2011-2012 University of Miami Application Thread

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So as a permanent resident, do I just answer "no" to both of the questions on citizenship and leave the naturalization number box empty? It seems like it would make for an awkward secondary.

Adcom: "what the hell...This guys isn't even a U.S. Citizen."

No mention of permanent residents on the secondary, even though their website mentions they can apply to financial aid and such.

Confused...
 
Cinematographer said:
So as a permanent resident, do I just answer "no" to both of the questions on citizenship and leave the naturalization number box empty? It seems like it would make for an awkward secondary.

Adcom: "what the hell...This guys isn't even a U.S. Citizen."

No mention of permanent residents on the secondary, even though their website mentions they can apply to financial aid and such.

Confused...
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Call or email. They're really fast at responding and nice too 🙂 I'm sure they have a plan for this situation- I think some of the questions on secondaries (in general) don't think about "special circumstances." good luck!
 
While this may not answer your question, I wanted to at least assure you that permanent residents are fine at Miami; my boyfriend just started his second year and he doesn't have citizenship. Not sure if it's helpful, but maybe it'll give you a little peace of mind! 🙂
 
Is your application considered complete only after you send your photo? I forgot about it and just send it today.
 
Did I screw up this secondary? Just got the confirmation email from acteva and noticed a few blank responses to questions that didn't even show up in my secondary page such as "Research interest," the "brief optional essay" etc. I know it says MD/PhD section, but why would they also put the LOR info on this section alone?
 
Any current UM students here? The website is a bit sparse on specific information about the MD program, was curious if we could get some firsthand knowledge of what students there get involved in or find particularly interesting.

On that same thread, any students in the Social Medicine Pathway watching this thread and have any input on the track?
 
Cinematographer said:
Did I screw up this secondary? Just got the confirmation email from acteva and noticed a few blank responses to questions that didn't even show up in my secondary page such as "Research interest," the "brief optional essay" etc. I know it says MD/PhD section, but why would they also put the LOR info on this section alone?
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Log in to the secondary site and click on Order ID. This will pull up your order receipt. Then click on "Make changes to this order," which I believe is in the left hand corner. This will allow you to correct any errors. If Acteva is showing a messed up secondary, then that's what the schools will be seeing as well. However, my understanding is that have to do this before someone at UM downloads your secondary. Hope this helps!
 
FattySlug said:
Is your application considered complete only after you send your photo? I forgot about it and just send it today.
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In order to be complete, I believe you have to send in your photo first. At least that's what the admissions representative's e-mail made it sound like.
 
Any idea when we should hear about interviews???
 
1. Are secondaries usually looked at fully for each candidate, or is it likely individual responses will be compared across candidates? I ask b/c this secondary asks for clinical experiences, then for community service/volunteering experiences. Several of my clinical experiences are also my most significant volunteer experiences; it seems awfully silly to give them another tiresome overview of the activity that is listed directly above.

Unless of course these are presented in a way where the previous response is not on the same page. i.e. if comparing 20 candidates based only on their response to this question, it'd be a shame to have nothing written under the assumption that the adcom could just see an above response that isn't there.

2. How far back are people going with these chronologies? Is the adage to not mention anything from H.S. also true for secondaries?
 
clinical experiences -- if we had a personal hospitalization experience that really pushed us toward medicine (but it wasn't technically something like a volunteering or shadowing or working in a hospital experience), can we still write about that or no?
 
velleityx said:
clinical experiences -- if we had a personal hospitalization experience that really pushed us toward medicine (but it wasn't technically something like a volunteering or shadowing or working in a hospital experience), can we still write about that or no?
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I believe it said something involving the care of others.
 
