2010-2011 Stony Brook Application Thread

Getting into Med School is Hard? Not with BeMo.
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ksmi117

ksmi117

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Prompts:

WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUE YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW THEY WILL INFLUENCE YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE.

DESCRIBE AN OBSTACLE YOU'VE OVERCOME AND HOW IT HAS DEFINED YOU.

DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY.

:luck: with your application!
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ksmi117 said:
Reserved for prompt.

Please PM the essays or lack thereof to me (ksmi117) when the secondary is available.

:luck: with your application!
Click to expand...

Just wanted to start off by saying good luck to all those applying to Stony Brook!!!!
 
I'm a undergrad at Stony Brook University with overall GPA 3.64, Science 3.6, and non science 3.72. With one publication as a third author.

What's a good MCAT score for SBU med school? I'm planning to take MCAT at the end of August. Is that too late? Would it be better if I send off my primary around when I take my MCAT instead of send the primary after I get my score? Another side question does the med school care what major I am?
 
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silverice said:
I'm a undergrad at Stony Brook University with overall GPA 3.64, Science 3.6, and non science 3.72. With one publication as a third author.

What's a good MCAT score for SBU med school? I'm planning to take MCAT at the end of August. Is that too late? Would it be better if I send off my primary around when I take my MCAT instead of send the primary after I get my score? Another side question does the med school care what major I am?
Click to expand...

your gpa is good...I believe their average is about a 32 so i would assume you would want around that, and the higher the better. With that, an average is just an average and each applicant is different. Do you have solid clinical ECs besides the publication?

med schools generally don't care at all what your major was as long as you meet the requirements. some look at the rigor of your undergrad classes, so if you majored in basket-weaving, im assuming you would be at a slight disadvantage- then again, who knows!

an august mcat, for most people, is def too late. I would submit your primary asap if you are definitely applying this cycle regardless of your mcat score. Being early can be a deal breaker with rolling admissions, which i believe SB has, so you wouldnt be complete until Sept, and by then many many many people have complete. If you are set applying this cycle then apply to SB early and depending on your MCAT, add schools on after. Even with a solid MCAT score, its possible you might just be too late. But plenty of people have been complete in october and have gotten acceptances- its somewhat a crapshoot

best of luck- hope this helps!!
 
silverice said:
I'm a undergrad at Stony Brook University with overall GPA 3.64, Science 3.6, and non science 3.72. With one publication as a third author.

What's a good MCAT score for SBU med school? I'm planning to take MCAT at the end of August. Is that too late? Would it be better if I send off my primary around when I take my MCAT instead of send the primary after I get my score? Another side question does the med school care what major I am?
Click to expand...
When I interviewed there during the 2009-2010 cycle I definitely got the impression that they cared major, but specifically about what classes you took. For example, they asked me specifically about upper level biochemistry and upper level cell biology as well as several other courses that you wouldn't take unless you were a biology major. Without these classes they said that they were not confident that a candidate would be ready for medical school. I was a double degree major in neurobiology and english but i genuinely felt like they viewed me as a weaker candidate than "just a biology major" because they felt that I didn't take the sciences seriously (btw i have average science gpa and a 4.00 nonscience). Some interviews seemed to imply that they thought I might waste their time and then run off to become a poet and wasn't really interested in medical school (this is almost a direct quote from my interviewer at another school). While I was an undergrad I heard the exact opposite of this but faced a very different reality when applying and especially interviewing for medical schools. so yeah, i think that major matters and can be a huge hindrance, even if your a double arts and science major.
 
Fishulous said:
When I interviewed there during the 2009-2010 cycle I definitely got the impression that they cared major, but specifically about what classes you took. For example, they asked me specifically about upper level biochemistry and upper level cell biology as well as several other courses that you wouldn't take unless you were a biology major. Without these classes they said that they were not confident that a candidate would be ready for medical school. I was a double degree major in neurobiology and english but i genuinely felt like they viewed me as a weaker candidate than "just a biology major" because they felt that I didn't take the sciences seriously (btw i have average science gpa and a 4.00 nonscience). Some interviews seemed to imply that they thought I might waste their time and then run off to become a poet and wasn't really interested in medical school (this is almost a direct quote from my interviewer at another school). While I was an undergrad I heard the exact opposite of this but faced a very different reality when applying and especially interviewing for medical schools. so yeah, i think that major matters and can be a huge hindrance, even if your a double arts and science major.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for your information. It's shocking and good to know. I heard about the importance of biochem and cell bio, but didn't know it is that important. Thank you very much for letting me know.
 
