2012-2013 Johns Hopkins University Application Thread

Hey everyone, just wanted to chime in with my experiences at Johns Hopkins' interview day. Here is part 1, and here is part 2. Good luck, I hope this helps all of you at this awesome school.

Renaissance Man said:

Hey everyone, just wanted to chime in with my experiences at Johns Hopkins' interview day. Here is part 1, and here is part 2. Good luck, I hope this helps all of you at this awesome school.

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Thank you for those links! Johns Hopkins sounds very impressive. I'm sorry you were rejected, though. Hopefully you were accepted to schools you liked better.

BurntFlower said:

Thank you for those links! Johns Hopkins sounds very impressive. I'm sorry you were rejected, though. Hopefully you were accepted to schools you liked better.

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It was amazing, but everything happens for a reason. I am definitely happy (and less in debt) about where I will be in August! Good luck to you!

How concrete is the 24 semester hour humanities/social/behavioral sciences requirement. I think if I take include my writing, psychology and philosophy classes I have about 18 semester hours (I am a pharmacy major so our elective space is incredibly limited). Should I not bother applying?

DOCTAfoHIRE said:

How concrete is the 24 semester hour humanities/social/behavioral sciences requirement. I think if I take include my writing, psychology and philosophy classes I have about 18 semester hours (I am a pharmacy major so our elective space is incredibly limited). Should I not bother applying?

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I don't think anyone on here can really answer that for you

You might want to email admissions and tell them about your situation. They can give you a concrete answer and you can plan from there (and potentially save $80).

DOCTAfoHIRE said:

How concrete is the 24 semester hour humanities/social/behavioral sciences requirement. I think if I take include my writing, psychology and philosophy classes I have about 18 semester hours (I am a pharmacy major so our elective space is incredibly limited). Should I not bother applying?

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The admissions office accidentally sent me someone else’s offer letter and it explicitly said something along the lines of, “Requirements yet to be completed: 17 hours of social science/humanities” -- so it does look like they very carefully track your prerequisites. But definitely follow-up with the admissions office to be sure.

I came across this thread and just wanted to say good luck to everyone applying this year! It feels like just yesterday that I was in your shoes, anxiously deciding whether or not to click the “submit” button on my AMCAS application. (I did; SDN neuroticism got to me). I’m sure you will all have much success this application season, and I hope to meet some of you when you visit Hopkins in the fall!

candav said:

I came across this thread and just wanted to say good luck to everyone applying this year! It feels like just yesterday that I was in your shoes, anxiously deciding whether or not to click the “submit” button on my AMCAS application. (I did; SDN neuroticism got to me). I’m sure you will all have much success this application season...

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+1

Couldn't have said it better myself! I remember Hopkins' secondary being my favorite to fill out. It really gives you the opportunity to discuss what matters to you and showcase what you're like as a person, so take advantage! Don't be afraid to be yourself

Feel free to post any questions about the application process if you have them, I (and others I'm sure) would be happy to answer them and hopefully reduce some of the stress of the application process.

Silverwing said:

+1

Couldn't have said it better myself! I remember Hopkins' secondary being my favorite to fill out. It really gives you the opportunity to discuss what matters to you and showcase what you're like as a person, so take advantage! Don't be afraid to be yourself

Feel free to post any questions about the application process if you have them, I (and others I'm sure) would be happy to answer them and hopefully reduce some of the stress of the application process.

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Hah I had the exact opposite feelings about Hopkins secondary It felt like I was just copy and pasting from my primary app. I left it until last and almost didn't submit... so glad I did... otherwise I'd be going to a different school.

Ditto to everything everyone said. Hopkins is an amazing school with amazingly friendly people!!! I'd be happy to help with questions too, good luck .

Haha, candav and Slev! I'm sure we're all glad you hit submit. I don't think our incoming class would be the same if even one person was different!

Personally, I almost didn't apply to Hopkins due to some negative things I had heard secondhand. Imagine my surprise when I arrived and found my assumptions to be completely unfounded. Baltimore was a unique and interesting city and not as bad as others had made it out to seem. The people I met, from faculty to current students(of all years) to staff members, were all incredibly friendly. The atmosphere was completely and utterly noncompetitive. At the second look weekend, it was evident that the current first year class was very, very, VERY cohesive. They gave off an incredibly warm feeling, and I think it motivated our incoming class to get know one another that much better. At the end of the weekend, it felt more like deciding to join a family and less like choosing a school. Yes, I realize how corny that sounds, but I mean it!

