2010-2011 University of Virginia Application Thread

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I just got invited for an interview today (17th of February). I called to ask if it was worth going to because a lot of schools do interviews even when the class is full, but the lady from admissions said the class wasn't full yet and they were still giving out acceptances.
 
Accepted back in october - looking forward to Second look weekend. Any thoughts on apartments on Wertland street, or in the Corner area? Thanks.
 
Prancer said:
Accepted back in october - looking forward to Second look weekend. Any thoughts on apartments on Wertland street, or in the Corner area? Thanks.
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Another accepted student here. I asked a few of the current students about apartments a while back and they told me that The Point, Wertland Square, Wertland Commons, Oxford Hills, Preston Square, Preston Corner and GrandMarc which are all along 14th Street, were places where a lot of med students lived along with the Ashtree Apartments and Ashtree Townhomes. This is by no means a complete list of every possible student residence close to UVa and I'm sure the current med students on SDN will add on to this list. Hope this helps!
 
patriotsfan said:
Another accepted student here. I asked a few of the current students about apartments a while back and they told me that The Point, Wertland Square, Wertland Commons, Oxford Hills, Preston Square, Preston Corner and GrandMarc which are all along 14th Street, were places where a lot of med students lived along with the Ashtree Apartments and Ashtree Townhomes. This is by no means a complete list of every possible student residence close to UVa and I'm sure the current med students on SDN will add on to this list. Hope this helps!
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If you're going to go all the way out to Madison/Preston, I'd also recommend Cambridge Square...two-story two-or-three bedroom apartments with little fenced-in yards, and remodled in the last couple years. Check out http://msc-rents.com/
 
Brinkley said:
I just got invited for an interview today (17th of February). I called to ask if it was worth going to because a lot of schools do interviews even when the class is full, but the lady from admissions said the class wasn't full yet and they were still giving out acceptances.
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Yeah, I don't think they would waste their time interviewing people if the class was full. I interviewed during the last week of interviews last year and didn't think I had a chance because it was so late. However, I know that at least two of us who interviewed that day got accepted. All you need to do is sweet talk the interviewers.
 
Hi, I was interviewed at UVa in early September (my first interview), and was waitlisted on 10/15. If you saw my previous posts in this thread you know I really loved UVa. I felt really hurt when I got the waitlist mail. Knowing that the waitlist is unlikely to move this year, I unsubscribed this thread and tried to forget about UVa, until now. I just got a snail letter from UVa that explains why a lot of good applicants are waitlisted (because of last year's overbooking issue), and ends up with "I hope you will retain your 'active' status on our list of alternates and consider coming to UVa if we are able in May/June to invite some of the outstanding alternate candidates to join our class in 2011."

As a matter of fact I still consider UVa one of my top choices, and better than other schools that have accepted me so far. So, my hope is rekindled. Has anyone else received this letter? How likely is the waitlist going to move this year? If there is a good chance that the waitlist will move, I may consider sending my letter of intent to UVa, hoping for a good position on the waitlist. But if this is a spam letter sent to everyone waitlisted, well, I will have to say byebye to UVa again?

Thanks, and best wishes to those current students!
 
If you really liked UVa then I don't see any reason why you shouldn't hang around on the waitlist. While it seems as though the waitlist may be less likely to experience significant movement this cycle, I don't think anyone can definitely answer your question as to how much movement will occur. Not to mention that nobody knows where you are on the list. Send the LoI if you are really set on UVa. All of this is imho, of course.
 
I agree. You lose nothing by remaining on the waitlist, and could potentially gain admission. I can almost guarantee that there will be more waitlist movement this year than there was last year (seeing as how it didn't move at all last year).
 
Thanks for the advice! Yes I really like UVa (I would put UVa as my top No. 2 among 11 schools that gave me interviews). I'll certainly hang on the waitlist. I got a PM that someone else also received the letter, so I think I'll send a long letter of strong interest for now, and reserve the letter of intent until near May 15.
Congrats to those with offers!

Edit: as of now I have got PMs from 3 other users who got the same letter. So, it's not a "special" letter sent to just a few.
 
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Anyone know if I'm in pretty bad shape since I'm without an invite at this point? Sent in a strong LOInterest in late December, and called to confirm they had it early January.
 
