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Do you think I should ask them? All it says in the portal is regarding the dual degree.....
Also, do you know if all three spots have been confirmed and taken?
2010-2011 Oregon Health & Sciences University Application Thread
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Do you think I should ask them? All it says in the portal is regarding the dual degree.....
Also, do you know if all three spots have been confirmed and taken?
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I am so very much confused. Hopefully someone can help me. I received an email and portal update today that I was placed on the 'alternate list' for the MD/MPH program. However no where does it say what I am ranked and I am confused as to whether I am still on the MD waitlist? I am an Oregon resident so do qualify for that. Any ideas??
Here's the email I got:
The Admissions Committee for the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine would like to inform you as to the status of your application to the M.D./M.P.H. combined degree program for the 2011 entering class. The entering placements have been chosen along with an alternate list.
You have been selected for the alternate list. Consequently, if an applicant withdraws their acceptance, action will be initiated by selecting from the list. Each year the number of applicants accepted from the alternate list is different, therefore at this point it would be premature to provide you with any projections for this year.
Please find attached a form that we ask you to complete and return to the Office of Admissions no later than May 27, 2011, indicating whether or not you wish to remain on the alternate list. If we do not receive the form back from you by this date we will assume that you do not wish to remain on the alternate list and must withdraw your application from further consideration. If you choose to remain on the list, you will be contacted immediately if a placement can be offered to you. Alternate positions are held through first-year student orientation, which begins August 15, 2011.
Here's the email I got:
The Admissions Committee for the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine would like to inform you as to the status of your application to the M.D./M.P.H. combined degree program for the 2011 entering class. The entering placements have been chosen along with an alternate list.
You have been selected for the alternate list. Consequently, if an applicant withdraws their acceptance, action will be initiated by selecting from the list. Each year the number of applicants accepted from the alternate list is different, therefore at this point it would be premature to provide you with any projections for this year.
Please find attached a form that we ask you to complete and return to the Office of Admissions no later than May 27, 2011, indicating whether or not you wish to remain on the alternate list. If we do not receive the form back from you by this date we will assume that you do not wish to remain on the alternate list and must withdraw your application from further consideration. If you choose to remain on the list, you will be contacted immediately if a placement can be offered to you. Alternate positions are held through first-year student orientation, which begins August 15, 2011.
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Many things actually... both in employment and in the school application.
First of all .. I have a Master's degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. I have been applying to research positions at OHSU for MANY months, close to a year. So now I am volunteering in a lab where two (white) girls are employed who say the knew NOTHING about DNA when they first started working. So ... yeh, that hit a nerve. That's of course is not the only incident, I see many UNDER-qualified people being hired left and right.
My interviewer came 20 minutes late ! He was very unapologetic.
My second interviewer, after phishing to know my religious background (which is Muslim btw), spent about 15 minutes discussing whether I would be embarrassed working with male patients. I said no, I worked with male patients a lot, some where *exposed. She insisted on asking whether I'm okay with them getting erections. I blushed, I'm a virgin, and even if they do get an erection, I'm professional, I'll do what I need to do and leave.
Umm... what else...
or right...
discrimination against appearance. Almost all of the students who got accepted the previous years were thin or normal weight, some could be mistaken for models. I am visibly chubby.
So yeh... Race, Religion, Appearance.
If I don't get in, so be it. I am 100% sure I'll make it into a better school next year. But I am not going down with out a fight. I saw matriculation pics from the past years, and I can tell you that there isn't as much diversity, and when they do choose a minority, they pick asian (which is also light skinned ... and thin).
So yeh... Master's Degree in Biochemistry, ample research experience, 2 years volunteering in clinics, hospitals and shadowing ... and now I am 61 on the list and can't land a research job at OHSU.
What pisses me off the most is how a girl I knew last year got accepted with a 3.45 (undergraduate) GPA from Portland State (not exactly a difficult school, my GPA was 3.74).
-Excuse my spelling mistakes... I am at wit's ends right now.
Oh... and did I mention that I know 4 languages (Arabic, English, French and Spanish).
Very well traveled ... actually lived in and shadowed doctors in a foreign country (Egypt).
So yeh... I'm pretty bad-ass... I don't see a good explanation for landing as #61.
