Note: I'm using this site as a place to collect some of my thoughts during this crazy application process. I'm not from Washington (I picked a random state in order to remain anonymous).
AMCAS Submitted: June 13, 2007
AMCAS Verified and Sent to Schools: June 21, 2007
AACOMAS Verified: Beginning of July (9th I think).
June 22, 2007: First secondary from GWU.
June 24, 2007: GWU secondary completed.
June 25, 2007: Got Columbia Secondary.
June 27, 2007: Got SUNY Upstate Secondary.
June 28, 2007: Got Jefferson and MCW Secondary.
June 29, 2007: Got Tulane Secondary.
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July 2, 2007: Got Georgetown Secondary.
July 3, 2007: Sent completed GWU secondary, and Columbia photo.
July 4, 2007: Received Dartmouth secondary by snail mail. Sent AACOMAS application.
July 9, 2007: Received DMU secondary. Submitted SUNY Upstate Secondary (no essays).
July 14, 2007: Sent off MCW secondary.
July 16, 2007: Tulane secondary submitted.
July 17, 2007: Got Penn State secondary. Sent off Columbia Secondary. Sent off Jefferson secondary.
July 18, 2007: Got Vermont secondary. Sent Off Albert Einstein secondary.
July 26, 2007: Submitted UVermont, NYMC secondary.
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August 14, 2007: Sent off Albany, Penn State, St. Louis secondaries.
August 23, 2007: Sent off Creighton Secondary. Sent off DMU secondary.
August 25, 2007: Sent off Boston Secondary.
August 27, 2007: Sent off Loma Linda secondary.
August 30, 2007: Sent off UVirginia secondary.
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September 1, 2007: Completed and sent NSUCOM secondary (why do they ask for the same info that's on the AACOMAS? Ugh...)
September 2, 2007: Completed CCOM, AZCOM, Western/COMP secondaries.
September 3, 2007: Completed PCOM secondary, my top choice DO school.
September 9, 2007: Complete at GW. Rejected post-secondary from BU (which I expected; too bad, got to develop a thick skin and keep hope that it'll work out.)
September 11, 2007: Complete at CCOM. Complete at NYMC 9/11, as long as they get my grad letter by January 31, 2008.
September 13, 2007: Got my first interview invite for AZCOM today! They gave me dates at the end of September (25,26,27), but I will try for October 5th.
Called Tulane to verify completion. Told that I am complete.
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October 2, 2007: Decided to update this lousy thing. I'm feeling a bit depressed today, as I have no MD interviews yet, and who knows how long it'll be... Ugh, just got to keep plugging away and waiting I guess. I got a letter from SUNY Upstate the other day saying they're missing my grad LOR, but it says they have it online. I'll have to call them Thursday. Anyway, back to the drudgery of life...
*Edit: never mind. Got another SUNY letter a few days later, saying I'm complete.
October 11: Not much to report. No news from any other schools. I'll be preparing for my DMU interview, which is next week, over the weekend. And tomorrow I have a microbio exam. Ugh.
October 19: Rejection letter from MCW dated October 17. Put on hold at Vermont.
October 23: Got a letter from SUNY Upstate saying that I'm on hold. I was afraid it was going to be a rejection. I got back from my AZCOM interview which I had on October 22. I'll update soon. I had my DMU interview last week on the 19th, and I enjoyed it very much. Also, I just realized that I wasted $50 on NSUCOM because I don't have 3 credits of English literature. Stupid requirement!
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November 1: SO SAD: I got waitlisted at Des Moines today, exactly two weeks after my interview day. I kind of took it hard, as this is the first news post-interview for me. I really liked the school, and since I've only interviewed at two schools so far, I was really hoping for good news. I got the feeling at the end of the interview that I may get waitlisted when they said 'If you get in...'. I saw myself there more than at AZCOM, but what can you do? It's depressing, because if I can't even get into an OK osteopathic school, how will I get into an allopathic or other osteopathic school? I didn't interview as well as I could have, as I stuttered and was pretty nervous. Things look bleak at this point, but I'll just have to keep my head high and keep plugging away. Maybe AZCOM will come through for me.
