2012-2013 Johns Hopkins University Application Thread

[SoulinNeed]

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This is such a weirdly worded secondary. How am I supposed to put hours per week down for travel? If I was in another location during that week, then every second of it would be considered traveling. How am I supposed to know how many hours I spent on a dang hobby?

 

[candav]

This is such a weirdly worded secondary. How am I supposed to put hours per week down for travel? If I was in another location during that week, then every second of it would be considered traveling. How am I supposed to know how many hours I spent on a dang hobby?

Just checked my secondary from last year -- I also included some travel and foreign exchange activities and listed 40 hours/week for each. Pretty arbitrary number but no one ever made any fuss over it. I think it's pretty self-evident that these are immersive experiences and they will be treated as such. Don't worry too much about these small details!

Edit: Regarding AMCAS GPAs, look on the print-out of your AMCAS application -- your BCPM and AO GPAs will be listed there.

 

[IRASNA]

What constitutes traveling? I went back to my parent's country for a month for vacation/wedding? Not exactly a hobby?

Can playing FIFA be a hobby?

 

[Silverwing]

How can we find our GPA off of AMCAS?

Once your AMCAS is verified, it should show up in the summary on one of the pages, broken down as well as cumulative! If you can't see it yet, it's because you're not verified yet, and they haven't converted your credit hours and grading onto the uniform amcas scale.

 

[StriveForGlory]

Should research be listed under volunteer activity? Or are they looking for traditional volunteer activities?

 

[SoulinNeed]

So, how do we list end dates for ongoing activities?

 

[semicharmed]

Should research be listed under volunteer activity? Or are they looking for traditional volunteer activities?

Research should be listed under...research...(am I missing something here?). Several of these activities could probably go under multiple sections-maybe what you were getting at is that you "volunteered in a lab." I would suggest putting the category that fits the activity most specifically.

For ongoing activities: put the anticipated end date, it doesn't have to be exact. If you're doing it up to med school then put August, 2013.

FYI I used this a lot when I did my primary and it helped for questions:

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/182162/data/amcas_instruction_manual.pdf

AMCAS also has surprisingly great customer service (IMO) so feel free to call them too if there's something you're really not sure about.

 

[Smasher]

Research should be listed under...research...(am I missing something here?). Several of these activities could probably go under multiple sections-maybe what you were getting at is that you "volunteered in a lab." I would suggest putting the category that fits the activity most specifically.

For ongoing activities: put the anticipated end date, it doesn't have to be exact. If you're doing it up to med school then put August, 2013.

FYI I used this a lot when I did my primary and it helped for questions:

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/182162/data/amcas_instruction_manual.pdf

AMCAS also has surprisingly great customer service (IMO) so feel free to call them too if there's something you're really not sure about.

You are missing something here. We are talking about the Johns Hopkins secondary, not the AMCAS primary. For entering activities in this secondary, there is are 12 slots for volunteer/community service and 6 for extracurriculars/hobbies/travel/other.

I put research (for credit) under the extracurriculars. I don't think it makes sense for volunteer/community service.

 

[candav]

Based on filling out this secondary last year...

1) I put research under paid employment if I was paid and under volunteer if I wasn't. Under "extracurriculars" I put travel and hobby stuff.

2) End date for ongoing activities was May 2012 (i.e. when I completed my senior year). For you guys that would be May/June 2013.

3) If you thought the traveling was interesting then you can list it on your secondary. I wrote about visiting family in my home country in one of my secondary essays and it was brought up in the interview. Not sure how FIFA as a hobby would be received...

 

[semicharmed]

You are missing something here. We are talking about the Johns Hopkins secondary, not the AMCAS primary. For entering activities in this secondary, there is are 12 slots for volunteer/community service and 6 for extracurriculars/hobbies/travel/other.

I put research (for credit) under the extracurriculars. I don't think it makes sense for volunteer/community service.

