2010-2011 Stanford University Application Thread

[Arsenophilia]

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Ok I see what you mean now. California feel means "laidback," which is what I prefer as well. And in terms of faculty do you mean the people that interviewed you?

Primarily those who have interviewed me. The 1-1 setting helped me feel them out better than if I were part of a group that was speaking with them, plus many of the presentations were done by the admissions staff rather than the faculty.

Also, all of my PIs have been super laidback (were talking hawaiian shirt, shorts and barefoot in the wetlab).

 

[mdphd72]

UPenn and Hopkins provide exactly the same support. I have not found any differences. At both institutions most students graduate after 5 years exactly because of that reason. I do think that all three schools give you a different "vibe" and that is what I am going with. Of all three schools, Hopkins assigns the students to four "colleges" of roughly 30 students each. Advisors and faculty stay with you throughout the medical school years as a way of fostering cooperation, closeness among students and professors, etc. UPenn has the largest class of all three, and I am looking forward to see how that plays out during PennPreview. Stanford has the smallest class size (but only 18 less than Hopkins).

Anyway, those with other personal experiences feel free to chime in.

Based on what you said, I would think that these three institutions would be absolute top picks for me. I think they would be great institutions to attend because that was seriously what made me fall in love with Stanford. And I would definitely agree about the different vibes.

 

[mdphd72]

I agree with most of this, but I don't think it's fair to say other schools just have a mold and Stanford lets you explore and other places don't. I'd say Duke does this more than any other med school. They give you a full year to do whatever you want, and you still graduate in 4 years so I don't think you can say Stanford is the most flexible and most accommodating to dual-degrees/other pursuits. Yet while they are not the most accommodating school they are definitely one of the most accommodating schools. So, I think people really love Stanford because it is a great school with a great name/reputation, top notch research, and is in a very vacation-esque location. I really think location is probably the #1 reason people pick Stanford over Penn/Hopkins and even Harvard.

I would say that all the other schools that I applied to had a mold and a "graduating class of" instead of an "entering class of". I don't doubt that there are a few other institutions like Stanford, and I would consider them to be the best of the best and the top, probably, 10% or so of institutions (IMO of course).

I also have opinions about the dual based degrees that lean towards Stanford. For instance, when I hear Stanford, I think of top notch Stanford Law, Stanford Engineering, Stanford Biology, Stanford Medicine, etc. But when I hear Hopkins, I only think of medicine. I could very well be COMPLETELY ignorant of other amazing attributes of Hopkins, but these are just my first instincts based on the knowledge I have passively gathered over the last however many years. For this reason, I would also consider Harvard, for instance, to be better than Hopkins. I'm just a FANATIC for interdisciplinary education

 

[mdphd72]

I was using that as just an example, but let me elaborate on the feel. You probably can't get it unless you have experienced it first hand, but there is a definite difference. In general, when I spoke with east coast faculty there was a more reserved, distinguished, inner sanctum of science feel to them. Nothing against that style because they have every right to give it off if they are faculty in a medical school. However, the west coast faculty that I've interacted with at UCSF, UCSD and Stanford had a more informal feel. They were closer to drinking buddies or people that you might meet on the street. It really depends the type of atmosphere you prefer when interacting with faculty, but I prefer this relaxed feel. I'm sure I haven't done it justice and there are definitely exceptions to the rule, but this is a rough illustration of the "California feel."

and when I consider schools based on this "California feel" it is more of a subconscious decision of where i felt most comfortable than a psychoanalytic rationale of what the feel means and why it influenced me to prefer a school.

I would have to agree with this. I only applied to Stanford on the west coast, but I had a few on the East. And in the East there was this strict hierarchy... it was so apparent. Whereas when I was at Stanford, I felt like they believed students could be just as powerful as their professors.

 

[mdphd72]

Also, all of my PIs have been super laidback (were talking hawaiian shirt, shorts and barefoot in the wetlab).

😱


😛

 

[CattleBruiser]

I would say that all the other schools that I applied to had a mold and a "graduating class of" instead of an "entering class of". I don't doubt that there are a few other institutions like Stanford, and I would consider them to be the best of the best and the top, probably, 10% or so of institutions (IMO of course).

