2010-2011 Oregon Health & Sciences University Application Thread

[HawaiiHereICome]

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So I was all set to submit my secondary today. Logged into the system and then saw that I missed the deadline to submit. (I never even saw that they gave a deadline in the first initial email <--- bad reading skills) Anyone know how lenient the admissions office is? Anyone else submit a secondary after the deadline? 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁 🙁

Ouch that really sucks, particularly if you wrote 4000 character essays. Why don't you call to make sure. I'm sure they will take your money. Good Luck!

 

[byurazorhog]

Finally submitted my secondary 9/20.

 

[IlaEm]

Ouch that really sucks, particularly if you wrote 4000 character essays. Why don't you call to make sure. I'm sure they will take your money. Good Luck!

Yeah I had already written all of the essays. And, I decided to apply to the MD/MPH program so I wrote that essay too! I called admissions today and they told me you can submit the secondary after the deadline and there is no penalty. All applications, late or on-time, are reviewed the same.

PHEW!!! Thanks for the luck! I needed it. Finally submitted my secondary today 🙂

 

[byurazorhog]

Does anyone know where the admissions office is located at the school? I walked around the Richard Jones basic sciences bldg and Mackenzie hall yesterday and could not find it.

Also when I read through the secondary instructions I remember their saying that our secondaries were not going to be reviewed before the deadline. Does that mean that if I had been given the deadline of 10/8 for the secondary, my app would not be considered before then regardless of actual submission date?

 

[Dr. Saturn]

Does anyone know where the admissions office is located at the school? I walked around the Richard Jones basic sciences bldg and Mackenzie hall yesterday and could not find it.

Also when I read through the secondary instructions I remember their saying that our secondaries were not going to be reviewed before the deadline. Does that mean that if I had been given the deadline of 10/8 for the secondary, my app would not be considered before then regardless of actual submission date?

The admissions office is on the 4th floor of Mackenzie Hall (Mac Hall). The problem is all the buildings are joined, and if you get in the wrong stairwell, you wont get there. So, go into Mac Hall and ask. If you go in the central door by the fountain, turn right and take the stairwell at the end of the hall. It says "Office of the Dean" when you get up there, and there is a guy at a counter in front who can help you. They are pretty nice there really.

When I was in there last week, they told me they were processing applications from the first of the month. It sounded like they did them when they got them. Perhaps they are saying it may not be before the due date?

 

[Acoustic]

Finally submitted my secondary 9/20.

Hey me too! Last night. Let's have a race to see who gets news first! haha.

I'm a reapplicant, and last year I remember it being in the range of several months. I think I submitted my secondary in November (SUPER late applicant last year) and received an interview invitation the first week of March.

So the "it's a marathon not a sprint" saying for this process really applies to OHSU. But it's definitely worth it - OHSU is in my top 3 schools.

Good Luck!

 

[byurazorhog]

Hey me too! Last night. Let's have a race to see who gets news first! haha.

I'm a reapplicant, and last year I remember it being in the range of several months. I think I submitted my secondary in November (SUPER late applicant last year) and received an interview invitation the first week of March.

So the "it's a marathon not a sprint" saying for this process really applies to OHSU. But it's definitely worth it - OHSU is in my top 3 schools.

Good Luck!

Hey acoustic, you're on On a more serious note, did you get post-interview feedback last year from admissions as to what your weak points were? Do you think your late interview ultimately hurt your chances last cycle? OHSU is my state school so it's definitely one of my top choices as well, although I'd be ecstatic to get in anywhere. This process is getting more and more competitive with time.

 

[HawaiiHereICome]

Is it true they have a hanging cable car that connects to the campus

I would totally pick a school for silly/neat things like this

 

[Acoustic]

Hey acoustic, you're on On a more serious note, did you get post-interview feedback last year from admissions as to what your weak points were? Do you think your late interview ultimately hurt your chances last cycle? OHSU is my state school so it's definitely one of my top choices as well, although I'd be ecstatic to get in anywhere. This process is getting more and more competitive with time.

