2015-2016 Virginia Commonwealth University Application Thread

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Did anyone post the 3/4 statuses and their priorities already? If not, would someone whos been in this thread mind posting them so I know where I stand? Just curious cause I've finally been reviewed too
 
HSR said:
Did anyone post the 3/4 statuses and their priorities already? If not, would someone whos been in this thread mind posting them so I know where I stand? Just curious cause I've finally been reviewed too
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Mine was "Your application is now under review. Do not get your hopes up."

Seems kinda mean if you ask me :/
 
If you are able to get an interview OOS, what are the statistical odds of eventually being offered a spot in the class including off the waitlist.
 
Hey everyone!

I offered this last year and since I have a few days off here, I figured I'd offer to help out and answer any questions you guys may have about the school again this year! Quick background was I was an OOS applicant, and I also attended the Inova program as well which has your 3rd and 4th year take place up in Northern Va. I matched at one of the top programs in the entire country in the specialty of my choice and I can't say enough good things about VCU/MCV and the second to none education I received. I can tell you now a few months into residency that I am far more advanced than just about all of my co-residents, which speaks highly to the experiences and education I received during my four years at VCU. I was very involved with the admissions process so I am familiar with how the school interviews/admits/etc.

So shoot your questions my way either by reply or PM! I actually just logged in after a few months and got two replies in my inbox from many months ago from people I answered questions from that they got in and are now currently students so that's awesome! As always guys good luck, I know how stressful this time period can be because I wasn't there that long ago! I can answer questions for the next day or two then it'll be hit or miss whether I can check this site often so get the questions in and I'll do my best to answer! The only thing I can't comment is the new curriculum as I was still under the old system, but in terms of everything else I should give you a good answer hopefully. Good luck again everyone!
 
alexapple said:
Just out of curiosity, have any individuals who interviewed mid-September been moved to the post-interview hold?
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I have too, interviewed 9/14. You might want to check your portal because I didn't get a status change email.
 
Don't ask me how I found this, but I did. Enjoy...

hellanutella said:
“Hey John, how’s it going?” Admission Honcho calls, sidling into the office. “Reviewer productivity is at a record high. Lawrence and Susan have already crushed the dreams of 2,500 high-stat appli… oh.”

Honcho dithers before John’s desk. The entire room is strewn with empty bottles of Sierra Mist and crumpled cartons of Ben & Jerry’s. The dulcet tones of Jason Deurulo’s “Wiggle” emanate softly from the computer. John pauses midway through his zumba workout, casually shaking the sweat from his hair and plopping down on a beanbag chair.

“Sup, Honcho?”

“Uh,” Honcho hesitates, gesturing to a mountainous pile of untouched applications on the desk. “Have you done any reviewing?”

“Nope,” John smiles brightly, stuffing his hand into a bag of Doritos.

“But we have to get through applications as quickly as possible!”

John gives a halfhearted shrug, shoveling the last little bits of Doritos-dust to his lips. “Look here,” John beckons to Honcho, turning the computer monitor toward him.

Honcho scrutinizes the screen – the Student Doctor Network’s School Specific Thread on VCU, by the looks of it. The crazed comments of tens upon tens of wild premeds fill the screen.

“See,” John continues, flicking through the page with a powdered-cheese spackled finger. “School interest is at an all time high. More people are tuned into this thread than your average HBO drama.”

Honcho takes this all in slowly, a faint smile twitching across his mouth.

“And what more,” John drawls, donning a Snuggie. “I’ve forwarded this thread to the psychology department. It’s an excellent model for delayed gratification studies. There’s got to be at least three papers in this. Here – let’s send this app group a status change email but not actually update their status.”

John patters away at the keyboard and then refreshes the thread. Nearly a dozen new comments appear.

“I’m also working on a new status,” John remarks with a wry grin. “In addition to telling people we MAY grant them an interview or that we’re very interested, I’m thinking we should tell them that we MAY be interested. But that status is still in beta… I hope to have it live by next week.”

“My god, man,” Honcho turns to John, tears sparkling in his eyes. “You’re a genius.”
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rachiie01 said:
@Anomandaris I suppose if someone is so quick to call other applicants entitled and insinuate that they would make poor classmates, then I'm not too excited to call that person my future classmate, either. I've been pretty open on this forum about my background and it's pretty difficult to be entitled to anything coming from that. I've never been called entitled before but alas, there's a first time for everything.

