2016 Nontrad Applicants' Progress Thread

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

Gosh I'd enjoy the Super Bowl so much more if
1. The Seahawks were in it
and/or
2. I knew where in the US I'm going to be living next year
:'(

Any Broncos or Panthers fans here?

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[Okazaki Frag Grenade]

Gosh I'd enjoy the Super Bowl so much more if
1. The Seahawks were in it
and/or
2. I knew where in the US I'm going to be living next year
:'(

Any Broncos or Panthers fans here?

Panthers ......

 

[Eccesignum]

Any Broncos or Panthers fans here?

 

[mavric1298]

That was very enjoyable to watch Cams smug ass smile get put in check, followed up by his A) not going after that fumble B) complete hissy fits when Norman has the PI, then when he almost got sacked for a safety C) Walk out of his postgame interview because he is a f'in child and has 0 class (yes I know he gives his shoes to kids in need blah blah blah). If your going to act like that when you are winning, you sure as hell better learn to lose with some grace. Russells example last year should be looked at - that was a much more heart wrenching loss

 

[Okazaki Frag Grenade]

FAFSA is done ...

 

[Eccesignum]

FAFSA is done ...

View attachment 200353

+1, plz sum1 halp a starvin stoodent

 

[tetley]

Just mailed out 6 LOIs

starting to become close with these post office ladies

 

[CyrilFiggis]

Just mailed out 6 LOIs

starting to become close with these post office ladies

Why didn't you email or submit through the schools' portals?

 

[dushash]

Received my first acceptance at AZCOM! So excited!
38y.o., non trad (2 kids, 1 cat), I'm Canadian* so I'm considered international student for USA - meaning no Federal loans for me. Will be looking into some private loans. $320K in debt is no joke, but I'm not afraid at all. Really looking forward to start of the M1 year.

507 mcat (took exam in September, 22nd, 2015), was complete late in November, thought I stand no chance, but still applied.

*Note: immigrated to Canada in 2009 at age 31, started life from scratch, decided to go medicine, had to study and work at the same time. It was really, really hard, to the point that I started questioning myself and all the decisions I made (in 2012 my father died), it was a tough time, but I guess it all was worth it.

If an old immigrant with kids can do it - anyone can! Never give up and pursue your goals! Good luck to everyone still on the road.

 

[gyrfalcon]

Received my first acceptance at AZCOM! So excited!

Congratulations! More nontrad success!

 

[VegasPreMed]

Received my first acceptance at AZCOM! So excited!
38y.o., non trad (2 kids, 1 cat), I'm Canadian* so I'm considered international student for USA - meaning no Federal loans for me. Will be looking into some private loans. $320K is debt is no joke, but I'm not afraid at all. Really looking forward to start of the M1 year.

507 mcat (took exam in September, 22nd, 2015), was complete late in November, thought I stand no chance, but still applied.

*Note: immigrated to Canada in 2009 at age 31, started life from scratch, decided to go medicine, had to study and work at the same time. It was really, really hard, to the point that I started questioning myself and all the decisions I made (in 2012 my father died), it was a tough time, but I guess it all was worth it.

If an old immigrant with kids can do it - anyone can! Never give up and pursue your goals! Good luck to everyone still on the road.

Woo!

 

[tetley]

I do that too!
I have sent hand-signed letters just for visibility because there is no guarantee that they are going to see them if you just upload it to the portal or email it in

Why didn't you email or submit through the schools' portals?

 

[CyrilFiggis]

I do that too!
I have sent hand-signed letters just for visibility because there is no guarantee that they are going to see them if you just upload it to the portal or email it in

Gotcha. I seem to remember from the experts - can't remember which Goro, LizzyM, etc - but they said that if the school had a preferred method, you should stick to that. Otherwise it can be seen as annoying or not following directions. I did the same thing with letters last year and I can't say it hurt or helped, so if it bares fruit for you, let us know which schools! GL!

 

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

Found the perfect house in Dallas. Now I just need to get into the school in Dallas XD

 

[breezy16]

FAFSA is done ...

