2015-2016 University of Massachusetts Application Thread

[Ismet]

Space reserved for prompt.

Please PM the essays or lack thereof to me when the secondary is available and I will update this.

Good luck to everyone applying!

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[pinstriped1992]

Definitely one of my favorite choices, looking forward to applying!

 

[Oranges2]

My school just sent out a blast saying UMass is now accepting OOS students for the MD only program for the first time this cycle - can anyone comment on this? Will there still be strong IS preference?

 

[gyrfalcon]

My school just sent out a blast saying UMass is now accepting OOS students for the MD only program for the first time this cycle - can anyone comment on this? Will there still be strong IS preference?

Yes, their web site has been updated to reflect this. The other change is that applicants have to live in the state for 7 years (!) to be considered residents. That used to be "only" 5 years.

 

[mehc012]

My school just sent out a blast saying UMass is now accepting OOS students for the MD only program for the first time this cycle - can anyone comment on this? Will there still be strong IS preference?

Yuuup! Definitely on my list now...I want to end up in MA so badly!

 

[ChrisMack390]

Grrrrrrr.

I have been living in Massachusetts since 2008, but 5 of those years were for college (5 year program), so UMass doesn't count them and won't let me apply. Now they finally change their rules, but I will still count as OOS for which I can only assume the competition will be extraordinary

Annoying.

 

[mehc012]

Grrrrrrr.

I have been living in Massachusetts since 2008, but 5 of those years were for college (5 year program), so UMass doesn't count them and won't let me apply. Now they finally change their rules, but I will still count as OOS for which I can only assume the competition will be extraordinary

Annoying.

Probably not...I don't think that many people are aware of the change.

 

[ChrisMack390]

I'm not applying until next year. Hopefully the stigma of 0% carries over and discourages lots of applicants next year too

I could definitely write up a kickass secondary about how much I have loved living in Mass and want to stick around.

 

[loconoko]

Top choice this year as a lifelong MA resident- love the campus & heard great things from graduates. hoping the love me back!!! good luck everyone!

 

[Oranges2]

Probably not...I don't think that many people are aware of the change.

Haha yeah, it was literally the last bullet in a long email

 

[quicheduty]

The only thing though...

The total number of out-of-state School of Medicine applicants who may be admitted for the 2016-17 academic year is capped at no more than 12.

To apply or not to apply :/

 

[Oranges2]

@suchbrio is that from their website?? if so....then it might not be such a great idea for OOS to apply with those odds...

 

[quicheduty]

@suchbrio is that from their website?? if so....then it might not be such a great idea for OOS to apply with those odds...

Yeah I dug around because it seemed too good to be true, and then I found it in the footnotes of this page:
http://www.umassmed.edu/som/admissions/application-process/residency-classification/

I'm confused... are they only admitting 12 OOS, or matriculating? I would assume it's the latter but their wording says otherwise!

 

[Oranges2]

Yeah... looks like I won't be adding this one to my list after all

 

[grey_wind]

@suchbrio hey, was just checking out your MDapps, your list is pretty intense! was just curious of your stats- if you're willing, PM me!
I think I remember your name from an MCAT thread I was in, did you take one of the last old ones this past January???

 

[obscurity111]

delete

 

[shh-pthway]

How do we submit app fee?

EDIT: fee is waived for MSTP

 

[theguardsman]

Holy **** I was just looking over the secondary to double check where a umass program supervisor should send a rec letter and accidentally submitted an empty secondary

Guess I will call the admissions office ASAP... anyone have an idea if I will be able to get another one? man......

 

[moo271]

Holy **** I was just looking over the secondary to double check where a umass program supervisor should send a rec letter and accidentally submitted an empty secondary

Guess I will call the admissions office ASAP... anyone have an idea if I will be able to get another one? man......

This happened to me too! Call or email, they responded to my email within the hour and made it available to me. The site is not exactly intuitive :/

 

[theguardsman]

Called and they did the same instantly! Great support ...

 

[Ducky8989]

Are there any essays on the secondary?

Anyone know if the in-state requirements are really as strict as they appear on the site? By matriculation I will have been in MA for 5 years after graduating from college but have only been filing taxes here for two of the years since I was a dependent before that. I have an MA drivers license, voter registration, rent and will be married to a lifelong MA resident.

 

[WhoseBen2015]

Anyone know what the mean by "Please describe your hopes for your chosen medical specialty, type of practice, and size/type of practice community.". Are they talking about the number of doctors you have, size of hospital, types of services. Or like the number of patients you see, the type of community, the size of the town. ect.

 

[MarcyTweets]

For anyone that has submitted the secondary, is the portal showing that your LORs are submitted? I submitted the secondary on 7/6 and it is showing as incomplete due to not having received my LORs. Anyone else?

