2012-2013 Boston University Application Thread

Med School Insiders
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Status
Not open for further replies.
anyone know when we are supposed to be receiving the tuition deposit forms?
 
AlphaMagnum said:
Did anyone else get a request to confirm contact information? (I did.) Is this a good thing?
Click to expand...

It means nothing. I got it before the January round of acceptances too and got deferred.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile
 
Gave up my spot in the entering class. Hope one of you will get my spot!

Best of luck everyone 🙂
 
does anyone know what day they are sending out the second round of acceptances in march?
 
Are we required to fill out the needaccess application to qualify for any aid from BU, or is that just a suggestion? I filled out FAFSA but do not want to fill out needaccess if I dont have to
 
wpx8209 said:
Are we required to fill out the needaccess application to qualify for any aid from BU, or is that just a suggestion? I filled out FAFSA but do not want to fill out needaccess if I dont have to[/QU

Ye we do...i called em a few weeks back and if u are to receive any aid from BU, the needaccess is a must
Click to expand...
 
Omar Little said:
good luck everyone! If you have any questions about the school let me know
Click to expand...

I know having a car isn't necessary for the first two years, but is it helpful to have one anyway? Or is parking/traffic etc. such a hassle that a car would be more trouble than it's worth?

How much free time do you have?

Did you get involved with research, and if so, how?

Thank you! 🙂
 
bestcoast027 said:
I know having a car isn't necessary for the first two years, but is it helpful to have one anyway? Or is parking/traffic etc. such a hassle that a car would be more trouble than it's worth?
Click to expand...

Having a car in Boston is WAY more trouble than it's worth. Parking is expensive, you have to scrap for spots once a week for street cleaning, there's a lot of traffic, cars get broken into and your insurance is more expensive. There's also no need for a Car in Boston as the city is actually pretty small and very walkable (except maybe in January and February). and the T, despite some of the bad press it gets, more than gets the job done if it's too far to walk.
 
Geebeejay said:
Having a car in Boston is WAY more trouble than it's worth. Parking is expensive, you have to scrap for spots once a week for street cleaning, there's a lot of traffic, cars get broken into and your insurance is more expensive. There's also no need for a Car in Boston as the city is actually pretty small and very walkable (except maybe in January and February). and the T, despite some of the bad press it gets, more than gets the job done if it's too far to walk.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice!
 
So is next week THE week? Come on BU, show me some love! Good luck everyone! 🙂
 
If people posting acceptances could say who their interviewer was that would be great!
 
I recieved a call today from my interviewer but when I called back he left for the day, I should probably hear the news tomorrow morning. I would wait until tomorrow to post, but I wanted to let those that are wondering know I interviewed with Dr. Berenbaum
 
Taco Truck said:
If people posting acceptances could say who their interviewer was that would be great!
Click to expand...

My interviewer was Dr. Balady. His email said that I would get an official letter from Dean Witzburg in a few days.

In terms of a status change, I tried to log into the website but couldn't, but that could just be because I tried to do it on my phone/everyone is trying to access the site at once. Hope that helps!
 
Taquaticus said:
My interviewer was Dr. Balady. His email said that I would get an official letter from Dean Witzburg in a few days.

In terms of a status change, I tried to log into the website but couldn't, but that could just be because I tried to do it on my phone/everyone is trying to access the site at once. Hope that helps!
Click to expand...

When did you interview? I had Dr. Balady..
 
Accepted!! Just received a phone call from my interviewer, Dr. Garg. Interviewed on 02/04. No change in status. He said to expect a letter from Dean Witzburg in a couple of day.
 
Hey guys, is the grading at BU Pass/Fail uranked for the pre-clinical years?
 
Could any current BU students talk about their experience finding and getting involved in research of any sort? 🙂
 
bestcoast027 said:
Could any current BU students talk about their experience finding and getting involved in research of any sort? 🙂
Click to expand...

