I kinda did apps in three rounds. As I progressed through the cycle, I understood the process a little better and where I fit so I added schools accordingly. Admittedly, I just didn't know a ton going in and I really didn't put my app out there like I should have right off the bat. It just goes to show how important just PREPPING for app season is. And, I suggest trying to do some secondary pre-writing before the cycle begins to save yourself some time and preserve sanity...because I definitely lost it. Also, Just FYI, I didn't take the writing section since I took the old MCAT at the end of it's run so I just made up a score
Applied, Withdrew
University of Alabama
Applying for combined PhD/MSTP? No
Submitted: 07/13/2015
Secondary Completed: No
Interview Invite: No
Interview Attended: No
Waitlisted: No
Accepted: No
Rejected: No
Summary of Experience:
Way too much $$ OOS for what I think isn't much extra benefit in program prestige or quality. Not to mention living in Birmingham. It's not like Charlottesville, VA which is more expensive but gorgeous. There just was no logical reason for UAB after I thought more about it.
Summary of Experience:
Interview day was wonderful. Started around noon which was nice. They were straight to the point, concise, and sold their program. They run a tight ship there...probably helps them have that "highest Step 1 score" title. Interviews were very very relaxed and enjoyable. I was blown away by TMC. Everyone on interview day was a heavy hitter...I could definitely tell I was playing in the big leagues...overall, wonderful!
Summary of Experience:
Facilities are top notch, dean is super nice, interviews were relaxed....I loved it here. It is also my home school, in a way, so I already liked it a lot. I am so thankful for the acceptance!
Summary of Experience:
This has been my most amazing experience so far. Previously I greatly disliked UF in general because of the vibes I got from people I knew that went there and a somewhat elitist attitude from some undergrads I know. I went to the interview day thinking I wouldn't be interested at all in UF. Boy was I wrong, all because of one person, the Assistant Dean of Admissions, Dr. James Lynch. He is AMAZING. He is the doctor I would see if I got leukemia (he is an oncologist specializing in leukemia/lymphoma I am pretty sure). He is smart, straightforward, kind, sincere, and DEDICATED. There is not a thing I didn't like about him. I was really impressed by the talk he gave us. The facilities were impressive and the day was really fun, listening to a patient's story, watching Stan demonstration (their anesthesiology simulator), trying to practice intubation on models, and interesting interviews! Overall, I think my favorite interview so far! UF definitely has become a contender.
Summary of Experience:
Underwhelming is the perfect word for this. I feel as though USF's program is way better than it appears, they just don't do a great job of selling it. I had one really awesome interviewer that I connected with very well. She was basically me, except like 40 years older. The other interviewer was kind of a jerk to me. He thought he knew everything. And even if he did, I didn't think the place to show it was interviewing a potential med student at 22 years old. Not to mention he made some comments that I found sexist which made me a little mad. Times are different, bud. Perhaps he was just putting some pressure on me to see how I would respond. Who knows. I did get great vibes from the students though. They were all SUPER nice and so sweet. Despite the underwhelming nature of the school's presentation, on a strictly "fit in with the class" basis, I could see myself there. Either way, it was a pretty decent
Summary of Experience:
WOW! What an experience! UVA was AMAZING. The interview day was definitely them selling themselves to us as much as it was us selling ourselves to them. The weather was gorgeous, the facilities were amazing, the people were so nice and helpful. Also, I really valued that there were only a few applicants in the interview day group. It made me feel like I could get my questions answered by the medical students and I could get to know the other interviewees. The tour was the best, most thorough, and most beautiful so far. Oh, and lunch was great.
As for the school itself, I like to put it like this: it is a doctor factory that cares about its students. There are plenty of medical schools out there that produce good physicians but they are kind of impersonal and "whatever" about their students to some extent. This is not true at UVA. They care about their students and want to ensure they have a good life and experience outside of school in addition to in school. The teaching style of this curriculum seems strong and flexible for many learning styles so that is nice.
I'm not one to be all detailed and nitpick a school and point out all of the little things about it but I felt that UVA's presentation warranted it and they showed me how much the little things matter to them. They really did a fantastic job on all fronts, the actual education and the interview day.
ThatRunnerLyfe took the old MCAT and scored a which is in the percentile of all old scores.
We converted this to a on the updated scale which is in the percentile of the updated MCAT. We also converted ThatRunnerLyfe’s section scores as follows:
ThatRunnerLyfe scored a 13 on the Biological Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 130 on the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems.
ThatRunnerLyfe scored a 14 on the Physical Science section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 132 on the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems.
ThatRunnerLyfe scored a 11 on the Verbal Reasoning section of the old MCAT which is approximately equal to a 129 on the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills.