I will say that I adore the majority of people in this thread (and I've even met a few of you IRL!). We've been riding the VCU roller coaster together for a few months now and I appreciate having people to commiserate with and laugh with about the ridiculousness of the general application process (what other grad school goes through such a process?!). Since I can't seem to stay away from this thread either, I would like to get it back on track to a more positive atmosphere. Although I'm frustrated with the application process at VCU, I still highly respect the institution. I would love to interview here. And, as applicants,
wereallinthistogether_zpsfe029b7a.gif
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Omg it's time to make another application song 😛
 
Anomandaris said:
I believe @mazarine has already been reviewed by a committee member. Only those who were reviewed by a full committee member receives one of the 4 statuses. Basically the committee member has deemed mazarine's application worthy of interest, but only at the 3rd priority level. Whether or not there's merit to putting stock into these priorities is another matter entirely. Subsets of people from all of the statuses have received II's so it's not a disguised rejection, as it were, but neither is it a particularly high priority.

This is just my own interpretation of how things have panned out so far this cycle. Might receive an II on Monday, maybe they won't have a spot, but at least mazarine's review is complete. I believe the "consider your file further" refers to the fact that the file is still active and will be continuously compared to other files as they fill up interview spots as the cycle goes on. I don't think it means there will be further review, per se, but further comparison (vis a vis priority score) to other files for an interview spot will happen.
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I got that status change and then an II less than 25 hrs later - I think the whole ranking system is off. Keep your fingers crossed and do t over analyze it 🙂
 
Chasing Never Land said:
Omg it's time to make another application song 😛
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To the tune of Smash Mouth's All Star:

Somebody once told me VCU is gonna roll me
I think my app reviewer is dead
I'm lookin' kinda dumb with my finger and my thumb
On the mouse clickin' refresh on their thread

Well, the months start passin' and they don't stop passin'
Not sure how much longer in this cycle I'm lastin'
Didn't make sense not to call their deans
But the phones just ring as they keep ignoring me
 
rachiie01 said:
To the tune of Smash Mouth's All Star:

Somebody once told me VCU is gonna roll me
I think my app reviewer is dead
I'm lookin' kinda dumb with my finger and my thumb
On the mouse clickin' refresh on their thread

Well, the months start passin' and they don't stop passin'
Not sure how much longer in this cycle I'm lastin'
Didn't make sense not to call their deans
But the phones just ring as they keep ignoring me
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You do know that the school can find out who you are right?
 
catie_jane said:
I am pretty sure that VCU is so backlogged with applications that they don't really have the time to search through SDN threads let alone track down a specific user...
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Ehhh you'd be surprised. I'm pretty sure they monitor these boards. And yes they don't have time, but I'm sure they'd be happy to track down an applicant as vocal as you have been.
 
alexapple said:
You do know that the school can find out who you are right?
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I haven't said anything unprofessional. It shouldn't be a surprise that applicants are frustrated that they haven't been reviewed for multiple months. My joke of a cover song comes from the fact that I did call VCU multiple times and no one answered lol. Lighten up. I already said that I respect the school, I'm just frustrated with how long it's taken to have my app reviewed and receiving kind of rude responses when I've called and actually got through to someone.
 
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alexapple said:
Ehhh you'd be surprised. I'm pretty sure they monitor these boards. And yes they don't have time, but I'm sure they'd be happy to track down an applicant as vocal as you have been.
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Yeah, I'd have to agree with @rachiie01 on this one. No one in this thread has said anything unprofessional or insulting, but have just been voicing their frustrations about the application cycle (like a lot of applicants have in a lot of different threads on SDN).

I actually think that the soong @rachiie01 made was all in good spirit and I think the admissions office would get a kick out it
 
catie_jane said:
Yeah, I'd have to agree with @rachiie01 on this one. No one in this thread has said anything unprofessional or insulting, but have just been voicing their frustrations about the application cycle (like a lot of applicants have in a lot of different threads on SDN).

I actually think that the soong @rachiie01 made was all in good spirit and I think the admissions office would get a kick out it
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Thanks. I'm not worried about it. My cover song was absolutely in good fun and came from a joke with @Chasing Never Land in another school's thread, also in good fun. I've been vocal, but I haven't been offensive or unprofessional, and I would never want to be. I respect this institution, I'm just not thrilled with how my application has been handled, and that's okay.