Its extremely easy to find a research project if you want to. There is so much research conducted here that you can find something in whatever field you want to. I know a bunch of my friends have lined up research projects for this summer without much effort finding a project. The school also funds your research if you do it at BU over the summer with the Medical student summer research scholarship. Also, you're in Boston and if you want you can also do research at other institutions fairly easily.
 
frezz219 said:
Its extremely easy to find a research project if you want to. There is so much research conducted here that you can find something in whatever field you want to. I know a bunch of my friends have lined up research projects for this summer without much effort finding a project. The school also funds your research if you do it at BU over the summer with the Medical student summer research scholarship. Also, you're in Boston and if you want you can also do research at other institutions fairly easily.
Click to expand...

Yes, exactly. All the attendings are very approachable with research projects. It's also pretty easy to find projects with researchers from other institutions around Boston (MGH, BWH, Tufts, etc), which is what I did after my second year.
 
Did any current students choose BUSM over a much cheaper school? I love BU, but I'm having a hard time rationalizing the 150K+ more I would pay to go here versus another school that will be essentially free for me to go to. It doesn't help that the BU financial aid office is a month late in getting us our award packages and the deposit is due in a mere few weeks..!
 
GreyEarl said:
Did any current students choose BUSM over a much cheaper school? I love BU, but I'm having a hard time rationalizing the 150K+ more I would pay to go here versus another school that will be essentially free for me to go to. It doesn't help that the BU financial aid office is a month late in getting us our award packages and the deposit is due in a mere few weeks..!
Click to expand...

Practically free? Sounds pretty tempting, but I don't think you can put a price-tag on some of the opportunities that BU (and other pricier schools) can offer you. I think that most medical schools are "good", but they are definitely not all created equal.
 
i get to work with a lot of doctors in the emergency room and they all have told me one thing - pick the cheapest school out there. education is all the same, it's what you make of the education that matters. a lot of the doctors have gone to DO schools and schools in the carribbean and then do their residency at prestigious places like yale, highland hospital, ucsd, ucla, jhopkins, etc, and they're all very successful. (chief of the ED/chief of the hospital). if you'd consider my 2cents, i'd say consider cost!!

but boston is a great city and if part of your consideration is that you want to live in the city of boston for 4 years, then by all means. it's all about what you want and what you're going for in your life. think about what's important to you!
 
eagle34 said:
Yes, exactly. All the attendings are very approachable with research projects. It's also pretty easy to find projects with researchers from other institutions around Boston (MGH, BWH, Tufts, etc), which is what I did after my second year.
Click to expand...

Cool, thanks for the info. Do many people work on their research projects when classes are in session, or is it mostly a summer/extra year kind of thing?
 
haribocandy said:
i get to work with a lot of doctors in the emergency room and they all have told me one thing - pick the cheapest school out there. education is all the same, it's what you make of the education that matters. a lot of the doctors have gone to DO schools and schools in the carribbean and then do their residency at prestigious places like yale, highland hospital, ucsd, ucla, jhopkins, etc, and they're all very successful. (chief of the ED/chief of the hospital). if you'd consider my 2cents, i'd say consider cost!!

but boston is a great city and if part of your consideration is that you want to live in the city of boston for 4 years, then by all means. it's all about what you want and what you're going for in your life. think about what's important to you!
Click to expand...

It's EXTREMELY tough (but not impossible - never say never) to go Carribean, or even DO, and then go to residency at places like yale, ucsd, hopkins, partners hospital. Just take a look at the ERAS forum, SOAP thread, and you'll see how matching is not a given anymore even for american grads.
I chose BU over state school because I felt that BU would offer me something special in my clinical education that my state school would not offer. If you come to the BU open house, you will hear a lot about our unique hospital and clinical education and you can make that decision by yourself. But obviously, 200k in loans vs 50k is a large difference and price is an issue and you should take it into account when making your decision.
 
bestcoast027 said:
Cool, thanks for the info. Do many people work on their research projects when classes are in session, or is it mostly a summer/extra year kind of thing?
Click to expand...