I also received the 2nd waitlist letter. My hopes aren't up for this one, but you never know. They might be more conservative with initial acceptances this year to avoid having the situation last year repeat itself.
 
Thanks for the earlier response to where to live, patriotsfan. For current med students, Question: How do y'all go about pursuing specialty interests once the first year starts? What are ways to get involved in specific research/experience? ET CETERA!
 
I have a number of friends who shadow various specialists once a week. From what I understand, you can email physicians personally and most of them are very receptive to having a medical student shadow them and gain experience in their field. There are also a number of interest groups (e.g., the surgery interest group) who have relationships with the UVA-physicians in their field, and will set up shadowing opportunities.

Every now and then there will also be the opportunity to do something active like shadowing a sports-medicine physician at a high school football game or some kind of wilderness-medicine activity.

As for research, there a number of funding opportunities, especially for summer research and international health, and you can also email individual faculty members to ask about working in their lab. My friend emailed one of our professors after she gave an interesting lecture, and now he's working with her when he has the time.
 
Prancer said:
Thanks for the earlier response to where to live, patriotsfan. For current med students, Question: How do y'all go about pursuing specialty interests once the first year starts? What are ways to get involved in specific research/experience? ET CETERA!
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Prancer, I was in Charlottesville yesterday looking at apartments and to my surprise many places had already leased well over half their units for next year. In particular Ashtree which only had two units left (now one). I'm no expert and certainly don't know about the entire market in Charlottesville but if you are set on attending I wouldn't wait much longer to secure a place. With that said, I assume individual leases in units with current students will open up after match.
 
Thanks for the feedback justinbaily. I'm looking forward to going to class meeting the docs in the different departments 😉 I'm interested in neurosurgery, and I've been told by the neurosurgery residents at my school that UVA's neuro program is great.

And OrangeandMaroon, yeah, I had an appointment over winter break to go down and look at apartments (I'm from Michigan) but ended up waiting. I'm waiting to see what my girlfriend's status is at the UVA education school, cuz if it's just going to be me I'll do group housing.
 
seany434 said:
Yeah, I don't think they would waste their time interviewing people if the class was full. I interviewed during the last week of interviews last year and didn't think I had a chance because it was so late. However, I know that at least two of us who interviewed that day got accepted. All you need to do is sweet talk the interviewers.
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Still waiting for an invite here, so that's reassuring, but it's getting kind of late now and I'm losing hope. Since you mentioned it, what date was the last week of interviews last year? Can't find that info anywhere on the website.

thanx
 
Will just be getting back from HP World... I will try.
 
Hmm, when they say they can't accommodate family and friends, does that mean they can't join in the activities?
 
i'll be going down friday night and depending on when the scheduled activites end, i may stay saturday night as well. would anyone be interested in an sdn outing?
 
HanoverFiste said:
Still waiting for an invite here, so that's reassuring, but it's getting kind of late now and I'm losing hope. Since you mentioned it, what date was the last week of interviews last year? Can't find that info anywhere on the website.

thanx
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looked back at last year's thread and answered my own question. for those interested, interviews were still being held as late as March 4 back then, probably filling up remaining dates by late January, which is now. interestingly some applicants heard nothing (yea or nay) in response to their 2ndary until late Feb. it's going to be a long month...
 
Super excited for second look and to meet you all! Long time creeper of SDN, but I rarely post 😳
 
Tippyboat said:
Hmm, when they say they can't accommodate family and friends, does that mean they can't join in the activities?
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Can't speak for them and you'd probably be best off emailing them to clarify, but I would imagine that to be the case. The "activities" mainly consist of tours, talks, and a lunch, all things that would be constrained a little by extra people showing up (there were a ton of attendees last year). Just my opinion though, shoot them an email and I'm sure they'll give you a quick response.
 
Is the Second Look Weekend just for people who are undecided? Basically, will there be any benefit to going?
 
Prancer said:
Is the Second Look Weekend just for people who are undecided? Basically, will there be any benefit to going?
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If it's too expensive or too much of a hassle for you to come and you're absolutely set on coming, you won't miss much. There are plenty of people in our class who didn't come to second look.

