I have also started to take SDN stats with a HUGE grain of salt
"3.99/520 and I can't get in to DO - help!"
"3.99/520 and I can't get in to DO - help!"
2017 Nontrad Applicants' Progress Thread
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I would like to think that the fit ideology is true. Osteopathic schools tend to be more holistic as they talk the talk and walk the walk. But in looking at MSAR stats when the 10th percentiles of acceptance and matriculation are above my's stats it is difficult to entertain the idea that I would even be considered as a fit let alone granted II or acceptance. But my conception of how the this process works is based on the information available and I am open to the idea of being wrong. The numbers will get you in the door for consideration of a II, after that it is probably more holistic. There are also Bonus Factors like URM and Veteran status that add to that picture making the applicants more competitive, but I would be crazy to think that I with similar numbers I would be in the same boat.
I function with the thought process that I am no exception to the rule rather just average. I will not even waste the secondary fee or the adcoms time or mine.
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I have all sorts of anxieties with similar-esque stats (though to be fair, I'm only applying MD). My caveats, and we all have them, are that I lack research and have all sorts of CC prereq credits because I was working while making a career transition. Heck, I've been less likely to post about my worries and process simply because I don't want to come off as humble-bragging. While there are certainly a group of the overly neurotic out there, I can vouch for the fact that just having the stats doesn't make the process any less stressful.
That said, as we have discussed here already, stats are just a part of the package leading to IIs, let alone hopeful eventual acceptance. They are a (very) important piece of the puzzle, but certainly not the be-all-end-all. I think from a message board perspective, they are probably the easiest point of reference for comparison though. Heck, even the AAMC uses them when they publish their official matriculation metrics.
QofQuimica
Seriously, dude, I think you're overreacting....
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I used a work letter for mine. I had been out of college for ten years when I applied and my Spanish prof from UG was long retired.
Awesome!
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First II today!!
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Awesome! I've been rooting for you since I read you only applied to four schools!
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Congrats!!!!
Mark my words, you will get II from every school you have applied to!
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That would be nice lol, but I do have one rejection so far though, in midjuly.
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I finally got my letter writer to write one over a month ago now. He sent it to Interfolio on letterhead but without his signature. I sent it via mail with an addressed envelope and the interfolio attachment...he sent it back to Interfolio finally last Thursday. I'm still waiting for them to upload it.
I fought with professors (politely) for over a year now for a letter. Trust me, you are not alone.
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What are the chances that I get accepted to a uni after I take a SMP at said uni? Is there any possibility if I do well?
I'm considering switching to a job in the same job area, but picking up and moving so I can attend classes for a MS. I may be able to get the same job FT night shift (ouch I know, but I've done it before I moved up seniority). Right next to campus would be great.
I'm single and able to just get up and go for the most part. I'm sure it's been asked before, but curious if anyone heard anything promising.
I'm considering switching to a job in the same job area, but picking up and moving so I can attend classes for a MS. I may be able to get the same job FT night shift (ouch I know, but I've done it before I moved up seniority). Right next to campus would be great.
I'm single and able to just get up and go for the most part. I'm sure it's been asked before, but curious if anyone heard anything promising.
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You're waiting for AMCAS?
Interfolio. I like Interfolio best, because it's once and done permanently. Actually he sent it over a week ago. Thursday before last...and the mail is snail slow. It's coming from halfway across the country from me, so that's the frustrating part as well. He balked at writing one at first, saying he didn't know me. Love it. I'm sorry, but I don't hang out at the bar with my profs after class.
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Cant you guys just get a different writer or not use those ones anymore? I feel like if I had to wait that long, id just ditch em.
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These are postbac courses I've taken. I graduated from most of my B.Sci. degree programs well over a decade ago. Most of those are retired, dead, I don't remember their names anymore, or they moved on to another college. The ones that were still there told me no. One even went on (what I believe to be) a 3am drunken tirade via email about how he can't do it.
As of right now, I'm grasping at straws.
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I think thats the point of MMI's. That you cant really prepare for them. They want to know you can think on your feet and come up with a reasonable solution to whatever scenario they present you with.
My worst fear is that I am going to end up smiling of the scenario asks me to deliver bad news to a person because I know it is fake. That would not happen if I really was delivering the bad news, but it would be hard for me to ignore that the person facing me is an actor.
I am in so much trouble.
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QofQuimica
Seriously, dude, I think you're overreacting....
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Dude, that's my point. You (and your app) are NOT at the mercy of some butt wipe who can't or won't send in a LOR. Just ask someone else, and then who gives a flying rip what this guy does? The only reason he has any power over your life is because you're giving it to him. So take control back. He's not the only person on planet Earth who can write your letter. Move on, ask someone else, and get 'er done.
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Nothing like skimming through your essays and realizing the diversity paragraph you copied and pasted at least 10 times has a sentence that makes absolutely no sense. I swear, I read through this like 30 times and didn't catch it, and it is so blatantly obvious now that I see it.
