2014-2015 Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences Application Thread

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pythagoraslock said:
Accepted! First choice. First acceptance. So happy.

For anyone trying to game their chances and timeframes (like I was), my key dates and stats:

AMCAS submitted June 3rd, secondary submitted July 7th, interview invitation September 3rd, interviewed September 25th, accepted October 30th.

GPA 3.8 science&overall, MCAT 33, prior military service, second time applicant, nontraditional

From this and being on the waitlist last year, I can tell you how they like to notify. The day after they make the official decision, Dr. Saguil (dean of admissions) likes to call you with the news. Mail comes several days later. I don't think you'll actually get an email.
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Congrats! Which branch?

And we interviewed on the same day!
 
llamasarefuzzy said:
There is a greeting of the day? As in, it changes daily? Like Monday is "howdy" and the Tuesday is "aloha?" Not saying that wouldn't be awesome, but I'm super confused
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Sorry, military lingo. "Good morning ma'am"..."good afternoon sir". If you're walking across campus and you come across a colonel its not just "heya" it's "good afternoon sir/ma'am/colonel".
 
llamasarefuzzy said:
Interviewed today. Dean Saguil confirmed that navy was full but still doing wait list spots while the other services still had open positions. Awesome day, BTW. Was apprehensive that military would not be a good fit for me but I think the interview really showed me that I would be very happy as a military physician. Put air force as first choice but noted that I would be equally happy in anything but the public health service
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Confirmed that Navy spots are already filled from my waitlist letter & email.
 
Murdoch said:
Great read. In Operation Bushmaster, do first years play the part of wounded casualties while fourth years are tested?
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Yes. First years have their own tactical/field training for several days in October, which then culminates with them playing the wounded at Operation Bushmaster. They were just coming up on it when I interviewed, and everyone was very excited about it!
 
Murdoch said:
Great read. In Operation Bushmaster, do first years play the part of wounded casualties while fourth years are tested?
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Exactly. We have our own five-day training exercise, which either culminates (or is immediately preceded by) playing casualties.
 
It's probably way too late to add this to my AMCS list right?
 
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hammatime99 said:
It's probably way too late to add this to my AMCAS list right?
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It depends on how you look at it. Yes, it is very late, but if you have a very competitive application that also fits what the school is looking for, then it is still very possible for you to get an II. Interviews run into February. However, by the time you interview, all the spots will probably be filled, and you'll be placed on the waitlist.

The one good news is that every year, USUHS accepts many people off the waitlist. I believe that during certain years, everyone who were on the waitlist managed to get accepted. However, don't quote me on that.
 
ProudMD said:
It depends on how you look at it. Yes, it is very late, but if you have a very competitive application that also fits what the school is looking for, then it is still very possible for you to get an II. Interviews run into February. However, by the time you interview, all the spots will probably be filled, and you'll be placed on the waitlist.

The one good news is that every year, USUHS accepts many people off the waitlist. I believe that during certain years, everyone who were on the waitlist managed to get accepted. However, don't quote me on that.
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Last year, Dr. Saguil stated that >90% of the USA & USAF wait listed applicants were offered a seat, but this was not the case last year, as they took an "unexpectedly low number of candidates off of the waitlist"- per my interviewers last week & the fact that I did not get off the waitlist last year. Let's hope that there are still spots left for November interviewees!
 
ProudMD said:
It depends on how you look at it. Yes, it is very late, but if you have a very competitive application that also fits what the school is looking for, then it is still very possible for you to get an II. Interviews run into February. However, by the time you interview, all the spots will probably be filled, and you'll be placed on the waitlist.

The one good news is that every year, USUHS accepts many people off the waitlist. I believe that during certain years, everyone who were on the waitlist managed to get accepted. However, don't quote me on that.
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Wow. Good advice! Thank you. Hypothetically speaking, would you think someone with a ~3.6 c/sGPA, a 31 MCAT with an average EC and shadowing experience , and is a current graduate student in an SMP would be competitive? Lol

I have just recently heard of this MD route so I'm not sure of the competitiveness and/or the prestige. It sounds awesome from what I've read so far!!

JamesPD said:
Last year, Dr. Saguil stated that >90% of the USA & USAF wait listed applicants were offered a seat, but this was not the case last year, as they took an "unexpectedly low number of candidates off of the waitlist"- per my interviewers last week & the fact that I did not get off the waitlist last year. Let's hope that there are still spots left for November interviewees!
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Well lets hope that's the case for the both of us! I think I'm going to go ahead and throw this one on for now. Thank you guys!
 
hammatime99 said:
Wow. Good advice! Thank you. Hypothetically speaking, would you think someone with a ~3.6 c/sGPA, a 31 MCAT with an average EC and shadowing experience , and is a current graduate student in an SMP would be competitive? Lol

I have just recently heard of this MD route so I'm not sure of the competitiveness and/or the prestige. It sounds awesome from what I've read so far!!



