2008-2009 University of Cincinnati Secondary Application Thread

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Seems like they believe you will be heading elsewhere.

As someone in the field with a son who is a year 2 student, I believe Cincinnati has an agenda which has caused a bit of a shift in their acceptance patterns.

I believe Cinci is pushing hard to raise their average MCAT scores and even altering their admission patterns to achieve this goal. If you look at the data for the most recent class, OOS students comprised 38% of the 2008 class, compared to 25% and 27% in the two previous years. The average age of accepted students is also going up compared to the previous two years.

Due to the applicant pool where most applicants have high GPA's, my guess is that they will sacrifice GPA for MCAT scores. I know from having asked the question that the 2008 class has an average MCAT of 32.3, compared to 31.8 for the 2007 class. This trend has gone on for several years.

Combine this trend with last year's average Part I scores (234) and you have a program on the rise.

With the new CARE/Crawley building, the school can compete favorably in terms of physical plant with most med schools in the US. They are a big research institution with the goal of significantly increasing research dollars as they now have additional laboratory space.

My son's experience has been extremely good, with a very supportive faculty and staff who very much care about the medical students, as they should. While you would expect this attitude to be pervasive, it is not always the case. My son also had very high MCAT's, but a lesser GPA. Cincy snatched him up in a hurry and he was impressed enough with the program to attend. He is very happy he made the decision.


I don't really think the higher MCAT trend is exclusive to Cincinnati. I have a News and World Report book of med schools for both 2005 and 2007 and almost all schools show an increase in average MCAT score, and I'm pretty sure the average among people taking it has been increasing. Besides "OnlyNeedOneYes" has a 39, how much higher would they be looking for? I think the new MMI format means Cinci is looking for a certain personality type this year, regardless of location or maybe even score in some cases.
 
I don't really think the higher MCAT trend is exclusive to Cincinnati. I have a News and World Report book of med schools for both 2005 and 2007 and almost all schools show an increase in average MCAT score, and I'm pretty sure the average among people taking it has been increasing. Besides "OnlyNeedOneYes" has a 39, how much higher would they be looking for? I think the new MMI format means Cinci is looking for a certain personality type this year, regardless of location or maybe even score in some cases.

i agree about the personality thing (not quite sure what they saw in me though...lol)

i got an interview with cincy, and i have a 30 on the mcat...
:luck:
 
i agree about the personality thing (not quite sure what they saw in me though...lol)

i got an interview with cincy, and i have a 30 on the mcat...
:luck:


congrats! when is/was your interview? if you already had it, were you accepted? I just had my interview yesterday and I got a 31, so who knows that they are going by this year 🙂 i really liked the school tho, so I'm hoping for good news!
 
I don't really think the higher MCAT trend is exclusive to Cincinnati. I have a News and World Report book of med schools for both 2005 and 2007 and almost all schools show an increase in average MCAT score, and I'm pretty sure the average among people taking it has been increasing. Besides "OnlyNeedOneYes" has a 39, how much higher would they be looking for? I think the new MMI format means Cinci is looking for a certain personality type this year, regardless of location or maybe even score in some cases.

I agree that MCAT "creep" is probably occurring nationwide. However, Cincinnati started at a lower point than many other tier I schools and has gone a long way to close the gap with all but the top programs. Don't forget last year's average score of 234 for Part I.

I looked at the profile for "OnlyNeedOneYes". 39 is a very good score, but with his GPA and university, would they not think he would be heading somewhere else? Admissions committees always play a numbers game and probably use certain numerical criteria to predict the probability of an applicant's potential to attend.
 
What are you guys doing about thank you cards? are you all sending EIGHT thank you cards? hows that supposed to work?
 
What are you guys doing about thank you cards? are you all sending EIGHT thank you cards? hows that supposed to work?

lol, i wouldnt bother. They made the MMI about as anonymous as possible. You had the interviewers, the actors, the raters/observers, and the raters/observers on closed-circuit. All i got was first-names anyway.
 
What are you guys doing about thank you cards? are you all sending EIGHT thank you cards? hows that supposed to work?

Someone asked the admissions dude this at my interview. he said don't bother.
 
