mercredi 20 juillet 2016
"Funny quotes from 'less informed' pre-meds," On-Topic Edition
Had this conversation this weekend after finishing up a volunteering shift at a free clinic:
Premed asks me what specialty I want to go into and I eventually ask him the same thing, naturally, he responds:
Premed: I want to be a neurosurgeon and I'm pretty sure I want to be an academic somewhere in the northeast.
Me: (thinking: this guy is def. on SDN) Wow! That's pretty ambitious. What set you on neurosurgery?
Premed: neurosurgeons make tons of money! I also heard the academics have really flexible schedules so I can work part time, make tons of money, and then just run a business or invest on the side.
Me: (....giving benefit of the doubt, maybe it's a rather reasonable business) Well what kind of business do you want to run? It might be tough to work part time if someone is expecting you to publish and operate and teach, you know?
Premed: Something with investment or finance where I could just triple the money I'm earning from surgery. (Here comes the best part..) I just want enough money to live a comfortable life.
Me: Ahh...good luck with that.
What kind of life do you have to live up to that point to think you need neurosurgeon + financier money to live comfortably? Probably a pretty sweet one. But probably a miserable one from then on out when they find out that is essentially impossible.
Edit: I should add, this guy has already been accepted to a TX Med school so get ready team, he is coming for you.
"Funny quotes from 'less informed' pre-meds," On-Topic Edition
vendredi 11 mars 2016
University of St. Augustine Fall 2016
I'm still raging. San Diego State just revamped their webpage and changed admission requirements, too. Like, 4 days ago. Granted, their cycle doesn't open until 10/1, but I'm asking for reference letters RIGHT NOW, and I've already gotten hard copies (as per previous requirements). Now they tell me it's electronic and I can't have a letter from an employer? And there's an essay about contemporary issues in PT? And a VIDEO??
Sorry this is unrelated to USA, I'm just really angry.
University of St. Augustine Fall 2016
2015-2016 Columbia University College of P&S Application Thread
Hey Everyone,
I'll be an incoming MS1 student, so don't ask me any questions about the curriculum or facilities (or, god forbid, the wards). Kidding. Sort of.
I fell in love with Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons (affectionately and inaccurately referred to as college of surgeons and surgeons around SDN) when I was far younger, and my affection has only increased during my application cycle, interview trail, and second look weekend. I'm thrilled to become a part of P&S, and I'd love to answer any questions that anyone has (or at the least refer you to someone who knows more than I do).
I've created an "information sheet" below, to try to summarize some key points about P&S (as you'll find on a few other threads, I'm sure). Good luck to everyone applying!
Stats [Source]
~7,800 applicants
~7,450 "applications considered"
~1,100 interviews (no in-state bias)
As per Columbia P&S Graduate, about 200 are accepted immediately, 700 waitlisted, and 100 rejected
~325 total acceptances (including off WL)
170 matriculated
Matriculating Class Statistics [source: @WedgeDawg]:
Median Undergraduate GPA: 3.85
Median MCAT Score: 36 (13/11/13 median section breakdowns)
2015-2016 Secondary Application (there is no screen)
- If you took time off from your undergraduate studies, please briefly summarize your reasons for doing so. - 250 words
- From which languages can you translate scholarly material into English?
- In what collegiate extracurriculars did you engage? - 400 characters
- Did you work for compensation during college during the year or the summer? If so, what did you do? How many hours a week did you work? - 300 words
- If you have graduated from college, please briefly summarize what you have done in the interim. - 300 words
- What challenges do you expect to arise from living and working in a complex urban environment? How will you meet them? - 300 words
- Is there anything else you would like us to know? - 300 words
- Please describe your parents' occupations: - 100 char
2014-2015 Secondary Application (there is no screen)
2014-2015 Important Dates*
First secondary: July 1st, 2014
First interview invites: August 18th-20th, 2014
First acceptance: February 11th, 2015 via phone call (portals updated within a couple days with email alert)
First waitlist: February 12th, 2015 via portal update (with email alert)
As per recent (5/5/15) phone calls to the admissions office, waitlist movement should occur by mid-to-late May.
*All dates have been obtained through SDN archives, though there is complete agreement with these dates and those published by P&S admissions online.
Update Letter Policy
Updates are accepted pre- and post-interview. All updates should be uploaded through the application portal. You should receive an email within a few days confirming that your update has been received. In addition, "Thank You Letters," should you choose to send them, should also be uploaded through this portal. [Source: interview day]
Curriculum
1.5 year condensed preclinical curriculum.
- Preclinical grading is Pass/Fail [Source]
- Clinicals are graded using a 4-tiered system: honors/high pass/pass/fail.
- Lectures are non-mandatory and recorded; labs and small group activities are incorporated throughout the fundamental courses (and foundation selectives)
One faculty interview. Faculty interview is open-file.