I've also already stated that I'd like to see this thread become more positive, so I think we should stick with that 😉
 
rachiie01 said:
Thanks. I'm not worried about it. My cover song was absolutely in good fun and came from a joke with @Chasing Never Land in another school's thread, also in good fun. I've been vocal, but I haven't been offensive or unprofessional, and I would never want to be. I respect this institution, I'm just not thrilled with how my application has been handled, and that's okay.

I've also already stated that I'd like to see this thread become more positive, so I think we should stick with that 😉
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I'd be hard pressed to find a member of the Admissions Staff who'd be willing to take the time to sort through the different applicants on SDN. No one is completely anonymous on this website so please please please be careful before posting anything that could be considered unprofessional or beyond "tongue-in-cheek." Noting that "I think my app reviewer is dead" because they haven't reviewed your application is considered unprofessional.
 
Geez this thread is always at the top of the most recent list...Someone gimme cliffs of what I have missed lately, 32 pages is too much for me! @rachiie01 you causing trouble? 😉
 
XxThaDoggxX said:
Geez this thread is always at the top of the most recent list...Someone gimme cliffs of what I have missed lately, 32 pages is too much for me! @rachiie01 you causing trouble? 😉
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we've just been waiting for vcu adcoms to read our applications. Its been kinda quiet over here at least for oos folks(almost unsettlingly so)
 
Spector1 said:
we've just been waiting for vcu adcoms to read our applications. Its been kinda quiet over here at least for oos folks(almost unsettlingly so)
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Ohhhhhhh...Yeah who knows...Seems like nearly everywhere is slow this year across the board, this is one of the only places I have heard anything from...maybe my application is being used as a placemat for Chinese takeout while they sift through students with much higher MCAT scores everywhere else 😛 😛

Can't say I wouldn't mind VA having a school that actually helps IS--a little texas style lovin' if you will.

But as always, sending good vibes everyone's way 🙂
 
rachiie01 said:
I haven't said anything unprofessional. It shouldn't be a surprise that applicants are frustrated that they haven't been reviewed for multiple months. My joke of a cover song comes from the fact that I did call VCU multiple times and no one answered lol. Lighten up. I already said that I respect the school, I'm just frustrated with how long it's taken to have my app reviewed and receiving kind of rude responses when I've called and actually got through to someone.
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+1 I hope they'd accept you immediately if they found out who you are, as you obviously know how to joke and deal in stressful situations - doctor skills

Plus brownie points for creativity?

(Have a medapp version of Do You Want to Build a Snowman haha)
 
alexapple said:
Ehhh you'd be surprised. I'm pretty sure they monitor these boards. And yes they don't have time, but I'm sure they'd be happy to track down an applicant as vocal as you have been.
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I hope I dont get you as a peer - you take yourself waaaay too seriously. Geez, if there was an exam and we were making up songs to lighten the mood would you complain it wasn't serious enough?
 
ffxfreak13 said:
I'd be hard pressed to find a member of the Admissions Staff who'd be willing to take the time to sort through the different applicants on SDN. No one is completely anonymous on this website so please please please be careful before posting anything that could be considered unprofessional or beyond "tongue-in-cheek." Noting that "I think my app reviewer is dead" because they haven't reviewed your application is considered unprofessional.
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whatever5 said:
Coming up on 6 weeks of being complete and have yet to receive a status update. Should I send the school my condolences since whoever was supposed to review me clearly died?
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Lol ''I think my app reviewer is dead'' came from another poster in this thread, I just threw it into a song because it was funny and it rhymed! We've all been kidding around with each other since we received secondaries, so seriously chill out.
Good grief, do people still laugh in the medical world, or does that get selected out in the application process?
 
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Okay...I've been watching these threads and reading people's posts about how their files have been skipped over and stuff.

I totally understand the frustrations, but this is getting a little out of hand. Recall that there is a delay between primary application submission and secondary invite? Don't you think it's possible that there is some form of preliminary scan algorithm to assess the applicant's qualifications (prerequisites, scores, etc)? And that they may be simply reviewing people with better stats than you rather than who submitted it first, in addition to those who are instate/special track? Sure, I'm pretty sure many of you have thousands of hours of research and volunteering, but one thing we all learn when we enter med school is that it's a humbling experience and there will be thousands of people who are simply better than you. You think it's your right to have your file reviewed in a timely fashion because you paid the fees? They will get to you eventually, and the one good thing about this school system is that they will assign you a preliminary score according to your strengths and regardless of when it's reviewed. If you are a cut above the rest of the other 10,000 applicants, then you'll make it. Your passion for the medical field is notable, but please, please keep in mind the situation you are in before you start berating file reviewers who have to weed out thousands of people over the course of the next 6 months, reading thousands of files that all sound the same to pick out a few individuals who sound like they will uphold MCV's spirit and mission. Their resources are limited, but they are still doing their job and it's counterproductive. Focus on what may be your weaknesses and plan ahead.

