2009-2010 Mayo Medical School Application Thread

[WCS]

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Hey guys, a little off topic here...but where did you send thank you letters for your interviewers? I'm thinking just the admissions office with attn: interviewer's name? Thanks in advance!

 

[Jolt21]

Hey guys, a little off topic here...but where did you send thank you letters for your interviewers? I'm thinking just the admissions office with attn: interviewer's name? Thanks in advance!

I put the thank you notes in their own envelopes with the interviewer's name, and then put those two in a big envelope to admissions with a letter saying please forward to the appropriate parties.

 

[lrkoehle]

Here we go again, Irk 🙁
When will the agony end?! lol

Have you been blessed with an acceptance elsewhere? Fortunately for me, I was, so now I am no longer like this when I think about Mayo. Instead this 😍 is the only feeling I get when I think about Mayo. I still want to go here as much as always, but just less stress. I hope the rest of your cycle has been going well.

Hold as well, ranked just last week. I love Mayo, but I guess they don't feel the same.

Just to reiterate what JJ said, a hold is not bad at Mayo. At other schools, it is essentially equivalent to a waitlist, but at Mayo it just means you weren't accepted in the first possible round. Fortunately, since they only interview ~250 people, they are able re-evaluate every applicant each time acceptances are given out. At other schools with 600 or 700 interviewees, this is not possible. Keep your chins up, because it is very likely that there will be a bunch of people taken off of the hold list in the next month or so. Heck, now that I think about it, this may be part of the reason Mayo accelerated their cycle this year is so that they could properly evaluate ALL applicants at the same time. Anyways, these guys seem to help:

Hey guys, a little off topic here...but where did you send thank you letters for your interviewers? I'm thinking just the admissions office with attn: interviewer's name? Thanks in advance!

That's how I did it. One of the accepted people here told me that he just sent them an email.

 

[archimedesxx]

Hey folks, chill. A hold is not a deferral or a waitlist or anything -- it just means that the subcommittee has at least seen your app/ranking and you could be accepted at any time. I think it's silly to think of it as a black mark; there are much worse statuses you can get at other schools.

The prudent question we should ask is whether anyone who was just ranked did NOT receive a hold email. If they notified everyone as hold, then we know no one was accepted, but if someone was just ranked and didn't receive a hold email, then they may be waiting to call accepted applicants tomorrow or later this week.

So...anyone?

My theory was confirmed by the insider by email tonight: that they are backed up and that appointments have likelycnot been made recently. She is not certain because she does not sit on the smaller commitee. what she def told me was that they are very back logged. Let's wait and see if there is any truth to that tomorrow if they call people or if anyone here says they were recently ranked but have not received the hold email.

 

[lunchbox_tragedy]

My theory was confirmed by the insider by email tonight: that they are backed up and that appointments have likelycnot been made recently. She is not certain because she does not sit on the smaller commitee. what she def told me was that they are very back logged. Let's wait and see if there is any truth to that tomorrow if they call people or if anyone here says they were recently ranked but have not received the hold email.

Oh man, I am surprised your inside source is not throroughly annoyed at/tired with your prodding. Thanks for doing the dirty work, though.

These little clovers could become ritualistic...

 

[OMSTR]

Have you been blessed with an acceptance elsewhere? Fortunately for me, I was, so now I am no longer like this when I think about Mayo. Instead this 😍 is the only feeling I get when I think about Mayo. I still want to go here as much as always, but just less stress. I hope the rest of your cycle has been going well.

I told you it was just a matter of time before your acceptances started rolling in! Congrats! I'm very happy for you! Fortunately, I am in the same boat- I've gotten other acceptances, which has taken SO much pressure off of me. Now, I'm just kind of going with the flow and riding the waves as they come. As you said though, getting that call would be pretty sweet regardless! 🙂

 

[lrkoehle]

Hold Status -
10/20 lrkoehle, mabelene, hanjg, orange4me, OMSTR, vtche02, tusabe
12/1 PillClinton, SaintT, mooo, ballin, th286, Andaluthina
12/7 Premed Bedhead, trueBelief, mpls, LAman10, JJFoshay, Obog360, archimedesxx, sylntsniper, jjk

Accepted 😍-
10/20 itsalovestory, bamtuba, nerday shortay, musik
10/28 pharaoh88 (hold 10/20), sultanMD, premad
11/23 Jolt21, Jerew, Beignet87

 

[archimedesxx]

Oh man, I am surprised your inside source is not throroughly annoyed at/tired with your prodding. Thanks for doing the dirty work, though.