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You're probably not going to find any solace in this, but better people than you get waitlisted and outright rejected all the time.
Just so you don't misinterpret that, "better" was in no way referring to your race, religion, or weight.
Just so you don't misinterpret that, "better" was in no way referring to your race, religion, or weight.
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I understand that, ... but what I don't get is why waist seats on "weaker" candidates.
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Good luck to those waiting to hear the good news! Keep the faith!
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I'm sorry you feel the way you do, but I think you're taking it too personally.
There were about 5,000 applicants, and if your wait list number is 61 that means you were in the top 200 people. (128 initial offers + 61st on the wait list means you were ranked at 189 overall.)
You weren't rejected--you were accepted if there's room. Your rank is in the top 5% of all applicants, and no lawyer, judge, or jury is going to think you were discriminated against with that rank, especially since OHSU has taken people off the waitlist with numbers that high in years past.
It's amazing how offended you seem, when just yesterday someone with a MCAT score of 36 (96th percentile!) was very gracious on this message board after not even being put on the waitlist. I'd rather have him as a classmate than you if this is how you deal with adversity.
Maybe your interviewers sensed that you have a combative, litigious, and entitled personality?
Anyway... sorry 🙁 better luck next time
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If you don't get in, have the exit interview and they'll tell you what they felt were weaknesses in your application.
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Just checked my status for the first time since my interview to see if I needed to formally withdraw from the waitlist... turns out I got rejected about 2 months ago 🙄
Bummed that my spot won't help move the WL rankings, but best of luck! Portland is a great city, and I loved it while I was there. Just got a better offer, ya know how it goes.
Bummed that my spot won't help move the WL rankings, but best of luck! Portland is a great city, and I loved it while I was there. Just got a better offer, ya know how it goes.
Hey thanks hopefuldoc97239 for your interview advice
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#32. Chances seem somewhat uncertain based on what's been said on this thread...More anxiety ridden days! Yippee!
Westside yeah that must be frustrating. Just curious, did they just send you that or did you find out earlier today?
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#84. Too bad they didn't let me send an update letter 🙁 This was probably my top choice school, oh well...
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on there. I'm from the Middle East, look it, and was accepted. I didn't feel any of these things during my day there. Likely, you just had a interviewer who rubbed you the wrong way when he was late, and another who wanted to test your character by asking potentially uncomfortable questions. I've heard of interviewers straight up asking people how often they masturbate as a way to see how they deal with a shocking and uncomfortable situation. If you want to be an MD, you have to be comfortable around that sort of stuff so that your patients can feel at ease discussing them. I'm sorry you feel this way, but you were, as someone else said, in the top 200 of 5000 candidates. Many a thin white girl landed lower, I can promise.
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@Portlandia:
Obviously you and the Dr./PhD/Whatever were the only ones present at your interview, but it sounds like some of the questions were borderline inappropriate, which sucks. A good time to bring it to the Adcom's attention would be post-interview and pre-decision, because now it looks a little like sour grapes. (I'm passing no judgment here, just pointing out the optics.) That said, we live in a very imperfect society and I'm well aware that being a tall, (relatively) thin white male doesn't exactly make my life a vale of sorrows.
But as far as the lawsuit thing goes, I'd just point out the misconception I see pretty frequently here on SDN. It is the internet, and people have quasi-anonymous usernames, but it's not really *anonymous*. The real world can be surprisingly small and close at hand, and all it takes is one person drawing a connection to create a real mess.
Look, I was pretty upset when I got my rejection. I vented to my wife about it. Hell, I vented to my dog, the lawn furniture, and the cool midnight breeze. But I didn't vent on SDN. You can call it self-censorship, but I think it's more useful. I try to act like a grownup when I'm speaking (or typing) in public, and the more I try, the easier it gets. Am I still frustrated that I didn't get in? Of course. Do I think I deserved to? Maybe. But the real point is, where do I go from here? Because next year's app isn't going to write itself. It sounds like you have plenty of reasons to be frustrated, and lots of success to look forward to. Good luck.
