Legend: R= Received, S= Submitted, C= File Complete, I=Interview
4/28 - Went to 2nd look weekends at Pitt and Michigan. Both have AWESOME people and institutions. I'm honored to even have this tough choice.
3/16 - Rejection from HMS. Well, it was a nice dream anyways. You'll be seeing me again for that derm residency application at Mass General ;-)
3/7 - Harvard countdown.
2/16 - Waitlisted at Northwestern. Oh well, now I finally understand how best to affect others the waitlist effect: use an unlabelled, small, yet thick envelope. Let's hope it's the last.
1/30 - Waiting on news from NU and H-Bomb. This is getting tense. If you need me, I'll be eating cheetos on my couch, watching Star Trek. No, not thinking about work and getting promoted, but instead, remaining unfired.
12/20 - It was a privilege to visit Harvard. Boston is beautiful; I felt an idealism in the buildings and monuments. Engraved on one statue were the words: 'Never again should a people starve in a world of plenty'. We have similar monuments in Baltimore which say instead 'Kill or Be Killed...' and 'Baltimore: Greatest City in America'. oh my favorite is 'Baltimore: the city that reads'. anyhow, the HST program is exactly what I want to do, and the faculty support those students receive is amazing. Actually, it turned out to be a pleasant surprise how chill the students were. Interesting and fun people.
12/9 - Accepted to U. Pitt!!! - My student interviewer sent me the first email of congrats! awesome!
11/21 - Rec'd an email invite to interview for Harvard's HST program. This is surreal.
11/18 - Interview at Northwestern - I had no idea this school was in such a nice area of Chicago. The hospital looks like a 5-star hotel, complete with oriental carpeting and antique furniture. The buildings are all new. There is a Lamborghini/Ferrari/Bentley dealer a block away from the school. Nice.
11/16 - Accepted to Jefferson! - Dean called me up and said, 'is there something wrong with your voice? You sound croaky.' :( I think I caught a cold in Pittsburgh.
11/14 - Interview at U. Pitt - Pittsburgh looks like a fun town. Went to Deja Vu and the Level. Blondies galore. The med school looks good too. hehe.
11/9 - Interview at Jefferson - Nice school in nice area of a great town. Students didn't seem all that jazzed about being there though. Faculty interview went great, until we got to the question- 'so, why jefferson?'
11/1 - Got accepted to U. Mich!!!! WOW that was a fast turn around.
10/28 - Interview at U. Michigan - Awesome school, great people. They really try to make you feel welcome and sell the school. My student hosts also showed me the whole town when I stayed over the weekend.
10/21 - Interview at Penn State - It's nice and the students don't seem too stressed. But it is in the middle of nowhere. Maybe that's good for focus.
10/7 - Proof that you can be nervous even on a mock interview:
Interviewer: 'So, you're into current affairs?'
Me: 'Yes'
Interviewer: 'Who is your state's governer?'
Me: '....uhhh'
Interviewer: '...'
After the interview, with my now cooperating brain: 'Bob Ehrlich, and damn me.'
10/4 - Excited for these interviews coming up! Got a new suit and going for a mock interview on 10/7.
9/20 - Got my first interview invite for U. Mich!! Woohoo!
9/7 - Found out that my LORs were finally submitted 9/1 so I can hope for some of these applications to become complete. That's unfortunate considering my scramble to get secondaries done so quick.
8/31 - This is getting expensive:
AMCAS - $1,180
Kaplan & MCAT - $1,560
Secondaries - $2,495
Travel - ?????
TOTAL - $5,235 so far for 2006 apps....
Did I mention I'm a reapplicant?
7/22 - AMCAS Processed
7/07 - AMCAS Submitted
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LESSONS LEARNED FROM APPLYING TO MED. SCHOOLS TWICE:
1) This whole process is mediated by human beings, not robots, as I had previously and mistakenly assumed. Just dropping my application in the mail and crossing my fingers, hoping that the robots would see what I obviously found to be merit in my application and invite me for an interview then accept me- has proved to be naive thinking. Human beings are influenced by mood and perceptions, so articulating interest in writing, through phone calls, and personal interaction has shown itself to be vital to getting the message across.
2) Every school is different. They vary in subtle and not-so-subtle ways from the makeup of the class (age level, backgrounds, etc) to the way the faculty interacts with students (independent, guided curriculums) to emphasis on academic or clinical medicine, and a myriad of different areas. Understanding a school's exact mission helps me know exactly which personal charateristics of mine make it a good or not good fit.
3) Be certain of why I am doing this; not just for the adcoms but for myself.
4) The Physical Sciences section of the MCAT doesn't mean SHI*. Unless your job is to calculate the tension in the pulley system that is raising the cripple's leg cast. Assuming, ofcourse, a frictionless, massless pulley in a vacuum.
5) I would like to re-emphasize point number 1.
6) Hang in there... this is a loooooong process. Find some way to prevent it from making you gain weight. I certainly haven't- found a way, that is.
7) more to come...
