UNTHSC/TCOM Discussion Thread 2011-2012

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Hey guys,

I have a question... so it's been a week and still no invite (I'm okay with this... since I'm starting to realize it takes more than a week for an invite, lol). I think the fact that people were getting invites in 2 days from their completion made me nervous!!

But here's a serious question. TCOM sends an email when they get your application, correct? This email has all the portal login information, and it also confirms that they did indeed receive your application. I'm a reapplicant, and I never got this email this cycle. I fortunately had my email from last cycle saved, and used that login for my portal. My status for Fall 2012 is "complete" (green circle), but I'm finding it strange that I never received a confirmation email. Is this a cause for concern?

Thanks for your help, and congrats to all those who have/had interviews!

been discussed previously. I asked the same question. We don't get a confirmation email if we already have a log in from last year. If your status says complete, you should be good.

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Hey guys,

I have a question... so it's been a week and still no invite (I'm okay with this... since I'm starting to realize it takes more than a week for an invite, lol). I think the fact that people were getting invites in 2 days from their completion made me nervous!!

They probably submitted their primary really early and TCOM was just waiting for their secondary to come in before sending an invite. -shrug
TCOM took around 3 weeks after I transmitted to send me one, so just sit tight :) I think that was the norm around this thread, if I'm not mistaken.
 
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If I get an interview invite, I'll ensure this won't be a quiet thread. :laugh:

It's been about 2 weeks since completion. :scared:
 
Hello again.... just curious as to what's going on with everyone else and the whole review process. I got my interview already but I heard TCOM has been known to surprise applicants :xf: I know my family is praying hard for me! I like the school and the location a lot... all the museums right across the street which I probably wouldn't have time for lol
k
 
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I saw a few interviewees roaming around today. Hope y'all enjoyed the day
 
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I know I definitely see more Aggies in class. There are quite a few Baylor peeps as well...a lot more than I expected
 
Anyone get an interview invite here recently?? It's been about three weeks since I was complete at TCOM. I'm getting nervous :(
 
Yup there are tons of aggies. I think they are the Most represented uni in our class this year. But don't fret, there are some high quality horns here too!
 
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FYI - UNTHSC gets new Texas pharmacy school:
http://www.star-telegram.com/2011/08/18/3299682/unt-to-establish-pharmacy-school.html
FORT WORTH -- The University of North Texas System is on the "fast track" to launch the region's first pharmacy school. Plans are to start a doctor of pharmacy degree program by August 2013. The UNT System Board of Regents approved plans to create the pharmacy school at its Thursday meeting. It is to be housed at the Fort Worth-based UNT Health Science Center. The Texas Legislature authorized the pharmacy proposal in the spring.
 
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FYI for people who interviewed in the first couple weeks, Caroline told me on my interview day (Aug 4) that our committee meets at the beginning of September! :scared: Just thought others might want to know... I think I will be checking my mailbox obsessively in the hopes of NOT seeing a letter from them!! lol

Hope everyone is doing well, really hoping we all get flooded with interview invites :D
 
FYI for people who interviewed in the first couple weeks, Caroline told me on my interview day (Aug 4) that our committee meets at the beginning of September! :scared: Just thought others might want to know... I think I will be checking my mailbox obsessively in the hopes of NOT seeing a letter from them!! lol

Hope everyone is doing well, really hoping we all get flooded with interview invites :D

Thanks! heres hoping for no mail :xf:
 
FYI for people who interviewed in the first couple weeks, Caroline told me on my interview day (Aug 4) that our committee meets at the beginning of September! :scared: Just thought others might want to know... I think I will be checking my mailbox obsessively in the hopes of NOT seeing a letter from them!! lol

Hope everyone is doing well, really hoping we all get flooded with interview invites :D

Good to know! September will be a nerve wrecking month for many, lol.

And here I am... still waiting for Caroline to call me for an interview invite. I'm hoping it'll be this week!! I was complete August 5th I believe... so almost 3 weeks.
 
Hey guys! I'm a current first year and I just wanted to stop in and say hi and good luck with this whole process! I know it's rough, but it's all worth it in the end. So far school's demanding, but definitely doable and pretty fun at times :)

I saw someone on here saying they heard that there aren't a lot of non-traditional students at TCOM. That's really just not true at all. I'm a non-trad, and there are several people in my class who are married, have kids, several years out of school, etc. In fact, our newly elected 2015 president is a non-traditional student! And they have this really great group for spouses so that they can get to know each other and have a support system. So don't definitely don't worry about being older/non-traditional!

