is a different mental process than working. Schools won't gamble on someone who can't show that they are still capable of academic success.
1. Only FIRST ROUND offers have been sent out for UCD and UCC. Even though some people seem to have heard weeks before others, the person at ABP states they are still all FIRST ROUND.
Second round will come out at end of May - it may be 1 or 2 spots or 10 or none. It is impossible to know and depends on too many factors.
2. Until you hear about a rejection, you can assume you're still in the game. People in USA may be waitlisted and get in to a school off the waitlist in June or July at which time a spot might become open.
3. In terms of MCAT -> 60% on each section is considered a minimum desirable score. If you have a section where you score less than 60%, this is likely why you haven't heard anything or are being rejected. Why Trinity seems to have accepted people with MCATs in the low 20s (as per these forums anyway), is beyond me.
4. In terms of GPA. Your marks in science pre-req courses are most important, so if you have a lower overall GPA (say due to tough engineering courses as part of your program) but your prerequisitite bio, chem, physics grades are good, then this will have higher value in the admission process.
I will assume, if by this point you have heard nothing - you're not really a "competitive applicant" this time around, and the person on the phone said they had an unusually high number of applications this year, making it a more competitive year.
Lastly, for anyone who has been out of school - I have talked to advisors and been told numerous times that schools want to see recent coursework. If you graduated 3 years ago and now are deciding to reapply, you better have been taking some night courses in the last 3 years. If you haven't been doing so, this might be the roadblock in your application. If you're serious about reapplying, I would suggest enrolling in some classes at your local university and doing these while you work. Schools want to make sure you can still study and succeed academically. Some people wonder about this, but honestly for me it took some getting used to being in class again with homework, assignments, labs, due dates. It really is a different mental process than working. Schools won't gamble on someone who can't show that they are still capable of academic success.
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GPA 3.2, 250 hours of volunteer, no published research, MCAT 488, and I have been working in an OR level one trauma center for over 5 years as a surgical technician. I am Canadian so I am applying internationally. This is my second time Applying. Thinking I may have to re-write the MCAT and try for a third time...
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Forgot to add, my pre-med is Bachelor of Sciences in Biology specializing in molecular genetics with a minor in Chemistry.
Should have done kinesiology..
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The 488 MCAT is killing you.
Honestly, if 250 hours is encompassing of all your Extracurriculars and involvements, then that part of the application isn't doing you any favours as it usually would be required to help lift up a low gpa/MCAT.
But you already have deficiencies in all areas of your app..GPA, MCAT, and ECs. Work experience seems solid since you've been in a healthcare field.
Honestly, you should really consider rewriting the MCAT, to at least get an average score. Right now, you are really below average on it.
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The major may account for the low-end GPA, but really thats still on you. Doing a Kin degree wouldn't suddenly have meant you'd be a 4.0. Nor would it mean you would have done better on the MCAT than a 488.
