Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Buffalo doesn't screen people out! and I agree mr. Rosso is by far the most entertaining tour guide I've ever met
-
CycleTrack and SDN are teaming up to make medical school admissions more transparent and accessible! Read the announcement to learn how we’re supporting the future of CycleTrack’s free application-tracking tools .
2013-2014 SUNY Buffalo Application Thread
Started by JJMrK
Get help with your application
Use all the free resources available to you from SDN: articles, guides, expert advising, forums discussions, and school research.
Buffalo doesn't screen people out! and I agree mr. Rosso is by far the most entertaining tour guide I've ever met
Sorry, I misspoke (typed? Haha). What I meant was I wasn't sure that a 3.63 cGPA and a 3.49 sGPA would be enough to get me an interview at a school with 3.7+s... it's competitive, afterall!
I just really hate how UB goes through their applicants randomly. I've been complete since July and not a peep!
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Well, clearly, they saw something great in you besides just grades! This holistic approach, in my humble opinion, is a fantastic one and you must of had some great recommendations and experiences. Congratulations, you worked hard for this moment, be proud! 🙂
I do too, but perhaps they have a reason I am not yet aware of? I suppose there are pros and cons and although, I wish it were more structured based on when you submitted your app, they have probably had long conversations about the way they are doing it and figured it was best to do it this way. The upside of this is that they interview through April and your shot will not be affected no matter when they review it. Best of luck.
Thanks!
Following are the observations made by someone (Mr. Snuffleupagus) who interviewed at UB this year and was recently accepted (Hope it is of some help to you) :
Things I liked:
1) Great Student Body
2) Housing is super cheap in Buffalo & it's a good balance between the urban and suburban/rural.
3) Brand new med school in downtown Buffalo coming in 2015.
4) Early Clinical Experience.
Things I didn't like:
1) The current school's facilities are old & dated with the exception of the simulation center.
2) Doesn't have a lot of 24/7 rooms/spaces/labs for med students (compared to other schools I visited).
3) If I attended, I would be right in the middle of a major transition for the school into a new campus
UB and Stony Brook was ranked 75 and 76 last year. However, this year UB is ranked 65 and Stony Brook is at 72. UB is moving up in ranking.
Last edited:
Where are you getting these rankings from? Last I saw on US News for Research, Stony Brook was 57 and UB was 64.
Regardless, Congrats on your acceptance!!
Thank you!
Here is one of my online source:
http://medical-schools.findthebest.com/
Buffalo School of Medicine
State University of New York at Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Compare Now
See Details ›
#65
#87 - Research
#82 - Primary Care
$29,530
33.0
3.81
587
Stony Brook School of Medicine
State University New York Stony Brook
Stony Brook, New York
Compare
See Details ›
#72
#70 - Research
#103 - Primary Care
$29,530
33.0
3.77
512
You have earned it! UB is moving up in ranking ( last year 75th, this year 65th).
The following article on UB med school's new campus may be of some interest to you:
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-reg...-a-new-ub-medical-school-and-culture-20131014
I wish the new building was ready for us--those starting in 2014!! 😀
Thanks!
When will we find out the date for second look? I'd like to spend more time in Buffalo and see more of the school/potential classmates before I make a decision 🙂
That's odd. At my interview date (and in my experience) they said that decisions are made the Wednesday after the interview and status changes are posted that Friday (so 1 week turnaround). Mr. Rosso is so nice, call him up and see what's going on 🙂 good luck!!
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Thanks for the info! I'll give them a call tomorrow morning.
I also interviewed here two weeks ago. During the lunch, Dr. Severin said we should hear on Nov 21st. I believe they were supposed to make decisions tonight and send them out tomorrow by 4pm. But, I could be wrong.