Oh sorry about that...wow I don't remember that part at all when I did my secondary, that was a much better question than I gave it credit for haha. I agree with candav (assign based on if it was paid or unpaid). I think hobbies is a stretch for research...but it doesn't really matter too much IMO...they'll be able to judge where it should go when you get to that stage. I think they just do the categories arbitrarily so that you list a diversity of things in a number of areas, not that there is a specific quota for each type.

 

[Tots]

In the process of submitting this secondary I accidentally copied & pasted my old rough draft responses(that are full of typos) instead of the ones I edited all day yesterday.... I am really winning at this secondary thing. It was nice knowing you Hopkins 🙁

 

[sharpie1006]

In the process of submitting this secondary I accidentally copied & pasted my old rough draft responses(that are full of typos) instead of the ones I edited all day yesterday.... I am really winning at this secondary thing. It was nice knowing you Hopkins 🙁

If the mistakes are serious (like, not just punctuation or a missing word here/there, but error-ridden to the point of being unintelligible), it can't hurt to write a polite message to the admissions office explaining the error and asking if you can re-submit. They know you're human.

 

[bmitw]

Does anyone know how strict Johns Hopkins is about submitting only 3 letters? In the instructions, it says: "Please note that submission of more than three (3) letters of recommendation will not be viewed as more advantageous to you in the selection process and may delay the completion of your application."

I am hoping to submit also letters from my research mentor and a doctor I shadowed. But will these 2 additional letters really cause delay?

 

[candav]

Does anyone know how strict Johns Hopkins is about submitting only 3 letters? In the instructions, it says: "Please note that submission of more than three (3) letters of recommendation will not be viewed as more advantageous to you in the selection process and may delay the completion of your application."

I am hoping to submit also letters from my research mentor and a doctor I shadowed. But will these 2 additional letters really cause delay?

Submit as many as you want; I sent five last year through AMCAS (and know others who did as well) and there was no delay.

 

[Salaam]

People who have worked on the secondary:

Quick question! Are the character limits including spaces or not including spaces?

Thanks

 

[yellowfish]

People who have worked on the secondary:

Quick question! Are the character limits including spaces or not including spaces?

Thanks

Including

 

[Bumbl3b33]

I smoked weed one time with Johnny Hopkins. Hope that helps me get in.

 

[PreMedOrDead]

I smoked weed one time with Johnny Hopkins. Hope that helps me get in.

Make sure you put that down as a 'University tie'

 

[betheltim]

Can any current Hopkins students comment on the safety on campus? I know Baltimore isn't the safest place, so I'm curious about the actual campus areas.

 

[Praefectus]

Make sure you put that down as a 'University tie'

👍

 

[catecholic]

Has anyone been notified that they are complete yet?

 

[kad]

Answered every question except the adversity one, its much harder than I thought. I don't have any serious adversities in my life story, not sure how to approach this one?

bad grades doesn't seem like a real adversity, but its the only idea coming to me right now, what do you think?

 

[Syfte3]

Answered every question except the adversity one, its much harder than I thought. I don't have any serious adversities in my life story, not sure how to approach this one?

bad grades doesn't seem like a real adversity, but its the only idea coming to me right now, what do you think?

Is there a reason why you got bad grades due to adversity? like you had to work full-time or had to deal with an illness in the family? that would fit. Bad grades on their own...I don't know

 

[Syfte3]

Has anyone been notified that they are complete yet?

not yet.

 

[GooseWing]

Has anyone been notified that they are complete yet?

I had the same question yesterday and found this informative post from Slev on page 2. Thought it couldn't hurt to repeat it.

A little warning for the next few months - Hopkins is really slow at marking applications as "complete" after you submit your secondary. I think it took me about 2 and a half months from the time I submitted my secondary until I got marked as complete. Another month and a half after that before I was offered an interview.

 

[kad]

Is there a reason why you got bad grades due to adversity? like you had to work full-time or had to deal with an illness in the family? that would fit. Bad grades on their own...I don't know

I agree, and there are no significant reasons like the ones you mentioned for those grades, which is why I cannot justify using that alone as a reason..

