Baylor College of Medicine Class of 2008

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Gleevec

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Hoping someone else would start this thread, but figured since every other school seems to have one might as well start one up here.

Whats up?

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Bump. This is slipping a bit low in the forum.
 
Gleevec said:
Hoping someone else would start this thread, but figured since every other school seems to have one might as well start one up here.

Whats up?
I kept thinking someone else would start this thread too. :laugh:

I'm just hanging out. My house is on the market, has been for 2 months already. Unfortunately, the housing market out here reeks and we stand to lose $$ by the time it sells. *shrug* oh well.

We'll be buying a townhome near the med center. Can't wait to be in town!

3 months 'til orientation...
 
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Heyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've already got my lease signed, just killing time here in Austin waiting to graduate and get on over to H-town.

I have a question for you - have any of you heard an explanation of that $6900 or so they have budgeted in the first year for books & supplies? I know $3000 is for a computer, but the rest of that still seems pretty high. Just curious :) I have lots of 'supplies' already, including about a hundred drug rep pens, usually with some embarrassing drug on them that I don't notice until I'm using the pen to write a check at HEB :laugh: Poor me, I have incontinence, impotence AND high cholesterol!!!!!

Baylor rocks. Is everyone as excited as me? I mean, for an experience that's going to be intense and difficult, it sounds like Baylor is going to be one of the best possible places to go through it. :cool:
 
Finally, I'm able to say I'll be seeing you all this July!

We're still in the slow process of building our house in Pearland. The foundation is supposedly being poured today. Unfortunately, I don't think it'll be done before we start, which means I'll be moving from our apartment in Clear Lake into the house during classes. Yuck.

Hey, does anyone remember what they said about the videotaped classes? If that is really a good alternative to attending classes, I may be taking advantage of it a lot. My daughter will still be in day care in Clear Lake and my husband will have to be traveling at least once a month. Are the videos good quality? Is there the option of speeding them up, like I've heard of at other schools?

Can't wait to meet you all!
 
I think they're available to check out on DVD and as 'streaming video' on the Internet, but maybe it was VHS... I know for sure they're available online.
 
curlycity said:
Heyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've already got my lease signed, just killing time here in Austin waiting to graduate and get on over to H-town.

I have a question for you - have any of you heard an explanation of that $6900 or so they have budgeted in the first year for books & supplies? I know $3000 is for a computer, but the rest of that still seems pretty high. Just curious :) :

it's just extra money you can borrow if you want. You don't need $3000 for a computer. 1000 will do fine. If it's not a huge inconvenience you really don't need a new computer at all.

Basically, the money is there if you want to borrow it to use it for a nicer apartment than is allotted for in the housing budget, or having no roommate, or whatever.
 
Congrats to all you who are about to stat at Baylor this fall. I will applying this summer and I'm wondering what type of MCAT score I would need to realistically apply to Baylor. I'm a Texas resident with a 4.0 undergrad GPA thus far and several volunteering and leadership positions. Any info will be appreciated.
 
4.0?!?! Good for you! Calculus was cruel to me, two Cs in a row :mad:

I think the average MCAT at Baylor last year was 33. I think the only thing you need is clinical experience, unless that's what you meant by volunteering.

Also, the interviews at Baylor were good, so don't fret about that. Some of the horror stories on this forum are awesome!!! But Baylor's a great place.

Good luck!!!
 
i'm blessed and very happy!! to go to baylor :)

anyone living in favrot apartments at the tmc?
 
straightpunch said:
i'm blessed and very happy!! to go to baylor :)

anyone living in favrot apartments at the tmc?

im living in Lanesborough next year, its at the Smith Lands stop on the light rail
 
LanceP97 said:
Congrats to all you who are about to stat at Baylor this fall. I will applying this summer and I'm wondering what type of MCAT score I would need to realistically apply to Baylor. I'm a Texas resident with a 4.0 undergrad GPA thus far and several volunteering and leadership positions. Any info will be appreciated.

The average is like 33-34 I believe, seems to be going up each year but looks like it has hit or is about to hit the ceiling.
 
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ms. a said:
Hey, does anyone remember what they said about the videotaped classes? If that is really a good alternative to attending classes, I may be taking advantage of it a lot. My daughter will still be in day care in Clear Lake and my husband will have to be traveling at least once a month. Are the videos good quality? Is there the option of speeding them up, like I've heard of at other schools?

Can't wait to meet you all!

Baylor streams their lectures onto realplayer. I dont know about the quality, but it doesnt matter since they give you a syllabus with all your notes on it at the beginning of each block (or week or something). So all Baylor students do is highlight things in their printed notes they were given. Baylor uses that realplayer thingy that speeds up voices up to 2.5 times without soundling like a chipmunk (sounds more like the micromachines guy apparently). Pretty useful once you train yourself to listen to things that fast, so I hear.
 
Thanks for the post on MCAT scores. All I have to do now is wait anxiously for my scores to come in. (Please God let them be high enough.) Thanks again.
 
Hurray! I was hoping that someone would start this thread.

