2014-2015 University of Tennessee Health Science Center Application Thread

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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penguinone said:
Can anyone let me know my chances at UT for the 2016 cycle?

cGPA: 3.603
sGPA: 3.45
MCAT: 31
I am currently a junior at Loyola Chicago, applying for the 2016 cycle. I am a resident of Tennessee.

Clinical Volunteer: I have been volunteering at a hospital since the Fall and have accumulated 0+ hours. My volunteer coordinator is also writing me one of my rec letters. Will this suffice for clinical volunteering?

Physician shadowing: Shadowed a Pediatric Surgeon this past winter break, accumulated 48 hours. Shadowed Pediatric Neurosurgeon for one day (because he's a big time doctor in Chicago and was really busy all the time-- is also the head of my research lab, my PI works under him)

Research: Have volunteered my time to pediatric brain tumor research since Spring of my sophomore year. Very involved in the research and will continue until I graduate.

Nonclinical volunteer activities: Active member of Amnesty international club at my school. Tutored refugee children my freshman year. Led tutoring group of underprivileged hs students for NSCS. Currently PR for a pre-med club.

Employment: Currently tutor sociology 2 hours/week since January. Scribed for pediatrics office 40hrs/week for two months summer after freshman year.
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I'm almost certain you'll get an interview. The rest will be up to you.
 
penguinone said:
Can anyone let me know my chances at UT for the 2016 cycle?

cGPA: 3.603
sGPA: 3.45
MCAT: 31
I am currently a junior at Loyola Chicago, applying for the 2016 cycle. I am a resident of Tennessee.

Clinical Volunteer: I have been volunteering at a hospital since the Fall and have accumulated 0+ hours. My volunteer coordinator is also writing me one of my rec letters. Will this suffice for clinical volunteering?

Physician shadowing: Shadowed a Pediatric Surgeon this past winter break, accumulated 48 hours. Shadowed Pediatric Neurosurgeon for one day (because he's a big time doctor in Chicago and was really busy all the time-- is also the head of my research lab, my PI works under him)

Research: Have volunteered my time to pediatric brain tumor research since Spring of my sophomore year. Very involved in the research and will continue until I graduate.

Nonclinical volunteer activities: Active member of Amnesty international club at my school. Tutored refugee children my freshman year. Led tutoring group of underprivileged hs students for NSCS. Currently PR for a pre-med club.

Employment: Currently tutor sociology 2 hours/week since January. Scribed for pediatrics office 40hrs/week for two months summer after freshman year.
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Your application looks good. You may want to shadow some other specialties, especially primary care. They want you to have experienced the different sides of medicine.
 
penguinone said:
Can anyone let me know my chances at UT for the 2016 cycle?

cGPA: 3.603
sGPA: 3.45
MCAT: 31
I am currently a junior at Loyola Chicago, applying for the 2016 cycle. I am a resident of Tennessee.

Clinical Volunteer: I have been volunteering at a hospital since the Fall and have accumulated 0+ hours. My volunteer coordinator is also writing me one of my rec letters. Will this suffice for clinical volunteering?

Physician shadowing: Shadowed a Pediatric Surgeon this past winter break, accumulated 48 hours. Shadowed Pediatric Neurosurgeon for one day (because he's a big time doctor in Chicago and was really busy all the time-- is also the head of my research lab, my PI works under him)

Research: Have volunteered my time to pediatric brain tumor research since Spring of my sophomore year. Very involved in the research and will continue until I graduate.

Nonclinical volunteer activities: Active member of Amnesty international club at my school. Tutored refugee children my freshman year. Led tutoring group of underprivileged hs students for NSCS. Currently PR for a pre-med club.

Employment: Currently tutor sociology 2 hours/week since January. Scribed for pediatrics office 40hrs/week for two months summer after freshman year.
Click to expand...

My suggestions would be to get more shadowing in and to apply the first day the application is available!
 
Did everyone get an email prior to getting their letter? I was told to expect a letter either at the beginning or middle of this week, but I still haven't gotten an email saying my letter was on its way.
 
fingerscrossedpremed said:
Did everyone get an email prior to getting their letter? I was told to expect a letter either at the beginning or middle of this week, but I still haven't gotten an email saying my letter was on its way.
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I'm pretty sure you get an email which basically lets you know the letter is enroute. If you haven't received an email then maybe you're letter hasn't been sent out yet? There could also be a delay. I think the snail mail takes a week and they may not email you for a day or two
 
MajorBubblez said:
I'm pretty sure you get an email which basically lets you know the letter is enroute. If you haven't received an email then maybe you're letter hasn't been sent out yet? There could also be a delay. I think the snail mail takes a week and they may not email you for a day or two
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I'm thinking the University could just be behind with all the snow? I'm not sure, but its gonna drive me crazy until I find out!
 