Of Note
- Columbia graduates are below the national mean with respect to post-graduate debt, although merit scholarships are reputed to be somewhat uncommon. That being said, the tuition is ~53,500 a year, and COL in NYC is no laughing matter. Check here for more details. Fortunately, the financial aid office is generous with need-based aid and, like I said, the average indebtedness for P&S grads is still below the national mean. Not bad when you consider everything else Columbia has to offer (utterly shameless comment from infatuated MS0)
- Extensive on-campus student housing is offered to P&S students to help mitigate the cost of living in NYC
- Columbia admissions and students extoll the P&S club as being the largest and most comprehensive student activities organization "in American medical education"
- Student research opportunities at Columbia are virtually limitless, both with respect to mentors and to financial support. At second look weekend, we were told that every single person who applied for summer research funding the previous year (so summer of 2014) managed to receive a grant.
- Official match list
- Columbia P&S Facebook Page
Finally, I will probably periodically update this throughout the coming months, although if anyone has any details that they would specifically like me to add, feel free to comment.
Citation for format: the ever-informative @hellanutella
As I said before, I'd be willing to answer as many questions as I can. Thankfully, there are several older P&S students who frequent SDN, and I'm sure they'll be along to help everyone out along the way. Once again, good luck to all applying!
2015-2016 Columbia University College of P&S Application Thread
2015-2016 University of Texas - Rio Grande Valley Application Thread
I'm from the valley, so I hear things through the grapevine - just in case you were wondering how I know the following things I'm about to say. They're supposedly only going to accept 50 students in their first class, just like Dell Med at UT Austin. The campus (at least the medical education part) will be built in Edinburg although there will probably be several sites in Harlingen/McAllen/Edinburg which will have clinical training for med students - one of which was formerly the RAHC through UTHSC San Antonio (it's in Harlingen). I'm sure it'll be tough to get in if you don't have a desire to work with underserved populations - especially since you'll be training in the poorest area of the U.S. They're probably looking for students who want to work with Hispanic populations, can speak Spanish (or at least intend to learn how to speak it), and are interested in primary care. It's not to say they won't accept someone with the desire to practice non-primary care medicine, but I'm sure they'll take your interest in primary care more seriously. I think the stats will probably reflect that of El Paso and Lubbock, but just due to the fact that they're accepting few students may make it more difficult.
If anyone has questions on what living in the valley is like, feel free to ask! I will say that it's not as bad as people think it is. No, there's no *border violence* on our side of the border, and I would say the valley is much safer than most major cities in Texas. We also have South Padre, which is only 20 minutes from Brownsville and about an hour and a half away from Edinburg!
2015-2016 University of Texas - Rio Grande Valley Application Thread
A.T. Still University (ATSU-SOMA) Arizona Discussion Thread 2015 - 2016
Describe your activities during any gaps longer than 3 months in your college or postgraduate record.
Describe your academic readiness for medical school by answering one of the following questions:
a. Describe your learning strategy and how this strategy will help you become a successful student at SOMA.
b. Describe any academic performance issues you have experienced and how you got back on course.
Describe your understanding of a career as a physician by answering one of the following questions:
a. Describe the essential traits of a physician. Which one of your past experiences had the greatest influence on your choice of traits?
b. Of the following characteristics found in successful medical students, choose one that is important to you and explain why?
- Confidence
- Discipline
- Resilience
- Intelligence
Describe your understanding of a career as an osteopathic physician by answering one of the following questions:
a. Describe your experiences with DO’s.Have you ever shadowed a DO, if not explain why? Do you have a letter of recommendation from a DO, if not explain why?
b. Which one of the osteopathic tenets do you most identify with at this point in your life? Explain why.
c. How do you envision incorporating osteopathic philosophy and practice as a physician?
Describe your understanding of SOMA by answering one of the following questions:
a. What unique feature of SOMA appeals to you? What specific feature of SOMA concerns you?
b. What would be your strongest attribute as a SOMA student? What would be your weakest?
c. How do you plan to be involved with medically underserved populations in your medical career? How have your past volunteer experiences influenced your plans?
A.T. Still University (ATSU-SOMA) Arizona Discussion Thread 2015 - 2016
The official MCAT May 20th 2016
I don't think you're starting too early by any means, especially if you recognize that you have a lot to review content wise. However, remember that CONTENT is in reality a minor contributor to your final score. You need the baseline, the foundation if you will, but you get points and perform well based almost exclusively on your ability to: `
1. Read and understand challenging experimental passages taken from actual journal articles and,
2. Answer CONCEPTUAL questions relevant to that passage and/or the topics it touches upon.
As you seek out Full-Lengths and practice materials, make sure you compare them to the AAMC standard (there are two FL exams to compare to now). There is still a major problem right now with the prep material not matching the actual exam. For example, many, many passages aren't experimental at all, aren't based on actual research or cited journal articles, don't contain appropriately difficult graphs and figures, use language that is far too simplistic, use questions that are not AAMC question types, etc. There are various resources available and some are definitely better than others. I think every student needs to become educated and decide for themselves what constitutes accurate practice via comparison to the AAMC standard. Best of luck!
The official MCAT May 20th 2016
Inscription à :
Articles (Atom)