That said, you will get to meet a lot of upperclassmen (the second years will have a poor showing, since they'll be studying for Step 1 then), talk to them about their experiences, maybe meet a few of your classmates, and learn a little about the school without the stress of the interview. I had a lot of fun and got a better feel of the city so I wasn't quite as lost when I came. Of course, I also didn't know where I was going yet (I was still waiting for a decision from another school), so that played into my decision to come.
 
Thanks for the input. Guess I'll wait to see how busy I am when the date rolls around.
 
Hey guys-- I was hoping some of you could help me out, I know this isn't the most appropriate place to post this, but I was wondering since UVa is definitely my top choice next year (instate, Junior) I thought I could get some help here. I'm planning on taking the MCAT this spring, I've just began to study for it. I'm trying to figure out when to schedule it, the place it'd best fit in my schedule is in May 26-28, which means I'd get my scores back late June. Seeing how UVa (according to the MSAR) sends out secondaries June 1st would I be considered no longer early? I know I wouldn't be late, I'm just confused as to how the AMCAS works. Do they need your MCAT score to be verified before sending out your application in order to receive secondaries? Any advice? Thanks so much and best of luck to all!
 
mwall003 said:
Hey guys-- I was hoping some of you could help me out, I know this isn't the most appropriate place to post this, but I was wondering since UVa is definitely my top choice next year (instate, Junior) I thought I could get some help here. I'm planning on taking the MCAT this spring, I've just began to study for it. I'm trying to figure out when to schedule it, the place it'd best fit in my schedule is in May 26-28, which means I'd get my scores back late June. Seeing how UVa (according to the MSAR) sends out secondaries June 1st would I be considered no longer early? I know I wouldn't be late, I'm just confused as to how the AMCAS works. Do they need your MCAT score to be verified before sending out your application in order to receive secondaries? Any advice? Thanks so much and best of luck to all!
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I took my MCAT on May 27, 2010 (and have been accepted to UVa), so I can help you out here. Yes, you're scores take 1 month to be released. I submitted my AMCAS during the first week of June; this starts the verification process (usually takes 1-2 weeks if you apply this early). Then my app was verified although no MCAT scores were in yet. However, your AMCAS is not transmitted to ANY medical school until I believe the end of June (or around the 20th). So by this time, my MCAT scores came in and almost immediately my whole app was transmitted to all my schools...and I started receiving secondaries.

My pre-health committee didn't send my letters in until July ~16th...so none of my secondaries were marked complete until after this date. I submitted my UVa secondary around July 18th. I received an interview invite in mid-August (which is very early) and interviewed in mid-September (again very early).

So long story short, if you're complete by the end of July, you'll be golden. Don't sweat it too much...just focus on/ace the test and you'll be set!
 
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tr0gd0r said:
I second this. MSC can be a bit of a pain to deal with (or could be a couple years ago), but they have some pretty spacious and inexpensive properties in the Mad/Preston (way down 14th St.) area. The Ash Tree apartments are pretty nice and they just remodeled Cambridge Square within the last two years. You'd also have access to a fitness room, mini movie theatre thingy, and pool tables/ping pong/&c. Mad/Preston's about a mile from the hospital, which could be a problem if you're wanting to roll out of bed and stumble to class...but if you don't mind walking or biking a bit it's a good area because you can get to both the downtown mall and the Corner/Grounds pretty easily. You also won't have to deal with the undergraduate shenanigans that come along with living closer to Grounds.
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tr0gd0r said:
Oh and maybe avoid University Heights if you're looking to avoid "bad areas"...I lived there for two years and never knew that there was a lot of gang activity in the area...and then there was a fatal shooting several months after I left. Eep. Not that you'd really want to live there anyway...it's not as far as you can get from the med school, but pretty close. And I think they took that complex off the bus route.

Anything along/near Rugby Road will probably be loud (frat-ville). The area around Grady Ave between Madison and Preston is also a place you may not want to be.
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Strontium said:
I was actually looking at some places on Grady Ave. Is that area considered 'frat-ville' too? Is there one place that most students tend to live? I was considering getting an efficiency or one bedroom place, I am just not familiar with the area at all!

Also, it was mentioned you can park on JPA. After a quick google'in, looks like that is Jefferson Park Avenue.. is that meter parking? Free parking?