View attachment 200353

Ugh, I did that beast a week or so ago. I'm worried because 1/4 ~ to a 1/3 ~ of our income is mine and it's misleading because it won't be there come April, thus completely inaccurate for financial aid purposes of the 16' year. We'll have to do change of circumstances, but it still sucks.
Has anyone found EFC to Aid awarded ratios / graphs / something, or is all aid given a crapshoot, too?

 

[TravelingPanda]

Hey first time back here in a long time because I stopped getting the popup notification that there is a new post... Anyone know why the little red number showing an alert doesn't always appear? I still have this thread marked as watched...

 

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

Hey first time back here in a long time because I stopped getting the popup notification that there is a new post... Anyone know why the little red number showing an alert doesn't always appear? I still have this thread marked as watched...

If at one point you had a bunch of alerts and didn't click the one for this thread, it will stop alerting you that there are new messages, because you missed one alert. It has happened to me a few times. If you go to the page with all your watched threads you can see if you accidentally missed a notification. Now that you came on here it should start notifying you again.

 

[tetley]

I'm a little tired of how emotionally exhausting this process is

Should I just open a taco truck instead?

OR A TRUCK SPECIALIZING IN ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

 

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

I'm a little tired of how emotionally exhausting this process is

Should I just open a taco truck instead?

OR A TRUCK SPECIALIZING IN ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Or a very thin pancake truck.
Or a pizza truck.
Or a BBQ pig truck.

Damn it now I want food.

 

[VegasPreMed]

EDIT: Wow. That is much bigger than I thought it would be.

 

[thatwouldbeanarchy]

Donut truck, pls.

 

[Eccesignum]

All the trucks plz

 

[Brancer]

Got into 5 med schools. Every school I received an II at.

Dat non-traditional student charisma.

 

[entresuspiros]

+3 for taxes and FAFSA... As much as I would like to be happy about this, its just the beginning of the financial aid waiting game I'm old but poor and so are my parents, please give me money!

On a lighter note, I think the UCSF interview went well. And that weather! I left Boston just as it started snowing and arrived to beautiful 70 degree weather and clear skies. I'd been there once before, but it was nice to be in a place that reminded me of home - both sea and mountains within easy reach!

Also, II from Emory on 2/8 but declined, hope there's still time for it to go to someone else!

 

[Eccesignum]

Rejected from Northwestern, womp!

 

[doctorold]

Rejected from Northwestern, womp!

View attachment 200385

Here is what you do.
You photo copy your Mayo acceptance letter, and you send it to them with a "f*** you" note. Then call them to make sure they received it and to let them know what they are missing. Tell them because of dumb decisions like this they are NOT Mayo. And hang up
I know you are not mad, but I'm mad for you.
Them bastards.

 

[izotic]

Just mailed out 6 LOIs

starting to become close with these post office ladies

hey man on your LOI what do you generally write? I have to sent out a couple of them as well.

 

[tetley]

I followed the guidelines that I saw on a few threads here - I made it about the school and why I thought their style/curriculum really paired well with my learning and interests. I am applying with a research-heavy background (like 4k+ hours) so I made sure to highlight specific research available that I was interested in

If I had a personal connection to the school, I made sure to address that as well.

PM me if you have other questions, but there are a lot of good threads with ideas!

hey man on your LOI what do you generally write? I have to sent out a couple of them as well.

 

[entresuspiros]

Accepted to GWU. Kind of surprised considering how uninterested my interviewers acted when speaking with me. They have a lot of connections to policy and service organizations, which appeals to me, but not really sure if I would be content there.

Annnd rejected from Columbia, haha

 

[tetley]

any recommendations on where to work in a reapplicant year?
Specs: undergrad BME, graduate BME, graduate MSBS. I've done a lot of work in biomechanics and therapy, should I just be a research coordinator? I was thinking about full-time scribing, but I don't know if I would be able to support myself on that

 

[NonTrad16]

any recommendations on where to work in a reapplicant year?
Specs: undergrad BME, graduate BME, graduate MSBS. I've done a lot of work in biomechanics and therapy, should I just be a research coordinator? I was thinking about full-time scribing, but I don't know if I would be able to support myself on that

Not to downplay scribing, but that seems like an underutilization of your skills... I'm honesty not sure what I should do either though.

