Hey everyone! Good luck in the upcoming 2015-2016 cycle. I am an MS3 here at Wake and I would be happy to help if anyone has questions about the medical school, Winston-Salem, or life in general. It has been an awesome experience to be a student here at Wake, and I know you all will feel the same way if you become a student here as well.
Last year I gave some general advice and then answered questions that came my way, but I noticed that a lot of folks tended to ask similar questions, so I wanted to make a sort of FAQ here that will hopefully help some of you out. If there’s still a question you have that hasn’t been answered here, then of course feel free to ask me, @surely, or any other Wake student.
Wake Forest School of Medicine Admissions
Q: What are the statistics of the most recent entering class?
A: This link has some information about the Class of 2018:
Class Profile
8,091 applicants
541 interviewed
238 acceptances
Final class of 120
Q: What type of culture is there? What makes Wake unique, in your experience?
A: The culture of any place is difficult to put into words, and thankfully it's the adcom, and not me, that determines who is a good fit. Wake is an environment in which academic excellence and aptitude are cultivated, while at the same time the utmost collegiality is expected. The physicians and scientists here at Wake are excellent and represent some of the best and brightest in the country, but not one person here is too good to help a colleague out. From my fellow classmates to the program directors of our residency programs and everyone in between, any time you want or need help, there is someone there to provide it. Everyone involved with the medical school is invested in your success as a person and physician, and it is this combination of attributes, excellence and compassion, that we try to extend to patient care at WFBMC. (This answer has been repeated from last year’s thread, but after looking at it again I wouldn’t change anything, so I’ve left it intact.)
Q: How does Wake view out-of-state students? Students with no ties to North Carolina?
A: Wake is a private school and therefore has no obligations to in-state students. Usually, a significant portion of each class are NC residents, but I think that is because those students offer very compelling reasons about why they want to be at Wake. If an OOS student also gives great reasons why he or she wants to be at Wake, then he or she would be on equal footing. Attending college in NC can be considered one thing that strengthens your 'connection' to NC, but attending college in NC is not the same as being a resident.
Q: What is the interview day like?
A: You'll spend about 6 hours here, and only 6 applicants are invited to each interview day. Our interview day goes from 9-3. In the first three hours, you attend various informational seminars about the school, like the history of Wake and a financial aid section. Boring stuff I know, but it does help you to get a better idea of the big picture at Wake. From 12-1 you eat lunch in the cafeteria with a pair of med students. You can use this time to ask any questions you want and get the answer straight from the lion's mouth. After lunch, the interview group of 6 applicants will be split up into groups of 3. The first group will do their interviews from 1-2 while the other group of three goes on a tour around the medical center. Wake does three 20 minute interviews. They are not supposed to be stressful at all. The tour is led by a medical student or two, and that is another chance to ask the med students what it's like to be here. At 2, the groups will switch positions. At 3, the interview day is over.
Q: Does Wake screen applications pre-secondary? How many students make it to each stage of the application process?
A: I don’t have the exact numbers in front of me, so please don’t quote me on these numbers – I’m going to estimate. Wake receives over 8,000 applications each year, and roughly 2000-2500 students receive secondary applications. From these group of applicants that complete secondaries, we interview around 500-600 applicants. From the 500-600 who interview here, roughly 250 will go on to be accepted.
Q: What is one thing about Wake that stands out to you?
A: One thing about Wake that wasn't apparent from the website or interview was just how important the medical students are to the administration. You're definitely not just a number; people all over the medical school, from financial aid to medical education all know my name and who I am, even if I haven't interacted with them in months. Everyone is invested in our success, and it shows in the way that they treat us.
Q: How does Wake view multiple MCAT scores?
A: To the best of my knowledge, Wake considers all MCAT scores of the applicant. My most recent understanding is that Wake still takes the best composite score from applicants with multiple MCAT scores. For example, if you have taken the MCAT twice, then Wake will create a composite score that uses the best subsection scores from each time you took the test.
Q: Curriculum - The weekly schedule sample I saw showed a great deal of in-class time. Has this been your experience? Is attendance mandatory? When I visited, the students made it seem like they didn't know what to study to prepare for the tests, and there wasn't a clear syllabus. Is this accurate?
A: Some of the curriculum is mandatory attendance, but most of it is not. For example, I think most lectures are optional to attend, and they are recorded so you can view them later if you want. Other classes, like our medical interview/physical exam courses, or case-centered learning are attendance required. I personally attend all activities, mandatory attendance or not, and I feel like I waste very little of my time. Other people, however, choose to only attend class when it is mandatory – an example of how some people have different learning styles. Wake does a great job of catering to both groups, and both strategies (or a combination of them both) allow you to be successful.
Wake definitely has its fair share of PhDs that lecture us and spend a third of the lecture talking about their research interests. However, on the whole, the lectures you get will be contain valuable information and will not be a waste of time. I distinctly remember while taking Step 1 there were some questions that I only knew the answer to because I attended every lecture – I didn’t see the answer in any review resource that I used. Wake has been putting forth a huge effort in the past couple years to shift the curriculum to better prepare students for Step 1.
Q: Is Wake Forest involved with service or Global Health Initiatives?
A: I know that the school of medicine is heavily involved with global health, and sends a lot of students every year to communities across the globe to help out with thosethat are in desperate need of medical care. There are many of my classmates that are spending this summer doing service in Central or South America, or Africa. Other than that, and the other free clinic stuff that we do, I know that the school strongly encourages its students to get involved in any way they can. I know we had a special one hour seminar talking about the Albert Schweitzer fellowship, and Wake has students every year that do that, as well as various other things. I think the important thing to take away is that Wake does an excellent job of making sure that its students have every opportunity necessary to pursue whichever service project they want.
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2015-2016 Wake Forest University Application Thread
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