2011-2012 SUNY Downstate Application Thread

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Originally Posted by Snikkers

Boyfriend just got an interview invite for 11/30 today!

Any idea when his file was complete?

Originally Posted by papaya2011

I did research at downstate and i would so love to get an interview herrrrrreeeeee!!

I'll let the ADCOM know. thanks.

Originally Posted by jsu

any idea when his file was complete?

~11/4

That isn't for a while so it won't affect their year... and its still a big work in progress.

Originally Posted by FIREitUP

you're right, but that doesn't mean they won't experiment on them. This school is an absolute disaster when it comes to curriculum and preclinical teaching in general.

can you elaborate on this for people who are applying here?

every school is doing this though. i agree it's dumb, but you just have to deal with it if you want to go to medical school.

Indeed, TBL is being implemented at many new schools. As medicine moves towards a "team based" effort more and more schools are implementing TBL and other team based modalities. While these are not perfect, the faculty is aware of the unhappiness of students and is working together with students to improve TBL.

Deleted.

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Such long posts. too long to read hahaha

anyway, you should take it to the dean about how TBL is interfering with your ability to learn. it's usually more effective if you tell her face to face vs online feedback.

Deleted.

Sorry to break up the debate...... but ii today
excuse my excitement, but first invite and at one of my top choice.

IS and complete: 11/09

Originally Posted by wow my heart

Sorry to break up the debate...... but ii today
excuse my excitement, but first invite and at one of my top choice.

IS and complete: 11/09

congratulations and oh no! Where is my invite. Reading the back and forth recently on this thread has made me really like downstate. It is definately the most interesting thread I watch and I would not mind being a part of this very informed and opinionated group. .......plus, I have learned one hell of a lot! Thanks to all of you who participate in this exchange.

Originally Posted by archer57

congratulations and oh no! Where is my invite. Reading the back and forth recently on this thread has made me really like downstate. It is definately the most interesting thread I watch and I would not mind being a part of this very informed and opinionated group. .......plus, I have learned one hell of a lot! Thanks to all of you who participate in this exchange.

Thanks and I hope you get yours very soon.
Yeah, same here. I am going through the thread more slowly, in order to gain more information and opinions. hopefully be helpful for the interview

Next years students will love downstate. For one thing, they are fixing up the internet in the dorms so it's faster haha

Originally Posted by anbuitachi

Next years students will love downstate. For one thing, they are fixing up the internet in the dorms so it's faster haha

insta-porn

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Deleted

Originally Posted by archer57

congratulations and oh no! Where is my invite. Reading the back and forth recently on this thread has made me really like downstate. It is definately the most interesting thread I watch and I would not mind being a part of this very informed and opinionated group. .......plus, I have learned one hell of a lot! Thanks to all of you who participate in this exchange.

Originally Posted by wow my heart

Thanks and I hope you get yours very soon.
Yeah, same here. I am going through the thread more slowly, in order to gain more information and opinions. hopefully be helpful for the interview

Don't forget to give the thread a five star rating!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by archer57

congratulations and oh no! Where is my invite. Reading the back and forth recently on this thread has made me really like downstate. It is definately the most interesting thread I watch and I would not mind being a part of this very informed and opinionated group. .......plus, I have learned one hell of a lot! Thanks to all of you who participate in this exchange.

If you guys have any burning questions, or specific questions about Downstate, please don't hesitate to ask.

I interviewed 10/5 and I still have not heard anything.... is anyone else in the same boat? I called Week 4 and they said if you haven't heard anything it's because a decision has NOT been made but now I'm at week 7..... thoughts?

Originally Posted by medicine2012

I interviewed 10/5 and I still have not heard anything.... is anyone else in the same boat? I called Week 4 and they said if you haven't heard anything it's because a decision has NOT been made but now I'm at week 7..... thoughts?

Same thing happened to me. I called a couple times and each time they said no decision was made. A week or two later I received a hold until spring status via snail mail. That could be a possibility, since a hold is not a decision. I interviewed late sept.

Originally Posted by medicine2012

I interviewed 10/5 and I still have not heard anything.... is anyone else in the same boat? I called Week 4 and they said if you haven't heard anything it's because a decision has NOT been made but now I'm at week 7..... thoughts?

I interviewed the same week as you and just received a letter this past Saturday. On hold for spring consideration

Don't expect a fast decision. I don't think downstate has a time limit on decisions. So don't worry if you don't get a decision in a month. THey give a lot of Hold til spring considerations... meaning they'll review your application in JUNE!!... it's a long wait guys

(I know upstate told me i'll get my decision on 10/15 cause I interviewed in september, but NO! it took them 12 weeks to get back to me with a decision lol..)

Point is they'll get to you eventually.

Originally Posted by medicine2012

I interviewed 10/5 and I still have not heard anything.... is anyone else in the same boat? I called Week 4 and they said if you haven't heard anything it's because a decision has NOT been made but now I'm at week 7..... thoughts?

