2010-2011 Case Western Reserve University Application Thread

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ksmi117

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Secondary prompts are up for your immediate consumption. Please note: If you are applying to both the Cleveland Clinic Learner College of Medicine ("College Program", "CP") and the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine ("University Program", "UP"), you'll need to do the essays for both. Also, if you initially apply to one and then decide to add another at a later date, remember to resubmit your application. Otherwise, it will be viewed as incomplete.

Questions shared by both programs said:
Required Essay: Greatest Challenge
The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a personal challenge you have faced which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a time when you felt you were "in over your head," or a time when you felt personally criticized. You may also discuss a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you may have learned about yourself. Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Small Group Essay:
Please select one of the following questions:
If you were working on a small group project and another student dominated the group and directed others without listening to their input, how would you handle this?

OR

If you were working on a small group project and another student didn't carry their load, how would you handle it?

Please limit your essay to 300-1000 characters and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Questions unique to the College Program said:
Research Essay:
Please describe your research experience, including the hypothesis you pursued, the methods selected to answer this hypothesis, and why, and your results and interpretation of the results with respect to future findings. In addition, please add your thoughts about why this research experience has motivated you to consider a career as a physician investigator. If you have not participated in research or scholarly work, please indicate so in the text area below. Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Areas of Improvement Essay:
Each year our students target for themselves areas of improvement. Other than the acquisition of new knowledge, what personal area do you think needs strengthening? Design a plan as to how you could improve it.
Please limit your essay to 500-1000 characters and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Question unique to the University Program said:
Optional Scholarly Essay:

One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve2 Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a pre-requisite requirement for the University Track, if you have participated in research or another scholarly project please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations.

Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs. If the 3,500 character recommendation is exceeded, your essay WILL be saved in it's entirety.

:luck: with your application!

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First Post! I think of the WHOLE season - not just this thread! :smuggrin: Good luck applicants!

AND SO IT BEGINS. Good luck to everyone!
 
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future applicants - remember that the 2009-2010 Case thread owned the rest as far as post-count went. don't let us down this year!
 
Ooh, look at the shiny new Case / CCLCM thread!
 
We already have the highest post count and view count. :D

Go us!
 
So...CCLCMer, sounds like you might be a student there already? Can you tell us a little bit about Case Western? ;)
Whaaaaa? What would give you the impression that I'm a student here? :confused:


;)

So seriously, if anyone has questions, I'm starting my last year at CCLCM (Case's College Program). I can answer any questions about our program, as well as the clinical rotations/research block for both programs (University Program + CCLCM).

We already have the highest post count and view count. :D
Eggplants unite! :highfive:
 
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! I am really nervous but excited at the same time.
 
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I like Case, hopefully fin aid works out if they like me. I've decided to start posting in threads of schools I'm pretty sure I'm applying to, starting with Case. =)

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! I am really nervous but excited at the same time.

Good luck to both of you! I'm heading down to CCLCM (The CP - or College Program) at Case for my first year (of 5) in about 4 weeks!
 
Good luck to both of you! I'm heading down to CCLCM (The CP - or College Program) at Case for my first year (of 5) in about 4 weeks!

Wow, they start early!
 
For the people who aren't 2009-2010 thread regulars, I'm a 2nd year in the University Program, so if you have any questions, let me know! :D
 
Oh, and I will offer my assistance to anyone out there - although I can't help you guys too much! :) I was accepted to both the UP and the CP, and will be attending the CP (CCLCM) in July.








<------click my MDapps profile like if you want to learn more about me and my app.
 
Hmmm...I am so used to seeing the 5 stars at the end of the title of the Case thread...That's how I usually find it quickly.

I like what I see so far...I've voted...Have you? ;)

[EDIT: The Rate This Thread button is in the upper right, just above ksmi117's first post.]
 
4xDI
 
If you apply for UP, do you automatically get considered for CP, and vice versa?
 
Excellent question:

The secondary application is combined for both programs. There is a research-oriented question that is optional for the UP, but mandatory for CP (and MSTP applicants as well).

