2011-2012 Cornell University (Weill) Application Thread

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Just got the interview invite today 4 days after sending the in the area email! I'm so excited! This has been a great week so far
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rejected MSTP...requested to be considered for just MD.
 
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Cornell was pretty awesome. The research opportunities alone are incredible, and the facilities are great. I'm still not completely sold on PBL, but there's less of it than they claim, only 90 minutes 3x a week. Everyone (starting last year) gets an iPad, which they claim is very helpful, especially in histo.

And that cush M1? M2 is much harder, from what I heard. Still not in lecture/class too much, but they really make the first year easier in compared to some schools in order to ease everyone into school.

I was very happy with what I saw; not sure if my interviews were the best ever, but this school seemed great. I'd be thrilled to go - too bad it's non-rolling.
 
Snuke said:
Cornell was pretty awesome. The research opportunities alone are incredible, and the facilities are great. I'm still not completely sold on PBL, but there's less of it than they claim, only 90 minutes 3x a week. Everyone (starting last year) gets an iPad, which they claim is very helpful, especially in histo.

And that cush M1? M2 is much harder, from what I heard. Still not in lecture/class too much, but they really make the first year easier in compared to some schools in order to ease everyone into school.

I was very happy with what I saw; not sure if my interviews were the best ever, but this school seemed great. I'd be thrilled to go - too bad it's non-rolling.
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yea it has a really nice campus and the area is great too. it's also convenient that they're building a subway system for 2nd avenue which is a godsend for many people since it's always crowded there during rush hour.
 
To people who've gotten interview invites: First of all, congrats!!! Second of all, might you mind sharing stats?
 
Death to applications that force me to re-enter each individual pre-medical course. Are you even reading my primary????
 
It looks like it only takes 1 working day for them to send the "application complete" email after submitting the secondary
 
Interview invite just now!! Complete 6/29. Also sent an "in the area" email three weeks ago.
 
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candav said:
Interview invite just now!! Complete 6/29. Also sent an "in the area" email three weeks ago.
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Congrats! Me too!! :D I also sent an in the area email about a week and a half ago. Super stoked for NYC now!
 
Hey everyone! I'm a first year at Cornell, happy to answer any questions you guys have. I wanted to address some of the questions that I've read in this thread, even if it's an old question.

I was shocked to see the rumor about Cornell students infighting. I feel like my class is ridiculously close and supportive. People email out their study sheets and share flashcards before quizzes. We have study groups for the assignments where we all share answers. I think a big part of it is the shift to pass/fail that occured just two years ago. Maybe the old rumors were true, but definitely not anymore.

Reasons to like Cornell? I think Cornell really stood out as a school that encourages their students to pursue non-academic activities. Our classes are over by 1pm every day except for Thursday, when we have our clinical training days. This means every Mon, Tues, Wed and Friday afternoon is free for you to attend clubs, do research, hang out, party (we party a lot). A lot of us nap >.>

We only have about 3 hours of lecture a day (excluding the clinical thursdays), and either PBL, journal club, or small group (which is going over assignment problems as a group). The PBL is a lot of fun. We meet on Mon, Wed and Friday. Each day, we get additional information about a patient with various issues, go home to research topics about the case, and present during the next class. It's really not a huge learning tool, and for me it's more if a break from lecture, but it's really good at priming us to approach diagnosis like doctors.

The location - Cornell is in arguably the best part of NYC. I went to undergrad in NYC and lived here for a year. Aside from being slightly far from a subway (a 15 minute walk), we are in the safest, most residential, poshiest part of Manhattan. This does mean everything here is expensive, unfortunately. Eating out all the time is not a good idea, and the closest grocery store is Food Emporium, which any New Yorker knows is stupidly overpriced. There is a Fairway within walking distance, and a Costco and Target within an easy subway/bus ride. We are walking distance to Central Park and Museum Mile. Most importantly, we have tons of fun bars in the area, and a short cab ride from the lower east side.