I also have opinions about the dual based degrees that lean towards Stanford. For instance, when I hear Stanford, I think of top notch Stanford Law, Stanford Engineering, Stanford Biology, Stanford Medicine, etc. But when I hear Hopkins, I only think of medicine. I could very well be COMPLETELY ignorant of other amazing attributes of Hopkins, but these are just my first instincts based on the knowledge I have passively gathered over the last however many years. For this reason, I would also consider Harvard, for instance, to be better than Hopkins. I'm just a FANATIC for interdisciplinary education

Awesome post.👍

 

[Rajasthan]

East vs. West Coast:
East: more traditional, more hierarchal, more competitive and cutthroat; city environments do offer their unique and varied patient populations
West: California vibe (laid back atmosphere, more collegiality, great weather), emphasis on interdisciplinary learning and innovation
End result: Great medical school and residency experiences are available at both coasts. Choose based on what you are looking for... though of course I think there is a right answer 🙂.

I am speaking from both my experiences at Stanford Med now and from nearly two decades of school and life in New England / Mid-Atlantic. I made the big switch, and can say with absolute certainty now that it was and is worth it!

 

[Rajasthan]

Here is an aggregated set of responses to comments that I saw above (disclaimer, these are of course personal opinions):

Harvard: Great overall program with lots of opportunities available to students. In practical terms, those who come here mostly choose on brand name appeal more than anything, despite what they might or might not be telling you, themselves, or their parents, but hey, it is a great program.

Hopkins: Great structured program paired with an awesome (and free for med students) public health school. Similar to UCSF in that it is specialized in just the health sciences (meaning great research and few opportunities to study business, law, etc.). Baltimore location is what it is.

Penn: I would consider this a good balance between your structured programs (such as Hopkins) and your ultra flexible ones (think Duke, Stanford, Yale). I hear students really do enjoy their time there, and there are opportunities to do joint degrees, most notably at Wharton (but if you could do Stanford GSB or HBS, why bother...).

Stanford: With the university's emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, this is hands down the best place to get joint degrees or build your own program of study. Not only are the top notch law, business, engineering, etc. schools in place (but note, no school of public health, though there is a joint program with Berkeley), Stanford makes it easy on its med students though high rates of acceptances, electives, and potential research collaborations. The lack of a city patient population is unavoidable. Stanford's reputation for being research heavy and clinically weak is a relict of the past- the school listened and completely revamped clinical training in 2007 with the introduction of a Practice in Medicine program.

Feel free to PM me with questions.

 

[Rajasthan]

Where you choose to go to medical school does affect where you match. A lot of it hinges around the concept of self-selection: if you, as a medical school student and residency applicant, chose to go to a particular school, it usually means you like the region. Likewise, that school likes students who are from the area because they know them better.

Which means:
1) For nearly all medical schools, your chances are the best at that medical school for residency match.
2) Outside of your home turf, through the self-selection mentioned above, you are likely to match at nearby top institutions/hospitals. For Stanford, that means UCSF.
3) If you stray outside of your region, you will still try to match at top institutions/hospitals (that just happen to be not nearby). For Stanford, this historically has meant the Harvard-associated programs, and trickles to various other East Coast schools.

So does this mean there are regional advantages when it comes to residency matching?
In short, yes. That said, I doubt many of you (or my classmates, or most med students in general), are glued to a particular residency program. It is possible some of you are strongly attracted to a specific region of the country, but if that is the case, you are already weighing that in deciding your medical school. The take home message is that all these top medical schools have great match lists- it is hard to go wrong.

 

[mdphd72]

Where you choose to go to medical school does affect where you match. A lot of it hinges around the concept of self-selection: if you, as a medical school student and residency applicant, chose to go to a particular school, it usually means you like the region. Likewise, that school likes students who are from the area because they know them better.

Which means:
1) For nearly all medical schools, your chances are the best at that medical school for residency match.
2) Outside of your home turf, through the self-selection mentioned above, you are likely to match at nearby top institutions/hospitals. For Stanford, that means UCSF.
3) If you stray outside of your region, you will still try to match at top institutions/hospitals (that just happen to be not nearby). For Stanford, this historically has meant the Harvard-associated programs, and trickles to various other East Coast schools.