If you have any doubts about applying to Hopkins, I urge you to take a chance. You never know how it'll turn out! If you have any questions, feel free to send them my way as well. Hopefully we'll be seeing you during the interviews and next year's second look. Good luck in your applications!

I don't think I will ever be competitive for this school unless it is a miracle, but I plan to apply because it is my dream school. I won't know unless I try. So hey...what the heck?!!

I think this is the best time EVER to be a Hopkins student. Beautiful new med school building, unbelievable new hospital towers (Sheikh Zayed Tower and Bloomberg Children's Center), posh new student apartments, and a completely revamped curriculum (P/F for preclinical years!).

Good luck to everyone, maybe this post will help you in secondary writing!

aspiringdoc09 said:

I don't think I will ever be competitive for this school unless it is a miracle, but I plan to apply because it is my dream school. I won't know unless I try. So hey...what the heck?!!

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Same. I know I'll most likely be rejected but I want to give it my best try.

aspiringdoc09 said:

I don't think I will ever be competitive for this school unless it is a miracle, but I plan to apply because it is my dream school. I won't know unless I try. So hey...what the heck?!!

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BurntFlower said:

Same. I know I'll most likely be rejected but I want to give it my best try.

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Same thing I thought this time last year. Look where I am now(or at least where I'll be in two short months)!

Worst they can do is say no!

nadaba said:

I think this is the best time EVER to be a Hopkins student. Beautiful new med school building, unbelievable new hospital towers (Sheikh Zayed Tower and Bloomberg Children's Center), posh new student apartments, and a completely revamped curriculum (P/F for preclinical years!).

Good luck to everyone, maybe this post will help you in secondary writing!

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Damn, we're a lucky bunch! I'm loving that they changed the longitudinal clerkship in year 1 to P/F.

I don't stand much of a chance, but how strict is the Calc requirement? I took AP Calc my junior year of high school (and struggled). I've got 3 credits/1 semester of calc...not that full year. No way I could derive anything after 4-5 years....

IRASNA said:

I don't stand much of a chance, but how strict is the Calc requirement? I took AP Calc my junior year of high school (and struggled). I've got 3 credits/1 semester of calc...not that full year. No way I could derive anything after 4-5 years....

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This is from the Hopkins admissions page: "advanced placement credit for calculus, if acceptable to the student’s undergraduate college, may be used in the fulfillment of the math requirement."

AP credits will apply, but you need at least 6 semester units total to fulfill the requirement. Is that 1 semester of calculus in addition to the AP course you took during high school? If not, have you taken a statistics course or other college-level math course?

nadaba said:

I think this is the best time EVER to be a Hopkins student. Beautiful new med school building, unbelievable new hospital towers (Sheikh Zayed Tower and Bloomberg Children's Center), posh new student apartments, and a completely revamped curriculum (P/F for preclinical years!).

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...And newly-established financial aid for international students

Ironclad said:

This is from the Hopkins admissions page: "advanced placement credit for calculus, if acceptable to the student’s undergraduate college, may be used in the fulfillment of the math requirement."

AP credits will apply, but you need at least 6 semester units total to fulfill the requirement. Is that 1 semester of calculus in addition to the AP course you took during high school? If not, have you taken a statistics course or other college-level math course?

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I took AP Calc in high school, and got 3 credits for Calculus 1 upon entering college. I have also taken a 3 credit Statistics course. So I have 6 credits of math, but only 3 are calc.

IRASNA said:

I took AP Calc in high school, and got 3 credits for Calculus 1 upon entering college. I have also taken a 3 credit Statistics course. So I have 6 credits of math, but only 3 are calc.

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I'm getting my information from here: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/som/admissions/md/process/requirements.html

If you scroll down to the math section, it says that you need 6-8 semester hours of calculus and/or statistics. You have 3 units of stats and 3 units of calc, which meet the requirements outlined on their admissions page.

It seems to me that you shouldn't have a problem fulfilling the math requirement, but I would play it safe and shoot admissions a quick email to double-check. Admissions also has call-in hours Monday - Wednesday, so that could be an option if you're hoping for an instantaneous answer.

Good luck, and make sure to report back to us in case anyone else has the same question!