I'm in the same boat as TR -- waiting for my silly house to sell so I can move downtown. We'll probably be getting a townhouse. I'm also finishing up my lab job, which I am sooooo ready to leave.

Can't wait to see you all in July!
 
Anyone else heard from financial aid people yet? Im kinda curious as to why the early deadline for financial aid is mid-May after people have chosen a school. I wanna max out my Stafford subsidized towards housing, and was wondering when I would find out?
 
Gleevec said:
Anyone else heard from financial aid people yet? Im kinda curious as to why the early deadline for financial aid is mid-May after people have chosen a school. I wanna max out my Stafford subsidized towards housing, and was wondering when I would find out?

i'm signing on cos it's likely i'll be sending in those forms by friday.
 
Gleevec said:
Anyone else heard from financial aid people yet? Im kinda curious as to why the early deadline for financial aid is mid-May after people have chosen a school. I wanna max out my Stafford subsidized towards housing, and was wondering when I would find out?
yeah, I'd really like to know how they'll handle my situation with regards to loans. I'm married, but hope to use loans to pay for the kids childcare afterschool. No idea how that works. But I didn't mail in my Baylor Fin. aid forms 'til yesterday... oops. :laugh:
 
Hello all,

I am very glad to say that I will be joining you all at BCM next year.

I sent in my deposit last week, and they sent a confirmation back along with a decal for my car. I very expensive decal at $300 :)

-Mufaddal
 
Bump! Just keeping this thread on the first page!
 
Gleevec said:
Anyone else heard from financial aid people yet? Im kinda curious as to why the early deadline for financial aid is mid-May after people have chosen a school. I wanna max out my Stafford subsidized towards housing, and was wondering when I would find out?

I got the letter you sign and return - the offer letter? - two days ago. It said the Stafford loan stuff wouldn't be processed until I returned it. But I sent in my stuff a long, long time ago...I would just call them and ask them, because they're nice people but some of them are a little floopy :) so you gotta get on them a little. Hope this helps :rolleyes:
 
But you receive a syllabus, right? Does it contain everything that the exam will cover? That's what I heard...
 
Sounds more like it. I thought that syllabus arrangement sounded deceptively simple. Also, I tend to want to dive into subjects I find interesting, so I'll be one of those book-people anyway.
 
crazy eyes said:
Guys chill on the financial aid, it will all be taken care of, 1st years are allocated first- before everyone else so you will be taken care of. There is money for childcare (yes you get more) but you need to ask for the childcare financial aid form. They can send/fax you one if you ask them for it (call and ask for yvonne).
Thanks for all the info, it's very useful.
 
crazy eyes said:
My ass, just wait and see, they start you off slow and easy so at the beginning it might seem that way, but by the middle of your 2nd year you will be singing a different story. Honestly, whats the problem with that- grow up and learn the stuff you need to know to treat your patients, not to ace a test. Ask around, everyone supplements the syllabus with Board Reveiw Series texts (BRS) because they give overviews of the topic.

Sounds like a lot of people whine about this? Who goes to these spoon-feeding undergrad schools :laugh: ? I think of med school as "Welcome to the Jungle..." not "welcome to the easiest time of your life"!!!!!!!!!!
 
crazy eyes said:
You want to get started early? I would recommend Cell Biology and Histology BRS (Board Review Series), Physiology BRS, and Biochem BRS. Honestly the most time consuming class will be Anatomy but the book is not good without the context of the gross, the next most time consuming is CBH.


Thanks for the tip.
 
crazy eyes said:
I dont want to give away who I am now... I worked at a desk/clerk job where I could study as well as an I/T job.

Im out, Ill be back later...good luck.

Thanks for the posts.
 
crazy eyes said:
Ceiling?? I doubt it, it does continue to go up, currently 34.5, with the AMCAS application system addition to Baylor the number of applicants will continue to rise and the caliber of student will rise as well. It wont plateau until about 35-6 in a few years. Baylor is too precious of a commodity with its flexibility of schedule, independent, motivated students like its environment. Also, by the way, students that have been spoon fed, and are accustomed to being taught everything they need to know for a test as opposed to reading on your own- are in for a big surprise and will not do well at Baylor. Just wait till you get there and they recommend 4-5 books for a class and tell you that you are an adult, go pick out a book, I am not going to tell you where I take my test questions from... just learn the material. WElCOME TO ADULT EDUCATION.

I seriously hope it doesnt plateau at 35-36, the last thing I want Baylor to become is WashU. :scared: I think the current averages are just fine IMHO
 
crazy eyes said:
Just wait till you get there and they recommend 4-5 books for a class and tell you that you are an adult, go pick out a book, I am not going to tell you where I take my test questions from... just learn the material. WElCOME TO ADULT EDUCATION.