 

[diabolicaldoc]

Any thoughts on the hopes for medical specialty question, about whether it's a terrible idea to say you want to do something other than primary care? I'm thinking Ob/GYN right now, which I know is considered primary care by some, but not exactly, so I'm not really sure what to do considering their primary care focus!

 

[Goonie1010]

Has anyone else had an issue paying the application fee online?

 

[lucy1013]

Would someone please post the secondaries? It would be much appreciated!

 

[gyrfalcon]

Not completing this secondary. I've owned a house in Massachusetts for five years but apparently that is not enough to qualify for residency anymore. The state now wants seven years. Not worth trying to compete for those few out-of-state seats. Good luck to everyone who has lived here forever.

 

[thejazeffect]

For anyone that has submitted the secondary, is the portal showing that your LORs are submitted? I submitted the secondary on 7/6 and it is showing as incomplete due to not having received my LORs. Anyone else?

I submitted on 7/8 and it still shows that my LORs have not been received. Every other school I applied to has gotten them but not UMass...

 

[remzremz]

Deleted.

 

[tick_tock_tick_tock]

I submitted on 7/8 and it still shows that my LORs have not been received. Every other school I applied to has gotten them but not UMass...

I submitted about a week ago and they just updated my status to complete-- took them that long to get my LORs added to my file. There are several other schools I submitted my secondary to who still have not gotten my LORs... so don't worry quite yet! For some reason it takes some schools a while.

 

[loconoko]

Submitted 7/10 and still waiting for those recommendation letters to be uploaded....good to hear that umass is slow for everyone, gonna drive me crazy during this process though!

 

[RhinB]

Yo I need some help with this form-filling just to make sure I don't get discounted from in-state tuition.

For the attached picture part, I am a US citizen but for me the Legal permanent residence thing is also checked off. It says I've gotta provide documentation for immigration status, but I'm a US citizen...I don't need to provide anything additional right? Just want to confirm quickly!

 

[diabolicaldoc]

Yo I need some help with this form-filling just to make sure I don't get discounted from in-state tuition.

For the attached picture part, I am a US citizen but for me the Legal permanent residence thing is also checked off. It says I've gotta provide documentation for immigration status, but I'm a US citizen...I don't need to provide anything additional right? Just want to confirm quickly!

Can you switch it to No and say N/A because you are a US citizen so you are not a legal permanent resident? That happened to me so that's what I did.

 

[StrangeloveMD]

can anyone comment on service opportunities offered to medical students (i.e. student-run clinics). I'm having a hard time finding this information. Thank you!

 

[tick_tock_tick_tock]

can anyone comment on service opportunities offered to medical students (i.e. student-run clinics). I'm having a hard time finding this information. Thank you!

I'm not a student but I work at UMass and there are free clinics that UMass students essentially run with medical directors. See: http://www.worcesterfreeclinics.org/about-us.html

 

[StrangeloveMD]

I'm not a student but I work at UMass and there are free clinics that UMass students essentially run with medical directors. See: http://www.worcesterfreeclinics.org/about-us.html

Thanks for the info!

 

[Hera A]

Their course requirements don't give much room for anything out of the ordinary...

I know they count AP classes for prerequisites but where should that be designated? In the grade column?

Do we need to specify that a course (i.e. gen chem) included lab if it's not in the course title? That said, the space just says course number, but can we include course title too?

I don't think you can add more entries, can you? I have 2 semesters of orgo and a 3rd semester of orgo lab and I can't figure out how to fit all 3 since they only give 2 spots for organic chemistry

 

[redman93]

Could anyone post the prompts for the secondary if there are any? Thank you

 

[KatniP]

can anyone comment on service opportunities offered to medical students (i.e. student-run clinics). I'm having a hard time finding this information. Thank you!

I'm an IS resident and currently volunteer at St. Anne's free medical clinic in Shrewsbury! A lot of UMass medical students volunteer there on Tuesdays, and the doctor who runs the place (Dr. Clermont) is very knowledgeable and an excellent physician. I believe there are other free clinics in the Worcester area though.

Good luck to everyone applying!

 

[aesculapian]

Could anyone post the prompts for the secondary if there are any? Thank you

200-word limit on each of these:
- If you are reapplying to UMMS, please describe how you have strengthened your credentials since your last application.
- Have you ever worked/volunteered or otherwise participated in any UMASS Medical School or UMASS Memorial Health Care sponsored activities/programs (Example: Area Health Education Center (AHEC), Pipeline Program, Summer Enrichment Program (SEP), Research) If Yes, please describe. A letter of recommendation from your program supervisor is strongly encouraged.
- What are your future medical career plans? Please describe your hopes for your chosen medical specialty, type of practice, and size/type of practice community.
- Please explain any grades:
o C+ or below in any prerequisite or science course
o Any semester where you feel your academic performance was not representative of your true abilities.
- Were any of your science, biology, math, chemistry, physics or statistics courses taken on-line? If yes, please list and explain what portion of the course (all, part, lab) was taken on-line.
- How did you study for the MCAT exam?

