2015 Nontrad Applicants' Progress Thread

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Ah, that's awesome. So they have about a month lag time or atleast they did. I'm a month behind you thanks to my school's panel letter only getting sent out last week.

Sigh. Oh well.
 
I'm still on complete at GWU (since 7/16), and I'm losing hope here... I'd *almost* rather be on hold -.-

Silence from all other schools (except two IIs from last couple of weeks).
 
Just got a II from Minnesota!!! Complete date Aug 5th. I just want to say i was super honest and humble in my primary and secondaries and was worried that this honesty would hold me back. I especially worried when i hadn't heard back from nearly all my schools when so many others had who were complete passed my date of completion. I'm glad it's not and i would encourage everyone else not to tell them what you think they want to hear but what you know to be true for yourself.
 
Overanxious said:
Just got a II from Minnesota!!! Complete date Aug 5th. I just want to say i was super honest and humble in my primary and secondaries and was worried that this honesty would hold me back. I especially worried when i hadn't heard back from nearly all my schools when so many others had who were complete passed my date of completion. I'm glad it's not and i would encourage everyone else not to tell them what you think they want to hear but what you know to be true for yourself.
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Congrats @Overanxious !! Glad you're having such a great day and those schools are interested in the real you!
 
That's awesome man, I've been having a lot of the same thoughts.

Thanks for helping us stay optimistic!
 
So, I got a virgin email account for the app, ya' know just to keep everything tidy and separate.
After a week and a half of complete silence, I'm browsing through here (also, yay! everybody that got (multiple!!) IIs today) and see the (1) pop up next to my inbox in the next tab. Perk up, adrenalin spurts...

"Your application is complete...we'll get back to you by February"

*sigh*
Yeah, thanks for the heads up. :yeahright: I know you had everything 2 weeks ago, the cock tease was unnecessary.
Starting to think I shouldn't have gotten that new email account. Everything in the inbox makes me jump and there hasn't been any good news yet.

it's still early, it's still early, there's no place like home, there's no place like home :xf:
 
I know right?
The worst was the recruitment e-mail from Brown after apps were sent "Congratulations on your decision to pursue....you should consider applying here...."
 
ridethecliche said:
I should have done that and made an account just for apps haha.
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Not sure if the dilution factor of my regular email would add or subtract stress, but it is what it is now.
And the new email is convenient for clear record keeping...
 
I am filtering all emails from .edu addresses to a separate folder. Seems to work pretty well, excluding an occasional spam email and one school actually sending from .org.
 
I hadn't felt all that discouraged until people started receiving IIs at schools from whom I'm still hoping upon hope for secondary invites.

My current mantras -
Hang in there. Have faith. Think good thoughts. Call your therapist. It will work out the way it's supposed to. You've done your best. Don't give into the crazy.

BAH!

Congrats to my non-trad friends getting those IIs. Let's raise the average age at matriculation a year or two, mmmkay? We're all quality. 🙂
 
GameOfBones said:
I hadn't felt all that discouraged until people started receiving IIs at schools from whom I'm still hoping upon hope for secondary invites.

My current mantras -
Hang in there. Have faith. Think good thoughts. Call your therapist. It will work out the way it's supposed to. You've done your best. Don't give into the crazy.

BAH!

Congrats to my non-trad friends getting those IIs. Let's raise the average age at matriculation a year or two, mmmkay? We're all quality. 🙂
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Um...University of Washington has sent out II's already. I still haven't received a secondary from them after having been complete for 6+ weeks. Called on monday, they basically told me they still haven't made a decision whether or not to send me a secondary. A SECONDARY... nearly killed all my confidence in the parts of my app that are stellar. Whelp, i still haven't received that secondary and i'm not a lost cause bc one or more schools don't like me. Some do and that's all that matters. You absolutely have to have faith, it will work out if you keep trying. The wait clearly varies for all and it's taken about a month+ for me to hear something positive (or a miracle in my case). Who knows, 3 II's may be all i get this entire cycle and even after attending they may decide they don't like me as much as i like them but i'll still keep trying. WE ARE ALL QUALITY, regardless of stats and past faux pas. No sane person decides this late in life to pursue medicine unless they are sure and able to make it. AND there are no crazies on this thread!
 
Speaking of quality, here's my small triumph for the night...

