2010-2011 Medical College of Wisconsin Application Thread

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ksmi117

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I was told by admissions that you need all 10's on the MCAT to be high priority for interviews. One of my friends got off the waitlist with one 9. I had an 8 and was small-pooled, but not interviewed. They do have cut offs also. If you have an 8 in one area of your MCAT, your application is reviewed twice before getting small-pooled. If you have a 7 or lower in any area of the MCAT, it doesn't pay to apply. It is essentially an auto-reject. If you have an 8 you might get small-pooled, but chances are very slim you will get an interview.
 
I was told by admissions that you need all 10's on the MCAT to be high priority for interviews. One of my friends got off the waitlist with one 9. I had an 8 and was small-pooled, but not interviewed. They do have cut offs also. If you have an 8 in one area of your MCAT, your application is reviewed twice before getting small-pooled. If you have a 7 or lower in any area of the MCAT, it doesn't pay to apply. It is essentially an auto-reject. If you have an 8 you might get small-pooled, but chances are very slim you will get an interview.

Good to know! Do you know how they view OOS applicants?

Thanks for your help!
 
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I was told by admissions that you need all 10's on the MCAT to be high priority for interviews. One of my friends got off the waitlist with one 9. I had an 8 and was small-pooled, but not interviewed. They do have cut offs also. If you have an 8 in one area of your MCAT, your application is reviewed twice before getting small-pooled. If you have a 7 or lower in any area of the MCAT, it doesn't pay to apply. It is essentially an auto-reject. If you have an 8 you might get small-pooled, but chances are very slim you will get an interview.


There are always exceptions to the rule...I was in the first interview group and had an 8 in one of my sections. MCW has an awesome admissions dept. and the admissions director answers most emails himself. If you have any specific questions, I wouldn't hesitate to ask him.

MCW is a great place and I'm super excited to start in August. Keep the questions coming folks, I was in your shoes only a few short months ago!
 
i had a 9 in PS and got a relatively early interview/acceptance. (november)

however my other sections were high . . . in general i felt like i talked to a lot of other people who interviewed there with similar stats to me- high MCAT, low-ish GPA. lots of people from out of state. and applying early is important here. and if you don't get small pooled right away, dont despair. i felt like it took me much longer to get small pooled than everyone else, but then i got my interview invite like a week later.

good luck everyone :luck:
 
I was told by admissions that you need all 10's on the MCAT to be high priority for interviews. One of my friends got off the waitlist with one 9. I had an 8 and was small-pooled, but not interviewed. They do have cut offs also. If you have an 8 in one area of your MCAT, your application is reviewed twice before getting small-pooled. If you have a 7 or lower in any area of the MCAT, it doesn't pay to apply. It is essentially an auto-reject. If you have an 8 you might get small-pooled, but chances are very slim you will get an interview.

This is not really true. I know plenty of people who are currently attending the school that scored lower than 10 on a single section of the MCAT, and some who did get 8's (or lower). Personally, I was small pooled in August and got an interview in December for mid-January. Check my MDApps and see that I got straight 10's.

As for cut-offs, there is an unwritten rule by many med schools that if you have lower than a 6, you will get cut. MCW is no different.

If you have any specific questions about MCW please feel free to PM me.
 
The secondary is out......no essays woohoo!
 
Hmm, you guys IS? I'm OOS and no secondary here =/

Nvm, got the secondary as I was typing...haha
 
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is it submitted when we certify? the lack of a large "submit" button makes me nervous :oops:
 
It's not saving my optional letters information even though I press "save" and it indicates the information has been saved. I go to preview and under optional letters it keeps on saying "No items indicated." Is anyone else having this problem?

EDIT: Nevermind!
 
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When do LORs usually get submitted?? My LORs are listed as "received" by AMCAS, but most of my secondary applications say they have not received my LORs yet.
 
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When do LORs usually get submitted?? My LORs are listed as "received" by AMCAS, but most of my secondary applications say they have not received my LORs yet.

Same here... AMCAS has my letters, but MCW says my application is incomplete due to my letters not being recieved
 
Just called them. They said it should take a few days to review them, and then the letters will be added to the status page. They said if they werent up within a week to call back.
 
My optional letter is not being sent for another 2 weeks, but the secondary app says my application will be forwarded for review without the optional LOR if it is not received by the time the application is considered complete. Should I wait to submit my secondary?
 
My optional letter is not being sent for another 2 weeks, but the secondary app says my application will be forwarded for review without the optional LOR if it is not received by the time the application is considered complete. Should I wait to submit my secondary?

My opinion is that it depends how critical this letter is to your application. If it is a very strong letter that will make a huge difference in your application, you might not want your completed secondary to be forwarded to the committee without this optional letter present.

When do LORs usually get submitted?? My LORs are listed as "received" by AMCAS, but most of my secondary applications say they have not received my LORs yet.

Sometimes the schools don't download the letters from amcas right away, I think. What happened to me last year at a minority of other schools (I'm a reapplicant, but this is my first time applying here) was that they didn't download the letters until a bit after I had submitted the secondary. You can always contact them to check, but I think the letters will show up soon (2 days -ish).
 
