2015-2016 MD/PhD Secondaries (Alphabetical List)

[Summerlands]

Hey, thanks for posting all of those. What are the MD/PhD-specific secondary prompts for UCLA? I was able to mostly confirm for the others.

And wow, I should have applied to Penn. Best (easiest) secondary aside from Mayo and Minnesota.

Happy to help! I'm guessing just the question about research interests/faculty interests... It's not really an essay, though, just a list, so I suppose there really aren't any MD/PhD-specific essays at UCLA.

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[MSTPtastic]

Hey, thanks for posting all of those. What are the MD/PhD-specific secondary prompts for UCLA? I was able to mostly confirm for the others.

And wow, I should have applied to Penn. Best (easiest) secondary aside from Mayo and Minnesota.

Penn is incomplete. Here's the full list of Qs for Penn (or, at least, the ones I had to fill out):

Please provide keywords or phrases that more specifically identify your research interest. (500 char)

Have you taken or are you planning to take time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation? No Yes
Please describe your activities during this time: (250 characters?)

Are there any special, unique, personal, or challenging aspects of your personal background or circumstances that you would like to share with the Committee on Admissions, not addressed elsewhere (siblings/relatives at Penn, applying as a couple, educational environment, culture, ethnicity, etc.) No Yes
Please explain and limit your response to 1,000 characters.

Have you or your family experienced economic hardships? No Yes
Please explain briefly in 1,000 characters:

Please explain your reasons for applying to the Perelman School of Medicine. (1000 char)

 

[Argle Bargle]

Penn is incomplete. Here's the full list of Qs for Penn (or, at least, the ones I had to fill out):

Please provide keywords or phrases that more specifically identify your research interest. (500 char)

Have you taken or are you planning to take time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation? No Yes
Please describe your activities during this time: (250 characters?)

Are there any special, unique, personal, or challenging aspects of your personal background or circumstances that you would like to share with the Committee on Admissions, not addressed elsewhere (siblings/relatives at Penn, applying as a couple, educational environment, culture, ethnicity, etc.) No Yes
Please explain and limit your response to 1,000 characters.

Have you or your family experienced economic hardships? No Yes
Please explain briefly in 1,000 characters:

Please explain your reasons for applying to the Perelman School of Medicine. (1000 char)

Updated, thanks!

 

[alden014]

Hey, thanks for posting all of those. What are the MD/PhD-specific secondary prompts for UCLA? I was able to mostly confirm for the others. And wow, I should have applied to Penn. Best (easiest) secondary aside from Mayo and Minnesota.

 

[Argle Bargle]

Hey, thanks for posting all of those. What are the MD/PhD-specific secondary prompts for UCLA? I was able to mostly confirm for the others. And wow, I should have applied to Penn. Best (easiest) secondary aside from Mayo and Minnesota.

Haha, why did you copy my previous post verbatim?

 

[cyang]

Out of curiosity (I am not applying MD/PhD, please don't pass any judgement I have noticed people will attack you when you ask questions like this even when the question is honestly harmless), how do MD/PhDs get ranked in the class? It is weird because you're with one class for the first two years, do your PhD, and depending on the length of the PhD, you begin another class.... So how does that work? Can you even get AOA? Just curious because I feel like MD/PhDs either want to be academic physicians, or surgeons, where rankings would be valuable.

 

[Argle Bargle]

Out of curiosity (I am not applying MD/PhD, please don't pass any judgement I have noticed people will attack you when you ask questions like this even when the question is honestly harmless), how do MD/PhDs get ranked in the class? It is weird because you're with one class for the first two years, do your PhD, and depending on the length of the PhD, you begin another class.... So how does that work? Can you even get AOA? Just curious because I feel like MD/PhDs either want to be academic physicians, or surgeons, where rankings would be valuable.

I think @Fencer could answer this best. From what I can tell it depends on the school, with some not ranking anyone at all, regardless of whether you're MD or MD/PhD.

Just out of curiosity, why are you asking? It's not something that I've thought about before.

 

[cyang]

I think @Fencer could answer this best. From what I can tell it depends on the school, with some not ranking anyone at all, regardless of whether you're MD or MD/PhD.

Just out of curiosity, why are you asking? It's not something that I've thought about before.

I don't know I think b/c I was thinking that MD/PhD students in your class will probably be of some of the smartest students which spiraled into this ranking/AOA thing that I couldn't quite understand. I have a friend who is MD/PhD as well and doesn't know the answer either and now wants to know haha

 

[Argle Bargle]

I don't know I think b/c I was thinking that MD/PhD students in your class will probably be of some of the smartest students which spiraled into this ranking/AOA thing that I couldn't quite understand. I have a friend who is MD/PhD as well and doesn't know the answer either and now wants to know haha

From what many current MD/PhD students have told me, MD students and MD/PhD students often take a different approach to studying and prioritizing grades. Often that then results in MD students getting better grades. So, I wouldn't worry too much. I don't think MD/PhDs are necessarily "smarter," and there aren't all that many of them anyway.

 

[gentlecub]

My dream is to go to University of Michigan med school. I live in Africa so it will be very expensive for me to go.

 

[CancerCureAdmit]

This should be a true autobiographical statement. Topics to be included are family, childhood, primary and secondary school years, undergraduate years, and, if applicable, what you’ve done since completing your bachelor’s degree. You should also discuss the motivational factors which led you to a career in medicine including any disadvantages or obstacles which might put your accomplishments into context. A repeat of your AMCAS statement will not be acceptable. Please note: if you are applying to the MD/PhD program, please include why you are seeking the MD/PhD training at UCSD. (6000 chars)

For this question, do you think the "please include why you are seeking the MD/PhD training at UCSD" part is asking why you want to do the MSTP specifically at UCSD (like a "why our school?"-type question), or just why you want to do MD/PhD training in general?