As far as the whole MCAT score situation, my understanding is that in general it goes on 5 or 6 year swings where people score higher and higher, especially because the absurdly expensive review courses get a better lock on the questions. This is just heresay though, and it may be completely wrong. At UC I think they are doing anything but just trying to get higher scores though, as I know of a couple instaters with MCATs close to 40 who have been waitlisted or not offered interviews - and they are likable people with well rounded applications. Ohio State is generally more focused on MCAT scores, as it is an easy way to quickly improve US News rankings.
 
As far as the whole MCAT score situation, my understanding is that in general it goes on 5 or 6 year swings where people score higher and higher, especially because the absurdly expensive review courses get a better lock on the questions. This is just heresay though, and it may be completely wrong. At UC I think they are doing anything but just trying to get higher scores though, as I know of a couple instaters with MCATs close to 40 who have been waitlisted or not offered interviews - and they are likable people with well rounded applications. Ohio State is generally more focused on MCAT scores, as it is an easy way to quickly improve US News rankings.

OSU also didn't let me in, it's not my year I guess lol... next year maybe.
 
did they say anything about how long it will take them to give you a decision?

:luck:

They said 3 weeks, on a Wed afternoon/Thurs morning, most likely.
...But "it might be 4, I can't make any guarantees" as he said so that he doesn't get killed if decisions aren't out by then.
 
First round of decisions from the 12/12 interview date are supposed to go out this afternoon or tomorrow morning at the very latest... still nothing here. Anyone hear anything yet?
 
Also interviewed on 12/12 and no news yet. Hoping for good news - good luck!
 
Thanks... good luck to you too. Looking at your MDApps profile... I actually think I know who you are from the interview day. Looks like you've had a lot of action since the UC interview, so congrats on that!
 
Got the status change email a few minutes ago-ACCEPTED YAY!!!! 3.8+ GPA with 31 MCAT, the mcat is not all they are looking at. I think the MMI plays a big role, so those who have lower MCATS dont fear. I am so happy
 
Got the status change email a few minutes ago-ACCEPTED YAY!!!! 3.8+ GPA with 31 MCAT, the mcat is not all they are looking at. I think the MMI plays a big role, so those who have lower MCATS dont fear. I am so happy
What interview date? Nothing for me yet.
 
Congrats on the acceptance jamesq!
 
Jeep, considering that neither of us have gotten anything, maybe they haven't gotten to our interview date yet?

and oh yeah, congrats to james!
 
Interviewed on 12/3 and was just accepted as well!
 
Thanks all,

I interviewed 12/3 for those who are interested. good luck to the rest who are waiting!
 
I was waitlisted there. I gave simple, straightforward and logical answers to MMIs and did not feel very confident coming out these. I guess they were looking for "politically correct" people. Personally I think ethics should be part of interview, but not the whole interview. Also however high their step 1 numbers are, their match lists are quite normal.
 
Medseek1: when did you interview (if you don't mind me asking)? Sorry to hear about the waitlist... and while I understand your frustrations with the MMI, I have to say I liked it better than the traditional interview where one can glorify the most trivial extracurricular into a Nobel Prize winning endeavor. From what I remember on interview day, there are traditionally like 50 or so off the waitlist. I interviewed on 12/12 and am yet to hear.
 
I'm surprised it took some people so long to get news. It looks like the good news travels slower... When I interviewed on 12/3 I was waitlisted so fast it made my head spin! I thought I did really well in 5/8 stations, and I certainly didn't do poorly at the other 3. Congrats to those who are just straight up better than me 🙂 Y'all'z gunna b' docters! I'z tu dum I gess.
 
Medseek1: when did you interview (if you don't mind me asking)? Sorry to hear about the waitlist... and while I understand your frustrations with the MMI, I have to say I liked it better than the traditional interview where one can glorify the most trivial extracurricular into a Nobel Prize winning endeavor. From what I remember on interview day, there are traditionally like 50 or so off the waitlist. I interviewed on 12/12 and am yet to hear.

I interviewed on 11/20 and heard back in about 3 weeks I think.
 
Hey guys! So at some point does UC start interviewing strictly for wait list spots?
 
Hey guys! So at some point does UC start interviewing strictly for wait list spots?

