Midwestern University Chicago (CCOM) Discussion Thread 2015 - 2016

[PSiloveU2013]

Just received my secondary.

Stupid question: My school is sending a premedical committee letter/packet, which will include my DO LOR. So when CCOM receives the whole letter packet, will that check off the recommendation letter and physician letter requirement?

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[hopefulERdoc251]

pretty sure you can use the whole packet...many people will be in that same boat so I don't see why not!

 

[bloom32]

What approach is best to take for the resume/CV? I would usually try to limit a resume to 1 page but this sounds like it can be longer and more in-depth- does that seem to be the case? How much narrative can we have in it?

 

[Gandyy]

What approach is best to take for the resume/CV? I would usually try to limit a resume to 1 page but this sounds like it can be longer and more in-depth- does that seem to be the case? How much narrative can we have in it?

I have little narrative on mine. Only parts where I have it is if their something that is really worth mentioning, and some things look confusing on a resume without some explanation so I have narrative there as well.

Mines 2 pages though.

 

[swolebrah]

Under the applicant checklist, it looks like CCOM hasn't received any of my documents yet (MCAT scores, physician recommendation letter, recommendation letter, etc) and the status is listed as "expected". Does anybody else have this as well?

Same situation, all my LoR and MCAT are via aacomas and ofcourse that's probably why CCOM hasn't reviewed those yet

 

[beeboops]

Secondary received! Was verified on June 11th.

 

[beeboops]

What approach is best to take for the resume/CV? I would usually try to limit a resume to 1 page but this sounds like it can be longer and more in-depth- does that seem to be the case? How much narrative can we have in it?

Traditionally, CVs can, and probably should be, more than 1 page. I don't have a narrative for any of my positions aside from bullet points explaining my duties and what I did like on a regular resume. Mine is about 4 pages long with 12-point font and 0.5" margins

 

[RavenclawMed]

Just received my secondary.

Stupid question: My school is sending a premedical committee letter/packet, which will include my DO LOR. So when CCOM receives the whole letter packet, will that check off the recommendation letter and physician letter requirement?

I had a committee letter with the DO letter with it. They accepted it with no problems.

 

[ananasmed]

What approach is best to take for the resume/CV? I would usually try to limit a resume to 1 page but this sounds like it can be longer and more in-depth- does that seem to be the case? How much narrative can we have in it?

I have little narrative on mine. Only parts where I have it is if their something that is really worth mentioning, and some things look confusing on a resume without some explanation so I have narrative there as well.

Mines 2 pages though.

I submitted a true resume (i.e. one page in length) without much explanation or narrative for any of my positions. This worked out fine since CCOM uses your resume in the interview and will ask you questions which allow you to expand on your experiences

 

[RavenclawMed]

I submitted a true resume (i.e. one page in length) without much explanation or narrative for any of my positions. This worked out fine since CCOM uses your resume in the interview and will ask you questions which allow you to expand on your experiences

I agree with this! I submitted a one page resume as well. I figured since admissions is reading through so many applications, I'd make it succinct for them haha

 

[blah12346497]

.

 

[RunninGirl3]

I agree with this! I submitted a one page resume as well. I figured since admissions is reading through so many applications, I'd make it succinct for them haha

Agree... succinct is the way to go. Although, mine ended up being 2 pages, however, it was all bullet points and lists (no narrative). But I also have been out of school for several years and have a good bit of work history.

 

[Hizaki]

.

 

[Doctoblast]

This might be a dumb question but for the letter of recommendation that is from a "basic" science professor, would it be okay to have one from a Biochem professor? Not sure what counts as basic.

 

[Oh_Gee]

Give it a day or two.

MCATS wont be up for anyone till end of June thanks to the new AACOMAS system.

even the old MCAT? I took mine last september

 

[Oh_Gee]

Ok so they put up the essays. Its the exact same as last year.

1. List any relative who is an osteopathic physician:


2. Why do you believe CCOM would provide you with the type of osteopathic medical education you are seeking? (1500 chars)

3. Why should CCOM accept you into this year's class? (1500 chars)

4. Upload a copy of your resume or curriculum vitae, which will include, but not be limited to the following information:

• Educational History (colleges attended and degrees earned)
• Employment History
• Medically related work and volunteer experiences
• College extracurricular activities, honors, and leadership responsibilities
• Community activities, honors, and leadership responsibilities
• Hobbies and nonacademic interests

was there an option to submit the secondary before they put up questions? just curious

 

[mathnerd88]

even the old MCAT? I took mine last september

My MCAT is already verified. I have both official and unofficial MCAT reports on my AACOMAS. I still haven't received a secondary even though I have already been verified last week.

 

[YorkH]

Is anyone else having problems with setting up their account? I received the secondary email from CCOM but whenever I try to set up my account, I keep getting an error saying that my information doesn't match anyone in their records.