Ya I did. I was given the distinct impression throughout the cycle and from the exit interview that time of submission has next to no bearing on chances of admission. The exit interview was really helpful, and I was told actual percentages on scores. If you have particular questions about it, like why they said I wasn't admitted, then you can pm me (it might be helpful, but not everyone wants to read that...). It was definitely NOT related to my late application, but more uncertainty about extracurriculars that came up during the interviews.

They did give some feedback as to how selection went. A strong emphasis is placed on screening for candidates who meet their diversity and mission statement. If you search their website / FAQ there is a section that says something along the lines of target or mission groups or something like that. If you fall into one of those and have at least decent scores you get an interview. Keep in mind that your GPA is CORRECTED at OHSU. Their lines for competitive GPA was definitely above what mine was, but I was corrected to a "highly competitive" GPA because of the school I went to. At the interview they screen based more on personality, motivation, passion for medicine, maturity etc. I would imagine if there were more people who met those criteria than were spots for interviews they would select the ones who met more of the areas. If you're instate you will have a distinct advantage if you meet one of those other criteria, from my impressions at least. At the interview, though, those criteria, even residency, probably will have next to no weight on your interview score and eventual admission. I might have misunderstood the exit interviewer, but it seemed like she was saying that coming from Oregon only helped you get an interview, it didn't help you get admission.

It seems that if you get an interview, things like application date are going to have no bearing on your application, and it CERTAINLY is early enough in the cycle for OHSU to not be concerned at all about submitting your secondary now. There are aspects which make it impossible for any school to have completely non-rolling admissions for interview selection though. For example, my super late application (I think I submitted the secondary on the absolute latest possible day) left me with like 3 days to choose for an interview. Things are obviously more competitive if there are only 3 interview days left you know? Good luck!

 

[Acoustic]

Is it true they have a hanging cable car that connects to the campus

I would totally pick a school for silly/neat things like this

Yep they do lol. You can see it on their website. That picture is horribly misleading though. It looks like the car doesn't really go up in altitude very much, but the difference between where it starts and ends is pretty large, as the OHSU main campus is on a hill and the newer campus isn't. It really is an exceptionally gorgeous location for a school.

 

[Wermz]

exceptionally gorgeous and exceptionally ridiculous lol. traffic up and down the hill sometimes sucks b/c the roads are skinny and windy.

being on a hill, ohsu would be a great place to be when the zombie apocalypse comes. tons of hospital facilities, steep hills, easy to wall off, etc.

 

[Dr. Saturn]

Yep they do lol. You can see it on their website. That picture is horribly misleading though. It looks like the car doesn't really go up in altitude very much, but the difference between where it starts and ends is pretty large, as the OHSU main campus is on a hill and the newer campus isn't. It really is an exceptionally gorgeous location for a school.

Fortunately, the med school is pretty concentrated on the hill. I hate the sky tram (scared of heights). I have to look at my feet the whole time and pretend I am elsewhere.

Any of you going into psych! You can practice on me!!

 

[ssahjm]

exceptionally gorgeous and exceptionally ridiculous lol. traffic up and down the hill sometimes sucks b/c the roads are skinny and windy.

being on a hill, ohsu would be a great place to be when the zombie apocalypse comes. tons of hospital facilities, steep hills, easy to wall off, etc.

I'll be putting this in the "pro" column when ranking potential schools!

 

[Againstalloddz]

exceptionally gorgeous and exceptionally ridiculous lol. traffic up and down the hill sometimes sucks b/c the roads are skinny and windy.

being on a hill, ohsu would be a great place to be when the zombie apocalypse comes. tons of hospital facilities, steep hills, easy to wall off, etc.

Definitely one of my criteria when selecting for medical schools to apply to. I wish they would include some more data on this in the MSAR

 

[HawaiiHereICome]

Fortunately, the med school is pretty concentrated on the hill. I hate the sky tram (scared of heights). I have to look at my feet the whole time and pretend I am elsewhere.

Any of you going into psych! You can practice on me!!

Sounds perfect. I love heights. If I get in here, I'm totally riding that skytram everyday. Come on Interview Invite

Oh last time I was in oregon there wasn't any sales tax. Is that still the case? Can I buy a car there without tax?