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I believe that the picture is optional. However, you might find it useful to send the picture along with your application. It will help your interviewers associate better with you by being able to put a face to the name of the profile they are reading, and when you come up for decision by the admissions committee the next Thursday, its always helpful to have a picture to help them recognize and remember you.
 
I believe that the picture is optional. However, you might find it useful to send the picture along with your application. It will help your interviewers associate better with you by being able to put a face to the name of the profile they are reading, and when you come up for decision by the admissions committee the next Thursday, its always helpful to have a picture to help them recognize and remember you.

Are you speaking of Thursday the 1st or the 8th?
 
Are you speaking of Thursday the 1st or the 8th?

I wasn't talking about this week. I was talking about the overall process. Let me clarify.

After you have submitted your application and it is considered complete, MCW will start to look at all of the applications that have received on a rolling basis. The first decision they will make will be whether to offer you an invite to interview or a place in the small pool or an outright rejection. If you are "small pooled", your application will be continually reviewed throughout the year until the committee makes a decision whether or not to offer you the invite. If you are offered an interview, you will receive an email with 2 possible dates, and you will have to choose which one you want to go to. MCW has 2 interview days per month (both Fridays), but they invite 30-60 people to come to the interview. I am not sure what day(s) of the week the committee meets to decide who they want to interview.

What I was talking about was that after the interview, there is a very set schedule as to what happens next. Your overall application will be looked at by the admissions committee the next Thursday and a decision on every student who interviewed is made that day. Decisions are sent out the following day, almost always by snail mail (unless there is a holiday, then it might come as an email). Depending on how far OOS you live, it could take till Tuesday or Wednesday to get the snail mail. Basically, by two weeks after you interview you will have your answer.

The important thing to realize is that because MCW does not have any essays, people will submit it as soon as possible. This means that even waiting a few days could push you back in the timeline for your first review. For MCW it is very important to apply as early as possible. Even if you are "small pooled", your application will still be reviewed more than those who apply later, and have a higher chance of getting the interview.

Hope this helps.
 
If I am from UCLA and am sending my LORs to the school from AMCAS which recieved letters from UCLA LOR service which option do i select?

One Premedical Advisory Committee Letter OR
Two separate letters from classroom professors OR
Undergraduate Institution packet of letters

I am guessing it is the third one? I have a total of 3 letters I would like to send.
 
Quick question: my letter writers aren't going to submit the letter till July 15th so I won't be submitting my secondary till then, do you think that is too late? would it affect me in a major way if my app is pretty strong?
 
So excited! This is one of my TOP choices...

My question is this: I will be submitting my secondary in the next week, so that will be taken care of. The reason I'm not submitting right away is because I'm swamped right now with MCAT prep. I'm retaking it on July 8th. Since I already have an MCAT score, will they evaluate my app right away, or will they wait for my second score? If they wait, will this excessively hurt my chances?
 
Quick question: my letter writers aren't going to submit the letter till July 15th so I won't be submitting my secondary till then, do you think that is too late? would it affect me in a major way if my app is pretty strong?

you should be ok, i think. i didnt take my mcat til mid-june, so i didn't really get any secondaries til the end of july. of course, i had heard that early=important at MCW so it was the first one I turned around. but still i probably wasnt complete there til end of july or beginning of august. i didn't get small pooled as fast as everyone else on the thread seemed to- but once i finally got small pooled in sept, my interview invite came the following week. and MCW was my first acceptance :D

so even though being early is important there, i think early is relative. on sdn july may seem late, but compared to the general applicant population i think late is more like aug/sept. and if your app is strong enough, it will find its way to the small pool. good luck!
 
My application hasn't been marked as complete yet. I know they said it would take a few days to manually enter the LORs from AMCAS into the secondary. But I'm impatient...

If your application gets marked as complete, please post the time/date so I can run off and check my application status :p thanks haha
 
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Did all of you who received a secondary already get verified for their primary app?
 
If I am from UCLA and am sending my LORs to the school from AMCAS which recieved letters from UCLA LOR service which option do i select?

One Premedical Advisory Committee Letter OR
Two separate letters from classroom professors OR
Undergraduate Institution packet of letters

I am guessing it is the third one? I have a total of 3 letters I would like to send.

I had the same issue last year, and I'm pretty sure that I choose the third option because my school was sending an Advisors letter and the LORs from my writers.

Quick question: my letter writers aren't going to submit the letter till July 15th so I won't be submitting my secondary till then, do you think that is too late? would it affect me in a major way if my app is pretty strong?

You should be fine submitting next week. Just don't forget about it or keep pushing it off.

So excited! This is one of my TOP choices...

My question is this: I will be submitting my secondary in the next week, so that will be taken care of. The reason I'm not submitting right away is because I'm swamped right now with MCAT prep. I'm retaking it on July 8th. Since I already have an MCAT score, will they evaluate my app right away, or will they wait for my second score? If they wait, will this excessively hurt my chances?

