2011-2012 Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences Application Thread

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Received my wait list letter in the mail yesterday. Interviewed Nov 17, chose Navy.

If it helps anyone: 31R, CGPA 3.5, Mechanical Engineering. All clinical experience is EMS (3 years worth), prehospital and in hospital, with my highest level being Intermediate.

Also for anyone interested, I did some number crunching (bad engineering habit). Based off of the historic number of offers, seats available, and the reported turnover rate for the waitlist, it would seem that there are very few people who don't get moved off the waitlist. :xf:

Also a general note for the EMS people out there: Definitely explain your scope of practice. A lot of the people I talked to were taken aback when I talking about intubating patients, pushing drugs, doing 12 leads, and the variety of patients I'd dealt with. I would always err on the side of schools having no idea of the magnitude of your experience. Make sure you have can tell a few interesting stories as well.
 
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msupples said:
Received my wait list letter in the mail yesterday. Interviewed Nov 17, chose Navy.

If it helps anyone: 31R, CGPA 3.5, Mechanical Engineering. All clinical experience is EMS (3 years worth), prehospital and in hospital, with my highest level being Intermediate.

Also for anyone interested, I did some number crunching (bad engineering habit). Based off of the historic number of offers, seats available, and the reported turnover rate for the waitlist, it would seem that there are very few people who don't get moved off the waitlist. :xf:

Also a general note for the EMS people out there: Definitely explain your scope of practice. A lot of the people I talked to were taken aback when I talking about intubating patients, pushing drugs, doing 12 leads, and the variety of patients I'd dealt with. I would always err on the side of schools having no idea of the magnitude of your experience. Make sure you have can tell a few interesting stories as well.
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Could not agree with you more about elaboratin on EMS exp during the interview. I was fortunate my interviewer had a strong interest to get to know me so that gave me a lot of chances to touch of my most memorable anecdotes.

Interviewed in Dec... Getting pretty nervous now that the last Nov group has gotten feedback... :xf:
 
Small clerical error 🙂


I have an interview date: Feb 23. Best of luck to all!!
 
Deanwvu said:
Small clerical error 🙂


I have an interview date: Feb 23. Best of luck to all!!
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Your definition of small is a bit different in magnitude than mine in this sense... Anyhow that's great! Good luck!👍
 
[QUOTE Interviewed in Dec... Getting pretty nervous now that the last Nov group has gotten feedback... :xf:[/QUOTE]

+1
 
Checked the mail today and looks like their was a hold letter in the mail. Anyone have insight or prior knowledge about being put on hold. My understanding is this is essentially 1 step above rejection. Kinda bummed right now, but there is always hope. Positive thoughts beget positive results.
 
Did you interview for navy or air force? apparently those spots are already filled so applicants are either getting wait listed at best... Sorry to hear it wasn't the reply you were looking for... Not feeling too good about results coming out soon myself either.
 
2011 SunDevil said:
Checked the mail today and looks like their was a hold letter in the mail. Anyone have insight or prior knowledge about being put on hold. My understanding is this is essentially 1 step above rejection. Kinda bummed right now, but there is always hope. Positive thoughts beget positive results.
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Just got that same letter today 🙁
 
Schrdngrs Ct said:
Did you interview for navy or air force? apparently those spots are already filled so applicants are either getting wait listed at best... Sorry to hear it wasn't the reply you were looking for... Not feeling too good about results coming out soon myself either.
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gatorade848 said:
did u get the hold letter pre or post interview?
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Being prior service from the Army, I interviewed with Army being my number 1 choice. The hold letter was post interview.
 
Have post-interview REJECTIONS even been going out?.. or is a HOLD essentially that and USU doesn't drop applicants until the end.

Anyone know how holds work? do they at best turn into alternate list offers, and then maybe an acceptance?
 
Schrdngrs Ct said:
Have post-interview REJECTIONS even been going out?.. or is a HOLD essentially that and USU doesn't drop applicants until the end.

Anyone know how holds work? do they at best turn into alternate list offers, and then maybe an acceptance?
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That's a very good question. There has not been many posts about people receiving rejection letters after the interview.

Anyone have any further thoughts or past knowledge about a hold status works?
 
Anyone send the committee a letters of intent, post-interview hold? I vaguely recall them saying not to call asking about the status of applications, and if that also meant no to updates. Sorry its hard to keep track of so many school policies. 😕

EDIT: I have called the office before but I must be calling at all the wrong times since it only goes to the voicemail- sure they're getting swamped at this point in the season.
 