Hello All,
I'm an M1 at UB, and I just had to respond after reading some of these comments. I walk past groups of interviewees every week on my way to class, and to be honest, it kind of angers me that there are these implicitly negative and arrogant attitudes floating around. I know this is an old topic, but I literally just stumbled into this post today and wanted to give some possibly useful input. One of my favorite things about the school is our class. I don't know about the other classes, but we have a strong bond, and we genuinely want to help one another. There are many brilliant people here, who have been offered acceptances at "top" schools. We do not have this mentality of competing with each other to get to the top, and I am so grateful for that. I actually really like the admissions process because unlike at other schools, each application is evaluated in its entirety. From what I understand, there are no cut-offs, and the reason why so many people are waitlisted is because each candidate is given a fair chance, regardless of when his or her application is reviewed. I also feel like the review process is a lot more thorough because so many different aspects of an application are considered. GPA and MCAT do not define who you are, and although they are important, they are no more important than a person's experiences and character. I feel like my classmates are not only intelligent, but also genuinely kind and compassionate people. By the way, my GPA was 3.8 at JHU, and I was accepted in late March after being on the waitlist for a month. And I did not for one second feel entitled to being accepted any earlier, nor did I feel like a second choice. On the contrary, I feel incredibly grateful and happy to be here. I hope I am not somehow giving a negative impression of the school by my comments or by just being involved in this discussion. I feel like an anonymous forum can be useful for addressing issues that people may feel uncomfortable bringing up otherwise. What exactly are you referring to when you say that you had negative interactions with current students, either online or in person? Anyway, if you guys have any questions, I will be glad to answer them next time I'm procrastinating...... 🙂
I'm an M1 at UB, and I just had to respond after reading some of these comments. I walk past groups of interviewees every week on my way to class, and to be honest, it kind of angers me that there are these implicitly negative and arrogant attitudes floating around. I know this is an old topic, but I literally just stumbled into this post today and wanted to give some possibly useful input. One of my favorite things about the school is our class. I don't know about the other classes, but we have a strong bond, and we genuinely want to help one another. There are many brilliant people here, who have been offered acceptances at "top" schools. We do not have this mentality of competing with each other to get to the top, and I am so grateful for that. I actually really like the admissions process because unlike at other schools, each application is evaluated in its entirety. From what I understand, there are no cut-offs, and the reason why so many people are waitlisted is because each candidate is given a fair chance, regardless of when his or her application is reviewed. I also feel like the review process is a lot more thorough because so many different aspects of an application are considered. GPA and MCAT do not define who you are, and although they are important, they are no more important than a person's experiences and character. I feel like my classmates are not only intelligent, but also genuinely kind and compassionate people. By the way, my GPA was 3.8 at JHU, and I was accepted in late March after being on the waitlist for a month. And I did not for one second feel entitled to being accepted any earlier, nor did I feel like a second choice. On the contrary, I feel incredibly grateful and happy to be here. I hope I am not somehow giving a negative impression of the school by my comments or by just being involved in this discussion. I feel like an anonymous forum can be useful for addressing issues that people may feel uncomfortable bringing up otherwise. What exactly are you referring to when you say that you had negative interactions with current students, either online or in person? Anyway, if you guys have any questions, I will be glad to answer them next time I'm procrastinating...... 🙂
waitlisted as well.
I posted this yesterday, but it disappeared for some reason ???
ACCEPTED!!! My first one 🙂 So happy that I'm going to be a doctor and so happy to be accepted at such a great school. I loved everything about my visit.
Completed 7/29, II 10/17, IA 11/6, accepted 11/21
(note: before anyone asks, I purposely didn't post my stats)
ACCEPTED!!! My first one 🙂 So happy that I'm going to be a doctor and so happy to be accepted at such a great school. I loved everything about my visit.
Completed 7/29, II 10/17, IA 11/6, accepted 11/21
(note: before anyone asks, I purposely didn't post my stats)
They basically make a giant wait list and roughly 1/2-1/3 of us will get rejected from it. Thus, out of about 600 interview invites in a cycle, they take between 300-400 acceptances it seems.
In essence it seems that if they were going to reject you anyway, they wouldn't invite you to interview. If you interviewed BADLY they wouldn't reject you, but rather shove you onto the bottom of the waitlist (essentially a rejection).
Congratulations!
Best of luck to you!
I know Dr. Severin checks this forum once in while. So let me put out a request to him.
I am from Buffalo and did my undergrad from UB. My stats are 34/3.9 and have an average EC (300+ volunteer hours, research).
I submitted my secondary in July. So far I have received interview invite from 9 schools and acceptance from 2. But, no response from UB
However, given an opportunity I would consider UB because of it's cost-of-attendance and quality of education.