November 2: It's been kind of a depressing few days. Yesterday I got waitlisted post-interview at DMU. Today I got waitlisted PRE-interview at CCOM, my #2 choice (letter dated October 25). That sucks! However, on a positive note, I got an interview at COMP!! YAAY!!!!! I'll be going either Jan 31 or Feb 7. Let the interview invites keep rolling!! Common PCOM!!!
November 5: Rejected from Tulane today. :-( Got the letter snail-mail, dated October 31. This was a bummer, as this is one of the few schools that I thought I actually had a shot at (they supposedly look at the overall picture and aren't such number whores). The list shrinks on. For some reason, though, I wasn't too depressed about this. Maybe this is for the better. Maybe something else will come along in the near future? :-p That's what I'm hoping for!
November 6: WOOT!! Accepted to AZCOM!! It's good to finally have something I can count on!! I called, and the admissions staff said that it still has to be signed by the Dean and I should get something in the mail in no more than two weeks. YAY!! My first medical school acceptance!! :-)
November 9: Rejected from Dartmouth today, letter dated November 7. Not too surprised, as they have one of the smallest class sizes.
November 22: EVMS rejected me today. FU**!!!! This was one of the few schools that I actually 'maybe' had a shot at. They didn't even want to wait for my fall grades. Damn them!! And I really thought that I wrote good, thoughtful secondary answers. Man, I swear this process is taking a lot out of me. I knew it would be an uphill climb, but I at least hoped that I would get most of my rejections in the Spring, not now, and that the schools would actually wait for my fall grades. At this point, I feel that if I get into an allopathic medical school, this will truly be a miracle. The only other schools that I have at least a little bit of hope for are NYMC, SLU and Georgetown. I'll just have to put the nose to the grindstone and try and squeeze out the best GPA that I can. Everything rides on the histology GPA now. Must.... study... ugh.
***
December 1: Rejection letter from Albany, dated November 13. NO!!!! I was hoping for no more rejections before Christmas... ugh. Not a good start for December. Isn't this sad? Rather than hoping for interviews, I'm just hoping NOT to get rejections at this point. Man, I hope things turn around in the New Year.
December 6: Well, I finally got that HOLD e-mail from George Washington after months of silence, only to learn that it may be another extended period of MORE SILENCE before I hear anything again. *Sigh*... I also learned that I didn't do as well on the Histology final as I'd have hoped... I only beat the mean by 1% on the written exam, and by 3% on the lab practical. Since I did below average on the first written and first practical, I hoped to beat the average by a significant margin in order to pull off a B+. Now that ain't gonna happen.
DAMN. I wish I was smarter. Things aren't going as well this year like I would want. It's even harder when I see other students around me getting interviews at allopathic medical schools and even acceptances already!
I can only trust in the Lord that He will guide me to where I need to be next year, and that all this will somehow play out OK.
My new goals: get all A's next semester. Much more respectable. However, that's easier said than done. Until next time...
December 10: I deposited $1000 to hold my seat in AZCOM's 2012 medical school class. Damn. A big chunk of change, huh? Other than that, not too much to update. I'm preparing for my final exam in Biochem, then I'm flying home this weekend for Christmas break. This will be my last update of 2007, as I probably won't be hooking up Internet at home. Until 2008! Happy Holidays to all!
