University of Cincinnati M.S. in Physiology 2015-2016

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benjaminl1nus

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Let's get this started! who's applying/applied yet?

Apparently admissions are on a rolling basis? Has it always been like this?

Also, according to the nice lady on the phone (Jeannie), 400 people applied last year for 32 spots. Yikes. That sounds like a lot of competition.

Good luck y'all. I applied yesterday. Still waiting for my last LOR to reach their office and then I'll be complete.

Stats:
cGPA: 3.0/4.0
sGPA: 3.0/4.0
MCAT: 37 (14/8/15)

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I applied on 11/10.

Yikes is right, especially for me after looking at your stats, your MCAT blows mine out of the water and the whole reason I'm interested in the program is that my GPA is, well, appalling. Hopefully we'll both be in the lucky 32!
 
I applied on 11/10.

Yikes is right, especially for me after looking at your stats, your MCAT blows mine out of the water and the whole reason I'm interested in the program is that my GPA is, well, appalling. Hopefully we'll both be in the lucky 32!

Hey, best of luck to you!!! This is rolling admissions, so we both have the best possible chances considering we did it early :). I feel like as long as you are 30 or above on that MCAT you will be golden, dude. God bless our ****ty gpas :D

Keep this thread updated! It will help those who come after us :)
 
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Hey, best of luck to you!!! This is rolling admissions, so we both have the best possible chances considering we did it early :). I feel like as long as you are 30 or above on that MCAT you will be golden, dude. God bless our ****ty gpas :D

Keep this thread updated! It will help those who come after us :)

Yeah Im hoping applying early helps, and my mcat is 30 (10,9,11) so fingers crossed!
 
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Really counting on getting into this program. This is the best SMP for me, based on class size, duration (most get in during the SMP year vs. programs such as BU which take an extra year), success in matriculating to host institution, and cost. Hoping for good news!

Stats:

~3.2 cGPA
~3.1 sGPA
4.0 gGPA (fwiw)
33 MCAT(11,10,12)
 
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It should help. Are you applying to any other SMPs??

I looked at Toledo's program, but the program didn't appeal to me as much as UC and they're my last choice for med school so I decided I didn't want to spend the money on the app.
 
Really counting on getting into this program. This is the best SMP for me, based on class size, duration (most get in during the SMP year vs. programs such as BU which take an extra year), success in matriculating to host institution, and cost. Hoping for good news!

Stats:

~3.2 cGPA
~3.1 sGPA
4.0 gGPA (fwiw)
33 MCAT(11,10,12)

And then there were three...

Getting considered by the med school during the SMP year is definitely a perk, good luck to ya!
 
I'm applying too. I am going to submit my application in mid-January, right after I take the MCAT...is that still considered an "early" application?
cGPA=3.4
sGPA=3.0-3.1
MCAT= taking January 10th, practice tests are in the mid-30s, so hopefully I'll be around there
 
I'm applying too. I am going to submit my application in mid-January, right after I take the MCAT...is that still considered an "early" application?
cGPA=3.4
sGPA=3.0-3.1
MCAT= taking January 10th, practice tests are in the mid-30s, so hopefully I'll be around there

Hey plumhill,

I would consider a January application a "late early" application. It's still early, in my eyes anyway, but not eeearly. Considering your targeted numbers you should be in the mix. Spend time on your personal statement and don't rush it. Best of luck to you. It's a great program.
 
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^^Agreed. You'll be fine on time---Focus on quality (and killing the MCAT)---they're pretty consistent about having a fast turn-around for Accepted/Waitlist/Rejection throughout the cycle. My application was complete mid-March and the class was only like ⅓ full ---several people who were accepted into the program ended up coming off med school waitlists, so the class fills and empties, but it was never completely full until they were finalizing the class.
 
Hiya! I just applied to this program a few days ago. Hopefully we're the only people who have applied :) Plumhill- maybe you could apply now and mark that you're about to take the MCAT, and just update when the scores come in?

Good luck to everyone!
 
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Hiya! I just applied to this program a few days ago. Hopefully we're the only people who have applied :) Plumhill- maybe you could apply now and mark that you're about to take the MCAT, and just update when the scores come in?

