2011-2012 University of Virginia Application Thread

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Cinclus said:
I just made my airline reservations. The plan is to fly into Richmond and drive a rental to Charlottesville. I will be packing my TomTom. :)
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I'm from Richmond and went to UVA undergrad, lemme know if you have any questions about travel. It's really simple from Richmond airport just take 64 East all the way to Charlottesville.
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Ommu said:
I'm from Richmond and went to UVA undergrad, lemme know if you have any questions about travel. It's really simple from Richmond airport just take 64 East all the way to Charlottesville.
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Isn't Charlottesville west of Richmond, or is I-64 one of those weird ones that runs backwards for a bit?
 
ywlke said:
Isn't Charlottesville west of Richmond, or is I-64 one of those weird ones that runs backwards for a bit?
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It is I-64 West, as Charlottesville is about 90 minutes west of the capital. Prepare for traffic! Give yourself plenty of extra time, depending on when you arrive in the morning. 64 can be pretty bad.

Me, I'm coming down from the northern part of the state, about a 90 minute drive as well. I already can't wait for it!
 
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ywlke said:
Isn't Charlottesville west of Richmond, or is I-64 one of those weird ones that runs backwards for a bit?
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You take I-64 West. You have to watch for signs, though, because there's one segment where you'll end up in downtown Richmond if you're not paying attention (yes, I have done this before). Alternatively, you could take I-64 East, get off on 295 (towards Washington, I believe), and take that around til you hit I-64 again.
 
mvenus929 said:
You take I-64 West. You have to watch for signs, though, because there's one segment where you'll end up in downtown Richmond if you're not paying attention (yes, I have done this before). Alternatively, you could take I-64 East, get off on 295 (towards Washington, I believe), and take that around til you hit I-64 again.
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This is true - 295 makes a semi-circle around Richmond, going north or towards Washington, and reconnects with 64 to the west. That might be easier depending on which side of the city the airport is in. That, I don't know.
 
Snuke said:
This is true - 295 makes a semi-circle around Richmond, going north or towards Washington, and reconnects with 64 to the west. That might be easier depending on which side of the city the airport is in. That, I don't know.
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The airport is on the east side of the city, almost at the junction of 295 and 64 (when you take 295 towards the airport, the signs tell you to get off on a street like a mile or two away from the junction, to the road that leads straight into the airport. But that's confusing leaving the airport).
 
Snuke said:
Me, I'm coming down from the northern part of the state, about a 90 minute drive as well. I already can't wait for it!
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Whoa how do you make it in 90 minutes from the northern part of the state? My experience has always been about 2 hours from Northern Virginia.
 
ywlke said:
Whoa how do you make it in 90 minutes from the northern part of the state? My experience has always been about 2 hours from Northern Virginia.
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I live in Fauquier country, which is north-western VA. I hop on 17 to 29 South and (with no traffic), it's about 90 minutes. If I were coming from Fairfax or Alexandria, it'd be 2 hours on a really good day!
 
Snuke said:
I live in Fauquier country, which is north-western VA. I hop on 17 to 29 South and (with no traffic), it's about 90 minutes. If I were coming from Fairfax or Alexandria, it'd be 2 hours on a really good day!
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Ah okay, not as north as I thought then ;)
 
ywlke said:
Ah okay, not as north as I thought then ;)
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True. I just say 'northern VA' because no one outside of VA knows what in the world a 'Fauquier' is. What they do know is that it's pronounced quite humorously.
 
CopaceticOne said:
:soexcited: Snuke, you made my morning! I grew up in NoVa and we did indeed joke about that fine county.
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At the risk of derailing the thread, I'm positive that you did. My friends in Springfield and Fairfax would always give me a hard time for being from 'Fauq-queer' (which is not how you pronounce it, fyi, it's Faw-keyir).

To which I'd respond that at least I got snow days. That's right, home of the snow days! 10-15 most years. We decided it was a fair trade-off.

If you message me, I'll send you a professional video of our hospital that proves our existence and how you will always mis-pronounce it unless you're from here. It aired on Conan; it's our claim to fame!
 
haha, i remember when i first heard about fauquier, i was like wtf is that? but then i'd always be jealous because you guys ALWAYS got snow days while lame fcps would give us two-hour delays, max. =\ (also a fellow nova-n)
 
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velleityx said:
haha, i remember when i first heard about fauquier, i was like wtf is that? but then i'd always be jealous because you guys ALWAYS got snow days while lame fcps would give us two-hour delays, max. =\ (also a fellow nova-n)
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One year we got over 20 days off for ice/snow, and we'd routinely get up to the teens and have to request the governor for forgiveness, since we wouldn't go the whole 180 school days. It's for the children, after all. Have to make sure they're safe.

