2015 Nontrad Applicants' Progress Thread

Started by milski
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Leslie_Knope said:
Wow! That's very kind of you. Thanks!
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Pretty sure we've all been rooting for you! Some hopefully helpful interview prep.

1. 100 Medical School Interview Practice Questions (University of Colorado at Boulder)
http://www.colorado.edu/advising/sites/default/files/attached-files/Med_100 intquest.pdf

2. Harvard/Cornell/Duke/Stanford/Sunny/Buffalo (Specific Questions)
http://www.ansc.purdue.edu/anscjobs/medical/questions.pdf

3. Harvard
http://www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu/students/careers/medicine/applicationprocess/interview.htm
and the attached file

4. Interview Tips
http://web.jhu.edu/prepro/Forms/InterviewingTips.Capers.OSU.pdf

5. MMI-ethical issues U of Washington
https://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/

6. Your primary and secondary application
Oh have mercy...i can't emphasize this enough, especially after my first interview.
 

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Overanxious said:
Pretty sure we've all been rooting for you! Some hopefully helpful interview prep.

1. 100 Medical School Interview Practice Questions (University of Colorado at Boulder)
http://www.colorado.edu/advising/sites/default/files/attached-files/Med_100 intquest.pdf

2. Harvard/Cornell/Duke/Stanford/Sunny/Buffalo (Specific Questions)
http://www.ansc.purdue.edu/anscjobs/medical/questions.pdf

3. Harvard
http://www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu/students/careers/medicine/applicationprocess/interview.htm
and the attached file

4. Interview Tips
http://web.jhu.edu/prepro/Forms/InterviewingTips.Capers.OSU.pdf

5. MMI-ethical issues U of Washington
https://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/

6. Your primary and secondary application
Oh have mercy...i can't emphasize this enough, especially after my first interview.
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Wow!! Thanks! Now I don't have to dig. I'm so appreciative!
 
50/50 would be insane, no way I'd be able to attend that many interviews financially for one.

Has anyone seen what the "typical competitive applicant" ends up at for interview/rejection ratio? Not a metric I ever payed attention to.
 
WaterPog said:
50/50 would be insane, no way I'd be able to attend that many interviews financially for one.

Has anyone seen what the "typical competitive applicant" ends up at for interview/rejection ratio? Not a metric I ever payed attention to.
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When i was interviewing at BU they told me that their typical applicant has 3 interviews out of 20 applications.
 
ConsultantMD said:
What about acceptances then? That's so low!
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It is low considering how many applications and money spent and the high quality of all the applicants, i was very surprised. But i can't be certain it's the norm overall. I know when i began this cycle my pseudo adviser told me to expect about 3 interviews. Each school is different and competitive is a very subjective term. At Yale they told me that their typical applicant holds about 6 acceptances so clearly they had to interview at more schools but they are also a top 10 school and their interviewees are typically more competitive. I'd probably guess the average applicant has about 1-2 acceptances.
 
Overanxious said:
It is low, i was very surprised. But i can't be certain it's the norm overall. I know when i began this cycle my pseudo adviser told me to expect about 3 interviews. Each school is different and competitive is a very subjective term. At Yale they told me that their typical applicant holds about 6 acceptances so clearly they had to interview at more schools but they are also a top 10 school and their interviewees are typically more competitive. I'd probably guess the average applicant has about 1-2 acceptances.
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Did you ask this specifically? Or do they just tell you this? I haven't heard any stats on this specifically so far except an example of someone who had 20 acceptances and how people need to be humanitarian and give up what you truly do not intend to pursue for other people.
 
ConsultantMD said:
Did you ask this specifically? Or do they just tell you this? I haven't heard any stats on this specifically so far except an example of someone who had 20 acceptances and how people need to be humanitarian and give up what you truly do not intend to pursue for other people.
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I didn't ask out of the blue and would suggest no one do such a thing. My interviewers took me down an awkward path so i diverted to an info session. I had one interviewer ask me how many schools i had applied to with a followup question on how many i've heard back from and how many interviews i've received. So I asked about their applicant pool and such.
 
Aren't those questions off limits? It feels tacky to ask, and I'm not sure how I would answer.
Is it better to have others? No?
Do they need to know who and where?
 
GameOfBones said:
Aren't those questions off limits? It feels tacky to ask, and I'm not sure how I would answer.
Is it better to have others? No?
Do they need to know who and where?
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One would think... It definitely makes for some awkward conversation. Just smile and turn it back on them.

I didn't know how to answer, so i tried to change the subject and put them on the burner so to speak. I've been told i answered incorrectly. When asked how many interviews i've received i usually went with "this is my x interview so far" instead of my total number. Some say you want to make yourself look like a highly desirable candidate by telling your total and where, others say shoot low and be vague so they don't think you'll choose somewhere else. I say whatever you choose just be confident in what you say (i chose the latter) , don't seem irritated or caught off guard by the question. And certainly have some solid explanation on why you chose their school...work it into the conversation.
 