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I was invited to interview at Mayo MN today. Shocked, grateful, and truly humbled. Wow.
Now, I really need to find time to prep fo these interviews. first one is in 9 days. AHHH. How are you all prepping? I have been writing down ideas and answers to common questions but don't know when, how, or if I will have time for a full-blown mock interview prior to heading to Jefferson next Tuesday. Will rehearsing on video recorder/in front of the mirror suffice? Don't want to blow this.
Now, I really need to find time to prep fo these interviews. first one is in 9 days. AHHH. How are you all prepping? I have been writing down ideas and answers to common questions but don't know when, how, or if I will have time for a full-blown mock interview prior to heading to Jefferson next Tuesday. Will rehearsing on video recorder/in front of the mirror suffice? Don't want to blow this.
I don't have much time to prepare for my first interview due to various reasons. So my strategy is to prepared to answer 'why medicine' and 'why this school'. For MMI I just read some info on various websites to familiarize myself with the format and watched a few videos to understand how one is expected to answer questions e.g. Reasoning or thinking out loud, displaying empathy, etc. etc. I may attempt to record myself on video if I have time, as is recommended for practice.
For traditional interviews I did make a list of commonly asked questions and wrote out the answers and practiced out loud during my last application cycle. I plan on doing the same this cycle as time allows.
Best of luck with your first interview.
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And also is highly recommended that you review your AMCAS and secondary application beforehand. I plan on printing these out and taking them with me.
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I just had my first MMI with zero preparation, and honestly it wasn't as bad as I expected. There was an acting station on mine, but it wasn't hard to go into the role that was asked of me. The rest of them were also pretty straightforward. The biggest asset I can think of is, as mentioned above, being able to think on your feet and not babble on for the whole time. Find a point and a way you want to justify it, say it, and then let the interviewer follow up as necessary. I can't think of a scenario that has you just rolling for the entire 6-8 minutes.
Thank you for the tip. I myself was wondering how one could have a 8 min one sided conversation. I hope the interview brings you an acceptance.
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Even better is getting your first rejection within an hour of noticing this.
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Its not an II quite yet, but I just got a letter request from Mayo, which is pretty exciting.....
Hey guys so for a short update:
Decided on continuing undergrad courses over SMP mostly due to financial restraints. I am signed up for 18 credits of quality coursework for this fall (mostly undergrad+grad cross listed science classes).
Updated projected GPA after this semester:
3.41/3.17 s/c, (5 years of undergrad and 2.5 years of post bacc...it's been a long journey)
Should be a tad higher after spring classes are added. I am biting the bullet and signing up for a Kaplan MCAT prep course as well. I aim to shoot for an above average score (26 is old score from 2012).
Should I be good to go after spring semester and MCAT? I have zero preferences for a particular school and I'm going to apply on the opening day to all the schools. My preference would be to catch an early acceptance and unload the stress on. Is this goal achievable in my trajectory?
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Decided on continuing undergrad courses over SMP mostly due to financial restraints. I am signed up for 18 credits of quality coursework for this fall (mostly undergrad+grad cross listed science classes).
Updated projected GPA after this semester:
3.41/3.17 s/c, (5 years of undergrad and 2.5 years of post bacc...it's been a long journey)
Should be a tad higher after spring classes are added. I am biting the bullet and signing up for a Kaplan MCAT prep course as well. I aim to shoot for an above average score (26 is old score from 2012).
Should I be good to go after spring semester and MCAT? I have zero preferences for a particular school and I'm going to apply on the opening day to all the schools. My preference would be to catch an early acceptance and unload the stress on. Is this goal achievable in my trajectory?
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With a low GPA med schools are likely looking for an upward trend in grades. Also grades are not everything. Do you have enough volunteer work and/or research? Do you have any life experiences that make you an interesting candidate? Many schools will do a holistic review of your application. So yes you should definitely aim for good grades and a good MCAT score but without a good list of non-academic experiences your application will not be competitive. Also, line up your LORs well in advance. I asked for LORs from instructors as soon as class was done. Some instructors just were not responsive when it came to LOR requests so I made sure I requested LORs from everybody I possibly could till I at least had the minimum required. Oh and don't forget shadowing doctors and then also ask them for an LOR.
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What does "medical academics" exactly mean? It is one of the topics in a list (such as primary care , border health etc).
Does it mean research, or teaching side of medicine (ie. training junior doctors, etc)?
Its a secondary application
Does it mean research, or teaching side of medicine (ie. training junior doctors, etc)?
Its a secondary application
Thanks for the reply. I have been working as a caregiver for several years and will maintain part time for the next year at least. I was offered an ER scribe position but I couldn't accept due to time constraints (have been kicking myself over this missed opportunity . I have about average experiences for volunteer and shadowing and I would say very strong and current LORs, but no research. I have been building my way up for 2.5 years of post bacc from a 2.1 GPA in undergrad.
