2008-2009 UCLA/Drew Secondary Application Thread

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great post, i was just trying to diffuse the impatience, sorry if it looked kinda negative.

hopefully, everyone on SDN will be classmates and colleagues one day.
 
honestly, I just think we all are just stressed.......this is still touchy times for even the toughest..........I just hate the fact that if I don't get into drew, My already 8 year long relationship will not turn into a marriage as much as a long distance 12 year relationship.........or worse
 
At the interview yesterday, they said that they're planning on interviewing 220 people this year, so it looks like stiffer competition.
 
Thanks for the post pakola! I wonder if some of us will hear something this week. Best of luck to everyone!
 
So I guess there was an interview yesterday from the previous post. I also heard they are interviewing on March 7th. Does anybody know if they will interview after March 7th and how many spots they have left?
 
The last spots will not be given out till April (the 1st, the middle or the end of April I don't know) but that's what the drew admissions staff stated...so everyone should really start worrying in April...till then we all just wait...they might start releasing some spots before then but all spots will not be taken till April according to Drew...still after April individuals who are placed on the waitlist will get to wait till the first day of class to see if they get a spot. Hope this info is helpful!!! Happy waiting😱 (about half the spots are taken)
 
Apple2 said:
The last spots will not be given out till April (the 1st, the middle or the end of April I don't know) but that's what the drew admissions staff stated...so everyone should really start worrying in April...till then we all just wait...they might start releasing some spots before then but all spots will not be taken till April according to Drew...still after April individuals who are placed on the waitlist will get to wait till the first day of class to see if they get a spot. Hope this info is helpful!!! Happy waiting😱 (about half the spots are taken)
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looks like more good news.
 
hey! it is good to see new :faces: in here......thanks for the updates!
 
I interviewed on 1/24/09 and called Ms. Rodriguez today to check on my application. She said that no decisions have beem made but hopefully will be made within the next 2 weeks. She also said that another batch of files would be sent to UCLA on Monday.
 
thanks for the info merissa, lets hope we get good news soon, just keep holding on to hope everyone.
 
Thank you guys so much for giving us an update. I really appreciate it. I wish all of you the best of luck. I wanted to know if anybody can share if they are interviewing after March 7th? I know it is too late to get that March 7th interview but I was hoping they would have one more interview session. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
lol no movement.......I was told that a few days back as well....Sandy told me that adcom at ucla had to cancel a meeting due to [x] reason and that's why there hasn't been any movement in the list. monday, bloody monday............:luck:
 
carlogu said:
lol no movement.......I was told that a few days back as well....Sandy told me that adcom at ucla had to cancel a meeting due to [x] reason and that's why there hasn't been any movement in the list. monday, bloody monday............:luck:
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Did she say they were meeting up on monday?
 
plizzayer said:
Thank you guys so much for giving us an update. I really appreciate it. I wish all of you the best of luck. I wanted to know if anybody can share if they are interviewing after March 7th? I know it is too late to get that March 7th interview but I was hoping they would have one more interview session. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
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I have been corresponding with Sandy via email, and she says I will have an interview (must be after March 7th), but she is just waiting for the adcom to give her more interview dates. So I still have not scheduled anything, but I will have an interview, probably late March or April I am assuming. So, there must still be some hope for people...
 
asakkings said:
Did she say they were meeting up on monday?
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When I called on Friday she said that they were sending more files to be reviewed by UCLA on Monday. Not that they were meeting... She said that these files in ths batch should have a decision made by the next 2 weeks.

Has anyone been accepted anywhere and is still holding out for the Drew acceptance??
 
Also...maybe someone could shed some light on this...

When I interviewed it was my understanding that the Drew committee reviews our post-interview files and sends the most promising candidates to be reviewed by UCLA, who will make a decision also. When I talked to Ms. Rodriguez, she said that ALL files were sent to UCLA to be reviewed post-interview.

So does UCLA make the decission on those they like first and then send them to Drew or what?? I'm confused now b/c of the fact that EVERY interviewee's file is sent to UCLA
 
Merissa87 said:
Also...maybe someone could shed some light on this...

When I interviewed it was my understanding that the Drew committee reviews our post-interview files and sends the most promising candidates to be reviewed by UCLA, who will make a decision also. When I talked to Ms. Rodriguez, she said that ALL files were sent to UCLA to be reviewed post-interview.

So does UCLA make the decission on those they like first and then send them to Drew or what?? I'm confused now b/c of the fact that EVERY interviewee's file is sent to UCLA
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there has been confusion on that for a while now, no one really knows. Someone said they were told total interviewers would be like 220 but that seems really high consdering only mar 7 is the only confirmed date as of now.
 
yeah, it seems as if they send batches in no specific order (from what I've heard)......when I called she said mine was still at drew....😕.......and she said that it meant nothing more than that.......
 