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January 11: I got an e-mail from DMU saying that they want my final grades from the fall semester. They might make a decision about my waitlist status soon. Wish me luck! :-)
January 16: Sent letters of interest to Columbia and Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
January 17: Sent out letter of interest to SUNY Upstate. On a more positive note:
WOOT!!!! I got into Des Moines!!! After being on the waitlist for about two months, I've been accepted! The initial e-mail I got from Jamie about the waitlist said that I would not hear until about May or June about waitlist movement, if any occurs, but that this year was different/special (whatever that means) and a mid-cycle review of my application was completed. I was told I'd hear by tomorrow if anything changed. I guess they liked my grades from Fall Semester, and I got in!!! I'm happy about this, because although AZCOM has nicer weather, I wasn't sure I wanted to go there. Students complained in previous years about problems with the quality of clinical rotations. More importantly though, the class of 2012 will have a 100 student increase, and I just didn't want to be in a guinea pig class. OMM/Anatomy lab is tight as it is, I hear, and adding another 100 people, even if new buildings with new lecture halls are being added, seemed risky to me. You just never know what will happen with transitions. Finding another 100 rotations spots is not easy. Plus, AZCOM is more expensive, and with all the new buildings coming up, tuition will probably continue increasing by a significant percentage.
PLUS, the fact that DMU has 36 WEEKS OF ELECTIVES fourth year is just amazing. I'm not sure that any other osteopathic school can match that! The first part of my deposit is due in a month, and the second isn't due till May, so that gives me plenty of leeway in case new developments occur. My COMP interview is coming up soon, so I'll be curious to see how it stacks up to DMU. I've never been to Cali, and I'd love to be somewhere warm for four years, so we'll see what happens. I'm excited.
Anyway, today has been an exciting and joyful day! This is a good start to 2008, and I hope more of the same will come my way!
January 19/20: Completed GWU, Jefferson, Rosalind Franklin and Penn State letters of interest. Man, it's such a pain configuring them and changing them around for each school... Ugh. Maybe they'll be of use, and will get me some interviews. Only UVA, Creighton, Vermont, Loma Linda, PCOM and CCOM left. I'll save NYMC and SLU for now.
January 22: Rejected from Creighton. This was kind of a disappointment, but oh well. This saves me the effort of writing them a letter of interest.
January 30: WOOT!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!! I got an interview invite from George Washington University! At this point, it's scheduled for March 13th, but I'll have to change that since I have an exam that day. I'm so giddy! I guess they liked my letter of interest. I heard that they like people to show interest, and I guess it really must be true. I only sent it out 8 days ago, so they probably didn't receive it till like 5-6 days ago, but I guess their office is really organized and on top of things. Maybe it was just good timing, but I still think I only got the interview invite because of that letter. This gives me sooooooo much energy and enthusiasm that I can put towards physiology right now. It's unbelievable! I'm speechless! THANK YOU GOD! :-p
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Feb 5: Well, tomorrow morning I'm headed off to my Western interview. Wish me luck!
Feb 9: I thought my interview at Western went pretty well. I think they have a solid program, albeit a $62,000 budget for last year really scares me. They should let me know in 2 weeks time.
Feb 9: Another update: rejected from Vermont, somewhere between Feb 5-8. I just checked the online application status thing, and saw the message. Ahh well... I wasn't surprised, since they are pretty much interviewing for a waitlist now anyway, and I would have had to get the invite like last week anyway. Well, that saves me the trouble of writing them that letter of interest. I hope I have better luck with other schools.
Feb 14th: I got into Western!!! Just got a call from the Dean telling me that the admissions committee met and that they will be offering me a spot in 2012 class. I should be getting the official letter by the end of next week. Now I have the difficult decision of choosing between Des Moines and Western (I'm still accepted at AZCOM at this point, but I will most likely withdraw). At this point, I'm leaning more towards Western, as I think I will be able to pretty much get the same education at both schools. The only difference is that I will be able to be in California! I thought that Des Moines maybe had slightly better facilities (Western's anatomy labs did not have LCD's), but I think the clinical opportunities are better at Western. I would be able to pretty much get all my clinical rotations around Pomona, and I wouldn't have to leave the state. I don't think DMU can accomodate everyone in Des Moines, however. I'm going to continue exploring this though. The only downside to the Western acceptance is that I will have to deposit $1000 by March 1 and another $1000 by April 1. Ahh well. I've already spent so much money, but $2000 is still a lot for me.