These little clovers could become ritualistic...

Nah man, she even wants me to ask her more questions. serious.lol. She knows i'm not too desperate because I have other good options. It's just that I have been on the Mayo bandwagon since freshman year. No kidding.

 

[lrkoehle]

I told you it was just a matter of time before your acceptances started rolling in! Congrats! I'm very happy for you! Fortunately, I am in the same boat- I've gotten other acceptances, which has taken SO much pressure off of me. Now, I'm just kind of going with the flow and riding the waves as they come. As you said though, getting that call would be pretty sweet regardless! 🙂

Glad to see you also got some acceptances in hand now. It really feels great to know I am going to be a doctor in four years, whether it is at Mayo or somewhere else. Am I allowed to start stressing about the fact that I am really interested in one of the most competitive fields? Nah, I will wait to stress about that for a couple of years...

 

[lunchbox_tragedy]

Hold Status -
10/20 lrkoehle, mabelene, hanjg, orange4me, OMSTR, vtche02, tusabe
12/1 PillClinton, SaintT, mooo, ballin, th286, Andaluthina
12/7 Premed Bedhead, trueBelief, mpls, LAman10, JJFoshay, Obog360, archimedesxx, sylntsniper

Accepted 😍-
10/20 itsalovestory, bamtuba, nerday shortay, musik
10/28 pharaoh88 (hold 10/20), sultanMD, premad
11/23 Jolt21, Jerew, Beignet87

Hey look! The past two action days have been hold notices with no concurrent acceptances. Herm...

 

[lrkoehle]

Nah man, she even wants me to ask her more questions. serious.lol. She knows i'm not too desperate because I have other good options. It's just that I have been on the Mayo bandwagon since freshman year. No kidding.

👍 I'm right there with you. Looking back it doesn't seem that long ago that I was first checking her out. Then I became infatuated, but that gave way to love...😍

 

[archimedesxx]

Hey look! The past two action days have been hold notices with no concurrent acceptances. Herm...

Nah JJ, for the 12/1 hold batch, the calls went out on Nov 23 and the hold emails came out later on (12/1). Jolt, defend me on the one.

 

[lrkoehle]

Hey look! The past two action days have been hold notices with no concurrent acceptances. Herm...

These are just my thoughts, but I think the 12/1 holds and 11/23 acceptances are misleading. I think the people who went on hold on 12/1 were part of the group considered for acceptances on 11/23. However, given that Thanksgiving was later in the week of 11/23, Mayo might have held off on sending out those holds so as to not ruin people's holidays. They did not hold off on the acceptances, since I am sure all of those people were more than happy to brag to their family about a Mayo acceptance at Thanksgiving dinner (no shame in that either). As for this more recent set of holds, I agree with whoever said that this might be there way of saying, "hey, we're still considering you, we are just a little backed up right now." It is important to remember that a hold at Mayo is kind of a meaningless thing. Basically it is there way of saying we did not accept you right away after your ranking, but we will continue to actively review your application in all future sub-committees.

Again, those are just my thoughts.

 

[Jolt21]

Nah JJ, for the 12/1 hold batch, the calls went out on Nov 23 and the hold emails came out later on (12/1). Jolt, defend me on the one.

no idea, man. i dont ask questions, just go with the flow

 

[jjk]

Hold Status -
10/20 lrkoehle, mabelene, hanjg, orange4me, OMSTR, vtche02, tusabe
12/1 PillClinton, SaintT, mooo, ballin, th286, Andaluthina
12/7 Premed Bedhead, trueBelief, mpls, LAman10, JJFoshay, Obog360, archimedesxx, sylntsniper, jjk

Accepted 😍-
10/20 itsalovestory, bamtuba, nerday shortay, musik
10/28 pharaoh88 (hold 10/20), sultanMD, premad
11/23 Jolt21, Jerew, Beignet87

 

[ballin]

wow i don't check the mayo forum for 8 hours..and this is the damage huh? haha gluck to all!