AerobixChica said:
your gpa is good...I believe their average is about a 32 so i would assume you would want around that, and the higher the better. With that, an average is just an average and each applicant is different. Do you have solid clinical ECs besides the publication?

med schools generally don't care at all what your major was as long as you meet the requirements. some look at the rigor of your undergrad classes, so if you majored in basket-weaving, im assuming you would be at a slight disadvantage- then again, who knows!

an august mcat, for most people, is def too late. I would submit your primary asap if you are definitely applying this cycle regardless of your mcat score. Being early can be a deal breaker with rolling admissions, which i believe SB has, so you wouldnt be complete until Sept, and by then many many many people have complete. If you are set applying this cycle then apply to SB early and depending on your MCAT, add schools on after. Even with a solid MCAT score, its possible you might just be too late. But plenty of people have been complete in october and have gotten acceptances- its somewhat a crapshoot

best of luck- hope this helps!!
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply. I think I know where I stand now. Regarding to EC other than the Publication, I was working full time at a clinic during my freshman summer. Maybe I should do some volunteering? Because lab work has taken waaaay too much of my time. I think I might apply next year then. sigh.....
 
silverice said:
Thank you for your reply. I think I know where I stand now. Regarding to EC other than the Publication, I was working full time at a clinic during my freshman summer. Maybe I should do some volunteering? Because lab work has taken waaaay too much of my time. I think I might apply next year then. sigh.....
Click to expand...

i was in the same boat! I was planning on applying last year and decided to take an extra year. I think applying early is just as important as having good stats and ECs...so not rushing the mcat, doing some volunteering with/in addition to clinical exposure, and applying early next cycle would definitely increase ur chances quite a bit, IMO
 
anyone know when to expect secondary invites?
 
What do they mean by one page....?
 
Given that one of their essay questions has some subject-verb agreement issues, I kind of don't want to apply here anymore.

WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUES YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW IT WILL EFFECT YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE.

DESCRIBE AN OBSTACLE YOU'VE OVERCOME AND HOW IT HAS DEFINED YOU.

DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY.
 
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T1R3KO said:
Given that one of their essay questions has some subject-verb agreement issues, I kind of don't want to apply here anymore.

WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUES YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW IT WILL EFFECT YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE.

DESCRIBE AN OBSTACLE YOU'VE OVERCOME AND HOW IT HAS DEFINED YOU.

DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY.
Click to expand...

haha, don't forget those mistakes too!
 
T1R3KO said:
Given that one of their essay questions has some subject-verb agreement issues, I kind of don't want to apply here anymore.

WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUES YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW IT WILL EFFECT YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE.

DESCRIBE AN OBSTACLE YOU'VE OVERCOME AND HOW IT HAS DEFINED YOU.

DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY.
Click to expand...

Because of their mistake, I feel you can interpret it as singular or plural, whichever benefits you.

I'm lazy so I'll take the singular.

For EC exp... is tutoring part-time considered EX exp? What about volunteering at a homeless shelter?
 
Maybe this was mentioned already, but can someone post the length of each essay that they expect? Or perhaps what they suggest is the maximum or minimum size?
 
Kbrock said:
Maybe this was mentioned already, but can someone post the length of each essay that they expect? Or perhaps what they suggest is the maximum or minimum size?
Click to expand...

All it says is Please limit your responses to one page per question.

Kinda vague..
 
I think the limit is just so you don't go overboard. I wrote whatever length felt natural enough to write about in some depth, but not embellishing them to get them to be just under a page.
 
I don't have my copy of the MSAR with me this week.

Is this school OOS friendly?
 
Last edited:
BullDog4Eva said:
Oh crap. I wonder if I should even bother... :(
Click to expand...

yeah i'm trying to decide whether or not to fill out the secondary if they're not that OOS friendly, plus i don't really feel like writing these essays...
 
dramaqueen14 said:
yeah i'm trying to decide whether or not to fill out the secondary if they're not that OOS friendly, plus i don't really feel like writing these essays...
Click to expand...

Well... the essay isn't much of a problem since I can mostly do some recycling.
 
I'm sure it's been asked for other schools...for the EC question, should I talk about my #1 experience, even though it's what my PS was about?
 
ciruelo said:
I'm sure it's been asked for other schools...for the EC question, should I talk about my #1 experience, even though it's what my PS was about?
Click to expand...

If you have something significant to add.
 
T1R3KO said:
Given that one of their essay questions has some subject-verb agreement issues, I kind of don't want to apply here anymore.

WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUES YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW IT WILL EFFECT YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE.

DESCRIBE AN OBSTACLE YOU'VE OVERCOME AND HOW IT HAS DEFINED YOU.

DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY.
Click to expand...

They must have fixed this since you posted... because the noun and verb are now consistent. Aspects... intrigue.

