Hi!
We are expecting decisions to come back from the SURF committee early this week, so no official decisions have been sent to anyone yet.
The process will be that the first four students selected will be notified via email from the admissions office on behalf of the SURF application review committee. Those students will have a deadline by which they need to accept their spot. If a spot is declined, then the next student on the committee's list will be contacted. This will continue until we have confirmation of all four spots. Once the spots have all been confirmed, a final decision notice will be sent to all applicants.
I know waiting for summer program decisions can be stressful, but please know we appreciate your patience and that we will defnitely be sharing news as it becomes available. As always, feel free to check in with our office at 1.800.345.1560 (M-F, 8-5 EST) for information on your application.
Thanks for the question!
Just like Darth, not to continue being off topic but I was wondering if anyone has any news about the summer programs? (Summer Scholars Program) I know the website says "early April" we'll find out decisions but I'm anxious to find out a specific date...I'm guessing either this week or next week ?
Good Luck to everyone applying this cycle !
Thanks for the question!
The first offer of SURF acceptances did go out yesterday afternoon (4/2), but the Summer Scholars notices will be delayed a bit this year due to administrative changes to the program. We still hope to have those out by mid April since we know folks need this information to make appropriate plans for the summer. Hang in there!
I was a SURF participant a couple years ago, so feel free to send me any questions that you may have. Unless things have changed, all SURF participants who completed their AACOMAS application were given an interview near the end of the SURF program. Did it make me a more competitive applicant? I don't know if I would phrase it like that, but it certainly didn't hurt my chances. It was kind of like I had a 6 week long interview. It gave me an opportunity to get a good feel for the school and to know if it was a good fit for me, while at the same time the admissions staff and the professors I worked with got to know me on a personal level. It was a great experience. I believe all SURF participants in my group who interviewed were offered acceptances. I ended up postponing medical school for medical reasons, but I am looking forward to starting this fall at OU-HCOM!
Thank you for keeping us updated during these very stressful times. We truly appreciate any information in what seems like a dark abyss.
I have a few burning questions, and chances are you are unable to answer it due to the nature of the process, but I feel I must ask:
I assume the majority of waitlist movement is shortly after May 15th. Is this correct? What kind of movement is OU-HCOM seeing this year in comparison to past years? Is this not a reliable way to gauge how much movement will occur? How often does movement occur after the initial May 15th movement?
I love OU-HCOM and nothing would make me happier to begin my medical career here. I was told not to give up hope, yet. I guess I'm just trying to grasp at any additional information.
I'm happy to answer these questions.
We do tend to see the majority of waitlist movement after May 15 as that is the date that multiple acceptances at allopathic schools must be let go. The osteopathic world doesn't have that same guideline as of yet, so out of courtesy, we see many students voluntarily giving up their spots at osteopathic schools on and after May 15 too. However, students may still hold multiple acceptances at osteopathic schools until they matriculate to a particular school (this understandably drives admissions offices a little crazy since students can be lost to other osteopathic schools at any time).
Waitlist activity varies greatly from year to year and sometimes we can go far into it if students have already accepted spots elsewhere by the time we call. This year we seem to have folks leaving the class in spurts as compared to a trickle. All in all though, I would say this is a fairly typical year and we will be taking more students from the list before July 22.
We typically like to see out-of-state applicants with science GPAs and MCATs that are close to our averages of 3.6 and 27 (keep in mind we take the highest sub-score from multiple test dates to make a new total, combined score). This is a very popular question and I'm probably going to give a very long answer.
However, having said that, we actually do read each file that becomes complete (meaning that all required paperwork has been submitted), so we are very interested in what each student, out-of-state or in-state can bring to the class. Students slightly below the numbers mentioned above can still have a very good chance based on upward grade trends, letters of recommendation, clinical/shadowing experience, research experience, community service, and desire to be an osteopathic physician (your essays are extremely important!).
Sort of related to this question... we see tons people anxious to know "what they need to get in" or what "they need to do to get an interview". We know folks are looking for a quantitative answer, but the truth is it is very difficult to give one. There are many, many in and out-of-state people who apply with grades and MCATs far above our averages but they may never get an interview, or if they do get an interview, they may not be a good match for our program and therefore our selection committee may choose not to accept them.
The best advice I can give to potential applicants is, apply when you feel you have done all you can to be the best applicant possible and then let the process run its course. Also, remember that there is no law that says one has to enter medical school immediately upon graduation. Everyone takes a different path and that is completely okay.
Apologies for the mini-dissertation on applications-I guess I'm feeling very philosophical this morning.
Please keep your questions coming and I will do my best to answer them (maybe even under 5,000 words next time!).
Thank you for the prompt response!
So for an out of state student, What would be the "Danger Zone" for science GPA and MCAT scores, where they would have to get above this threshold to have a realistic shot? Where you would recommend someone spend more time on their grades for their application before applying?The 3.3 mark? 3.2? 25 MCAT?
At Ohio, can a high MCAT make up for a low GPA and vice versa?
Does Ohio have some love for surrounding out of state students like from Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, etc?
Again thank you for the response! You are a wealth of information
(sorry, just really wanted to try out a new emoticon there). While there is no denying that we do give preference to Ohio residents, we truly do welcome applications from all states. The important thing is for out of state students to keep an open mind about Ohio, OU-HCOM and that pesky contract for admission.
I really appreciate this information--so helpful with the whole process.Thanks so much for the kind words!
The advice that we give to the out-of-state students is that it is worth it to apply as long as you are meeting the minimum threshold to receive a secondary application. That number is either a 3.25 natural science GPA OR an MCAT of 24. Anything above that is a realistic shot given that other areas of the application are at least average or better.
Yes, we can balance a higher GPA with a lower MCAT and vice versa, but we look very carefully at grade trends and courses taken, so we can tell if someone is slacking off academically but tests really well. Our institutional research is showing that the higher the natural science GPA and number of biological science hours a student takes predicts success within our either of our two curricular tracks. The MCAT is obviously still important as success on that test will usually predict your success on the national board exams.
HCOM has love for students from everywhere!