Really, there are legitimate reasons for it, but sometimes it got ridiculous. We got off for threat of snow once or twice. We probably didn't get any more than you, those days when you had a delay and we had a closure.
 
Snuke said:
One year we got over 20 days off for ice/snow, and we'd routinely get up to the teens and have to request the governor for forgiveness, since we wouldn't go the whole 180 school days. It's for the children, after all. Have to make sure they're safe.

Really, there are legitimate reasons for it, but sometimes it got ridiculous. We got off for threat of snow once or twice. We probably didn't get any more than you, those days when you had a delay and we had a closure.
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Heh for some reason, I've never thought Fauquier was pronounced anything other than the right way...I'll bet it's related to listening to the lists of school closings ;) Lucky you for getting forgiveness though. FCPS has done nasty things like extend the school day by 30 minutes for a month.
 
ywlke said:
Heh for some reason, I've never thought Fauquier was pronounced anything other than the right way...I'll bet it's related to listening to the lists of school closings ;) Lucky you for getting forgiveness though. FCPS has done nasty things like extend the school day by 30 minutes for a month.
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We go 30 minutes longer every day of school to build up a bank of school days. We just don't acknowledge it. I'm not sure the average student even knows about it.
 
Snuke said:
We go 30 minutes longer every day of school to build up a bank of school days. We just don't acknowledge it. I'm not sure the average student even knows about it.
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But do you get them back if you don't use them then?
 
ywlke said:
Isn't Charlottesville west of Richmond, or is I-64 one of those weird ones that runs backwards for a bit?
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LOL yeah that's what I meant, 64 WEST...wasn't thinking while typing.
 
Hey guys,

First off, congrats on the interview invites!! (and good luck to those waiting - trust me..it is still VERY early).

One piece of advice I have for interviewees is to definitely stay for the financial aid presentation if time permits. The med school has ALOT of financial aid money to give out (it is need-based but you will likely qualify for some scholarship support if your parents aren't exceedingly wealthy - aka neither is a doctor).

Just a heads up, the school gives up to $17,000 in financial aid scholarship per year for OOS students and up to $14,500 for instate students. This makes the price tag of the school much more reasonable compared to other schools (I realize that the sticker price is ludicrous).

I wanted to pass this info along because I never knew about it until going to the financial aid presentation during my interview.

Again, good luck to everyone!

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.
 
Do people usually fly in to Dulles and then drive ~2 hrs to UVA? I'm not sure what people usually do when the school is far away from the nearest airport.
 
Fanforever said:
Do people usually fly in to Dulles and then drive ~2 hrs to UVA? I'm not sure what people usually do when the school is far away from the nearest airport.
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There is an airport in Charlottesville (well, technically it's about 10 miles outside of Charlottesville, but same concept). It's a small one, but you can get direct flights from Dulles, Charlotte, Philly, and Atlanta, I think.

When I interviewed, I flew into Charlottesville, then took a bus up to DC after my interview, stayed with a friend up there, and flew back out of Reagan. It was cheaper for me to do that than round trip out of Charlottesville. When I came back for second look, I flew into and out of Dulles, and got down here by public transportation. It was a bit more painful (so I wouldn't suggest it for the interview), but I got to know more of the city that way.

I've had applicants that I've hosted do everything from fly into Dulles or Richmond and drive out to driving all the way from home (when home is reasonably close, of course), to fly in and out of Charlottesville.
 
Fanforever said:
Do people usually fly in to Dulles and then drive ~2 hrs to UVA? I'm not sure what people usually do when the school is far away from the nearest airport.
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I'll be flying in/out of Richmond and renting a car. I need to fly out the same evening of my interview and Richmond was my best option for that.
 
mvenus929 said:
There is an airport in Charlottesville (well, technically it's about 10 miles outside of Charlottesville, but same concept). It's a small one, but you can get direct flights from Dulles, Charlotte, Philly, and Atlanta, I think.

When I interviewed, I flew into Charlottesville, then took a bus up to DC after my interview, stayed with a friend up there, and flew back out of Reagan. It was cheaper for me to do that than round trip out of Charlottesville. When I came back for second look, I flew into and out of Dulles, and got down here by public transportation. It was a bit more painful (so I wouldn't suggest it for the interview), but I got to know more of the city that way.