If you're this frustrated now, try applying to Canadian schools.
 
MDForLife1000 said:
Okay...I've been watching these threads and reading people's posts about how their files have been skipped over and stuff.

I totally understand the frustrations, but this is getting a little out of hand. Recall that there is a delay between primary application submission and secondary invite? Don't you think it's possible that there is some form of preliminary scan algorithm to assess the applicant's qualifications (prerequisites, scores, etc)? And that they may be simply reviewing people with better stats than you rather than who submitted it first, in addition to those who are instate/special track? Sure, I'm pretty sure many of you have thousands of hours of research and volunteering, but one thing we all learn when we enter med school is that it's a humbling experience and there will be thousands of people who are simply better than you. You think it's your right to have your file reviewed in a timely fashion because you paid the fees? They will get to you eventually, and the one good thing about this school system is that they will assign you a preliminary score according to your strengths and regardless of when it's reviewed. If you are a cut above the rest of the other 10,000 applicants, then you'll make it. Your passion for the medical field is notable, but please, please keep in mind the situation you are in before you start berating file reviewers who have to weed out thousands of people over the course of the next 6 months, reading thousands of files that all sound the same to pick out a few individuals who sound like they will uphold MCV's spirit and mission. Their resources are limited, but they are still doing their job and it's counterproductive. Focus on what may be your weaknesses and plan ahead.

If you're this frustrated now, try applying to Canadian schools.
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The tl;dr is that everyone should stop complaining. Everyone has stopped complaining. Can we move on now and get back to joking around with each other and being supportive? Thanks.
 
rachiie01 said:
The tl;dr is that everyone should stop complaining. Everyone has stopped complaining. Can we move on now and get back to joking around with each other and being supportive? Thanks.
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Then my advice to you is this. Add something new to your application file rather than waiting around. I'm pretty sure that you're continuing to work/volunteer, but (god forbid) you are unable to get matriculated and try reapplying next year, you need something new. Saying you added another couple hundred hours to a research project isn't going to cause even a blip on their radar. Get your names on papers, start an internship, anything. Collaborate with mentors and friends to change the wording of your essays and extracurricular activities to make them sound more distinguished. Your application should never stagnate, and meticulously monitoring these forums isn't going to change that.
 
MDForLife1000 said:
Then my advice to you is this. Add something new to your application file rather than waiting around. I'm pretty sure that you're continuing to work/volunteer, but (god forbid) you are unable to get matriculated and try reapplying next year, you need something new. Saying you added another couple hundred hours to a research project isn't going to cause even a blip on their radar. Get your names on papers, start an internship, anything. Collaborate with mentors and friends to change the wording of your essays and extracurricular activities to make them sound more distinguished. Your application should never stagnate, and meticulously monitoring these forums isn't going to change that.
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I've already been reviewed and know my interview status. I've been pretty fortunate with interviews this cycle, but thank you for the advice.
 
rachiie01 said:
I've already been reviewed and know my interview status. I've been pretty fortunate with interviews this cycle, but thank you for the advice.
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And should the reviewers take longer than they should to get back to you after interviewing you, you must have something up your sleeve to tip the scales to your favor (update letters, letters of intent, etc). Also, you can use your new activities as a conversation piece during interviews to show them you're constantly progressing. So don't just dismiss my advice to add new things to your file while waiting. The interview is one of the many hurdles ahead of you, and I've been waitlisted before at like 5 schools before.
 
Chasing Never Land said:
I hope I dont get you as a peer - you take yourself waaaay too seriously. Geez, if there was an exam and we were making up songs to lighten the mood would you complain it wasn't serious enough?
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Professionalism and maturity are hallmarks of being a great physician. And you're absolutely right, I am serious about this application process - as am I my medical career and saving peoples lives. When a patient is coding on the table, you don't have room to make jokes to "lighten" the situation. I'm an extremely fun person that loves to joke, but there's a time and place for everything.
 
