University of Maryland Thread

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binghamkid

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This thread is for those of you interested in the University of Maryland SOP. As a P1 attending the institution, I will be glad to field any questions, so post them here instead of spamming my PM inbox, thanks!
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Thanks for starting this post!
Physical Chem is listed in the required courses on U of M's website. Have you taken it yet? Is it ridiculous? Did you take it in undergrad? Do you happen to know if it is uncommon to have P Chem in pharmacy school?
Would you share your undergrad stats and pcat score?
Thanks.
 
Helloooo I'm interviewing at UMB this Saturday...do you have any suggestions other than looking over the interview section of this site and UMB's site? I'm kinda nervous since I haven't interviewed since...senior year of hs haha, so any suggestions are welcome :laugh:
 
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misterpockets said:
Thanks for starting this post!
Physical Chem is listed in the required courses on U of M's website. Have you taken it yet? Is it ridiculous? Did you take it in undergrad? Do you happen to know if it is uncommon to have P Chem in pharmacy school?
Would you share your undergrad stats and pcat score?
Thanks.
Click to expand...

We are starting PChem this monday. We've been told by our second years that it is challenging, but definitely not undoable. I did have one course in PChem for undergrad. I'm not sure if other pharmacy schools do have PChem.

My undergrad stats were a 2.65 and a 99 PCAT.
 
seren8dipity said:
Helloooo I'm interviewing at UMB this Saturday...do you have any suggestions other than looking over the interview section of this site and UMB's site? I'm kinda nervous since I haven't interviewed since...senior year of hs haha, so any suggestions are welcome :laugh:
Click to expand...


First of all, congratulations on getting an interview! You will be totally fine! I would spend some time reflecting on why you want to be a pharmacist, and why you really want to go to UofM (reason for applying for ED). I would also consider any current issues in pharmacy as well as think about what aspects of professionalism you might have and portray them.

Good luck!
 
Thanks for the info binghamkid, good luck with PChem!
 
Thanks for the suggestions!! I'm looking forward (well...kinda haha) to the interview tomorrow :)
 
A bunch of my friends were just telling me that someone just created a facebook group for University of Maryland Class of 2012. I'm not on facebook yet, but will def sign up, and those going to UMB should sign up too.
 
I recently received an email from Maryland stating that they had not received my supplemental application fee. I send the check over a month ago and it cleared my account more than two weeks ago. I emailed the lady back to get it straightened out but I was curious if anyone else had a similar problem. If so, how did you resolve it?
 
call them? i called her the lady (forgot her name), and she said that she found my name on the other spreadsheet. then she sent me a confirmation email couple hours later.

binghamkid, are you in-state before attending UofM? I have similar GPA as yours, but I have like a 88 PCAT. What is their breakdown of different categories (ie 1/3 pcat, 1/3 gpa, 1/3 everything else?!) does the school that I attended as an undergraduate student make a factor in their admission decision?
 
for those that got in ED, have you guys recieved your admission packet because i haven't recieved mine.
 
islander01 said:
call them? i called her the lady (forgot her name), and she said that she found my name on the other spreadsheet. then she sent me a confirmation email couple hours later.

binghamkid, are you in-state before attending UofM? I have similar GPA as yours, but I have like a 88 PCAT. What is their breakdown of different categories (ie 1/3 pcat, 1/3 gpa, 1/3 everything else?!) does the school that I attended as an undergraduate student make a factor in their admission decision?
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I am in-state, did you have a particular question I can help you with? :)

Your application is what gets you to an interview. Once you get there, whether you get in or not, is solely dependent on how you do on the interview.

Even though UMB is a public school, it does not give preference to MD students as much as other schools do. A huge part of our class is from California.
 
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hey utterdevotion, i think i remember you as the one who looked over my PS. thanks for that again.
1) cali is a pain to become an in-state student, how easy for you to become an in-state student after ur P1 year?
2) like i said on my msg, does UMB has a specific breakdown in terms of how much they weigh in each category? gpa, pcat, extracurricular activities, LOR, etc.
3) finally, do they do rolling admission? if u remembered, how long did it take them to respond you for an interview after u submitted your supplemental app?

Utterdevotion said:
I am in-state, did you have a particular question I can help you with? :)

Your application is what gets you to an interview. Once you get there, whether you get in or not, is solely dependent on how you do on the interview.

Even though UMB is a public school, it does not give preference to MD students as much as other schools do. A huge part of our class is from California.
Click to expand...
 
islander01 said:
hey utterdevotion, i think i remember you as the one who looked over my PS. thanks for that again.
1) cali is a pain to become an in-state student, how easy for you to become an in-state student after ur P1 year?
2) like i said on my msg, does UMB has a specific breakdown in terms of how much they weigh in each category? gpa, pcat, extracurricular activities, LOR, etc.
3) finally, do they do rolling admission? if u remembered, how long did it take them to respond you for an interview after u submitted your supplemental app?
Click to expand...


