Brief Profile:
Traditional applicant, applying in 2015-2016 cycle. I'll be updating this profile throughout the entire process!
// Applications //
Application Cycle One: 05/31/2015
Undergraduate college: Top 10 USNWR School
Undergraduate Area of study: Biological/Life Sciences
Total MCAT SCORE: 523
MCAT Section Scores:
B/B 130,
C/P 132,
CARS 130
Overall GPA: 4.00
Science GPA: 4.00
Summary of Application Experience
07/16/15: Received secondaries from UNC and UCSF today, which means I've gotten secondaries from all 23 of the schools I applied to! Now, just 11 more to go before I'm done :)
07/30/15: DONE WITH SECONDARIES!!! What a huge weight lifted off my shoulders after a stressful July of essay-writing. I'm excited to take a few days to relax before I start preparing for interviews. On to the next step of this long process!
08/16/15: First interview coming up this week... going to full-time prepare over the next 3 days. Excited for the opportunities!
09/10/15: Additional letter of recommendation from summer research mentor uploaded to AMCAS, sent to all schools for which I completed a secondary application.
10/21/15: Completed interviews at 12 schools, withdrew from 2 others, and waiting to hear back from 7 remaining. I currently have no outstanding interviews to attend, so I could possibly be done! The past 2 months have consisted of many flights, uber rides, and one-night hotel stays, but I have greatly enjoyed visiting different medical schools.
12/21/15: Sent updated transcript with Fall 2015 grades to all schools whom I have not yet heard back from.
01/31/16: Sent update of accepted publication to all schools whom I have not yet heard back from.
02/12/16: DONE WITH LAST INTERVIEW! SUCH A GREAT FEELING. Now just have to wait a few more agonizing weeks before I hear back from all the remaining schools.
05/03/16: Matriculating at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the fall!
Summary of Experience:
Post-Interview Thoughts: Traditional curriculum with two years pre-clinical, 3rd year clinical, 4th year electives and Sub-I. First year is true pass/fail, but second year is graded. Students say that second year is undoubtedly harder than first year, but that they appreciated the grading system in retrospect because it pushed them to understand the material better. Some students expressed concerns that they didn't have enough time after third-year clerkships to decide on a specialty for residency, so they encouraged us to shadow during 1st and 2nd years. Many students conduct research in the summer after first year. There is a free workout facility in Olin Residence hall but it isn't that great. Maybe it was because I was tired being on the second leg of back-to-back interviews, but I didn't get the best gut feeling about this school from talking to current students. There are no longer any public hospitals in St. Louis, so WashU med is now the center for a lot of community health care as well. There's a 2 week orientation before first year for students to bond with each other.
Summary of Experience:
Post-Interview thoughts: TMC is huge and surrounds Baylor College of Medicine. Class size 186. A bit concerned about the probationary accreditation status of the school. Lots of flexibility in curriculum, 18 months pre-clinical education. Short summer after first year (4 weeks). Student lounge has a foosball table. Current students are all very nice and friendly. Many students here choose to take the STEP1 exam after a year of clinical experience because of the shortened basic science curriculum, and they claim that this prepares them better for the exam, which consists of clinical vignettes.
Summary of Experience:
Applied to NP and HST programs; dream school.
09/08/2015: OMGOMGOMG interview invites to NP and HST programs
10/20/2015 Post-Interview Thoughts: I don't know where to begin - HMS is incredible. I interviewed for the Pathways program on Monday and the HST program the day after. The Harvard medical campus is beautiful with a central grass quad surrounded by marble buildings. It's located right next to some of the best hospitals in the world, including Brigham and Women's, Beth-Israel, and Boston Children's. MGH is about 20 minutes away. The Pathways program has a new 1-year preclinical curriculum that incorporates a longitudinal clinical experience (Practice of medicine) starting from Day 1. After clinical rotations throughout 2nd year, students can return to basic science by taking advanced electives that integrate science with medicine. There is also a required scholarly project, completed through research. The HST program is much more research-oriented and delays clinical rotations until the spring of 2nd-year. HST has completely different classes from Pathways and generally works from within their own group. Current students as well as other interviewing applicants were all very friendly and fun to talk to. In fact, I would love to get a second-look just to see some of the other applicants again. HMS students are divided into 5 academic societies, which serve as a home base for advising and learning. The Pathways program uses a flipped classroom approach during first year, where students self-learn most of the material and then apply it to problems and cases with others in their societies during classes. As a result, you have to attend classes and can't just listen to recorded lectures. There is a Society Olympics every year that promotes friendly competition between the societies. There is also a free clinic, Crimson Care Collaboratives, where many students volunteer. There is also a new medical humanities initiative with many arts programs. All in all, I really liked both the Pathways and HST programs at HMS. Keeping my fingers crossed until the first week of March.
