Des Moines University (DMU-COM) Discussion Thread 2014 - 2015

Applying to Med School? Get In Or Your Money Back
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Oh, yea, Pandeya's a really cool guy to talk to. I frankly had no idea who he was, and we just struck up a conversation one day. Tough at the interview table, but awesome otherwise, imo. A person like any other. Also, a wealth of trivial knowledge! O_O
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I haven't had any experience with this yet, but I believe that if your application is impressive, they will be impressed. Now obviously there are minor differences if they are really into X activity and you have X experience, but some people may not show that they are impressed as much as the next person.

In the end, most of them want to be there I would think.
 
Just got my rejection email 5 mins ago. Interviewed 10/24. My stats are 3.4cgpa/3.3sgpa/27 MCAT with a strong interview and 1+ years of medical working experience. Was as expected after looking at all the stats of everyone accepted. Good luck to everyone else still waiting!
 
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Just got put on the alternate list. :(

Is it possible to hear back at all before next May? Or do I have to wait until then?
 
iLiKePiE2u said:
Just got my rejection email 5 mins ago. Interviewed 10/24. My stats are 3.4cgpa/3.3sgpa/27 MCAT with a strong interview and 1+ years of medical working experience. Was as expected after looking at all the stats of everyone accepted. Good luck to everyone else still waiting!
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sorry to hear that, you should call and get some feedback. can only help.

Achjayz said:
Just got put on the alternate list. :(

Is it possible to hear back at all before next May? Or do I have to wait until then?
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yes it's possible. you could hear back the next time the committee meets in theory, i would suppose. you could always ask goro about sending a letter of interest and when would be the best time to send that (right away.. after a month... first of the year... etc). goro seems to be quite well-versed in that.
 
Hi all,
I'm a long time lurker and originally from Iowa. I'm a student at Iowa State University.
I just got my acceptance email this morning from DMU. I interviewed on 10/24.
Here are my stats: 4.0cGPA. 29MCAT.
I've shadowed 4 doctors; neurosurgeon ~10 hours, orthopedic clinician/surgeon ~4, rural MD 18, rural DO 16.
I've been the officer on several student orgs. I've also worked as a CNA in a long-term care facility for the past 1.5 years, mostly during the summer.
Good luck to everyone who is still waiting to hear back!
 
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iLiKePiE2u said:
Just got my rejection email 5 mins ago. Interviewed 10/24. My stats are 3.4cgpa/3.3sgpa/27 MCAT with a strong interview and 1+ years of medical working experience. Was as expected after looking at all the stats of everyone accepted. Good luck to everyone else still waiting!
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Definitely call admissions and find out details about your rejection. I seriously doubt your stats are the thing that held you back.

Achjayz said:
Just got put on the alternate list. :(

Is it possible to hear back at all before next May? Or do I have to wait until then?
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Probably unlikely to see waitlist movement until at least March or April.
 
Congrats @ClinicallyNerdy and good luck to everyone else. It is still rather early in the cycle! I received the acceptance email this morning, and I am so excited!!! Interviewed 10/24. 29 MCAT and >3.5 GPAs. Loved DMU. Awesome facilities and atmosphere. The students and professors on interview day were extremely helpful, enthusiastic, and welcoming.
 
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Just received a second Hold email on Monday, exactly 2 months from the first hold letter I received.
 
Anyone interviewing on 11/14? For those who have already interviewed, how was it? Any tips or things I should expect like tough questions?
 
CIE2Doc said:
Anyone interviewing on 11/14? For those who have already interviewed, how was it? Any tips or things I should expect like tough questions?
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They know your application and will grill you on the weaknesses. Be prepared to defend yourself. Beyond that I didn't find it too bad. Relax, be confident that since you're there you have the stats required to get in, and sell yourself!
 
Literally haven't heard a peep and I've been complete since mid Sept. Anyone in the same boat?!
 
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Complete last week. Stats/bio:

29MCAT, 3.38 combined postbacc GPA from two difficult and prestigious universities.
3.2ish cGPA and sGPA, suppressed by a 3.05GPA from my undergrad 15+ years ago. 3.6sGPA over last 2 years.
1000+ hours of clinical volunteer, 3 hospital distinguished service awards
500 hours leading my hospital's 400-member clinical volunteer force
Year-long paid research fellowship at Auburn University; presenting two posters at January SICB national conference
220 hours physician shadowing, 110 with a DO
4-week medical mission to Haiti
A&P undergraduate Teaching Assistant
Head Chemistry tutor at my university's (huge) Athletic Department
Lots of ECs
15 years of upper-level IT management in the Fortune 200 space.