 

[Syfte3]

I agree, and there are no significant reasons like the ones you mentioned for those grades, which is why I cannot justify using that alone as a reason..

I find it helpful to talk to someone that knows me really well while brainstorming whenever I've gotten stuck on secondaries. And you probably should stay away from the bad grades topic because you don't want to remind them that you got bad grades without any good reason.

 

[aps91]

When it says "Briefly describe your most rewarding experience" how are people interpreting this, as a discrete event, such as winning an award or other specific accomplishment, or as a continuous event, such as working in a lab and developing a passion for research.

I think that the AMCAS "Most Meaningful" captures the continuous sense but I am not entirely sure what Hopkins is looking for here. Depending on the interpretation, I have vastly different answers.

Any advice?

 

[betheltim]

When it says "Briefly describe your most rewarding experience" how are people interpreting this, as a discrete event, such as winning an award or other specific accomplishment, or as a continuous event, such as working in a lab and developing a passion for research.

I think that the AMCAS "Most Meaningful" captures the continuous sense but I am not entirely sure what Hopkins is looking for here. Depending on the interpretation, I have vastly different answers.

Any advice?

I interpreted them slightly differently, such that my response on the JHU secondary is not even the same activity as my three on the primary... I'd say "rewarding" and "meaningful" are slightly different, although in many cases I could see them both applying to the same activities. Rewarding may connote an outcome based on hard work, whereas meaningful may be about lessons learned, failures through which you grew, etc.

 

[Chloroplast]

I'm having trouble pasting in paragraphs. Has anyone else had this issue?

I've constructed the paragraphs in plain text in Mac's TextEdit. The paragraphs are the correct amount of characters or less. I can, for example, copy the paragraph from TextEdit to Microsoft Word just fine. But I cannot copy them into JHU's application. I'm using a Chrome browser and I've also tried Safari. I've tried restarting all programs and restarting my laptop.

I can type directly into the boxes... but would love to save the time and typo likelihood of typing them in directly...

 

[Syfte3]

I'm having trouble pasting in paragraphs. Has anyone else had this issue?

I've constructed the paragraphs in plain text in Mac's TextEdit. The paragraphs are the correct amount of characters or less. I can, for example, copy the paragraph from TextEdit to Microsoft Word just fine. But I cannot copy them into JHU's application. I'm using a Chrome browser and I've also tried Safari. I've tried restarting all programs and restarting my laptop.

I can type directly into the boxes... but would love to save the time and typo likelihood of typing them in directly...

I couldn't paste in the answers with Chrome either. But it worked perfectly with another. It worked with either internet explorer or firefox, I can't remember which one I used.

 

[Chloroplast]

I couldn't paste in the answers with Chrome either. But it worked perfectly with another. It worked with either internet explorer or firefox, I can't remember which one I used.

Thanks Syfte3.

I'm also having the same trouble with the Georgetown secondary. They both use the same application program, so maybe there is a glitch in the system today? Anyone else having issues with this?

I've tested other secondaries that use different application programs and I can paste into them just fine.

 

[Chloroplast]

I figured out that the paste function will work in Firefox.

 

[nadaba]

I figured out that the paste function will work in Firefox.

Be careful when pasting quotation marks! They can get changed to weird symbols. I learned that the hard way last year 🙄

 

[husky20]

Did you guys all receive emails as invites to the secondary? Or did you go to the hopkins website and just create your own account before they asked? I was verified on 6/17, but haven't received anything from them yet

 

[Syfte3]

Did you guys all receive emails as invites to the secondary? Or did you go to the hopkins website and just create your own account before they asked? I was verified on 6/17, but haven't received anything from them yet

I got an email a few days after I was verified. You should be getting it soon.

 

[JHopRevisit]

Can any current Hopkins students comment on the safety on campus? I know Baltimore isn't the safest place, so I'm curious about the actual campus areas.

