I’ve been reading this thread the last few months and have finally decided to join SDN and post since I’ve been thinking a lot about medical school admissions the last few days (interviewed here just under 3 weeks ago). I have too much time on my hands now that I’m just a student after I stopped working in July (to devote myself entirely to pursuing medical education after working 6 years full time, then 2 years part time while finishing up the pre-med courses).
I’ve read a lot of posts asking what OUWB is looking for in a potential student, and I think the links provided earlier on holistic admissions describe it well. Another description of what OUWB is looking for and why they seek those particular attributes is provided, in compelling fashion, by the founding dean at the following link: All of us will encounter situations at some point in our lives (and many of us have already) where a physician could have and should have shown compassion but failed miserably in that regard to the detriment of the patient. Patients often times encounter doctors when they’re at their most vulnerable, and THEY DESERVE to have a doctor who demonstrates that they care in all that they say and do (technical competence is required, but it’s not all that’s required). Since, after a certain point, MCAT/GPA become irrelevant in determining whether one can succeed in medical school and pass the USMLE (have read a document called mcatstudentselectionguide that has the numbers, but can’t find the link online right now), OUWB has decided that they will consider experiences and the attributes that result from those experiences to be as important as academics once the academic threshold is met. I think that the following questions are good ones for applicants to ask themselves when determining if they have what OUWB is seeking. What experiences (volunteer or otherwise) have you had that have allowed you to grow as a person? What have you learned from those experiences? How does what you have learned from those experiences affect how you treat others and how you anticipate you will practice medicine in the future?
I don’t know whether I’m going to be fortunate enough to get to be a student here (so many wonderful candidates with amazing credentials), but I plan on following this school’s lead in how I treat patients in the future regardless. I’m going to get back to studying for my physiology exam. Thank you all for being part of my life (albeit unknowingly 🙂 ) for the last few months. Thank you to mrslandingham in particular. The rest of us, including me, are following this thread because we have a stake in what occurs; you’re here because you experienced this last year, know that it’s a difficult process to go through, and care about what happens to us (so thank you). Good luck to those interviewing on Friday!