They will probably take a look at your app and see both the current score and that you are retaking it. Most likely (I am not 100% sure of this) they will look at the application right away with the idea that you are retaking the MCAT. I would not be surprised if they do not make a decision until they get your new score and place you in the small group to be continually evaluated throughout the year. Either way, it should not hurt you that much, because if your application is good, they will pick you out of the small pool and offer you an interview.

Good luck.
 
Did all of you who received a secondary already get verified for their primary app?

Yes, you can not get the secondary until your primary has been verified by AMCAS. Once verified, AMCAS will send your primary to the schools you choose and then the schools will send you the secondary.
 
can we submit the primary w/out having our LORs on AMCAS. I wont have mine till later on this week or next week.
 
yes, you can submit the primary without LOR's. I'm verified and haven't sent them in yet.
 
woops I messed up. can we submit the secondary w/out having our LORs on AMCAS. I wont have mine till later on this week or next week.
 
woops I messed up. can we submit the secondary w/out having our LORs on AMCAS. I wont have mine till later on this week or next week.

I think it just wont be marked as complete by MCW admissions office and be forwarded to the adcom until they receive the letters from AMCAS. That's my understanding, anyway
 
So.....2 days later, has MCW added anyone's AMCAS LORs to their secondary application and marked it as "complete" yet? My secondary still letter-less and marked as submitted but not complete.
 
will they hold a spot for me or anything if i turn the secondary in soon w/out having turned in the rec letters yet? i know i won't be marked as complete. but i mean do they actually look at your letters asap for evaluation?
 
will they hold a spot for me or anything if i turn the secondary in soon w/out having turned in the rec letters yet? i know i won't be marked as complete. but i mean do they actually look at your letters asap for evaluation?

Are you asking whether a person who turns in a secondary without LORs today and then adds the LORs in x number of days will be marked as complete sooner than a person who submits the secondary with LORs in x number of days? I'd assume so, since I was told that the secondary applications are reviewed by admissions office staff for LORs + completeness in the order in which they are submitted.

If that's not what you're asking, then remember that there are required LORs and optional ones. Without the required ones, your secondary app will not have a spot saved in line to be evaluated by the adcom for an interview invite. The secondary app won't ever get marked as complete by the admissions office staff and forwarded to the adcom without the required LORs.

I hope I understood what you were asking. Sorry...
 
yeah for example. Guy A today turns in 2ndary for MCW, Albert eoinstein, etc. Includes everything, but LORs. LORs come in 6 days later.

GUY B tomorrow turns in 2ndary to same schools w/LORs.

Who gets an interview invite first? like who is in line first?

thx
 
yeah for example. Guy A today turns in 2ndary for MCW, Albert eoinstein, etc. Includes everything, but LORs. LORs come in 6 days later.

GUY B tomorrow turns in 2ndary to same schools w/LORs.

Who gets an interview invite first? like who is in line first?

thx
Depends when the MCW office staff try and check for your LOR's. On my application, it is 3 days later, and they haven't added my LORs from AMCAS yet. If they don't try to add LORs to secondary apps until after Guy A's LORs finally arrive at AMCAS, then Guy A's secondary app will be forwarded to the adcom for a possible interview first. However, if they check after, say, 4-5 days (when Guy A's LORs have not yet arrived), they would check Guy A's secondary app first and find no LORs. They would move down the line in the order the secondary apps were submitted+certified, find Guy B's secondary app, and be able to add his LORs from AMCAS. Then Guy B's app would be marked as complete and go before the adcom to be evaluated for an interview, while Guy A's would still be marked as incomplete and sit in the admissions office.

So Guy A should hope that it takes them around 6 days to process apps and check for letters of recommendation : )
 
My LOR are still not received by AMCAS either... :(
 
So.....2 days later, has MCW added anyone's AMCAS LORs to their secondary application and marked it as "complete" yet? My secondary still letter-less and marked as submitted but not complete.

mine does not have LORs added yet either. I finished everything else/ paid on mon or tuesday.
 
My secondary application is now listed as "Complete." The letter packet was received on "June 28 2010 12:00AM."
 
On the status page for me, all of my LORs have been received except one (all were received by AMCAS a while ago). It's been that way since last night. I'm hoping they're still in the process of adding my letters. Should I give it a few days and then call to see what's going on?
 
On the status page for me, all of my LORs have been received except one (all were received by AMCAS a while ago). It's been that way since last night. I'm hoping they're still in the process of adding my letters. Should I give it a few days and then call to see what's going on?

Same here! All but 1, all forwaded from amcas. I'm probably going to wait a few days since my mcat scores aren't ready anyways so I won't be complete until next month regardless.
 
awww, none of mine have been added yet.

Hopefully I won't have the problem some of you are having where they add only a portion of the letters from AMCAS and then don't mark it complete :-/ That is weird.
 
I submitted on Monday, and none of my letters have been received by them yet (Amcas received them before I was verified). What I'm more worried about is the residency form. The department of Education might be the bottleneck for that one...
 
Just to let everyone know, at least last year the residency form did not matter. Meaning you will be considered for an interview/offered an interview with or without the residency form being submitted. I would still submit it in a timely manner, but it won't make any difference regarding whether your application is considered complete and won't slow down the review of your application. Good luck everyone :luck:
 
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