 

[lrkoehle]

wow i don't check the mayo forum for 8 hours..and this is the damage huh? haha gluck to all!

Haha, I think we all got a little excited/freaked out, but that is to be expected when that many people get put on hold.

The good news is that no one has been accepted as of now today, so it seems that Mayo just put everyone on hold for now. Perhaps they are putting everyone on hold now, and later they will deal with making decisions about acceptances...

 

[AyCaramba]

How many interview days are left? Only like 2, right? That's crazy that they're finishing up so soon... I wonder if they will change their minds and add a couple more. I imagine that decisions will be made a bit faster once that's all wrapped up though (though the holidays might interfere...)

 

[lrkoehle]

How many interview days are left? Only like 2, right? That's crazy that they're finishing up so soon... I wonder if they will change their minds and add a couple more. I imagine that decisions will be made a bit faster once that's all wrapped up though (though the holidays might interfere...)

Yup, only two days left (11th and 14th). I very highly doubt they will add any more days, because they seem to be struggling enough getting through all the applications they currently have. I think things will really pick up when they finish too. Not only will those people on the ranking committee be able to commit more time to ranking (since they won't have interviews to do), but the deans who do interviews and make acceptance decisions won't have to split their time any more. They can focus purely on making acceptances (hopefully that will include me!).

 

[archimedesxx]

Haha, I think we all got a little excited/freaked out, but that is to be expected when that many people get put on hold.

The good news is that no one has been accepted as of now today, so it seems that Mayo just put everyone on hold for now. Perhaps they are putting everyone on hold now, and later they will deal with making decisions about acceptances...

Looks like everyone took the hit this time around. Maybe someone here other than Irk or yours truly can call anonymously. You don't have to mention your name and Carmen is not going to ask unless of course you want to know the status of your application. All you need to do is ask if new appointments have been made or not. The answer I got was no. However, maybe we need another person to confirm. Peace!

 

[obog360]

Hey,

So i just called. They said that there have been no acceptances made recently (I asked in the past week), because many of the deans have been gone. The acceptances should be given in the next few weeks before the holidays come (she said next week earliest). hope this helps guys, i feel a bit better 🙂

 

[archimedesxx]

Hey,

So i just called. They said that there have been no acceptances made recently (I asked in the past week), because many of the deans have been gone. The acceptances should be given in the next few weeks before the holidays come (she said next week earliest). hope this helps guys, i feel a bit better 🙂

Yay!lol You see, y'all doubted me. That hold email was just to make us aware that they are still thinking about us. My parents were very disappointed last night when I told them i was put on hold

 

[lrkoehle]

Hey,

So i just called. They said that there have been no acceptances made recently (I asked in the past week), because many of the deans have been gone. The acceptances should be given in the next few weeks before the holidays come (she said next week earliest). hope this helps guys, i feel a bit better 🙂

Thanks! I have been on hold through two acceptance cycles, so I am not getting my hopes up at all. It is good news for all of you who went on hold more recently. I bet the "next week at the earliest" is because they are just going to wait until all of the interviews are finished. Next round will probably be the 21st or 22nd then, so now everyone can focus on their finals without thinking about Mayo!

Yay!lol You see, y'all doubted me. That hold email was just to make us aware that they are still thinking about us. My parents were very disappointed last night when I told them i was put on hold

We bow down to your knowledge. I think the "hold" is just them saying "hold on just a little bit longer, we are still deciding. Its not like other schools where "hold" means "we're holding on to your application until March because that's when our new paper shredder comes in..."

Sorry to hear your parents were disappointed. I hope they weren't like "we're very disappointed in you." I hope it was more like "that's disappointing," which was exactly how my wife reacted. Its kind of funny how emotionally involved everyone else around us gets involved in this process. My PI told me that she felt how stressful the process was and that she was really concerned how it was going. It made it really hard when I got 2 holds and a waitlist post interview, but with my recent acceptances it has been great to be able to share the good news with everyone.

 

[obog360]

does anybody know how many acceptances have gone out so far?

 

[LAman10]

does anybody know how many acceptances have gone out so far?

I think someone said 25...

 

[lrkoehle]

I think someone said 25...