I've had applicants that I've hosted do everything from fly into Dulles or Richmond and drive out to driving all the way from home (when home is reasonably close, of course), to fly in and out of Charlottesville.
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Okay I see. I'm flying in from the Midwest so I don't believe there are any direct flights to Charlottesville. I was originally thinking of flying into Dulles and getting down there by public transportation (which by the way can you describe a bit more?) but if I do that I might have to stay another night in VA unless I find a flight that takes off really late...
 
Fanforever said:
Okay I see. I'm flying in from the Midwest so I don't believe there are any direct flights to Charlottesville. I was originally thinking of flying into Dulles and getting down there by public transportation (which by the way can you describe a bit more?) but if I do that I might have to stay another night in VA unless I find a flight that takes off really late...
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If you fly into Dulles, it's a bit more complicated, because the metro does not yet extend that far out. So, you have to take a bus (something Flyer) to the metro station, then take the metro to Central station. From there, you can either catch an Amtrack train, or you can catch the Greyhound bus (the bus station is also just a few blocks from central station, so if you feel comfortable walking to there, that's an option too).

Both will drop you off between UVA and the Downtown mall. There's a Free Trolley that runs along Main st that will bring you down to campus (or Grounds, as they say here), if your hotel is down that way. (Or you can stay with a student, and they'll usually be willing to pick you up from there).

If you fly into Reagan, the metro does connect directly to the airport, and you can take it out to central station without having to worry about the bus.

If you're going to try to commute from DC to Charlottesville, in general, you're going to need an extra day on your travels. It's a 2 hour drive on a good day, and battling DC traffic at rush hour (if you leave right after your interview) would be painful. My whole trip out here was three days: flying in the afternoon before my interview, leaving Charlottesville immediately after my interview, and flying out of DC the next morning.
 
Fanforever said:
Okay I see. I'm flying in from the Midwest so I don't believe there are any direct flights to Charlottesville. I was originally thinking of flying into Dulles and getting down there by public transportation (which by the way can you describe a bit more?) but if I do that I might have to stay another night in VA unless I find a flight that takes off really late...
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American airlines flies nonstop from chicago to charlottesville. Check it out!
 
mvenus929 said:
If you fly into Dulles, it's a bit more complicated, because the metro does not yet extend that far out. So, you have to take a bus (something Flyer) to the metro station, then take the metro to Central station. From there, you can either catch an Amtrack train, or you can catch the Greyhound bus (the bus station is also just a few blocks from central station, so if you feel comfortable walking to there, that's an option too).
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Where's the central station? It sounds like it's not in a very good neighborhood if I might not feel comfortable walking around there.

If you fly into Reagan, the metro does connect directly to the airport, and you can take it out to central station without having to worry about the bus.

If you're going to try to commute from DC to Charlottesville, in general, you're going to need an extra day on your travels. It's a 2 hour drive on a good day, and battling DC traffic at rush hour (if you leave right after your interview) would be painful. My whole trip out here was three days: flying in the afternoon before my interview, leaving Charlottesville immediately after my interview, and flying out of DC the next morning.
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Ah this trip does require quite a bit of planning. Thanks for the helpful advice! Perhaps I can also consider renting a car at Dulles... hmm

kduck said:
American airlines flies nonstop from chicago to charlottesville. Check it out!
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Good catch! :O Thanks for the info!
 
Fanforever said:
Where's the central station? It sounds like it's not in a very good neighborhood if I might not feel comfortable walking around there.
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It's a big city. I'm a girl. I don't walk alone at night. So depending on when you arrive there... It's not in a terribly bad part of town, and it's perfectly fine during the day because there are a ton of offices in the area, and a ton of commuters and tourists there. But at night... it's a little unnerving.

Also, if you're not familiar with the area, it can be a little confusing to find. Which is another reason you might not be comfortable making your way out of Central Station to find the bus station.
 
I'm sure when you are saying "central station", you mean Union Station??

Also, it is not really dangerous, if you stray a few miles east then yes Anacostia is not the nicest neighborhood, but you should be fine around union station, even at night (at the end of the day there are always commuters going back and forth around these large mass transit stations (safety in numbers).

The tracks around C'ville are more dangerous at night than those at union station.

mvenus929 said:
It's a big city. I'm a girl. I don't walk alone at night. So depending on when you arrive there... It's not in a terribly bad part of town, and it's perfectly fine during the day because there are a ton of offices in the area, and a ton of commuters and tourists there. But at night... it's a little unnerving.

