Legend:
SS: Secondary Sent
C: Complete
PH: Preinterview Hold
II: Interview Invitation
I: Interview
R: Rejected
WL: Waitlist(Post-interview)
A: Accepted
WD: Withdrew
Update(9/4/08): Signed up to take the MCAT on 9/13. Its a lot harder preparing for it this time because of my busy work schedule and having been out of school for 2yrs. In regards to the MCAT, it seems that with the new computer based format, there is more score variability since the exam cant cover everything in as much detail as the paper version.
Update(9/24/08): At last, Im getting interviews that arent in March and April, so it probably means that I finally have a shot for something else besides waitlist spots.
Update(10/14): I just got my new MCAT score of 38R. Hopefully it makes a difference for my application as compared to my old score 34R. My concern now is to get all the schools that I got rejected, waitlisted, or havent heard anything from, to reconsider my app with the new score.
Update(10/16): Decided to put 'my balls on the table'(bondtrading phrase) and spend more money applying to more competitive schools(ie, top 25 schools) in light of new MCAT score. I know I probably have no chance given how late Im applying, lower avg GPA, and lack of science research. However, this is going to be my last time applying and Im already spending all the money I saved from I-Banking for these apps, so I figured why not.
Update(11/18): Got back from UTSW and have to say its a great school. Honestly, it was the most organized and well done interview process I have had so far, and I would be really fortunate to get in there. The school's facilities and location in Dallas are great. Sure Dallas isnt LA, SF, SD, or Miami, but honestly, if it did have water next to it, I think it would be way better. $80k to buy a good 3bdr house, good weather, major city, and $2 pitchers of beer = heaven on earth:).
I thought the students were cool and pretty laid back; they are Texans after all. I didnt seem to get the vibe that the students were as competitive as they were made out to be on SDN. I met a couple Southwestern med students that did their undergrads at Cal and they said that it was less competitive than Cal. However, Cal is probably the worst undergrad school in terms of competition, rigid curriculum, and premed mentality.
Best part, in-state tuition waiver for all accepted OOS. I cant believe that it is 50% cheaper for me as an OOS to go to UTSW than the UCs.
Update(12/3): Today was full of good news: I finally got into a medical school(UTSW) and got an invite from Case Western. Best part was that I found out about my UTSW acceptance the night before my Mini-Multiple Interview(MMI) at Cincinnati, which I was really nervous about because of its unusually format. Thus, I was relaxed by the time I got to UC for the MMI. As for the MMI, it has its pros and cons:
Pros:
1. Multiple interviews get rid of the subjective nature of the interview process. It is sad, but true, how subjective this process is. You bust your butt for at least 4yrs just to get interviews, and then have all that work flushed down the drain by some asshole interviewer. Perfect example was my interview at Vermont, where I had a really arrogant and abrasive(asshole) interviewer, and as a result got rejected. However, I had cordial interviewers at UTSW, and got a rapid acceptance.
2. The MMI gets rid of the self-glorification and BSing of oneself that encompasses the typical medical school interview.
Cons:
1. No canned questions and answers
2. Short amount of time to think about the MMI questions when presented with them, and no way to organize your arguements except in your head after being asked about them
3. Deals with very dramatic ethical and moral questions that most physicians will never encounter.
4. No way to keep track of time. There were no clocks in the room, thus I had no way of knowing how I was doing on timing.
5. No guidance or input from interviewers, which coupled with the lack of a timer, resulted in me occasionally rambling or prolonging my responses to questions.
Ive been debating with SDNers on how to prepare for the MMI. Some argue that you cant prepare for it since all the questions are random. However, I believe that despite having random questions(many of which have nothing to do with medicine) there are certain things you can do to increase your chances of success in the MMI:
1. The structure of your arguments is key. Not only does it help the listener better understand you, but it also helps you in coming up with and presenting them. I found that my experiences interviewing at consulting firms like McKinsey, Bain, and BCG, helped me out alot for the MMI. So I would recommend preparing for the MMI by using practice consulting interviews at those firms' websites or researching MMI interviews online(I heard MMIs are really big at the Canadian schools).
2. While you are not expected to have any previous knowledge about the MMI questions, I believe that a quick glance over medical ethics and policy topics might be useful as they would give you more material to discuss in the MMI and even convey a better image of your intelligence. I dont recommend memorizing every topic, but just understand the logic and pros/cons for certan topic.
3. Presentation is key: shake hands firmly and introduce yourself to your interviewer, smile, look directly in eyes, and remember to sit up straight during the MMI.