Ironclad said:

I'm getting my information from here: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/som/admissions/md/process/requirements.html

If you scroll down to the math section, it says that you need 6-8 semester hours of calculus and/or statistics. You have 3 units of stats and 3 units of calc, which meet the requirements outlined on their admissions page.

It seems to me that you shouldn't have a problem fulfilling the math requirement, but I would play it safe and shoot admissions a quick email to double-check. Admissions also has call-in hours Monday - Wednesday, so that could be an option if you're hoping for an instantaneous answer.

Good luck, and make sure to report back to us in case anyone else has the same question!

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Should've gone straight to the source first, my bad! Yeah it looks like it's a combined calc/stats requirement so I should be okay. Thanks

IRASNA said:

Should've gone straight to the source first, my bad! Yeah it looks like it's a combined calc/stats requirement so I should be okay. Thanks

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Haha, it's alright! That's what we're here for, right? Good luck in your app, and hopefully we'll be seeing you at an interview in Baltimore in a few short months!

Good luck everyone, I have a friend attending here and perhaps maybe me too this year!

Current student, former admissions committee member. Happy to answer questions.

IRASNA said:

Should've gone straight to the source first, my bad! Yeah it looks like it's a combined calc/stats requirement so I should be okay. Thanks

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See, always go to the source first hopefully will see you at interviews! It seems like there will be a couple incoming first years on this years application thread and we're all happy to answer questions.

JHopRevisit said:

Current student, former admissions committee member. Happy to answer questions.

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I'm an undergrad at Hopkins, and I've heard from various (probably unreliable) sources that Hopkins favors its own kind. But others have told me the opposite.

Does it hurt or help to be a Hopkins undergrad with experience in research at JHMI and volunteering in Baltimore?

How strictly does Hopkins follow the no bio ap rule? Even if there are upper level bio courses after taking ap credit..thanks!

I've had a lot of students PM me, so I'm going to copy some responses since I've started getting repeats, as well as answer the questions above.

MJS918 said:

Does it hurt or help to be a Hopkins undergrad with experience in research at JHMI and volunteering in Baltimore?

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It can sometimes help if your letter writers or mentors are known to the committee. It's just natural to value the opinion of someone you know. This applies whether you're from Hopkins or not, but obviously more chance that we know your mentor if you're from Hopkins. It also helps to be involved in the Baltimore community, we're obviously looking for people who want to work with underserved communities and people who don't have much access to care, and there's a tremendous amount of need and opportunity for that in Baltimore.
It's not a huge advantage, however. I also hear accusations that Hopkins undergrads are disadvantaged, but I think that comes from people not appreciating that the admissions rate is pretty low, so many of your very intelligent friends who'll be fantastic doctors won't get in. We could easily fill our incoming class five times over with amazingly talented applicants and not even notice the difference.

several students said:

Will you read my application and tell me my chances?

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Best of luck with your application process, but I'm afraid that for me to scrutinize your application would take more time than I have and not be very useful anyway. The process is quite random, you can never tell when you'll hit it off with an interviewer, so my best advice is to start with a good group of schools in your "range" (based on GPA and MCAT), then add in a good number of schools both above and below that. Apply broadly, cross your fingers, and hope for the best. Doesn't sound like much but honestly it's the best advice I have.

several students said:

What is the first year like? Lectures, PBL, pass/fail, etc?

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Combinations of lectures and small groups. Lectures are recorded. Some small groups can be mandatory, depends on the unit, but usually not. Many (most?) people watch lectures at home or at school. First two years are pass/fail.

Some unsolicited advice, though, if you don't mind: don't worry much about the first two years. PBL, lecture, pass/fail, etc. It's all just classrooms and textbooks. I'm sure you're smart, you'll figure it out one way or the other. Fun stuff happens when you're on the wards with the docs and patients.

several students said:

What can I do to set myself apart in the applicant pool?

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I'm afraid that's difficult to answer without writing a treatise. The quick answer is of course, many students have interesting stories that make them stand out, but you also don't don't have to be an Olympic athlete or world-renowned violinist. This sounds trite, you should pursue something that you're really passionate about, beause that passion shows when you show up to the interview. We do this for a living, we can often tell if you're just checking off boxes in order to get into medical school. Doing something for a long time, and getting very involved with a community or topic that appeals to you, is a great way to show passion. Other than that it can anything really. Something that allows you to directly serve others is also always a plus.

when should we expect the secondary?