Also, if you're not familiar with the area, it can be a little confusing to find. Which is another reason you might not be comfortable making your way out of Central Station to find the bus station.
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BarcaBest23 said:
I'm sure when you are saying "central station", you mean Union Station??

The tracks around C'ville are more dangerous at night than those at union station.
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Yes, my bad. I am from out west and have only been to DC three times in my life. I didn't think it would be that difficult to figure out what the main train station in DC was even if I messed up the name.

And again, I am overly cautious because I am a girl with relatively little strength. I lived next to the train tracks here last year and I was especially conscious of walking alone at night, which was probably the reason I studied at home so much.
 
would it be possible to make a 5:50 flight out after the interview day? email said i could leave right after interviews at 3:30
 
mvenus929 said:
Yeah, that shouldn't be a problem. The airport is tiny; you can get there 45 minutes before you flight and be at the gate before they start boarding easy. Cab ride to the airport will take like 15 minutes.
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+1

There are only 4 gates or something, so no crazed rush through the airport. :)
 
and i assume the security line shouldnt be a problem either?
 
MilkIsGood said:
and i assume the security line shouldnt be a problem either?
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Security is pretty much two people and one X-ray machine, but since there are so few gates and each plane is quite small, the line doesn't have a chance to get that bad.
 
Thank you. I've started packing my stuff for the trip on Tuesday. I hate flying, but I can't wait to visit the beautiful Charlottesville and UVA.
 
Just had my interview today, and UVA is pretty much awesome. The campus is beautiful, the facilities are great, everyone's extremely friendly, and the interviews were very relaxed. I didn't even feel like I was being interviewed. I hope that my other interviews are like this one! I felt like I was a great fit for the school.
 
Cinclus said:
Just had my interview today, and UVA is pretty much awesome. The campus is beautiful, the facilities are great, everyone's extremely friendly, and the interviews were very relaxed. I didn't even feel like I was being interviewed. I hope that my other interviews are like this one! I felt like I was a great fit for the school.
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Thanks for sharing! I'm going to be there at the end of the month and I'm really looking forward to it.

Sent from my HTC Glacier using Tapatalk
 
Cinclus said:
Just had my interview today, and UVA is pretty much awesome. The campus is beautiful, the facilities are great, everyone's extremely friendly, and the interviews were very relaxed. I didn't even feel like I was being interviewed. I hope that my other interviews are like this one! I felt like I was a great fit for the school.
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Yay!

I'm bummed that I keep missing the interviewees because most of my 10-minute-class-breaks are spent waiting in line in the bathroom or dashing to get a coffee refill.
 
mvenus929 said:
Yeah, that shouldn't be a problem. The airport is tiny; you can get there 45 minutes before you flight and be at the gate before they start boarding easy. Cab ride to the airport will take like 15 minutes.
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How do I get a hold of a cab to go from UVA to Charlottesville airport? If I left ~4:15, would I be able to make a flight at 5:50 pm?
 
girlSam said:
I'm bummed that I keep missing the interviewees because most of my 10-minute-class-breaks are spent waiting in line in the bathroom or dashing to get a coffee refill.
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The key is to catch them in the afternoon. They head into the conference room at 10, which is when our classes generally let out for break, and then they leave around 11:30 for lunch and the tour. They get back to the admissions office around 1:20 and interviews start at 1:30. If you go around 1:45 or so, you can talk to one set for 15 minutes, and the next set when interviews change over at 2.

Yes, I've done this a few times. People in my class used to duck out of lecture early to talk to them in the morning. Probably still do, but it's harder when you have to change rooms at 10.

Everyone who's waiting around for an interview, feel free to ask questions. We got all sorts of med students monitoring this thread.


Fanforever said:
How do I get a hold of a cab to go from UVA to Charlottesville airport? If I left ~4:15, would I be able to make a flight at 5:50 pm?
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Ask the admissions office. They'll call a cab for you. They were going to for me, but my fourth year interviewer offered to give me a ride instead :) And yes, you will have no problem making it to the airport in time to catch your flight. You'll probably be bored out of your skull for a good half hour waiting for boarding to start.
 
Is anyone interviewing on October 3rd, flying to Charlottesville on the 2nd and interested in carpooling from the airport to UVA?
 
Fanforever said:
How do I get a hold of a cab to go from UVA to Charlottesville airport? If I left ~4:15, would I be able to make a flight at 5:50 pm?
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when are you interviewing? im guessing you have the us airways flight. mine is in 2 weeks
 
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