2017-2018 Oregon Health & Sciences University

[rogueriver]

Sorry for posting (almost) back-to-back.

I've looked through this thread (and a few of the threads for the previous years), but does anyone have additional information on petitioning the genetics requirement? I took three courses that covered Genetics, each with increased detail throughout undergrad and one of the courses explicitly mentioned Genetics as one of the topics that would be covered in the course description.

I'm definitely going to call admissions on Monday for more details, but since this acceptance came so late in the game I'm scared that I'll withdraw from my other options only to find that OHSU rescinded my acceptance.

OHSU won't rescind your acceptance. If they want you to take an official genetics class you'll have until the beginning of school to complete it. I believe students in the past have had luck with online genetics classes taken over the summer. Agreed that if you're something like a bio major then genetics is covered in so many other classes, it's silly.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[DSM_302.0]

I think OHSU is the only school that just completely ghosted on me after I applied. OOS and just shy of the GPA requirement to be considered in the special-interest group, so not much of a chance anyway, but no word at all, OHSU!? I submitted my secondary 267 days ago. Congrats to everyone attending!

 

[DSM_302.0]

I think OHSU is the only school that just completely ghosted on me after I applied. OOS and just shy of the GPA requirement to be considered in the special-interest group, so not much of a chance anyway, but no word at all, OHSU!? I submitted my secondary 267 days ago. Congrats to everyone attending!

Oh. Looks like my portal was updated in mid-January. Never received an email or anything!

 

[aaronrodgers]

Has anyone received their financial aid package?

 

[CanadianGirl56]

Thanks for the responses, alexlex143 and rogueriver! You've been super helpful and it's definitely good to know that they wouldn't rescind, but I'll hold onto the backup for now and send an email to explain why I have multiple acceptances.

Thanks again!

 

[charlarlarlar]

I am curious if anyone has any insight to my situation here. I am currently stuck between attending OHSU (I am OOS :/, so tuition of 64) and A&M, which has a tuition of 17K per year. In all other regards aside from cost, I love OHSU. I am interested in a pretty competitive specialty, and so attending a better ranked school may help me with residency. Is anyone else in a similar position and if so, how are you deciding?

 

[gratdoc]

I am curious if anyone has any insight to my situation here. I am currently stuck between attending OHSU (I am OOS :/, so tuition of 64) and A&M, which has a tuition of 17K per year. In all other regards aside from cost, I love OHSU. I am interested in a pretty competitive specialty, and so attending a better ranked school may help me with residency. Is anyone else in a similar position and if so, how are you deciding?

I am in a similar position. Most people have told me that ultimately it doesn’t matter where you go to med school, if you work hard you can get into the residency you want. So most people have also told me to go to the cheaper school. I am so torn though because I love OHSU and pretty badly want to move back home to Oregon. Right now I am leaning towards more debt to be in a location that I’m 100x happier in. Still not decided though and would love to hear other input on this as well!

 

[charlarlarlar]

Sorry for all the posts, but does anyone have much insight into why OHSU has slightly lower average step scores than other comparably ranked schools? From what I can find, the average is around 227. Does anyone know if OHSU uses step questions for their examinations or how much time students are given off to step study?

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

You guys I am IN!!!!

Apparently I got in Friday, but no email, and it must've been after I checked my portal for the last time on Friday. I was sure I was not getting in and just made myself check the portal again and was in absolute shock. WOW.

I don't see anything about paying a deposit - does anyone know about that? I had to for other schools (which I'm now withdrawing from).

 

[maco1501]

You guys I am IN!!!!

Apparently I got in Friday, but no email, and it must've been after I checked my portal for the last time on Friday. I was sure I was not getting in and just made myself check the portal again and was in absolute shock. WOW.

I don't see anything about paying a deposit - does anyone know about that? I had to for other schools (which I'm now withdrawing from).

Congrats!!! The acceptance email says they don’t require a deposit. Your acceptance packet should come in the mail within a month and there are some forms you need to fill out and send back but no deposit

 

[rogueriver]

I am curious if anyone has any insight to my situation here. I am currently stuck between attending OHSU (I am OOS :/, so tuition of 64) and A&M, which has a tuition of 17K per year. In all other regards aside from cost, I love OHSU. I am interested in a pretty competitive specialty, and so attending a better ranked school may help me with residency. Is anyone else in a similar position and if so, how are you deciding?

At one of my interviews the Surgery Rotation Director came to talk to us and mentioned that it's helpful to be coming from a bigger name school when seeking more competitive residency interviews. Of course the personal and academic attributes of the applicant is huge but coming from a bigger med school could bump you over the edge. You could take a look at a recent match list from each school and see where people got in.