Complete the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Secondary Application.
You will be sent a link to The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's secondary application once we have received your verified application from AMCAS. The on-line secondary application will be available July 2, 2012.

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From: Here

Blue469 said:

How strictly does Hopkins follow the no bio ap rule? Even if there are upper level bio courses after taking ap credit..thanks!

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I e-mailed them about this since I took the ap bio credit and they said that they take the upper level courses as long as you have taken the corresponding labs

Anyone having issues accessing the secondary? I got the email invite today telling me to follow the guide, which takes me to the admissions website. On the admissions website, it says to look for the link in the email to access the secondary? I'm just going in circles here...

xroc said:

Anyone having issues accessing the secondary? I got the email invite today telling me to follow the guide, which takes me to the admissions website. On the admissions website, it says to look for the link in the email to access the secondary? I'm just going in circles here...

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Same here. I click on the link provided in the email, but I see no link to the secondary.

Same! I don't think the secondary link is actually up, yet :/

msf2012 said:

Same! I don't think the secondary link is actually up, yet :/

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Same here I don't see the secondary yet.

liegepk said:

Same here I don't see the secondary yet.

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They sent a new link out.

Here is the link: https://app.applyyourself.com/?id=JHU-SOM

They're asking us to re-list our ECs and other activities during college. I don't understand why they just can't get it from our primary...

CodeRedDew said:

They sent a new link out.

Here is the link: https://app.applyyourself.com/?id=JHU-SOM

They're asking us to re-list our ECs and other activities during college. I don't understand why they just can't get it from our primary...

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Haha yeah they make you re-enter everything, I remember that from last year. If it makes you feel better I basically just cut and pasted the stuff from my AMCAS and everything turned out fine (incoming MS1 here). No idea why they want you to do that. Good luck!

For you photo, they ask you to attach it to a word document and upload in .doc format. Does this seem absurd to anyone else?

Hey guys, how do you guys calculating your undergrad non-science GPA and science GPA?
I think I have science GPA on my transcript but not non-science....
Help please?

liegepk said:

Hey guys, how do you guys calculating your undergrad non-science GPA and science GPA?
I think I have science GPA on my transcript but not non-science....
Help please?

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You have to calculate it the old-fashioned way: weighted average by hand.
Use your number summations off the AMCAS transcript info to get in down to a ~10 minute task...

Blais said:

You have to calculate it the old-fashioned way: weighted average by hand.
Use your number summations off the AMCAS transcript info to get in down to a ~10 minute task...

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Oh is it weighted?
I have the AACOMAS version for calculating the GPA but I'm not sure if it's correct..
When you say weighted, do you mean that it is weighted heavier toward the last 2 years of the college years?
Sorry I don't understand
I feel dumb..

liegepk said:

Oh is it weighted?
I have the AACOMAS version for calculating the GPA but I'm not sure if it's correct..
When you say weighted, do you mean that it is weighted heavier toward the last 2 years of the college years?
Sorry I don't understand
I feel dumb..

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lol no, just calculate it like your school calculates it,

For the GPA, can't we just pull it from AMCAS?

lostintranscrip said:

For the GPA, can't we just pull it from AMCAS?

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Thats what I did.....makes way more sense than calculating it by hand. AMCAS gives you a nice little table with Science GPA/AO GPA and Total(cumulative).

Um... where can I find it???
I thought I looked and couldn't find it?

liegepk said:

Um... where can I find it???
I thought I looked and couldn't find it?

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The GPAs?

When you open the PDF of your application from the main menu the GPAs are in a huge table after your courses are listed out.

Muchas gracias!
Also i'm assuming BCPM is non-science and AO is science?
If so what do they stand for, just out of curiosity?

liegepk said:

Muchas gracias!
Also i'm assuming BCPM is non-science and AO is science?
If so what do they stand for, just out of curiosity?

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Thats what I used.

BCPM = Bio Chemistry Physics and Math ie Science GPA
AO= All Other ie Non-Science GPA

Does anyone know how to fill-out an ongoing "Employment Experience"? It won't let me submit the page without an end-date and won't take a written phrase

threnodyk said:

Does anyone know how to fill-out an ongoing "Employment Experience"? It won't let me submit the page without an end-date and won't take a written phrase

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I don't remember exactly what I did, but I think I may have put a date in the future (if that's allowed). So maybe June 2013 if you plan to work there until school starts next fall?

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