That's fantastic. :thumbup:
 
crazy eyes said:
get accustomed to it, however, if you are interested in Dermatology, radiology, radiation oncology, neurosurgery etc. you will be "whining" as well. Keep in mind, that when you are tested on material that is not taught, but is clinically relevant, those that have a ton of clinical experience do extremely well (almost unfairly well) while the rest suffer and possibly are excluded from certain specialties for their performance. Believe me, the medical school demon will bring you nightmares sooner or later. With that being said, it is what you make it. I worked 20+ hours a week on top of medical school during the basic sciences and also did research- I get bored easy- and I did very well. In contrast some of my friends studied non-stop and did poorly-- and hated me for it. Just be ready...

i thought bcm was on p/f?
 
crazy eyes said:
You want your school to be the best it can be right? You want your colleagues to be the best and the brightest, right? As a current student and a member of the admissions committee, it only reflects highly upon the school that the numbers are going up. If you dont like that, sorry.

Numbers numbers numbers eh? Though, I believe there is a distinction between gunning purely for higher avg stats (WashU) or letting it happen naturally, Im referring more to the fear of the former and hope for the latter.
 
TexasRose said:
only the first semester is p/f.

semester? i thought it was only the first intro block? im kinda confused about that though :confused:
 
I'm an MS4 at baylor. I think that Fall I (first 5 months) is Pass/Fail and then you move onto the H/HP/P/F system for everything else. I'm not 100% sure about that though because they switched to this system after I did it.


Things may have changed since I did my pre-clinicals, but in my experience the syllabi were very comprehensive for many of the courses (especially 2nd year). It was usually pretty obvious when some supplemental material would be required and there was always a good general consensus about what the best source to use was.

I agree that Baylor is a place that really lends itself to the self-directed and self-motivated learner.

I would strongly recommend NOT getting started early and enjoy your free time now.
 
johnd said:
I agree that Baylor is a place that really lends itself to the self-directed and self-motivated learner.

I would strongly recommend NOT getting started early and enjoy your free time now.

Thank you. That was my original impulse, then I spent a few minutes looking around amazon.com for some books, then I got over it :D but I did put them on my 'wish list' for grad gifts.

I am so thrilled to be going to Baylor. In case I didn't say that three times already.

I'm glad to hear what you said about being self-directed; at another school it seemed very paternalistic, like we will work you to death and form you in the flames of our forge into competent physicians whether you cooperate or not. Baylor reminded me of getting into heaven and being handed a harp, directed to a cloud, and told to get to work. It just seemed like the people at Baylor have a lot of confidence in the people they select to enter their classes. Gives me something to look forward to in classmates.
 
johnd said:
I would strongly recommend NOT getting started early and enjoy your free time now.

Don't need to tell me this twice, will do! Thanks for the info :thumbup:
 
hi guys...looking forward to seeing y'all in july... :)

everyone got places to live yet?
 
spumoni620 said:
hi guys...looking forward to seeing y'all in july... :)

everyone got places to live yet?

I should know in about a week or two.
 
spumoni620 said:
hi guys...looking forward to seeing y'all in july... :)

everyone got places to live yet?
I've got my eye on some townhomes near the Maroneal apts, but waiting for the current house to sell. I'll be making a long commute if this place doesn't sell before July. ugh.
 
spumoni620 said:
hi guys...looking forward to seeing y'all in july... :)

everyone got places to live yet?

Spumoni, I just want you to know your ice cream flavor ROCKS. Alas, as a former junk food junkie, I have to deny myself its wonderfulness or risk gaining back all that studying-for-the-MCAT weight :laugh: Hooray for fitness ... I try to make that sound convincing, but I only believe it some days.

Hubby & I found an awesome apartment on Hermann and preleased...it's still under construction. Coming from Austin, if they don't get it done in time, that will be a reallllllly long commute!
 
curlycity said:
Spumoni, I just want you to know your ice cream flavor ROCKS. Alas, as a former junk food junkie, I have to deny myself its wonderfulness or risk gaining back all that studying-for-the-MCAT weight :laugh: Hooray for fitness ... I try to make that sound convincing, but I only believe it some days.

Hubby & I found an awesome apartment on Hermann and preleased...it's still under construction. Coming from Austin, if they don't get it done in time, that will be a reallllllly long commute!

Ooh, which apartments? The new Alta lofts, or the Esplannade? Both of those are really nice.
 
curlycity said:
Esplanade, yeah!

Yeah I saw those, look nice. Im looking at Lanesborough right now
 
TexasRose said:
I've got my eye on some townhomes near the Maroneal apts, but waiting for the current house to sell. I'll be making a long commute if this place doesn't sell before July. ugh.

Tell me about it! I'm sure my house won't be done before we start - probably not until mid-August, if that. I'll be doing the commute from Clear Lake until then. And I can't say I'm excited about the prospect of doing a move while in school, but what can I do?!
 
ms. a said:
And I can't say I'm excited about the prospect of doing a move while in school, but what can I do?!

Start boxing, eBay-ing, and garage sale-ing all your stuff NOW ... and make plenty of big, strong, friendly friends to help carry boxes when the time comes :)
 
Hello everyone!!! I just got into Baylor off the waitlist (call from Dr. Hill--I think I will save that voice mail forever)!!!!!

I was a regular on the UTSW thread, but now I will probably be changing allegiances... Got no idea where I'm gonna live, but I'm so happy! I'll just be a happy med student bum!!!
 
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