2011-2012 Penn State Application Thread

Getting into Med School is Hard? Not with BeMo.
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Does anyone know when the next adcom meeting is?
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sam500 said:
Alright, my award letter just arrived in the mail today.
70K in loans, 30K of that grad plus loans. Yeesh!
I don't understand how they consider someone who's been out of school for 9 years to be dependent on their parents. I really dislike "need-based". I'm 10 years closer to death than a traditional student. That seems pretty needful to me!

And not even one free chocolate bar in the mix! ;)
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Dude - a free chocolate bar would have gone a long way to ease the pain of that letter!! ;) As someone who is married and has been independent of my parents in every way, shape, and form for 7 years, I also have strong disdain for requiring parental financial information for need-based aid...

DoctorDachshund said:
Got my financial aid letter today. Basically told me to borrow $62,000 a year. Does this school do any merit money? I figured with a 41 on MCAT, I would have a shot.
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My understanding is that the medical school does not have a huge endowment, so institutional merit awards are virtually non-existent for first year. I think more scholarships are available for years 2-4. Your score will likely get you (or has probably already gotten you) much better aid from another school.

Ismet said:
Got my financial aid letter today. $60K in loans, $16K of which is grad plus. :lame:
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aluminumleaflet said:
Got my financial aid letter yesterday. OOS.

~$46000 fed unsub + ~$24000 grad plus = :scared:
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I feel your pain. My husband looked at the page and his jaw dropped. He looked at me and said, "You're definitely gonna finish, right? Cuz we won't be able to pay that back if you don't!" :laugh: Of course, we both knew how much it would cost per year, but to see it in writing is entirely different.
 
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Oh my god, guys. I still haven't heard. Do I panic? Am I supposed to panic? I shouldn't panic. Should I call? Maybe I should call. But then what do I say? Do I have to pretend to cry if they tell me I'm not accepted? What if I AM accepted? Do I have to pretend to cry then as well? GAHHHHHHH. Not calling.
 
tantacles said:
Oh my god, guys. I still haven't heard. Do I panic? Am I supposed to panic? I shouldn't panic. Should I call? Maybe I should call. But then what do I say? Do I have to pretend to cry if they tell me I'm not accepted? What if I AM accepted? Do I have to pretend to cry then as well? GAHHHHHHH. Not calling.
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I got my letter of acceptance on April 6 (dated March 29th), and then got the background check email today. No rhyme or reason to which comes first, but I think if you got a background check, you got an acceptance somewhere! Hope you get the good news soon!
 
Today when I came home there was a big envelope sitting on the counter and I got excited, only to pick it up and see it was my graduation cords... what a let down. Today is the 8 week mark :(

EDIT: got the letter today... waitlisted :(
 
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So I interviewed February 24th and have not yet received anything in the mail. I am familiar with the fact that there are multiple adcoms and understand that how soon you here doesn't correlate with your whether you are accepted. However, I am a little concerned because I changed my address at the last minute on AMCAS (I had forgotten to change it from my old college address). I called a little while ago and the woman I spoke with said that the address was correct and that she didn't think it had been sent out yet but since there are people getting decisions from mid March, I thought I would check here and see if anyone is in the same or similar boat to me before I call a second time. Thanks.
 
Still haven't gotten a fin-aid letter. I just moved so maybe it got lost in the mail....
 
$70k in loans? hell no. withdrew. hoepfully my spot goes to someone on here still waiting!
 
shivakamini said:
Calls for acceptance from the hold list will occur late May through June/July. The number accepted from the hold list varies year to year, depending on how many acceptances were offered initially and how many people actually decide to matriculate here. There is no way of knowing this, and the admissions office won't tell you; so do not bother asking. The hold list is not ranked - adcom will review each application when a spot opens up.

I sent a LOI last year - not sure if it was put in my file or not, but I was accepted off of the hold list in June. So obviously, it didn't hurt to send an update letter. Choice is yours.
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If I send in a LOI, should I direct it to the dean or just to admissions in general?
 
I called them with this question as well. Linda told me to address my LOI to Dwight Davis the Associate Dean.
 
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Does anyone know what the waitlist movement has been like in previous years? I am trying to gage my shot at getting off the waitlist here, since I am in the awkward state of being waitlisted everywhere and not accepted anywhere.

Thanks! :)
 
aspiringdoc12 said:
Does anyone know what the waitlist movement has been like in previous years? I am trying to gage my shot at getting off the waitlist here, since I am in the awkward state of being waitlisted everywhere and not accepted anywhere.

Thanks! :)
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Go us!

Except . . . wait. I'm not waitlisted here. I'm just waiting for a response. Which is kind of similar, really.

LEMME IN.
 
Vannay said:
I called them with this question as well. Linda told me to address my LOI to Dwight Davis the Associate Dean.
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This.