 

[Adrnln]

Is anyone else having problems with setting up their account? I received the secondary email from CCOM but whenever I try to set up my account, I keep getting an error saying that my information doesn't match anyone in their records.

I am having this problem as well. They provide a contact number at the bottom of the page if you need assistance. I am about to call shortly.

 

[Tupaka]

Is anyone else having problems with setting up their account? I received the secondary email from CCOM but whenever I try to set up my account, I keep getting an error saying that my information doesn't match anyone in their records.

Make sure you're using the correct ID (10 digit AACOMAS) and zip code (from your preferred mailing address). I had the same problem.

 

[gannicus89]

This might be a dumb question but for the letter of recommendation that is from a "basic" science professor, would it be okay to have one from a Biochem professor? Not sure what counts as basic.

I wasn't sure what that meant either... I think biochem should be okay, but you can confirm with them. I just submitted a LOR from a disease bio prof.

 

[Doctoblast]

I wasn't sure what that meant either... I think biochem should be okay, but you can confirm with them. I just submitted a LOR from a disease bio prof.

I had emailed them and they just replied. They said biochem is okay.

 

[gannicus89]

I had emailed them and they just replied. They said biochem is okay.

Okay, great.

 

[GoGreen2014]

As someone who uploaded my LOR's to the AACOMAS letter writer service (5 letters) , I recently realized that we have no way to designate which schools receive specific letters and they are all shipped to each school we apply too. Seeing as I have 2 Science Prof letters and 2 Physician letters (MD/DO), what is CCOM going to think when they receive all these additional letters?

 

[beeboops]

As someone who uploaded my LOR's to the AACOMAS letter writer service (5 letters) , I recently realized that we have no way to designate which schools receive specific letters and they are all shipped to each school we apply too. Seeing as I have 2 Science Prof letters and 2 Physician letters (MD/DO), what is CCOM going to think when they receive all these additional letters?

I think that the ones they have listed on the secondary are the required ones, but that doesn't mean that they wouldn't be open to accepting more letters. If you're really worried, I would check with the school and ask them how they feel about additional letters.

 

[blah12346497]

If we are sending letters via Interfolio, should I wait to submit my secondary before submitting the letters or can I just send the letters before I submit?

 

[grey_wind]

If we are sending letters via Interfolio, should I wait to submit my secondary before submitting the letters or can I just send the letters before I submit?

Yeah I was wondering this too- what is the proper etiquette?

 

[ananasmed]

If we are sending letters via Interfolio, should I wait to submit my secondary before submitting the letters or can I just send the letters before I submit?

Yeah I was wondering this too- what is the proper etiquette?

Last year I very methodically sent my Interfolio letters to each school directly after submitting the relevant secondary (as in, moments after pressing the submit button, I navigated over to Interfolio and selected which letters to send). Really, this was more of an organizational tool for me, as it helped me to keep track of whether or not I had submitted all the right stuff to each school. I'm sure you can submit your letters before you submit the secondary - it should all find its way to your file in the end. However, there's not really a huge rush since letters from Interfolio will be delivered very quickly via the tubes!

 

[blah12346497]

Thanks @ananasmed

Also for uploading the resume, they asked for specific information. Should I redo my whole resume to add subsections for what they want? Or can we just incorporate everything they want on the resume scattered through the resume? I find it hard to categorize my experiences to Employment History and Medically related work + volunteer experiences. They overlap.

 

[ananasmed]

Thanks @ananasmed

Also for uploading the resume, they asked for specific information. Should I redo my whole resume to add subsections for what they want? Or can we just incorporate everything they want on the resume scattered through the resume? I find it hard to categorize my experiences to Employment History and Medically related work + volunteer experiences. They overlap.

No need to reorganize it. Just as long as you feel that you've included all the categories they're asking for, one way or another I felt the same way about my resume and just left it as-is.

 

[67552931811]

If we are sending letters via Interfolio, should I wait to submit my secondary before submitting the letters or can I just send the letters before I submit?

Yeah I was wondering this too- what is the proper etiquette?

I agree with @ananasmed and did the same process when I applied. I didn't want to send my letters before my secondary because, to me, it seemed to be one way to make things disjointed within my app (but, this was personal preference).

 

[beeboops]

How are you guys going to include your "hobbies and non-academic interests" in your resume/CV? For all my jobs/volunteer positions, I have little bullet points explaining the position along with dates, but I don't feel like I need bullet points to explain stuff like "soccer" or "reading"

Edit: Also, is anyone going to go a little more in depth with their hobbies than just listing them? Like, for example, if I listed "reading", could I include a tiny tidbit about my favorite genres/authors? Or do you think this would be too much/oversharing?

 

[blah12346497]

@beeboops I just listed hobbies at the very last line. Could barely fit it in Lol.

 

[YorkH]

Any suggestions as to how to answer "Why do you believe CCOM would provide you with the type of osteopathic medical education you are seeking?" Silly question, I know, but I usually look through the website to learn about what the program offers but I'm having trouble finding it.