I am sure you are in the batch that was supposed to be sent yesterday.
 
no, she didn't, but I was just drawing from the time frame previously stated........I hope it is less than two weeks though........ it has been like 15 weeks already.........lol
 
Just confirmed my interview date for March 21st. I am so excited! I love this program. I spent a whole night working with a resident at Harbor UCLA E.R., and I think this is one of the best programs in CA. Is there anything I should know before the interview? Like how many interviewers are there, and are they docs at UCLA, drew med students, or researchers with drew? Thanks, and I hope to see others on saturday. 😀
 
Its a pretty chill day dont stress too much. You get one interview either with a faculty member or student, and then there is a group discussion section where you get a topic to discuss as a group.
 
medRckr55 said:
Just confirmed my interview date for March 21st. I am so excited! I love this program. I spent a whole night working with a resident at Harbor UCLA E.R., and I think this is one of the best programs in CA. Is there anything I should know before the interview? Like how many interviewers are there, and are they docs at UCLA, drew med students, or researchers with drew? Thanks, and I hope to see others on saturday. 😀
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Look at kippocalipse's page. he has some really good tips on the interview process. he got in, so I'm sure he has a few tips to share.
 
This is so awesome to know that there is still hope for some of us. I wonder if March 21st will be their final interview date. I wish you all the best of luck.
 
plizzayer said:
This is so awesome to know that there is still hope for some of us. I wonder if March 21st will be their final interview date. I wish you all the best of luck.
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That's the spirit plizzayer. Keep the hope alive because sometimes that is all we have left. Is it not insane what we have to go through as humans? From birth to death we're living in a competitive world where we try to get ours while facing roadblocks to success. I always believed having hope internally sets you apart and makes you that much more hard-working in annihilating adversity.
 
Best of luck on that interview medrckr55 and to everyone else waiting for their interview!
 
Man, I'm getting just a bit tired of the wait. Called the office and she said no decision has been made on my file as of yet! I interviewed at Geffen Oct 28th, and with Drew on Nov 15th... thats 15 weeks for Drew and like 17 weeks for Geffen... **siiiiiiiiiigh** patience, patience, breathe, breathe, whoooosaaaaah, whoooosaaaaah. ok that feels better.
 
Thanks so much for the tips. Is anyone else on this page interviewing that day?
 
congrats medrckr on the interview, be positive and knock it out of the park. Does anyone know if Drew waitlists people or is it just accept/reject. The wait is getting too long.
 
asakkings said:
congrats medrckr on the interview, be positive and knock it out of the park. Does anyone know if Drew waitlists people or is it just accept/reject. The wait is getting too long.
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I'm pretty sure they waitlist also. Man, this wait has been really getting to me lately. It's like a dark cloud is hanging over me. Hopefully we hear good news soon.

Thought I might share some information pertaining to the admissions process that I dug up from a really old thread (02-18-2003). I'm not sure if its still applicable but here it is:

Jalby,

@ the Drew interview, we received an info sheet which listed steps of the admissions process post-interview (i'm typing this almost verbatim), which was more or less confirmed by Dr. Miller:

1)Your interview report will go the Drew/UCLA Adcom.Here your interviewer discuss info on you, and each committee member casts a vote. The vote can be in any one of 11 categories.

2) Batches of these vote sheets are then sent to UCLA. There the vote sheet material is ranked along w/ applicants from other UCLA committee, of which UCLA/Drew is just one.

3) When the rankings are returned to Drew, we select the # of candidates from the bottom to be rejected, and some from the top to be accepted. After the completed files of the latter are examined by the Executive Comm @ UCLA, acceptance letters are sent out.

The step 2 ranking process seems confusing. Anyone know more @ it?
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Wow that is a long and weird process. But it does clarify my suspicion that batches are ranked in terms of acceptability. I just wish they were a little more transparent about what is going on so us applicants will be at least a litte informed.
 
Agreed. Its totally not cool being left in the dark. I do believe that what I just quoted is in line with the more recent post by acl3623 (from 2007). Therefore, step 3 would include Accept/Waitlist/Re-review/Reject. Now, I'm not 100% sure about the info I quoted in my previous post, seeing as how its from 2003, but I'm wondering if the batch system has something to do with the 11 categories mentioned in step 1. Maybe it has something to do with class demographics (GPA/MCAT/Ethnicity/Research exp/Clinic exp/etc.), meaning they send batches based on what demographics they want the class to be filled with. So every subsequent batch, and the acceptances from those batches, will be to fill the particular demographic that the class is lacking. This is only my guess based on an article I came across that does a pretty good job explaining how waitlists are used, which of course I will paste in the bottom. I based my guess off paragraph 3. I know the 1st paragraph discusses over-acceptance, which we know Drew doesn't do, and I bet this only serves to lengthen the waiting time for Drew. What do you guys think?

