enter ubiquitous \'will update after the cycle\' statement. ...No, really, I will...if I remember.
Here is my biased rankings of the schools that gave me interviews: (really just for me based on my preferences, impressions from the schools and fit)
1. Hopkins 2. Columbia 3. University of Chicago 4. UCLA
5. Yale/Duke 6. University of Michigan
7. NYU 8. Wash U 9. Vanderbilt 10. U Pitt 11. Northwestern 12. Case Western
13. Tufts
Methodology: get the F outta here with that nonsense
Application Complete
Stanford University
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: Yes
Secondary Completed: Yes
Interview Invite: No
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: No
Summary of Experience:
so elusive.
so they\'re done interviewing, and I\'ve yet to hear anything... guessing this is a pre-interview acceptance. They are probably just trying to figure out how much scholarship to give me.
...or my rejection letter got lost in the mail. obviously the former is more likely.
Summary of Experience:
apparently I am not worthy. I\'ll continue to imagine them enjoying their caviar and 60 year old bottle of Macallan Fine and Rare Collection scotch as they laugh about all the other schools that don\'t have their billion dollar NIH funding, all while simultaneously discussing the validity of the Copernican model of the universe when everyone knows Harvard is the unequivocal center.
Summary of Experience:
University of Second Choice. Just because you change your name and get a big donation doesn\'t instantly make you \"The new name in world-class medicine.\" It\'s like the girl you meet at the bar that seems oddly familiar. You quickly realize it\'s that girl from high school that wore paint covered overalls all junior year. Yeah, she lost a few pounds and upgraded her wardrobe, but she\'s still just Jenny from the block. But please, \"fight on\" to be the 2nd or 3rd best hospital in LA. At least you have location going for you...
In all honesty, USC is a good school, and with the increased funding, it seems to be making progress towards becoming a more highly respected medical school.
Summary of Experience:
DukeMed has a great reputation, but I didn\'t get the best feel here. They are in the process of constructing new education and hospital buildings, which is encouraging. Curriculum (1st year basic science, 2nd year clinical, 3rd year research, 4th year clinical electives) seems intense, but manageable. Durham is small.
(3/6/12) Confused. Didn\'t think I was that awkward guy that gets rejected post-interview. Apparently Duke thought I was. Was hoping for at least a wait list, but it wasn\'t meant to be I suppose.
Summary of Experience:
ivy league mystique. Yale System (P/F, no grades, anonymous tests). flexibility in the curriculum can be a benefit or hindrance depending on the person. New Haven isn\'t exactly the coolest city.
not surprised. wrote Yale off after interviewing. got a weird vibe from one of my faculty interviewers and a few of the students. would not have attended even if accepted.
Summary of Experience:
Pros: location. Ronald Reagan hospital. very good research opportunities. happy/cool students. being on the undergrad campus is a bonus (UCLA bball and football, despite their recent struggles provide some school spirit, or common point of misery. either way, it\'s cool) caveat: seems like you have to be self-motivated to take advantage of the vast opportunities available Cons: admissions decisions are notoriously slow. admissions office is not very responsive. seems easy to get lost in the mix.
Summary of Experience:
first interview, and it certainly set the bar high. the undergrad campus definitely adds life to the school. big class size (~170) can be an asset and/or a negative. regardless of the decision, the admissions staff\'s transparency is a refreshing change from most others (read: UCLA)
Upper tier waitlist = inevitable rejection
(3/4/12) status update: WAIT LIST ...so I get another status update to tell me less info. cool. upper tier WL --> just WL
(3/10/12) status update: Upper Tier WL
So to summarize, deferred until december --> deferred until february --> upper tier WL --> WL --> upper tier WL
Summary of Experience:
great school, but it truly is a \"numbers\" school (avg MCAT is an absurd ~37). grades during 2nd year?? really? what year are we in...1990?
..this feels like an impending waitlist.
(3.13.12) WL
I\'ll see your waitlist and raise you a withdrawal.
Summary of Experience:
it\'s the Johns Hopkins. incredible hospital, incredible faculty, incredible school. had a great experience here during the interview day. however, the jury is still out on the whole \"cutthroat environment\" thing. overall, it was the most impressive school I visited.
Summary of Experience:
~21 weeks post-interview and still nothing. So much for getting a decision in 6-8 weeks as they emphasized on the interview day. I\'m taking the liberty of moving Vandy over to the waitlist. Take that Vandy! let it be known that I waitlisted them, not the other way around.
only took ~15 weeks to get the active review email. less appealing with the changing curriculum as it seems like this year will be a transition year.
Summary of Experience:
Really not impressed. location was great, but that\'s it. I\'m sure it\'s a good school, but nothing stood out to me. as far as top 25 schools go, Northwestern seemed very average. that said, it won\'t hold you back when applying to residency, and it seemed like the students had ample time to enjoy life.
Deferred until March.
Well it\'s March, and still no decision. Guessing WL, but could very well be a rejection.
Summary of Experience:
big fan of NYU. great clinical experience at Bellevue. abbreviated curriculum similar to Columbia (1.5 yrs basic science, 1 year clinical, Step 1, then clinical electives, selectives, etc). down to earth students. however, it is very expensive with low probability of merit scholarship (they give only 2/yr)
Summary of Experience:
quickly moved up my list after visiting. all about the \"Pritzker fit.\" seems like they really care about their students. location isn\'t ideal, but also isn\'t bad. new hospital building under construction. faculty interviewers were very cool/down to earth. clinically, U of Chicago hospital isn\'t the best, but the school of medicine is on the cusp of being elite in my opinion (for whatever that\'s worth.. you decide). known to give generous merit scholarships, which certainly makes it more attractive.
Summary of Experience:
the school itself is great. good research opportunities. good clinical experience. nice faculty. big class size (good, bad, ?) not sold on Cleveland, though (but then again, who is?)
Summary of Experience:
very enjoyable. nice students. nice location. not the same research opportunities as the top schools. very expensive with no merit aid.
YoungN took the old MCAT and scored a 40 which is in the 100th percentile of all old scores.
We converted this to a 523 on the updated scale which is in the 100th percentile of the updated MCAT. We also converted YoungN’s section scores as follows:
YoungN scored a 14 on the Biological Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 131 on the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems.
YoungN scored a 13 on the Physical Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 130 on the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems.
YoungN scored a 13 on the Verbal Reasoning section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 132 on the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills.
