6/15: My AMCAS just got verified, so I'm just getting started. It's a little strange not having any idea where I'll be next year, but I've got so much stuff going on I'm just going to let it take care of itself and not stress too much. I applied to a lot of really competitive schools, so I'm going to try not to get too down with rejections and I might apply to some other schools later on when I get a better idea of my situation. I'm hoping that MCG, and possibly Wake, will be safeties for me and I'll just take my chances at the other schools.
7/28: I've submitted 5 secondaries (that's all I've received), but I haven't sent in any LOR's because I'm still waiting for one to arrive in my Interfolio account before sending them.
8/11: As of today, I have 5 secondaries submitted with LOR's sent, so I should be complete soon at these schools (MCG, Hopkins, Yale, WashU, and Wake). I have received secondaries from Duke and Vanderbilt, but have not returned them yet. I have an interview invite that came along with the secondary from Vanderbilt, and I am in the process of scheduling that now. I have received email notice (on 8/8) that the Emory secondary will be available within two weeks, so I'm expecting to get that one soon. No word from UNC or Harvard. I think Harvard always gets their secondary out late (and they don't screen, so it's just a matter of time), but I'm not sure if UNC has passed me over or is just taking their time with secondary invites.
8/11: Just got Emory secondary and submitted it in about 30 minutes. Short and sweet.
8/17: Got back from Vandy yesterday. It was a good experience, overall. The student host I stayed with was awesome, so much cooler than I could have hoped for. All of the people in the class I met were really cool, too. The facilities were really nice, and so were all of the faculty/staff that I met. They really try to sell the school. Low pressure interview. I hope I get in.
8/30: Complete at Yale, WashU, Wake Forest. Vanderbilt's website is showing that my letters aren't in the file, even though I've already interviewed. I'm still waiting on notification from Emory, Hopkins, MCG, and Duke, but I've sent everything I need to send. Still no secondary from UNC, and no word at all from Harvard.
9/12/05: Now complete at Yale, WashU, Wake, MCG, and Hopkins. Vanderbilt is backlogged on letters apparently, and haven't confirmed that mine have been received. Sent in Harvard's secondary about a week and a half ago. Waiting to be complete at Emory, Duke, Harvard. No secondary from UNC, yet.
9/15/05: Finally got my letters uploaded at Vandy. Kind of disappointed with the way it was handled, just because if I hadn't stayed on top of them really hard I probably would be behind because my letters were in the office but they weren't looking for them to upload them. The ADCOM starts reviewing apps tomorrow, and my file wasn't going to be reviewed until the letters were uploaded. I had to call them and email them 5-10 times before they finally got uploaded. On the other hand, the people in the office were extremely nice, and I know they have a huge amount of letters. So it wasn't really anyone's fault, it just kind of worked out that way.
10/4/05: Havard and Yale sent interview invites today. Probably shooting for late this month to make a trip up and interview at both. WashU sent me an interview invite a few weeks ago and I haven't gotten back to them because I really don't have the time nor money to make a separate trip out to STL right now. Might try to call and work something out with them.
10/14/05: Emory sent an interview invite yesterday, so I booked that one too since it's an easy trip for me. That makes 6 interview invites so far and I've scheduled all of them except WashU, which I think is a pretty good number. In chronological order: Vanderbilt, Yale, Harvard, Emory, MCG. I haven't heard from any NC schools (Wake, UNC, Duke), which is a little surprising because I thought I would hear from at least Wake by now. Maybe UNC will take a little longer since I'm out of state. Not really sure if UNC or Duke will even invite me to interview. No word from Hopkins, either. Of all the schools I applied to, I think I am the least optimistic about Hopkins. I know they have been interviewing for a while, and I think my lack of research could be a deal breaker there.
10/17/05: Got waitlisted at Vandy today. Wasn't my first choice, but still really liked the school and disappointed to be waitlisted.
10/21/05: Feeling a little nervous. Maybe should have done a couple more safety schools, but we'll see how it turns out. Need to make these upcoming interviews really count.
10/29/05: Just got done interviewing at Harvard and Yale. They were both incredible places. It is tough to interview on back to back days and actually keep things straight and make a solid decision about which school is for you. From my limited experience, they seemed to be more similar than different, and I think that is a good thing for both of them. Definitely my top two choices at this point. The vibe I got from my interviewers and students I met was really positive at both schools. Wow, what a trip.
11/8/05: Got back from my Emory interview yesterday. Really great school, and seems like the teaching and clinical training is top of the line. Traditional curriculum and grading system doesn't bother me much, and I think it's still an effective way to learn. The school and location really make a lot of sense for me, so I'm hoping to get good news from them. The tour is almost ridiculously long, but it allows you to get a good feel for the school and the hospital. Great athletic/workout facilities. Not really sure how I would compare it to Harvard and Yale; they are very different places but all great in their own way. I'm not really a fan of Atlanta for the most part, but Emory is in a great part of Atlanta. I have a much better feeling about Emory after visiting.