February 21: 'Decision Made' from SUNY Upstate. Since I haven't interviewed there = rejection. Sigh... I guess my LOI didn't do much. C'est la vie, I suppose.
February 25: Man, it's almost the end of February. That's crazy! Time is zipping by at an insane pace. I was thinking of writing a second update letter to AECOM, Jefferson, Penn State, and RFU, but I don't know if that would seem too pushy? I guess I don't really have much to lose at this point, right? I may send out my first LOI to Loma Linda, NYMC and SLU soon. Still thinking about that though...
2/25, Update 2: Rejected from UVA. Finally! Took them long enough. I never thought that I had a shot there, especially since they have a reputation for being fairly 'elitist' and have very high stats.
February 29: Sent a LOI to NYMC.
***
March 1: Sent grade update to AECOM, Jefferson, Penn State and Rosalind Franklin. All I have to do now is write LOI's to St. Louis (common St. Louis!! Pleeeease interview me!!!) and Loma Linda (would be awesome, but I'm not holding my breath). At this point I don't really care about CCOM or PCOM (I didn't send anything there), and Columbia is done interviewing, so I didn't bother. Georgetown will get my grades automatically, so I didn't send anything there.
March 2: Sent update letter/LOI to St. Louis.
March 3: Confirmation of update letter received from AECOM, Jefferson, Rosalind Franklin and St. Louis. Now just waiting for confirmation from Penn State and NYMC.
March 5: Penn State says that grade updates can only be done by official transcript and only after acceptance. Damn. At this point, it'll take too long to get a transcript from Georgetown and get it mailed. They wouldn't get it until the middle of next week at the earliest, and even then, the Committee probably wouldn't see it in time for final interview invites (if they're still going out, that is). I'm guess I'm out of luck with Penn State.
March 6: Well, it seems that St. Louis is booking interviews through mid April now. If I don't get an invite today or tomorrow, I think I may be done here. Maybe a few people will withdraw? Here's to hoping that my letter of interest will be considered in time.
I guess at this point I'm only really holding out hope for NYMC, and even that hope is waning, but we'll see. I'm not optimistic that anything will come of Penn State, Jefferson, Albert Einstein or Loma Linda. I have a little bit of hope for RFU, since they interview until late supposedly, but I'm not holding my breath. Please, GW!! LOOOOVE me like I looooove you! I gotta nail that interview!
March 14: I got rejections from Columbia and AECOM this week. No real surprises there. On a more positive note: I finally had my interview at GW this week!!! It was an awesome school, the interviewers were really nice, and I think it would be my DREAM school! They have so many incredible opportunities, DC is awesome, and the school's facilities are top-notch. Now begins the painful 6-week waiting process! AHH! Anyway, that's all for now... maybe I'll write a little more soon, but today I go on Spring Break, so I want to get my mind off things for a little while and relax.
March 25: Well, I had a fairly relaxing Spring Break. I visited some friends up in New York city, and it was nice to change environments for a little while. Anyway, I'm still patiently waiting to hear from GW. I'm not expecting to hear anything till middle to late April. Besides that, I haven't heard from any other medical schools.
March 28: I got a rejection from Loma Linda today. No surprise here. I knew I never really had a shot, especially with them not sending me the secondary the first time around (supposedly it was a computer glitch). I'm not a Seventh Day Adventist, so I wasn't really expecting anything to happen with them, especially not with my GPA and non-Californian status.
On another note, I'm getting more and more anxious about GW. It's only been two weeks since my interview, but to be honest, I'm starting to kind of freak out. I keep playing these different situations in my head, and I'm alternating between hopeful and despairing. I keep second guessing how my interviews went, and now I'm not so sure they went all that great. Man, this process is really starting to get to me. I'm going to try to relax (which probably won't work), since it'll probably be another 3 weeks or so before I hear (at the earliest), and even if I do, it'll just probably be a waitlist. On SDN, I haven't heard of anyone that's interviewed late January and on who was been accepted. Everyone's just been put on the waitlist. So, I'm just hoping not to get rejected from GW. If I get on the waitlist, at least I can still update them with grades and such. Since GW is my top choice, I'm going to write them a Letter of Intent this weekend, and send it off. I don't think it'll do too much harm, and I want them to know how much I want to go there.
