2012-2013 Penn State Application Thread

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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I got the secondary. 😀 Haven't completed it yet, but I glanced through. For those ho have submitted what was the cost? I don't see it coming up anywhere without completing the app which I may not get to this week (can only do so many per paycheck 🙁 ).
Thanks!
 
HurricaneKatt said:
I got the secondary. 😀 Haven't completed it yet, but I glanced through. For those ho have submitted what was the cost? I don't see it coming up anywhere without completing the app which I may not get to this week (can only do so many per paycheck 🙁 ).
Thanks!
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$75 bucks! 🙂

I just submitted. 50 words is pretty short..haha I felt like I had so much more to say on some of the questions. But at least it keeps this secondary short!
 
imcanadaian said:
$75 bucks! 🙂

I just submitted. 50 words is pretty short..haha I felt like I had so much more to say on some of the questions. But at least it keeps this secondary short!
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*phew!* That's not too bad at least. I was dreading another >$100 fee! I'll probably get this one in the next round. The fees are killing me. :scared:

I find it interesting that they ask if you have any relations who work at the school. Seems a little, for lack of a better word, elitist to me... Do they actually use the info in the decision making process?
 
sjagan1 said:
1. I love piano music, choir music, and the fine arts in general. Are there opportunities for musically talented medical students to get involved with music? (Whether it is through the school or outside of the school)

2. What are the major community service opportunities that most medical school students get involved in?

3. Is Medical Spanish available as a course? Me gusta el español.
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1. The school does have a music group on campus

2. From my brief time here, one of the main groups that I got a sense that a lot of people joined (or at least wanted to join) was lioncare which more or less involved students running a free clinic. Other's included pulse and operation smile (the first one involved going out and teaching, the latter involved helping kids overseas)

3. I'm not aware of any medical spanish class available as a course although I'm not 100% sure. There is a spanish group at the school that seemed pretty decent.
 
woah buddy that was a joke... hum maybe it didnt translate too well through the internet :/ didnt mean to offend
 
one more thing.ive been out of school for 3 yrs and dont have a non-science letter, so i asked if i could use

2 science (one was my TA supervisor)
1 research PI
2 MDs

and they replied saying this:

Thank you for your question. The College of Medicine is interested in the broad educational background of its applicants. If you cannot meet our indicated requirements, you may feel free to submit your application with what letters you are able to secure, and the Admissions Committee will weigh this in consideration of your application. Please let us know what else we can do to help and thank you for your interest in Penn State College of Medicine.


could that be more vague? anyone know if they are receptive to their letters, or is this like a "please send your money but then autorejection?"
 
So I didn't get a secondary and called. They said it should have been sent and we confirmed that it was and that they used the correct email address. The guy i talked to said they resend them the 1st and 15th of each month if they haven't been accessed. So check again on the 15th.

Can someone post a link for the secondary? Last year's didn't require email specific information to access so we might just be able to log in without the email. Thanks.

cj8
 
starstarie said:
one more thing.ive been out of school for 3 yrs and dont have a non-science letter, so i asked if i could use

2 science (one was my TA supervisor)
1 research PI
2 MDs

and they replied saying this:

Thank you for your question. The College of Medicine is interested in the broad educational background of its applicants. If you cannot meet our indicated requirements, you may feel free to submit your application with what letters you are able to secure, and the Admissions Committee will weigh this in consideration of your application. Please let us know what else we can do to help and thank you for your interest in Penn State College of Medicine.


could that be more vague? anyone know if they are receptive to their letters, or is this like a "please send your money but then autorejection?"
Click to expand...

They really do read everyones application . There are a lot of people here who were non-trad non science majors so I'd think they're quite open to non science letters. Our class is really quite diverse so I'd say unless your money is incredibly tight, you should still submit the secondary.
 
starstarie said:
one more thing.ive been out of school for 3 yrs and dont have a non-science letter, so i asked if i could use

2 science (one was my TA supervisor)
1 research PI
2 MDs

and they replied saying this:

Thank you for your question. The College of Medicine is interested in the broad educational background of its applicants. If you cannot meet our indicated requirements, you may feel free to submit your application with what letters you are able to secure, and the Admissions Committee will weigh this in consideration of your application. Please let us know what else we can do to help and thank you for your interest in Penn State College of Medicine.


could that be more vague? anyone know if they are receptive to their letters, or is this like a "please send your money but then autorejection?"
Click to expand...

I'm dumb and read that completely wrong. My advise still stands. Especially cause MDs aren't really science faculty (professors, PIs etc)...
 
Courtjester8 said:
So I didn't get a secondary and called. They said it should have been sent and we confirmed that it was and that they used the correct email address. The guy i talked to said they resend them the 1st and 15th of each month if they haven't been accessed. So check again on the 15th.

