2014-2015 Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Application Thread

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Phrozen said:
The way the interview was conducted was a bit unconventional and I didn't have any control, the questions were stressful and threw me off, and it was very different from my previous ones which were all conversational. But the interviewer's attitude was friendly.
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Hello

What days of the week are MSSM interviews offered? I'm scheduling another interview in the area, so I don't want the dates to conflict in case I receive an invite from Sinai, too.
 
Iceandmedicine said:
^Wondering the same thing! Also, so nervous/excited for this interview!! The more i read about Sinai, the more thrilled I get about interviewing here!
Does anyone who has access to US News know the %accepted post interview? 🙂
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Post interview acceptance rate is 49%
 
Currently, for November, interviews are offered on Tues, Wed, Thurs and a few Fridays
marauderette said:
Hello

What days of the week are MSSM interviews offered? I'm scheduling another interview in the area, so I don't want the dates to conflict in case I receive an invite from Sinai, too.
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heybeyond said:
Anyone who has interviewed at Sinai- how was your experience? A lot of people are saying it's very casual and relaxed. How big are the interview groups? This is definitely a reach school for me, and I'm really nervous about the interview. Hoping for the best!!
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Phrozen said:
The way the interview was conducted was a bit unconventional and I didn't have any control, the questions were stressful and threw me off, and it was very different from my previous ones which were all conversational. But the interviewer's attitude was friendly.
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I'm sorry that your interview didn't go as well as you wanted. I have first-hand information though that although the interviewers have reviewed your application, there isn't a set of questions that the interviewer is instructed to ask you. The is a list of "suggested questions," but pretty much the interviewer can ask you whatever he/she wants. My experience is that most of the interviewers are very nice people and don't intend to give you a stress interview (in fact I'm pretty sure it was emphasized to the interviewers that this shouldn't be done), but there might be a few outliers here and there.

Honestly, my best advice is to know your application well so you're prepared if you're asked about your involvement or why you chose to do X activity for Y years. Other than that, probably know your standard interview questions well (why you want to be a doctor...what makes you like Mount Sinai...etc.)

I still remember when I interviewed at Sinai 4 years ago, one of my interviewers flat out asked me, "what role do you think cultural identity plays in the practice of medicine" and we discussed that for the entirety of my interview (I personally didn't find that stressful at all but your mileage may vary). The other went over my AMCAS app with me. So to a degree there's still some element of chance, I guess.
 
Interviewed yesterday and had a really great time. Both of the interviews were laid back--somewhat structured to get specific information that the interviewers wanted--but conversational nonetheless. That seemed to be a theme among the other interviewees, so hopefully some of the less positive experiences people have had are very rare.

The real treat though were the people I met. Everyone from my host and his five roommates to the doorman at Aron Hall wishing me luck before and after the interview was awesome. They were all warm, funny, candid, and genuinely interesting people. They also seemed well-connected, more so than some of the other schools I have been to, and I think that's a function of a bunch of different factors including the housing, close-knit nature of the main campus, and the institutional culture. From the bottom to the top the culture at Sinai seemed very inviting, responsive, innovative, and encouraging, and that is really, really appealing. As I interview more places, I'm seeing the culture and environment as being a bigger part of what sets schools apart rather than the facilities, program offerings, etc. since pretty much every institution is strong in some way in those areas (though Sinai's anatomy lab view is definitely unique). I have yet to find a school where the education and research opportunities were immensely different than average, but they have all differed substantially by some more intangible factors. Fit really is a big deal, and I think Sinai has a lot to offer in that regard.

Also, NYC is great and I did not want to leave. I'm already tentatively planning an itinerary for if I go back because even after three days there I feel like I barely scratched the surface.
 
Scribblers said:
NYC is great and I did not want to leave. I'm already tentatively planning an itinerary for if I go back because even after three days there I feel like I barely scratched the surface.
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That's exactly how I felt when I arrived NYC many many years ago. I had barely means to live for a month, but somehow I survived several and eventually made it a home. I'm glad you enjoy the Sinai interview. I've known Sinai's research side very well, but never know much about the school. Time to learn and thanks for sharing.
 
Scribblers said:
From the bottom to the top the culture at Sinai seemed very inviting, responsive, innovative, and encouraging, and that is really, really appealing.
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Yes!

Scribblers said:
As I interview more places, I'm seeing the culture and environment as being a bigger part of what sets schools apart rather than the facilities, program offerings, etc. since pretty much every institution is strong in some way in those areas (though Sinai's anatomy lab view is definitely unique). I have yet to find a school where the education and research opportunities were immensely different than average, but they have all differed substantially by some more intangible factors.
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It's great for you to realize this at this stage -- as a MS-4, I can't tell you (in retrospect) how much of an impact culture/environment makes in the overall educational experience.