I get the NEJM headlines emailed to me (the free part, can't afford the subscription) which pop up every Wed. evening. There's usually a free article or two, which I may or may not read. But I always do the image challenge, just for kicks. And the times when I can pick the right choice, based purely on guesswork and other non-medical skills, are always a minor moment of "**** yeah!".
Tonight's winner was totally based on, 'hmmm, there's something vaguely circular that shouldn't be there and there's a word that means spiral in Latin, lemme click that...'
😎
 
My small triumph today was getting a secondary from KCUMB. I submitted my initial for them on 8/1, and but my secondary didn't show up. When I dug a little deeper, turns out they have a minimum GPA screen which my cumulative is too low for (yay for having SO many old credits from years ago), so I wrote it off as my first/only pre-secondary rejection. Low and behold, I get the secondary today, even though I don't meet the minimums. So happy when schools actually do holistic review! ...though now I'm off to write one last essay.
 
I think we should do small victories here. I wrote a secondary essay on them I'll share with you all when the cycles over.
 
Miami Miller submitted.

Just got UCSD as well. Going to try submitting UCSD and UCSF today/tomorrow.

Anyone have any input for secondaries that ask for 'updates'? Everything has been business as usual for me since then. I guess I could update them on work projects and such, but the entire UCSF secondary is a short update. That's scarier than seeing a wall of prompts!

Edit: I spoke too soon. UCSD is an autobiography with a 6k character limit. I think I need to buy some buffalo trace!
 
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Today I received a Tufts II and a UCSD secondary! I was verified early, so I guess some schools do send out screened secondaries later.

Edited. DOH, in my excitement I wrote UCSF instead of UCSD. I'm excited about UCSD, but I would have been doing backflips over UCSF.
 
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Hello everyone,

Just want to introduce myself. My name is Terri and I am also a nontraditional student who joined the military (Coast Guard) after high school as my path to pay for college. However, I ended up doing almost 10 years instead of the planned 4, due to my father's unexpected death while my younger sister was still in high school. I feel confident about most of my application, besides my age, which I'm sure many of you may be able to relate. I think we should start our own acceptance/ interview thread here. From our results we may get an idea of which schools are less age-biased.

My amcas application was just verified today, and I am taking the MCAT Sep 10. I was originally scheduled this month, but figured I was late in the game anyways and I might as well try to maximize my score. That way, worse case scenario, I have a good score for next year.

Also, I see that some of you are reapplicants. Do any of you have some advice? Its my first application. I was quite surprised at the emotional toll this process has had on me, and I haven't even made it to the interviews yet! :/

I thought I was strong, but this process has definitely revealed some vulnerabilities.

Looking forward to getting to know you all better 🙂

Also, I've been advised anonymity is preferred here. If you'd like to connect with me on social media just send me a personal message.
 
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xterryberryx said:
Hello everyone,

Just want to introduce myself. My name is Terri and I am also a nontraditional student who joined the military (Coast Guard) after high school as my path to pay for college. However, I ended up doing almost 10 years instead of the planned 4, due to my father's unexpected death while my younger sister was still in high school. I feel confident about most of my application, besides my age, which I'm sure many of you may be able to relate. I think we should start our own acceptance/ interview thread here. From our results we may get an idea of which schools are less age-biased.

My amcas application was just verified today, and I am taking the MCAT Sep 10. I was originally scheduled this month, but figured I was late in the game anyways and I might as well try to maximize my score. That way, worse case scenario, I have a good score for next year.

Also, I see that some of you are reapplicants. Do any of you have some advice? Its my first application. I was quite surprised at the emotional toll this process has had on me, and I haven't even made it to the interviews yet! :/

I thought I was strong, but this process has definitely revealed some vulnerabilities.

Looking forward to getting to know you all better 🙂

Please feel free to friend me on linked in or Facebook, "Terri McBride" Los Gatos or San Jose, CA
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Welcome Terri! This is my first cycle as well. Good luck... Do you have a preliminary list of schools?
 
Overanxious said:
Welcome Terri! This is my first cycle as well. Good luck... Do you have a preliminary list of schools?
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Hi Overanxious 🙂

I applied to a lot!! 35 :0
I really do not want to go through this again haha!
Ideally I would like to stay on the west coast, but my top choice is MD-PhD programs, which may be a stretch with my non-traditional status.
 
xterryberryx said:
Hi Overanxious 🙂

I applied to a lot!! 35 :0
I really do not want to go through this again haha!
Ideally I would like to stay on the west coast, but my top choice is MD-PhD programs, which may be a stretch with my non-traditional status.
Click to expand...