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Schrdngrs Ct said:
Anyone send the committee a letters of intent, post-interview hold? I vaguely recall them saying not to call asking about the status of applications, and if that also meant no to updates. Sorry its hard to keep track of so many school policies. 😕

EDIT: I have called the office before but I must be calling at all the wrong times since it only goes to the voicemail- sure they're getting swamped at this point in the season.
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Since I work with several physicians, I discussed with them that I was placed on hold and they told me they would be willing to write a couple letters on my behalf. I emailed the USUHS admissions office to see if they would even accept update letters or further LOR's. Their reply was:

"If you would like to submit letters of update or more letters will be accepted and they will be added to your file for the Committee review."

Sooooo, I would say they accept letters.
 
2011 SunDevil said:
Since I work with several physicians, I discussed with them that I was placed on hold and they told me they would be willing to write a couple letters on my behalf. I emailed the USUHS admissions office to see if they would even accept update letters or further LOR's. Their reply was:

"If you would like to submit letters of update or more letters will be accepted and they will be added to your file for the Committee review."

Sooooo, I would say they accept letters.
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Nice thanks for passing that off!.. only thing is I wonder how fast we'd need to get those letters to them ya know... Still though better something than nothing at this point for us holders :xf:
 
Well, that was my next question to them. They emailed me back by saying that:

"You may have sent by mail to: Admissions, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bldg. A Room 1041, Bethesda, MD 20814 or by email with signature would be quicker."

So it appears you can snail mail it to them or email it to them. I think I would choose emailing. Good luck! I hope we both can help ourselves!
 
Has anyone gotten accepted from the waitlist yet or even heard of recent movement?
 
Had a good day yesterday (2/23). I had been to Bethesda Naval Medical Center before, but many years ago, and as a patient. I had never seen the school before.

I was most impressed with the quality of the people I met--both the faculty and my fellow applicants.

Best wishes to you all. Last interviews are DONE, so there's nothing left now but the waiting!!

Dean
 
Interviewed Dec. 8th, got my conditional Army acceptance this morning...I need to lose 2%-3% body fat in about 45 days...Why grad school...why did you make me such a fatty.
 
Gahh... this Hold status of mine and not knowing what it means about my chances is agonizing. Might be due to there being a crazy record high number of applicants to USU this year- least that's what one of the nice admin ladies told me
 
Congratulation Jlantern!

The livestrong app/website is a useful tool for managing your calorie intake according to your exercise and general activity levels.

Sorry you're still in limbo Schrdngrs Ct.... that's gotta be rough.
 
Hey guys, I just wanted to come and say keep your hopes up! Don't give up on what you want to do-- even if it takes some time for you to get here, it's worth it.
 
Does anybody know the lengths of the wait lists for the 3 military services?
 
received a place on the alternate list yesterday. interviewed on December 1 and chose Navy as a branch.
 
if it helps anybody, I received a place on the alternate list yesterday. interviewed on December 1 and chose Navy as a branch.
 
Just called USUHS. Those of us on hold won't hear back until after March 15. Our packets still haven't gone to the committee.
 
jvqd said:
Just called USUHS. Those of us on hold won't hear back until after March 15. Our packets still haven't gone to the committee.
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Didn't you interview back in the fall?.. I interviewed in December. So does that mean our excoms didn't want to submit our profile for recommendation yet for reasons of applicant stat preferences?
 
So those of us on hold (interview December 1st) is primarily due to our packets not being seen by the committee? Instead of our individual application's lacking something? Anyone have any clearer insight about this.......seems a bit muddled for me.
 
I graduated from USUHS in the late 80's and pursued a surgical residency in the Navy. Let me share some observations:
USUHS is no worse or better than any other allopathic school in the U.S. I served alongside colleagues from civilian schools and shared war stories. A sizeable number of them were Osteopaths and even then most of our didactics were nearly identical.
The payback time after graduation is considerable, but not if you love the military lifestyle. Be aware -- if you intend on "settling down" soon after graduation and starting a family, you will find that deployments and TAD (temporary additional duty) assignments will create notable strain on you, your spouse, and your family.
The military patient pool is NOT similar to the civilian patient pool. Most of our people are young and healthy. The older patients with challenging problems are being lost to TRICARE. You will not be performing the array of treatments and procedures that you would in a civilian specialty practice.
Some of us really do not want to spend each and every day in the O.R. If you believe that later in life you may want to climb the executive ranks within a HMO, then USUHS and a military residency path will give you lots of administrative experience.