Good luck y'all!
 
FYI for people who interviewed in the first couple weeks, Caroline told me on my interview day (Aug 4) that our committee meets at the beginning of September! :scared: Just thought others might want to know... I think I will be checking my mailbox obsessively in the hopes of NOT seeing a letter from them!! lol

Hope everyone is doing well, really hoping we all get flooded with interview invites :D


I believe it's somewhat rare to be rejected, unless you completely messed your interviews up. If you interview, you will most likely be a candidate for acceptance. Remember, since us Texas folks have to deal with the match, they usually keep the interviewees around and let the match take care of everything instead of outright rejecting people. I think that's more unnecessary torture if you aren't accepted in the end, though.

So basically, don't worry about being rejected. It doesn't seem to be very typical.
 
Hey guys! I'm a current first year and I just wanted to stop in and say hi and good luck with this whole process! I know it's rough, but it's all worth it in the end. So far school's demanding, but definitely doable and pretty fun at times :)

Hey, glad you're having fun in cell science! Keep on truckin' and you'll pass.
 
I believe it's somewhat rare to be rejected, unless you completely messed your interviews up. If you interview, you will most likely be a candidate for acceptance. Remember, since us Texas folks have to deal with the match, they usually keep the interviewees around and let the match take care of everything instead of outright rejecting people. I think that's more unnecessary torture if you aren't accepted in the end, though. So basically, don't worry about being rejected. It doesn't seem to be very typical.

That's a fairly good assumption. If there were no red flags during the interview, then no news is good news - generally speaking, of course.
 
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This thread is really insightful. Congrats to everyone who has interviewed/has an invite. I've been complete at TCOM since about 7/28, so I'm hoping it usually takes about a month to receive an invite. :scared:
 
For the current students who stop by periodically with words of reassurance (thank you for that, it's been extremely helpful!!!), I've got a couple questions...

How did the first round of exams go? Did you feel that they accurately reflected the material covered in class, and do you feel you were adequately prepared? Hope they went well for you all!

Also, are you bothered by the fact that grades are given instead of a P/F system, and how much did that affect your decision to attend?

THANK YOU! :D
 
For the current students who stop by periodically with words of reassurance (thank you for that, it's been extremely helpful!!!), I've got a couple questions...

How did the first round of exams go? Did you feel that they accurately reflected the material covered in class, and do you feel you were adequately prepared? Hope they went well for you all!

Also, are you bothered by the fact that grades are given instead of a P/F system, and how much did that affect your decision to attend?

THANK YOU! :D

First exam was crazy! Our class did really well, though, and the class average was about an 83! Someone said that she heard the clinical med doctors say a lot fewer people failed than they expected haha...we weren't sure if that was reassuring or not lol. I think the reason our class did generally well was because we were scared into studying A LOT.

As for the material, I think a lot of the material was covered in class. It does suck when you study so many details from many slides and only get 3-4 questions per lecture. I think the only one I wasn't completely prepared for was Genetics. The lecture seemed easy, and I thought I knew genetics really well from before as well. Yet somehow, the questions seemed very vague. That might just be me, but I do know the class director said Genetics is always the one that people do worst on every year. Anyway, that's the only section I didn't feel prepared for.

Honestly, I didn't know the grading system before applying here. I don't mind the grades because it forces me to work harder. I think I would feel myself slip a bit more if I knew it's just P/F. The numerical grades keep me on top of things.
 
Several people in my class failed that first exam as well, but they woke up real fast and pulled up their grade on the next one - it's a big adjusment going from undergrad to med school with the daily deluge of information that you have to process. As far as numerical grades, I think they're objective and useful for ranking. I chose TCOM for several reasons, but the biggest reason was their reputation among healthcare professionals in the state. There is no doubt TCOM has given me a first-class education over the last two years. TCOM pushes you hard, but they also keep everyone fairly close as a cohesive group. I have a lot of incredible classmates who are also genuine good people and great friends.
 
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For the current students who stop by periodically with words of reassurance (thank you for that, it's been extremely helpful!!!), I've got a couple questions...

How did the first round of exams go? Did you feel that they accurately reflected the material covered in class, and do you feel you were adequately prepared? Hope they went well for you all!

Also, are you bothered by the fact that grades are given instead of a P/F system, and how much did that affect your decision to attend?