Hello all - longtime lurker, first-time poster. I need some advice from the good people of SDN! I am a reapplicant to this medical school; last year I ended up ranked in the middle third of the waitlist. I had my reapplicant interview here recently, and find myself in the holding category again. I've spent the last year doing just about everything that I can think of to strengthen my application, and while I'm hopeful about this cycle I'm still nervous. I've applied elsewhere, but UT is the only place I've interviewed in either cycle. Is there something that jumps out to anyone that I'm missing? I've put off the DO conversation until my third cycle, if it comes to that. I'd really appreciate any and all advice! Sorry if posted in the wrong forum.

I've listed my stats from both last cycle and this cycle below.

Stats:
cGPA: 3.69 (up from 3.65)
sSGA: 3.50 (up from 3.44)
MCAT: 27 (twice)
Clinical Hours: 600+ (up from ~90)
Numerous leadership awards and extracurricular activities from undergrad
Honors program, etc.
No research yet, but have lined up an opportunity this coming April/May

And I am a resident of the state.
 
fundifurus said:
Hello all - longtime lurker, first-time poster. I need some advice from the good people of SDN! I am a reapplicant to this medical school; last year I ended up ranked in the middle third of the waitlist. I had my reapplicant interview here recently, and find myself in the holding category again. I've spent the last year doing just about everything that I can think of to strengthen my application, and while I'm hopeful about this cycle I'm still nervous. I've applied elsewhere, but UT is the only place I've interviewed in either cycle. Is there something that jumps out to anyone that I'm missing? I've put off the DO conversation until my third cycle, if it comes to that. I'd really appreciate any and all advice! Sorry if posted in the wrong forum.

I've listed my stats from both last cycle and this cycle below.

Stats:
cGPA: 3.69 (up from 3.65)
sSGA: 3.50 (up from 3.44)
MCAT: 27 (twice)
Clinical Hours: 600+ (up from ~90)
Numerous leadership awards and extracurricular activities from undergrad
Honors program, etc.
No research yet, but have lined up an opportunity this coming April/May

And I am a resident of the state.
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I'm a first time applicant, so I'm probably not the best person to answer your question. But I will say your MCAT score is a little low. From a quick glance, I'd say that was the weakest link in your application.

On another note, I'm anxiously awaiting my letter. Might I ask approximately when you interviewed and when you got your letter?
 
Thanks for the reply, fingerscrosssedpremed. I interviewed early February and received my letter this past Saturday. I got the survey email on Thursday. I agree that the MCAT is a little low, but unfortunately there's nothing I can really do about it now with the exam changing formats. Additionally, I was informed by admissions after last year's cycle that the committee didn't make any comments about it one way or another. So I'm hopeful it won't hold me back!
 
fundifurus said:
Thanks for the reply, fingerscrosssedpremed. I interviewed early February and received my letter this past Saturday. I got the survey email on Thursday. I agree that the MCAT is a little low, but unfortunately there's nothing I can really do about it now with the exam changing formats. Additionally, I was informed by admissions after last year's cycle that the committee didn't make any comments about it one way or another. So I'm hopeful it won't hold me back!
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Hey bud, keep your head up. I would say that your MCAT is on the lower end, but is not most likely holding you back considering I had the same score and was accepted right off the bat. I think your ECs are lacking big time though. I don't know what type of leadership awards you have or volunteer experiences. The admissions committee is looking for commitment and dedication during hardships and also leadership in various areas. If you don't make it in, which I hope you do, start looking for expanding your ECs to be more diverse. I did not have any leadership awards, but I had very unique leadership experiences.

FWIW, my cgpa was in the same ball park, but my sGPA was around 3.8.
 
Any word on this survey e-mail? Does everyone receive this who will subsequently receive an acceptance/hold letter? Or only acceptance letter? Or even those that will be denied?

Thanks for help.
 
pete3541 said:
Any word on this survey e-mail? Does everyone receive this who will subsequently receive an acceptance/hold letter? Or only acceptance letter? Or even those that will be denied?

Thanks for help.
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The survey email is Diane's way of letting you know that your decision is on it's way, so everyone gets the email.
 
Did you get your acceptance letter today? Congratulations. Did you ever get that survey e-mail?
 
Patiently waiting for the mail....it's killing me! I need some good news so that the Grizzlies game on Friday will be extra worth it and kind of celebratory!! 😉
 
pete3541 said:
I wouldn't be discouraged by that. Did you get a letter in the mail? Any prior survey e-mail? If you don't mind me asking.
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I got the survey and decision letter at same time. It's hard not to feel discouraged though. I was hoping for good news
 
Lost_In_Transcription said:
It's better than a rejection though, so don't get too down. Final decisions come out in a month.
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Well people who have been given acceptances will be given until April 30th to make a decision on whether or not they want the spot, then they'll start pulling from their alternate list. So there's still a lot of waiting to be done.
 