Bottom Line -- USUHS worked great for me. The military lifestyle, however, did contribute to my divorce and alienation from one son. Don't worry about whether USUHS is a good or bad medical school -- worry about whether the military lifestyle is good or bad for you.
 
Pisadeer said:
I graduated from USUHS in the late 80's and pursued a surgical residency in the Navy. Let me share some observations:
USUHS is no worse or better than any other allopathic school in the U.S. I served alongside colleagues from civilian schools and shared war stories. A sizeable number of them were Osteopaths and even then most of our didactics were nearly identical.
The payback time after graduation is considerable, but not if you love the military lifestyle. Be aware -- if you intend on "settling down" soon after graduation and starting a family, you will find that deployments and TAD (temporary additional duty) assignments will create notable strain on you, your spouse, and your family.
The military patient pool is NOT similar to the civilian patient pool. Most of our people are young and healthy. The older patients with challenging problems are being lost to TRICARE. You will not be performing the array of treatments and procedures that you would in a civilian specialty practice.
Some of us really do not want to spend each and every day in the O.R. If you believe that later in life you may want to climb the executive ranks within a HMO, then USUHS and a military residency path will give you lots of administrative experience.

Bottom Line -- USUHS worked great for me. The military lifestyle, however, did contribute to my divorce and alienation from one son. Don't worry about whether USUHS is a good or bad medical school -- worry about whether the military lifestyle is good or bad for you.
Click to expand...

Thank you for sharing your experience!
 
Pisadeer said:
I graduated from USUHS in the late 80's and pursued a surgical residency in the Navy. Let me share some observations:
USUHS is no worse or better than any other allopathic school in the U.S. I served alongside colleagues from civilian schools and shared war stories. A sizeable number of them were Osteopaths and even then most of our didactics were nearly identical.
The payback time after graduation is considerable, but not if you love the military lifestyle. Be aware -- if you intend on "settling down" soon after graduation and starting a family, you will find that deployments and TAD (temporary additional duty) assignments will create notable strain on you, your spouse, and your family.
The military patient pool is NOT similar to the civilian patient pool. Most of our people are young and healthy. The older patients with challenging problems are being lost to TRICARE. You will not be performing the array of treatments and procedures that you would in a civilian specialty practice.
Some of us really do not want to spend each and every day in the O.R. If you believe that later in life you may want to climb the executive ranks within a HMO, then USUHS and a military residency path will give you lots of administrative experience.

Bottom Line -- USUHS worked great for me. The military lifestyle, however, did contribute to my divorce and alienation from one son. Don't worry about whether USUHS is a good or bad medical school -- worry about whether the military lifestyle is good or bad for you.
Click to expand...


This is heavy, but definitely informative. USUHS is one of my top schools, and I have been considering military medicine for more then a few years and have weighed out all the pluses and minuses. It is still a little scary considering I will be getting married in May, and even though my fiance and I have talked about our dedication to my career in medicine and the military, it still makes you wonder what will actually happen when it comes down to it.

However, during our interviews, USUHS made it very clear that they were family friendly and (without outright encouraging it) said that a lot of their students seem to be married or get married during med school. However, I guess it is a little different if two medical students are marrying each other.
 
Jlantern said:
This is heavy, but definitely informative. USUHS is one of my top schools, and I have been considering military medicine for more then a few years and have weighed out all the pluses and minuses. It is still a little scary considering I will be getting married in May, and even though my fiance and I have talked about our dedication to my career in medicine and the military, it still makes you wonder what will actually happen when it comes down to it.

However, during our interviews, USUHS made it very clear that they were family friendly and (without outright encouraging it) said that a lot of their students seem to be married or get married during med school. However, I guess it is a little different if two medical students are marrying each other.
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I cannot speak to USUHS and the medical officer corps specifically, but I can speak to marriage during prior service in a unit with one of the highest divorce rates in the military. The military will require greater independence from your spouse than a traditional career. It will require that your spouse handle the logistics of your household more or less on his/her own while you are deployed. It will require that your spouse accept the fact that while on deployment, you may go through experiences that change you in subtle or not-so-subtle ways: you may not come home exactly the same as when you left (this is among the greatest causes of friction). Military service will require both of you to relinquish a certain amount of autonomy: you both won't always get to live or work where you would like. Most importantly, military service will require a greater effort from both of you to stay connected to each other: to be solicitous and sensitive. It may mean waiting that extra half-hour on the line to use the phone at the FOB despite being tired and dirty. It may mean finding thoughtful gifts online to let your spouse know you're thinking of them despite your separation. It may mean your spouse giving you some space when you return when their first impulse is to be clingy. It may mean requesting a 2 year stint in a job you're less enthused about because your family needs a break from deployments.