Essentially, after the secondary application in the process they are completely independent of eathother. Completely. You can be invited to one, both, or none for an interview. Likewise, the interviews and admissions committees are separate and make separate decisions on your application.
 
If you apply for UP, do you automatically get considered for CP, and vice versa?
You can apply for both programs, or UP only, or CCLCM only. First, choose Case Western on AMCAS. Case is a non-screening school, so once you get the secondary, you will have the option of applying to UP (regular four year program), CCLCM (five year research MD program), and/or MSTP (MD/PhD program). You can choose as many of the programs as you want for a single secondary fee. If you choose CCLCM, you will have to write a couple of extra short essays, and the research essay is required for CCLCM, as vc7777 pointed out. Also, as he said, after that point, all of the decisions are separate. If you apply to both UP and CCLCM, it is possible for you to be invited to interview by both programs, or only by one of them. This is fairly common--several people in my class were rejected pre-interview by the UP but accepted by CCLCM.

If you're thinking about applying to CCLCM, you should have significant research experience (1+ years), similar to what you would need to apply to MD/PhD programs. Many students come in already having graduate degrees or take some time off in between college and med school to do research full time. But it's not necessary to take an extra year for research if you do significant research during college.
 
if I recall correctly, those of us who applied to both were considered a bit later for interviews than those that applied only UP. if you are invited for both, you can coordinate your schedule (if you want).

so I guess the most important thing is apply early?
 
You can apply for both programs, or UP only, or CCLCM only. First, choose Case Western on AMCAS. Case is a non-screening school, so once you get the secondary, you will have the option of applying to UP (regular four year program), CCLCM (five year research MD program), and/or MSTP (MD/PhD program). You can choose as many of the programs as you want for a single secondary fee. If you choose CCLCM, you will have to write a couple of extra short essays, and the research essay is required for CCLCM, as vc7777 pointed out. Also, as he said, after that point, all of the decisions are separate. If you apply to both UP and CCLCM, it is possible for you to be invited to interview by both programs, or only by one of them. This is fairly common--several people in my class were rejected pre-interview by the UP but accepted by CCLCM.

If you're thinking about applying to CCLCM, you should have significant research experience (1+ years), similar to what you would need to apply to MD/PhD programs. Many students come in already having graduate degrees or take some time off in between college and med school to do research full time. But it's not necessary to take an extra year for research if you do significant research during college.

Yes, I was thinking of applying to CCLCM. I have about 2.5 years of research experience in 3 different labs. I do not have any experience with biomedical research, though.
 
if I recall correctly, those of us who applied to both were considered a bit later for interviews than those that applied only UP. if you are invited for both, you can coordinate your schedule (if you want).

so I guess the most important thing is apply early?[/QUOTE]

My school starts sending out letters of evaluation during August. It seems that a lot of people from my school matriculated last year (9). Hopefully the August submission will not significantly harm my chances...
 
so I guess the most important thing is apply early?

Well, everyone will say people should apply early.

I looked back at my little spreadsheet. This is what it says with regards to Case:

Secondary received: 7/16 (first batch sent out)
Secondary submitted: 8/19 (I got very lazy :oops:)
Interview invitation: 10/22 (for CCLCM + UP)
Interview: late January (the earliest available for BOTH the programs)
Acceptance at CCLCM: early March

I think I even got reminders from Case for the secondary, or maybe it was some other school. :p But CCLCM interviews until late February I think, so you probably want to submit the secondary by mid-Sept to have a decent chance of scoring an interview, though the rules probably don't apply if you're a rockstar. I'm only speculating, so CCLCMer can probably give better details.
 
I do not have any experience with biomedical research, though.

Nor did I. I have a private-industry-based medical device R&D background.

IMHO the specific topic of the research is not as important as you showing interest and experience in intellectual research pursuits beyond 'passive learning' of the typical undergraduate, lecture-based education.
 
if I recall correctly, those of us who applied to both were considered a bit later for interviews than those that applied only UP. if you are invited for both, you can coordinate your schedule (if you want).

so I guess the most important thing is apply early?