Are they screening for secondaries? My MCAT score hasn't been posted yet, but I received my secondary invitation from UM today.
 
velleityx said:
clinical experiences -- if we had a personal hospitalization experience that really pushed us toward medicine (but it wasn't technically something like a volunteering or shadowing or working in a hospital experience), can we still write about that or no?
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I actually called them about this today because I was confused as well. My friend said the prompt was only asking for a clinical experience (i.e. shadowing or hospital volunteering) while I interpreted it as any medical experience which dramatically strengthened your resolve to pursue medicine as a career. The admissions staff member on the phone said what you and I are thinking is correct. It can be any clinical experience. Hope this helps and :luck:
 
robbieflick said:
1. Are secondaries usually looked at fully for each candidate, or is it likely individual responses will be compared across candidates? I ask b/c this secondary asks for clinical experiences, then for community service/volunteering experiences. Several of my clinical experiences are also my most significant volunteer experiences; it seems awfully silly to give them another tiresome overview of the activity that is listed directly above.

Unless of course these are presented in a way where the previous response is not on the same page. i.e. if comparing 20 candidates based only on their response to this question, it'd be a shame to have nothing written under the assumption that the adcom could just see an above response that isn't there.

No clue here. An adcom member may be better able to answer this, such as LizzyM. In my opinion, though, repetition is the name of the game with secondaries, so even if it seems idiotic, I would just do what they are asking for.

2. How far back are people going with these chronologies? Is the adage to not mention anything from H.S. also true for secondaries?
You are correct. It is best not to mention anything from high school unless you continued it into college.
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:luck:
 
SunKissedG8tr said:
Are they screening for secondaries? My MCAT score hasn't been posted yet, but I received my secondary invitation from UM today.
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No screening. They send to all US citizens and permanent residents (according to last year's MSAR)
 
Soooooo is biochemistry required? MSAR says it's recommended, not required, but the wording on the secondary makes it seem otherwise...unless it's just worded weird.

Any opinions?
 
Velour Fog said:
Soooooo is biochemistry required? MSAR says it's recommended, not required, but the wording on the secondary makes it seem otherwise...unless it's just worded weird.

Any opinions?
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Their admissions site says:
"A course in biochemistry is strongly recommended and may be substituted for one semester of organic chemistry." It's not listed as a required course.

Their secondary was all sorts of weird, though, so it was probably just its weirdness.
 
DrShazam said:
In order to be complete, I believe you have to send in your photo first. At least that's what the admissions representative's e-mail made it sound like.
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Where do you see the request for a photo?
 
bev78 said:
Where do you see the request for a photo?
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I e-mailed them one week after I submitted my secondary because I had not received any confirmation. Only then did I get an e-mail back saying my application would be complete once I sent a photo.

If you haven't gotten an e-mail yet asking for a photo, I'd contact them at [email protected]
 
does anyone know when they start interviews? im oos and will be in miami in a month and was wondering if i should even bother sending them an in the area email or phone call to see if theres any chance considering its still pretty early in the application season
 
mrdude said:
does anyone know when they start interviews? im oos and will be in miami in a month and was wondering if i should even bother sending them an in the area email or phone call to see if theres any chance considering its still pretty early in the application season
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Could be worth it but probably not...they didn't send out interviews (just the invites) until mid sept last year and thus didn't interview till october.
 
I wonder how well the committee responds to humor. I would like to answer the question for reapplicants saying I have improved my candidacy by overcoming and completing the new-and-improved, dauntingly difficult secondary application drafted by the UMMSM admissions committee. Something tells me they might not find it as funny, though.... 😀
 
Hey Everyone.. current M1 here. Last year they did start interviewing in late september. On average there are two interview days each week and they give you a list of the available options within a month time span.

Let me know if any of you have any specific questions. I would be glad to answer them!
 
scalab said:
LadyLoe, what's it like living in Miami?????
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Though I am not LadyLoe, I have been living in Miami for the past two years. It's the sort of city you either love or hate. There's a lot more to do than clubbing and drinking at South Beach, but you have to search for these recreational alternatives (i.e. we have an ice skating rink!). I love the public transportation system here- it's quite extensive and connects all major parts of Miami (I don't have a car here and it's very convenient even if it is sometimes time-consuming). Yes, there is a large Hispanic population, and it can sometimes become frustrating when you don't speak the language, but it's fun at the same time learning about so many different cultures; you just have to be open to the experience. As far as cost is concerned, Miami is expensive, even with produce items (which doesn't make sense to me because we are a port!).

