2011-2012 Mercer Application Thread

[newyorker41789]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hey everyone!

I'm not sure about the phone calls, but in terms of the waitlist...last year I got the email for a spot on the waitlist at about 5:30 PM. Just give it time and patience and we'll all have our answer soon enough. The wait is killing me too!

 

[georgiagirl62]

Accepted!!!! Got a call around 2:30 while I was in class....it was impossible to focus once I realized I had a voicemail 😛
Good Luck to everyone!

 

[Missions740]

Accepted! Just got the call while driving home about an hour ago! I hope all of you who are waiting here good news soon!😍

 

[docsk]

for those of us who haven't heard back, it seems like we probably weren't accepted 🙁
now just waiting for the waitlist or rejection

 

[organicchem]

Do they actually reject people or does pretty much everyone get on the wait list; does anyone know how many people are put on the waitlist?

 

[VirtualMorgan]

I was under the impression that there are no "rejections" after the interview. My understanding is that we will all be wait-listed and people will come off the list by rank up until August. I could be mistaken though.

 

[4thQTHailMary]

I was under the impression that there are no "rejections" after the interview. My understanding is that we will all be wait-listed and people will come off the list by rank up until August. I could be mistaken though.

I was eventually rejected after I interviewed the first time I applied so there is no guarantee that you will make it onto the wait list after you interview.

 

[premeduga]

According to posts from the 2010-2011 cycle they did give out rejections post interview last year - and also after the last adcom meeting (i.e. those that don't either get an acceptance or alternate list). I would much rather be straight up rejected than put on a wait list I have no chance of getting accepted from. If for no other reason, to be able to make a better decision on the next course of action.

 

[docsk]

Just called Mercer. The meeting to generate the wailtlist is next week.
best of luck everyone

 

[RefinedMess]

I received a call yesterday. I have been accepted.

Good luck everybody

 

[Peabody30110]

I guess at this point all we can hope for is wait-listed?

 

[bluesaleen802]

an email would be nice

 

[aburnet2]

I agree. I really don't want to be rejected lol. A waitlist is better than nothing for me. Either way I have been gearing up to do it all again in a couple of months. Really seems like there isn't any break between applying then reapplying because it all takes soo long.

 

[organicchem]

Does anyone know how they will contact applicants to let us know whether or not we made the wait list?

 

[newyorker41789]

I believe it will be through e-mail

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

 

[organicchem]

That's what I thought but I thought we would know by now.

 

[Digs]

That's what I thought but I thought we would know by now.

From talking with Gail Coleman, the school has been particularly busy this cycle, and a couple of adcom meetings were postponed or cancelled. She said they'll be meeting next week and sending out notifications thereafter. I'm steeling myself not to hear back until Thursday afternoon, like when most others seem to have gotten calls after meetings, but this one's a little different, so who knows in the end.

 

[Missions740]

Will be relinquishing my spot in the class. I hope that it goes to one of you who are still waiting.

 

[WorkTimeFun]

I also gave up my seat to mercer weeks ago.

Im on the wait list at MCG. I've been talking with my parents, I'm taking 2 classes this summer toward an RN program about 30 minutes from my parents house. if I don't get in off the waiting list at MCG (Mercers too expensive unless I'm guaranteed a match into specialty care, which no med school offers a guarantee that you will end up in specialty care, they do guaranteed one thing! You must pay back your med school loans regardless of what field you end up in). Anyways, if I dont get into MCG, I'm starting RN school in the fall, it's accelerated program so I'll get my RN in 15 months, then I'll work as an RN for about a year making $18-22 an hour starting out and pay some of these undergraduate loans off, then I'll apply and start DNP school which will take about 2.5 years and then I'll be a doctor of nursing and start working making a real paycheck. You can even go work for an orthopedic surgeon or dermatologist as a DNP. It will take about 5+ years to get my DNP with a whole whole lot less loans but If i keep on plugging away at MD school im looking at 1 year to wait if I have to reapply for med school, then 4 years of med school then at least 3 years of 80+ hour a week residency hell. So if I don't get into MCG I'm looking at at least 8 years from now.

So let's hope MCG sends some good news! Otherwise I'm off to RN school in the fall.

 

[EMTDoc22]

I also gave up my seat to mercer weeks ago.