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From 2.1 to about 3.4? Wow, you must have had amazing grades these past few years. If that is the case and your BPCM GPA is good, I think academically you will not be at a disadvantage. However I don't know the details of your academic work over the past couple of years. You may want to evaluate spending more time beefing up your activities, unless you need the additional classes for other reason. Also check the schools you are considering applying for GPA cut offs that lead to automatic rejection. My guess is 3.0 GPA is lower limit at most schools.
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Yeah actually my sGPA was worse like 1.9ish. I didn't even get my zoology major simply due to my GPA being too low, I took and passed all the classes!
This will be my 5th semester of post bacc redoing most of my undergrad BPCM courses. I had one semester that I tanked because of a hectic work schedule. I had a few residents pass away and coworkers quit at my job. I ended up repeating most of those courses again (a third time yikes!!) so it didn't effect my GPA too much. Other then that little post bacc hiccup I've been solid 3.7-4.0 all BPCM courses.
After this spring my GPA should be a bit higher (say 3.5/3.25) but I'm constantly concerned that the history of my GPA is something upon closer inspection will raise concern with adcoms.
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To be honest, I think you should stop taking classes and just focus on the other aspects of your application.
At some point you have to make peace with your academic record and just focus on making sure you are a well-rounded applicant. That much grade repair is insanely impressive and I bet it was exceptionally expensive as well. You're totally good with grades. Plenty of schools reward reinvention and you've gone above and beyond to show academic prowess.
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Can I get someone to read / input/comment on two short essays? 
please!
please!Thank you very much for you're reply. I agree with you for the most part. As far as GPA goes, I'm getting close to peaking with basically a whole new undergrads worth of work done in post bacc alone. But while I wait till May 2017 to roll around I can't see justifying not taking classes. Every 4.0 semester with all upper level classes allows me to distance myself further from my post bacc hiccup semester.
As far as the cost goes, I figure I share my strategy. I was very fortunate to have my first undergrad paid for, although it sicken me thinking about what that money was spent for. When I first enrolled as a post bacc student I was at my state university as a "non-degree seeking" student and was charged the full semesters tuition of ~$4500. I quickly realized that I hadn't used any of my $58,000 lifetime limit on the stratford loan so I simply applied through the front door as a degree seeking student in order to gain regular student status. Once admitted they never restricted any courses I registered for and I got my tuition paid for 100% by federal loans. So I just started building my own schedule around what I needed. Occasionally I get an email asking me to officially declare my major but that's it.
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Nice! Drop me a PM if you want to chat on Mayo; I interviewed there last year. Or for general interview stuff.
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Columbia University, in general, is very veteran / non-traditional friendly. I did my post-bac there - It's a great institution. Congrats on the II there!
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So, I have some sort of good and sort of bad news today.
My professor, whose letter I have been waiting for submission on my Interfolio Dossier, did not fail me. They received the letter and processed it (apparently) on 8/31. I had been waiting for the email from Interfolio saying it had been received. Well, today, on a whim, I opened my Dossier and found that it had been placed under "received" status yesterday. The only thing is, according to customer service, they did an update on the site recently, so there is some sort of glitch. It isn't showing the letter itself. I'm hoping all they have to do is re-scan the hard copy of the letter, which they keep for up to two months.
I'm keeping hope....
My professor, whose letter I have been waiting for submission on my Interfolio Dossier, did not fail me. They received the letter and processed it (apparently) on 8/31. I had been waiting for the email from Interfolio saying it had been received. Well, today, on a whim, I opened my Dossier and found that it had been placed under "received" status yesterday. The only thing is, according to customer service, they did an update on the site recently, so there is some sort of glitch. It isn't showing the letter itself. I'm hoping all they have to do is re-scan the hard copy of the letter, which they keep for up to two months.
I'm keeping hope....
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Well, something did go wrong, but it could have been worse.
I scheduled another interview two days before these ones, so: interview, break, back to back interviews. The night after the first interview, my car got absolutely pile driven while parked on the street.
Had to arrange a long tow to get it to the right collision repair center, get a rental and move on to these other two interviews. I'm hoping to get it in 3-4 weeks, which means I'll need to come back out 3 hours away to pick it up. Disaster. Slept like 3 hours last night, but at least it happened on my "off day." It could have very easily sabotaged two interviews at once.
Don't drink/text and drive, kids. This girl really did her best to ruin my otherwise awesome day after interviewing at my top choice. But, nobody is hurt, football starts tonight, I've drafted a couple fantasy football teams that are absolute juggernauts, and I'm still fortunate enough to be interviewing.
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Damn, homie! Coulda been WAY worse! A few years back a buddy/co-worker of mine was on the interview trail and got hit & killed while in a crosswalk. Seriously, kids, do not text and drive!
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That's awful. Keeps everything in perspective. Speaking of, if you are looking for a new/good book to read - Here I am - by the guy that wrote everything is illuminated. It's so good, and the premise is how do we worry about "small things" when there are big things (think worrying about shopping for door knobs versus people dying in Syria)
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