My grandfather was a rural physician in Iowa, and all of my aunts and uncles were born there. Still have family in Iowa.

My numbers aren't that impressive, but hopefully I get a holistic review.

Good luck, all!
 
reapplicanthelpme2014 said:
Literally haven't heard a peep and I've been complete since mid Sept.
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Well, this makes sense. They usually send out application status updates by email, rather than peep noises. ;)

Make sure any communications aren't being sent to your spam folder, and don't worry too much. I believe the admissions office is pretty busy with a large number of applications this year.
 
It's only been a week since my interview and I'm already going stir crazy waiting to hear back... This is going to be a loooooong month.
 
osteohack10 said:
It's only been a week since my interview and I'm already going stir crazy waiting to hear back... This is going to be a loooooong month.
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They usually get back to you within 2 weeks. Three max. You'll hear back soon.
 
Did anyone interview yesterday?
 
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reapplicanthelpme2014 said:
EDIT: I chose a January date because the other dates didn't work. Does anyone know if interviewing that late might hurt me?
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Getting into January isn't particularly in your favor, DMU is rolling admissions. If DMU is high up on your list, I'd suggest making an earlier date work. If not, then that's totally up to you.
 
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reapplicanthelpme2014 said:
EDIT: I chose a January date because the other dates didn't work. Does anyone know if interviewing that late might hurt me?
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Earlier is always better, but I interviewed toward the end of February and got my acceptance in three days. Two other people from my interview session are also in the class. So it's not exactly impossible.
 
JPickos9989 said:
Getting into January isn't particularly in your favor, DMU is rolling admissions. If DMU is high up on your list, I'd suggest making an earlier date work. If not, then that's totally up to you.
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buttfrogs said:
Earlier is always better, but I interviewed toward the end of February and got my acceptance in three days. Two other people from my interview session are also in the class. So it's not exactly impossible.
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llamasarefuzzy said:
Nice! Complete date?
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I was complete October 9th I think. And yeah, I was worried about choosing such a late interview date, but the other dates available arent feasible. I believe they let you change the date once so I'm going to try to move some things around and hopefully get another date. FYI, there's one date in Nov for next week, one date in Dec, and more dates in January available!
 
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reapplicanthelpme2014 said:
I was complete October 9th I think. And yeah, I was worried about choosing such a late interview date, but the other dates available arent feasible. I believe they let you change the date once so I'm going to try to move some things around and hopefully get another date. FYI, there's one date in Nov for next week, one date in Dec, and more dates in January available!
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DMU does overfill by quite a bit which usually allows acceptances to happen well into the early months of "Spring". I got in (along with another classmate) in late January.

You're evaluated independently, not in the context of the other interviewees, so if you nail the interview, I'd say you have a good shot no matter when you interview (again, assuming the class isn't full by the time you do interview, something they will probably tell you especially if you ask). What do I mean? Some schools rank each interview group and accept/hold/reject accordingly, kinda like a curved exam. Not here. Assuming the class is not full, you'll have as much of a chance in January as you would now.

With all that said, it is rolling admissions and if you wanna avoid the risk of interviewing for a class that's filled, earlier is better. If you want a stronger source, admissions office is full of nice people who will probably be happy to answer any preliminary questions you may have. After all, you gotta contact them anyway about possibly rescheduling, right?

At any rate, congrats and good luck!
 
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Lysilegluleu said:
DMU does overfill by quite a bit which usually allows acceptances to happen well into the early months of "Spring". I got in (along with another classmate) in late January.

You're evaluated independently, not in the context of the other interviewees, so if you nail the interview, I'd say you have a good shot no matter when you interview (again, assuming the class isn't full by the time you do interview, something they will probably tell you especially if you ask). What do I mean? Some schools rank each interview group and accept/hold/reject accordingly, kinda like a curved exam. Not here. Assuming the class is not full, you'll have as much of a chance in January as you would now.

With all that said, it is rolling admissions and if you wanna avoid the risk of interviewing for a class that's filled, earlier is better. If you want a stronger source, admissions office is full of nice people who will probably be happy to answer any preliminary questions you may have. After all, you gotta contact them anyway about possibly rescheduling, right?

At any rate, congrats and good luck!
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Thank you for this!
 