1. I was already instate; but from what I know from others it is VERY hard to get in-state here. I know of one classmate that even after buying a house in MD, he still didn't get in state. If you have further Cali/in-state related questions, binghamkid is a great resource.

2. We are not allowed to answer the breakdown question...sorry!

3. We are not on rolling admission. I was contacted in January regarding an interview date. Pretty much they send out the interview invites in batches, after the fixed deadline date of Dec 1st.

Good luck with everything!! Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with :)
 
binghamkid said:
1. I was already instate; but from what I know from others it is VERY hard to get in-state here. I know of one classmate that even after buying a house in MD, he still didn't get in state. If you have further Cali/in-state related questions, binghamkid is a great resource.

2. We are not allowed to answer the breakdown question...sorry!

3. We are not on rolling admission. I was contacted in January regarding an interview date. Pretty much they send out the interview invites in batches, after the fixed deadline date of Dec 1st.

Good luck with everything!! Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with :)
Click to expand...

i am sure you got interviews from other schools before ur UMB's one. what schools u got interviews from? Besides the in-state tuition reason, anything particular u like about UMB?
 
Is anyone hearing from U of M about an interview?

I wanna do the PharmD/MBA, it's gotta be insanely hard though!

binghamkid, do you know anyone in that program?
 
I haven't heard anything from Maryland, i wonder anyone else heard anything yet for transfer applicants :)

thanks
 
I just got an interview invitation! :D
 
I got my interview invitation this morning as well.
 
Hey guys, I too received an email this morning. Super excited about interviewing at Maryland. Is there anything in particular that we should know about the city of Baltimore? What is it like there? I'm from southern california (san diego).:thumbup:
 
kidlove said:
I just got an interview invitation! :D
Click to expand...
So, quick question. If I haven't received an invitation, does that mean that I (probably) won't be getting an invite? Because...it seems like a lot of schools are sending out invites to everyone at the same time and I highly doubt that I'll be getting an invite later.

:(
 
LoonyLuna said:
So, quick question. If I haven't received an invitation, does that mean that I (probably) won't be getting an invite? Because...it seems like a lot of schools are sending out invites to everyone at the same time and I highly doubt that I'll be getting an invite later.

:(
Click to expand...

You know I really don't know. Sorry :(
 
Binghamkid, could you tell us about some of the nice perks or pros about attending UMB. I was offered an interview there, but I've already been accepted to a school much closer to home. I'm still a little undecided about whether to attend the interview or not as it will cost me over $300, but since you attend there I was hoping you could give me (us) some insight. thanks man.
 
could you also explain the difference between Shady Grove and Main campus please! the school's webpage is not ENTIRELY clear on that! from what i hear the Shady Grove campus is nicer/better/more convinient???


thanks for all your help!
 
LoonyLuna said:
So, quick question. If I haven't received an invitation, does that mean that I (probably) won't be getting an invite? Because...it seems like a lot of schools are sending out invites to everyone at the same time and I highly doubt that I'll be getting an invite later.

:(
Click to expand...

Hey I'm still waiting to hear something too.. We just gotta sit tight and hope for the best. :luck:
 
misterpockets said:
Is anyone hearing from U of M about an interview?

I wanna do the PharmD/MBA, it's gotta be insanely hard though!

binghamkid, do you know anyone in that program?
Click to expand...


Sorry for the late response, I missed this post. I do know people in the PharmD/MBA program. It isn't impossible. As a matter of fact, it's the most popular dual degree program at UMB Pharmacy. I am planning on doing that degree as well, but I'm waiting for them to implement the UMCP MBA program, which is harder but gives you a better MBA.
 
MrNiceThai said:
Binghamkid, could you tell us about some of the nice perks or pros about attending UMB. I was offered an interview there, but I've already been accepted to a school much closer to home. I'm still a little undecided about whether to attend the interview or not as it will cost me over $300, but since you attend there I was hoping you could give me (us) some insight. thanks man.
Click to expand...

I will tell you that UMB is a very very amazing school. The faculty is always supportive if you want them to be, and you have a very close-knit network with your upperclassmen. You get A LOT of opportunities to explore, do research, find internships, etc. etc. I am the first year class president, and I can tell you I'm kept extremely busy because I'm always running everything doing about 100 things at once. It's very rewarding, but as it is a top 10 institution, the coursework definitely keeps you busy. You will study a LOT for your exams.