Well lets hope that's the case for the both of us! I think I'm going to go ahead and throw this one on for now. Thank you guys!
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USUHS's the average stats are around 3.6 c/sGPA and 31ish MCAT, so your numbers are absolutely fine.

However, the school looks at much more than just your numbers.

But the real question is...why on earth are you doing a SMP with a 3.6 c/sGPA????? Your stats are competitive for most of the mid-tier schools in the country.
 
JamesPD said:
Last year, Dr. Saguil stated that >90% of the USA & USAF wait listed applicants were offered a seat, but this was not the case last year, as they took an "unexpectedly low number of candidates off of the waitlist"- per my interviewers last week & the fact that I did not get off the waitlist last year. Let's hope that there are still spots left for November interviewees!
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Just to add to this, quoting from Col. Saguil's email to waitlisted applicants:

"As a result of our authorizing legislation, we are only allowed to offer 171 spots per year. The number of Navy spots flexes a bit each year, but is generally around 52. We are only able to go out with enough offers to fill those spots before we move to the wait list. Unlike other schools, we cannot oversubscribe seats, hoping that attrition will bring us down to the correct number--if we take in too many students, we have to justify our number to Congress.
Fortunately, this wait list is merit based. As someone drops a seat from among the accepted, we will offer that spot to one of you on the list, based on your committee ranking. The committee assigns a score to each person over whom they deliberate, based on your experiences, attributes, and metrics; this score is used to help determine who is offered a spot off the wait list. This is an internal ranking and is not shared outside the committee."

Good luck everyone!
 
@ProudMD
They're going alright I suppose. I applied pretty late. I didn't think I would be applying this cycle due to advising from my graduate advisors. Once I got my score I submitted and I've been struggling through the secondaries (also submitted fairly late between late sep. until a few days ago) while I'm trying to keep up in my classes. I've got two interviews so far. UCF and GWU. How about your own?
 
I know there have been a few people post about their interview days, but anyone who went recently care to comment? It seems like they're fairly upfront in telling candidates about what if any spots are still available. Do you feel this affected your interview?

On the whole, how did the actual interview compare to a traditional MD interview?
 
hammatime99 said:
@ProudMD
They're going alright I suppose. I applied pretty late. I didn't think I would be applying this cycle due to advising from my graduate advisors. Once I got my score I submitted and I've been struggling through the secondaries (also submitted fairly late between late sep. until a few days ago) while I'm trying to keep up in my classes. I've got two interviews so far. UCF and GWU. How about your own?
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Good job on the interviews!

I can't complain since I got accepted to USUHS, my first choice 😀
 
I interviewed last week and absolutely LOVED it! Started out the day with an Army physician who showed us a powerpoint presentation and told us a lot of helpful information about military medicine and life at USUHS. Then we took a bus to the simulation center which had state of the art technology--it was really impressive. When we got back to the campus we had lunch and asked current 1st and 2nd year students lots of questions and then they gave us a tour. Our interviews followed and we were done after that. I was so impressed with how close-knit everyone seemed to be and my interviewers made me feel very comfortable! It's definitely my top choice so I sure hope to hear some good news in the next 3-5 weeks
 
Would anyone mind sharing how many spots have been offered this year? Does anyone know how many spots are left for army? Thank you all in advance!
 
two quick questions. first, does anyone know when the application deadline is for USUHS? I realize it's late regardless. Second. for the course requirements USUHS says it requires a full year of o-chem and lab, no other schools i applied to have this requirement. Does anyone know if they make any exceptions for the second lab (I know they say biochem can't be substituted for o-chem, but can a biochem lab or labs be substituted for the second semester of o-chem lab)?
 
capt.yossarian said:
two quick questions. first, does anyone know when the application deadline is for USUHS? I realize it's late regardless. Second. for the course requirements USUHS says it requires a full year of o-chem and lab, no other schools i applied to have this requirement. Does anyone know if they make any exceptions for the second lab (I know they say biochem can't be substituted for o-chem, but can a biochem lab or labs be substituted for the second semester of o-chem lab)?
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I've seen one or two other people mention something like this, and it always surprises me...I've rarely seen a school not require a full year of o-chem + lab. I'm pretty sure all the schools I applied to did. I would very much doubt that you could count biochem lab as o-chem, but the admissions staff are very friendly, so you could always reach out to them and ask.
 