My stats are:
cGPA=3.1 undergrad from a top 10 uni, 3.4 in coursework I've done after graduation
sGPA=2.8 :(, but a solid upward trend
MCAT= 30 (11/9/10)

Good luck to everyone!

Are you still taking classes? I'll be candid and say that I got into this program with the exact same GPA as yours (albeit with a 32 MCAT), but what edged me in was that I had 4.0 post-bacc coursework going on. If you're going to attempt to apply to medical school during the program, you're going to have bring up that sGPA above a 3.0... a 3.4 post-grad GPA and 30 MCAT may not be sufficient to convince them you'd do well in a cycle, which looks bad for them.
 
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Are you still taking classes? I'll be candid and say that I got into this program with the exact same GPA as yours (albeit with a 32 MCAT), but what edged me in was that I had 4.0 post-bacc coursework going on. If you're going to attempt to apply to medical school during the program, you're going to have bring up that sGPA above a 3.0... a 3.4 post-grad GPA and 30 MCAT may not be sufficient to convince them you'd do well in a cycle, which looks bad for them.

Yeah... I've had very similar thoughts. I am taking Physiology now and looking to get an A-, and I'll be taking another class in the spring as well. I work full time, so I can't take a ton of classes at any given semester. So far all of my post-grad coursework has been orgo + orgo lab (for 1 and 2), biochem, and now physiology. What I'm hoping will be my edge during med school applications is my pretty massive amount of clinical experience- 1300 hrs volunteer EMS with 150-200 patients treated, 1200 hours working as an EMT in a hospital, and lots of shadowing. So, hopefully I'm not discounted early on, because I do have non-academic things going for me!
 
Yeah... I've had very similar thoughts. I am taking Physiology now and looking to get an A-, and I'll be taking another class in the spring as well. I work full time, so I can't take a ton of classes at any given semester. So far all of my post-grad coursework has been orgo + orgo lab (for 1 and 2), biochem, and now physiology. What I'm hoping will be my edge during med school applications is my pretty massive amount of clinical experience- 1300 hrs volunteer EMS with 150-200 patients treated, 1200 hours working as an EMT in a hospital, and lots of shadowing. So, hopefully I'm not discounted early on, because I do have non-academic things going for me!

Consider this- you've maxed out on clinical exposure/medically related work experience and at best you're *hopeful* that you won't be discounted early on. At your GPA and the rate that you're taking classes at, medical schools have no idea if you can handle academic volume. Even D.O. schools wouldn't necessarily appreciate you doing grade replacement at a rate of 1-2 classes at a time. If you're unable to take a break to do a full-time courseload, those are your cards for now. Medical school will always be there, but you really need to dedicate your time to academics. Based on your course choices, you probably have plenty of BCPM course you could take... don't bother with an SMP for a while.
 
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Is there financial aid for this program? What is the tuition?
If by financial aid you mean federal loans then yes, if you meant scholarships then nope. Tuition is like 38-39k another 8-15k for cost of living, plan on 50k in loans.
 
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Do they have a conditional matriculation into their med school after successful completion of program?
 
If by financial aid you mean federal loans then yes, if you meant scholarships then nope. Tuition is like 38-39k another 8-15k for cost of living, plan on 50k in loans.
Gulp Gulp :/ that is horrible
 
Do they have a conditional matriculation into their med school after successful completion of program?

Do you mean a prearranged GPA/MCAT cutoff for acceptance? You should do some research. It's literally written in bold print on the main page.
 
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*Gulp* Indeed---there are no guarantees. You're betting on yourself for a second chance.
The maximum loan award this year was $57,150 ... Tuition this year is $37,000 for IS / $37,400 for OOS.

Cincinnati is a very inexpensive place to live, so you won't need the full amount, but most people took out the full amount since you never know when you might need to buy a plane ticket, get a new laptop, fix your car, etc... Plus, who wants to sweat bullets over your checking account at the end of the semester when you've got exams to worry about?