03/02/2016: Rejected from Pathways, waitlisted for HST.
Summary of Experience:
Post-interview thoughts: Love the small class size (88) and fact that everyone knows each other. Pritzker societies really promote student bonding as well. Great exercise facilities and Hyde Park is a nice neighborhood. Many students took a year off to do research so there's flexibility with the curriculum. Right next to the undergraduate campus.
10/15/2015: Accepted with 75% merit scholarship!! I received a phone call from the dean of admissions whom I interviewed with. So excited!!
Summary of Experience:
Post-interview thoughts: Loved the location and its affiliation with Sloan-Kettering, HSS (top orthopedic and rheumatology hospital), and NewYork-Presbyterian. Rockefeller University is also a great research facility with many Nobel laureates. The housing is also incredibly cheap for NYC (~$700/month), although it's a single room dorm-style housing with common kitchens. There is a nice private gym and basketball court for Cornell students. The area of concentration and scholarly project in Cornell's curriculum provides opportunities for research. Relatively small class size (~100).
Summary of Experience:
07/07/15: Realized a few hours after submitting secondary that I had a typo (extra word) in one of my essays. :( Oh well, I hope it won't be too big of a deal.
08/20/15: Post-interview impressions: I really like the 2-week first-response trauma training during M1. The current students all seemed really nice and sociable. Liked the proximity of gym facilities and ability to do rotations at Cincinnati Children's Hospital.
02/15/16: Withdrew after receiving acceptances and scholarships from other schools that I preferred.
Summary of Experience:
Interview Thoughts: Really like the research focus here, with a required scholarly project to be completed by graduation. Many students conduct research during the first summer. Lots of flexibility with curriculum through electives, mini-electives, and arranging schedule of 3rd-year rotations. Students here all seem really friendly, many proactively helped me find my way to my interviews despite not knowing me. Medical facilities are next to undergraduate campus, which is in Oakland. The cost of living isn't that expensive (around $700 a month for a double apartment). I wasn't a fan of the hills around campus and the fact that the campus was kind of merged with the rest of the city. Curriculum features a mix of PBL/lecture/research which suits my interests. Over 21 hospitals in the UPMC complex, including a VA, pediatrics, Cancer Center, and more.
02/04/16: Accepted with $30,000 merit scholarship per year over four years.
Summary of Experience:
Post-Interview Thoughts: Really liked this school! The P&S Club has over 70 extracurricular organizations for the medical students, more than any other school I've interviewed at. The class size of ~170 is a bit larger than the other schools I visited. There's a strong focus on BMI here that I can really relate to, and I even met a student here pursuing a masters in BMI. It also features a truly pass/fail curriculum and an incredibly collaborative student community. There's also a great intramural sports scene, gym and workout facilities, and arts/music organizations. The one negative I have to say is that the living conditions are pretty poor; Bard Hall is where all of the first-year students live, and there is no A/C and has community bathrooms and showers. The rent is only around $900/month, but the rooms are pretty old. Apparently, most students move to live in the Towers after the first year, which are more like apartments and nicer. Also, current students said that sometimes there aren't enough study spaces in the library. However, a new building is being built right now to house anatomy labs and more study spaces. Clerkships are done at a variety of locations around NYC and abroad, including Stamford in CT and an Indian reservation in New Mexico. The first-year lecture hall also seemed pretty new and the lecturer was pretty entertaining to listen to. The school is located in Washington Heights, which is pretty far away from the bustling Midtown and downtown regions, so the living area isn't too loud and hectic during the week.
02/11/16: Accepted via phone call from my interviewer!
Summary of Experience:
07/17: INTERVIEW INVITE! Literally one full day after I submitted my secondary, too. I definitely didn't expect this but am super excited for the opportunity!
09/14: Post-Interview thoughts: Medical facilities here are awesome, the medical school building was just finished a few years ago, and the new Duke Cancer Center opened in 2012. Current students welcomed us at every stage of the interview day. Each grade is divided into 4 advising groups and have weekly meetings with their advisers. The practice course in the second half of first year exposes students to patient care experience. 90% of students here have cars, so it's pretty important. Everyone has access to gyms on campus. The third year of research gives students a chance to nurture their interests before applying to residency. People take the Step 1 exam after 2nd year, which is comprised of clinical clerkships. Class size of about 115.