LaceyMD said:
I've seen one or two other people mention something like this, and it always surprises me...I've rarely seen a school not require a full year of o-chem + lab. I'm pretty sure all the schools I applied to did. I would very much doubt that you could count biochem lab as o-chem, but the admissions staff are very friendly, so you could always reach out to them and ask.
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Same here. Virtually every medical school requires a full year of organic chemistry and a full year of lab.

And regarding the application deadline: yes, it is very late, especially for USUHS. However, if you send in your secondary right now and are a very competitive applicant, it is still possible for you to get an interview. The school interviews until February.

However, if you interview in December or later (which you most definitely will even if you submit your secondary tomorrow), you'll be interviewing for waitlist spots. The good news is that historically, USUHS accepts many/most people off the waitlist.
 
all the schools i have applied to (15) require, at most, a year of o-chem and "lab" (not plural), totaling 8 semester hours. I meet this requirement, but do not have the second lab.
 
capt.yossarian said:
all the schools i have applied to (15) require, at most, a year of o-chem and "lab" (not plural), totaling 8 semester hours. I meet this requirement, but do not have the second lab.
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I see. Well, you can contact the admissions office and get their take on the issue. But I am not sure how flexible they are with the prerequisites. Couldn't hurt to try though! Good luck!
 
I had a year of orgo and a separate semester of lab, but they took it. Also added up to 8 credits.
 
ProudMD said:
Same here. Virtually every medical school requires a full year of organic chemistry and a full year of lab.

And regarding the application deadline: yes, it is very late, especially for USUHS. However, if you send in your secondary right now and are a very competitive applicant, it is still possible for you to get an interview. The school interviews until February.

However, if you interview in December or later (which you most definitely will even if you submit your secondary tomorrow), you'll be interviewing for waitlist spots. The good news is that historically, USUHS accepts many/most people off the waitlist.
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This is not true. Cornell, Tufts, GWU, Rush, OHSU, UMinn, etc all say that a semester in Biochemistry can be substituted for the 2nd semester of OChem. I applied to 30 programs and at least half of them stated this. I asked the admissions committee at USC (they have zero "required" courses) about this and they said 1) the knowledge necessary to succeed in Biochem includes topics covered in most OChem II courses and 2) with the changes of MCAT2015, many schools have or are starting to adapt their pre-reqs away from the current 32 credit model since it doesn't reflect the testing model.

However, USUHS does say in black and white, Biochem does not serve as substitute so if you don't have it done, make sure you're registering for a spring course.
 
well....USU doesn't seem to want to show me any love. I received notice that I was put on hold! Talked with Dr. Saguil (amazing person!!) and only one person made it off of the hold list last year! Looks like I'm officially out of the running for this one!
On the plus side, in-state school offered me a spot!!!! (I'll be poor, and undertrained as a military doctor ;-), but excited to pursue the MD!) --- HPSP here I come!
 
Hey everyone. I couple questions for you all.

I chose Navy as my first choice (had a grandfather who was a career officer and another who was a noncom), but it sounds as if that branch has already filled up. I put Army and Air Force high on my preference sheet and indicated I would accept a position in either branch. If they decide a candidate deserves a spot but their preferred branch is full, do they offer both a spot on the wait list and offer spots in the other branches? Or do they offer other branches on a case-by-case basis?

Also, has anyone from the 10/2 interview heard back yet? It seems like they may be running over the 4-6 week in some cases and tomorrow is 6 weeks for me... I'm starting to go crazy waiting for a call.

Thanks in advance for the help! Good luck to everyone applying!
 
DrRow said:
Hey everyone. I couple questions for you all.

I chose Navy as my first choice (had a grandfather who was a career officer and another who was a noncom), but it sounds as if that branch has already filled up. I put Army and Air Force high on my preference sheet and indicated I would accept a position in either branch. If they decide a candidate deserves a spot but their preferred branch is full, do they offer both a spot on the wait list and offer spots in the other branches? Or do they offer other branches on a case-by-case basis?

Also, has anyone from the 10/2 interview heard back yet? It seems like they may be running over the 4-6 week in some cases and tomorrow is 6 weeks for me... I'm starting to go crazy waiting for a call.

Thanks in advance for the help! Good luck to everyone applying!
Click to expand...
Curious to this as well. Put AF as my #1, but would honestly be thrilled with army too because of the research component. Going back and forth on emailing them. About to register for spring classes so perhaps I'll include both in the same email
 
DrRow said:
Hey everyone. I couple questions for you all.

I chose Navy as my first choice (had a grandfather who was a career officer and another who was a noncom), but it sounds as if that branch has already filled up. I put Army and Air Force high on my preference sheet and indicated I would accept a position in either branch. If they decide a candidate deserves a spot but their preferred branch is full, do they offer both a spot on the wait list and offer spots in the other branches? Or do they offer other branches on a case-by-case basis?