Campus is very safe. 24/7 security at every corner and building entrance. Only incident I can remember is a year or so ago a patient drove up from Virginia and shot his mother and the surgeon. Very sad day. Surgeon pulled through, unfortunately the mother didn't.
You can find campus crime stats from US dept of education here. Make sure you select Medical Campus, different than the undergrad for Hopkins :
http://ope.ed.gov/security/GetOneInstitutionData.aspx

 

[Newallo1]

I have received all of my other secondary applications EXCEPT Johns Hopkins? It's been a week since my verification. Does anyone know how long it takes?

 

[Syfte3]

I have received all of my other secondary applications EXCEPT Johns Hopkins? Does anyone know how long it takes?

I was verified on 7/13 and got it on 7/16.

 

[An MD Hopeful]

For the essay question "Are there any areas of medicine that are of particular interest to you?" do they mean specialties/fields (e.g. cardiology, oncology, general surgery, etc) or do they mean practice scenario (e.g. health care administration, academic medicine, public health, etc)?

If any current or former Hopkins students could let me know how they interpreted the question, that would be great! Thanks. 🙂

 

[sharpie1006]

For the essay question "Are there any areas of medicine that are of particular interest to you?" do they mean specialties/fields (e.g. cardiology, oncology, general surgery, etc) or do they mean practice scenario (e.g. health care administration, academic medicine, public health, etc)?

If any current or former Hopkins students could let me know how they interpreted the question, that would be great! Thanks. 🙂

I talked more about potential practice scenarios and some of my overall goals for going into medicine. It's probably fine to talk about whatever you want, as long as you have good reasons to back up your words.

 

[crazypilovee]

so do high school college level classes count as part of undergraduate GPA? can i choose to leave it out? (aka don't use AMCAS's numbers but my undergrad institution's)

 

[riddler]

so do high school college level classes count as part of undergraduate GPA? can i choose to leave it out? (aka don't use AMCAS's numbers but my undergrad institution's)

+1 -- I'd like to know the answer to this. If we took a college course in high school (included on AMCAS), do we list that as an "institution" on this secondary and include that class in our GPA, or do we leave it out and use only our GPA from classes at our primary University?

 

[Silverwing]

Your secondary should match your AMCAS - if AMCAS included the college courses taken during high school in the final GPA, it's probably better to do the same for this secondary. No point in having two different things since your AMCAS GPA is already in your file anyway.

 

[riddler]

Your secondary should match your AMCAS - if AMCAS included the college courses taken during high school in the final GPA, it's probably better to do the same for this secondary. No point in having two different things since your AMCAS GPA is already in your file anyway.

What about a course that was completed after submission of AMCAS? I think it's fair to include that in the GPA, though.

 

[Silverwing]

A college course completed after AMCAS submission? Not sure about that, haven't heard of anyone doing that before. I found it hard personally to convert my college credit hours into standard AMCAS ones, so if I were in that situation, I'd have no idea how to average the class in. I'd call JHU's admissions office directly and ask if you're unsure though! Anyone else on here have personal experience with this?

 

[carnelian]

For the most rewarding experience, does it need to be from college? I feel like I have one that's more compelling from high school (it wasn't mentioned at all in the primary). Any current MS students have insight in this?

Thanks!

 

[jjesque]

Does anyone have the most recent MSAR data for this school? Curious about # applications vs. interviewed vs. accepted. Thanks!

 

[jdlykins91]

I just submitted my secondary for Hopkins... Feels good to have it done... Now, the long wait!!! So excited for the possiblities!!! Fingers crossed for an invite!!!

 

[Fivo]

Does anyone have the most recent MSAR data for this school? Curious about # applications vs. interviewed vs. accepted. Thanks!

Total Applications: 5801
Total Interviewed: 764
Total Matriculated: 120

I don't think msar lists the accepted amount. I think maybe USNEWS does?