So does this mean there are regional advantages when it comes to residency matching?
In short, yes. That said, I doubt many of you (or my classmates, or most med students in general), are glued to a particular residency program. It is possible some of you are strongly attracted to a specific region of the country, but if that is the case, you are already weighing that in deciding your medical school. The take home message is that all these top medical schools have great match lists- it is hard to go wrong.

I think it's also important to consider the fact that a lot of people have started relationships or families by the time that residencies come around. And if you have a home and your spouse has a job, why gut your roots if you don't have to and travel across the country for residency?

 

[BrainBuff]

East vs. West Coast:
East: more traditional, more hierarchal, more competitive and cutthroat; city environments do offer their unique and varied patient populations
West: California vibe (laid back atmosphere, more collegiality, great weather), emphasis on interdisciplinary learning and innovation
End result: Great medical school and residency experiences are available at both coasts. Choose based on what you are looking for... though of course I think there is a right answer 🙂.

I am speaking from both my experiences at Stanford Med now and from nearly two decades of school and life in New England / Mid-Atlantic. I made the big switch, and can say with absolute certainty now that it was and is worth it!

Your views are way stereotyped, in my opinion.

 

[mdphd72]

Your views are way stereotyped, in my opinion.

These were the impressions I got from the time I spent there as well. But these were first impressions, since I'm from the midwest. But at the same time, sometimes stereotypes are valid.

Though I also think that there is a lot of interdisciplinary work outside of the west coast. It's just not STRESSED so much. For instance, I go to UIUC in Illinois, and we are incredibly interdisciplinary. My lab is currently hosting 3 graduate students, all from different departments, and we work with the physics department on imaging. And this is very typical for labwork here. I could walk across the hall or across the street to just about anyone's lab looking for assistance and could expect to be welcomed and helped to the best of their ability. But UIUC doesn't define itself like Stanford does with interdisciplinary work.

 

[mdphd72]

Also, can I just say that I'm pretty pumped about this engaging conversation. These boards were dying!

 

[Rajasthan]

That's a very good point- missed that one completely.

I think it's also important to consider the fact that a lot of people have started relationships or families by the time that residencies come around. And if you have a home and your spouse has a job, why gut your roots if you don't have to and travel across the country for residency?

 

[Rajasthan]

They are stereotyped, but much closer to reality than you might expect. They are also biased as I presented them, but largely true.

Having been in both places, I do feel very confident that at least the general spirit, the broad strokes of East vs. West coast differences as I described above, are true!

Your views are way stereotyped, in my opinion.

 

[dfoulad]

got my waitlist letter today (2/1 interview).
which means you 2/5 interviewees may be getting a call tomorrow or Friday. Good luck!!

 

[mdphd72]

got my waitlist letter today (2/1 interview).
which means you 2/5 interviewees may be getting a call tomorrow or Friday. Good luck!!

Yep! I'm expecting correspondence sometime soon. But I'm still debating on whether or not I think they'll meet over Spring Break

 

[excel01]

is there a facebook group??

 

[mdphd72]

is there a facebook group??

There were some people talking about making one earlier. I would look for "entering class of 2011"

 

[mdphd72]

I keep coming to this page in fear of seeing someone else who got called today

 

[mdphd72]

Didn't get a call. Crossing my fingers that they just didn't meet this week. 🙁

 

[mrbuttersworth]

Good luck to all those waiting-

i don't know if i can deal with another friday of checking my phone incessantly

holler if any 2/18 interviews hear back

 

[tutti]

Didn't get a call. Crossing my fingers that they just didn't meet this week. 🙁

hopefully you're safe till next week!!

Good luck to all those waiting-

i don't know if i can deal with another friday of checking my phone incessantly

holler if any 2/18 interviews hear back

... same! although if they didn't meet this week, we may have to wait two more fridays... best of luck to you both!

 

[mdphd72]

hopefully you're safe till next week!!

Agreed! But I know they legally had to have sent out enough seat offers to fill their entering class by March 15th. So I'm a little worried that it's this late in the game. 🙁

... same! although if they didn't meet this week, we may have to wait two more fridays... best of luck to you both!