 

[CyrilFiggis]

any recommendations on where to work in a reapplicant year?
Specs: undergrad BME, graduate BME, graduate MSBS. I've done a lot of work in biomechanics and therapy, should I just be a research coordinator? I was thinking about full-time scribing, but I don't know if I would be able to support myself on that

Were you not working this year?

 

[tetley]

Not to downplay scribing, but that seems like an underutilization of your skills... I'm honesty not sure what I should do either though.

Yeah - I'm afraid that an adcom would look at it in a negative way

Were you not working this year?

I am finishing an SMP and have been doing research. I was working up until this program started last June, doing global health work - not high level policy, actually working on health education and nutrition programs in the developing world, but I don't know if that's "clinical enough"

 

[izotic]

Yeah - I'm afraid that an adcom would look at it in a negative way



I am finishing an SMP and have been doing research. I was working up until this program started last June, doing global health work - not high level policy, actually working on health education and nutrition programs in the developing world, but I don't know if that's "clinical enough"

you can continue doing something in the field that you're at right now (if it pays) and scribe part time to get clinical experience. Or if you need a full time job and you really enjoy research apply to different research institutions like memorial sloan kettering, NYU, weill cornell (assuming you're in the NYC area) but where ever you are you can find research positions. you can even post ads on craigslist to tutor general sciences.

 

[thatwouldbeanarchy]

Yeah - I'm afraid that an adcom would look at it in a negative way

I can't imagine scribing being looked at negatively. Neutrally, maybe, in the sense that it's not going to make or break your application. But I think it's generally considered a positive learning experience. I scribed for a year in the ED at a level 1 trauma center and learned a ton. With that said, it's definitely grunt work a lot of the time and it can be pretty low-paying. I could basically only handle it for a year before I moved on to a much cushier job (better hours, better pay) in clinical research.

 

[VegasPreMed]

I can't imagine scribing being looked at negatively. Neutrally, maybe, in the sense that it's not going to make or break your application. But I think it's generally considered a positive learning experience. I scribed for a year in the ED at a level 1 trauma center and learned a ton. With that said, it's definitely grunt work a lot of the time and it can be pretty low-paying. I could basically only handle it for a year before I moved on to a much cushier job (better hours, better pay) in clinical research.

No joke. I will be ending my scribe experience on my third year evaluation. It gets old because, at least for me, I've been yearning to get more hands on. Although, I will say, you see something new everyday. Today we had a patient that the neurologist thought had neuromyelitis optica (never heard of this in my life), but turned out to be a rapidly progressing MS. Cool stuff (but sad for the patient obviously...)

 

[tetley]

That's pretty wild

craziest thing I've ever seen?

a woman came in for an evaluation for her allergic rhinitis and we spotted a granuloma on her nose. She came back a couple of months later and told us how her granuloma was so deep that they had to remove the entire bridge of her nose, but her derm put her in contact with a cosmetic plastic surgeon that crafted her a new nose segment from her forehead skin. He did it just by cutting a segment, flipping it down, and stitching it so it looked seamless.

even crazier?

the VERY next patient that we saw that day came in the same loss of mass on her nose, we introduced the two, the first assisted the other in getting an appointment with the same surgeon, and now they're friends.

 

[tetley]

Thank you all for the opinions!

I am actually at a really cool lab in a major research hospital doing SCI rehabilitation. One of the engineers is leaving, so there is a pretty good chance that I can get a permanent full time position.

But I also think scribing would be really interesting/intellectually stimulating. I really like just being in the clinical environment and the pace that comes with it. I think if don't do research full time, I might split it like 3 days research/2 days scribe.

however, the taco truck is still on the table.

you can continue doing something in the field that you're at right now (if it pays) and scribe part time to get clinical experience. Or if you need a full time job and you really enjoy research apply to different research institutions like memorial sloan kettering, NYU, weill cornell (assuming you're in the NYC area) but where ever you are you can find research positions. you can even post ads on craigslist to tutor general sciences.