Obviously you and the Dr./PhD/Whatever were the only ones present at your interview, but it sounds like some of the questions were borderline inappropriate, which sucks. A good time to bring it to the Adcom's attention would be post-interview and pre-decision, because now it looks a little like sour grapes. (I'm passing no judgment here, just pointing out the optics.) That said, we live in a very imperfect society and I'm well aware that being a tall, (relatively) thin white male doesn't exactly make my life a vale of sorrows.
But as far as the lawsuit thing goes, I'd just point out the misconception I see pretty frequently here on SDN. It is the internet, and people have quasi-anonymous usernames, but it's not really *anonymous*. The real world can be surprisingly small and close at hand, and all it takes is one person drawing a connection to create a real mess.
Look, I was pretty upset when I got my rejection. I vented to my wife about it. Hell, I vented to my dog, the lawn furniture, and the cool midnight breeze. But I didn't vent on SDN. You can call it self-censorship, but I think it's more useful. I try to act like a grownup when I'm speaking (or typing) in public, and the more I try, the easier it gets. Am I still frustrated that I didn't get in? Of course. Do I think I deserved to? Maybe. But the real point is, where do I go from here? Because next year's app isn't going to write itself. It sounds like you have plenty of reasons to be frustrated, and lots of success to look forward to. Good luck.
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I don't think that it would hurt to ask. If you've been given a waitlist spot, contacting the school isn't going to change it, and worst case scenario you have the same amount of info/insight that you have right now.
Also, I didn't mention this before, but even if you are holding a spot on the MD-only waitlist, you will not be told your number if you are in the dual degree program. The school considers those numbers "misleading" because you are not guaranteed a spot in the combined program once your waitlist number has been reached.
All MD/PhD spots for next year have been filled. The students have all strongly confirmed (and have even been invited to next fall's MD/PhD BBQ). Unless someone is still on a secret, "dream school" waitlist, it seems fairly unlikely that the MD/PhD waitlist will move this year.
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If it is going to be the same for the MD/PhD and MD/MPH programs, I just sent an email to ask about this. I will let you know as soon as I find out.
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Are you sure that your lack of acceptance isn't at all related to how completely insufferable you are?
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I fell your pain in rejection. I had an outright rejection (w/o an interview) the first time. It really is horrid.
About the discrimination you wrote about... After you've calmed down and had a chance to think about it, I would encourage you to consider talking to an Integrity Officer and someone in the CeDMA office (Ms. Garcia or Dr. Orchard). The inappropriate (and perhaps illegal) questions are matters that should be taken seriously.
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Oh.. okay... well, here's some food for thought (and pretty much what ticked me off and pushed me over the edge).
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2011/05/a_rental_market_rife_with_raci.html
...and I am not "insufferable", I call it as I see it and I see a state-wide trend.
I am a punk at heart, and I don't take "no" for an answer. I am aggressive when I need to be and I'm proud of it, and I don't expect you to understand any of this (especially if you weren't on the receiving end of these situations).
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@NW, thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it.
I think I should point this out before you dig yourself any deeper: you are posting among people who have been accepted [who you're begrudging as undeserving] people who were rejected [they're worse off than you] and people who were waitlisted [who are in the same boat as you, but are apparently more deserving of their fate than you]-- it's not that we aren't sympathetic, or "haven't been there" but you're conflating what were probably some lackluster interviews to a broad conspiracy, and toeing the line on some rather libelous accusations, whereas the rest of us presumably didn't deserve our acceptances if we got them, since you didn't get one.
You don't call it like you see it, you call it like you believe it, because you're so self-absorbed that you're completely unaware of the effect you have on other people. You come before a crowd of people who almost definitely exceed your achievements in one aspect or another and suggest that you're being persecuted because you're not placed ahead of them. The fact that you don't realize how ludicrous your position is and offer as support an -opinion- page article on an unrelated topic provides an interesting perspective on why your interviews might not have gone so well.
Anyway, nevermind all that, everyone's out to get you and the response you got from all of us here is no indication of your ability to work with other people. Or maybe we're all racists, too, even the guy from the Middle East [classic self-loathing].
And you felt like the best and most mature way to handle it was to post on a message board? Everyone on interview day was given the phone number of someone in admissions if you felt your interviews were poor or inappropriate. Did you discuss it then? You should have contacted the Dean's office directly after your inappropriate interview. Or as someone mentioned above you can contact CEDMA. If I had interviews like yours I would be outraged as well, but I would have done something constructive about it immediately when it could have been rectified...not weeks or months after the fact.