I'm not sure if they actually start interviewing for waitlist spots or not, but I do know that there are still quite a few interview spots open (1 more in Jan, a few in Feb, and then one in March). I know that doesn't sound like a lot more interview dates, but they interview quite a few people on each day due to the MMI format. I also know there are still acceptance spots open for next years class! Hope that helps.
 
I'm not sure if they actually start interviewing for waitlist spots or not, but I do know that there are still quite a few interview spots open (1 more in Jan, a few in Feb, and then one in March). I know that doesn't sound like a lot more interview dates, but they interview quite a few people on each day due to the MMI format. I also know there are still acceptance spots open for next years class! Hope that helps.

That does help actually! I'm interviewing in early February and was hoping that they would still have some acceptance spots open! Thanks!
 
That does help actually! I'm interviewing in early February and was hoping that they would still have some acceptance spots open! Thanks!


Early Feb should be just fine. I was a grad student here last year and from what I remember hearing around campus, I THINK it wasn't til March last year that they started interviewing "for the waitlist", but then again, they completely changed their interview style this year, so who knows. I think you're still in good shape though.
 
I was waitlisted there. I gave simple, straightforward and logical answers to MMIs and did not feel very confident coming out these. I guess they were looking for "politically correct" people. Personally I think ethics should be part of interview, but not the whole interview. Also however high their step 1 numbers are, their match lists are quite normal.

I also gave straightforward and honest answers but I also explained why. I find your political correct comment a little over the top....from what I know about medical school interviews...its not the appropriate place to make out of the ordinary political statements. it doesn't matter what you said or which ethical position you chose in the MMI as long as you could back up what you said. I agree with a previous poster that this kind of interview is more standardized, is a better indicator of people skills, and is overall less biased than personal interviews.

the board scores at UC are definitely high but high avg. board scores never correlates into better avg. residency positions (whatever that means). wayne state has an avg step 1 of 220 but also had one of the highest ratios of speciality to primary care doctors in the country. Regardless, the point is cincinnati offers an education that does not reflect its low US news ranking.
 
I also gave straightforward and honest answers but I also explained why. I find your political correct comment a little over the top....from what I know about medical school interviews...its not the appropriate place to make out of the ordinary political statements. it doesn't matter what you said or which ethical position you chose in the MMI as long as you could back up what you said. I agree with a previous poster that this kind of interview is more standardized, is a better indicator of people skills, and is overall less biased than personal interviews.

the board scores at UC are definitely high but high avg. board scores never correlates into better avg. residency positions (whatever that means). wayne state has an avg step 1 of 220 but also had one of the highest ratios of speciality to primary care doctors in the country. Regardless, the point is cincinnati offers an education that does not reflect its low US news ranking.

👍Exactly. This interview process that they use now is built to minimize bias (including political). They want common sense answers that can be backed up. If you have a reason for stating a certain position and you can explain it, they will not mark you down. But if you offer opinions that you think they want to hear (and subsequently can't properly explain why you took those positions), they will see through you and probably mark you down. In MMI, they're looking at the style as much as, if not more, than the substance of what you say. I came out of the interviews feeling I had not presented my arguments well, and that was what I was worried about. I was probably harder on myself than they were. However I didn't give a second thought to what my actual opinions on each scenario were, only how I delivered and backed them, because that's what they are looking at most.

I'll say it again. For those yet to interview, don't study, don't prepare and try to memorize a bunch of ethical scenarios or articles...just go in there relaxed, go with your intuition about each scenario, speak from the heart, and explain the basis of your reasoning everytime they ask you to give an opinion on a situation.
 
with the new building and everything going on there, at least we know it's not going anywhere on the rankings but up... 😀

I have to admit, before I went to the interview, I didnt have that high an image of Cinny based upon what I heard about it from friends, online forums, and its rankings(I now know that rankings are BS). But after having done the interview, I was really impressed by the school. Its facilities are amazing. I really liked how they incorporated the old medical school building with the new expansion, and that medical campus is huge. Moreover, besides the new building, the school's increasing focus on GPA/MCAT and research funding reaffirms the notion that its rankings can only go up(since the rankings are essentially based on research funding and applicant selectivity).
 