The cheapness of A&M could be really nice too! With less debt you might feel less pressure to go into a higher paying speciality if it turns out that you have a passion for primary care that you didn't know you had.

 

[rogueriver]

Sorry for all the posts, but does anyone have much insight into why OHSU has slightly lower average step scores than other comparably ranked schools? From what I can find, the average is around 227. Does anyone know if OHSU uses step questions for their examinations or how much time students are given off to step study?

The academic calendar for OHSU says 5 dedicated weeks for Step 1 studying plus the prior 3 week winter break (8 total). I also have friends who pushed the exam out a few more weeks, so there's that too.

Re: lower scores—schools like OHSU and UW emphasise factors other than GPA/MCAT in the admission process, this is evident by having an average older age of matriculant than comparably ranked schools. MS3 & MS4 OHSU students have also told me that their preclinical classes didn't always teach to Step 1. Some OHSU students choose to do the bare minimum to pass their preclinical classes and instead focus on Step 1 prep.

 

[charlarlarlar]

The academic calendar for OHSU says 5 dedicated weeks for Step 1 studying plus the prior 3 week winter break (8 total). I also have friends who pushed the exam out a few more weeks, so there's that too.

Re: lower scores—schools like OHSU and UW emphasise factors other than GPA/MCAT in the admission process, this is evident by having an average older age of matriculant than comparably ranked schools. MS3 & MS4 OHSU students have also told me that their preclinical classes didn't always teach to Step 1. Some OHSU students choose to do the bare minimum to pass their preclinical classes and instead focus on Step 1 prep.

Thank you, that's super helpful. I wish that OHSU would use STEP 1 questions in their examinations, however I am sure the biggest factor in how well someone does on step is their motivation/ test taking abilities rather than the school that they attend.

 

[JermanH]

Would also like to know more about the step 1 scores...especially since many don’t match into super competitive fields. Do they really not focus on teaching for step 1? That’s a huge bummer.

 

[lukalolo]

I will most likely be giving up my acceptance to attend a significantly cheaper school that I loved just as much (I'm out of state). I'm giving a call to financial aid today to try one last time to get more information. OHSU seems great though and wishing you all the best!

 

[Spr1ngrolls]

Gave up my acceptance here today as well. This one hurt a bit more because OHSU was truly a dream school, but ultimately the fact that they didn't even have a budget prepared for their medical school on the Traffic Day deadline made it impossible for me to keep them in the running.

Good luck to everyone continuing with OHSU and to everyone waiting for their admit offer. It's coming soon!!!

Happy Traffic Day Y'all!!!

 

[letthegoodtimesroll]

I'm planning to give up my acceptance at another school, but I've only had my status updated on the portal and have not received an official email at this point from OHSU. I know they say not to call, but I want to follow the April 30th traffic rule, and it's a bit disconcerting to not have an official email acceptance... Advice?

 

[aaronrodgers]

Dropping acceptance to OHSU always wanted to live in Portland but too expensive as OOS. Good luck to whoever takes up my spot! You deserved it!!!

 

[flyboy3]

I'm planning to give up my acceptance at another school, but I've only had my status updated on the portal and have not received an official email at this point from OHSU. I know they say not to call, but I want to follow the April 30th traffic rule, and it's a bit disconcerting to not have an official email acceptance... Advice?

Wondering about an official email as well. Did those who get notified through email get anything official? I need a letter to send to my state to receive funding, and they want something more than just a screenshot of the portal.

 

[charlarlarlar]

I am assuming that our portal updating isn't our ~official offer~ and giving myself a little bit more time to decide between my schools.

I also called OHSU this AM and they said that we can take a few days to decide.

 

[CanadianGirl56]

The response I got to my email was that we didn’t have to respond to OHSU’s offer (whether we accept or decline) until the package comes in the mail. I also asked if I could keep one other acceptance past today and that wasn’t addressed in Kari’s response so I’m gonna go ahead and assume that since we haven’t accepted this offer of admission yet it technically doesn’t count as holding the acceptance so it may be fine to have a few more days to think it over in this case.

That said I still have to call OHSU and my other school again (unsuccessful all morning) so I’ll post if I learn anything new.

 

[CanadianGirl56]

I am assuming that our portal updating isn't our ~official offer~ and giving myself a little bit more time to decide between my schools.

I also called OHSU this AM and they said that we can take a few days to decide.

So it sounds like we got opposite answers. I just got through to admissions and was told that even with our late acceptance into OHSU we would still have to drop our other acceptances today to comply with their policy.

I’m going to withdraw from my other program today in that case. You may want to call again to double check? Unless they said that you specifically were fine to hold onto another offer.