Im on the wait list at MCG. I've been talking with my parents, I'm taking 2 classes this summer toward an RN program about 30 minutes from my parents house. if I don't get in off the waiting list at MCG (Mercers too expensive unless I'm guaranteed a match into specialty care, which no med school offers a guarantee that you will end up in specialty care, they do guaranteed one thing! You must pay back your med school loans regardless of what field you end up in). Anyways, if I dont get into MCG, I'm starting RN school in the fall, it's accelerated program so I'll get my RN in 15 months, then I'll work as an RN for about a year making $18-22 an hour starting out and pay some of these undergraduate loans off, then I'll apply and start DNP school which will take about 2.5 years and then I'll be a doctor of nursing and start working making a real paycheck. You can even go work for an orthopedic surgeon or dermatologist as a DNP. It will take about 5+ years to get my DNP with a whole whole lot less loans but If i keep on plugging away at MD school im looking at 1 year to wait if I have to reapply for med school, then 4 years of med school then at least 3 years of 80+ hour a week residency hell. So if I don't get into MCG I'm looking at at least 8 years from now.

So let's hope MCG sends some good news! Otherwise I'm off to RN school in the fall.

Obvious gunner is obvious.

You're the 3rd or 4th poster in this thread to mention medical school loans, DNP programs, and your perception that going to Mercer forces you to go into primary care.

Well, you failed.

 

[doclyny]

good luck with your DNP or whatever..we need some optimism in this forum...nobody is forcing you to become a doc..just post ur comment in the nursing forum..

 

[WorkTimeFun]

What are you talking about?

 

[newyorker41789]

Waitlisted...the wait continues! Good luck everyone!

 

[docsk]

wait listed

 

[Peabody30110]

anyone know if everyone who interviewed and didnt get accepted was waitlisted?

Blessings to all!

 

[tauisecrauxise]

Rejected

 

[gabem]

Alternate listed as well. Good luck everyone else!

 

[MrNovember]

Did the letter come through snail mail or email?

 

[thomallama]

Did the letter come through snail mail or email?

Email

 

[gapremed17]

waitlisted too. Trying to keep the faith!

 

[Peabody30110]

Let's keep the dialog open for waitlisters who get accepted. It will keep us all sane as the days roll by!

 

[docsk]

I think someone posted the comparative costs of mercer and mcg a little while ago, I can't find it.
If someone's found it or has it, can you please re-post it?

 

[aluminumleaflet]

Interviewed 11/10, Waitlisted 4/2, Withdrew. Hope this opens up a seat for one of y'all.

 

[TAPeds18]

So confused... got rejected by Mercer, but wait-list from MCG.

 

[tauisecrauxise]

So confused... got rejected by Mercer, but wait-list from MCG.

Same thing happened to me. I think it may have been because I was not a good "fit" for the school's mission. I have a meeting with Ms. Jackson next week to talk about what I can do to improve my application, so I guess I will find out then. Thought my interview at Mercer went a lot better than my interview at MCG though, so who knows.

 

[TAPeds18]

Same thing happened to me. I think it may have been because I was not a good "fit" for the school's mission. I have a meeting with Ms. Jackson next week to talk about what I can do to improve my application, so I guess I will find out then. Thought my interview at Mercer went a lot better than my interview at MCG though, so who knows.

I felt the same way about my interview at Mercer. The med student that interviewed me even said that he thought that the teaching style there was a good fit for me. I am thinking that I was not a good fit for the mission either, because I don't want to do primary care. I do want to stay in Georgia though, so I thought I had a chance. Good luck with MCG.. maybe I will see you there.

 

[tauisecrauxise]

I felt the same way about my interview at Mercer. The med student that interviewed me even said that he thought that the teaching style there was a good fit for me. I am thinking that I was not a good fit for the mission either, because I don't want to do primary care. I do want to stay in Georgia though, so I thought I had a chance. Good luck with MCG.. maybe I will see you there.

Thanks 🙂 Good luck to you too

 

[4thQTHailMary]

In regards to MUSOM's mission, I have been told that they have steadily been placing less emphasis on primary care and more so practicing in GA. This actually came from my adcom interviewer, fwiw.

For me, their "mission" to educate primary care physicians was never really appealing as two of my mentors who actually went to MUSOM are very successful orthopedic surgeons and dermatologists. I want to go ortho and seeing that going to MUSOM wouldn't inhibit me from doing that, I guess I was sold on other things that fit with what I was looking for in a program.

