Application Cycle One: 2008

• Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences

• Institution: Public Health
• Area of Study: Computing and Information Science

• Total MCAT SCORE: 516
• MCAT Section Scores: B/B 130, C/P 127, CARS 129   Detailed Breakdown
• Overall GPA: 3.60
• Science GPA: 3.40

Summary of Application Experience

7/16/08- ahhh so happy to finally submit. I submitted AMCAS on 7/9 and TMDSAS on 7/15.
8/1/08- AMCAS and TMDSAS verified and sent out.
8/14/08- got my first interview, at UTMB :)
9/8/08- got UW secondary- wow!
9/10/08- added some more schools because I had a panic attack that I hadn't applied to enough 'safe' schools and wanted to add more- GWU, BU, Tufts, UPenn (not safe, haha) and OHSU.
9/12/08- Pritzker interview!!! YESSSSSSS!!!!
9/15/08- got UCSF secondary!! wow again!
9/24/08- NW interview!!! yay!!!
10/6/08- got OHSU secondary! really surprised at this since I added it late.
11/5/08- went to UC and NU, loved both of them although they are different schools- UC seems very adult, very focused, whereas NU seems more laidback and sophisticated. ack this is hard! getting frustrated by the lack of response from some schools....
11/14/08- went to NYC, loved the city. Didn't like NYU- too crummy and the facilities in TX are better. Liked Cornell a lot but it seems very polished, and I don't think my interviews were that great. got 3 acceptances today!! I'M GONNA BE A DOCTOR!
11/18/08- accepted at UTMB! :)
11/24/08- yay for an out of state acceptance @ NU!
11/26/08- SO THANKFUL for a UC acceptance!! wow wow wow!!
12/18/08- I woke up to a UCSF interview invite, OMG!! I really feel unworthy... WOW. i'm in the double digits for interviews now!
12/23/08- early christmas present- an acceptance to NYU!! yay!
12/30/08- i guess i have a second wind, as i'm still getting interviews


1/6/09- my first (and probably only) 2 invites in the same day (Emory and UWSOM) I feel so blessed. Now if only I could combine the west coast interviews...
1/15/09- I'm on a withdrawing kick since the TX match deadline is today. I shouldn't feel bad but I do! :(
1/20/09- got an interview invite from Tufts. Will probably decline as I am not going to BU... not much more $ left
2/2/09- I got an invite for Tulane, but it almost looks like they sent it to me before and I never got it?? v. weird. Not sure if I will go. I am still wishing and hoping for a MSSM interview...
2/6/09- officially rejected from UPenn via status page since they have ended interviews
2/23/09- sooooo bummed I got rejected from UW....
3/9/09- so I have heard back from almost every school that I am expecting to hear from. Unless a miracle happens with MSSM I am done with interviews, now to the 2nd looks/revisits! I will probably be going to U of Chicago and UCSF.... anyone else? This cycle has been beyond amazing and more than I ever expected.
3/12/09- the tortoise (OHSU) sent me an invite... don't think I will go, it's just too late.

5/15/09- In the end, UCSF was the best fit for me and I am so excited to start in the fall. Pritzker is an amazing institution too, but I couldn't ignore the gut feeling I got at UCSF. This is why it's so important to go to revisit weekends! But I hope that whoever gets my spot is very happy there! With regards to the other schools, I just didn't like NYU even when I interviewed, NU was mor expensive than Pritzker, and BCM didn't offer any $ or have a revisit weekend. It's funny how things turn out, I really thought I would end up in NYC, and UCSF was always my 'dream' school that I didn't think I would even get an interview at.

Also, I realize now that this process is a crapshoot. Obviously if I had known how many schools I would be interviewed/accepted at I would NOT have applied to so many. But better safe than sorry.