UT Southwestern: $254 flight Flight to TX for 4 schools: $278 Texas A&M: $96 hotel + $27 gas = $123 Texas Tech: $84 hotel + $33 gas = $117 UTMB: $147 hotel Baylor: $55 gas + $12 parking = $67 Dartmouth: $55 gas BU: $23 parking Columbia: $40 Bard Hall room + $30 bus fare + $11 subway fare = $81 Harvard: $29 parking
I honestly thought I had a decent chance at an interview invite here, but I guess UTH disagrees. No official rejection yet, but seeing as TMDSAS rankings are due tomorrow I'm essentially done here.
Honestly, I'd be surprised if I get an II here. I don't know if my career goals align very well with their mission. I would've been open to visiting the campus and having my mind changed, but I think they know what is best for their institution.
No idea why it took me this long to withdraw. I guess Tufts was one more chance for me to stay in Boston with my significant other, but I realized that even that wouldn't be enough justification for the price difference between Tufts and UT Southwestern.
(I'm also a non-confrontational ditz and didn't want to compose a withdrawal letter. I only just found the "Withdraw Tufts Application" option on the portal today.)
It certainly was a pleasant surprise to receive this invite, six months to the day after I submitted this secondary. I seriously entertained the thought of attending the interview and tried to schedule near a date that I would be (relatively) in the area for my SO's interview. Unfortunately, it just didn't work out. I don't know if I would choose this school over UT Southwestern and it was with much regret that I declined the interview and withdrew my application.
Long School of Medicine - University of Texas Health Sciences Center, San Antonio
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: 06/20/2014
Secondary Completed: Yes
Interview Invite: 10/12/2014
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: No
Summary of Experience:
Withdrew 11/16.
I would've loved the opportunity to visit UTHSCSA, but I was given a January interview date and I just couldn't justify another flight to TX plus taking more days off work after my UT Southwestern pre-match offer. Hope my interview slot goes to someone more worthy!
Dr. Witzburg is pretty amazing. He was fun, enthusiastic, and passionate about BU, and it shows. I never tire of hearing him speak!
Unfortunately, the average student indebtedness here makes me cringe. There are both need- and merit-based scholarships available, but given that the ~180k figure cited is calculated post-scholarships, I'd have to really fall in love with BU to justify matriculating here.
I regret taking up an interview slot, but pre-matches went out too late for me to politely cancel my interview. I attended with an open mind and very much liked the institution, but unfortunately I just didn't fall in love with BU and don't want to waste any more of the admissions committee's time.
UT Southwestern blew me away with the interview program. I couldn't make it to the Friday morning rounds but did attend the Friday afternoon program and, of course, the Saturday morning interview. I backed out of the Friday morning rounds at the last minute and Anne McLane was prompt and very understanding in her response.
I like the switch to the 1.5 year preclinical curriculum, as well as the fact that it's P/F. I love the clinical affiliations: Parkland Memorial, Children's Medical Center, Zale Lipshy University Hospital, and the new William P. Clements, Jr. University Hospital, as well as the Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center. I've heard that the range of patients and pathology seen at these clinical locations are amazing.
I felt that my interviews went okay and left feeling rather positive about them. On the way out, as I was fumbling at the self-service machine to pay for parking, not one, but two, people stopped to tell me that I didn't have to pay, the bar was up. I definitely appreciated it! I also introduced myself to my interviewers with a nickname (easier to pronounce than my real Asian name), but didn't include it on my TMDSAS or secondary application. Imagine my surprise when my acceptance letter and all subsequent information was addressed to this nickname/preferred name--somebody paid attention! And went out of their way to tell the Admissions Office! I'd like to think that this caring and attention to detail is reflective of the way Southwestern treats all of its students.
I had an amazing experience on my interview day and left with a very favorable impression of Texas A&M. I interviewed in Temple.
I was initially hesitant about their split-campus model, but they answered every question I had and I left feeling rather optimistic about it. I don't feel strongly either way about Temple (and I've never been to College Station), but I like that I have the opportunity and flexibility to choose locations such as Dallas, Houston, and Corpus Christi if I were so inclined.
My student interviewer was an incredible ambassador for Texas A&M. He's an older, non-traditional student who reached out to several admissions offices for advice after deciding to pursue medicine. One school turned him down flat and told him that he essentially had to figure things out on his own. As he tells the story, only Texas A&M answered his call and invited him to make a visit to their admissions office. Leila Diaz sat down with him for 1 1/2 hours, going over his application and making suggestions on how to improve his application. When he acted upon their suggestions and applied the following cycle, they accepted him. I would be lucky to attend a school that cares this much for its students.
I also would've had to take biochemistry prior to matriculation, so wasn't a big fan of that.
Texas Tech (unfortunately) was, to me, solidly in the middle of the pack. In fact, my hastily cobbled together table has just about the same number of pros as cons. I like that Tech offers a basic medical Spanish course to those looking to improve their Spanish, emphasizes primary care (e.g, F-MAT), and had a small town feel without the lack of amenities. I didn't like that the pre-clinical curriculum was still 2 years, not P/F (I can't remember the actual breakdown), and that the MS4 student panel just didn't seem all that excited about the school. In fact, many of them candidly divulged that they had ranked other schools higher than Tech for the Match. They have split campuses, but the locations (Odessa, Permian Basin, Amarillo) just aren't as attractive as A&M's to me.
Even Tech feels that the location leaves much to be desired, because many of the students and faculty I met tried to sell us on Lubbock. They even leave brochures about Lubbock and the surrounding cities in our portfolios. As someone who didn't think as much as maybe she ought to have thought about location, I didn't even know, going in, that Lubbock needed to be sold to applicants. I definitely knew it after the interview day though! One of their points as that Lubbock is home to the large undergraduate institution, med students receive all the perks and benefits that the undergrads do, and it's like "being in college again, without having to be a college student." I feel like an old lady saying this, but I don't really want to be in college again. But that's also just me.
I have absolutely no complaints about the people--students, tour guides, admissions staff, interviewers--I met here though. They were all very friendly, down-to-earth people and I didn't have a single negative experience. Unfortunately, I just can't see myself here.
Chervil took the old MCAT and scored a 3 which is in the 0 percentile of all old scores.
We converted this to a 472 on the updated scale which is in the -1st percentile of the updated MCAT. We also converted Chervil’s section scores as follows:
Chervil scored a 1 on the Biological Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 118 on the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems.
Chervil scored a 1 on the Physical Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 118 on the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems.
Chervil scored a 1 on the Verbal Reasoning section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 118 on the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills.
