2014-2015 University of Cincinnati Application Thread

BU Medical Sciences
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
palatopharyngeus said:
to accepted students: have any of you been contacted about a background check yet?? i haven't...
Click to expand...

I was accepted in October and got an email for my background check in January from Certiphi, which I already finished. I would check any possible email account it may have been sent to, whatever you gave to the admissions office.

I'd contact the admissions office if you haven't gotten the email.
 
For those who have been accepted - was it a status change notification or did you get a specific email saying you had been accepted?
 
Does anybody remember the date that the waitlist tier comes out? I can't remember if it is in April or May. Thanks!
 
madb0x said:
Does anybody remember the date that the waitlist tier comes out? I can't remember if it is in April or May. Thanks!
Click to expand...
I think it's mid-April after they're done interviewing, but I could be wrong.
Also, does anyone know if people on the waitlist are allowed to send updates?
 
Alternate list! Interviewed on March 12th. Fingers crossed for some luck off the wait list!! Best of luck to the other applicants.
 
Alternate list email as well. Hmm...how do we find out which tier?
 
Joining the alternate list crowd- this might be a long shot, but does anyone know if any March interviewees were accepted? I'm just curious because I know when we received interview invites, the school specifically stated they still had seats available, so I was just wondering if those might have potentially been filled yet by March interviewees or others.
 
KillaKitteh said:
I was on the alternate list last year, good luck to you guys! :luck:
Click to expand...
Do you know approximately how many students they take off the waitlist? Or about how many they took last year?

Also, has anyone been rejected post interview?
 
Last edited:
MD_2_Be said:
Do you know approximately how many students they take off the waitlist? Or about how many they took last year?

Also, has anyone been rejected post interview?
Click to expand...

So this varies year to year, last year they did not have a lot of wait list movement (I think from 10-20, but don't quote me on these figures). However, other years they have had a lot more people accepted from the wait list--so like I said, variable. It's dependent on how many accepted students end up going elsewhere.
 
KillaKitteh said:
So this varies year to year, last year they did not have a lot of wait list movement (I think from 10-20, but don't quote me on these figures). However, other years they have had a lot more people accepted from the wait list--so like I said, variable. It's dependent on how many accepted students end up going elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info!!
 
madb0x said:
Does anybody remember the date that the waitlist tier comes out? I can't remember if it is in April or May. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Last year it was May, like the 10th or so, I got in on the 28th. But my memory isn't perfect. Did any of you go to second look?
 
Anyone wondering about waitlist- I heard tiers should be revealed this wednesday. Also I attended the second look event, and they were a bit mercurial about the step I stats and said it was because of the curriculum change. I am eager to see the scores for this year, and but have heard some gripes about the curriculum from the students. Also if you look at the USMLE score history of the school's past they were well above 230 like 7 years ago but now they are around 225 or so. What is your opinion about the curriculum? and any possible changes in the future?
 
orthogenes said:
For example?
Click to expand...

For example:

1) By when are we required to have a car? I know there is a contract you have to sign, or at least there was.

2) Are we allowed to work part-time and attend, and is that feasible? Available work-study opportunities?

3) What does the quintile grading system look like numerically--is it just even scores of 20, 40, 60, 80, 0r 100? Or does the quintile grading system mean that there are five tiers with numerical grades from 0-100?
 
KillaKitteh said:
For example:

1) By when are we required to have a car? I know there is a contract you have to sign, or at least there was.

2) Are we allowed to work part-time and attend, and is that feasible? Available work-study opportunities?

3) What does the quintile grading system look like numerically--is it just even scores of 20, 40, 60, 80, 0r 100? Or does the quintile grading system mean that there are five tiers with numerical grades from 0-100?
Click to expand...

1. I have no idea.
2. I did for 2 months and it was a bad idea for me so I quit. I don't regret it. I am not the right person to ask about work-study.
3. 0-10= lowest 10-30% is the next rank 30-60 in the middle, 60-90, and 90-100 (approx). You get a word like "good" or "excellent" as your rank. Your word correlates to the %ages.

I guess I don't know the things you need to know.
 
KillaKitteh said:
For example:
Click to expand...

1) By when are we required to have a car? I know there is a contract you have to sign, or at least there was.

