2015-2016 University of Michigan Application Thread

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
According to the Admissions office's FB page, IIs will begin starting next week!
Tweets
UMich Med Admissions
@UMichMedAdmiss

1h
UmichMed Mondays=interview offers for class #MichMed170 starting next week...can you see yourself in #AnnArbor yet? umhealth.me/1CEryBy

Sadly, with my stats, I'll be waiting awhile. They tend to take the superstars first.

Members don't see this ad.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Well, I guess we'll have to wait for our turn!
Yup, brother didn't get an interview invite until Dec 2, for January, but he was out of the country in January, so he interviewed 2 days later (thankfully he was undergrad here, so no big deal).
They are real accommodating with their applicants. GO BLUE!!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
FYI, UMich's first interviews were issued on July 15th last year. Since you'll all be refreshing the secondary page like crazy, I'll add fuel to the fire: I found out via the secondary page and didn't receive an email until four hours later.

I didn't end up picking UMMS since I had slightly better financial packages elsewhere and thought it would be good for me personally to live somewhere new, but I dearly loved the school. I'll be paying close attention next year as UMMS rolls out its abbreviated pre-clinical curriculum.
 
Last edited:
Welp, time to spend the next few weeks freaking out. Again. I'm moving back to Ann Arbor for a job at the beginning of August so this timing could work out wonderfully or terribly.
 
Been up and down on my diversity essay... This new one is just under 1000 characters. Does that seem a bit short for such a short char limit? How bout using it for others schools?
 
FYI, UMich's first interviews were issued on July 15th last year. Since you'll all be refreshing the secondary page like crazy, I'll add fuel to the fire: I found out via the secondary page and didn't receive an email until four hours later.

I didn't end up picking UMMS since I had slightly better financial packages elsewhere and thought it would be good for me personally to live somewhere new, but I dearly loved the school. I'll be paying close attention next year as UMMS rolls out its abbreviated pre-clinical curriculum.

Thank you, for that. We really needed the kick to up our neuroticism. :p
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
Status on the secondary website still says "complete and under review"—does this mean anything relative to II? Should the status change if an II is forthcoming?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Status on the secondary website still says "complete and under review"—does this mean anything relative to II? Should the status change if an II is forthcoming?
mine says the same thing. I doubt it will change until either an interview is granted, or, if after reviewing your file, they feel you aren't on superstar-first-wave-of-II caliber, at which point I'd assume they switch it to "on hold," meaning they'll revisit your application at a later time.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
I'm having a really hard time deciding what to write about for the passion essay... Michigan is one of my top choices and I don't want to mess it up by writing about the wrong thing!
My friend who knows me best told me to write about sports as she sees that it's something I'm most passionate about and could spin it to show enthusiasm and a stress-relief outlet, but considering I went to Wisconsin I probably shouldn't write about another big ten team lol...
My other ideas are my passion for reducing stigma associated with mental illness or running, although I haven't been running as much recently due to time.

Any ideas??
 
Members don't see this ad :)
I'm having a really hard time deciding what to write about for the passion essay... Michigan is one of my top choices and I don't want to mess it up by writing about the wrong thing!
My friend who knows me best told me to write about sports as she sees that it's something I'm most passionate about and could spin it to show enthusiasm and a stress-relief outlet, but considering I went to Wisconsin I probably shouldn't write about another big ten team lol...
My other ideas are my passion for reducing stigma associated with mental illness or running, although I haven't been running as much recently due to time.

Any ideas??

I was talking to a friend the other day who sits on the adcom committee and he strongly urged me to write about whatever hobby/interest I had. He said not to write about/relate it to medicine or try to stretch it in any way. Random advice thought I'd share.

There's no wrong thing, just know that Michigan is really keen on assembling a class with a diverse set of interests and talents, so find something unique that only you have a passion for and write about it. I really liked the snakes idea I saw earlier. If you want to write about sports, talk about it in a way that shows the level of passion you have for it, in a way no one else could.
 
