2015-2016 University of Pittsburgh Application Thread

BU Medical Sciences
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p0gono said:
Wow, never heard of top 20 yield protection.
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Yeah, I just hope other schools don't do this. I only applied to 4 of the top 10 due to location constraints, and 13 schools total *sigh*. Best of luck to those still in the running for Pitt!
 
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People aren't getting rejected from Pitt because their stats are too high. :laugh:
 
First rejection of the season 🙁 3.6 / 36 complete early september
 
I interviewed a month ago and at that time, they had 200-250 (can't remember exact number) of II left to offer out of there 850ish and that number is likely much less now, so it's possible they are starting to tighten up more with those apps still in or have recently entered review.
 
For those who interviewed already, do both interviewers see both your personal statement and your secondaries beforehand?

edit: never mind, saw previous page post
 
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Just got the Rejection e-mail. Totally not surprised.
Complete 10/Sept

Best of Luck to those still in the running!
 
Here is my obligatory weekly Pittsburgh thread bump. Now I really think my rejection is perhaps lost in the system, still not received. Lol
 
Ox King said:
Here is my obligatory weekly Pittsburgh thread bump. Now I really think my rejection is perhaps lost in the system, still not received. Lol
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Dude have you called them or anything? I mean its a little bit ridiculous that you've had zero communication from them. You better find out if something is up or not.
 
FreckleFart99 said:
Dude have you called them or anything? I mean its a little bit ridiculous that you've had zero communication from them. You better find out if something is up or not.
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I'd rather not come off as impatient. For all I know, they have their own version of a hold. I know that 99% of their II's have been given out until December, but I would not be surprised if some people choose to cancel their later interviews if they get into another school starting 10/15.

I have been fairly lucky getting II's at places ranked similar to Pitt, so I doubt I have a serious red flag on my application or something.
 
IIRC if you get rejected you won't be able to log into the portal anymore. That's how it was the previous years.
 
Hi all-- I just want to make sure that I am not crazy or otherwise out of touch with reality. I am sure that this is quite obvious, but I ask it anyway:

Pitt is definitely on the early end of the interview spectrum as far as medical school go, correct? I hadn't really looked into it that much until I received an email earlier today from a friend who mentioned that they only interview until mid-December. That is a super early cutoff date, right??? Many other school interview well into the winter/spring, right???

As you might have guessed, the reason that I am panicking about this is that I feel like I am on the later end of the applications. I pushed off my MCAT until July which ended up being VERY beneficial for me, but definitely put me back in terms of applying (scores came back in mid/late August and was AMCAS verified a week later). I have the Pitt secondary in plus 11 others, but I am still freaking out. The way it looks now, I picture going for any interviews I might get no earlier than the 1st of the year, except at Pitt where I probably won't get even a nod.
 
passivelynonaggressive said:
Hi all-- I just want to make sure that I am not crazy or otherwise out of touch with reality. I am sure that this is quite obvious, but I ask it anyway:

Pitt is definitely on the early end of the interview spectrum as far as medical school go, correct? I hadn't really looked into it that much until I received an email earlier today from a friend who mentioned that they only interview until mid-December. That is a super early cutoff date, right??? Many other school interview well into the winter/spring, right???

As you might have guessed, the reason that I am panicking about this is that I feel like I am on the later end of the applications. I pushed off my MCAT until July which ended up being VERY beneficial for me, but definitely put me back in terms of applying (scores came back in mid/late August and was AMCAS verified a week later). I have the Pitt secondary in plus 11 others, but I am still freaking out. The way it looks now, I picture going for any interviews I might get no earlier than the 1st of the year, except at Pitt where I probably won't get even a nod.
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Most schools interview into the winter/spring, yes. Pitt does not interview after mid-December.
 
passivelynonaggressive said:
Hi all-- I just want to make sure that I am not crazy or otherwise out of touch with reality. I am sure that this is quite obvious, but I ask it anyway:

Pitt is definitely on the early end of the interview spectrum as far as medical school go, correct? I hadn't really looked into it that much until I received an email earlier today from a friend who mentioned that they only interview until mid-December. That is a super early cutoff date, right??? Many other school interview well into the winter/spring, right???

As you might have guessed, the reason that I am panicking about this is that I feel like I am on the later end of the applications. I pushed off my MCAT until July which ended up being VERY beneficial for me, but definitely put me back in terms of applying (scores came back in mid/late August and was AMCAS verified a week later). I have the Pitt secondary in plus 11 others, but I am still freaking out. The way it looks now, I picture going for any interviews I might get no earlier than the 1st of the year, except at Pitt where I probably won't get even a nod.
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This is true. I received an II almost 4 weeks ago and the earliest interview date was the first week of December.
 
trini818 said:
This is true. I received an II almost 4 weeks ago and the earliest interview date was the first week of December.
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Thanks for confirming. I've known that the various schools have different timelines for a while now, but it's one thing to know something and another to experience it. I am continually baffled by all the idiosyncrasies in these school-specific apps. I could seriously use a secretary (office assistant might be a better term?).
 