 

[Melicopter]

Is it true they have a hanging cable car that connects to the campus

I would totally pick a school for silly/neat things like this

The tram at sunset...

 

[Dr. Saturn]

Sounds perfect. I love heights. If I get in here, I'm totally riding that skytram everyday. Come on Interview Invite

Oh last time I was in oregon there wasn't any sales tax. Is that still the case? Can I buy a car there without tax?

No sales tax (but don't get me started on the politics of that--buy your car fast before anyone clues in on the fact that we would be paying a lot less for med. school if there was one).

And HawaiiHereICome, if I promise I am not hitting on you, will you hold my hand on the Sky Tram???????? Practice your physician empathy???

Oh, for those of you grooving on the heights and all, the main hospital, Dorenbecker (the children's hospital), and the VA are all connected by high sky bridges (walking).

 

[Wermz]

a lot of the OHSU buildings have some pretty killer views, if that's your thing.

And the neighborhoods up on the hill are pretty cool.

So I'm from vancouver, WA, which is obviously a different state than OHSU even though I live like 15 mins away. in fact the two cities are often bundled together and called the 'portlland-vancouver metropolitan area.' Think they might consider me a semi in-state applicant?

 

[ImmortaliaX]

The tram at sunset...

That looks absolutely awesome! Why doesn't the Midwest (well, Iowa and Minneapolis, anyway) have any hills??

 

[byurazorhog]

This picture does look stunning. I figured it must've been taken in the summer as you could hardly see the mountain on a rainy day. The tram is way overrated in my opinion. To get a good view, you simply need to go up the hill as many buildings there offer good vantage points already. The tram ride is only 3 minutes long and it gets old quickly.

Dr. Saturn: if you're a gal, I'll gladly hold your hand on the tram. I go up there a couple of times a week. And thanks for your directions to the admission office. Went there yesterday and met a very nice gentleman. I think the quickest stairway to get to it in Mac hall is at the end of the LEFT hallway from the fountain entrance. I took the one on the right and ended up in a different building as you had warned.

 

[AGLAIA]

The tram at sunset...

Not to be nit-picky, but wouldn't that be sunrise? You are looking east there.

As for fear of heights, until the clinical years there is likely little reason the tram would be required...and you could likely skip rotating on Facial Plastics, Sinus, Neurosurg, Ophtho, and Derm. 🙄😉

 

[Dr. Saturn]

This picture does look stunning. I figured it must've been taken in the summer as you could hardly see the mountain on a rainy day. The tram is way overrated in my opinion. To get a good view, you simply need to go up the hill as many buildings there offer good vantage points already. The tram ride is only 3 minutes long and it gets old quickly.

Dr. Saturn: if you're a gal, I'll gladly hold your hand on the tram. I go up there a couple of times a week. And thanks for your

directions to the admission office. Went there yesterday and met a very nice gentleman. I think the quickest stairway to get to it in Mac hall is at the end of the LEFT hallway from the fountain entrance. I took the one on the right and ended up in a different building as you had warned.

I am a gal!

See, twice I have taken the wrong stairway and got you on it too!!! So sorry.

Here are two pictures I took on my way in today. One is of the skybridge linking the VA to the main hospital. The other is the view from my lab. Taken with my Blackberry, so not wonderful shots, but you get the idea. Oh, and the sky over Portland is not really purple today. I am just trying to master iPhoto! oops.

Another odd thing about this campus is that you can enter a building from the street and find yourself on floor 3! Dorenbecker has a lobby, then floor 7 through 10. Kind of odd.

 

[Againstalloddz]

wow that's an amazing view...my lab doesn't even have a window and if it did, it wouldn't look anything like that.

 

[DoctorDang]

Working on the secondary!Received it like 4 days ago

Man...4000 characters..each..😱
I'm still trying to finish the first one!
I'm having trouble with the second one though, anyone has any good ideas?😳

 

[Acoustic]

Working on the secondary!Received it like 4 days ago

Man...4000 characters..each..😱
I'm still trying to finish the first one!
I'm having trouble with the second one though, anyone has any good ideas?😳

The diversity one? I think only you know the answer to that... Just describe/be yourself.