Summary of Experience:
Post-interview thoughts: The school talked a lot about their new Curriculum 2.0 that started just a few years ago, featuring a 1-year pre-clinical and an immersion phase in years 3 and 4. Doing clerkships in year 2 allows students more time to explore clinical interests for residency and flexibility to take advanced electives. The school has a small class size (88) and has a great support system for the students, including a Hogwarts-like college system and portfolio advisers that provide career mentoring. The lecture that I sat in on did not seem very engaging and was held in a large room. Nashville is a medium-sized city that offers affordable housing and great music throughout the year. The medical center is right next to the undergraduate campus, law school, and Peabody school of education. The clinical facilities here include a Children's Hospital, VA, and level 1 trauma center. There's also a strong focus on biomedical informatics here.
12/21/15: Accepted with Cornelius Vanderbilt 75% merit scholarship!
Summary of Experience:
Post-Interview thoughts: James Cancer Center and Nationwide Children's Hospital are both huge hospitals with cutting edge facilities. There's a big emphasis on early longitudinal clinical care here through the longitudinal practice program. All of the students really seemed to like the school and their classmates. They all seemed very happy, even more so than students at other schools I've been to. The lecture hall is very nice with comfortable chairs, and lectures are live streamed as well as recorded. There are a lot of free clinics in the area, including the Columbus Free Clinic and the Asian free clinic. Medical center is right next to undergraduate campus and other professional schools. All medical students have access to the Rpac and other workout facilities year-round, which are some of the best in the country. Intramural sports are also very popular.
Summary of Experience:
Only submitted secondary for CCLCM, not the University Program.
CT Post-Interview Thoughts: Cleveland Clinic is incredible. The hospital is huge and connected by multiple skybridges. The interior of the new facilities are spacious, polished, decorated with artwork, and filled with ambient music. This was the most impressive medical facility that I've visited yet, and it seems like a true standard of care for patients. The curriculum is very unique and characterized entirely by PBL sessions during first and second years - no exams, no grades, no lectures. This gives students chances to research material themselves and share with peers. 2-year pre-clinical. There's longitudinal outpatient experiences during the first two years though. Years 3-5 are characterized by core clerkships and a research year. Current students said that the PBL learning really prepared them well for clinical rotations, although there were certain areas of the Step1 exam for which they needed to independently study. The first two summers are dedicated to basic and clinical research, respectively. All tuition is paid for, but living expenses are not and estimated to be around $24,000 a year. Housing is pretty affordable in Cleveland. Overall, this hospital truly impressed me and while I have some concerns about the unique curriculum, I could see myself transitioning pretty well.
Summary of Experience:
Post-Interview Thoughts: The thing that stood out to me most about Yale: freedom. No graded exams during preclinical, pass/pass later system in which even if you fail a course, they give you chances to remediate and pass later. You know your own rank, but no one else does. Lectures are optional and many students prefer to stream them over the computer. all the students I talked to had a very chill, laid back attitude about the experience here and sounded like they were really enjoying it. There's a popular second year show where they produce a full film satirizing the school itself and include faculty. Class size is pretty small, about 100. They're rolling out a new curriculum with a 1.5 year preclinical, and more time after clerkships to do research and electives. 70% of students choose to do a tuition free fifth year to do research or get a dual degree, such as MBA or MHS. Many students stay in apartments near campus where the rent is around $1000/month. Intramural basketball it popular and there's an ongoing rivalry between the medical and law schools. Classes end at around noon each day during first year, and there are about 3 days a week with afternoon activities. There's also a very well established global health department here with partnerships in many countries around the world. New Haven is a small city with quite large wealth inequality, resulting in a diverse patient population. It's known for its pizza (Pepes? Modern?) and Thai food. All in all, I had a fairly positive impression of the school during the interview. Looking forward to hearing back in March.
Summary of Experience:
Post-interview thoughts: I loved JHU SOM! The biggest impression the school left on me was the warmth of the student community. Each grade is divided into 4 colleges of 30 students each, and each college has its own lounge with foosball table and ping pong table and kitchen. During the tour, I saw many students socializing in the education building (AMEC) atrium. There is also a lot of flexibility in curriculum during the clinical years and onward. There is a gym right next to the AMEC and pickup basketball every week. Housing is pretty affordable, and most people have cars by their 3rd year. There is a prominent free clinic that is staffed by the JHU students called Charm City Clinic, and they primarily assist with referring patients to the greater Johns Hopkins Hospital. Looking forward to hearing back from this school in mid-February.
04/25/16: Matriculating here as a part of the class of 2020! Excited to spend the next four years at this great school.