I really liked the snakes idea I saw earlier.

Haha, before I hit this line I was thinking "maybe I should talk about herpetology for this one then..."

(Yes I'm still deliberating on it.)
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Yup, brother didn't get an interview invite until Dec 2, for January, but he was out of the country in January, so he interviewed 2 days later (thankfully he was undergrad here, so no big deal).
They are real accommodating with their applicants. GO BLUE!!

My best friend is starting here this fall and received one of the first IIs with a 34/3.7.
Your brother's experience is only n=1 :p
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
My best friend is starting here this fall and received one of the first IIs with a 34/3.7.
Your brother's experience is only n=1 :p
We'll see when the II start rolling out. Good Luck to all

Found the interview tracker files we kept from Sept 2013 for the 2014 cycle, shows MCAT average for first batch of interviews to be 37 IS, 38 OOS, the last tracker in 2014 average was 34.5 IS, 37 OOS. This data shows that higher MCAT tend to interview earlier, especially for the IS.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
This data shows that higher MCAT tend to interview earlier, especially for the IS.

I think this is the case for most schools, though lol.
My point is that MCAT isn't everything and each applicant is going to have his/her own experiences this cycle.
 
I think this is the case for most schools, though lol.
My point is that MCAT isn't everything and each applicant is going to have his/her own experiences this cycle.
NO. Every aspect of the med school application process is easily quantified into numbers and statistics.

/s
 
  • Like
Reactions: 6 users
Does the first round of II generally go to IS applicants?

If I'm remembering correctly, it goes for both, IS and OOS. But Michigan has a tradition of making sure that the very first interview that gets sent out goes to an IS UM graduate.
 
If I'm remembering correctly, it goes for both, IS and OOS. But Michigan has a tradition of making sure that the very first interview that gets sent out goes to an IS UM graduate.
I think it is the FIRST acceptance that goes to a U of M Undergrad. Let's go the CLass 170!!
 
Question: does Michigan do rejections on the Mondays that they give II's also? Or are they a school that rejects people way later in the game?
 
Question: does Michigan do rejections on the Mondays that they give II's also? Or are they a school that rejects people way later in the game?
Way later in the season for pre-II rejections. Post interview they give you an answer in about 3-4 weeks. Per twitter a couple of years ago:

MD candidate outcomes from 12/6 interview date: 58% Admit, 7% Defer, 35% Waitlis #GoBlueMed

MD Candidate outcomes from 12/13 Interview Date: 59% Admit, 5% Defer, 36% Waitlist #GoBlueMed

Sadly, U of M hasn't taken anyone off the waitlist for years, so effectively a rejection.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Way later in the season for pre-II rejections. Post interview they give you an answer in about 3-4 weeks. Per twitter a couple of years ago:

MD candidate outcomes from 12/6 interview date: 58% Admit, 7% Defer, 35% Waitlis #GoBlueMed

MD Candidate outcomes from 12/13 Interview Date: 59% Admit, 5% Defer, 36% Waitlist #GoBlueMed

Sadly, U of M hasn't taken anyone off the waitlist for years, so effectively a rejection.
Gotcha, thanks! And so the 2015 tracker will be replaced by a 2016 tracker on Monday, right?
 
Sadly, U of M hasn't taken anyone off the waitlist for years, so effectively a rejection.

I don't fully understand the process yet but if someone gets accepted at UM and then they choose in April to go to another school, wouldn't UM then go to their wait list?? Based on my understanding of the process it seems crazy that a school wouldn't go to the waitlist. Any help explaining this?
 