And yeah, if I were you, I would be hoping that they DID meet this week! Screw me and my seat! hahah

 

[bionerdette]

I interviewed in late February and they said that they would still be sending out acceptances a day or two before Second Look Weekend. So you never know!

 

[mdphd72]

I interviewed in late February and they said that they would still be sending out acceptances a day or two before Second Look Weekend. So you never know!

We can only hope!

 

[tutti]

I interviewed in late February and they said that they would still be sending out acceptances a day or two before Second Look Weekend. So you never know!

hmm good to know! was that for your interview day, or just in general?

 

[mdphd72]

hmm good to know! was that for your interview day, or just in general?

I think it just meant in general. I would guess that that particular interview date won't hear back until after the 2nd look date if they keep up this 1 interview date reviewed each week pace.

 

[mrbuttersworth]

I think it just meant in general. I would guess that that particular interview date won't hear back until after the 2nd look date if they keep up this 1 interview date reviewed each week pace.

+1;

i remember it being mentioned that because of the date (4/7 i think?) some acceptances would regrettably hear post 2nd look...(hope that is as reassuring as I've been taking it);

so i figure anyone that interviewed mid-late feb and onwards are gonna be flirting with that day....

the dean also said they're more than welcome to set up weekend/visits in the spring if that ends up being the case though, so it's not all bad

 

[mdphd72]

+1;

i remember it being mentioned that because of the date (4/7 i think?) some acceptances would regrettably hear post 2nd look...(hope that is as reassuring as I've been taking it);

so i figure anyone that interviewed mid-late feb and onwards are gonna be flirting with that day....

the dean also said they're more than welcome to set up weekend/visits in the spring if that ends up being the case though, so it's not all bad

Yeah. I don't know about anyone else. But I don't really feel like I need a second look to know they're an amazing school. And their atmosphere was very clear. I didn't feel like they were hiding anything. If you like us, then come here. If you don't, that's cool. Also... I don't want to pay the hundreds of dollars for a flight hahah.

Of course, this is all VERY optimistic for me... because I was waitlisted at University of Iowa, rejected from Boston University MD/PhD and so on. I just can't imagine getting accepted here being a reality!

 

[phosphokinase]

Yeah. I don't know about anyone else. But I don't really feel like I need a second look to know they're an amazing school. And their atmosphere was very clear. I didn't feel like they were hiding anything. If you like us, then come here. If you don't, that's cool. Also... I don't want to pay the hundreds of dollars for a flight hahah.

Of course, this is all VERY optimistic for me... because I was waitlisted at University of Iowa, rejected from Boston University MD/PhD and so on. I just can't imagine getting accepted here being a reality!

They offer travel reimbursement 😉 ... although it's only for those who received the AMCAS Fee Waiver.

I'm rooting for you, hopefully you post the good new here soon 👍

 

[mdphd72]

They offer travel reimbursement 😉 ... although it's only for those who received the AMCAS Fee Waiver.

I'm rooting for you, hopefully you post the good new here soon 👍

Yeah, I didn't have an AMCAS fee waiver. I should have looked into it. But no one ever considers the fact that you're paying for college on your own. They all care about what your parents make :/.

And thanks for the luck! I appreciate the support. 🙂

 

[Souljumpers]

Hey guys, I have a quick question. Regarding update, i remembered someone said there is one person on the committee you should send your update to (post-interview). I forgot which person was it, do you guys remember?
Oh yes, the committee people said they are still handing out acceptance in early April. Hope that helps.

 

[Gotham]

Hey guys, I have a quick question. i remembered someone said there is one person on the committee you should send your update to (post-interview). I forgot which person was it, do you guys remember?

They mentioned a few people that it'd be acceptable to send updates to, and while I don't remember them all, I'm 99% certain that Greg Vaughn was one of them. (In any case, when I contacted him about sending an update, he said emailing it to him would be fine.)

 

[mdphd72]

Just curious:

Would any Current Medical Students be willing to PM me (or post) what they pay each quarter that isn't covered by grants, scholarships and other funding you don't have to pay back? Essentially, I know that Stanford has good ranking for their medical student debt. But I'm curious what real students are having to pay right now each quarter that is out of pocket or will be out of pocket over the next couple decades from loans. It would also be helpful if you share your EFC, but I understand that's personal.