 

[ImmortaliaX]

Working on the secondary!Received it like 4 days ago

Man...4000 characters..each..😱
I'm still trying to finish the first one!
I'm having trouble with the second one though, anyone has any good ideas?😳

Agree with the "be yourself" (corny, huh 😛). Also, 4000 chars is the limit... I think my essays were both near 3500. good luck writing!

 

[PackAttack87]

I'm stoked!!! I was sitting at work, doing some data entry, having a terrible go at it, and then I got an e-mail for an interview invite!!! I'm so so excited. 🙂

 

[Acoustic]

I'm stoked!!! I was sitting at work, doing some data entry, having a terrible go at it, and then I got an e-mail for an interview invite!!! I'm so so excited. 🙂

Mind sharing when you were complete and your stats?

 

[Northwesterly]

Congrats PackAttack! I got mine this afternoon as well.
(Complete 8/16, 3.6/3.9, 36R, IS for those keeping track.)

 

[Dianyla]

Congrats on the interview invites, PackAttack and Northwesterly!

Are these only arriving via email, or weren't some folks saying they got a phone call?

 

[Northwesterly]

Are these only arriving via email, or weren't some folks saying they got a phone call?

My notification was in the form of an email, though it also showed up on the admissions portal.

 

[QuesoAndFromage]

if the GPAs are corrected, do you think my school (a top tier UC, LA/Berkely) would be considered "competitive"? I only ask because I am out of state with a 3.63/34 at the time of AMCAS submission-- meaning I am technically not a "mission-based applicant" (GPA <3.65)-- though my most recent transcript (including spring and summer quarters, which were not included in AMCAS) brings me up to above a 3.65.. should I call them and try to update them or would it not matter due to my mcat or gpa correction?

 

[Wermz]

i'm no expert, but i say call. it shows interest too.

 

[Dr. Saturn]

if the GPAs are corrected, do you think my school (a top tier UC, LA/Berkely) would be considered "competitive"? I only ask because I am out of state with a 3.63/34 at the time of AMCAS submission-- meaning I am technically not a "mission-based applicant" (GPA <3.65)-- though my most recent transcript (including spring and summer quarters, which were not included in AMCAS) brings me up to above a 3.65.. should I call them and try to update them or would it not matter due to my mcat or gpa correction?

On the admissions portal there are instructions for making changes by sending a letter. You might consider writing it and faxing it in. Then maybe call to see if they got it and will include it?

 

[Acoustic]

if the GPAs are corrected, do you think my school (a top tier UC, LA/Berkely) would be considered "competitive"? I only ask because I am out of state with a 3.63/34 at the time of AMCAS submission-- meaning I am technically not a "mission-based applicant" (GPA <3.65)-- though my most recent transcript (including spring and summer quarters, which were not included in AMCAS) brings me up to above a 3.65.. should I call them and try to update them or would it not matter due to my mcat or gpa correction?

I can tell you that GPA is definitely corrected by school and that you should absolutely not worry about yours based on your school. I have a very similar background and am basing this on the exit interview from last year.

 

[PackAttack87]

Sure, I have no problem sharing stuff, but ya cant laugh. My GPA is right at 3.7, and my MCAT was a 27 something. Im also from rural eastern Oregon and i have had tons of community service and healthcare related service and even some international stuff, so I think that helped pull in my favor. I only applied to 4 MD schools and have thus far gotten an interview at one. I am truly, truly blessed to have an interview here. Hope we get to see each other next fall!🙂

 

[PackAttack87]

I also forgot to mention, i submitted my secondary on august 3rd, the day after I got it. I received my invite via e-mail.

 

[Melicopter]

Not to be nit-picky, but wouldn't that be sunrise? You are looking east there.

As for fear of heights, until the clinical years there is likely little reason the tram would be required...and you could likely skip rotating on Facial Plastics, Sinus, Neurosurg, Ophtho, and Derm. 🙄😉

Ooh. Picky, but touché. I looked at the color of the sky and didn't really engage my brain re: what it was a picture of.