Hope this helps, and I am sure LadyLoe has more to offer on this. Feel free to ask if you have general Miami questions :luck:
 
So are we just taking the "we have received your photo" email as the complete email, or is there another one?
to be honest, Miami is one of my top choices and I would LOVE to go here, but it has the worst secondary by far. not even just length, but set-up. I reallyyyy hope that email they send you after you submit is not how it shows up to the adcom b/c if so....whoooooops. either way, :xf:to everyone! hope they some love our way for even confronting this beastly secondary.
 
I also have lived in Miami for over 4 years and currently work for the U. If anyone has any questions about the city, feel free to PM me. I agree with drshazam though, you either love it or hate it. If you like everyone to be the same or you're Caucasian and aren't used to being the minority, it can be different initially. Personally, I love all the culture here. Working at the U (w/ attendings/residents/fellows), I can tell you that the docs are mostly hispanic but are also from every other country (we have mostly brazil, lebanon, pakistan, japan, and germany represented in my department) so you definitely have to get used to hearing other languages. Do you have to speak Spanish? No, but I guarantee you that it helps...there are parts of Miami where even the pt's PCPs don't speak english (many practices are not licensed in the shadier parts of town and it's not uncommon for people to randomly get ABX or other meds from shady pharmacies). There are translators (either in person, or on the phone) available at all the hospitals but they won't be at your local supermarket which, if you're far south, can be an issue (the school/downtown/brickell/beach area is not like that 🙂 ). The medical campus is actually in downtown, not coral gables.
I'm from the northeast...while the weather is AMAZING, it is a culture shock when you first get down here. If you're open to new experiences and meeting amazing people though, you'll really enjoy your time here.
And yes, living here is expensive. My single 1 bed in downtown (right next to Brickell, a part of town where a lot of med students/residents live) is 1500/month. If I moved 1/4 mile to brickell it would be a min of 1650/month. Brickell and downtown are mostly new high-rise buildings. Coral gables (more suburbia) tends to be more student-budget friendly but commuting may be painful (right now, it takes me under 5 min to drive to work). My (vegetarian, female) grocery bill is about 60/week (and i use super target, not publix- the "nice" grocery store haha). Gas is fairly average- the lowest i've seen where i live is 3.80ish (though it's more downtown, 4.05, for convenience).
There's a rail that goes from the coral gables campus to the medical campus which takes about 15-20 minutes. Runs every 10ish (miami time, so more like 11-12) min during rush hours, but every 30 min on the weekends and after 830 pm. metrorail/mover stops at midnight...not sure about the buses because i've never taken them.
Overall, it's been a great experience living here, I hope to continue doing so. Let me know if there's anything else I can offer.
 
Any news? The last communication I had was e-mailing my photo on 8/9....
 
last year interviews were handed out beginning in mid september...looks like at least another week or two 🙂
 
Interview Invite!!!
(please note my avatar picture for my excitement)
 
I sent my photograph in on July 14th and they respond saying I was complete then.
 
Interview here too!

Anyone else having trouble submitting their dates? I keep getting an error page.
 
Are those of you with interview invites IS or OOS?
 
First interview invite! Went crazy after I got the email. I'm taking a gap year and applied last year, but I sent all my apps in October/November, so I never got called for an invite anywhere. Miami is one of my top 2 choices, so I pray I can get in now (it'll also make the upcoming year much less stressful haha).

Info for those curious: IS, 3.47 (c), 3.41 (s), 36R, Top 10 undergrad
 
Fresh prince how many times did you take the mcat?
 
Yeah, I'm regular admissions! I've heard awesome things about the MD/MPH class this year! I'll bet you'll love it!
 
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3.79 overall, 3.8 BCMP, 32O, UM student and Florida resident.

Is it anything to worry about that I submitted my secondary at the beginning of the month and haven't received an interview invite yet?
 
Though I can't say for sure, I really wouldn't start worrying yet. I've been waiting the better part of 2 months since I was complete. Your numbers are really solid (better than mine!) and I think you'll be great!
 
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