 

[NextJamesAndrews12]

Any suggestions as to how to answer "Why do you believe CCOM would provide you with the type of osteopathic medical education you are seeking?" Silly question, I know, but I usually look through the website to learn about what the program offers but I'm having trouble finding it.

I'm having similar troubles. Anyone know how timely these secondaries should be returned? Would a week be too long?

 

[Gandyy]

Guys, I dont think they care how you format your resume lol. Just that it looks professional, and includes all the information in there.

Also I would submit the secondary as soon as you can. I submitted mine on the 18th.

 

[bigoliver101]

Is anyone else having trouble with the MCAT verification?

My required exams section states that I need to complete my MCAT, however, I sent my scores electronically to AACOMAS back in May.

 

[NextJamesAndrews12]

Guys, I dont think they care how you format your resume lol. Just that it looks professional, and includes all the information in there.

Also I would submit the secondary as soon as you can. I submitted mine on the 18th.

How did you go about the first essay question? There isn't much information on the school website explaining the mission of the school, just that section with the values.

 

[Gandyy]

How did you go about the first essay question? There isn't much information on the school website explaining the mission of the school, just that section with the values.

Well I was raised in the Midwest and have been here the majority of my life so I talked about how going to CCOM is pertinent to someone like me.

If you have regional ties to a school you should use them. Its more meaningful substance than parroting mission statements back to the school IMHO.

I also talked about their high quality of education and the fact that its an established school. Just think of reasons of why you specifically want to go there.

 

[Oh_Gee]

have you been t

Well I was raised in the Midwest and have been here the majority of my life so I talked about how going to CCOM is pertinent to someone like me.

If you have regional ties to a school you should use them. Its more meaningful substance than parroting mission statements back to the school IMHO.

I also talked about their high quality of education and the fact that its an established school. Just think of reasons of why you specifically want to go there.

have you been to downer's grove before? I just wiki'ed it and it said 88% of the town is white. is that true?

 

[Gandyy]

have you been t

have you been to downer's grove before? I just wiki'ed it and it said 88% of the town is white. is that true?

No never been to that part of Chicago before. I have family that lives in 1 of the suburbs of Chicago.

 

[RavenclawMed]

have you been t

have you been to downer's grove before? I just wiki'ed it and it said 88% of the town is white. is that true?

It's an affluent suburb of Chicago, and those tend to be mostly white. But the student body is diverse and the greater Chicagoland area is diverse. I'm from the Chicagoland area and I've been here all my life and trust me when I say it's not too much of a problem. Also Chicago isn't far away and is easy to get to via Metra or the highway.

 

[NextJamesAndrews12]

How much liberty is everyone taking with the non-academic hobbies section? Seems pretty broad to me...

 

[Oh_Gee]

Ok so they put up the essays. Its the exact same as last year.

1. List any relative who is an osteopathic physician:


2. Why do you believe CCOM would provide you with the type of osteopathic medical education you are seeking? (1500 chars)

3. Why should CCOM accept you into this year's class? (1500 chars)

4. Upload a copy of your resume or curriculum vitae, which will include, but not be limited to the following information:

• Educational History (colleges attended and degrees earned)
• Employment History
• Medically related work and volunteer experiences
• College extracurricular activities, honors, and leadership responsibilities
• Community activities, honors, and leadership responsibilities
• Hobbies and nonacademic interests

is 1500 characters including spaces or nah?

 

[RavenclawMed]

is 1500 characters including spaces or nah?

Unless otherwise stated, all of the character counts for secondaries include spaces. I've never seen one that didn't.

 

[67552931811]

is 1500 characters including spaces or nah?

Yes

 

[B216jt]

If we are sending letters via Interfolio, should I wait to submit my secondary before submitting the letters or can I just send the letters before I submit?

Yeah I was wondering this too- what is the proper etiquette?

Last year i submitted my letters before the secondaries so I think it is all up to you. Either way, they will look at everything that you are submitting.

 

[Rajayray2019]

This. Also, the suburbs intermingle a lot so it's not like people are isolated within each burb. I used to have functions in DG for quite a few years and I'd definitely challenge wikis 90% claim. That seems, well, too high. DG, as a whole, seems quite eclectic to me (not as much as Bolingbrook but more than Hinsdale, lol).

I spent a few days there last April. I'd say eclectic is a good mix. That said, it's the suburbs and we'd be in medical school. The only thing we're going to see is the library, the anatomy lab, and the inside of the nearest starbucks.

 

[Doctoblast]

My MCAT score was marked as received at some point this weekend. I wonder if they are starting to go through for all schools.

 

[beeboops]

Everyone keeps mentioning Interfolio. For the people sending their letters through Interfolio, did you not attach them to your AACOMAS? I figured that the letters would get to the school if they were included with our primary application, or should I be sending them to the individual schools as well? Sorry if this is a silly question, I'm completely new to AACOMAS!