Also, keep in mind that with up front federal loan servicing fees (about $3K for the year I think), the total loan award isn't the amount that ultimately ends up in your checking account. You do have a 120 day window each semester where you can return any loan disbursement surplus without interest or loan servicing fees though.

But hey, if you don't find Dr. Lorenz's pep talks sufficiently motivating, those love notes from your loan servicer are certainly extra motivation to do everything possible to avoid a gap year!

EDIT: Now that it's the end of the year, I say definitely take out the full amount. The extra money is a must for rent and applications going into June/July, especially if you don't have parents or savings you can fall back on.
 
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Do they have a conditional matriculation into their med school after successful completion of program?

From their webpage...

While there is no guarantee that completion of this program will lead to acceptance to medical school, the master's program provides credentials that allow for direct comparison of our graduates to current medical school students at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

If you're looking at other programs, I know that Toledo's has some sort of conditional guarantee that if you maintain a certain GPA they'll grant you an interview at their medschool, and I think some of the two year programs in the state have similar deals, but don't hold me to it.
 
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Have any of my fellow early applicants heard back yet? I was complete November 6th, and the normal turnaround time is 4-6 weeks based on old threads...starting to get a bit antsy!
 
Have any of my fellow early applicants heard back yet? I was complete November 6th, and the normal turnaround time is 4-6 weeks based on old threads...starting to get a bit antsy!

I seem to remember reading on their site somewhere that they don't start reviewing applicants until December, and don't send out the first wave of acceptances/wait lists/rejections until Jan.

Only thing I've gotten since I applied is the Email telling me my app file is complete, and I didn't even get that until Dec 9, a week after my last LoR got there. Everything else I had done by Nov 10, so I'm hoping that they don't actually wait for those letters before adding your file to the complete pile, it would suck if I lost out on a whole month because of it!
 
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I'm applying as a college senior with cGPA 3.8, sGPA 3.8, MCAT 32. We'll see how it goes; I'm a broke college kid so I'm submitting as soon as my paycheck comes in later this week :laugh: I hope the turnaround is quick once they start reviewing! I would hope so without having to consider interviews.
 
I'm applying as a college senior with cGPA 3.8, sGPA 3.8, MCAT 32. We'll see how it goes; I'm a broke college kid so I'm submitting as soon as my paycheck comes in later this week :laugh: I hope the turnaround is quick once they start reviewing! I would hope so without having to consider interviews.
Why the hell would you do this program with those numbers?
 
I'm applying as a college senior with cGPA 3.8, sGPA 3.8, MCAT 32. We'll see how it goes; I'm a broke college kid so I'm submitting as soon as my paycheck comes in later this week :laugh: I hope the turnaround is quick once they start reviewing! I would hope so without having to consider interviews.

why would you waste $50k+...seriously dude. if you wanna spend that much money on something venture into the startup world.
 
Hey everyone,

I'm highly considering this program but I have to take the 2015 MCAT. I saw on their website that they will accept 2015 MCAT scores late (in June) but that seems pushing it. I ideally will have the rest of my application done in February.
 
Hey everyone,

I'm highly considering this program but I have to take the 2015 MCAT. I saw on their website that they will accept 2015 MCAT scores late (in June) but that seems pushing it. I ideally will have the rest of my application done in February.

Just to be clear, not every person who applies during SMPs gets into medical school- some have to apply again the year after. If you really want to maximize your chances (assuming your GPAs are very low and you're committed to doing an SMP) take the new MCAT as late as possible, do well in a program, and apply afterwards.

People applied "late" to this program and got in just fine, but balance your MCAT date with the knowledge that earlier MCATs will let you be complete sooner... both for AMCAS and SMPs.
 
Just to be clear, not every person who applies during SMPs gets into medical school- some have to apply again the year after. If you really want to maximize your chances (assuming your GPAs are very low and you're committed to doing an SMP) take the new MCAT as late as possible, do well in a program, and apply afterwards.

People applied "late" to this program and got in just fine, but balance your MCAT date with the knowledge that earlier MCATs will let you be complete sooner... both for AMCAS and SMPs.

Thanks for the reply.