People do both. A lot of students get into research during the summer after their first year (they can get funding through BU) and then stay on to continue research throughout the rest of med school. Doing research during 3rd year is a lot tougher since you have much less time.
Some students take a year off (usually between 3rd and 4th year) to do research - these especially tend to be those going into competitive specialties (ortho, ENT, derm). I got my MPH between 3rd and 4th year and also did research at one of the partners hospitals (full time).
 
If we haven't heard as of today (post interview) does that mean no acceptance?
 
I interviewed with Dr. Schwartz... has anyone heard back from him yet?

thanks!
 
has anyone interviewed/heard back from Dr. Safer? thanks for the input 🙂
 
To the person who asked above, I have also been accepted to some good albeit pricey schools (app good enough to be accepted but not good enough for a bunch of financial aid)... BU is one of those schools. I will be choosing the cheapest option for me that will give me the best chance to match back to a residency close to home (important for me, maybe not for you). Any doctor I talk to always tells me to follow the money, and I am inclined to trust their opinion. If you are accepted to Harvard/Hopkins etc maybe prestige and potential connections for residency can outweigh a higher cost, but BU just doesn't qualify as one of those schools (for me at least - maybe it is for you).

edit: I don't want to dissuade anyone from attending a more expensive school that you have your heart set on. I just think the main thing I have taken away from lurking SDN vs what I hear in real life is that cost is seen as less important among pre-meds, while people further along in their careers always emphasize it more.
 
Last edited:
cookiemonsters said:
To the person who asked above, I have also been accepted to some good albeit pricey schools (app good enough to be accepted but not good enough for a bunch of financial aid)... BU is one of those schools. I will be choosing the cheapest option for me that will give me the best chance to match back to a residency close to home (important for me, maybe not for you). Any doctor I talk to always tells me to follow the money, and I am inclined to trust their opinion. If you are accepted to Harvard/Hopkins etc maybe prestige and potential connections for residency can outweigh a higher cost, but BU just doesn't qualify as one of those schools (for me at least - maybe it is for you).

edit: I don't want to dissuade anyone from attending a more expensive school that you have your heart set on. I just think the main thing I have taken away from lurking SDN vs what I hear in real life is that cost is seen as less important among pre-meds, while people further along in their careers always emphasize it more.
Click to expand...

One piece of advice I would give to students choosing med schools is if you have an idea of what field(s) you want to go into then make sure your school has a residency program in that specialty. While its true that with enough hard work you can match into any specialty from most US school, its an uphill battle if your school doesn't have a residency program. I wasn't entire sure of what I wanted to do, but my state school was heavily primary care focused and the ability to not have any doors closed was enough to make me decide to go to BU.

To the poster who said that you could go to a carribean school and still get into a JH/Harvard/Yale residency program you have been misinformed. By the time your class matches (2017) US medical students are projected to fill all residency spots. The back door into becoming a MD in America is closing for most FMGs/IMGs.
 
I interviewed with Dr. Park and I haven't heard back yet. Has anyone else heard anything from her? From a Canadian perspective I find it a little odd that the acceptances aren't being sent uniformly, but an acceptance is an acceptance I guess.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

chilly_md
2024-2025 Boston University
21 22 23 24 25
Replies
1K
Views
266K
an2five
A
PapaGuava
2023-2024 Boston University
21 22 23 24 25
Replies
1K
Views
300K
tryingmyverybest
T
chilly_md
2022-2023 Boston University
13 14 15 16 17
Replies
843
Views
232K
sirspamalot
sirspamalot
wysdoc
2024-2025 Saint Louis University
6 7 8 9 10
Replies
498
Views
108K
Sue C
Sue C
wysdoc
2024-2025 University of Washington
10 11 12 13 14
Replies
680
Views
145K
stew_md
S
Top