I can't imagine scribing being looked at negatively. Neutrally, maybe, in the sense that it's not going to make or break your application. But I think it's generally considered a positive learning experience. I scribed for a year in the ED at a level 1 trauma center and learned a ton. With that said, it's definitely grunt work a lot of the time and it can be pretty low-paying. I could basically only handle it for a year before I moved on to a much cushier job (better hours, better pay) in clinical research.

No joke. I will be ending my scribe experience on my third year evaluation. It gets old because, at least for me, I've been yearning to get more hands on. Although, I will say, you see something new everyday. Today we had a patient that the neurologist thought had neuromyelitis optica (never heard of this in my life), but turned out to be a rapidly progressing MS. Cool stuff (but sad for the patient obviously...)

 

[VegasPreMed]

however, the taco truck is still on the table.

Haha. Best of luck with your decision!

 

[Eccesignum]

Rejected from Loyola, awwwwyeah

 

[tetley]

you should send them a jar of mayo and say "EAT THIS, ALONG WITH YOUR REJECTION"

 

[tetley]

(get it, because you got in to mayo?!?!?!)

 

[wagonwheel23]

So I interviewed at one of my top choices last week and was totally blown away by my visit. The school just felt like the right place for me. At the end of the day the dean of admissions pulled me into his office and told me he thought I would be a good fit, thanked me for coming to visit, and said he hoped he had sufficiently sold me on the school. I know my 1 on 1 interview went quite well but I do not know how my other panel interview went (the dean said he hadn't gotten feedback from the panel).

I might get an answer next week. I have my fingers crossed so hard for this one. I think it might be the one! I'm just hoping the dean didn't get my hopes up... I can't handle more heartbreak in this process, hah.

 

[Eccesignum]

So I interviewed at one of my top choices last week and was totally blown away by my visit. The school just felt like the right place for me. At the end of the day the dean of admissions pulled me into his office and told me he thought I would be a good fit, thanked me for coming to visit, and said he hoped he had sufficiently sold me on the school. I know my 1 on 1 interview went quite well but I do not know how my other panel interview went (the dean said he hadn't gotten feedback from the panel).

I might get an answer next week. I have my fingers crossed so hard for this one. I think it might be the one! I'm just hoping the dean didn't get my hopes up... I can't handle more heartbreak in this process, hah.

Good luck!!!

 

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

So I interviewed at one of my top choices last week and was totally blown away by my visit. The school just felt like the right place for me. At the end of the day the dean of admissions pulled me into his office and told me he thought I would be a good fit, thanked me for coming to visit, and said he hoped he had sufficiently sold me on the school. I know my 1 on 1 interview went quite well but I do not know how my other panel interview went (the dean said he hadn't gotten feedback from the panel).

I might get an answer next week. I have my fingers crossed so hard for this one. I think it might be the one! I'm just hoping the dean didn't get my hopes up... I can't handle more heartbreak in this process, hah.

I hope it will work out for you

 

[TravelingPanda]

So I interviewed at one of my top choices last week and was totally blown away by my visit. The school just felt like the right place for me. At the end of the day the dean of admissions pulled me into his office and told me he thought I would be a good fit, thanked me for coming to visit, and said he hoped he had sufficiently sold me on the school. I know my 1 on 1 interview went quite well but I do not know how my other panel interview went (the dean said he hadn't gotten feedback from the panel).

I might get an answer next week. I have my fingers crossed so hard for this one. I think it might be the one! I'm just hoping the dean didn't get my hopes up... I can't handle more heartbreak in this process, hah.

Wow that sounds awesome. Good luck!

 

[wagonwheel23]

Thanks guys =) I'm trying to stay sane!!

 

[idontknowwhatnametopick]

FAFSA processed in 24 hours. Very impressive. Unlike med school admissions offices.

 

[VegasPreMed]

FAFSA processed in 24 hours. Very impressive. Unlike med school admissions offices.

 

[Eccesignum]

FAFSA processed in 24 hours. Very impressive. Unlike med school admissions offices.

I'm surprised at how many institutional aid forms basically ask you to rehash your entire FAFSA. I'd always been under the impression schools could see the info on your FAFSA, but perhaps not?