Scribblers said:
Fit really is a big deal, and I think Sinai has a lot to offer in that regard.
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We hope you come back!
 
anyone with a recent II know what dates they're scheduling interviews for?
 
Phrozen said:
The way the interview was conducted was a bit unconventional and I didn't have any control, the questions were stressful and threw me off, and it was very different from my previous ones which were all conversational. But the interviewer's attitude was friendly.
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SAME. I think we may have had the same interviewer...
 
Dr Turkelton said:
Receptive
Columbia (Send as update on their application website, not via email)
Cornell
Einstein
Loyola
NYU
Ohio State
Pritzker
University of Minnesota
University of Cincinnati
SLU

Not
Mt. Sinai
Northwestern
Tufts
U Mich
Penn State
George Washington University
Georgetown University
Florida State University
UCSF
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Does not appear that they are receptive.
 
there havent seem to be any II posts lately...I wonder if theyre just focusing on the first "batch" of interviewees and making decisions to be released october 15, then going from there...ive actually noticed that a lot of schools have slowed down a bit in terms of II frequency. maybe this is a common thing. could also be reading too much into it.
 
sms32291 said:
there havent seem to be any II posts lately...I wonder if theyre just focusing on the first "batch" of interviewees and making decisions to be released october 15, then going from there...ive actually noticed that a lot of schools have slowed down a bit in terms of II frequency. maybe this is a common thing. could also be reading too much into it.
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Actually, some invites were sent this week.
 
When did they say decisions would be coming out?
 
soccerusa said:
When did they say decisions would be coming out?
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I was told "sometime" in October, but I'm hoping others have heard a more concrete date... I was there on the first interview week, so maybe they have a better idea of their admissions timeline now. I believe last year it was October 31st?

I'm waiting on tenterhooks for this decision. :nailbiting: Really felt the "fit" here – and I'd hazard to say probably one of my top choices thus far – but that's no guarantee Sinai feels the same about me. +pity+
 
They said "in about a month" and I was early September...really hoping it's October 15.
 
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hellanutella said:
I was told "sometime" in October, but I'm hoping others have heard a more concrete date... I was there on the first interview week, so maybe they have a better idea of their admissions timeline now. I believe last year it was October 31st?

I'm waiting on tenterhooks for this decision. :nailbiting: Really felt the "fit" here – and I'd hazard to say probably one of my top choices thus far – but that's no guarantee Sinai feels the same about me. +pity+
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When I was there last week they said there was an outside chance we could hear in the middle of October "if they work some magic", so they will probably have news for you since you were there much earlier. In your case, I'm betting it's probably good news! :luck:
 
hellanutella said:
I was told "sometime" in October, but I'm hoping others have heard a more concrete date... I was there on the first interview week, so maybe they have a better idea of their admissions timeline now. I believe last year it was October 31st?

I'm waiting on tenterhooks for this decision. :nailbiting: Really felt the "fit" here – and I'd hazard to say probably one of my top choices thus far – but that's no guarantee Sinai feels the same about me. +pity+
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there is no hella way you are gonna be left out from Sinai's list.
 
unnumzaan said:
Ehh, poor use of hella, forced pun.

4/10
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Hm...in that case, let me pull out of the being-non-native-speaker card for which I save for occasions like this.:whistle:
 
Scribblers said:
When I was there last week they said there was an outside chance we could hear in the middle of October "if they work some magic", so they will probably have news for you since you were there much earlier. In your case, I'm betting it's probably good news! :luck:
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Wow – hopefully we both get a little share of their magic! Thank you for the info and good luck as well. 🙂

Friendly_female_house said:
there is no hella way you are gonna be left out from Sinai's list.
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unnumzaan said:
Ehh, poor use of hella, forced pun.

4/10
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I accept your forced pun, FFH. Sending you good vibes for your upcoming interview! You'll love it!

NorCal vernacular appears to somewhat loose with the use of "hella." 😉 Oh lookie here, a wikipedia page for any budding linguists. God, I love the internet.
 
Just got an II here! MSTP, complete 9/8.

Question: I'm torn as to whether I should stay with a student during my interview. I live in the Midwest, but my dad lives in NYC. His apartment is close to the 6 line, so Mt. Sinai is just a half-hour train ride away.

On the one hand, staying with a student would give me the opportunity to spend some quality time with real students. On the other hand, I think I might perform better in an interview if I spent the previous night in a comfortable bed and an environment I'm familiar with.

I'm leaning towards staying at my dad's place, but I'm curious what you all think.
 
