Don't GIVE UP Non TRADS!!!

wannabeDocinNYC · Dec 14, 2005

This is not a post about MCAT scores or grades but rather about non traditional students in general. I am a non traditional med student who just completed my first semester in med school. Not only did I complete it, but I finished with awesome grades. When I went through the whole process I had a host of people who told me not even to try to go to med school b/c I wouldn't get in anywhere. I didn't get in to 17/18 schools I applied to but I got into the 18th one, a really good one at that. Not to mention, I got into school in April of last year. My point? My friends, family and coworkers thought I was crazy for giving up a very well paying job to pursue this. Any regrets? Not one. I love it and have made the best decision of my life.

Don't give up. People will look at you like your an alien, tell you your too old, wonder why you would do this, but if you stay true to your dreams you never have regrets. Good luck with applications and keep your chin up!

yanita · Dec 14, 2005

really.
your encouragement couldn't have come on a better day!!

eccles1214 · Dec 14, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
I got into school in April of last year. My point? My friends, family and coworkers thought I was crazy for giving up a very well paying job to pursue this. Any regrets? Not one. I love it and have made the best decision of my life.

Don't give up. People will look at you like your an alien, tell you your too old, wonder why you would do this, but if you stay true to your dreams you never have regrets. Good luck with applications and keep your chin up!

What do you think were the defining factors that favored your acceptance -- what made this school offer you a spot in their class?

EUROdocMOM · Dec 16, 2005

I started med school at 30. People will doubt you, but drive on. I am graduating in 6 mos & just matched in Derm!
We non-trads do well in school because we have good organizational skills and high maturity levels.
I wish you all good luck. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it!

HOLLYWOOD · Dec 17, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
This is not a post about MCAT scores or grades but rather about non traditional students in general. I am a non traditional med student who just completed my first semester in med school. Not only did I complete it, but I finished with awesome grades. When I went through the whole process I had a host of people who told me not even to try to go to med school b/c I wouldn't get in anywhere. I didn't get in to 17/18 schools I applied to but I got into the 18th one, a really good one at that. Not to mention, I got into school in April of last year. My point? My friends, family and coworkers thought I was crazy for giving up a very well paying job to pursue this. Any regrets? Not one. I love it and have made the best decision of my life.

Don't give up. People will look at you like your an alien, tell you your too old, wonder why you would do this, but if you stay true to your dreams you never have regrets. Good luck with applications and keep your chin up!

If you don't mind me asking do you have a family and how young are you? congrats on finishing your first semester.

wannabeDocinNYC · Dec 18, 2005

eccles1214 said:
What do you think were the defining factors that favored your acceptance -- what made this school offer you a spot in their class?

Well I think my past business experience helped a lot. I worked for a few years after college in business and gained invaluable experience. I knew how to interview well and I knew once I got the interview, I could grab a spot. Also, an impeccable application. I fine-combed my application, made sure it was perfect through and through. I was persistent. I sent letters to waitlisted places consistently, 1 every 2 weeks, until I got the call.

Persistence is big. You would be surprised how many people don't follow up on their apps. You have to if you want to stand out.

wannabeDocinNYC · Dec 18, 2005

HOLLYWOOD said:
If you don't mind me asking do you have a family and how young are you? congrats on finishing your first semester.

I have a great family and a wonderful boyfriend. My family was against my choices at first but came around after they could see I loved science and did well in it. I'm 26. There are people in my class who are in their late 30s and 40's and they are doing great and love what their doing.

Believe me, when your a post-bacc pre-med your age seems to really matter to you and everyone else b/c your not exactly where you need to be. Once you get to med school, it totally doesnt make any difference. You dont get treated differently ( i mean, except at 50 your not doing the drunken night thing after anatomy exams). And quite frankly, older students with some experience behind them are at a significant advantage b/c they've kinda been down the hard-working road before. I wasn't thrown for a loop in med school and I felt like a lotta younger straight-outa-school types had some major adjustments to make. But yes, my support system helped a lot.

Thanks and good luck.

DRIAM7 · Dec 20, 2005

EUROdocMOM, what school do you attend? What were your scores and G.P.A. going into medical school?

DRIAM7 · Dec 20, 2005

wannabeDOCinNYC, what school did you get into? What were your MCAT scores and G.P.A.?

RosaVerde · Dec 22, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
Well I think my past business experience helped a lot. I worked for a few years after college in business and gained invaluable experience. I knew how to interview well and I knew once I got the interview, I could grab a spot. Also, an impeccable application. I fine-combed my application, made sure it was perfect through and through. I was persistent. I sent letters to waitlisted places consistently, 1 every 2 weeks, until I got the call.

Persistence is big. You would be surprised how many people don't follow up on their apps. You have to if you want to stand out.

What did your letters say? Did you email these to people in admissions? or just snail mail them into the admissions office? I've never heard of anyone doing this before so please enlighten me. thx

kimmcauliffe · Dec 22, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
And quite frankly, older students with some experience behind them are at a significant advantage b/c they've kinda been down the hard-working road before. I wasn't thrown for a loop in med school and I felt like a lotta younger straight-outa-school types had some major adjustments to make. But yes, my support system helped a lot.

Thanks and good luck.

Well said!! I can see what you mean on the pre-allopathic forum...

Did 6 years in the Air Force, don't stress about the same things they seem to (an A- instead of an A). Cheers to you, please keep us posted on your progress!

bubbleyum · Dec 23, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
Well I think my past business experience helped a lot. I worked for a few years after college in business and gained invaluable experience. I knew how to interview well and I knew once I got the interview, I could grab a spot. Also, an impeccable application. I fine-combed my application, made sure it was perfect through and through. I was persistent. I sent letters to waitlisted places consistently, 1 every 2 weeks, until I got the call.