I have applied to 20. So far I have 1 rejection (University of Wisconsin), 3 II's, and 16 schools left to hear from.

That's a bold move applying to MD/PhD programs without an MCAT score. Do you have any research experience and how about publications? I would say these two things (research and an MCAT score) are absolutely necessary for an MD/PhD program. Now...i'm the last person who would say stats are the only thing that matters but you need to know where you stand for that type of program. I only applied to the MD program and most definitely threw the LizzyM suggestion out the window but i'm not going to say that an MD/PhD program will be so lenient.
 
^^^ I second @Overanxious
I'm applying MD-PhD as well, but only to schools where I could apply for both the MD and Dual degree at the same time. I have research, super LoRs and a decent MCAT, but 1) being older and 2) having a cumulative gpa that is pretty low (bad early numbers, great recent numbers) make it a risky proposition anyway. Which is why I wanted the 'safety' net of the MD app as well.
Being so late in the cycle will make it extremely unlikely that you'll have any luck with the dual degree app all on its own. If you have other issues (aside from age) then for your sake I really hope you applied to a lot of schools where you can be considered for both at the same time.
Best of luck, but I hope you've already considered these things and dealt with them appropriately.
 
Overanxious said:
I have applied to 20. So far I have 1 rejection (University of Wisconsin), 3 II's, and 16 schools left to hear from.

That's a bold move applying to MD/PhD programs without an MCAT score. Do you have any research experience and how about publications? I would say these two things (research and an MCAT score) are absolutely necessary for an MD/PhD program. Now...i'm the last person who would say stats are the only thing that matters but you need to know where you stand for that type of program. I only applied to the MD program and most definitely threw the LizzyM suggestion out the window but i'm not going to say that an MD/PhD program will be so lenient.
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Overanxious said:
I have applied to 20. So far I have 1 rejection (University of Wisconsin), 3 II's, and 16 schools left to hear from.

That's a bold move applying to MD/PhD programs without an MCAT score. Do you have any research experience and how about publications? I would say these two things (research and an MCAT score) are absolutely necessary for an MD/PhD program. Now...i'm the last person who would say stats are the only thing that matters but you need to know where you stand for that type of program. I only applied to the MD program and most definitely threw the LizzyM suggestion out the window but i'm not going to say that an MD/PhD program will be so lenient.
Click to expand...

Hi, yes I'm well aware of MD-PhD requirements. It's been my goal for the past 3 years. I have 3 years undergraduate research at my home institution and 2 summer internships- Stanford and Sloan Kettering. I'm also working full time during my gap year in the same lab at Stanford where I had my internship, thanks to a fellowship I just received.

I have two manuscripts in submission but not published, other than 3 research posters/abstracts.

Also most schools will send your application to MD only if they do not consider you for MD-PhD, so essentially with this option I may have more options.

I'm not familiar with the Lizzy M suggestion, but I have talked to many MD-PhD directors, and it seems they are looking for the whole package, but heavily weighted on research potential. An early application helps because you have less competition, but a later application isn't an automatic disqualifier. I don't regret applying later with better statements and well thought out ECs, than earlier with poorer quality writing samples.

This will be interesting...
 
xterryberryx said:
Hi, yes I'm well aware of MD-PhD requirements. It's been my goal for the past 3 years. I have 3 years undergraduate research at my home institution and 2 summer internships- Stanford and Sloan Kettering. I'm also working full time during my gap year in the same lab at Stanford where I had my internship, thanks to a fellowship I just received.

I have two manuscripts in submission but not published, other than 3 research posters/abstracts.

Also most schools will send your application to MD only if they do not consider you for MD-PhD, so essentially with this option I may have more options.

I'm not familiar with the Lizzy M suggestion, but I have talked to many MD-PhD directors, and it seems they are looking for the whole package, but heavily weighted on research potential. An early application helps because you have less competition, but a later application isn't an automatic disqualifier. I don't regret applying later with better statements and well thought out ECs, than earlier with poorer quality writing samples.