Finally, I am glad about the invite to Case Western. After my second medical application cycle, I contacted all the schools that I got rejections from. Most schools either ignored my inquiries or gave me some BS/generic reasons for my rejections that honestly did not even apply to my application(see top section of my profile). However, CWRU was one of the few schools that spent time with me, giving me meaningful advice about my application and the medical admissions process, which I believe has helped me in this cycle(along with scoring so much higher on the MCAT). Honestly, especially based on my previous stats(3.6 GPA/34 MCAT), CWRU was probably out of my league, but the fact that CWRU staff took the time to help me out says alot about the school.
Update(12/18): Ive been getting some unexpected interview invites. I got invites from Alabama and Wake Forest, but, besides UCLA, I am still not getting any love from CA. Also, I was accepted at UofCinn and placed on the waitlists at George Washington and FIU, both of which reaffirm my views of the subjective/random nature of the admissions process. Im starting to get a sneaky suspicion that my new MCAT score may have hurt me at FIU and GWU since I got those interviews based on my old scores and I thought both of my interviews went really well.
Update(1/20/09-2/28/09): From mid-Jan to end of Feb, I sent letters of interest to the following schools that I would consider over UTSW: Baylor, Cornell(sent LOI after being rejected), Harvard, UCSD, and UCSF(sent LOI after being rejected). From that list, I got invites from Baylor, Harvard, and UCSD, a 50% hit rate, and I might have recieved even more interviews if I had sent the letters earlier in the cycle. In addition, having backdoor connections with Harvard from my job and interest in their MD/MBA program probably helped me get an invite at Harvard. Nonetheless, I am amazed at how much LOIs can help in obtaining interviews and would really recommend them to other medical school applicants with borderline stats.
As for other schools, I have received a few more interviews and a barrage of rejections. I received invites from Illinois and Michigan State, both of which I declined, and Uni of Wisconsin, which was weird since I was sent a rejection letter from them in December.
As for the rejections, Ive been getting lots of them, but after two cycles full of rejections, the numbness of 'not being qualified enough' according to those schools has gone away. Yet, based on the dates of some of the schools' rejection letters(which were often 2-3wks after I submitted the secondary), Im wondering if they even looked at my app since it should take longer for schools to get back to applicants later in the application cycle due to bottleneck of applications as deadlines approach. I have a feeling applying earlier with my new stats would have really made a difference with my apps, but so far, I have been happy with my results in this cycle and the schools I have gotten into.
Update(3/20/09): Past month has been full of mixed news. Most disappointing, I was accepted to HBS, but rejected from HMS. Once again, I got screwed by a PhD interviewer at Harvard. God, I have had bad experiences with PhD interviewers. Most lack normal social skills and are na?ve about everything outside of research. Moreover, most of my PhD interviewers have been so judgmental that it seems like they already have made up their mind about me even before they meet me. Like UCLA and Vermont, I was grilled for my lack of academic research and my professional activities in biotech and on Wall Street; the same experiences that probably got me into HBS.
The news from Harvard was very disappointing since I was hoping for the MD and could honestly care less for the MBA at this stage of my life. I will most likely decline the HBS acceptance since it would require me to defer entry into medical school, and because, in my opinion, an MBA is overrated and besides the networking aspect, is essentially useless for someone of my academic and professional background and knowledge. Maybe it is something I might look into down the road; yet, for now, my goal is to get the MD.
Finally, I recently had my UCSD interview. I have mixed feelings about how it went, given my interview experience at the school and the fact that I interviewed so late in the cycle. My first interview was so so as the interviewer asked me pretty formulaic questions that resulted in me giving pretty bland/formulaic responses. Also, apparently the school keeps track of applicants? application attempts as the first interviewer knew that I had applied to UCSD 3X. She asked me many questions about it and seemed to look down on my reapplication status, similar to my interviewer at UCLA. Overall, the first interview was about 30 minutes and I think it was probably neutral.
However, I felt that my second interview went very well as my interviewer and I spent the majority of the time talking about the financial crisis and other current events, as well as my professional background and goals, which he seemed to be pretty impressed about. It was more conversational, which I enjoyed as it gave me the opportunity to be more direct and gain a better picture of UCSD. I think that interview lasted about 100 minutes. Hopefully, he has more clout on the admissions committee.
Update(5/19/09): After weighing my options, I decided on going to UTSW. I felt that the combination of the school's location, low tuition, and resources made it the best environment for me. Withdrawing from Case was especially tough as I was really impressed by the school's curriculum, community/research opportunities, and great student environment(P/F, Case based instruction, supportive faculty, etc). However, in the end, the school's high tuition cost and location in Cleveland compelled me to withdraw for UTSW.
We help students become doctors. TM