I thought it was ~38. Also, they are shooting to accept around 70-72 BEFORE the alternate list is made.

 

[archimedesxx]

I thought it was ~38. Also, they are shooting to accept around 70-72 BEFORE the alternate list is made.

It's 28. check my previous posts

 

[lrkoehle]

It's 28. check my previous posts

I did, and indeed you did say 28. For some reason I added 10 to that (maybe because last round 10 people were accepted). It seems good to me that there is only 28 acceptances so far. It makes me wonder how many acceptances will go out in the next round. Anybody care to speculate?

Are they still planning on accepting 70-72?

 

[PhDtoMD2010]

I interviewed last Friday and I loved my time there. Incredible facilities, amazing people, and important philosophy. I hope I get in.

 

[tommy55]

rank day tomorrow! is anyone else waiting on rank? i interviewed in late november...

 

[herestohoping]

does anyone know the phone number to call to talk to someone in the admissions office (i.e. carmen)? I looked on the website but didn't see a number for the office. I'd like to call to make sure they received something I sent via email.

 

[herestohoping]

also have people been sending thank you notes via email or snail mail?

 

[Nerday Shortay]

also have people been sending thank you notes via email or snail mail?

Sometimes they tell you to email, or not to send a thank you at all (in which case you should definitely send one), but I always go with snail mail. There is something more human and sincere about a hand-written card. Good luck!

 

[herestohoping]

Sometimes they tell you to email, or not to send a thank you at all (in which case you should definitely send one), but I always go with snail mail. There is something more human and sincere about a hand-written card. Good luck!

did you mean you should NOT send one in that case?

 

[Jolt21]

did you mean you should NOT send one in that case?

you can to mayo. i sent them snail mail

refer to here


507-284-2316

 

[Nerday Shortay]

did you mean you should NOT send one in that case?

No, I meant what I said. ALWAYS send one! It shows appreciation and maturity - you're basically saying, "I will be kind, even if you tell me not to." It's nice to say thank you, you know?

 

[lunchbox_tragedy]

also have people been sending thank you notes via email or snail mail?

Email is cursory and impersonal! Send them by snail mail and add little fluorishes. For instance, I put a lipstick kiss over the seal of the envelope! 😎

 

[herestohoping]

No, I meant what I said. ALWAYS send one! It shows appreciation and maturity - you're basically saying, "I will be kind, even if you tell me not to." It's nice to say thank you, you know?

I see your point but I have to disagree...I feel that it might come across as the applicant either didn't listen to or can't follow directions

 

[Jolt21]

I see your point but I have to disagree...I feel that it might come across as the applicant either didn't listen to or can't follow directions

i concur. i.e. UCSF says NOT to do it. i will listen to them.

 

[Nerday Shortay]

I see your point but I have to disagree...I feel that it might come across as the applicant either didn't listen to or can't follow directions

Obviously, do what you want. I had this experience at Wash. U. St. Louis, where the interviewer told me not to worry about sending a thank you card. I sent one, and I ended up getting in. I received a thank-you-for-the-thank-you/congrats card from him. This is only anecdotal, of course, but the thank you card surely didn't hurt me. I think that if any interviewer actually likes an applicant less for sending a thank you card, then that person is a little off. It's just a polite thing. Anyway, end of conversation for me.

 

[AyCaramba]

Email is cursory and impersonal! Send them by snail mail and add little fluorishes. For instance, I put a lipstick kiss over the seal of the envelope! 😎

I don't know, I sent some of mine via email (a legit letter as an attachment) and I think that they were actually better than the ones I sent by snail mail. It really depends on what you're saying, not whether it's written by hand or not; a snail mail card can be "cursory and impersonal" too. Plus with email you don't have to worry as much about it not getting to them.

With the stakes as high as this, I am skeptical that thank you note stuff makes a huge difference. Yeah, it's nice to do and can change their mind a tiny bit, but is it really going to come down to "this person sent a thank you note, so we're going to take him over this other person who didn't"? Maybe but I doubt it...

 

[bamtuba]

I don't know, I sent some of mine via email (a legit letter as an attachment) and I think that they were actually better than the ones I sent by snail mail. It really depends on what you're saying, not whether it's written by hand or not; a snail mail card can be "cursory and impersonal" too. Plus with email you don't have to worry as much about it not getting to them.