This will be interesting...
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Personally, just the late app would make me scared as ****, but sounds like you've thought it out. Best of luck to you!
 
I've been absent for a while. I majorly (for me) bombed the MCAT (9,11,9), and I really don't have it in me to take them over. I am a student at Mass college of Pharmacy and I have decided to jump in on there pathway program to Ross. As long as I can pass the interview I am in, because they have an agreement with my school and I surpass all the requirements. And, I'm not going to lie and say I'm that sad about it. I actually feel kind of excited. Being an older student I feel like going for the "sure thing" and I want a little adventure.

Thank you for all your support, Ill let you know where my journey leads me.
 
MedicalMomma81 said:
I've been absent for a while. I majorly (for me) bombed the MCAT (9,11,9), and I really don't have it in me to take them over. I am a student at Mass college of Pharmacy and I have decided to jump in on there pathway program to Ross. As long as I can pass the interview I am in, because they have an agreement with my school and I surpass all the requirements. And, I'm not going to lie and say I'm that sad about it. I actually feel kind of excited. Being an older student I feel like going for the "sure thing" and I want a little adventure.

Thank you for all your support, Ill let you know where my journey leads me.
Click to expand...

ridethecliche said:
Don't do it. Don't go to the Carrib route. Go DO over it. Your MCAT is fine for many DO programs.
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@MedicalMomma81 I agree with RTC, the Carib is a terrible idea. Here, here and here are the 3 of the most recent threads saying why it's such a bad idea in detail.
In short: you'll rack up lots of debt, be highly unlikely to land a residency spot, and then have no way to pay back your loans. Then you might have the MD letters, but you wouldn't really be a doctor.

DO is a MUCH better option and your MCAT certainly is competitive for that.
 
Also, how's this for progress?

RTC's night out last week.

Feed-me-House-of-blues-049.jpg
 
I have been following everyone on here and haven't posted yet, but I agree that the DO route is a better choice then the Caribbean. I also had a lower MCAT score (7,9,11) and a lower overall sGPA and cGPA because I failed out of school in the mid 90s. I knew that my chances were low for allopathic schools. I applied broadly to DO schools and have gotten secondaries for all the schools and two ii so far. But, I also think that the Caribbean isn't as bad as everyone makes it sound if its a last resort. True you will have higher debt, lot larger class sizes, and getting sent to where ever to do your clinical rotations; but you still get the chance of becoming a doctor. I have meet with or talked to independently about 6 people currently in the Caribbean or just finished and only one was unhappy and he just didn't feel prepared because he didn't have all the prerequisites needed for school here and it was apparent to him that he really did need them unlike what they told him at his school. I was accepted for Aug 2015 class to SGU but deferred for the birth of our second child and the opportunity for one more round of applications. I don't think that in the near future there is going to be a shortage of residencies. As long as you apply yourself and do well in school and on the boards you will be fine. You might not get the prestigious Stanford or Harvard residency but neither will 99% of us, but you will still get a residency. Of course you still have to pass your boards again so do all of us. So apply broadly, keep positive, work hard on your PS and essays and you will be fine.
 
MedicalMomma81 said:
I've been absent for a while. I majorly (for me) bombed the MCAT (9,11,9), and I really don't have it in me to take them over. I am a student at Mass college of Pharmacy and I have decided to jump in on there pathway program to Ross. As long as I can pass the interview I am in, because they have an agreement with my school and I surpass all the requirements. And, I'm not going to lie and say I'm that sad about it. I actually feel kind of excited. Being an older student I feel like going for the "sure thing" and I want a little adventure.

Thank you for all your support, Ill let you know where my journey leads me.
Click to expand...

I agree with those above that caution against the Caribbean. There are many people on the DO interview thread that have interviews with the same MCAT score or lower. The DO cycle also seems to run longer, so I would consider it if I were you. Not to mention, I don't think a 29 is a death knell when it comes to MD acceptances either (depending on where you apply, where you live, your GPA, etc). It's still early!
 