O Grady said:
:laugh: I had Dr. Means as an interviewer as well. He was the only one to bring up the weaker points of my app, but all went well in the end.
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Unsettling. I left very stressed, but I thought I did well.
 
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The only way that would happen is if a particular group had more members than seats remaining. Very time dependent, obviously. In theory, at any point (assuming seat availability), all members of an interview group could be accepted. Interviewees really are being evaluated strictly within the context of their application and their interview. Selectivity is not time dependent. The only thing that will change that is absolute availability of seats. Then, we're talking maybe two interview groups between highest probability of outright acceptance to zero probability of outright acceptance (due to full overfill capacity-- honestly though, I'm not sure if there is a set overfill number).

With that being said, I would be interested to see actual acceptance rates as a function of time within the cycle.
 
akiirish said:
Oh, shoot. Did I? I was on my phone. No wifi at Drake Diner ;) Yep, I was there.
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You did. And what's more, I'm preetttyyyy sure I know who you were based on your name here. My first confirmed live siting of a fellow SDNer! It's like seeing a freaking Bigfoot...
 
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Doghead said:
You did. And what's more, I'm preetttyyyy sure I know who you were based on your name here. My first confirmed live siting of a fellow SDNer! It's like seeing a freaking Bigfoot...
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The first you're aware of. :D To be fair, I didn't actually get a chance to bug you guys, but I was nearby doing some OMT.
 
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Guys I have a quick question about the secondary prompt for DMU.
* Please describe what you feel to be your most defining service experience (including medical or non-medical service, volunteer, military, leadership, etc.). Be sure to describe how this experience impacted you and contributed to the development of your capacity to care for others. (500 word limit)

Is this limited to work and volunteering? not shadowing, personal, or anything else?
 
DrDreams said:
Guys I have a quick question about the secondary prompt for DMU.
* Please describe what you feel to be your most defining service experience (including medical or non-medical service, volunteer, military, leadership, etc.). Be sure to describe how this experience impacted you and contributed to the development of your capacity to care for others. (500 word limit)

Is this limited to work and volunteering? not shadowing, personal, or anything else?
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It can be any experience. There's no restriction on what you feel was your most defining experience. It's YOUR opinion of what experience was most important.
 
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WorldChanger36 said:
rejected today...
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Nobody is happy to hear that. I remember that your application season isn't over yet, though. And if you have the makings of a physician, someone WILL see it. Que sera, sera.
 
JPickos9989 said:
It can be any experience. There's no restriction on what you feel was your most defining experience. It's YOUR opinion of what experience was most important.
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So I can talk about the incidence of my child ingesting a medication and how I had to take action? This increased my capacity as a father and allowed me to view patients as someone's brother father sister mother etc

Would that work?
 
DrDreams said:
So I can talk about the incidence of my child ingesting a medication and how I had to take action? This increased my capacity as a father and allowed me to view patients as someone's brother father sister mother etc

Would that work?
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Since it asks for a service experience, I'd go with something a little more out of your family circle. Just my opinion though...
 
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DrDreams said:
So I can talk about the incidence of my child ingesting a medication and how I had to take action? This increased my capacity as a father and allowed me to view patients as someone's brother father sister mother etc

Would that work?
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Of course. There is no right or wrong answer with the prompt. You could try and formulate some BS answer that directly fits the schools mission, but in the end it probably wouldn't benefit you. DMU wants to know more about what makes you, YOU. So go with your gut and write about that experience if that is what sticks out to you the most. No one can judge you negatively for how YOU feel about your experiences. That's not your problem.

Being a father is a service experience if you look at it the right way and it's one hell of a tough job. No one can look down upon you for that experience.
 
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Thank you so much. I definitely don't want to bs but that incident had so much power to it. If I had not reacted the way I did I don't think my daughter would be around. So it definitely had a profound impact on how everyone feels about their family members in addition to how I view patients
 
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DrDreams said:
Thank you so much. I definitely don't want to bs but that incident had so much power to it. If I had not reacted the way I did I don't think my daughter would be around. So it definitely had a profound impact on how everyone feels about their family members in addition to how I view patients
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In my opinion that is a unique experience and well worth it to write about. It speaks to your ability to put yourself in the shoes of the patient that comes to you in that exact same situation or a similar one.

Only you can define your most rewarding/beneficial/educational/ insert adjective here experience(s) that led you to medicine. Trying to fit them into a preconceived framework of what it's "supposed" to be cheapens your experiences as an individual.
 
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