An insider tip for interviewees - Contact the administration for student hosting. It does exist, and most students here would love to host. The problem is that all the MS1s live in single room dorms, (it's not as bad as it sounds, trust me!!!) so they don't advertise it. If anyone is not getting a response from the admins, send me a PM. The hosting is organized by one of my classmates. You will need to bring something to sleep on though, unless your host is one of the few who have an air mattress.

One final addition, Cornell in general has a ton of money. This mean money to spend on giving its students amazing opportunities. They guarantee funding to all students who want to go abroad their first summer. There is a global health elective which is student run, and they bring in big names in global health (I think Paul Farmer is coming this week. nbd) to lecture every week. There is also a new pilot elective called ITEACH where medical students meet with nursing, public health and social work students from Hunter University to discuss integrated patient care. There are several medicine and humanities electives (Music and Medicine being one of them) which integrates opera, writing or visual arts with medicine.

I hope that gives everyone a bit more to think about when considering Cornell, and again, I'm open to questions either on the forum or through PM!

Best of luck to everybody!

Edit: Written from my iPad (which Cornell gives to all MS1s for free) - **** yeah!
 
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Wow! Such great information! Cheers to Kuune! Hopefully I get an interview.
 
Sent an "in the area" email, we'll see how this goes...
 
rejected :(. sad life, one of my top choices. love the city, love the location, love the school. but tis' life. good luck everyone!!!

for those wondering: (complete 8/10, 35, 3.85s/c)
 
Lucky Seven said:
rejected :(. sad life, one of my top choices. love the city, love the location, love the school. but tis' life. good luck everyone!!!

for those wondering: (complete 8/10, 35, 3.85s/c)
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Sorry to hear :( I'm sure you will have good news from some other schools!! If you don't mind, was it via e-mail/status check/snail mail?
 
NYCmedschoolapp said:
Sorry to hear :( I'm sure you will have good news from some other schools!! If you don't mind, was it via e-mail/status check/snail mail?
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Email outright said it, nice and easy no links to click. Subject involved "Final Decision" so you kinda know what the text of the email will say ahead of time =P
 
Has anyone stayed with a student host? I just looked up the prices for hotels and most around Cornell are running $400 per night. :eek:
 
Just sent an in area email. Hope I have the same luck as some of the others and get an interview! Would absolutely love to attend Weill!
 
ru4real1666 said:
Just sent an in area email. Hope I have the same luck as some of the others and get an interview! Would absolutely love to attend Weill!
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Just for the record, they seem really good with in the area emails. They acknowledged that I sent one the day after, and then about a week later, I got my rejection haha. Sad, but I really appreciate that effort though.
 
alamo4 said:
I have some friends who have done training (med school, residency and fellowship) across the major medical schools in NYC, and I've heard from quite a few people that they thought students at Cornell were treated the worst (by faculty and I guess administration) and that it had the most internal competition and 'infighting' between students. This is highly subjective of course, but it was repeated to me by at least three different people in different stages of their training who don't know each other.

Does anyone else have an opinion or specific knowledge on this?

There have already been posts to this thread about extra-curricular activities in things like music, so at least some people are not spending 24/7 in utter misery, but if anyone has anything to contribute on relative quality of life issues in NYC schools, it would be useful information.
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My girlfriend goes to Cornell and said she's never heard of such rumors nor has she experienced any poor treatment/sense of competition amongst the student body either. The students I've come across seemed pretty chill. I dont know how it used to be back in the day, but all it takes is a few people to repeat the same opinion over and over before its accepted as fact.
 
What do you guys think are my chances of actually getting an interview here? I totally acknowledged this is my reach school so don't worry about being harsh or anything like that.

32R/3.86sgpa/3.92cgpa

I also volunteer at the hospital if that helps my chances. Thanks in advanced for anyone willing to help me out.
 
kjamess said:
My girlfriend goes to Cornell and said she's never heard of such rumors nor has she experienced any poor treatment/sense of competition amongst the student body either. The students I've come across seemed pretty chill. I dont know how it used to be back in the day, but all it takes is a few people to repeat the same opinion over and over before its accepted as fact.
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alamo4 said:
I have some friends who have done training (med school, residency and fellowship) across the major medical schools in NYC, and I've heard from quite a few people that they thought students at Cornell were treated the worst (by faculty and I guess administration) and that it had the most internal competition and 'infighting' between students. This is highly subjective of course, but it was repeated to me by at least three different people in different stages of their training who don't know each other.