There's also a 500-word response on a personal dilemma relating to one of nine competencies (e.g. integrity, reliability, service, resilience, cultural competence) and how you demonstrated your competency of choice.

 

[Goonie1010]

Does anyone know when Umass starts sending interview invites?

 

[Hera A]

I heard they're pretty slow with the entire process

 

[ridethecliche]

Yeah. I wouldn't hold my breath to wait for them.

Send update letters if you have anything notable happen at the right time points (pre/post interview), but be judicious with how often you do this.

I had no idea they upped the residency thing to 7 years this cycle. That's freaking mental.

Edit: I wouldn't be eligible this cycle!

 

[mehc012]

Yeah. I wouldn't hold my breath to wait for them.

Send update letters if you have anything notable happen at the right time points (pre/post interview), but be judicious with how often you do this.

I had no idea they upped the residency thing to 7 years this cycle. That's freaking mental.

I was so excited when I heard things were open to OOSers. Then I saw the implementation and realized they don't really mean it.
I was born in MA, have family in MA, went to college in MA, want more than anything to go back to MA...but I will never be MA enough for UMass.

 

[KatniP]

I was so excited when I heard things were open to OOSers. Then I saw the implementation and realized they don't really mean it.
I was born in MA, have family in MA, went to college in MA, want more than anything to go back to MA...but I will never be MA enough for UMass.

How many years did you live in MA? Is the requirement that you had to live in MA for the past 7 years, or just 7 years total? I'm sure they'll probably have preferences for OOS students that have strong ties to MA. It is pretty annoying that they upped the residency requirement..

 

[mehc012]

How many years did you live in MA? Is the requirement that you had to live in MA for the past 7 years, or just 7 years total? I'm sure they'll probably have preferences for OOS students that have strong ties to MA. It is pretty annoying that they upped the residency requirement..

By school residency standards, zero years. College doesn't count, and my parents left MA less than a year after I was born. However, they talked about it constantly, taught me to drive like a New Englander, and visited relatives in MA frequently. Whenever my mom so much as watches a movie with Boston accents, she gets a bit of one herself! She heard me say war-chest-er once, and the rest of the car ride home was spent practicing the proper New England pronunciation of the towns we passed on our way out of the state. I went to college there specifically because visiting MA, to me, feels like coming home. I can't explain it.

 

[MedWonk]

My school just sent out a blast saying UMass is now accepting OOS students for the MD only program for the first time this cycle - can anyone comment on this? Will there still be strong IS preference?

The spots reserved for in-state students will be kept at 120.

Yeah I dug around because it seemed too good to be true, and then I found it in the footnotes of this page:
http://www.umassmed.edu/som/admissions/application-process/residency-classification/

I'm confused... are they only admitting 12 OOS, or matriculating? I would assume it's the latter but their wording says otherwise!

12 OOS students will (should) be joining you. I bet half will be from CA. I don't know how UMass is viewed by people outside this area, though.

 

[ridethecliche]

The spots reserved for in-state students will be kept at 120.



12 OOS students will (should) be joining you. I bet half will be from CA. I don't know how UMass is viewed by people outside this area, though.

It's ranked well though, so it'll get attention from the area. I think admissions is pretty swamped with OOS applications already. They're going to add 13 more spots the next cycle for a total of 25 OOS if I'm not mistaken.

Also, UMass is pretty awesome so people will apply.

 

[lockjaw]

It's ranked well though, so it'll get attention from the area. I think admissions is pretty swamped with OOS applications already. They're going to add 13 more spots the next cycle for a total of 25 OOS if I'm not mistaken.

Also, UMass is pretty awesome so people will apply.

Yup, this is correct as far as I heard - the end goal is 25 OOS students per year, but they're adding the OOS students gradually starting with this year in order to give time for the school to make arrangements for additional clerkship sites in order to accommodate these extra students. They're already stretched a bit thin on a few clerkships, so adding 25 students at once would be tough. The OOS students will pay a much higher tuition than the IS students (rumor has it that this is the major impetus for adding the OOS students, since the school's budget is tight), but I'm not sure if the actual OOS tuition rate has been publicized yet.

 

[ridethecliche]

I think they'll be raising IS tuition as well though.