Also, has anyone from the 10/2 interview heard back yet? It seems like they may be running over the 4-6 week in some cases and tomorrow is 6 weeks for me... I'm starting to go crazy waiting for a call.

Thanks in advance for the help! Good luck to everyone applying!
Click to expand...

Curious about all of this as well! I'm also a 10/2 interviewer anxiously counting the days haha! I also put Navy as #1 (which according to SDN, is full) but I said I would also accept a position in the Air Force... so wondering if the Navy thing is creating a hold up at all!
 
DrRow said:
Hey everyone. I couple questions for you all.

I chose Navy as my first choice (had a grandfather who was a career officer and another who was a noncom), but it sounds as if that branch has already filled up. I put Army and Air Force high on my preference sheet and indicated I would accept a position in either branch. If they decide a candidate deserves a spot but their preferred branch is full, do they offer both a spot on the wait list and offer spots in the other branches? Or do they offer other branches on a case-by-case basis?

Also, has anyone from the 10/2 interview heard back yet? It seems like they may be running over the 4-6 week in some cases and tomorrow is 6 weeks for me... I'm starting to go crazy waiting for a call.

Thanks in advance for the help! Good luck to everyone applying!
Click to expand...

llamasarefuzzy said:
Curious to this as well. Put AF as my #1, but would honestly be thrilled with army too because of the research component. Going back and forth on emailing them. About to register for spring classes so perhaps I'll include both in the same email
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Tribe1234 said:
Curious about all of this as well! I'm also a 10/2 interviewer anxiously counting the days haha! I also put Navy as #1 (which according to SDN, is full) but I said I would also accept a position in the Air Force... so wondering if the Navy thing is creating a hold up at all!
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From everything I've been told, if your primary branch preference is full but you indicated desire to serve in another branch, you will be offered a spot in the other branch, or you can elect to waitlist for your primary but full one. You won't both be accepted and on a waitlist (about 99% sure on this)
 
Glycereine said:
From everything I've been told, if your primary branch preference is full but you indicated desire to serve in another branch, you will be offered a spot in the other branch, or you can elect to waitlist for your primary but full one. You won't both be accepted and on a waitlist (about 99% sure on this)
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Awesome! Thanks! I raked AF 1 and navy/army 2, but I did write a note that I would be basically equally excited with all of them. Getting nervous because navy filled up so fast and air force is smaller and I really really don't want to sit on a waitlist because I loved, loved, loved USUHS
 
llamasarefuzzy said:
Awesome! Thanks! I raked AF 1 and navy/army 2, but I did write a note that I would be basically equally excited with all of them. Getting nervous because navy filled up so fast and air force is smaller and I really really don't want to sit on a waitlist because I loved, loved, loved USUHS
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If it makes you feel better, I'm HOPING for a waitlist spot, because I'm already Navy and it's full, so an outright acceptance to start with is out of the question for me.
 
Glycereine said:
If it makes you feel better, I'm HOPING for a waitlist spot, because I'm already Navy and it's full, so an outright acceptance to start with is out of the question for me.
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That stinks 🙁 I'm pulling for you all the way! Hopefully there will be lots and lots of movement on the lists this year!!!!
 
Glycereine said:
Yeah, it's not ideal, but I'm trying not to stress 🙂. I am just hoping that 1, I'm waitlisted soon, and that 2, I'm near the top of it.
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When did you interview? I'm trying very hard to jump on the no-stress-train, but right now my only mode of transportation appears to be the strugglebus
 
llamasarefuzzy said:
When did you interview? I'm trying very hard to jump on the no-stress-train, but right now my only mode of transportation appears to be the strugglebus
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I interviewed October 23rd. So by my rough math and admissions counselors saying to expect the 6 week part of that 4-6 weeks, I am figuring I should hear something at the very end of November or first week of December. Would certainly make for a more enjoyable holiday, knowing something, even if it's a waitlist 🙂.
 
Glycereine said:
I interviewed October 23rd. So by my rough math and admissions counselors saying to expect the 6 week part of that 4-6 weeks, I am figuring I should hear something at the very end of November or first week of December. Would certainly make for a more enjoyable holiday, knowing something, even if it's a waitlist 🙂.
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Are they saying the full 6 weeks now? That will put me sometime in December as well. I need to figure out how to distract myself! Perhaps I should begin by finishing up cramming for my exam in an hour!
 
Glycereine said:
At my interview on the 23rd they were already telling us to expect the full 6 weeks.
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Good to know. I just need to mentally push back worrying for just a few extra weeks then. No sense fretting over what cannot be changed!
 
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