 

[Whatayear]

I've done quite a few interviews as a non-committee member and the truth is that several very qualified applicants don't do as well because they won't be "mission compliant." I actually always feel really bad when we have these applicants because a lot of times I really like them and wish they could be a part of our program, but at the end of the day the mission is the mission. Now with that said it currently is going through a transition and I am someone who fully believes (along with many of the faculty and administration) that our mission is to train and educate physicians to serve the population of Georgia no matter what specialty they choose to practice. We do have a preference for "underserved" areas but the definition is really very open. For example in Savannah we have one pediatric neurosurgeon and a very active neurosurgery service. So in my book if you want to be a neurosurgeon, and you want to practice in Georgia you are more mission compliant than someone who wants to practice family medicine in an area of Georgia with plenty of family medicine docs. We had several people this year interested in sub specialties that the adcom and myself felt would be mission compliant because they were not readily available. Now with that said there are some people holding out for the traditional definition but I think they are in the minority. So the bottom line is you can do what you from Mercer, just look at our match list this and last year. However if we get the impression you will not serve Georgia during your interview it can really hurt your application.

 

[docsk]

any waitlist movement?

 

[georgiagirl62]

I will be in Macon in the fall! Where will everyone else be? 🙂

 

[GAdoc]

I will be in Macon in the fall! Where will everyone else be? 🙂

I agree with Whatayear. I've posted on here already that I was a voting member of the ADCOM last year (2010-2011). In my experience, the mission is definitely shifting to a much stronger emphasis on practicing in underserved areas of Georgia. On the other hand, there are still a lot of older faculty who will have a hard time giving up their notion that they're supposed to recruit future PCPs. So, a lot of it is dependent on who you interview with.

My advice is to be yourself - don't lie about what you see yourself doing, but if it's not primary care, don't necessarily go on and on about it either. Be able to articulate WHY you want to be a doctor (preferably backed up by medical experience), why you would stay in Georgia, and leave the rest up in the air (i.e. "I could see myself being happy in several areas of medicine so I plan to enter med school with an open mind") - even if you think you know what you want to do, that's not an untrue statement. Your interests may change, and a lot of what you are eligable to do will be dictated by Step 1 scores and overall performance. Remember, the first step is to GET IN to med school! You've got four years to worry about residency.

A couple of other things I want to address:

1. Cost of MCG vs Mercer - the BEST med school in the country is the one you graduate from. And if you're lucky enough to choose between more than one, the best is the one that sets you up to get the residency you want. It's the whole do you want to be a big fish in a small pond, or a small fish in a big pond philosophy. Worry about cost later.

2. I still find it funny when I read posts of people who are "stunned" that they got rejected from Mercer and wait-listed at MCG. That just proves that people still look at Mercer as inferior. Mercer is "inferior" in the sense that you don't have as many research opportunities, you don't work with world-renown faculty, and you don't have the name value. Other than that, they are an LCME accredited, US med school with the same acceptance rate as MCG. They are choosy about who they take because when you have a class of 60 and a small group format, you can't afford to have even one person whose not a team player

3. Finally, as Whatayear said, check out the match list for the past few years. We're matching people into everything - derm, rad onc, ortho, ent, neurosurgery, etc. As with any school, you have to work hard and the opportunities will be available.

By the way - congratulations on Whatayear's EXCELLENT match

 

[aluminumleaflet]

I agree with Whatayear. I've posted on here already that I was a voting member of the ADCOM last year (2010-2011). In my experience, the mission is definitely shifting to a much stronger emphasis on practicing in underserved areas of Georgia. On the other hand, there are still a lot of older faculty who will have a hard time giving up their notion that they're supposed to recruit future PCPs. So, a lot of it is dependent on who you interview with.

I had one of these guys, and he was pretty certain that my ideas of primary care (IM, FM, peds, ob/gyn, gatekeeper, etc.) weren't up to his standards. He also asked me if "my people" were still Communist. I may not be white, but I was born in VA and grew up in GA.

 

[Whatayear]

I agree with Whatayear. I've posted on here already that I was a voting member of the ADCOM last year (2010-2011). In my experience, the mission is definitely shifting to a much stronger emphasis on practicing in underserved areas of Georgia. On the other hand, there are still a lot of older faculty who will have a hard time giving up their notion that they're supposed to recruit future PCPs. So, a lot of it is dependent on who you interview with.