And, waitlist movement varies each year. Depends on how many withdraw acceptances for other schools.
 
tantacles said:
Go us!

Except . . . wait. I'm not waitlisted here. I'm just waiting for a response. Which is kind of similar, really.

LEMME IN.
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TOTALLY KNOW THIS FEEL. :c Waitlisted at 2 other schools and waiting for a response from Hershey.
 
Anyone coming to Second Look Day tomorrow? Get excited. Should be a fun day, and an even more fun Saturday night.
 
Waitlisted. Interview 3/12. Seems like they're going through the pile really fast now!
 
Well poop. I was unpacking papers and discovered my "info for financial aid" never got mailed. I listed them on my fafsa which I filed in Jan so hopefully I'm not screwed out of any financial aid stuff for not turning in this damn form. :-( :-(

Side note, what address should I sen this form and my deposit to?
 
StephBee said:
Well poop. I was unpacking papers and discovered my "info for financial aid" never got mailed. I listed them on my fafsa which I filed in Jan so hopefully I'm not screwed out of any financial aid stuff for not turning in this damn form. :-( :-(

Side note, what address should I sen this form and my deposit to?
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You don't need to submit that to get the aid letter, but it could result in an updated aid letter later depending on what you answer. And the address is on that paper at the bottom.
 
Yeah, I just got the letter on Saturday. I don't have anything special to report so I doubt it would change my financial aid or lack there of.


Time to start figuring out how to get 70 grand :p
 
So, I'm seeing a lot of distress on this board about the lack of financial aid and the impending debt we're all going to accrue by the end of 4th year. Yes, medical is expensive. Yes, we'll all be 200K+ in debt. No, there isn't much in terms of scholarship gifts. Yes, pretty much every medical student goes through this.

It's frightening and stressful, but don't spend much time worrying about it. Trust me, in 6 months, your debt will be the last of your worries. Everyone makes it through medial school, and eventually everyone pays off their debt. Honestly, how many physicians do you know that are REALLY struggling financially? It will take awhile to pay back the loans, but that's why you study up or find people to help you to take care of your financial planning.

If you're worried about not being able to buy three houses, 2 Porsche's, etc. by the time you are 30, then I think you better re-evaluate your reasoning for going into medicine.
 
shivakamini said:
So, I'm seeing a lot of distress on this board about the lack of financial aid and the impending debt we're all going to accrue by the end of 4th year. Yes, medical is expensive. Yes, we'll all be 200K+ in debt. No, there isn't much in terms of scholarship gifts. Yes, pretty much every medical student goes through this.

It's frightening and stressful, but don't spend much time worrying about it. Trust me, in 6 months, your debt will be the last of your worries. Everyone makes it through medial school, and eventually everyone pays off their debt. Honestly, how many physicians do you know that are REALLY struggling financially? It will take awhile to pay back the loans, but that's why you study up or find people to help you to take care of your financial planning.

If you're worried about not being able to buy three houses, 2 Porsche's, etc. by the time you are 30, then I think you better re-evaluate your reasoning for going into medicine.
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But I need all of those things to be truly happy :(
 
finally rejected pre-interview via snail mail.
 
Was accepted in October and made the decision to go elsewhere. Withdrew my place in the class yesterday. Hope one of you guys gets it soon! Good Luck at Penn State, it really is a fantastic school.
 
tilton said:
Also rejected via snail mail after getting the continue to review letter months ago.
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Oh ya, it feels good (Have a more appealing acceptance)... I am curious about the percent that receives an interview after receiving the "continue to review" message let alone an acceptance...
 
TheGloaming said:
Oh ya, it feels good (Have a more appealing acceptance)... I am curious about the percent that receives an interview after receiving the "continue to review" message let alone an acceptance...
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I actually received the "continue to review" letter mid February and received an interview early March. Haven't heard back from them post-interview yet, but I'll keep SDN posted when I find out. :thumbup:
 
huskies88 said:
i actually received the "continue to review" letter mid february and received an interview early march. Haven't heard back from them post-interview yet, but i'll keep sdn posted when i find out. :thumbup:
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+1
 
Wait, we were told on interview day and in the hold/waitlist letter that we should not send "update letters" but transcripts only. Can anyone from last year (or that got accepted off waitlist this year) that sent LOIs confirm that they "can't hurt", and that they DO look at it?
 
Thank you for your email. Only official transcripts can be accepted for grade updates. We are anticipating some movement of the wait pool after the second week of May.
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This is what I got when I sent in a LOI.
 
Anyone else been waiting forever to get a decision? I am going on 9 weeks. It amazes me that some people who interviewed 3 weeks after me heard back 3 weeks ago. I contacted admissions and they told me my application hasn't even been reviewed by the admissions committee yet.
 
breakdancerj said:
Anyone else been waiting forever to get a decision? I am going on 9 weeks. It amazes me that some people who interviewed 3 weeks after me heard back 3 weeks ago. I contacted admissions and they told me my application hasn't even been reviewed by the admissions committee yet.
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I wouldn't worry about it. It took 13 weeks for me to get my wait-list letter.
 