 

[mdphd72]

Hey guys, I have a quick question. Regarding update, i remembered someone said there is one person on the committee you should send your update to (post-interview). I forgot which person was it, do you guys remember?
Oh yes, the committee people said they are still handing out acceptance in early April. Hope that helps.

I sent mine to Arturo. That's who MDEast told me to send it to

 

[Arsenophilia]

Perhaps this is a silly question but is there a dress code for second look? Should I pull out the suit or would jeans and a polo be good enough?

 

[dfoulad]

Yeah. I don't know about anyone else. But I don't really feel like I need a second look to know they're an amazing school. And their atmosphere was very clear. I didn't feel like they were hiding anything. If you like us, then come here. If you don't, that's cool. Also... I don't want to pay the hundreds of dollars for a flight hahah.

Of course, this is all VERY optimistic for me... because I was waitlisted at University of Iowa, rejected from Boston University MD/PhD and so on. I just can't imagine getting accepted here being a reality!

did you only apply to md/phd programs?

 

[mdphd72]

did you only apply to md/phd programs?

All but one small medical school as an obligation to a distant relative. But many of the institutions I applied for either rejected me for MD/PhD but were interested in me as med alone (Stanford and Iowa) and others simply rejected me altogether after the interview (SLU). Why do you ask?

 

[Rajasthan]

Definitely not the suit. It's California, pretty much anything flies... jeans and a polo is fine for sure.

Looking forward to meeting SMS Entering Class of 2011!

Perhaps this is a silly question but is there a dress code for second look? Should I pull out the suit or would jeans and a polo be good enough?

 

[Arsenophilia]

Definitely not the suit. It's California, pretty much anything flies... jeans and a polo is fine for sure.

Looking forward to meeting SMS Entering Class of 2011!

I knew there was a reason I didn't want to leave the state 😉

 

[phosphokinase]

Has anyone received their financial aid award letter?

 

[mdphd72]

Gah! So my boyfriend just got notified that he will be getting full funding and stipend for 5 quarters at the Engineering School at Stanford!! Mannnnnnnnnn I really hope I get in here hahah

 

[mdphd72]

I knew there was a reason I didn't want to leave the state 😉

I can't imagine ever wanting to leave California. I got depressed walking onto the plane to go home after a 1 day interview! Granted Illinois was recovering from a blizzard...🙄

 

[ipod01]

So, does anyone know which date we are on right now in terms of hearing back about acceptances or waitlist?

 

[mdphd72]

So, does anyone know which date we are on right now in terms of hearing back about acceptances or waitlist?

It's been 2 weeks since an SDNer posted an acceptance call for an interview date "the week of 1/31." I'm pretty sure it was 2/1, because someone who was a 2/1 interviewee got a waitlist notification last week.

Their spring break was last week, so there is a chance that the committee didn't meet. I'm expecting to hear back very soon, and I interviewed 2/5.

 

[dancerdoc115]

got the waitlist letter in the mail today (I live in CA). interviewed 2/5. So I expect that those of you who interviewed on 2/5 will be getting acceptance calls very very soon! i'm not going to stay on the waitlist, but best of luck to all of you! =)

 

[mdphd72]

got the waitlist letter in the mail today (I live in CA). interviewed 2/5. So I expect that those of you who interviewed on 2/5 will be getting acceptance calls very very soon! i'm not going to stay on the waitlist, but best of luck to all of you! =)

Oh nooooo. That means they would have called acceptances last week :/
Bummer...

Man... I hope I at least got waitlisted... otherwise the closest I'll be to my one and only is Chicago while he's at Stanford or MIT :/

 

[H3rpD3rp]

Oh nooooo. That means they would have called acceptances last week :/
Bummer...

Man... I hope I at least got waitlisted... otherwise the closest I'll be to my one and only is Chicago while he's at Stanford or MIT :/

Sucks. But congrats on the acceptance--some people don't even have that.

 

[Arsenophilia]

Sucks. But congrats on the acceptance--some people don't even have that.

Eloquent words for a username that had me worried when I first read that this was the latest comment in the thread.