I don't fully understand the process yet but if someone gets accepted at UM and then they choose in April to go to another school, wouldn't UM then go to their wait list?? Based on my understanding of the process it seems crazy that a school wouldn't go to the waitlist. Any help explaining this?
Perhaps they just accept enough people that the accepted students list is essentially a waitlist of its own. Because like the top applicants from all across the state of MI will be applying to UM and the top schools and just from that sample alone I would imagine a fair number end up going elsewhere
 
Perhaps they just accept enough people that the accepted students list is essentially a waitlist of its own. Because like the top applicants from all across the state of MI will be applying to UM and the top schools and just from that sample alone I would imagine a fair number end up going elsewhere

That would make sense I guess. From their website, they accepted 391 people and less than 200 matriculated so maybe they just have a really good understanding of the percentage of accepted applicants who will say no.
 
That would make sense I guess. From their website, they accepted 391 people and less than 200 matriculated so maybe they just have a really good understanding of the percentage of accepted applicants who will say no.
Haha I guess that comes with the 170 years of medical education! :)
 
That would make sense I guess. From their website, they accepted 391 people and less than 200 matriculated so maybe they just have a really good understanding of the percentage of accepted applicants who will say no.
In 2014, my brother's year, they emailed accepted students to offer them a deferment, the second year in a row they offered deferments (with financial incentives). His class is 177, which is bit over the target of 170 that year.
 
In 2014, my brother's year, they emailed accepted students to offer them a deferment, the second year in a row they offered deferments (with financial incentives). His class is 177, which is bit over the target of 170 that year.
Wow, money given to defer haha? Sounds awesome....did your brother share how much they offered to give him?
 
Keep in mind u also give up a year of attending salary tho. But peace of mind is invaluable so I can see the incentive.
 
Keep in mind u also give up a year of attending salary tho. But peace of mind is invaluable so I can see the incentive.

True but it could give a full year of doing whatever one wants to (get a cool job, travel, relax) with no stresses. Some good thought into how to spend the year could make it really worthwhile.
 
True but it could give a full year of doing whatever one wants to (get a cool job, travel, relax) with no stresses. Some good thought into how to spend the year could make it really worthwhile.
Ya admittedly I would prolly take the offer cuz my SO would then graduate the May before I matriculate. Avoiding an entire year of a distance relationship is well worth the lost year haha. Of course I have to get an offer first, so I'll keep my fingers crossed starting next week!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Wow, money given to defer haha? Sounds awesome....did your brother share how much they offered to give him?
No, he didn't take the deferment, but the rumor mill was around $10K to $20K. They only negotiated with you if you asked about the deferment.
 
Wow, money given to defer haha? Sounds awesome....did your brother share how much they offered to give him?
Reminder this was class matriculating 2014. Check the thread last year to see if that year was over enrolled (which would have been a 3rd year in a row). I don't think it was, but I didn't watch last year's thread as much as the 2014 thread when brother applied.
 
No, he didn't take the deferment, but the rumor mill was around $10K to $20K. They only negotiated with you if you asked about the deferment.

That's per year right?

Even still, that's so little for an entire year. I guess most people don't think about how one year is worth like 150-300k.
 
I would be 50-50 on whether or not I would take that, primarily because I could have that year to do all the things I know I won't be able to do (i.e. a year of uninterrupted service, etc) when I am in med school and beyond. However, the point about attending salary is incredibly valid. Also I could probably use that money to start paying down my student loans sooner haha
 
What time in the day have they gone out in the past?
 
I think last year they were released at 8:30 a.m. ET, according to the thread.
 
Hahaha this is uncomfortably similar to the wait for MCAT scores being released "by 5 PM EST." Best of luck, everybody, wishing us all the best news today!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
Hahaha this is uncomfortably similar to the wait for MCAT scores being released "by 5 PM EST." Best of luck, everybody, wishing us all the best news today!

Same pit in the stomach and everything!
 
Hahaha this is uncomfortably similar to the wait for MCAT scores being released "by 5 PM EST." Best of luck, everybody, wishing us all the best news today!

Except worse because we don't even have a potential end-time! We could be still waiting a month from now...
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
Top