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alexapple said:
Professionalism and maturity are hallmarks of being a great physician. And you're absolutely right, I am serious about my medical career and saving peoples lives. When a patient is coding on the table, you don't have room to make jokes and lighten the situation. I'm an extremely fun person that loves to joke, but there's a time and place for everything.
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And an anonymous internet forum is a perfect place to let off some steam. Not like IT department of VCU has proven itself to be stellar, and the VCU admin response was less than apologetic. But VCU is in the driver's seat, so we all just suck it up, and crab about it. With 9K apps or whatever they have received, they can dictate any timetables they want. I guess I am not taking this whole app process as seriously as you, as it is sort of a crapshoot from where I sit.
 
alexapple said:
Professionalism and maturity are hallmarks of being a great physician. And you're absolutely right, I am serious about this application process - as am I my medical career and saving peoples lives. When a patient is coding on the table, you don't have room to make jokes to "lighten" the situation. I'm an extremely fun person that loves to joke, but there's a time and place for everything.
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There is no patient coding on the table. I suspect that just about everyone here is as professional and mature as you, or more so. People are blowing off steam. No need to join in, but also no need to judge.

If you see a post you think is inappropriate, report it. No need to lecture.
 
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alexapple said:
Ehhh you'd be surprised. I'm pretty sure they monitor these boards. And yes they don't have time, but I'm sure they'd be happy to track down an applicant as vocal as you have been.
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The tiny fraction of posters on this thread versus the many thousands who have applied to any particular med school and adcoms are worried about what a bunch of anxious twentysomethings who just want a shot at their dreams are saying? I have read nothing here that rose to the level of a personal attack or a threat. If you see a post that disturbs you, report it. Otherwise, don't judge.
 
16candles said:
There is no patient coding on the table. I suspect that just about everyone here is as professional and mature as you, or more so. People are blowing off steam. No need to join in, but also no need to judge.
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I'm not judging. I just offered that it might not be the best idea to patronize and criticize the adcoms for being slow, which was well intentioned advice for my peers. I'm the one that was judged, and further called uptight and told to lighten up in response to caring.

For the record, writing in a song "I think my app reviewer is dead," is extremely unprofessional and offensive.
 
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alexapple said:
I'm not judging. I just offered that it might not be the best idea to patronize and criticize the adcoms for being slow, which was well intentioned advice for my peers. I'm the one that was judged, and further called uptight and told to lighten up in response to caring.
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Own your actions. If you were genuinely well-meaning, you would have privately messaged me instead of targeting me in a public thread and accusing me of not being able to take a patient's life or death situation seriously.

I'm a non-traditional applicant and I work with patients every day. You are spot on that there's a time and place for everything, and that includes fully appreciating the stakes of a situation. If you take yourself this seriously over everything, you are going to burn out. This is a stressful career, so please try to allow yourself some good humor when you can afford it. A semi-anonymous forum is one of those situations when you can afford it.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me and commiserated with me in this process so far. This thread is like fire, you don't want to look at it but you can't help yourself. :laugh:
 
alexapple said:
I'm not judging. I just offered that it might not be the best idea to patronize and criticize the adcoms for being slow, which was well intentioned advice for my peers. I'm the one that was judged, and further called uptight and told to lighten up in response to caring.

For the record, writing in a song "I think my app reviewer is dead," is extremely unprofessional and offensive.
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Lighten up, Francis.
 
Hate to break up all the fun in here, but I just got my secondary from VCU. I was AMCAS complete July 21st...is it even worth it to fill out at this point? I'm OOS and not a rockstar candidate.
 
I interviewed here a few weeks ago, and the whole day was extremely laid back. My interviewer and I talked about our interests and it seemed like he was genuinely interested in my answers. Also good is that the day was pretty short and easy. Some interview days can really drag on, but they did everything they needed in a good amount of time. Hopefully I'll hear back in a couple weeks if I'm super lucky...

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
Caffein3 said:
Hate to break up all the fun in here, but I just got my secondary from VCU. I was AMCAS complete July 21st...is it even worth it to fill out at this point? I'm OOS and not a rockstar candidate.
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They screen out about 2/3 candidates before sending out their secondaries, so it's definitely a good sign that you got a secondary from VCU. You should go ahead and submit yours asap!
 
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