Looking forward to get an interview invite from UB soon.
I am from Buffalo and did my undergrad from UB. My stats are 34/3.9 and have an average EC (300+ volunteer hours, research).
I submitted my secondary in July. So far I have received interview invite from 9 schools and acceptance from 2. But, no response from UB
However, given an opportunity I would consider UB because of it's cost-of-attendance and quality of education.
Looking forward to get an interview invite from UB soon.
Last edited:
1) I know that we've had our disagreements in the past with regards to what we believe, but truly, to my fellow UB student, I hope you are interviewed and accepted as well. 2) How would he know who you are, you should put at least your name.
Thanks for your support.
Last edited:
My friend, but you and I know it.
Last edited:
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
Lol! I've called him too! Actually, Friday last week! I have to say though, I was really shocked he called me back! I left a message on his answering machine and I couldn't believe, seriously, he called me back and we spoke for a good 30 min.. I even wrote him a letter of intent on how badly I wanted to go to UB back in September! So trust me, I really get where you are coming from on this, but can I be honest? You have 2 acceptances and probably will get so many more! You clearly are a fantastic student and I bet you, you will get an interview. If you are anything like me (meaning you called, you wrote, you have been persistent) I know this will count and there isn't much else we can do. I mean short from calling every day and saying "hey, Dr. Severin, still interested in UB! Day 50 something since I turned in my app" I'm sure he gets it! But if you would like, I'm def. game, we can camp outside his office with signs saying UB students wanting to go to UB med. lol
I actually was sincere with this and I was only trying to lend support to a fellow Bulls student...
I wish you get the interview soon. Your effort will pay off. Just hang in there.
Cue 100000 students adding their info to this thread.
Actually, I would love to go here as well, but I am still waiting to get reviewed despite being complete in August. I have interviews elsewhere, but I already have roots in Buffalo and it would be a shame to leave once I graduate from UB's undergrad.
Actually, I would love to go here as well, but I am still waiting to get reviewed despite being complete in August. I have interviews elsewhere, but I already have roots in Buffalo and it would be a shame to leave once I graduate from UB's undergrad.
🙂 Thanks, When we both get in, the first round of drinks is on me! If you're ever up at North, look me up. Michael P. Colon, Bio Dept.
Cue 100000 students adding their info to this thread.
Actually, I would love to go here as well, but I am still waiting to get reviewed despite being complete in August. I have interviews elsewhere, but I already have roots in Buffalo and it would be a shame to leave once I graduate from UB's undergrad.
LOL! YES! Another UB student! Which schools did you get an interview?
For those of you from the Buffalo area, I heard a rumor that UB doesn't send II to Buffalo residents until later in the season. The reasoning, or so I heard, was that they want Blo residents who are away for undergrad to be able to interview during their spring break so as to avoid travel costs. This would explain your lack of UB II... and mine. Haha.
Upstate and Drexel.
Upstate is my number two choice though, so I will be thrilled if I get in there. I find out in a few weeks if I am accepted, waitlisted, or rejected there. I am sure my mother would love for me to go to Upstate since she did her undergrad at SU.
Upstate is also close enough to Buffalo that I don't totally lose my ability to visit. What I cannot do is go too far from Buffalo because my girlfriend transferred to a school here to be with me. It would be devastating for our relationship if I suddenly ended up 20 hours away.
Still, the idea of finishing where I started at UB is very appealing, and UB's medical school is fantastic.
What can we do about it? At UB the adcomm has an umbrella coverage called "random review process". Your application is not processed in chronological order.
Congrats!!! We might be classmates :O 😀
It seems as if people are hearing back about acceptances one day after, one week after, or two weeks after. Is there a consensus or is this random? Their website says decisions are sent out the next day.
It may be true for Bfl residents who are doing their undergrad somewhere else, but not true for bfl natives who are attending UB or graduated from UB.
Whatever is the reason for not giving II to Buffalo natives and/or UB undergrads, it surely does not make sense.
As far as UB undergrads go, they are getting interviews. My co-RA has already interviewed at UB.