THANK YOU! :D

Pass fail should not factor into ur decision to attend a school at all. There is always going to be a class rank and the truth is we are all competing* against each other. That being said, the tcom competitive environment is nil to none. Everyone helps everyone and the class as a whole is sharing w study materials. Many of my classmates go out of there way to create charts and study guides and share it w the class, it makes for a great atmosphere.

As for the test, it could have been 10x more brutal if they wanted to make it that way (as the case is for any test covering that much info). So even though we have to remember everything about anything presented in lecture, I'd say they tested fairly. Tutoring and study workshops are highly available and strongly encouraged. I'm am def ready to be done w cell science tho...it's a beast.
 
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Pass fail should not factor into ur decision to attend a school at all. There is always going to be a class rank and the truth is we are all competitive against each other. That being said, the tcom competitive environment is nil to none. Everyone helps everyone and the class as a whole is sharing w study materials. Many of my classmates go out of there way to create charts and study guides and share it w the class, it makes for a great atmosphere.

As for the test, it could have been 10x more brutal if they wanted to make it that way (as the case is for any test covering that much info). So even though we have to remember everything about anything presented in lecture, I'd say they tested fairly. Tutoring and study workshops are highly available and strongly encouraged. I'm am def ready to be done w cell science tho...it's a beast.

2 more days...so close, yet so far away
 
My interview is tomorrow, and I somehow managed to pull the 7:30 AM and 9:00 AM interview slots. Does anyone know if Caroline will be there around 7:00 in the morning?
 
Gibby, would you mind sharing when you were complete and when you received your interview invite? It's been 3 weeks for me and I'm getting too anxious... lol.
 
My interview is tomorrow, and I somehow managed to pull the 7:30 AM and 9:00 AM interview slots. Does anyone know if Caroline will be there around 7:00 in the morning?

I'm not sure if Caroline herself will be there at 7, but someone will definitely be at the admissions desk. Last year, my first interview was at 7:30 as well...there were a few people in the office at the time
 
I'm not sure if Caroline herself will be there at 7, but someone will definitely be at the admissions desk. Last year, my first interview was at 7:30 as well...there were a few people in the office at the time

Thanks for the info, ill make sure to get coffee in my system before the festivities begin.

TMDSAS transmitted 7/29/2011
Complete email: 8/3/2011
Invite email: 8/5/2011

Goodluck!
 
My interview is tomorrow, and I somehow managed to pull the 7:30 AM and 9:00 AM interview slots. Does anyone know if Caroline will be there around 7:00 in the morning?

I had the 730 and 830 time slot and Caroline and a few others were there that early last year. They also had have coffee, juice, snacks available for us at 7 too, if u want to wait till u get there to grab something. Also we have a diabetes and obesity MLM at 10.. U should def try to hit that up, the IM clinician running the mlm is an awesome lecturer and u can get a feel how our MLMs work (case presentation and Socratic method).
 
Submitted Secondary Application 8/21. Received interview invite by call 8/24. Unfortunately had to decline 9/13 interview date because of Math Test. Caroline understood and rescheduled me for 9/16th. Looking forward towards the interview!
 
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Wow that's a really quick turn around. I wonder why I haven't gotten a call yet... not saying I should, but I feel my stats are relatively competitive for TCOM and my secondary essays were pretty darn good.

I'm marked as complete on the UNT portal, but do you think I should give them a call just to ensure they have everything?
 
Wow that's a really quick turn around. I wonder why I haven't gotten a call yet... not saying I should, but I feel my stats are relatively competitive for TCOM and my secondary essays were pretty darn good.

I'm marked as complete on the UNT portal, but do you think I should give them a call just to ensure they have everything?

it wouldn't hurt. They'll tell you if it's complete, but when I called, they were unable to tell me the status of my application (reviewed/not reviewed). I've been waiting since June:rolleyes:. Best of luck to both of us :luck:
 
it wouldn't hurt. They'll tell you if it's complete, but when I called, they were unable to tell me the status of my application (reviewed/not reviewed). I've been waiting since June:rolleyes:. Best of luck to both of us :luck:

Ah. Yes I'll give them a call tomorrow (tomorrow will be the official 3 week mark since being complete). I'll let you know what they say. :)

And yes, best of luck to us and everyone else in our shoes. :xf:
 
I talked to Caroline today and she said that they have received about 2000 complete applications so far this cycle while at the same time last year there were about 900 complete applications. So maybe that's a reason why some haven't received an interview yet. If you look at last year's class thread, alot of people applied early and didn't get an interview until late in the cycle and still received an acceptance. Hang in there.
 