I have to admit, before I went to the interview, I didnt have that high an image of Cinny based upon what I heard about it from friends, online forums, and its rankings(I now know that rankings are BS). But after having done the interview, I was really impressed by the school. Its facilities are amazing. I really liked how they incorporated the old medical school building with the new expansion, and that medical campus is huge. Moreover, besides the new building, the school's increasing focus on GPA/MCAT and research funding reaffirms the notion that its rankings can only go up(since the rankings are essentially based on research funding and applicant selectivity).


The old MSB (med science building) will be undergoing renovation (one section at a time) the whole time we'll be enrolled there...just FYI. With the new building, it'll probably be less of a nuisance than if we still only had that building. I was a grad student at the med school and the facilities are top notch (even before the new CARE building opened). There is a lot of study space on the med campus too, with the option of going to the main campus (free shuttles go there and back every 10mins).
 
Btw, how is grading at cinny? Is it ranked/letter grades or is it P/F?
 
Btw, how is grading at cinny? Is it ranked/letter grades or is it P/F?

Honors, High Pass, Pass, Fail. I believe there is a ranking system alongside that, but I'm a little unclear how it works with the P/F grading.
 
👍Exactly. This interview process that they use now is built to minimize bias (including political). They want common sense answers that can be backed up. If you have a reason for stating a certain position and you can explain it, they will not mark you down. But if you offer opinions that you think they want to hear (and subsequently can't properly explain why you took those positions), they will see through you and probably mark you down. In MMI, they're looking at the style as much as, if not more, than the substance of what you say. I came out of the interviews feeling I had not presented my arguments well, and that was what I was worried about. I was probably harder on myself than they were. However I didn't give a second thought to what my actual opinions on each scenario were, only how I delivered and backed them, because that's what they are looking at most.

I'll say it again. For those yet to interview, don't study, don't prepare and try to memorize a bunch of ethical scenarios or articles...just go in there relaxed, go with your intuition about each scenario, speak from the heart, and explain the basis of your reasoning everytime they ask you to give an opinion on a situation.




I respectfully disagree that you dont have to prepare for this interview. For those with minimal background in ethics, I think it always helps to read about ethical scenarios. There is no need to memorize them, but truly understand both sides of the argument and present your ideas as lucidly as possible. I used the Washington ethics page and it did provide me an idea of how give clear and concise ideas. However, do realize that the questions you will be posed with will be quite different from any ethical scenario that you have read before. I do agree it is neccesary to go in relaxed. Also, if I can offer advice to applicants, if your first MMI station dosent go well dont panic. My first station I was so nervous and scared that I couldnt read the scenario. In the last 15 seconds I forced myself to read it. I then talked to an individual who didnt seem interested in what I had to say and by the end of the first station I thought I failed the whole process. In the end, I just treated each station differently. Chances are that if you found the station hard, so did others. Just concentrate on moving forward. Good Luck!
 
I respectfully disagree that you dont have to prepare for this interview. For those with minimal background in ethics, I think it always helps to read about ethical scenarios. There is no need to memorize them, but truly understand both sides of the argument and present your ideas as lucidly as possible. I used the Washington ethics page and it did provide me an idea of how give clear and concise ideas. However, do realize that the questions you will be posed with will be quite different from any ethical scenario that you have read before. I do agree it is neccesary to go in relaxed. Also, if I can offer advice to applicants, if your first MMI station dosent go well dont panic. My first station I was so nervous and scared that I couldnt read the scenario. In the last 15 seconds I forced myself to read it. I then talked to an individual who didnt seem interested in what I had to say and by the end of the first station I thought I failed the whole process. In the end, I just treated each station differently. Chances are that if you found the station hard, so did others. Just concentrate on moving forward. Good Luck!

In my experience, trying to understand both sides means when you're posed with the question, you won't answer from your heart or what only you think...you will give a politically correct answer that offers arguments for both sides (arguments that are not yours, but that you read) and in the end they will never clearly hear what you really think and why you think it and they WILL see through that. It's also an exercise in futility because you have no clue what ethical scenarios will be brought up and may read articles that have nothing to do with the scenarios you'll be given.
Honestly, how many people have an official background in ethics? You don't need one...I sure didn't have one, and many of my friends who've gone through MMI and gotten accepted didn't either. Preparing in that way is only going to make you more nervous, because you'll be more worried about remembering and regurgitating what you read and not going in relaxed. If you're simply horrible at interviewing, that's one thing and you might want to practice in front of others or a mirror, remembering eye contact, etc. But that's it. I know it's hard for a lot of people to get over the fact that for once you don't have to prepare in any way, shape, or form for this type of med school interview, but honestly, you don't!