Also, I called and J Rosso told me that once the acdom reviews your application to see if you will be offered an interview, you get their decision the next day via email. This is new for this year, last year you were only emailed if you were going to be interviewed. Those of us who have heard nothing at all are simply stuck in limbo by chance due to the random review process.
I hope what you say is true and that they just haven't looked at my app yet, but after being complete for 13 weeks I find it hard to believe that it hasn't been reviewed.
You don't need to take my word for it. You can call yourself.(I mean this in the helpful, not the snarky way. Sadly this does not come across very well online)
That said, I did not ask if it was possible that the adcom could review an application and decide it was neither rejection nor interview worthy until they knew more about the total applicant pool. Maybe they looked at your application but were unable to render a decision yet.
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
I agree with your comments prior about UB students are being interviewed and accepted. A friend of mine, initials JB, had much the same stats as my friend and fellow UB student above, 3.9/36, and was interviewed in August or September. He was, then, subsequently accepted on October 15th. Therefore, supporting your claim they are interviewing and accepting UB students.
There really is 3 major issues: (1) Many students are frustrated with the "Random" Review Process. Some believe--and I cannot lend truth or deny this fact--that the admission's office is some how selecting students and it isn't so "random" as they would have you believe. Some students also believe decisions have been rendered on applications (i.e. rejections and no interview decisions), but they are not being sent out. Lending hope when there might not be any. I don't believe I have heard anyone from the site say "I've been rejected" prior to an interview (until April), like most other threads. This lends some support to the aforementioned ideology. (2) The admission's office of Buffalo hasn't really given a solid reason for "why" the random review. Indeed, they have good reason, but unfortunately, the answer you will receive from Mr. Rosso who is not part of that decision making process is that they [UB] "is trying to put everyone on an equal footing". Which may in fact be the reasoning, or his understanding of the reasoning. Obviously, people will debate this. Should everyone be on equal footing when everyone is not equal? Is it equal footing when someone submitted their application in July and another in September and the latter in September receives an interview and the former has yet to be reviewed? Contrary, isn't it equal footing, because everyone has the same chance to submit it at the same time and/or the person who submits it earlier has the chance to be reviewed earlier? (3) What really frustrates most students is the fact that this is the rest of their lives and they want the security of knowing the next step. With this frustration comes impatience and with this impatience comes a sense of ventilation and picking on/criticizing minor details that had already been in process before we applied and will be in process way after our applications.
I don't know what the admission's office does; I don't dare to speculate as to why. There are 60+ on the UB committee for M.D. admissions and they come in all opinions, shapes, religions, ideologies, etc. and I am sure, with their experiences, their far better knowledge of the system, that they indeed, have reason for the things they are doing. I trust them and urge all of us to remember that we knew about this prior and complaining/speculating will only frustrate you further. The reason I haven't complained about this too much is because I had a choice, just as many of you, to do the EAP program. I, personally, felt my MCAT wasn't good enough and thus, I chose to risk it and apply to other schools rather than trying UB's EAP program. But if I could go back, I would have done it and thus, I have no right to complain, because there was an option that could have had my application reviewed earlier.
Last edited:
UB medical school is probably the only school that uses this random review process. It is against basic norm and unfair to many applicants who submit their application early in the process, only to find out that people who submitted their applications months after them are interviewed and accepted while they still wait to hear from UB. If this is not unfair, what else is?
Just as some encouragement, I was not interviewed until almost spring, had already received many acceptances (would rather not say the exact number), but in Februaryish my name was pulled, I was interviewed, and accepted next day. I empathize with the frustration waiting, but by the same token random review balances out the fact that some very good students (especially the increasing # of non trad and graduates) will just not be on the same schedule as others. It takes the statistical advantage of submitting early away, which some won't like and some will. I like knowing that my classmates were judged purely on their own merit and not how good their pre-med advisor was. It also gives students who needed a retake late in the season hope, which I think goes hand in hand with holistic review. That said, your frustration is understood But hold tight, your day will come!
I wouldn't say I'm frustrated, quite the contrary, glad to know I'm still in it! I thought I was a silent reject.
EDP is almost always an autoreject. I asked J Rosso about this and he said that the adcom sees applying that way as a red flag, so unless you are essentially an autoadmit at Harvard, EDP almost guarantees you won't be accepted.