jsmith522 said:
I have been following everyone on here and haven't posted yet, but I agree that the DO route is a better choice then the Caribbean. I also had a lower MCAT score (7,9,11) and a lower overall sGPA and cGPA because I failed out of school in the mid 90s. I knew that my chances were low for allopathic schools. I applied broadly to DO schools and have gotten secondaries for all the schools and two ii so far. But, I also think that the Caribbean isn't as bad as everyone makes it sound if its a last resort. True you will have higher debt, lot larger class sizes, and getting sent to where ever to do your clinical rotations; but you still get the chance of becoming a doctor. I have meet with or talked to independently about 6 people currently in the Caribbean or just finished and only one was unhappy and he just didn't feel prepared because he didn't have all the prerequisites needed for school here and it was apparent to him that he really did need them unlike what they told him at his school. I was accepted for Aug 2015 class to SGU but deferred for the birth of our second child and the opportunity for one more round of applications. I don't think that in the near future there is going to be a shortage of residencies. As long as you apply yourself and do well in school and on the boards you will be fine. You might not get the prestigious Stanford or Harvard residency but neither will 99% of us, but you will still get a residency. Of course you still have to pass your boards again so do all of us. So apply broadly, keep positive, work hard on your PS and essays and you will be fine.
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Then you clearly haven't been paying attention, because there already is a shortage
https://www.aamc.org/newsroom/newsreleases/374000/03212014.html
US medical grads aren't getting slots. IMGs (aka Carib grads) are mostly SOL already, and it will only get worse for them.
It doesn't matter what people have done in the past, even the very recent past, because the situation is changing drastically and rapidly.
 
@MedicalMomma81 - The dreaded 29 MCAT score is one of the reasons I didn't apply to school 11 years ago. I still regret that decision.
What have you got to lose if you try? $$ and time, yes, but that's a worthwhile gamble, don't you think?
Apply strategically and see what happens. It's not too late and that's not too low of a score.

I can't remember if I mentioned this here or elsewhere, so I apologize if this is a blatant repost.
I took the MCAT on May 8 and then had spinal fusion surgery on May 9. My incredibly fabulous neurosurgeon told me his MCAT score....it was a 2-freaking-9. He was basically calling me out for not trying back in the way back. Give yourself the gift of trying. Failure IS possible, but at least you'll know where you stand.

...and don't be apologetic in your essays. Be confident and firm about your many other qualities and see what you get.
 
kraskadva said:
Then you clearly haven't been paying attention, because there already is a shortage
https://www.aamc.org/newsroom/newsreleases/374000/03212014.html
US medical grads aren't getting slots. IMGs (aka Carib grads) are mostly SOL already, and it will only get worse for them.
It doesn't matter what people have done in the past, even the very recent past, because the situation is changing drastically and rapidly.
Click to expand...
Again, everyone I have talked to getting a residency is not a problem as long as you pass. Several hundred US students didn't get a slot. Ok take 250 didn't get a slot and 24,000+ students is around 1%. I think that is a group of people that did very poorly on their board exams, and in their clinical rotations. That article as I read it is really about a call to action to get congress to try and fix some of the medicare issues and the gap for reimbursement for residents. You could say the same thing about the DOs that have to use the allopathic match. Look at the recent match. Lots of IMGs and DOs. So don't feel bad about the 1%. There is .75 positions per application, and that hasn't changed much since the 90s. So as I said study hard, do well on the board exams and in the clinical years and an IMG will be fine, no different then an allopathic or osteopathic student here.

But, this shouldn't be about crushing someones dream of becoming a physician but support them in their decision to pursue their education whether here or abroad.
 
jsmith522 said:
Again, everyone I have talked to getting a residency is not a problem as long as you pass. Several hundred US students didn't get a slot. Ok take 250 didn't get a slot and 24,000+ students is around 1%. I think that is a group of people that did very poorly on their board exams, and in their clinical rotations. That article as I read it is really about a call to action to get congress to try and fix some of the medicare issues and the gap for reimbursement for residents. You could say the same thing about the DOs that have to use the allopathic match. Look at the recent match. Lots of IMGs and DOs. So don't feel bad about the 1%. There is .75 positions per application, and that hasn't changed much since the 90s. So as I said study hard, do well on the board exams and in the clinical years and an IMG will be fine, no different then an allopathic or osteopathic student here.

But, this shouldn't be about crushing someones dream of becoming a physician but support them in their decision to pursue their education whether here or abroad.
Click to expand...
Crushing dreams?

@MedicalMomma81 has an excellent shot at a DO school. This thread has been nothing but encouraging her to stick with it and come out a little further ahead.
 
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