Does anyone else have an opinion or specific knowledge on this?

There have already been posts to this thread about extra-curricular activities in things like music, so at least some people are not spending 24/7 in utter misery, but if anyone has anything to contribute on relative quality of life issues in NYC schools, it would be useful information.
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I have heard such rumors but none seem to be supported by any evidence. As a WCMC student I can attest to the fact that there is basically no competition or infighting. Students are extremely cooperative and are constantly studying together and sending the class outlines before the exam. In fact, in discussions of PBL method I have heard from more than one classmate that they worry about others being left behind even when they understand. There is no reason for one of us to hope another does poorly and I am not aware of a single student who doesn't wish the best for every other. Cornell is truly an amazing place, I am so happy and so thankful to be here and have never once regretted choosing this school over a more highly ranked program (though validity and utility of rankings is a whole different discussion...). Feel free to ask me anything.
 
ps9891 said:
congrats Algid! i just fell into that latter category of sdn-ers who've been rejected :/ (MSTP, complete 9/8)
good luck to everyone still in the running! :thumbup:
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Rejection might even be preferable to the waiting game! Still!

Complete in late June. :laugh:

Edit: Not seriously -- I'm thankful to still be in the game here.
 
Do they have any student hosts available?
 
I just want to re-iterate what's already been said in this forum by a few other WCMC students. I'm a first year and am extremely happy here. My classmates are phenomenal: not only do we collaborate constantly (share resources, have group study sessions, etc...), but in general everyone I've met here has been very down to earth and interesting.

Re: student hosting, if you email the admissions office (Lori's a good bet), they should be able to give you the name of a student hosting contact and we can find you a host. (It's not advertised by admissions because as someone previously mentioned, Olin rooms are small, but there are still numerous first years happy to host people.)

If you all have any questions, please feel free to send them my way. I don't post too frequently but felt the need to dispel the very-incorrect (or outdated) rumors about "gunners" and uncaring administration. (Just wait 'til you all meet our dean, Dr. Miller. He's a total Care Bear.)
 
Hey! is anyone else having trouble with the status check website? it just seems to be broken!! please post a working link if you have one! thanks
 
lovecrepes said:
Hey! is anyone else having trouble with the status check website? it just seems to be broken!! please post a working link if you have one! thanks
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Hasn't changed. Works for me. Try reloading?
 
Do you think I could I send an update letter now (pre-interview)? I called admissions and they seemed encouraging about it, but I'm not sure if it's entirely too soon.
 
I just got II and I am soo excited I couldn't wait to share... Good Luck to everyone waiting for news :)


Anyone one have any advice on how to prepare... this will be the one to pop my cherry
 
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GKmed said:
I just got II and I am soo excited I couldn't wait to share... Good Luck to everyone waiting for news :)


Anyone one have any advice on how to prepare... this will be the one to pop my cherry
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Congrats! Good luck, the first one is the hardest because you're so nervous. I'd say just be yourself, but minimize weaknesses, maximize strengths. I messed up my first interview because I was so nervous that I didn't even come off as myself.

Also, when were you complete?
 
Is Cornell rejecting MD students, or just MSTP students? I've only seen rejections for MSTP.
 
II today!!! :love: Definitely not expected at all (no in the area email, complete since july or so, blah blah blah). OOS
 
interview invite today as well! very excited! submitted secondary 9/2, complete 9/6. OOS.
 
Interviewing here on 11/16 :D They originally cut it quite a bit closer -- mid-October!! -- but they were extremely understanding when I called to ask for another date due to last-minute flight costs.
 
those who recently received interviews, around what dates were you offered opportunities? you don't have to be exact, but a time range would be very helpful.
 
My offer was barely 2 weeks in advance, but again, they're very flexible if you ask for another date.
 
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