And any thoughts on the Brandon Ave Madison Apartments?
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tr0gd0r said:
Grady isn't fratty it can just be...shady? I think the area on Grady between Rugby and 14th is alright but Grady between 14th and Preston is less good...I don't know why, and maybe that's changed.

Brandon is nice because it's super close to the hospital. I've had friends who have lived there, but I can't speak to how nice the apartments are. Some of the Brandon apartments are reeeeeeally cramped and not really worth what you'd pay for them...just make sure you check out wherever you're going to live before you lease.
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Hi everyone, thanks again to all the current students who are giving us so much information. I'm 90% committed to UVA and have started to look at housing. I didn't get to spend that much time in town last time and have never lived in Charlottesville so I'd really appreciate some information.

I did read all the previous posts about the neighborhoods around the hospital but then I just got really confused. Maybe I'm looking at the wrong map, but for example, someone said the Ashtree apartments on Madison/Preston were nice but from the map, it looks like it's really close to Grady, which is a shady area? In any case, I'm thinking it would be a huge help to all potential first years if we can make a more organized and comprehensive quick overview of the neighborhoods? I saw a list like this in another school's "first year survival guide" but didn't find one for UVA. For people who have never lived there, it's really hard to find out where the places to avoid are, since most properties advertise themselves online as safe and quaint. I will probably be going to second looks and since I"m coming from across the country, it'd be nice to know what properties to look at in a limited amount of time.

My priorities are: safe neighborhood (I have a family so this is huge). 1 bedroom, budget up to 1100 but hopefully a little lower. Within a mile to hospital/school (because parking at school sucks right?). Hardwood floor or extra loft/den would be huge pluses.

Thanks again. This is the most detailed and informative thread ever!
 
We do actually have a graduate guide to Charlottesville: http://www.virginia.edu/graduateguide/

It's not written specifically for medical students, but it is linked on our student life site, so someone recommends it. You can find some more information about housing there, including

Since you have a family, I would discourage you from living along 14th/Madison. It's not a bad neighborhood, but there are a lot of undergrads living in the area and while Ashtree is restricted to graduate students, it can sometimes get rowdy there as well. It's essentially an apartment complex of single people with roommates.

You can take a look at the Barringer, which is the building literally right across the street from the school. Quite a few of our classmates live there and it's seemed fairly quiet every time I've been over. And since it's right next to the medical school and a locked building and all, it's kinda hard to get safer.

As a side note, I wouldn't be terribly worried about being within a mile for the first year, so long as you're on a bus route. Most of the buses come every 15 minutes or so and several drop off just down the street from the school. If you're going to be on grounds late at night, parking is free after 5 (or 6, depending on where you park), so you can always go home and drive back.
 
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mvenus929 said:
We do actually have a graduate guide to Charlottesville: http://www.virginia.edu/graduateguide/

It's not written specifically for medical students, but it is linked on our student life site, so someone recommends it. You can find some more information about housing there, including

Since you have a family, I would discourage you from living along 14th/Madison. It's not a bad neighborhood, but there are a lot of undergrads living in the area and while Ashtree is restricted to graduate students, it can sometimes get rowdy there as well. It's essentially an apartment complex of single people with roommates.

You can take a look at the Biltmore, which is the building literally right across the street from the school. Quite a few of our classmates live there and it's seemed fairly quiet every time I've been over. And since it's right next to the medical school and a locked building and all, it's kinda hard to get safer.

As a side note, I wouldn't be terribly worried about being within a mile for the first year, so long as you're on a bus route. Most of the buses come every 15 minutes or so and several drop off just down the street from the school. If you're going to be on grounds late at night, parking is free after 5 (or 6, depending on where you park), so you can always go home and drive back.
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Thanks for the tip, but I can't find the website for the Biltmore. Am I looking in the wrong places?

How is the area for Wertland apartments?

I'm okay with not an extremely quiet area. We're city people so it's okay even if it's rowdy. But safe (and hopefully clean) is most important.
 
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Tippyboat said:
Thanks for the tip, but I can't find the website for the Biltmore. Am I looking in the wrong places?

How is the area for Wertland apartments?

I'm okay with not an extremely quiet area. We're city people so it's okay even if it's rowdy. But safe (and hopefully clean) is most important.
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Sorry, names aren't my forte. Biltmore is a bar. I'm thinking of the Barringer.