Yikes. Now I HAVE to speak about more than one aspect. Wished I had submitted it sooner. FML.
 
JUST submitted. Spent a good time on it too. :( Hope they will show some mercy to OOS applicants.
 
BullDog4Eva said:
They must have fixed this since you posted... because the noun and verb are now consistent. Aspects... intrigue.

Yikes. Now I HAVE to speak about more than one aspect. Wished I had submitted it sooner. FML.
Click to expand...
I assumed they wanted one, because it said both "intrigues" and "it" so I figured if they wanted more than one they wouldn't have made both errors. I hope they see the prompt when they read the essays.
 
wanderer100 said:
I assumed they wanted one, because it said both "intrigues" and "it" so I figured if they wanted more than one they wouldn't have made both errors. I hope they see the prompt when they read the essays.
Click to expand...

Apparently they made an edit to pluralize it:

"WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUE YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW THEY WILL INFLUENCE YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE." is how currently reads.

I made my answer such that my ONE aspect could be seen as a several aspects combined into one. LOL.
 
so I just submitted my secondary… did anyone else get the "…that's it?" feeling after they pressed the submit button?

All I got was a white page with 2 lines of text saying "thanks for submitting" or something along those lines. There was no save button or anything was there? :lame:
 
Im just wondering , to the people who have filled out secondaries, when did you submit the primaries?
 
Soon2BDrChi said:
Im just wondering , to the people who have filled out secondaries, when did you submit the primaries?
Click to expand...

my primary was submitted on 7/6 and verified on 7/29. I got the secondary email on 7/30.
 
AceXIII said:
so I just submitted my secondary… did anyone else get the "…that's it?" feeling after they pressed the submit button?

All I got was a white page with 2 lines of text saying "thanks for submitting" or something along those lines. There was no save button or anything was there? :lame:
Click to expand...

Same here. They e-mailed me a few hours later saying my file is complete and that they will start reviewing me.
 
DESCRIBE AN EXTRACURRICULAR EXPERIENCE THAT YOU HAVE HAD WHICH WILL HELP YOU BECOME A COMPASSIONATE PHYSICIAN AND EXPLAIN WHY

does extracurricular experience have to be like a work/volunteer/shadow experience? so no life experiences?
 
hi guys, i just submitted but was a little confused by the app. I submitted before payment b/c I thought it would take me to a payment screen. It just said "thank you for submitting" though. Then I went back and paid separately. Is this okay? Or were you supposed to pay first and then submit
 
ronaldo23 said:
hi guys, i just submitted but was a little confused by the app. I submitted before payment b/c I thought it would take me to a payment screen. It just said "thank you for submitting" though. Then I went back and paid separately. Is this okay? Or were you supposed to pay first and then submit
Click to expand...

Thats fine.
 
"WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUE YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW THEY WILL INFLUENCE YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE"

I'm kind of confused what they're asking here actually... is it what specialty of medicine most interests me or something else?
 
Is there an online site where you can check your status or is it just that they email you?
 
belle25 said:
"WHAT ASPECTS OF THE FIELD OF MEDICINE MOST INTRIGUE YOU AND DESCRIBE HOW THEY WILL INFLUENCE YOUR MEDICAL PRACTICE"

I'm kind of confused what they're asking here actually... is it what specialty of medicine most interests me or something else?
Click to expand...


I interpreted it as what area... so public health, academic medicine, global health, etc.
 
oh man...this secondary is just such a wall for me, I can't get through it! It's been a month.

I'm considering just not filling it out, since I"m OOS and the odds are not good. However, I have 2 other interviews right now at other state schools as OOS. Granted, both have better interview odds for OOS, but one of them only interviews 9-10% OOS, which is only slightly better than Stony Brook.

What do you guys think, should I just not waste the time/money? Since I waited a month already, what if I just wait until after October 15th to submit it if I need to.
 
That is great. Man I only have two interviews so far and neither are in NYS - which is where I want to live and practice...Come on Stony Brook...show me sooooommmmmeeeee love :O)

btw cGPA 3.3, sGPA 3.7, MCAT PS 11 VR 11 BS 13 R, also new full time job as research assistant drawing bloods and extracting dna...

anyone know my odds? hoping they are goooooood
 
Premedapplicant said:
That is great. Man I only have two interviews so far and neither are in NYS - which is where I want to live and practice...Come on Stony Brook...show me sooooommmmmeeeee love :O)

btw cGPA 3.3, sGPA 3.7, MCAT PS 11 VR 11 BS 13 R, also new full time job as research assistant drawing bloods and extracting dna...

anyone know my odds? hoping they are goooooood
Click to expand...

Yea, there are interview invites from Stony already.
 
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