A few SMPs have contacted me saying they will accept later 2015 MCATs (May) so that would still give me nearly 5 months of study. A few SMPs like Case even take the GRE so that seems like an option.
 
Are you still taking classes? I'll be candid and say that I got into this program with the exact same GPA as yours (albeit with a 32 MCAT), but what edged me in was that I had 4.0 post-bacc coursework going on. If you're going to attempt to apply to medical school during the program, you're going to have bring up that sGPA above a 3.0... a 3.4 post-grad GPA and 30 MCAT may not be sufficient to convince them you'd do well in a cycle, which looks bad for them.
Hey @notajock2day ,

I really appreciate your responses as I'm also looking at this program with a very subpar GPA. You mentioned that you had a 4.0 post-bac GPA which may have made the difference in getting in. My question then is how many credits is that 4.0 over? ie how many credits at a 4.0 do you think is necessary for the committee to take a chance on you?

Like I said, my GPA is pretty pathetic (just below a 3.0 for both cGPA and sGPA), however I've got 40 credits now at 3.95 during my DIY post-bac. Would this upward trend, along with a 32+ MCAT be enough to sway the committee, or is more coursework needed?
 
Hey @notajock2day ,

I really appreciate your responses as I'm also looking at this program with a very subpar GPA. You mentioned that you had a 4.0 post-bac GPA which may have made the difference in getting in. My question then is how many credits is that 4.0 over? ie how many credits at a 4.0 do you think is necessary for the committee to take a chance on you?

Like I said, my GPA is pretty pathetic (just below a 3.0 for both cGPA and sGPA), however I've got 40 credits now at 3.95 during my DIY post-bac. Would this upward trend, along with a 32+ MCAT be enough to sway the committee, or is more coursework needed?

It was over slightly fewer credits- however, a sub-3.0 GPA including that post-bacc is still very bad. I doubt many MD SMPs would take the risk on numbers like that since the likelihood of you getting into a US MD school is low (especially if you indicate that you're going to apply during the master's year). You may actually find luck at bigger programs in terms of getting in, but getting into an SMP with no guarantee at this numerical point in your academic career may be them trying to get $omething el$e out of you.

You should try calling your state schools to see if they'd consider you after completing a Master's program since, upward trend or not, you're still below 3.0 GPA for UG GPA. Some schools just won't take low UG GPA's
 
It was over slightly fewer credits- however, a sub-3.0 GPA including that post-bacc is still very bad. I doubt many MD SMPs would take the risk on numbers like that since the likelihood of you getting into a US MD school is low (especially if you indicate that you're going to apply during the master's year). You may actually find luck at bigger programs in terms of getting in, but getting into an SMP with no guarantee at this numerical point in your academic career may be them trying to get $omething el$e out of you.

You should try calling your state schools to see if they'd consider you after completing a Master's program since, upward trend or not, you're still below 3.0 GPA for UG GPA. Some schools just won't take low UG GPA's

Was being URM an advantage in the admissions process? I could see that going either way.
 
Was being URM an advantage in the admissions process? I could see that going either way.

There's no silver bullet for MD or SMP admissions. Being URM can help but it is infuriatingly reductive (and common) to attribute an applicant's success solely to that. It is also bad for your process to assume the opposite, i.e. that any lack of success is due to being East Asian... there may be holes in your application other than your GPA and verbal score that you're less likely to notice if you make this fundamental attribution error.

Things that I think helped in the (MD) admissions process:
-spending a year before my SMP writing my AMCAS and thinking about why I actually want to be a doctor
-taking time off after graduation
-submitting on Day 1
-applying broadly
-prewriting secondaries
-4.0 postbacc, so steep upward trend
-balanced MCAT score
-going to an Ivy League undergraduate, receiving a great committee letter from them
-showing commitment to underserved communities, which is not the same as being URM
-interviewing well
-founding a sports team on campus, teaching that team, competing nationally and internationally in that sport
-being a sexual health educator on campus
-consistent volunteering at food banks, even after I graduated
-having parents who are doctors
-shadowing
-showing further commitment by doing an SMP
-being URM

I think this is just a general warning to people going the SMP route, based on things that I've seen: don't treat grades as a misfortune handed down by the universe that you had no part in. For the majority of my classmates they have some clear flaw that landed them there such as time management, excessive partying, emotional issues, and complete lack of self-awareness in professional settings. Even people who spent time taking care of a sick relatives admit that, perhaps, they spent too much time worrying about them and not enough time thinking about the implications of doing poorly in undergraduate.
 