My advice is to be yourself - don't lie about what you see yourself doing, but if it's not primary care, don't necessarily go on and on about it either. Be able to articulate WHY you want to be a doctor (preferably backed up by medical experience), why you would stay in Georgia, and leave the rest up in the air (i.e. "I could see myself being happy in several areas of medicine so I plan to enter med school with an open mind") - even if you think you know what you want to do, that's not an untrue statement. Your interests may change, and a lot of what you are eligable to do will be dictated by Step 1 scores and overall performance. Remember, the first step is to GET IN to med school! You've got four years to worry about residency.

A couple of other things I want to address:

1. Cost of MCG vs Mercer - the BEST med school in the country is the one you graduate from. And if you're lucky enough to choose between more than one, the best is the one that sets you up to get the residency you want. It's the whole do you want to be a big fish in a small pond, or a small fish in a big pond philosophy. Worry about cost later.

2. I still find it funny when I read posts of people who are "stunned" that they got rejected from Mercer and wait-listed at MCG. That just proves that people still look at Mercer as inferior. Mercer is "inferior" in the sense that you don't have as many research opportunities, you don't work with world-renown faculty, and you don't have the name value. Other than that, they are an LCME accredited, US med school with the same acceptance rate as MCG. They are choosy about who they take because when you have a class of 60 and a small group format, you can't afford to have even one person whose not a team player

3. Finally, as Whatayear said, check out the match list for the past few years. We're matching people into everything - derm, rad onc, ortho, ent, neurosurgery, etc. As with any school, you have to work hard and the opportunities will be available.

By the way - congratulations on Whatayear's EXCELLENT match

Thanks GADoc.

I think the only other advice I would add is to apply early decision if you are truly interested in Mercer. Mercer is very unique in its curriculum and we really look for people who are not only mission complient but are really interested in PBL and will actively participate. By applying early desicion it goes a long way to establish you are truly interested in our school and not just playing the field. Now there is nothing wrong with applying to Mercer because you it is one more chance to get into medical school (which is what I did and got lucky and was really impressed on my interview day), but by doing ED it is one less thing we have to flush out in our interview process. We know you are interested in our mission and PBL and because of that it increases your chances for acceptance.

 

[VirtualMorgan]

So confused... got rejected by Mercer, but wait-list from MCG.

Me too. Did you mention anything about religion/church either in the interview or on your application. I did not. They're kind of churchy I guess. Maybe that's why. Who interviewed you? My interview at Georgia was great but my interviews at Mercer were kind of weird. One was just really awkward, the interviewer would ask me a question, then interrupt me tell a story and then give me that uncomfortable silent stare thing. The other interview felt more like an interrogation. I felt like the interviewer was trying to set me up to see if I'd be honest, and later flat out accused me of saying something I didn't say. It was just uncomfortable, and I've been told I interview well so I'm not used to that.

 

[VirtualMorgan]

I had one of these guys, and he was pretty certain that my ideas of primary care (IM, FM, peds, ob/gyn, gatekeeper, etc.) weren't up to his standards. He also asked me if "my people" were still Communist. I may not be white, but I was born in VA and grew up in GA.

Really? Weird. Are you Cuban? You'd think they'd want a commie doctor anyway...but then again it is the south the republican sentiment is pretty strong especially with theists.

 

[VirtualMorgan]

Maybe he was just screwing with you to see how you handle stressful questions. I also considered this possibility for why I felt like my interviews were awkward. On one hand that's not a bad idea, on the other hand, interviewing for med school is already a little nerve-racking you'd think they'd want to make you comfortable and relaxed to get a better idea of who you are. I work better under pressure but I'm not so sure I talk about myself better under pressure. For me, talking about any delicate subject is easier than talking about myself, especially if I know I'm being judged the whole time. Having my work judged doesn't phase me but having my whole person judged makes me feel a little vulnerable, which isn't a feeling I have very often. I'm not well versed in H.R. psychology so I can't tell if they were especially skilled or especially sloppy. I just know it was especially different. I personally liked my interviewers, i just felt a little "sore" after the interviews.

 

[GAdoc]

Really? Weird. Are you Cuban? You'd think they'd want a commie doctor anyway...but then again it is the south the republican sentiment is pretty strong especially with theists.