Received a letter today stating that my file has been places on the "Hold List". I'm assuming this the same as being waitlisted. Yes? Anybody with experience at PSU regarding movement?
 
codystampede said:
Received a letter today stating that my file has been places on the "Hold List". I'm assuming this the same as being waitlisted. Yes? Anybody with experience at PSU regarding movement?
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When did you interview?
 
codystampede said:
Received a letter today stating that my file has been places on the "Hold List". I'm assuming this the same as being waitlisted. Yes? Anybody with experience at PSU regarding movement?
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See my previous posts regarding hold list movement.
 
shivakamini said:
Calls for acceptance from the hold list will occur late May through June/July. The number accepted from the hold list varies year to year, depending on how many acceptances were offered initially and how many people actually decide to matriculate here. There is no way of knowing this, and the admissions office won't tell you; so do not bother asking. The hold list is not ranked - adcom will review each application when a spot opens up.

I sent a LOI last year - not sure if it was put in my file or not, but I was accepted off of the hold list in June. So obviously, it didn't hurt to send an update letter. Choice is yours.
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Quoting this post so that anyone who at least reads the current page of the thread has something to go on.
 
Current students or anyone else who knows: I plan to have a fairly relaxing summer before school begins, but was hoping to begin looking at the anatomy text book. Can anyone tell me the anatomy text that is used for first year? Thanks!
 
src922 said:
Current students or anyone else who knows: I plan to have a fairly relaxing summer before school begins, but was hoping to begin looking at the anatomy text book. Can anyone tell me the anatomy text that is used for first year? Thanks!
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The prof's reference "Gray's Anatomy" as the holy grail of anatomy books, but its mad expensive and waaaayyyyy too detailed. Library has a few copies to use when needed (i.e. MAYBE once). Definitely get yourself a Netter's Atlas, most people referenced this more than anything.

Some people purchased the Gray's Anatomy for Students book ("Baby Grays"), which is a much abbreviated version of the original. I particularly didn't like it - bad pictures, bad explanations and lots of errors. Others didn't buy anything other than Netter's and Grant's Dissector (the instructional booklet for cadaver dissection) and got along just fine.

Personally, I bought "Hollinshead's Textbook of Anatomy" and really enjoyed it. It was the happy medium between Big Grays and Baby Grays. I found it on amazon for like $20. If you are a textbook reader, like myself, I highly suggest this book along with Netter's and Grant's. That's it. Don't kill yourself and spend money that you don't need to. Unless if you decide on being a gunner; which means you have little common sense and bad social skills and will probably read through 5 different texts while your classmates are managing their time better and are out enjoying themselves when they can. End Story - you all will probably end up with the same grade.

One last thing - don't study over the summer. I can promise that you don't know how to study for Anatomy because its a completely different ball game here than any of your undergrad classes. GO HAVE FUN.
 
What's the best way to find out if any current students are selling, or planning to sell, their furniture? Is there a website of some sort? I'd rather go through an official school-related site rather than craigslist...
 
Also, is it possible to get around without a car your fist year? (ie... for grocery shopping or volunteering)
 
shivakamini said:
The prof's reference "Gray's Anatomy" as the holy grail of anatomy books, but its mad expensive and waaaayyyyy too detailed. Library has a few copies to use when needed (i.e. MAYBE once). Definitely get yourself a Netter's Atlas, most people referenced this more than anything.

Some people purchased the Gray's Anatomy for Students book ("Baby Grays"), which is a much abbreviated version of the original. I particularly didn't like it - bad pictures, bad explanations and lots of errors. Others didn't buy anything other than Netter's and Grant's Dissector (the instructional booklet for cadaver dissection) and got along just fine.

Personally, I bought "Hollinshead's Textbook of Anatomy" and really enjoyed it. It was the happy medium between Big Grays and Baby Grays. I found it on amazon for like $20. If you are a textbook reader, like myself, I highly suggest this book along with Netter's and Grant's. That's it. Don't kill yourself and spend money that you don't need to. Unless if you decide on being a gunner; which means you have little common sense and bad social skills and will probably read through 5 different texts while your classmates are managing their time better and are out enjoying themselves when they can. End Story - you all will probably end up with the same grade.

One last thing - don't study over the summer. I can promise that you don't know how to study for Anatomy because its a completely different ball game here than any of your undergrad classes. GO HAVE FUN.
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Thanks Shiv. Yep, I will have fun as soon as I get my final undergraduate final out of the way!
 
Hey guys, I interviewed March 28th. Haven't heard anything back yet. I know it's less than the minimum 6 weeks, but should I just give up the idea of getting accepted right away and just hope for a waitlist status?
 
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