I kept going from Biltmore to Broadmoor (which is a hotel around where I used to live), and couldn't get the right B word. Editing my original post accordingly.
 
Tippyboat said:
I'm okay with not an extremely quiet area. We're city people so it's okay even if it's rowdy. But safe (and hopefully clean) is most important.
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wrt 14th/Madison, it's mostly (if not entirely) safe - but "clean?" Well, again, there are lots of undergrads with plenty of disposable income, seeking that "True College Experience" - which means many mornings you'll be picking your way to school amidst a storm of Solo cups, and puddles of foul-smelling unpleasantness ...

Add to that the frequency of drunken undergrads literally howling at the moon at 2:00 am and minor incidents of vandalism, taken with the laissez-faire attitude of the PD, I'd give it a miss, myself, given there are better choices.

But then again, some might want to join the drunken chorus, so not passing judgment, just fair warning... 🙂
 
It seems most people have started talking about housing... so I thought I'd put up that I'm looking for a roommate for next year (I'm one of the deferred students from last cycle, so I'll be SMD15 with everyone here). Send me a PM if you're 100% sure you're coming to UVA and are looking for a place!

Oh, also, check out the FB page. UVA School of Medicine 2015: I put up a roommate finder spreadsheet on there for everyone to use too =)
 
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Where did you guys direct your thank you letters? To the admissions office?
 
squiddy said:
wrt 14th/Madison, it's mostly (if not entirely) safe - but "clean?" Well, again, there are lots of undergrads with plenty of disposable income, seeking that "True College Experience" - which means many mornings you'll be picking your way to school amidst a storm of Solo cups, and puddles of foul-smelling unpleasantness ...

Add to that the frequency of drunken undergrads literally howling at the moon at 2:00 am and minor incidents of vandalism, taken with the laissez-faire attitude of the PD, I'd give it a miss, myself, given there are better choices.

But then again, some might want to join the drunken chorus, so not passing judgment, just fair warning... 🙂
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Ah thanks 🙂, very useful tip. Actually it's good to know that all of that chaos is relatively specific to one place 🙂xf:?).

Is Wertland free of this kind of commotion? What about the area around 1800 JPA? So excited for second look!
 
Tippyboat said:
Ah thanks 🙂, very useful tip. Actually it's good to know that all of that chaos is relatively specific to one place 🙂xf:?).

Is Wertland free of this kind of commotion? What about the area around 1800 JPA? So excited for second look!
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I would avoid Wertland if I were you. I have a friend living over in the Wertland area who says it can get fairly noisy at times (although I don't think it's as bad as Madison/14th). More importantly though, it seems that half the time the UVA police send out a notice about an incident (muggings and the like), it's in the Wertland area.

1800 JPA and that general area are pretty quiet in general. Only real complaint I'd have about the area is that it's not that close but I'm lazy so... (1800 JPA you're looking at maybe a 20 min walk to class)
 
Cyradis said:
I would avoid Wertland if I were you. I have a friend living over in the Wertland area who says it can get fairly noisy at times (although I don't think it's as bad as Madison/14th). More importantly though, it seems that half the time the UVA police send out a notice about an incident (muggings and the like), it's in the Wertland area.

1800 JPA and that general area are pretty quiet in general. Only real complaint I'd have about the area is that it's not that close but I'm lazy so... (1800 JPA you're looking at maybe a 20 min walk to class)
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ooh good to know about Wertland, thanks!
Is JPA pretty good in terms of safety? What about Cherry Avenue? I'm trying to figure out what the safest areas are (even if a little noisy).

I saw the Monroe that's supposed to be finished in the summer, which sounds like an awesome place to live. Unfortunately they don't have 1 bedroom units 🙁.

Ooh also, are the Brandon apartments very tiny? I can't find a picture of the inside and the concept of "fold-out counters" doesn't sound fun.
 
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A number of students live on Brandon Ave, Valley Road and JPA. From Valley and Brandon, you could walk to school in about 5 minutes and, depending on where you where on JPA, you can always take a free bus to school.

I'll PM you about Brandon.
 
pm me too. i've been checking out brandon as well.

Also, does there exist a map of the bus routes/locations? housing info on the UVA website aside from the housing site?
 
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