To my chagrin, more of the faculty than you would think are atheists/liberals. It is the South, but some of the faculty who have been there the longest and have the closest ties to the school come from outside the south and do not hold to "Bible Belt" culture. There are certainly plenty of Conservatives/Christians as well, but the balance is appropriate and I highly doubt you would be judged solely on your beliefs.

With that said, if you went to school at Princeton you should expect some questions about why you would want to end up in Macon, Georgia.

Not sure why anyone would ask if "your people" are still Communist unless they were just trying to make conversation. Besides, depending on who it was asking you might have had a sympathizer...

 

[aluminumleaflet]

To my chagrin, more of the faculty than you would think are atheists/liberals. It is the South, but some of the faculty who have been there the longest and have the closest ties to the school come from outside the south and do not hold to "Bible Belt" culture. There are certainly plenty of Conservatives/Christians as well, but the balance is appropriate and I highly doubt you would be judged solely on your beliefs.

This is very true; my first interviewer seemed pretty liberal, and he was a pretty nice guy who was a polar opposite (in terms of attitude) to my not-so-favorite-interviewer.

In any case, I was definitely not pleased with my second interviewer. He was absolutely not trying to sympathize (you'd have to hear his tone), and in fact, he did a similar thing to my other friend who interviewed there who was of Middle Eastern decent. I think she had an even worse time. Yeah, maybe he was there to stress me out, but there are definitely more appropriate ways to hold "stress interviews" than to hit topics that are below the belt (and illegal for business/job interviews at least).

What turned me off the most was his attitude about the school. He mentioned that Mercer was losing state funding because it wasn't fulfilling its promised mission to put more doctors in underserved/rural Georgia. He was very pessimistic about the whole situation, and I think this is when I decided that I couldn't see myself at Mercer. How am I supposed to believe in the school's mission when my interviewer is sitting there blatantly pointing out its shortcomings?

That being said, I have friends at Mercer whom I believe are going to be fantastic physicians. Will they necessarily be in primary care? I honestly don't think so. Will they be GA doctors? Probably; they strongly identify with being Georgian. They rightfully belong at Mercer. Maybe I was just one isolated incident who got unlucky. C'est la vie.

 

[GAdoc]

This is very true; my first interviewer seemed pretty liberal, and he was a pretty nice guy who was a polar opposite (in terms of attitude) to my not-so-favorite-interviewer.

In any case, I was definitely not pleased with my second interviewer. He was absolutely not trying to sympathize (you'd have to hear his tone), and in fact, he did a similar thing to my other friend who interviewed there who was of Middle Eastern decent. I think she had an even worse time. Yeah, maybe he was there to stress me out, but there are definitely more appropriate ways to hold "stress interviews" than to hit topics that are below the belt (and illegal for business/job interviews at least).

What turned me off the most was his attitude about the school. He mentioned that Mercer was losing state funding because it wasn't fulfilling its promised mission to put more doctors in underserved/rural Georgia. He was very pessimistic about the whole situation, and I think this is when I decided that I couldn't see myself at Mercer. How am I supposed to believe in the school's mission when my interviewer is sitting there blatantly pointing out its shortcomings?

That being said, I have friends at Mercer whom I believe are going to be fantastic physicians. Will they necessarily be in primary care? I honestly don't think so. Will they be GA doctors? Probably; they strongly identify with being Georgian. They rightfully belong at Mercer. Maybe I was just one isolated incident who got unlucky. C'est la vie.

Yeah - that's a shame. Every now and then I hear of an interview not going so well. There are one or two people who interview that don't do as well. Ironically, that often doesn't correlate to acceptance. I've known people who were accepted and thought their interviewer hated them. It's just a personality thing sometimes.

As far as his talking down on the school, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Some of the faculty stay upset over the fact that they can't convince more people to go into primary care. It's an uphill battle with Mercer being the most expensive med school in the state. My wife worked full time and I still managed to amass $260,000 of debt. Now don't get me wrong, I love orthopaedics, but even if I had LOVED family medicine it would've been tough to convince me to do it. A lot of those guys work the same hours as ortho and make a1/3 the salary. And it's not about the money - but it is at least party about the debt! Especially when you've got a family and you're already going to be 35 when you finish training.

Anyway, sorry you didn't have a great experience. On the other hand, a lot of people get on here and complain about how wonderful their interview went and they thought for sure they'd be accepted and then were SHOCKED when they weren't. There's something to be said for an interview's tone predicting the outcome.