Persistence is big. You would be surprised how many people don't follow up on their apps. You have to if you want to stand out.

hi wannabe,

thanks for the encouragement. this has not been a very encouraging week, even with the holidays looming it's hard to get into a "joyous" spirit.

i was wondering what you put in your letters to the adcoms(because if you sent a letter every TWO weeks, i can't imagine what new things you could have added about yourself in them)? how many places were you waitlisted at, and at the school you got accepted to, did they actually tell you that your letters made a difference?

i asked about sending update letters in the pre-allo forum, and basically got told off that update letters don't make much of a difference unless you already have an interview, and that i should just give up and wait till next year to apply again with a better application...

thanks.

wannabeDocinNYC · Dec 26, 2005

bubbleyum said:
hi wannabe,

thanks for the encouragement. this has not been a very encouraging week, even with the holidays looming it's hard to get into a "joyous" spirit.

i was wondering what you put in your letters to the adcoms(because if you sent a letter every TWO weeks, i can't imagine what new things you could have added about yourself in them)? how many places were you waitlisted at, and at the school you got accepted to, did they actually tell you that your letters made a difference?

i asked about sending update letters in the pre-allo forum, and basically got told off that update letters don't make much of a difference unless you already have an interview, and that i should just give up and wait till next year to apply again with a better application...

thanks.

Ok, so basically this is an answer to a few messages:

Undergrad GPA: 3.6
Post-bacc GPA: 3.8
MCAT: 29

I applied to 18 schools, waitlisted at 3, and got into 1 ( which i'd rather not mention on this forum as my classmates and professors read on this forum). My update letters went like this:

1st letter: what have i been doing since i applied.
2nd letter: all about how the skills i acquired at what i was doing helped me and would help me in med school.
3rd letter: all about how much i loved the school & place
4th letter: more on what i did and how much i loved the school.

I truly belive my letters made a difference as I showed a sincere interest. I also called regarding my status and to speak with admissions 2x. Admissions will tell you your letters arent that imp but I think they say that to discourage extraordinary volumes of mail. Think about it: you stand out, your name is constantly in their face s they have to review each new peice of info. in your file. You cant hurt yourself by showing an interest, it just requires more work on your part.

I think that update letters play a crucial role after the interview. Before the intervew, some phone calls and maybe one letter is appropriate. Too many may be a deterant.

bubbleyum · Dec 27, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
Ok, so basically this is an answer to a few messages:

Undergrad GPA: 3.6
Post-bacc GPA: 3.8
MCAT: 29

I applied to 18 schools, waitlisted at 3, and got into 1 ( which i'd rather not mention on this forum as my classmates and professors read on this forum). My update letters went like this:

1st letter: what have i been doing since i applied.
2nd letter: all about how the skills i acquired at what i was doing helped me and would help me in med school.
3rd letter: all about how much i loved the school & place
4th letter: more on what i did and how much i loved the school.

I truly belive my letters made a difference as I showed a sincere interest. I also called regarding my status and to speak with admissions 2x. Admissions will tell you your letters arent that imp but I think they say that to discourage extraordinary volumes of mail. Think about it: you stand out, your name is constantly in their face s they have to review each new peice of info. in your file. You cant hurt yourself by showing an interest, it just requires more work on your part.

I think that update letters play a crucial role after the interview. Before the intervew, some phone calls and maybe one letter is appropriate. Too many may be a deterant.

thanks wannabe, for your detailed response. i think i will send in an update letter at some schools that i am hoping for interviews at.

Learfan · Dec 28, 2005

wannabeDocinNYC said:
This is not a post about MCAT scores or grades but rather about non traditional students in general. I am a non traditional med student who just completed my first semester in med school. Not only did I complete it, but I finished with awesome grades. When I went through the whole process I had a host of people who told me not even to try to go to med school b/c I wouldn't get in anywhere. I didn't get in to 17/18 schools I applied to but I got into the 18th one, a really good one at that. Not to mention, I got into school in April of last year. My point? My friends, family and coworkers thought I was crazy for giving up a very well paying job to pursue this. Any regrets? Not one. I love it and have made the best decision of my life.

Don't give up. People will look at you like your an alien, tell you your too old, wonder why you would do this, but if you stay true to your dreams you never have regrets. Good luck with applications and keep your chin up!

I want to reinforce this message. NEVER GIVE UP. I made it in at 46 and have just completed first semester. While I did not enjoy all aspects of anatomy I got good grades and am on my way into a profession where it is possible to have a real impact. This stands in distinct contrast to my old profession which afforded me only a single success during 18 years of working. Keep after it and the victory will taste all the sweeter.

MedChic · Dec 31, 2005

Learfan said:
I want to reinforce this message. NEVER GIVE UP. I made it in at 46 and have just completed first semester. While I did not enjoy all aspects of anatomy I got good grades and am on my way into a profession where it is possible to have a real impact. This stands in distinct contrast to my old profession which afforded me only a single success during 18 years of working. Keep after it and the victory will taste all the sweeter.

These posts are so nice to read in contrast to the googled-eye stares I get from friends who know how much I still have to go through and how much I'm gonna be payin' to get there in order to become an MD. It's amazing how people differ in their set ways of thinking.

Don't GIVE UP Non TRADS!!!

wannabeDocinNYC

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yanita

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eccles1214

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EUROdocMOM

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HOLLYWOOD

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wannabeDocinNYC

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wannabeDocinNYC

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DRIAM7

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