You may have a great GPA and a MASTERS degree and speak 4 languages, but clearly you need some remedial education in grace and humility. I also don't take no for an answer, but there is a great way to be politic and I can promise you that you will get better results. Believe you me, I understand your frustration, but many candidates with better stats than you were not accepted either. One guy on this msg board applied to OHSU 4 times before being accepted. His diligence is admirable and I'm sure he's going to be a more passionate student and better doctor because of the challenge and adversity that he faced.
And no, you're not "bad-ass"...you just sound like an ass. A bad-ass wins the lottery and donates it all to feed the hungry. Mother Theresa was a bad-ass...you, not so much.
Best of luck and peace to you. I hope you find what you're looking for.
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Here is a compiled list of the number of people taken off the waitlist. Below also is a graph Chuck84 made, so don't thank me thank him!
I know some us are now officially (sigh), waitlisted and will have to endure many more days of stressful uncertainty, hopefully this info will help each of understand the process better.
Good luck to everyone who hasn't heard back yet, remember you are still in it and we are all pulling for you.
2003: #90's
2004: #64
2005: not sure
2006: #98
2007: #77
2008: #57
2009: #37
2010:#32
2011: We'll see
I know some us are now officially (sigh), waitlisted and will have to endure many more days of stressful uncertainty, hopefully this info will help each of understand the process better.
Good luck to everyone who hasn't heard back yet, remember you are still in it and we are all pulling for you.
2003: #90's
2004: #64
2005: not sure
2006: #98
2007: #77
2008: #57
2009: #37
2010:#32
2011: We'll see
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Here is a compiled list of the number of people taken off the waitlist. Below also is a graph Chuck84 made, so don't thank me thank him!
I know some us are now officially (sigh), waitlisted and will have to endure many more days of stressful uncertainty, hopefully this info will help each of understand the process better.
Good luck to everyone who hasn't heard back yet, remember you are still in it and we are all pulling for you.
2003: #90's
2004: #64
2005: not sure
2006: #98
2007: #77
2008: #57
2009: #37
2010:#32
2011: We'll see
Where'd all the data come from? Also, this should mean that if ~30 people get in off the waitlist, someone at #60 might still have a shot if 30 drop their waitlisted status (not too sure how likely that is, but at least it's possible 🙂)
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Oh, no, those aren't the only 2 qualifiers... here's the list I think, as posted on the portal:
- Residents of Oregon
- WICHE-certified residents of Montana and Wyoming
- Non-resident applicants with superior achievements in academics and other related experiences. (For this admissions cycle, superior academics is defined as a cumulative Total GPA, as reported by AMCAS, of 3.65 or higher & most recent eligible MCAT of 32 or higher.)
- Applicants identified as Diversity applicants, through a holistic review of their application.
Good luck 🙂
If they've already made the waitlist then how are those who haven't heard yet still in the running? I mean they can wedge someone in? Do they only fill in ranges like 1-10 11-20 etc?
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Yes there is always hope! Especially with OHSU, because really who knows what they are going to do?
Regarding the data, and perhaps and Chuck can chime in here, I believe it was collected from info from previous year's OHSU forums on SDN.
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Thanks! I will definitely get in touch with the admissions. I will keep my hopes until the end.
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The data is from OHSU. And I'm pretty sure the y axis refers to designated waitlist spot reached, not number of students accepted from the waitlist--4 years ago, for example, I seriously doubt that OHSU filled 77 out of 115 spots (or 67%!) in their class from the waitlist. Instead, they had to check with waitlistees number 1 through 77 to fill the class of 115 (or 117, 120, whatever.)
That said, the numbers have certainly bumped back up before, so if you're anywhere in the top sixty or seventy, fingers crossed!
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Yup, dashes are where I couldnt find anyone posting anything. 2010 was from the admissions portal though, so that year is the most accurate
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Hey thanks NW for catching my error, I agree that the graph is showing what number was reached on the waitlist, not the number of students taken from the waitlist.
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Yeah, I wish I could persuade myself otherwise, but...