As far as the person who said the tram gets boring or old or whatever you said... why the heck are you so down on the tram? I can ride the bus down the hill in about 5 minutes, or I can take the tram, connect to the streetcar, and get to the same place downtown in 20. But which is more fun?? I guess I'm just easy to please, but I love the tram.

As was stated above, though, there's no reason you have to take the tram. Unless you are going to the gym or the offices at the bottom, or if you live down there, you have little reason to use it. It's free for students, though, which is nice.

 

[cfx]

Does OHSU send out emails for A) secondary received, or B) payment received?

I haven't gotten either. I know I did both, but I always have a lingering feeling like something isn't right until they tell me it is.

 

[HawaiiHereICome]

No sales tax (but don't get me started on the politics of that--buy your car fast before anyone clues in on the fact that we would be paying a lot less for med. school if there was one).

And HawaiiHereICome, if I promise I am not hitting on you, will you hold my hand on the Sky Tram???????? Practice your physician empathy???

Oh, for those of you grooving on the heights and all, the main hospital, Dorenbecker (the children's hospital), and the VA are all connected by high sky bridges (walking).

Tell you what, I'll hold you in my arms and we can watch the sun set together 😉

 

[Acoustic]

Does OHSU send out emails for A) secondary received, or B) payment received?

I haven't gotten either. I know I did both, but I always have a lingering feeling like something isn't right until they tell me it is.

I believe they only send an email for the 1st. I don't think they do about payment, but then again I had a fee waiver so I have no idea how that works.

I can say that they send out emails for interviews... well at least they did last year.

 

[ImmortaliaX]

Does OHSU send out emails for A) secondary received, or B) payment received?

I haven't gotten either. I know I did both, but I always have a lingering feeling like something isn't right until they tell me it is.

Just checked my status with OHSU thanks to reading this post and found out that I was complete yesterday! I haven't received any emails with secondary received, payment received, or secondary complete though.

 

[Simplify]

Have any of you submitted update letters to OHSU? I think they allude to the fact that they do not take update letters. I am curious if anyone has done so anyway (and been successful).

 

[Dr. Saturn]

Have any of you submitted update letters to OHSU? I think they allude to the fact that they do not take update letters. I am curious if anyone has done so anyway (and been successful).

I submitted an update letter for a minor point. I misspelled a name in one place. I handed it to someone in the admissions office who said no problem, she'd take care of it. Then I kept logging on to see if it was changed, and it never did. I waited over a week and went back with a new copy of my letter to inquire. I was told they just hand correct it on their copies, it doesn't get into the system.

So, I guess you just have to take it on faith, but they will take corrections.

 

[Dr. Saturn]

Have any of you submitted update letters to OHSU? I think they allude to the fact that they do not take update letters. I am curious if anyone has done so anyway (and been successful).

Oh, I missed the first part of your post for some reason. If you log on to the admissions portal, on the first page it specifically tells you how to update your contact information electronically and how to change anything else by submitting it in writing, and they list an address.

 

[Simplify]

Thanks!

 

[Melicopter]

Just checked my status with OHSU thanks to reading this post and found out that I was complete yesterday! I haven't received any emails with secondary received, payment received, or secondary complete though.

I didn't get half the emails I was supposed to from them...probably still don't!

Make sure you're not using a gmail account, and use your application page to check your status. Even if they do email you, the status page is updated first. That's how it was last year, anyway.

 

[E11]

Make sure you're not using a gmail account.

May I ask what is wrong with a gmail account specifically? Does stuff get stuck in the spam filter? I check that compulsively with my inbox 🙂

 

[DoctorDang]

Agree with the "be yourself" (corny, huh 😛). Also, 4000 chars is the limit... I think my essays were both near 3500. good luck writing!

Thanks!

 

[Melicopter]

May I ask what is wrong with a gmail account specifically? Does stuff get stuck in the spam filter? I check that compulsively with my inbox 🙂

I wish I knew. I also check the spam and junk folders - the emails don't end up there. They just don't get through at all. I find it annoying that they can't work with it, but admissions finds it annoying that so many of us use gmail... so I gave up since I'm the one who needs the info. 🙂