As for me, I spent far more than $300 to go to UMB's interview =) I'm from California. I can tell you I don't regret it at all. UMB has an excellent experiential rotation department, and you can get a lot of opportunities to explore what you want to do in the career of pharmacy. It also helps that the school's reputation is very solid; you won't have trouble finding a very nice job.

Cons about the institution? Like all schools, no place is perfect. UMB is in Baltimore; it's not the safest city in the world. We do have excellent security guards and police patrols and even a free night-time caravan service that takes you almost everywhere you need to go. There is SAFE housing available if you so choose; you can also opt for much cheaper housing where you may live in areas where crime is higher. I can tell you that if you are smart about what you do and where you go, nothing wrong will happen.
In addition, sometimes I feel the classes are scheduled badly where sometimes we'll have one day with only two hours of class...and the next day we'll go from 9 to 4. Doesn't really make sense, but it only happens occasionally. It definitely doesn't detract from the experience. I love my fellow classmates, and it's a lot of fun to be with them in class.


However, if you are from North Carolina, and you got accepted to Chapel Hill...go to Chapel Hill =) I know someone who goes there is on SDN and she sounds like she's enjoying herself =). Unless, of course, you just want to see what Baltimore is like and see if it is to your liking.
 
AbsoluteEthanol said:
Hey guys, I too received an email this morning. Super excited about interviewing at Maryland. Is there anything in particular that we should know about the city of Baltimore? What is it like there? I'm from southern california (san diego).:thumbup:
Click to expand...

First off, congratulations =)

Second, DRESS WARMLY =D especially since you're from california (I am too). It's cold over here now, so unless you're like used to sitting on top of a snow mountain in your spare time, you're probably not used to the weather yet. I know I'm not, and I've already had my share of cold days. City of Baltimore isn't the safest place, and not always the prettiest. Aside from that, I would recommend that you evaluate the school on its scholastic merits and opportunities. If you need more assistance, please PM me I'll be more than happy to help =)
 
islander01 said:
i am sure you got interviews from other schools before ur UMB's one. what schools u got interviews from? Besides the in-state tuition reason, anything particular u like about UMB?
Click to expand...

I had three interview offers: Howard, UMB, and University of Oklahoma.

As for tuition, I'm actually out of state. My girlfriend Utterdevotion is in-state. She sometimes uses my computer so that's why you have that post way above there that says I'm instate. I like UMB because of its opportunities to get into many different types of pharmacy practice. They have experential programs that go far and beyond the required hours for licensing, so you get lots of time to really determine what you want to do. They ensure that you are always on top of your schoolwork, and they have lots of support to make sure you pass your classes. If you want to know more, just read my other posts in this thread.
 
AbsoluteEthanol said:
could you also explain the difference between Shady Grove and Main campus please! the school's webpage is not ENTIRELY clear on that! from what i hear the Shady Grove campus is nicer/better/more convinient???


thanks for all your help!
Click to expand...


Shady Grove is a distance-education campus; in other words, lectures are conducted via recorded webcast. It has its advantages: you get a lot more freedom to do your own thing during the day, since you are only required to report to the Shady Grove campus for exams and report to the Baltimore campus for lab days. The disadvantage of Shady Grove is that its far from Baltimore, where the majority of your classmates are. In addition, it makes it harder to meet your coursemasters face-to-face to ask questions.

Please note that while they are two campuses, they are ONE program. You start your 4 years together as one class, and you finish as one class. As class president, I find myself trying to constantly coordinate so that both campuses are brought together during social events. It's not an easy thing to do, but the school wants both campuses to be perceived as equals in every way. Shady Grove tends to be better for individuals with families and jobs that they aren't planning to give up. Baltimore is better for those who aren't good at independent studying and really rely on going to school to keep up.

I like the Baltimore campus; it's more lively, and I have a lot of opportunities to meet the administration, the professors, the upperclassmen, and my fellow classmates. That is not to say Shady Grove isn't fun. It totally is and I know some really great people from that campus who are equally smart, if not smarter, than the people at Baltimore.
 
islander01 said:
i am sure you got interviews from other schools before ur UMB's one. what schools u got interviews from? Besides the in-state tuition reason, anything particular u like about UMB?
Click to expand...

Oh dear, I'm very behind on this thread!
I went to interviews at: Shenandoah and Wingate. And declined interviews to Mercer and WVU.

I like UMB because here, everyone wants you to succeed. The professors are friendly and open; I have no problems stopping by their office to ask questions/get advice. Also, the general policy is that professors answer emails 24-48 hours afterwards. We have class liaisons to address any class issues. We get emails about internship and job opportunities, and forums about career options. And everyone wants to/will help you out! :) Also, I like how it's one of the smaller schools; allowing for more professor-student interaction.