When would be the best time to send a letter of intent/interest? Should I couple it with an update or should they be separate? I might be a middle author of a paper soon, but obviously from submission to revision to acceptance may take a while.
 
NorthOfBroad said:
When would be the best time to send a letter of intent/interest? Should I couple it with an update or should they be separate? I might be a middle author of a paper soon, but obviously from submission to revision to acceptance may take a while.
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I think anytime post interview. I am sure coupling is fine. Remember they have so much stuff they are going through that I think they will appreciate consolidation. I would only add papers that have been peer reviewed and accepted. I am going to submit a first author paper this week, but I would be hesitant to update them on that because it has not gone through the review process.
 
Would anyone who has already interviewed be able to give some insight/details about the faculty-led group discussion portion of the day?
 
Gigi2874 said:
Would anyone who has already interviewed be able to give some insight/details about the faculty-led group discussion portion of the day?
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Sure. A case was presented (it was an ethical scenario on my interview day, not sure if they change it at all) and the faculty member present asks the groups questions regarding who we think the people in the scenario should proceed, what factors should be considered, etc. Some interviewees were more active participants than the others, but we were told this had nothing to do with their evaluation of us - the discussion is part of the day to give us a glimpse of how the PBL sessions are conducted/moderated. The faculty member did not ask every single person to speak, it was purely a volunteer basis. It was very relaxed.
 
CellPowerhouse said:
Sure. A case was presented (it was an ethical scenario on my interview day, not sure if they change it at all) and the faculty member present asks the groups questions regarding who we think the people in the scenario should proceed, what factors should be considered, etc. Some interviewees were more active participants than the others, but we were told this had nothing to do with their evaluation of us - the discussion is part of the day to give us a glimpse of how the PBL sessions are conducted/moderated. The faculty member did not ask every single person to speak, it was purely a volunteer basis. It was very relaxed.
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It's pretty similar to rochesters group session for anyone that's been there, altho rochester may include it in your evaluation at the end of interview day. I second what the previous poster said that it's not factored into the decision at Pitt.
 
Another rejection. LizzyM=75 complete 9/10. Ready to just say fck it and go to graduate school instead.
 
pangpang said:
Another rejection. LizzyM=75 complete 9/10. Ready to just say fck it and go to graduate school instead.
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I'm pretty pissed too. I went to Pitt, got letters from high up UPMC doctors, had LizzyM 75 with strong upward gpa trend, and I thought (could be wrong) that I had good letters and essays. I sometimes think this whole thing is a crap shoot.
 
trini818 said:
Do not go to graduate school if medicine is your first love. I know from experience. Plus, grad school is not easy.
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For me, it's a reasonable alternative that I think I would find success and satisfaction in should medical schools decide I'm not worth their time.
 
pangpang said:
For me, it's a reasonable alternative that I think I would find success and satisfaction in should medical schools decide I'm not worth their time.
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Talk to more grad students or post docs before you make this decision, if it ever comes to it.
 
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Can anyone provide insight: Based on the fact that no one has announced an acceptance on this thread and the timeline on Pitt's website, they don't give ANY acceptances until the end of January. Okay..... so does that mean that WHEN you interview isn't that big of a deal? I saw that there was post on here earlier discussing the potential that it is still better to interview asap on the chance that they start making decisions without announcing them while interviews are still be conducted. I am not sure what to think about this hypothesis because Pitt already has such a compact interview span. Would that even be feasible given the finite number of people who work there?

Can any current students comment? Or anyone, really.
 
passivelynonaggressive said:
Can anyone provide insight: Based on the fact that no one has announced an acceptance on this thread and the timeline on Pitt's website, they don't give ANY acceptances until the end of January. Okay..... so does that mean that WHEN you interview isn't that big of a deal? I saw that there was post on here earlier discussing the potential that it is still better to interview asap on the chance that they start making decisions without announcing them while interviews are still be conducted. I am not sure what to think about this hypothesis because Pitt already has such a compact interview span. Would that even be feasible given the finite number of people who work there?

Can any current students comment? Or anyone, really.
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No decisions go out until Jan 31, except early decision obviously. Doesn't matter when you interview.
 
CellPowerhouse said:
IIRC if you get rejected you won't be able to log into the portal anymore. That's how it was the previous years.
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Can anybody verify if this is still true? MD/PhD applicant here. Didn't hear anything from them on Oct. 15 although someone who interviewed with me on the same day did. I can still access the portal, though. Hopefully this means I am still being considered.
 
^I would think that even if rejected from MD/PhD, you're still eligible for MD-only, hence why you can still login.
~66% of MD/PhD interviewees are accepted eventually, so I wouldn't worry too much.
 
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jordan222 said:
I picked an interview date in November rather than October based on this hypothesis. Everything I've read indicates that this is true, but we might never know for sure.
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Yes, it seems like this is a very unique system, but it's a bit refreshing if it indeed works how it appears to. It essentially makes it so you don't feel like you have to choose the very first interview date that you can get your hands on. I need time to prepare for any interviews I get.
 
wearywanderer said:
Are there still any interview dates available in November?
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I got my II over 5 weeks ago and the only available times were in December, but there could have been people who cancelled a November interview because of an acceptance elsewhere.
 
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