.How Schools Use Their Waitlists .
.Being waitlisted generally means that you will be admitted to the program only if someone who has been accepted chooses not to come. Medical schools know that a certain percentage of those they admit will decide not to enroll. To compensate, they intentionally accept more students than they can actually take. The "excess" number, however, may be insufficient to make up for those who decline admission. That's where the waitlist comes into play.

. .After acceptance letters are mailed, candidates must respond within a fairly rigid deadline to indicate whether or not they will accept a seat in the class. As space becomes available, the committee will fill available slots with candidates on the waitlist. Obviously, timing is a critical issue. Sometimes a seat becomes available just a day or two before the program starts, long after most candidates on the waitlist have made other plans. Because of this uncertainty, most schools do not take the time to rank candidates on the waitlist. After all, as time passes, many will be accepted at other schools and will drop completely out of sight.

. .A further complication is the school's commitment to assembling a class that is racially, geographically and professionally diverse. When the waitlist is tapped, the selection is usually limited to a particular category of student that is needed to "balance" the class. Until the school hears back from the students they have accepted, they cannot accurately assess how many (and which types) of waitlist applicants they will need. When the final class roster starts to take shape, the school may find that they are "short" one particular category of students (like scientists or international students) and will use the waitlist only to fill that particular gap. Depending on the initial yield, the waitlist may not be tapped at all.

. .The number of students admitted from the waitlist is a function of a "ripple effect" that begins at the most prestigious schools. If, for example, Harvard accepts students from its waiting list, some students who have committed to Georgetown will withdraw in favor of Harvard. Georgetown will then go to its waitlist to fill the vacated slots, impacting schools that are lower in the pecking order. The entire cycle is usually not completed until classes start in September, leaving many hopeful students in the lurch until the absolute last moment..

.From our experience in admissions, being waitlisted can be more frustrating than simply being rejected. After all, a candidate who is denied admission to his/her first choice school is free to accept an offer from another medical school. (S)he can apply for financial aid and arrange for student housing. But a waitlisted candidate who really wants to attend a particular school is stuck in purgatory. Should (s)he accept another offer? Deposit at his/her second choice school? Or should (s)he wait to see when (or if) a seat opens in the class at his/her program of choice?.
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What I dont get is this: if there is an "order" upon which the batches are sent, what happens to the late interviewers? what if an amazing candidate (4.9 GPA, 45T MCAT, found the cure for cancer and AIDS) shows up in one of the march interviews.....do they automatically get sent? or does their "batch set" get further broken down? As far as I am concerned, there have been 2-3 batches sent out, seeing how the movement between first acceptances and the "current batch" was minimal at best. i know there are going to be amazing interviewers currently.......UCLA is still going to be fair to them.......so where does the batch system add up? I feel that there may not be much science to the mayhem; while they may be keeping us in the dark about the procedure, they may also be sending batches at "random".........knowing a little bit is so much worse than knowing nothing at all...........and I wonder ---> what are these "11" categories? lol it sounds so mysteriously game show-ish........I call "contestant #4: a handsome premed who enjoys walks along the beach and...."

And about the dark cloud hanging above us for the past 15 weeks....lets try to find joy around us guys........we are going to be doctors, this year or next.........I hate it too, dont get me wrong.....but as long as we find ways to forget this mess (for even a little bit) well manage...........🙂

Wow....I gotta quit ranting........
 
Good points carlogu. I would think that applicants with very high stats would be applying early, but even if those types of applicants are applying late, I would venture to guess there's not a great number of them. In any case I'm sure the adcom will give them a fair assessment even if they interview later.

I think a possible alternative to sending batches by demographics is by ranked batches, like asakkings stated. It might be a scored ranking, based on the 11 categories, which I'm guessing are 11 aspects of your completed application. Let me see if I can name 11 possible categories: MCAT, GPA, LoR, Personal Statement, Interview, Clinical Exp, Research Exp, Leadership/Other Extracurricular Exp, Ethnicity, URM/Disadvantaged, In-state/OOS, and demonstrated desire to work with the underserved (hmm, thats 12). I'm only guessing though, and some of those may be in the same category. Now I've talked to some MS2's from a med school in Nor Cal that stated applicants there are given a score, where all categories add up to 100, with some categories weighted more than others. The applicants scores must meet a cutoff, and after that I'm not sure how they deliberate on the acceptances they hand out. Higher scores can mean greater chances, but not necessarily so. I'm not sure if Drew uses this type of system. Maybe those who have upcoming interviews can take some of our questions with them on interview day or at least keep an ear open? I've emailed Sandy inquiring about some of these questions, but I haven't gotten a response yet.
 