With the stakes as high as this, I am skeptical that thank you note stuff makes a huge difference. Yeah, it's nice to do and can change their mind a tiny bit, but is it really going to come down to "this person sent a thank you note, so we're going to take him over this other person who didn't"? Maybe but I doubt it...

True.

I sent an e-mail with attached update to both of my interviewers and copied Marcy in so that it would be in my file. Of course I was so excited about the update (research went national the day before type of thing) that I think they understood. 😉

I wouldn't worry too much about this part of the process though. There is a huge difference in being told "don't worry about sending a note" and "do NOT send a note." But whatever.

 

[Phoenix.]

i concur. i.e. UCSF says NOT to do it. i will listen to them.

I could be wrong, but when I interviewed two years ago at Mayo I recall they said on our interview day that we should send thank you letters to our interviewers via snail mail. I remember that because I generally do everything by email, and had to go out to buy cards/stationary. But I doubt this will make or break anyone's chance at Mayo, so I wouldn't sweat it if you sent emailed thank yous, or even none at all. It's really just common courtesy. I can't imagine there's a direct impact on your application if you didn't send one.

As for letters of interest/intent, Marcy had told me at the time (two years ago) that emailing them to her (with the letter as an attachment) was fine, and that they could thus more easily be printed out for the deans and added to my file.

Anyway, happy to read that a bunch of you now have received some acceptances elsewhere and can breath a little easier. And of course, congrats to those of you who got the call from Mayo, and good luck to the rest!

I can honestly say that a year and a half into my time here at Mayo, there is no medical school in the country I'd rather be at. Sure, med school has its ups and downs, but the opportunities here and Mayo quality/standard of care and education are phenomenal. The selectives opportunities alone during the first two years continue to make me grateful on a daily basis that I'm here.

 

[JasonE]

today's weather in rochester: 3 degrees, feels like -16, with gusting winds 😱

 

[Nerday Shortay]

today's weather in rochester: 3 degrees, feels like -16, with gusting winds 😱

Considering Mayo is 1/4 the price of other private schools, I will use the extra money to buy a full-body insulation suit for the cold weather 😛

 

[JasonE]

Considering Mayo is 1/4 the price of other private schools, I will use the extra money to buy a full-body insulation suit for the cold weather 😛

or just use the tunnels!

 

[Phoenix.]

or just use the tunnels!

Our classmates living in the Holiday Inn just love to come to class in skirts and shorts in the winter....

 

[ballin]

Today's weather in CHITOWN
10 degree, feels like -7

I think I could transition into Rochester pretty well lolz

today's weather in rochester: 3 degrees, feels like -16, with gusting winds 😱

 

[Jolt21]

I could be wrong, but when I interviewed two years ago at Mayo I recall they said on our interview day that we should send thank you letters to our interviewers via snail mail. I remember that because I generally do everything by email, and had to go out to buy cards/stationary. But I doubt this will make or break anyone's chance at Mayo, so I wouldn't sweat it if you sent emailed thank yous, or even none at all. It's really just common courtesy. I can't imagine there's a direct impact on your application if you didn't send one.

As for letters of interest/intent, Marcy had told me at the time (two years ago) that emailing them to her (with the letter as an attachment) was fine, and that they could thus more easily be printed out for the deans and added to my file.

Anyway, happy to read that a bunch of you now have received some acceptances elsewhere and can breath a little easier. And of course, congrats to those of you who got the call from Mayo, and good luck to the rest!

I can honestly say that a year and a half into my time here at Mayo, there is no medical school in the country I'd rather be at. Sure, med school has its ups and downs, but the opportunities here and Mayo quality/standard of care and education are phenomenal. The selectives opportunities alone during the first two years continue to make me grateful on a daily basis that I'm here.

oh yea, i agree. i sent letters to mayo. i was just saying, when a school tells you at least 4 times in the day NOT to send them (i.e. UCSF), you listen to that school. but that was only ucsf

Our classmates living in the Holiday Inn just love to come to class in skirts and shorts in the winter....

students live in the holiday inn? wha?

 

[archimedesxx]

second page for the Mayo thread is a no no 😡