10/27--interview at cornell. so nervous i almost pissed my pants. i also was late to my third interview by like 15 minutes.
11/3--interview at baylor. the med school student asked me why i got so many B+'s in my humanities classes. eh heh heh...
11/10--interview at UTSW. my student host let me sleep on HIS BED, on freshly laundered sheets. do people get any nicer? LATER: withdrew, because would rather go to cornell.
11/14--UTSW called, and told me I was invited to the second interview in February. That was fast.
12/11--interview at Yale. i had to turn in TWO project proposals for class, one on EACH DAY of the interview. ugh. but yale! omg take me, yale! make me happy, just like the rest of your med school students! :D LATER: received encouraging emails from faculty members a month later, stating that i was a 'very competitive applicant' for their program, and encouraged me 'to keep their school in mind.' whatever that means.
12/6--accepted by cornell via scary email that told me to call them 'about the status of my application.' i called, trembling with nervousness, expecting thte worst, and i got in! Ruthie is SO_nice.
12/15--accepted to Baylor MD on 11/29 via phone call. accepted by Baylor MSTP via email that said I had a FedEx package, and a tracking number. When i clicked on the link, I saw that it was from BCM, MSTP Office. i figured they wouldn't FedEx a rejection letter...and sure enough, it was an acceptance.
1/8--interview at harvard. most horrible np experience, EVER. i think i felt like fainting, afterwards. HST people were very nice. please please please please....
1/11--interview at UPenn. skip brass is so COOL. honestly, it IS probably the best run 'MSTP program in the galaxy' :P note: they don't let you do PhD's at the graduate school, though. meh.
1/22--interview at Columbia. was super NOT impressed by the admissions process. incredibly disorganized. my student host was basically awol the whole time. and NYC is scary, where Columbia med is... nevertheless, however, i should add that this school matches well with my research interests, and clearly they do a great job of teaching their students. i suspect that once you GET IN, you'll be treated well/be happy. but god, the PROCESS...
1/24--interview at Johns Hopkins. SO freaking impressed. the mstp program there is SO well put together, the people are SO incredibly nice, the aura there at least for the MD/PhD is so relaxed, and not hardcore at_all. i can't emphasize enough how supportive and nice everyone there is. this was not what i was expecting at all! i'm now super excited about this school...*crosses fingers...*
1/29--interview at WUSTL. um. why oh why oh WHY did i spent $300 dollars on ONE interview??? the school was very shiny and new, tho, and the olin buddy that i had was SO_nice. the interviewer was fun and great: we had a nice time. however, i just don't see myself at WashU...all in all, it was nice actually going to an interview where i just didn't give a damn, either way. :D
2/5--interview at Stanford. received email the next day from director, thanking me for my visit. told me that my interviewers liked me, and that they would be able to tell me something more concrete when the MD committee convened next. all in all, i liked stanford. the people were very laid back, which is VERY different from all of the east-coast schools that i interviewed at. i mean, it wasn't that the east-coast schools were uptight, just that there's a feeling of calm at Stanford. maybe it has to do with the suburban thing. quality of life is AMAZING, and the campus is beautiful. also, the campus is HUUUUUUUGE. i'm gonna be a health nut if i go here. no wonder everybody who goes to stanford is sexy. :D
2/22--JHU called! faint. i am glibbering with happiness. yes, glibbering. btw, letter is in a small envelope.
2/27--big package from Columbia. crumpled and stuffed into a tiny mailbox.
3/5--small letter from Stanford with one sheet of paper...accepted!
3/21--after two looooong wks of panic attacks and spazzing, Harvard HST! notified by phone call.
3/22--Yale MSTP email acceptance.
3/23--WashU's thrive letter came...my first! it's okay...i can't live in st. louis knowing that the nearest gay person may be 4 hours away! :D
3/26--UPenn MSTP WL + revisit invite. (i didn't respond very warmly to skip's overtures, so if you want in, throw yourself at him!) personally, my research interests didn't match very well here and so it was difficult trying to appear enthusiastic about the school.
well...it looks like that's it, folks! 14 applications, 1 rejection right off the bat, three withdrawls after the interview invite, 2 waitlists, and eight acceptances. i am immensely thankful for all of the people who have helped me through this process, and i definately do NOT want to go through this ever again!
my biggest advice: know the school well, and know exactly why the school is right for you. my two WL's both occurred at schools that I felt lukewarm about--it definately shows during interviews (through the type of questions you ask, through your tone of voice, etc) even if you try to be excited about the school.
at this point, i'm seriously considering JHU MSTP and Harvard HST/NP. we'll see where fate takes me...
4/29: today i have finally made my decision, it's JHU! it's a very complicated decision, with many many factors. if you want to hear about it, you can always email me: [email protected].
We help students become doctors. TM