11/8/05: One other thought. I think it's safe to say I won't be hearing from UNC, Duke, or Hopkins. Probably research related for the latter two and just not being an NC resident for UNC. It sounds like Wake will probably invite me if I call and ask about my status, but I'm not sure I really want to interview there. It's not that high on my list just because of the location, so I would probably have to put it behind the other 6 schools I've been invited to. I can't decide if I should interview there anyway, considering I have a total of zero acceptances right now but I'm pretty confident (hopeful?) that I will get into at least one of these places. I mean, sooner or later the odds have to work in my favor, right?
11/16/05: Interviewed at MCG today. Nice place. It's not like the places I've been interviewing at, but it's laid back and friendly. The area isn't very exciting, but that doesn't bother me much. I could see myself there, if the price is right.
11/18/05: Set up my interview at WashU yesterday. I was having trouble for a while because I have had a really busy schedule and it's a long trip for me, but it's nice to be done. I wasn't all that excited about WashU, but now that I've looked into it some and heard about all the things they do for their students, it looks really awesome. I'm looking forward to visiting and I could see it ending up as one of my top choices if it is what I'm expecting. I wouldn't be surprised if this is my last interview, considering what I have left. I doubt I'll pursue an interview at Wake just because for the money I probably wouldn't go there over MCG anyway. Still looks like nothing at all from UNC, Duke, and Hopkins.
11/28/05: Accepted to Emory today. No more waitlists for me! It's nice to not have to worry about getting in somewhere anymore. It's a great school, too, so I'm excited. I also got an interview invite to Duke today. I have no idea why they held out so long and then ended up inviting me anyway. I had really written that one off. Who knows, maybe Hopkins will think about me again, too. It's a terrible time of the year for me to try to set up an interview, so I don't know what I'm going to do.
12/15/05: Just got back from WashU interview the other day. Awesome school, I'll put it in my top 3. It's probably the only school I've never heard anyone say something bad about. Also got accepted to MCG, letter waiting in the mail when I came back from St. Louis.
12/24/05: Set up regional interview with Duke today. Really wish I could check out the facilities and visit the school, but the regional interview was too convenient to pass up with my schedule being so busy. Haven't really had much else going on. The only school I might hear back from in the near future is WashU. Other than that, looks like I will be waiting out Harvard, Yale, and Duke (non-rolling, I think). Still don't really know where I want to end up. Each of the schools have positives about them that will make me consider attending. I think I'm going to have a very tough choice to make, which is both a good and a bad thing. Overall, I'm pleased with the outcome at this point. The waitlist from Vandy was disappointing, but other than that the process has gone about as well as I could have expected. Although I'm a little surprised about not even an interview from Hopkins. I can't complain though.
1/8/06: Regional interview with Duke today in Atlanta. Went ok, hard to really get much of a feel for a school with something like this. But this means I'm done interviewing now. Now it's time to play the waiting game.
1/11/06: Thinking about withdrawing from schools. I would withdraw from Wake, UNC, Hopkins, and Vanderbilt, but I'm not sure if I'm even supposed to. I mean, if I wasn't invited for an interview, but haven't been rejected, am I supposed to withdraw? And Vanderbilt, I think I will withdraw by default when I don't send any information or update my file at all after being waitlisted, but I don't feel the need to notify them. I guess I'll have to call it a rejection rather than a withdrawal this way, but it requires less initiative. Well that gives me six possibilities for next year, so it's beginning to be narrowed down some. I would be thrilled to have even 3 or 4 choices for next year considering the places I'm waiting to hear from.
1/17/06: Got a letter from MCG today offering $15,000 a year for four years of med school. I guess it is full tuition and fees, so all I would need to cover is cost of living. It's my first scholarship offer, and considering it is an inexpensive school to begin with, $60,000 really takes a dent out of my expected debt out of med school. I'm really struggling between low debt and prestige right now. And I have personal reasons that might really pull me towards MCG, too. Who knows, good problem to have, I guess, but it doesn't make the decision any easier.
2/18/06: Accepted to WashU and invited to apply for a scholarship! I was afraid I had missed one round of acceptances, but I am in now. Also, I've officially withdrawn from UNC, Hopkins, Wake, and Vanderbilt. I'm probably not getting into any of them anyway, but since they haven't sent official rejection notification I've decided to withdraw before they can. Essentially, I'm quitting before they can fire me.
3/4/06: Accepted to Duke today. I'm really not that excited about it. I think it's because I did the regional interview and never got to experience the school, so I don't have anything concrete in my mind to think about. I have to keep reminding myself that it's a great school. So if it comes to the point that Duke is on of my final choices, I'll need to take a visit for second look weekend or something. Hey, it's good news either way, and this is my 4th straight acceptance since my Vandy waitlist.
3/13/06: Harvard decision is supposed to be in the mail. Will be very anxious when checking my mail for the next few days.
3/15/06: Rejected by Harvard. First rejection, but knew it was a tough place to get into. Disappointing, but not a total surprise either. Just waiting for Yale now and financial aid packages before I try to make a decision.
3/31/06: Got waitlist letter from Yale today. Not a big surprise, because I knew since Monday that I didn't get accepted outright (didn't get the email). So, better than a rejection I guess. Earlier this week got invited to interview for a full scholarship at WashU, so they are flying me up there and doing the wine and dine thing for a weekend.