The reason you need a car is to travel to your Longitudinal Primary Care Clerkship (LPCC) starting in January of your first year. Every student is assigned to a different primary care physician up to a 20-30 min drive away from the school. However, I do know a couple classmates who do not own a car and take public transportation to their LPCC, so you may be able to work something out with the LPCC coordinator.

2) Are we allowed to work part-time and attend, and is that feasible? Available work-study opportunities?

I don't know the answer to work-study opportunities, but I'm sure you're allowed to work part-time. To be honest, I would strongly advise against working while in school because med school will be more than a full-time job in of itself. Make the most of it and study hard because each year only gets busier if not harder.

3) What does the quintile grading system look like numerically--is it just even scores of 20, 40, 60, 80, 0r 100? Or does the quintile grading system mean that there are five tiers with numerical grades from 0-100?

The grading system ranks you into the top 20% (outstanding), 20% (excellent), 30% (very good), 20% (good), and bottom 10% (satisfactory) of the class; all you know is which quintile you're in (outstanding, excellent, etc.). The ranking is based on your grades (tests,assignments,quizzes,all that), where there's no curve and getting a 70% in a class = pass. Basically, you're trying to beat the average to get a good ranking.
 
sleep_islife said:
Anyone wondering about waitlist- I heard tiers should be revealed this wednesday. Also I attended the second look event, and they were a bit mercurial about the step I stats and said it was because of the curriculum change. I am eager to see the scores for this year, and but have heard some gripes about the curriculum from the students. Also if you look at the USMLE score history of the school's past they were well above 230 like 7 years ago but now they are around 225 or so. What is your opinion about the curriculum? and any possible changes in the future?
Click to expand...

Did they mention how the waitlist tiers would be revealed? Do we contact admissions and they'll tell us our place?
 
orthogenes said:
1. I have no idea.
2. I did for 2 months and it was a bad idea for me so I quit. I don't regret it. I am not the right person to ask about work-study.
3. 0-10= lowest 10-30% is the next rank 30-60 in the middle, 60-90, and 90-100 (approx). You get a word like "good" or "excellent" as your rank. Your word correlates to the %ages.

I guess I don't know the things you need to know.
Click to expand...

Actually, you've certainly given me some insight.

How many hours did you work a week? I would like to keep my job I have now, and I could potentially go down to working only 10 hours a week, which would probably be broken into two 5 hour shifts.

I figure that since people have and raise children in medical school, working 40 hours a month wouldn't be impossible, per se. Not sure I will still do it, just considering the possibility.

njoymusic2 said:
1) By when are we required to have a car? I know there is a contract you have to sign, or at least there was.

The reason you need a car is to travel to your Longitudinal Primary Care Clerkship (LPCC) starting in January of your first year. Every student is assigned to a different primary care physician up to a 20-30 min drive away from the school. However, I do know a couple classmates who do not own a car and take public transportation to their LPCC, so you may be able to work something out with the LPCC coordinator.

2) Are we allowed to work part-time and attend, and is that feasible? Available work-study opportunities?

I don't know the answer to work-study opportunities, but I'm sure you're allowed to work part-time. To be honest, I would strongly advise against working while in school because med school will be more than a full-time job in of itself. Make the most of it and study hard because each year only gets busier if not harder.

3) What does the quintile grading system look like numerically--is it just even scores of 20, 40, 60, 80, 0r 100? Or does the quintile grading system mean that there are five tiers with numerical grades from 0-100?

The grading system ranks you into the top 20% (outstanding), 20% (excellent), 30% (very good), 20% (good), and bottom 10% (satisfactory) of the class; all you know is which quintile you're in (outstanding, excellent, etc.). The ranking is based on your grades (tests,assignments,quizzes,all that), where there's no curve and getting a 70% in a class = pass. Basically, you're trying to beat the average to get a good ranking.
Click to expand...

So we don't get any sort of cGPA-equivalent value, we just know which quintile we are in based on some sort of cumulative assessment? I'm more curious than anything since it was mentioned during Second Look. Thanks for your input!

Also, I was curious about the car thing since my husband uses our car for work and we've been trying to figure out when we need to purchase him his own vehicle. Trying to get a timeline for that.
 
Just got an email from Cincinnati. I'm on the top 1/3 of the waitlist! Anyone know how far down they typically draw from the waitlist?
 