PS. Thanks for putting me out there binghamkid -___-
 
LoonyLuna said:
So, quick question. If I haven't received an invitation, does that mean that I (probably) won't be getting an invite? Because...it seems like a lot of schools are sending out invites to everyone at the same time and I highly doubt that I'll be getting an invite later.

:(
Click to expand...

I'm not entirely sure, since they send out interview invites in batches; I'm not sure if they have finished all the invitations. Secondly, even if they have sent them all out, there are still students who will get accepted and decide they don't want to come to UMB. If there is a need, they will continue to pull from the application piles.

Good luck!
 
Utterdevotion said:
Oh dear, I'm very behind on this thread!
I went to interviews at: Shenandoah and Wingate. And declined interviews to Mercer and WVU.

I like UMB because here, everyone wants you to succeed. The professors are friendly and open; I have no problems stopping by their office to ask questions/get advice. Also, the general policy is that professors answer emails 24-48 hours afterwards. We have class liaisons to address any class issues. We get emails about internship and job opportunities, and forums about career options. And everyone wants to/will help you out! :) Also, I like how it's one of the smaller schools; allowing for more professor-student interaction.

PS. Thanks for putting me out there binghamkid -___-
Click to expand...

Anytime, anytime =P
 
Thank you so much for all the advices. It sounds like Maryland is a great school.

I will be attending the interview in Feb., but I am not sure as where to stay. Do you think staying near inner Harbor will be better because I can walk to the school? I don't think I would like to rent a car because parking is really expensive there. :)


Thank you again
 
kidlove said:
Thank you so much for all the advices. It sounds like Maryland is a great school.

I will be attending the interview in Feb., but I am not sure as where to stay. Do you think staying near inner Harbor will be better because I can walk to the school? I don't think I would like to rent a car because parking is really expensive there. :)


Thank you again
Click to expand...


If you are attending the interview in february, i would just look at any of the hotels in the vicinity. Inner harbor is fine, but you won't want to walk to school in your nice clothes. Take a cab, trust me. The last thing you need is to be flustered and tired when you walk through the door.

If you want a cheaper place, there are a few motels and inns outside of Baltimore about a 10-minute drive out. I would just take a cab there. When I came to Baltimore, I stayed in the Quality Inn. It worked out well enough. Cab fare was like $12 including tip one way.

Best of luck on your interview! =) If you have any questions we'll be more than happy to help.
 
binghamkid said:
If you are attending the interview in february, i would just look at any of the hotels in the vicinity. Inner harbor is fine, but you won't want to walk to school in your nice clothes. Take a cab, trust me. The last thing you need is to be flustered and tired when you walk through the door.

If you want a cheaper place, there are a few motels and inns outside of Baltimore about a 10-minute drive out. I would just take a cab there. When I came to Baltimore, I stayed in the Quality Inn. It worked out well enough. Cab fare was like $12 including tip one way.

Best of luck on your interview! =) If you have any questions we'll be more than happy to help.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

So do you suggest what kind of transportation that I can use to go from Baltimore Airport to Inner Harbor? :)
 
thank you for the help! i'll be there on the 26th interviewing!
 
kidlove said:
Thanks!

So do you suggest what kind of transportation that I can use to go from Baltimore Airport to Inner Harbor? :)
Click to expand...

Airport taxi is fine. It costs about $25 to 30. Alternatively, you can take the light rail for $1.60 to the baltimore street stop, but i don't know if you want to do that on such an important day.
 
kidlove said:
Thank you so much for all the advices. It sounds like Maryland is a great school.

I will be attending the interview in Feb., but I am not sure as where to stay. Do you think staying near inner Harbor will be better because I can walk to the school? I don't think I would like to rent a car because parking is really expensive there. :)


Thank you again
Click to expand...


When I interviewed, I lived the holiday Inn in the inner harbor. And I walked over to school. In the morning, that was not too bad. But if it is in the afternoon, the sun went down in baltimore pretty. 5 ish is already kind of dark out there so be carefully.

U Maryland is great school. Our classmate are so good and helping eath other out. We will have review section conducted by our classmate and lots students shared their study files and learning tips to all the classmate. It feel so warm.
I am glad that you got the interview and I will be on the 26th morning section interview and see you then. Welcome to Baltimore!
 
FYI: Another batch of interview invites just went out. I know b/c I just got an e-mail this morning! Woo hoo! :thumbup:
 
I got an interview invite too!! Seriously, I almost died of excitement because I saw the invites for Colorado & Maryland in my inbox at the same time. Haha~
 
k0ni said:
I got an interview invite too!! Seriously, I almost died of excitement because I saw the invites for Colorado & Maryland in my inbox at the same time. Haha~
Click to expand...
congrats! I'm still waiting :(
 
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