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There's no silver bullet for MD or SMP admissions. Being URM can help but it is infuriatingly reductive (and common) to attribute an applicant's success solely to that.

Definitely didn't mean to offend, btw. Thanks for the post...very informative. You had a great application dude
 
Hey @notajock2day ,

I really appreciate your responses as I'm also looking at this program with a very subpar GPA. You mentioned that you had a 4.0 post-bac GPA which may have made the difference in getting in. My question then is how many credits is that 4.0 over? ie how many credits at a 4.0 do you think is necessary for the committee to take a chance on you?

Like I said, my GPA is pretty pathetic (just below a 3.0 for both cGPA and sGPA), however I've got 40 credits now at 3.95 during my DIY post-bac. Would this upward trend, along with a 32+ MCAT be enough to sway the committee, or is more coursework needed?

If I recall correctly, someone in the program has a gpa below 3.0 but with significant postbac work, like yourself. So it's possible to get in but obviously you need to convince the committee to take a chance on you. In my opinion, you've made a great case for yourself, you just gotta sell it. You'll definitely be able to get into at least one solid SMP. Consider also applying to other programs like EVMS, RFU and Georgetown.
 
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Received my last LOR yesterday (the only part missing in my application), so I should be labeled 'complete' soon! According to years' past threads, earliest decisions have come by mid to late Jan.! Exciting! I'm not 100% sure about my chances here, but I would wager they stand a good chance
 
I was accepted yesterday and will be submitting my deposit (submitted late October/early November, complete 12/9). Jeannie and the other people with this program really seem on top of things- it's great. Good luck to everyone else (and happy New Year's Eve!)
 
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I was accepted yesterday and will be submitting my deposit (submitted late October/early November, complete 12/9). Jeannie and the other people with this program really seem on top of things- it's great. Good luck to everyone else (and happy New Year's Eve!)

wow dude congrats!! may i ask what your stats are?

Got the e-mail from Jeannie - complete 1/9. And now we wait...
 
I was accepted yesterday and will be submitting my deposit (submitted late October/early November, complete 12/9). Jeannie and the other people with this program really seem on top of things- it's great. Good luck to everyone else (and happy New Year's Eve!)

Congrats on the acceptance. I may be doing the same...
 
Waitlisted today. According to the email they'll let me know if im in the top middle or bottom third of the waitlist in "early june"

Good luck dude. Waitlist is good...much better than rejection. And you still stand a chance.

Was complete 1/9, I figure I'll probably hear before March?
 
Good luck dude. Waitlist is good...much better than rejection. And you still stand a chance.

Was complete 1/9, I figure I'll probably hear before March?
Yeah, we'll see how it shakes out, I'm not looking forward to not knowing anything for 4-5 months. :xf:

I would have thought you'd have heard before I did since your app was in first, but I guess they do sort them based on when the letter of recs are received. On the other hand, Helse23 and I were both complete on 12/9 and he heard 3 weeks before I did, so who knows how they go about it.
 
Yeah, we'll see how it shakes out, I'm not looking forward to not knowing anything for 4-5 months. :xf:

I would have thought you'd have heard before I did since your app was in first, but I guess they do sort them based on when the letter of recs are received. On the other hand, Helse23 and I were both complete on 12/9 and he heard 3 weeks before I did, so who knows how they go about it.

Are you applying to other SMPs? I know I asked that before, but in case your mind changed since then...look into RFU's SMP, your numbers are definitely strong there, and it'll be a solid backup in case Cinni doesn't work out.
 
Also waitlisted.

The whole June update thing doesn't make sense to me. What if someone declines their acceptance in, say, February; would they not update the waitlist until June? Not very convenient for those of us who are considering other programs/job opportunities in the meantime...
 
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