Originally Posted by anbuitachi

Don't expect a fast decision. I don't think downstate has a time limit on decisions. So don't worry if you don't get a decision in a month. THey give a lot of Hold til spring considerations... meaning they'll review your application in JUNE!!... it's a long wait guys

(I know upstate told me i'll get my decision on 10/15 cause I interviewed in september, but NO! it took them 12 weeks to get back to me with a decision lol..)

Point is they'll get to you eventually.

To add to what he said, I was someone who interviewed around the 20th of September last year, and did not receive a response til early December...goes to show you how long they take. By Thanksgiving, they had not yet made a decision either...so some files take forever! Best of luck waiting!

[QUOTE=Asyouwereatrio;11832539]Congrats, and best of luck to you!

Originally Posted by ryuuzaki

If you guys have any burning questions, or specific
questions about Downstate, please don't hesitate to ask.

@Asyouwereatrio
Thanks and glad to see you giving a weighed information about the curriculum to us applicants.

@ryuuzaki
Will do, Thanks for the offer.

any advice???


I've been complete since early september and still no interview invite.. anyone have any ideas?
Thoughts regarding a letter of interest..? do they get looked at/considered?


-I have a decent MCAT, very strong GPA, very strong resume with loads of extracurric's and volunteer/medical work...
-IS applicant

Thoughts?

:/

Originally Posted by bloodyhell

any advice???


I've been complete since early september and still no interview invite.. anyone have any ideas?
Thoughts regarding a letter of interest..? do they get looked at/considered?


-I have a decent MCAT, very strong GPA, very strong resume with loads of extracurric's and volunteer/medical work...
-IS applicant

Thoughts?

:/

It takes a while. Though, what do you consider by decent MCAT and strong GPA?
The GPA also depends on school. a 3.9 from community college doesn't look as good. there's a lot of factors involved. even your race matters. and I don't think early september complete is early...

Originally Posted by bloodyhell

any advice???


I've been complete since early september and still no interview invite.. anyone have any ideas?
Thoughts regarding a letter of interest..? do they get looked at/considered?


-I have a decent MCAT, very strong GPA, very strong resume with loads of extracurric's and volunteer/medical work...
-IS applicant

Thoughts?

:/

I don't think any of us have a grasp on how interviews are given out. For instance, I personally didn't submit my secondary until thanksgiving of last year, and was given an interview invite about a week later. My grades aren't super competitive either and I have nothing extraordinary on my resume. In contrast, I had friends who were complete back in June/July (along with their secondaries) and were given interview invites just a couple of weeks before I was given one. And they definitely had better stats and resumes than I did.

Although it seems that interviews are given out randomly (judging by my experience), logically this can't be the case. If you are a good applicant without any red flags I'm sure they will consider your application sooner or later. Downstate tends to interview for quite a while.

Regardless of what may have been said on this thread or any other thread in this part of SDN, it is ALWAYS a good idea to send a letter of interest. They tell the school that you are INTERESTED. This is especially true if you have been waitlisted/put on hold for spring consideration or review/alternate listed (as in the case of Downstate). Schools sometimes have a difficult time discerning who would truly want to come to their school, and any genuine interest shown on your behalf can't hurt your application. It would be a better idea to make it a combined letter of interest/update letter informing the school of anything meaningful that you have been doing.

As always, take anything anyone says here with a grain of salt. Just hang tight.

Originally Posted by ryuuzaki

I don't think any of us have a grasp on how interviews are given out. For instance, I personally didn't submit my secondary until thanksgiving of last year, and was given an interview invite about a week later. My grades aren't super competitive either and I have nothing extraordinary on my resume. In contrast, I had friends who were complete back in June/July (along with their secondaries) and were given interview invites just a couple of weeks before I was given one. And they definitely had better stats and resumes than I did.

Although it seems that interviews are given out randomly (judging by my experience), logically this can't be the case. If you are a good applicant without any red flags I'm sure they will consider your application sooner or later. Downstate tends to interview for quite a while.

Regardless of what may have been said on this thread or any other thread in this part of SDN, it is ALWAYS a good idea to send a letter of interest. They tell the school that you are INTERESTED. This is especially true if you have been waitlisted/put on hold for spring consideration or review/alternate listed (as in the case of Downstate). Schools sometimes have a difficult time discerning who would truly want to come to their school, and any genuine interest shown on your behalf can't hurt your application. It would be a better idea to make it a combined letter of interest/update letter informing the school of anything meaningful that you have been doing.

As always, take anything anyone says here with a grain of salt. Just hang tight.

Everything said above is spot on--I would just emphasize that you should try your best to demonstrate a genuine interest in the school. It's tough to show, since a lot of people's (including myself) genuine interest in the school has to do with the interest in our clinical training, and that is something said year after year by most applicants. That being said, be creative in your letter--it couldn't hurt!