I find it ironic that the only MD school that I interviewed at (so far) is also my top choice. I mean, in a way, if I could have chosen any school to interview at, it would be GW, but the fact that it's so hard to get in isn't pleasant. In a way, I would rather have interviewed at a 'less competitive' school, even if it's not my top choice, just so I can have a better chance at getting in. But whatever... I'm super excited that I had the chance to interview at such an amazing school, and I'm praying SUPER HARD that things work out somehow. This year, competition was pretty stiff: 13000 applicants, 1000 or so interviews. I hear they plan on accepting about 300 to fill a class of about 170 or so. So I have about a 30% chance post-interview.
Alright, time to go study. I've been procrastinating and trying to do anything but study. Gotta get back to work and take my mind off GW!
***
April 1: Well, looks like I won't be interviewing at Georgetown. I didn't get an invite, so I'm done. It's too bad, because I was really interested in the school. Sigh...
On another note: I almost got a heart attack today when I got a call from a (202) area code (DC). I thought it was maybe GW, but no voicemail was left. Sigh... what an awful, awful April fool's joke. I should have known better, since there's no way they'd get back to me so early anyway. Wishful thinking and crazy pre-med paranoia I guess. Well, to more waiting I guess. But it's so painful! This process sucks!
April 3: I knew it when I saw the small envelope: waitlist from GW. Sigh... But I pretty much expected it though. Hey, at least it's not a rejection, right? RIGHT?!!!
Dang. This hasn't been the greatest week. Although I'm kind of surprised that they made the decision so quickly. A 3 week turn around isn't bad. My only hope now is that I do well enough in my coursework for them to accept me, eventually.
To more waiting! Common waitlist movement!
April 11: Apparently Jefferson had their last interview day on Wednesday. Since I still haven't heard, I guess that means rejection. It's at this point that I'm wondering why I even got to the interview stage at GW... Gotta stay focused though. I guess they liked SOMETHING in my application. I still have a shot, and I just have to wait it out. GW, will you accept me?? Yes? No? Pleeease?!!
April 14: Rejected from Penn State. Meh... I don't want to live with cows anyway!
April 19: Received a letter from KCOM saying that they 'are closing my file' (essentially a rejection) and encouraging me to re-apply. HA! I didn't even complete the secondary, but it was nice of them to remember me! Thanks KCOM! Not to sound snobby or anything, I'm sure it's a good school. It's just that I know several schools (cough*Jefferson*cough) like to NOT send any correspondence (aka rejection letters) after pocketing the secondary fees, let alone schools where I didn't even submit the secondary fee.
Anyway, that is all for today. I'm still secretly hoping that GW will take pity on me and accept me in a month's time.
April 21: Rejected from Saint Louis by E-MAIL. Jeez, you'd think that after paying a hefty secondary fee they could at least send a piece of paper with official notification? I guess not. Hey, at least they're saving trees, right?
April 28: Rejected from CCOM today. I could care less.
May 12: Rejected from PCOM. This wasn't a surprise, obviously. Ahh well. The only thing that I'm still waiting for is the GW waitlist. I wonder how much movement there will be this year? Will they take me? Am I good enough? Ahh!!! Hopefully things, good things, will start to occur soon! *crosses fingers* Besides that, nothing much has changed. I still have one exam left before the end of the year! One more and I'm done! WOOO!
May 16: There's been a flurry of waitlist activity on the GW waitlist, which I take to be a good sign. Congrats to everyone who got in! But man, this waiting is hard!!! I knew that I wouldn't hear anything from GW this early, but it's hard to be still waiting, 'looking from the outside in', so to speak. I hope they still have a spot for me... that is, if they want me! Anyway, to more waiting. Common G-dub!! Call me with the good news! Maybe next week?? Please? :-) *crosses fingers*
May 19: Received Georgetown rejection dated May 14. I've been expecting it, unfortunately. I guess me and Georgetown weren't meant for each other. Ahh well... the big man upstairs must have a different plan for me. I'm curious to find out what that plan will be! GW or Western? Hmmm....