Can someone post a link for the secondary? Last year's didn't require email specific information to access so we might just be able to log in without the email. Thanks.

cj8
Click to expand...
I called and got the same response. They said that they sent it to me and there was no way they could send it to me again, I just had to wait. I understand that they come out in batches, but that seems a little strange. They also said they couldn't troubleshoot the delivery to my email address until it wasn't received for a second time... So I'm hoping we can still access it without waiting and possibly still not getting it. I love PSU and I'm dying to get ahold of this secondary, haha
 
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gbc2013 said:
I called and got the same response. They said that they sent it to me and there was no way they could send it to me again, I just had to wait. I understand that they come out in batches, but that seems a little strange. They also said they couldn't troubleshoot the delivery to my email address until it wasn't received for a second time... So I'm hoping we can still access it without waiting and possibly still not getting it. I love PSU and I'm dying to get ahold of this secondary, haha
Click to expand...

I'm in the same situation. Never got any secondary
 
Can anyone explain what this prompt means?

Explain the negative aspects of medicine that you considered in making this career decision. (Maximum 50 words)

Is it asking me what I think are some bad things about medicine when I decided to choose to go to medical school?

Thanks
 
Twink said:
Can anyone explain what this prompt means?

Explain the negative aspects of medicine that you considered in making this career decision. (Maximum 50 words)

Is it asking me what I think are some bad things about medicine when I decided to choose to go to medical school?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Yes. Sounds like they want to make sure you're aware it's not all unicorns and rainbows.
 
How on earth am I supposed to explain under 50 words why I am applying here?
 
Courtjester8 said:
So I didn't get a secondary and called. They said it should have been sent and we confirmed that it was and that they used the correct email address. The guy i talked to said they resend them the 1st and 15th of each month if they haven't been accessed. So check again on the 15th.

Can someone post a link for the secondary? Last year's didn't require email specific information to access so we might just be able to log in without the email. Thanks.

cj8
Click to expand...
+1

Can someone post the secondary link please?
 
Forthefuture said:
Are you guys sure it's okay to start on this secondary without receiving the email? I don't want an auto-reject like I hear happens from Einstein school. Thanks.
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I haven't received the secondary yet and I'm just going to wait it out. I don't think it's worth it to start before you're asked to.
 
Can anyone give me an example or something of this question in the secondary: "Is there a unique aspect of your application that should be considered by the admissions committee? (Maximum 50 words)"

I'm confused as to what they mean... is this where you state a red flag in your application? Like a poor MCAT or something like that?

Thanks!!
 
mbowmar said:
Can anyone give me an example or something of this question in the secondary: "Is there a unique aspect of your application that should be considered by the admissions committee? (Maximum 50 words)"

I'm confused as to what they mean... is this where you state a red flag in your application? Like a poor MCAT or something like that?

Thanks!!
Click to expand...

Maybe you could go that route...but I think they mean more like "I won the Gold medal in the 2008 Olympics" or "I am a Rhodes scholar" or "I am the son of Bill Gates".
 
Blais said:
Maybe you could go that route...but I think they mean more like "I won the Gold medal in the 2008 Olympics" or "I am a Rhodes scholar" or "I am the son of Bill Gates".
Click to expand...

:scared:
Oh shoot, I just talked about some of my academic experiences!
 
Blais said:
Maybe you could go that route...but I think they mean more like "I won the Gold medal in the 2008 Olympics" or "I am a Rhodes scholar" or "I am the son of Bill Gates".
Click to expand...
I talked about how I was a unique snowflake in the blizzard of applicants...but nothing as impressive as that lol.
 
I'm having trouble with the "why this school" question. Maybe I'm simply making it harder than it should be. +pissed+
 
Black Mamba24 said:
I'm having trouble with the "why this school" question. Maybe I'm simply making it harder than it should be. +pissed+
Click to expand...

I'm just going to write about how I like that the entire student body performs research or something like that. To be honest, their website really doesn't show anything special. :lame:
 
TheShaker said:
I'm just going to write about how I like that the entire student body performs research or something like that. To be honest, their website really doesn't show anything special. :lame:
Click to expand...

Exactly what I was thinking. I've been browsing the website for quite some time now and I've decided to give up on it. I won't steal your idea, but I'll think of something else along those lines. Thanks for the help. Now to start brainstorming.
 
I received a rejection yesterday…for the 2011-2012 application cycle (I was waitlisted.) 😀


At first I was all bummed/surprised at the turnaround time (I only just recently submitted my secondary,) but then I reread the letter and had a good laugh.
 
Also, for those of you waiting on a secondary submission, call Admissions. If they give the go ahead for you to apply (even without the email,) I'll either PM you the link or post it here.
 
Black Mamba24 said:
I'm having trouble with the "why this school" question. Maybe I'm simply making it harder than it should be. +pissed+
Click to expand...

For those who are looking for some unique things about the school:
Everyone must complete a research project
There's an awesome cancer center and children's hospital (which opens in the next few months)
It's in a smaller town rather than a huge city = more long term care of patients
Very humanistic approach to medicine (more of a focus on the person/environment than disease)
 
Anyone else not get this secondary? I was verified 6/6...
 
Torture, Penn state is torturing their applicants with not sending secondaries. I was verified 6/12 and still haven't received one yet 🙁
 
Just received complete and under-review e-mail about a minute ago
 
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