Good luck to everyone still awaiting responses from schools--good news will come soon enough!

Here was my time-line if it helps anyone.

Interviewed on 10/3/11.

Accepted on 10/29/11 (way way faster than I was anticipating). I was told it would be a long, long, time before a decision.

Good luck to everyone! I'm rooting for all of you.

Just got accepted via snail mail! Interviewed late october and found out today so I'd say it was about a month downtime. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Originally Posted by Mkb06

Here was my time-line if it helps anyone.

Interviewed on 10/3/11.

Accepted on 10/29/11 (way way faster than I was anticipating). I was told it would be a long, long, time before a decision.

Good luck to everyone! I'm rooting for all of you.

Originally Posted by ru4real1666

Just got accepted via snail mail! Interviewed late october and found out today so I'd say it was about a month downtime. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

for people that got in, what were your stats, if you don't mind me asking? I know that stats aren't everything but they are a good place to start.

Originally Posted by ru4real1666

Just got accepted via snail mail! Interviewed late october and found out today so I'd say it was about a month downtime. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Did your status page change when you signed in?

I didn't even know there was a site to check the status...only a site that gave a checklist of everything that SUNY Downstate needed. If that's what you're referring to then no, there was no change on that site.

Originally Posted by medsky

for people that got in, what were your stats, if you don't mind me asking? I know that stats aren't everything but they are a good place to start.

32, 3.86. Good luck!

Interview this week!
I can't seem to access the Interview Feedback page anymore : (
Can anyone speak to the SUNY interview experience on this thread?

For those that accepted an offer, did you get any sort of confirmation after mailing in your reply?

Thanks for the info/encouragement!

I sure hope that I will still get an interview invite..my stats are competative with that ive seen for some who are getting ii and acceptances..

I am definitely going to consider sending a letter this week.. and then fingers crossed!

Originally Posted by pache

For those that accepted an offer, did you get any sort of confirmation after mailing in your reply?

I didn't get a confirmation after mailing in my acceptance.

Originally Posted by danceonskis

Interview this week!
I can't seem to access the Interview Feedback page anymore : (
Can anyone speak to the SUNY interview experience on this thread?

The day starts early with a little writing prompt (but don't worry about it) then a talk from the dean. Quick talk by the dean in the morning.Tour by a few students, followed by lunch. Then I had one interview. That's it! done by like 230.

Originally Posted by Mkb06

I didn't get a confirmation after mailing in my acceptance.

I didn't get a confirmation either..let's hope they got it?

Originally Posted by Mkb06

The day starts early with a little writing prompt (but don't worry about it) then a talk from the dean. Quick talk by the dean in the morning.Tour by a few students, followed by lunch. Then I had one interview. That's it! done by like 230.

Thanks for the info! What was the interview like? Were there any particularly difficult/ unexpected questions?

Originally Posted by danceonskis

Thanks for the info! What was the interview like? Were there any particularly difficult/ unexpected questions?

I had a great interview. I had a psychiatrist (which made me nervous because I thought he might over-analyze me!) but he totally put me at ease. Overall, a very nice interview. Quite conversational.

Originally Posted by danceonskis

Thanks for the info! What was the interview like? Were there any particularly difficult/ unexpected questions?

The interview was REALLY chill. The "toughest" question for me was "after all of this, what is the main thing that you want me to relay to the Admissions Committee about you?" It's not really a difficult question, but it's definitely not a "draw from one experience and talk about it" kind of question.

Then again, I'm a non-trad so that might put me in a different category.

Originally Posted by Mkb06

I had a great interview. I had a psychiatrist (which made me nervous because I thought he might over-analyze me!) but he totally put me at ease. Overall, a very nice interview. Quite conversational.

I thought the same too! I'm going to assume you had the same psychiatrist I had, the guy was hilarious in this goofy sort of way.

Originally Posted by CheekyFellow

I thought the same too! I'm going to assume you had the same psychiatrist I had, the guy was hilarious in this goofy sort of way.

same! i had interview mad long ago, 9/7 or sth. Didn't he do most of the talking in your interview? lmao, he's awesome.

Does anyone know if the SUNY Downstate admissions office lets people leave their luggage in the office during the interview day?

Originally Posted by hiyaman

Does anyone know if the SUNY Downstate admissions office lets people leave their luggage in the office during the interview day?

They do! I did it today.

Originally Posted by angleslam08

same! i had interview mad long ago, 9/7 or sth. Didn't he do most of the talking in your interview? lmao, he's awesome.

Haha, yea that's what he did. He went on for a good 10-15 mins about some Amish drug ring, with a few sidetracks here and there.

Just curious, what's your opinion on the school? The location is a bit rough, but I can imagine that the clinical experience you will get there would be great. What holds me back is the age of the facilities, seeing some of the other schools I've visited are well above it in that regard. But, can't judge the school solely on it's appearance.