Point being, military marriages do work, and are often that much stronger for overcoming the challenges that such a lifestyle entails... but this life will demand much more of both partners (and children, should they be present). You are sacrificing much of your freedom to protect the freedoms of others, and that sacrifice means that you will need to maximize every chance otherwise presented to build a strong marriage and family. All too often, service members allow the prodigious demands of their career to lull them into a sense of complacency about their family and marriage: expecting spouses and children always to make the adjustments and concessions. The most successful marriages and families that I've seen in the military emphasize a team dynamic, where the service-member takes every opportunity to meet his or her family halfway.

For what its worth, my wife of eight years and I are both looking forward to married life at USUHS, if the school is kind enough to let me in. 😉
 
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Hey all, I'm an Internal Medicine intern at Walter Reed, I just graduated from USU last May. I had two (unrelated) thoughts:

1) I concur with the thoughts posted above about being married and in the military. My wife and I met at the Naval Academy, and she is now getting out of the military so that we can be more flexible with my work. I wasn't too focused on the effects the military lifestyle has on family life, but as we get closer to having kids, it's becoming more apparent that there are some distinct challenges coming up, notably deployments and frequent station changes. That said I know a number of people who's marriages have survived/thrived in the military. I'm confident my family will thrive, but I recognize the challenges ahead and would never want to put my family through those challenges without truly want to serve as a military physician.

2) (Completely unrelated) I own a house in Kensington, MD, about 10 minutes from school, and I have 4 rooms to rent for this year, preferably to upcoming USUHS students.

The house has 4 rooms and 2 bathrooms, as well as two fully furnished large common areas (complete with a big table and a whiteboard for maximal studying) and two fully-equipped full-sized kitchens.

I've been renting to medical students at USU for 5 years now (starting when I was an MS1), and the med studs who've lived here and I have always had a great experience. I'm pretty confident you will too!

I'v created a craigslist ad, found here, you can search for "4 Rooms in 4Bed/2Bath House- 10 min from WRNMMC, USU, NIH" in the Washington DC craigslist website.

Since I went through the whole USUHS experience, feel free to contact me either about the house, the area, or the whole USU experience.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Steve
 
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Received my waitlist letter last night for Army
Interview: January 12
Letter was dated March 1 and postmarked March 5.

Much faster response than the 8-12 weeks they stated during the interview day.
 
Does anyone who was accepted know if there is any follow-up communication after the phone call/letter? Starting to worry I missed something
 
boomstix said:
Does anyone who was accepted know if there is any follow-up communication after the phone call/letter? Starting to worry I missed something
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all i've gotten so far was the call, conditional acceptance, unconditional acceptance, second look day invite (prequeled with the cryptic "second look is canceled" email). and i got an email from my sponsor. but that's about it
 
2ndCareerMD said:
Received my waitlist letter last night for Army
Interview: January 12
Letter was dated March 1 and postmarked March 5.

Much faster response than the 8-12 weeks they stated during the interview day.
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Have any other waitlist letters gone out to army candidates? Or is it now that the army slots have all been filled.
 
Anybody that interviewed in Jan hear anything back yet?
 
are there any current MS3's or MS4's on here that I could PM? i'm in incoming Navy student and just had some questions about the 3rd and 4th year (even though I know the curriculum is changing). thanks in advance!
 
Schrdngrs Ct said:
Have any other waitlist letters gone out to army candidates? Or is it now that the army slots have all been filled.
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My understanding (based on the blue sheet from the interview day) is the adcom will vote throughout the application cycle. Those that are voted to be accepted are given conditional acceptances to their service preference. Even after all the slots are filled, they adcom will still vote on students. Applicants that are deemed acceptable after their primary service is full are placed on the waitlist. i.e. it is my understanding that waitlists at USUHS don't start until that branch has been 'filled'.

Waitlist, alternate, and hold are three different status categories at USUHS.

:luck:
 
citrusguy2010 said:
i got an email around feb 9th but i don't know if that's generalizable to everyone else?
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I got mine a couple weeks before this, about a month-month and a half after my acceptance. The wait time is probably based on how long it takes to set you up with a sponsor and how quickly the sponsor makes contact.
 
Hi,

Noob here. Has anyone this year or recent years been accepted or put on the wait list with an MCAT of 29 or less?
 
:soexcited:
Got the phone call this afternoon! Conditional Acceptance to Army 😀
 
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