May 27: Received RFU rejection letter dated May 16th. So far, no new news from GW. Common GW waitlist! Move some more! I'm realistic, and I now that my chances of a GW acceptance aren't the greatest, but I'm still cautiosuly optimistic and hoping that I might hear something either this month or next.
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June 6: WOW. I can't believe it's June already, and I still don't know for sure where I'll be going. On the bright side, though, I completed my last final this week! WOOO!!! I'm FREE! Once I get my final grades posted on my transcript, I'll update GW. It's just crazy to think that almost a year ago, I got my first secondary (from GW, at that!).
I'm just hoping and praying right now that there will be some more movement off of GW's waitlist. According to SDN, there has only been slight movement on May 15 and 16, and not much (if anything) after that. Although I am happy with my acceptance at Western, I think GW would be my dream school. I know that anything can still happen, and I'm still trying to stay positive, although with each passing day I get more and more frustrated and more anxious. I'm realistic, and I know the odds are overwhelmingly against me, but I'm still trying to retain some shred of hope. Sigh... GW, will you come through for me? Pretty please?
June 17: Got my letter of rejection from NYMC today.
June 19: Sigh... still nothing from GW. It doesn't look good. I still have faith that a miracle will occur, but unless something happens this week or the next, I think that'll be it for GW. Can't think like that though! I have to stay positive. Pleeeeease GW, take me! I'd give anything to get in! I would especially love this emotional roller-coaster to end, going from hopeful to depressed when I think about my chances. Come on GW!!! Come through for me!
Jun 30: Well, tomorrow is July, and unfortunately I do not have any new good news to report. I've pretty much given up on GW now. This last week or two was hard. I was seriously considering re-applying to some MD programs, and it was hard for me to accept that I'll be going DO, mainly because I know my road will be harder, especially if I want to pursue a competitive residency (and I'll have to take more board exams and have more hoops to jump through).
But I realized that I'll be moving forward, and I'll be able to finally start my journey of being a doctor. Furthermore, I'm out of money, so I'd only be re-applying to around 10 MD schools anyway, so my chances of getting in a second time would be pretty low as it is, especially since this coming application cycle looks to be pretty hardcore, probably even more applicants than the one I just went through.
So I'm ready to give it my all, and do my best. In the end, I'll be a doctor, and that's the most important thing. Things can change over the next few years anyway, and hopefully everything will work itself out in the end.
Of course, I'll keep this updated in case any new developments occur.
Now onto buying a stethoscope!!! WOO!
July 29: So this will be one of my last updates (maybe one more once classes start): the GW waitlist hasn't moved so I'm headed to Western! I'm excited to be heading out to California and finally starting med school!
**Expenses**
AMCAS Primary: $880.
AACOMAS Primary: $370.
GWU: $125.
MCW: $70.
Jefferson: $80.
Columbia: $75
NYMC: $100
UVermont: $85
Albany: $100
Penn State: $65
Random: $75 213-626-8599 CA
BU: $100
Des Moines: $50
Loma Linda: $75
UVA: $80
NSU: $50
Interfolio: $25
Albert Einstein: $110
Creighton: $75
Dartmouth: can't remember
EVMS: $95
Georgetown: $130
RFU: $95
SLU: $100
SUNY Upstate: $100
Tulane: can't remember
Plane to DMU: $306
Hotel at DMU: $60
Plane to AZCOM: $380
Hotel at AZCOM: $54
AZCOM Deposit: $1000 12/10/2007
Plane to Western: $340
Hotel at Western (2 nights x $74) = 148
$500 First DMU Deposit
$1000 First Western Deposit
$1000 Second Western Deposit
Total: $8200 (Man!)
We help students become doctors. TM