Overanxious said:
It is low considering how many applications and money spent and the high quality of all the applicants, i was very surprised. But i can't be certain it's the norm overall. I know when i began this cycle my pseudo adviser told me to expect about 3 interviews. Each school is different and competitive is a very subjective term. At Yale they told me that their typical applicant holds about 6 acceptances so clearly they had to interview at more schools but they are also a top 10 school and their interviewees are typically more competitive. I'd probably guess the average applicant has about 1-2 acceptances.
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Yeah, I guess it really depends on how people apply right?

You ended up with way more than 3 though so kudos!

Overanxious said:
I didn't ask out of the blue and would suggest no one do such a thing. My interviewers took me down an awkward path so i diverted to an info session. I had one interviewer ask me how many schools i had applied to with a followup question on how many i've heard back from and how many interviews i've received. So I asked about their applicant pool and such.
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Good advice.

Overanxious said:
One would think... It definitely makes for some awkward conversation. Just smile and turn it back on them.

I didn't know how to answer, so i tried to change the subject and put them on the burner so to speak. I've been told i answered incorrectly. When asked how many interviews i've received i usually went with "this is my x interview so far" instead of my total number. Some say you want to make yourself look like a highly desirable candidate by telling your total and where, others say shoot low and be vague so they don't think you'll choose somewhere else. I say whatever you choose just be confident in what you say (i chose the latter) , don't seem irritated or caught off guard by the question. And certainly have some solid explanation on why you chose their school...work it into the conversation.
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I think you handled it well! It's certainly an awkward question though! I wonder how they judge you if you decline to answer...

Nice new avatar by the way. You might have to change your name now too!

researchismymiddlename said:
Yayyy!!! Congratulations!!! I didn't know you were a fellow PhD-to-MD 😉 I'm so happy for you!!! 😀
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Hah, you guys should trade stories!
 
Guess I'll chime in here...

Batting 2I-3R right now...hoping to hear back from II #1 within a few weeks!! *crosses fingers*
 
my interview is coming up this week and I'm starting to stress out uncontrollably haha. There are many things out of my hands which I've been taking very well, so I think something coming up that I have an influence on is sort of getting to me.

What's funny is the interview is the part of this process I should probably be the least concerned with, but I can't help it.
 
When I gave my talk, I was legit shaking and trying to read through my slides and notes when I was sitting up on the podium waiting for others to finish so I could have my turn.

Then when I walked up there, I was using my notes and a bit through my presentation, I realized that I'd just stopped looking at them and just kept going by feel. It all worked out.

What I'm trying to say is that you've spent so much time preparing for this that you have to trust yourself at this point. That's honestly the best thing to do. Definitely keep preparing, but just know that you've got this!
 
GameOfBones said:
Hmm...thanks?
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I mean, you can do as you please, but you'd be complete at the end of october putting you pretty far down the pipe. They're still reviewing apps from early-mid august, which was two months ago. It's possible they wouldn't get to your app for the next 6-8 weeks for review.

Obviously, you have nothing to lose other than the secondary fee, but I pulled the plug on adding more schools in late august for this very reason.

That said, if you're a super strong applicant and have research/experiences that align with the school, then there's not much to lose.
 
Oh, I'm totally doing it.
UCSF only sends secondaries to ~20% of their applicants, and then interview about a third of those.
I'm pretty sure if they asked for my secondary this late in the game, it's because my primary caught someone's attention.
Not because they desperately need my $100 (or whatever the cost). :greedy:

Can't win if you don't play, right?
 
ConsultantMD said:
I'd do it! That's awesome! If UCLA sent me their secondary hell yes I would complete it. Even if it is late. Go hard or stay home!
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I'm not sure I would, but the secondary doesn't cost me anything which is the only reason I'd consider it. Especially if essays could be recycled.

GameOfBones said:
Oh, I'm totally doing it.
UCSF only sends secondaries to ~20% of their applicants, and then interview about a third of those.
I'm pretty sure if they asked for my secondary this late in the game, it's because my primary caught someone's attention.
Not because they desperately need my $100 (or whatever the cost). :greedy:

Can't win if you don't play, right?
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I don't know if the 20% thing applies this year. It seems like they're sending way more out. Might just be overreporting 'bias' on SDN. They sent me one a few days after I submitted my primary and I haven't heard anything since submitting on the 1st of sept even though it said 4-6 weeks.
 
ridethecliche said:
I'm not sure I would, but the secondary doesn't cost me anything which is the only reason I'd consider it. Especially if essays could be recycled.



I don't know if the 20% thing applies this year. It seems like they're sending way more out. Might just be overreporting 'bias' on SDN. They sent me one a few days after I submitted my primary and I haven't heard anything since submitting on the 1st of sept even though it said 4-6 weeks.
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Not exactly sure I follow then, if the secondary costs nothing, then what do you have to lose?
 
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