Good analysis Kai, but my only problem with the duel committee review from UCLA and Drew is that Drew looks for students serving the underprivileged where as UCLA is a traditional school looking for the other aspects. So which committee would get the final say? Its just too much speculation on our part. We should just chill and pray to god that hear something good soon.
 
asakkings said:
Good analysis Kai, but my only problem with the duel committee review from UCLA and Drew is that Drew looks for students serving the underprivileged where as UCLA is a traditional school looking for the other aspects. So which committee would get the final say? Its just too much speculation on our part. We should just chill and pray to god that hear something good soon.
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I would think that if an applicant has made it to the interview phase, then they must have demonstrated a desire to work with the underserved, as that is a prereq for Drew. I've read quite a few posts on SDN from previous application cycles of people with really high stats being rejected pre-secondary and pre-interview from Drew. I'm guessing they didn't meet the underserved prereq. Now, what effect the relative amount/quality of applicants' underserved experience has on the outcome I don't know. And indeed, when it comes down to the 2 committees, who would get the final say?

I hear you, there's just too much speculation and not enough hard facts. Though its nice to get people posting and thinking together on this thread because it can get kind of dead at times.
 
kai1581 said:
I would think that if an applicant has made it to the interview phase, then they must have demonstrated a desire to work with the underserved, as that is a prereq for Drew. I've read quite a few posts on SDN from previous application cycles of people with really high stats being rejected pre-secondary and pre-interview from Drew. I'm guessing they didn't meet the underserved prereq. Now, what effect the relative amount/quality of applicants' underserved experience has on the outcome I don't know. And indeed, when it comes down to the 2 committees, who would get the final say?
I hear you, there's just too much speculation and not enough hard facts. Though its nice to get people posting and thinking together on this thread because it can get kind of dead at times.
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My interviewer told me that Drew got the final say. She said that when files were sent to UCLA and reviewed, if the views of UCLA and Drew did not agree then that student was most likely waitlisted, or put back in a batch to be re-reviewed. If they both disagree on a student than that student was rejected.
 
Thanks for the clarification, I definately would have asked more questions during the interview if i knew the wait time and the ambiguity of the process.
 
Drew is my last interview...Tues March 10th! I hope it's a good 1!:xf:
 
congrats on the interview, it seems as if they have 3 interview dates for march.
 
decision by april? i guess the admission process is non-rolling and they will hopefully give out the last 12 seats after the march 20-ing interviews are over.

waiting 10 months isnt that bad...still waiting for that wed/thurs 4pm phone call from sandy...in god's speed
 
It has been almost 4 months since I interviewed and I still don't have a clue to what is going on! 😱 Oh well.............
 
BlackDr2b said:
It has been almost 4 months since I interviewed and I still don't have a clue to what is going on! 😱 Oh well.............
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Hi BD2B! It's been quite a while since you've posted on this thread. It's good to hear from you. We're all trying to stay hopeful and optimistic, but this wait has been difficult at times.

@BJPENNSTATE, I wonder if that will be the case. In previous years, last 2 cycles I think, there were batches of acceptances handed out around the 3rd weeks of Jan and Feb. So far there's just been the Jan acceptances, and it's already almost mid March. So its plausible they could wait until April. However, supposedly AAMC recommends that medical schools offer a number of acceptances equal to the number of seats available by March 30th (see quote below). Keep in mind it's only a recommendation, so I don't know how strictly admissions officers follow it. Moreover, it only states to hand out a number of acceptances equal to the number of seats, regardless of whether or not people choose to accept them (then turn down later) or actually matriculate. It's almost certain that some will turn down the offer at Drew, we just don't know the time they will choose to do it... and as people turn down the acceptance, Drew would be free to hand them out to other people. In any case, I was thinking that some of us might hear back before the March 30th deadline, but who knows?

#4 in "AAMC Recommendations for Medical School Admissions Officers"
By March 30 of the matriculation year, each school have issued a number of offers of acceptance at least equal to the expected number of students in its first-year entering class and have reported those acceptance actions to the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services.
http://www.aamc.org/students/applying/policies/admissionofficers.htm
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Oh, I forgot to mention... At the end of that AAMC quote it mentions that the acceptances handed out should be reported to the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services. I read in one of the older Drew threads that the information would be made available to medical schools sometime after that. So medical schools would get to see where else you got in. I don't know how legit that info is, when I have the time I'll try to find that post, and I don't know what medical schools might do with that information. Just thought I'd share...
 
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