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pluto101 said:
Just got an II here! MSTP, complete 9/8.

Question: I'm torn as to whether I should stay with a student during my interview. I live in the Midwest, but my dad lives in NYC. His apartment is close to the 6 line, so Mt. Sinai is just a half-hour train ride away.

On the one hand, staying with a student would give me the opportunity to spend some quality time with real students. On the other hand, I think I might perform better in an interview if I spent the previous night in a comfortable bed and an environment I'm familiar with.

I'm leaning towards staying at my dad's place, but I'm curious what you all think.
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When I interviewed there, about half the people stayed with student hosts and about half did their own thing. I live in NYC so I just took train 6 in the morning, also about a 30-min ride. The station is 2-3 blocks away from the hospital, so it is a very short walk from the train station. If you feel better staying with family, just do that. You get to interact with students a lot during the interview.
 
pluto101 said:
Just got an II here! MSTP, complete 9/8.

Question: I'm torn as to whether I should stay with a student during my interview. I live in the Midwest, but my dad lives in NYC. His apartment is close to the 6 line, so Mt. Sinai is just a half-hour train ride away.

On the one hand, staying with a student would give me the opportunity to spend some quality time with real students. On the other hand, I think I might perform better in an interview if I spent the previous night in a comfortable bed and an environment I'm familiar with.

I'm leaning towards staying at my dad's place, but I'm curious what you all think.
Click to expand...

I stayed with a host, and I really enjoyed it. But, as a warning, the default couch provided in the rooms is skinny and not that great to sleep on. Also, depending on when you sleep and how deep a sleeper you are, people may be going in and out of the living room, FYI. I had a bad night of sleep, but might have gained things from my hosts about the school that I really wouldn't have otherwise.
 
anyone going to the Sinai open house on Oct 25?
 
For those of you who received II's, did you ever receive an "Application Complete" email? I've had the green check mark on the portal for a few months now, and I'm wondering if it's worthwhile to call the admissions office to ensure my file is complete and under review.
 
did anyone else receive TWO application completes? I submitted my secondary mid september with my letters. Following that I received an application complete email/portal change. Then 6 days later I received the same exact email (saying my application was complete) and it came up on my portal for another input of communication status. Any thoughts?
 
Love this school - very close to the top of my list pre-interview, probably at the top post-interview. Hoping they love me back 🙂
 
I interviewed mid-September, and they said to expect decisions "in a month, give or take a week" for us, so this is definitely the right time frame. I'm so nervous.
 
parsimony said:
I interviewed mid-September, and they said to expect decisions "in a month, give or take a week" for us, so this is definitely the right time frame. I'm so nervous.
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I got the exact same thing from the admissions office person that gave us the presentation in mid-september.
 
I just want to make sure- we send thank you emails to the admissions office and they forward it right?
 
That's what they said when I was there. My interviewers gave me their contact information so I just got in touch with them directly. Either works!
 
rektedit said:
did anyone else receive TWO application completes? I submitted my secondary mid september with my letters. Following that I received an application complete email/portal change. Then 6 days later I received the same exact email (saying my application was complete) and it came up on my portal for another input of communication status. Any thoughts?
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yeah i was complete august 4 (and i got the email verification) and i just got another complete email today...not sure why that happened but i called admissions and they said it was probably a computer glitch because theyre switching to a new system. so nothing to worry about.

really love this school and the active/collaborative community. fingers crossed theyll show me some love!
 
Seems like admissions is really missing the mark when it comes to releasing decisions. In early September it was "about a month". In mid September it was "a month, give or take a week". Now I'm doubting the "sometime in October" line they gave some interviewees. Might as well just say November and save everyone from needless suspense.
 
I'm just going to go out on a limb and assume that admissions decisions will come around the same time they did last year (around Oct 31st).

However, every time I see this thread with unread messages, my heart starts racing... :scared:
 
Interviewed in early October, love this school. Hoping to find out my fate soon... Anyone else dying of suspense cause they didn't give us an exact date? Like it could be any day now
 
Will this be the week? :nailbiting: We may not know they exact date, but decisions are bound to happen soon!

Sorry for bumping the thread; I'm just absurdly excited/nervous about this school. Hope Sinai loves me as much as I love them. 🙁

Good luck to those waiting for news and those going to upcoming interviews!
 
Does anyone know by any chance whether Mt Sinai does silent rejection? I have been complete since early August, but have not heard anything back from them at all. Starting to lose hope now...
 
Sinai is one of the few schools that is not already knee deep into January interview dates. Not sure if that's a good thing or they are very selective for II. Does anyone know if Sinai goes in order by complete date? If so then I'm sure my app has been looked at already.
 
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