I do agree with the advice about the first interview. Don't panic if you feel you blew it, because it's natural to be nervous on that first one. I thought I blew my first two in fact, but I settled down and there are plenty of other stations to bring up your score or whatever. That's another advantage of MMI...one interviewer can't bring you down completely, unlike a 30min one on one interview at other schools, where if he/she doesn't like you, you're finished.
 
I don't really think the higher MCAT trend is exclusive to Cincinnati. I have a News and World Report book of med schools for both 2005 and 2007 and almost all schools show an increase in average MCAT score, and I'm pretty sure the average among people taking it has been increasing. Besides "OnlyNeedOneYes" has a 39, how much higher would they be looking for? I think the new MMI format means Cinci is looking for a certain personality type this year, regardless of location or maybe even score in some cases.
This is a common misconception about the MCAT. In actuality, the average every year is always a 25 or 26 for people taking the test. What changes is that the number of people taking the exam increases, while the available spots to medical school remains relatively the same.
Example:
N = 67,828, for 2007
N = 75,809, for 2008

That's 8,000 more people taking the exam in 2008! 😱 So naturally, because there are relatively the same number of seats to get into medical school, the entrance average MCAT increases, while the total average for test-takers remains the same.

As far as the whole MCAT score situation, my understanding is that in general it goes on 5 or 6 year swings where people score higher and higher, especially because the absurdly expensive review courses get a better lock on the questions. This is just heresay though, and it may be completely wrong. At UC I think they are doing anything but just trying to get higher scores though, as I know of a couple instaters with MCATs close to 40 who have been waitlisted or not offered interviews - and they are likable people with well rounded applications. Ohio State is generally more focused on MCAT scores, as it is an easy way to quickly improve US News rankings.

In reality, the MCAT is curved so people actually can't score better and better every year. When a test is normed like the MCAT is, the make sure that only .1 - .4 % of people get a 40 every single year. Likewise for all of the other scaled scores - the percentage of people that get, say, a 32 every year remains relatively constant. What happens is more people take the exam so the raw number of people with higher scores increases (as does the raw number with lower scores), while the number of seats to get into medical school stays relatively the same.
 
Honors, High Pass, Pass, Fail. I believe there is a ranking system alongside that, but I'm a little unclear how it works with the P/F grading.

At other medical schools that use P/F grading, do they still maintain ranking systems nonetheless?
 
does anyone know if Cinci is giving out decisions today? I remember them saying that the adcom wasn't meeting on MLK day, so does that mean no decisions this week? I thought they also met on Tuesdays though, but I can't remember now.
 
I hope they are giving out decisions today... when I interviewed on 12/12 they told us that 1/2 of us would hear the second Wednesday (or early Thursday) in January, and the other 1/2 would hear the third Wednesday (or early Thursday) in January. To my knowledge (at least of SDNers), the only people that heard last week interviewed prior to 12/12. I am hoping to hear today or tomorrow. Should give you an idea of when you might hear based on your interview date.
 
ok, I interviewed Jan 5th, which I think was actually the next interview date after yours because of the holidays. so hopefully you receive your decision today, it's been a long wait for you, I'm going crazy and it's only been 2 weeks so far, haha. good luck!
 
Interviewed 12/12, just heard this morning. More waiting :-\. Good luck to everyone else!

Stephen Manuel did say it was usually 2-3 weeks, but we had a delay because of the holidays, and I'm sure at least the next couple of rounds following ours would also have been delayed.
 
To those accepted,

did you all get a CBC check email AFTER your acceptance to U Cinci. I just got a CBC and am wondering if its U cinci or penn state, i interviewed at both.
 
To those accepted,

did you all get a CBC check email AFTER your acceptance to U Cinci. I just got a CBC and am wondering if its U cinci or penn state, i interviewed at both.

I got mine right after my acceptance.
 
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