Still, there's every reason to hope this year will yield higher waitlist numbers. If nothing else the bump to 128 spots and 13 leftover spots should help. (32+8+13 wouldn't be bad, right?)
And Gara, sorry to see you didn't get a higher (lower!) number, but besides holding on to some hope, I'd at least take encouragement from the fact that you're withing fractions of a point of getting an acceptance--you really shouldn't have to change much to get an acceptance next year (I wish I could say the same!) It's maddening to come so close if you don't make it this year, but it's certainly no knock on your abilities to rank that high.
Thanks Northwesterly. I just don't know how I'm really going to change anything in so short a time so as to make a difference in the next round.
I think the biggest thing making me feel better is that this time I won't apply so late or stupidly and I think that choosing my schools much better will give me an acceptance somewhere (even if it's not OHSU).
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Sorry you're down the list Gara. I wish you luck in this coming cycle and hopefully you'll get a pleasant surprise later this summer (you never know).
PM me if you interview at Tucson, I'll buy you a pint after 🙂
Thanks and for sure 🙂
I did just talk to someone who had withdrawn months ago and he still got a waitlist ranking. Maybe they made some sort of mistake and added withdrawn applications? We can dream right?
Thanks and for sure 🙂
I did just talk to someone who had withdrawn months ago and he still got a waitlist ranking. Maybe they made some sort of mistake and added withdrawn applications? We can dream right?
I am 49 i think and withdrawing
Thanks and for sure 🙂
I did just talk to someone who had withdrawn months ago and he still got a waitlist ranking. Maybe they made some sort of mistake and added withdrawn applications? We can dream right?
I will be withdrawing as well! 🙂
#45... found at this morning after checking my email every 15 minutes starting at 6:30 am and now trying to figure out if I should start studying for the MCATs again... The downward trend of the number of people getting off the waitlist in recent years is a little disheartening....
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I called today as well. It is like dragonfly said earlier, you need to be in a mission-based group to be considered or else you will not be looked at.
Apparently I won't be considered because I don't fit any of the mission based groups due to my lower GPA. This is a bummer.
So does anyone happen to know if it's 13 leftover spots going into the waitlist or have all the spots been offered and now we're waiting for people to drop them?
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Good luck everyone! I don't know why the waitlist numbers have gone down in the last couple of years, but I hope they go up a bit this year for the sake of those waiting!
In defending my school against the racism accusation, I'd say the skimming of the student pictures was not thorough. I don't know the other classes well, but just in my class there are two African-Americans, two girl whose families are from Iran (I have not asked them their religious practices), one Lebanese person, and a few other tan-ish people whose heritage I do not know. While I'm not a minority, so can't relate to that particular type of discrimination, I can tell you that my impression is we have more diversity in our class than is typically seen in this state.
That said, if someone asked me my religion in an interview, I'd probably tell him/her that it I felt it was an inappropriate question, and ask why it was relevant. I would then decide how to answer depending on the reply, and in your case it does seem relevant. If I still felt the interview was inappropriate, I would report it immediately afterward. Complaining only after getting a bad result seems less like real offense and more like bitterness. I had clinic with a third-year student who wore a hijab. Obviously this is not a deal-breaker.
Anyway, back to the important things. This school is pretty great. I hope many of you anxiously waiting get in! 🙂
In defending my school against the racism accusation, I'd say the skimming of the student pictures was not thorough. I don't know the other classes well, but just in my class there are two African-Americans, two girl whose families are from Iran (I have not asked them their religious practices), one Lebanese person, and a few other tan-ish people whose heritage I do not know. While I'm not a minority, so can't relate to that particular type of discrimination, I can tell you that my impression is we have more diversity in our class than is typically seen in this state.
That said, if someone asked me my religion in an interview, I'd probably tell him/her that it I felt it was an inappropriate question, and ask why it was relevant. I would then decide how to answer depending on the reply, and in your case it does seem relevant. If I still felt the interview was inappropriate, I would report it immediately afterward. Complaining only after getting a bad result seems less like real offense and more like bitterness. I had clinic with a third-year student who wore a hijab. Obviously this is not a deal-breaker.
Anyway, back to the important things. This school is pretty great. I hope many of you anxiously waiting get in! 🙂
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