If you apply to both, we try to coordinate between the two programs such that you only have to travel to Cleveland once. As the college program does not start reviewing applications until some point after the university program, there will be some delay for people who apply to both, though the delays this past cycle were more due to personnel shortages (as I understand it).
 
Right, but I think it should be stressed that the delay is likely 'academic' - minor enough that it shouldn't be a reason for not applying to both programs if you are interested in both.

Oh, certainly.:thumbup::)
 
...though the rules probably don't apply if you're a rockstar...

But you ARE a rockstar in my book, IHeart! :D

[See, I really am not THAT crazy! :cry: ]

OK...I'll do the same as IHeart:

Secondary received: 7/16 (same as IHeart )
Secondary submitted: 7/27
Interview invitation: 9/4 (for CCLCM + UP)
Interview: 10/13
Acceptance at University Program: 10/21
Acceptance at CCLCM: 12/19 (1st round of acceptances)
 
But you ARE a rockstar in my book, IHeart! :D

band.gif


Hehe.

Oh and just to re-emphasize that outcomes at one don't affect the other, I interviewed for UP, got put on hold and withdrew after I got into CCLCM. I think I know why I wasn't accepted:

Interviewer: So why do you want to come to Cleveland?
Me: (uh....crap crap crap, she'll never buy that I like snow...and I pretty much applied to Case for CCLCM, but I can't say that...oh no, long awkward silence, let me say something) I like what Cleveland has to offer, like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?*

:smack:

*Let me emphasize that I am not that into rock and roll to say that with a straight face.
 
How hard is it to get into this school? Is the only thing special about this school "The Cleveland Clinic"?
 
How hard is it to get into this school? Is the only thing special about this school "The Cleveland Clinic"?

Wow, no. I think with a little research, you'll find that both programs at Case offer you a great opportunity for learning and a fantastic environment in which to do so. I could go on at length, but I am not yet awake and will get back to you in a few hours.:p
 
Wow, no. I think with a little research, you'll find that both programs at Case offer you a great opportunity for learning and a fantastic environment in which to do so. I could go on at length, but I am not yet awake and will get back to you in a few hours.:p
+1

Please be more specific with your questions! If you don't, Myuu might make good on her threat! ;)
 
Yes, I was thinking of applying to CCLCM. I have about 2.5 years of research experience in 3 different labs. I do not have any experience with biomedical research, though.
That is not a requirement. There are several people in my class with research backgrounds in social sciences, physical sciences, non-medical life sciences, engineering, and clinical research. My research wasn't in biomedical science either.
 
I am, for sure.

Lebron leaving will make it hard to enjoy Cleveland tho, provided I get in...:D
 
Oh, and I will offer my assistance to anyone out there - although I can't help you guys too much! :) I was accepted to both the UP and the CP, and will be attending the CP (CCLCM) in July.








<------click my MDapps profile like if you want to learn more about me and my app.

Hi People
I am planning to apply to Case this year as well.
What are CP and UP? Can someone give me their full names and tell me a bit about them?
Thank you
 
Hi People
I am planning to apply to Case this year as well.
What are CP and UP? Can someone give me their full names and tell me a bit about them?
Thank you

CP=College Program=CCLCM=The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine

UP=University Program


Both are great programs that employ lots of self-directed and small group learning, but in different ways. The CCLCM people can tell you more about it, but CP is more research focused, has a smaller class size (32), and is based out of the Clinic. UP has a larger class size (165ish at present, including the MSTPs) and is based out of the Case campus proper, next to UH Case Medical Center. Students from both programs have access to physicians all over the city of Cleveland, be it at the Clinic, UH, VA or an off-site location.

Ask me a more specific question and I'll give you a more specific answer. :hungover: (vc7777, I'll get back to your leading questions in a bit. :hungover:)
 
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Although, first let me take this opportunity to take the thread's first top.
 
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