I talked to Caroline today and she said that they have received about 2000 complete applications so far this cycle while at the same time last year there were about 900 complete applications. So maybe that's a reason why some haven't received an interview yet. If you look at last year's class thread, alot of people applied early and didn't get an interview until late in the cycle and still received an acceptance. Hang in there.

Ohh... thanks for the info, that actually made me feel a little better! :)

How was your interview today?
 
I talked to Caroline today and she said that they have received about 2000 complete applications so far this cycle while at the same time last year there were about 900 complete applications. So maybe that's a reason why some haven't received an interview yet. If you look at last year's class thread, alot of people applied early and didn't get an interview until late in the cycle and still received an acceptance. Hang in there.

thank you for the update. that makes me a little more sane.:laugh:
 
The interview was good. The school is very laid back and friendly. Both my interviewers were both really relaxed and open about everything. I am extremely impressed with TCOM, and as far as clinical training goes you can compete with and even beat most MD schools. However they are not heavy on research as some of the other schools in Texas if that’s what you are into. The Dean Ambassadors were pretty awesome and gave you the down low on what to expect and all aspects of the school and facilities. Overall experience was great and I could see myself going here.
 
It looks like we're all waiting lol. I'm surprised at how fast some people got interviews after being complete though. Literally like 3 days! I'm starting to worry again... :scared:

But congrats to those who have interviews!!! :)
 
The interview was good. The school is very laid back and friendly. Both my interviewers were both really relaxed and open about everything. I am extremely impressed with TCOM, and as far as clinical training goes you can compete with and even beat most MD schools. However they are not heavy on research as some of the other schools in Texas if that’s what you are into. The Dean Ambassadors were pretty awesome and gave you the down low on what to expect and all aspects of the school and facilities. Overall experience was great and I could see myself going here.

They do have research opportunities, and there is a DO/PhD program, but unless you're doing the dual degree, you won't really have much time for research anyways. Your summers are shorter than most medical schools and I believe you have to complete a preceptorship in that time. For us current first years, the spring semester ends June 8th and the next fall semester starts July 25th, so if you are doing preceptorships your summer is cut down considerably. I think many people use the left over free time to do mission trips or other volunteering.
 
Has anyone gotten an interview here recently? It's almost been a month now... Please give me a call Caroline!! lol.
 
i have an interview on 9/13, submitted my secondary about a week before i got the invite :D

i heard from some people who applied last year that they were grilled in the tcom interviews more than any other texas school... does anyone have any comments on this or interview advice?
 
i have an interview on 9/13, submitted my secondary about a week before i got the invite :D

i heard from some people who applied last year that they were grilled in the tcom interviews more than any other texas school... does anyone have any comments on this or interview advice?

The interviews are closed-file, so all they really know about you is your personal statement. The interviewer doesn't know your GPA or MCAT scores, so most of the questions will be about medical ethics, philosophy, osteopathic medicine, and yourself. Possibly something about current events, like healthcare issues.
Then, it also depends on who you get. My first interviewer just asked me about myself and what qualities I have to be a good doctor after talking about the city for 15 minutes. The second one threw in some "situation" questions as well as a question relating to osteopathic medicine, which was a bit more of a difficult interview overall. However, both interviews were very relaxed and conversational. I think the MOST important part of the interview is your ability to communicate more so than what your answers are. TCOM is very particular about having very well-rounded, social students.
 
The interviews are closed-file, so all they really know about you is your personal statement. The interviewer doesn't know your GPA or MCAT scores, so most of the questions will be about medical ethics, philosophy, osteopathic medicine, and yourself. Possibly something about current events, like healthcare issues.
Then, it also depends on who you get. My first interviewer just asked me about myself and what qualities I have to be a good doctor after talking about the city for 15 minutes. The second one threw in some "situation" questions as well as a question relating to osteopathic medicine, which was a bit more of a difficult interview overall. However, both interviews were very relaxed and conversational. I think the MOST important part of the interview is your ability to communicate more so than what your answers are. TCOM is very particular about having very well-rounded, social students.

^^definitely something to keep in mind. One of my interviewers said he felt like he was talking to a friend, and I'm sure that helped even if my answers weren't ideal
 
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