2ndchancecharm said:
Well people who have been given acceptances will be given until April 30th to make a decision on whether or not they want the spot, then they'll start pulling from their alternate list. So there's still a lot of waiting to be done.
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You could still be accepted in between now and then as many accepted students who will ultimately decide to attend another school will let UT know of that decision prior to April 30th simply out of respect to the admissions committee and other students. They haven't notified those who are scholarship candidates at this point though, so I am sure that that lingering possibility of such fortune would result in almost every accepted student remaining as such until that is decided.

Did you receive your hold status via the mail? Was a little confused by your response that you got survey e-mail and letter at the same time.

Best of luck and I certainly wouldn't feel disheartened at this point if I were you.
 
pete3541 said:
You could still be accepted in between now and then as many accepted students who will ultimately decide to attend another school will let UT know of that decision prior to April 30th simply out of respect to the admissions committee and other students. They haven't notified those who are scholarship candidates at this point though, so I am sure that that lingering possibility of such fortune would result in almost every accepted student remaining as such until that is decided.

Did you receive your hold status via the mail? Was a little confused by your response that you got survey e-mail and letter at the same time.

Best of luck and I certainly wouldn't feel disheartened at this point if I were you.
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Both my survey and decision letter were mailed to me. I got an email before saying that the survey was on its way. I'm in Memphis. So I guess it was expedited a little more compared to others who live out of town
 
pete3541 said:
You could still be accepted in between now and then as many accepted students who will ultimately decide to attend another school will let UT know of that decision prior to April 30th simply out of respect to the admissions committee and other students. They haven't notified those who are scholarship candidates at this point though, so I am sure that that lingering possibility of such fortune would result in almost every accepted student remaining as such until that is decided.

Did you receive your hold status via the mail? Was a little confused by your response that you got survey e-mail and letter at the same time.

Best of luck and I certainly wouldn't feel disheartened at this point if I were you.
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I agree, I bet there will be plenty of movement between now and the April 30th.

As for scholarships, have they really not notified anyone?
 
Last edited:
MajorBubblez said:
Sucks but I'm sure you still have a good chance.
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I thought scholarships were via interview invite, that s a $150,000 gift great work!! Accepted but still interviewing! Don't worry plenty of time left, I think they go about 60 deep on the wait list.
 
It's April 30th that they give people who they've offered spots to accept or decline right???
 
I'm playing the waiting game until tomorrow which is one of my favorite holidays:luck:
And you?
 
Agreed. Did anyone get an acceptance? Any lurkers out there with news?

Also, when do we know exactly where we stand?
 
shpidorman said:
Agreed. Did anyone get an acceptance? Any lurkers out there with news?

Also, when do we know exactly where we stand?
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I got in last week actually. Meant to make a comment but forgot haha. I interviewed 2/23
 
Kiokakosh said:
Hi everyone! I was wondering if there were any students (or friends of students) on here that could tell me why i should go here. There's a lot on other application pages about that, but not a lot for here. I'm juggling this and LMU DCOM. I thought the atmosphere at DCOM was more welcoming.
I know the obvious differences of course (40,000 dollars difference, and having different letters after my name), but just as far as being a student of the school itself, was wondering if anyone has some insight. I've heard a million responses to "Why DCOM?" but not very many to "Why UTHSC?"
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If I end up on the waitlist, I can give you a reason not to go here xD
 
Yeah, unfortunately the day that I visited was a little unorthodox due to students being in classes. It seemed great from what I saw, but most of the students were just happy to be medical students and pretty darn busy : )
 
Hey y'all I was hoping for some advice...I have been heavily leaning towards ETSU the past couple of months, but I recently found out I was selected to participate in the merit scholarship interviews at UT, which I feel incredibly fortunate and appreciative of. I was just wondering if anyone else will be attending these interviews, or if there are any current students lurking on here who might have some advice on how to prepare for the interviews? Or what to expect in general?
 
Kiokakosh said:
Hi everyone! I was wondering if there were any students (or friends of students) on here that could tell me why i should go here. There's a lot on other application pages about that, but not a lot for here. I'm juggling this and LMU DCOM. I thought the atmosphere at DCOM was more welcoming.
I know the obvious differences of course (40,000 dollars difference, and having different letters after my name), but just as far as being a student of the school itself, was wondering if anyone has some insight. I've heard a million responses to "Why DCOM?" but not very many to "Why UTHSC?"
Click to expand...

It sounds like your question is really allopathic v osteopathic, and I know nothing about osteopathic medicine so I can't address that. However, I will say that the people at UT are great. I really like my class, we shared alot of our resources, and although yes, you will find gunners here, it's not nearly as bad as I had anticipated. It's not cut-throat because we're not really competing against each other, we're all going into different specialties, and there is not really an advantage to being cutthroat. The main advantage to UT is the clinical experience you get. UT students get alot more hands-on experience than other schools, and we complete one more rotation (2months) than most schools because we take Step 1 earlier. Hope that helps!
-M2 lurker
 
So is it safe to say at this point that those of us still on hold are officially wait-listed? If so, is there a separate letter sent out for that?
 
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