Middle tier - kind of bummed but still hopeful
I am IS, trad, and female so that would be great if someone with similar stats could withdraw and give me their spot 🙂 jk but seriously
 
AspiringERMD said:
Just got an email from Cincinnati. I'm on the top 1/3 of the waitlist! Anyone know how far down they typically draw from the waitlist?
Click to expand...
It changes every year! Sometimes only 15 people will be pulled off, sometimes up to 100. I think the average is 50-80!
 
KillaKitteh said:
Actually, you've certainly given me some insight.

How many hours did you work a week? I would like to keep my job I have now, and I could potentially go down to working only 10 hours a week, which would probably be broken into two 5 hour shifts.

I figure that since people have and raise children in medical school, working 40 hours a month wouldn't be impossible, per se. Not sure I will still do it, just considering the possibility.

So we don't get any sort of cGPA-equivalent value, we just know which quintile we are in based on some sort of cumulative assessment? I'm more curious than anything since it was mentioned during Second Look. Thanks for your input!

Also, I was curious about the car thing since my husband uses our car for work and we've been trying to figure out when we need to purchase him his own vehicle. Trying to get a timeline for that.
Click to expand...

Working 10 hours a week during first year is easy for some, challenging but possible for most, and absolutely impossible for others. There's only one way to find out which of those categories you fit in to, and it is sometimes learned at the cost of an "WTF just happened?" exam grade.

And no, you never see your GPA or any GPA analog. After each block you're able to see which quintile you're in.

As for a car, your LPCC commitment begins second semester of first year and is only one afternoon every other week. Infrequent enough that many people can have flexible driving arrangements.
 
sleep_islife said:
Anyone wondering about waitlist- I heard tiers should be revealed this wednesday. Also I attended the second look event, and they were a bit mercurial about the step I stats and said it was because of the curriculum change. I am eager to see the scores for this year, and but have heard some gripes about the curriculum from the students. Also if you look at the USMLE score history of the school's past they were well above 230 like 7 years ago but now they are around 225 or so. What is your opinion about the curriculum? and any possible changes in the future?
Click to expand...

Did you go to an interview or second look where students did not complain about the curriculum?

Medical education is at least a decade behind the rest of higher education, which is itself at least a decade behind the broader economy.

There are tremendous adjunct resources (you'll learn all about them and purchase/bootleg them no matter what school you attend) that will allow any student to perform exceptionally well in class and on Step 1.

What I'm saying is that student effort and aptitude >>> curriculum when it comes to Step 1. Take from that what you will.

And UC's Step 1 average last year was better than a 225, I assure you.

A short story:

I was accepted some other places. In casual conversation at one of their second looks I was told that their previous class had averaged in the high 240's on Step 1. I was blown away. I thought surely that this school had the formula, the secret sauce for how to win at medical school.

Fast forward to me as a UC student. I laugh at that thought now. I don't care where I went (and note that some "top" school don't have "top" Step 1 scores), I know after one year of school that my score next year is determined 95%+ by my effort, not by the curriculum.

And I am not defending UC's curriculum. It needs work. What I am saying is that if you like UC and want to come here for any number of reasons (family, location, research happening here, etc.), don't talk yourself out of it because of a prior year's number.
 
Placed into middle tier of alternate list today. Will be withdrawing my app. Good luck to everyone else!
 
This is probably an obvious question, but can we expect most movement next week? Or is there a chance of movement at the end of this week?
 
AspiringERMD said:
Accepted from the top 1/3 of the waitlist via phone call! LizzyM=73, OOS. She said she'd email me the offer and I have seven days to decide.

:soexcited:

As if my finals-studying concentration weren't bad enough! 😛
Click to expand...

toostressful said:
Just got accepted off the wait list WITH a scholarship!! I can't believe it... :')
Click to expand...

Congrats!! Did either of you write letters of intent/interest?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

wysdoc
2024-2025 Cincinnati
4 5 6 7 8
Replies
389
Views
122K
undeniablekeeper
undeniablekeeper
wysdoc
2024-2025 University of Washington
10 11 12 13 14
Replies
680
Views
146K
stew_md
S
wysdoc
2024-2025 University of Chicago (Pritzker)
12 13 14 15 16
Replies
778
Views
207K
X0001234
X0001234
wysdoc
2024-2025 Medical University of South Carolina
3 4 5 6 7
Replies
302
Views
59K
hbic2025
H
wysdoc
2024-2025 University of Central Florida (UCF)
3 4 5 6 7
Replies
318
Views
74K
LaurelePoole
L
Top