 

[aspiringmd96]

How long does it normally take for a school to start offering spots to those on the alt list, considering there have been a decent amount of withdrawals just on SDN alone within the past few days? I have a friend who is in the low 10's on the list and was wondering when he/she should expect that to happen.

 

[Director Krennic]

How long does it normally take for a school to start offering spots to those on the alt list, considering there have been a decent amount of withdrawals just on SDN alone within the past few days? I have a friend who is in the low 10's on the list and was wondering when he/she should expect that to happen.

It really depends on the year. But past trends indicate around mid May for a low number like that. Last year they were already at spot #16 by May 5th.

 

[wandermedd]

Accepted on Friday via portal and e-mail (almost simultaneously). Having read this forum religiously for a while I was very disheartened by Friday. It may help future readers to keep in mind that there is often a great deal of speculation in these posts and to try not to lose hope prematurely. I did and it only caused me a ton of grief for no reason! Planning to attend in the fall but wishing good luck to those on the waitlist!

OHSU was my top choice I am so glad to be a part of the MD class of 2022!

(lizzy m 72, IS, non-trad, put on hold in January)

 

[Babbitt4MVP]

To those on the alternate list, did you get any sort of confirmation/response when you replied to the email?

 

[Director Krennic]

To those on the alternate list, did you get any sort of confirmation/response when you replied to the email?

Hey Babbitt,

Welcome to the alternates club! I have not received a confirmation or response. However, looking at the forums for prior years, it looks like they haven't responded in the past either. I am contemplating whether or not I should try to seek out confirmation...

 

[missmartian85]

Accepted on Friday via portal and e-mail (almost simultaneously). Having read this forum religiously for a while I was very disheartened by Friday. It may help future readers to keep in mind that there is often a great deal of speculation in these posts and to try not to lose hope prematurely. I did and it only caused me a ton of grief for no reason! Planning to attend in the fall but wishing good luck to those on the waitlist!

OHSU was my top choice I am so glad to be a part of the MD class of 2022!

(lizzy m 72, IS, non-trad, put on hold in January)

THIS! This is why I try to provide a constant layer of positivity. There is always hope!

 

[JermanH]

THIS! This is why I try to provide a constant layer of positivity. There is always hope!

Do you remember when you received financial aid last year? It's getting a bit annoying not knowing how much COA Is or what our award letter is...

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

Gave up my acceptance here today as well. This one hurt a bit more because OHSU was truly a dream school, but ultimately the fact that they didn't even have a budget prepared for their medical school on the Traffic Day deadline made it impossible for me to keep them in the running.

Good luck to everyone continuing with OHSU and to everyone waiting for their admit offer. It's coming soon!!!

Happy Traffic Day Y'all!!!

Good luck wherever you choose! I’m pretty sure I saw on the Rush thread that we interviewed there on the same day, and I’m curious if that’s the school you’re choosing?

 

[Exli]

Good luck wherever you choose! I’m pretty sure I saw on the Rush thread that we interviewed there on the same day, and I’m curious if that’s the school you’re choosing?

RASPBERRY YOU'RE IN!!!! WE'RE GOING TO BE CLASSMATES!

 

[Cholocolate]

Thank you, that's super helpful. I wish that OHSU would use STEP 1 questions in their examinations, however I am sure the biggest factor in how well someone does on step is their motivation/ test taking abilities rather than the school that they attend.

So OHSU does use old step style questions on the final exams (not the weekly ones). We have three different components to our finals, one component is an NBME style test.

I've never taken step so I can only speculate -- I think some of our lectures don't teach to step as well as they could. Students tend to study very differently for our NBME final (with pathoma, first aid, sketchy, etc) than we do for our institutionally written final (with a little more class notes). The NBME type resources certainly help for our institutional final, but less so vice versa.

 

[alexlex143]

Just got my acceptance email!!!! I was #20 on the alternate list.

 

[mumbojumb0]

Just got my acceptance email!!!! I was #20 on the alternate list.

Just saw they’re up to #22

 

[RaspberrySlushy]

RASPBERRY YOU'RE IN!!!! WE'RE GOING TO BE CLASSMATES!

YES WE ARE!!!!

 

[charlarlarlar]

Long shot: Does anyone know the best person to contact regarding the genetics requirement? I tried emailing MDadmin and calling the admissions office, but so far, no luck. I want to verify that the online course that I am looking at taking will satisfy the requirement.

 

[Blazerfan26]

26!

 

[flyboy3]

Just got notified of my financial aid award, however I don’t have an id or pin...anyone know a work around this? Would like to see my financial status asap.

 

[charlarlarlar]

Just got notified of my financial aid award, however I don’t have an id or pin...anyone know a work around this? Would like to see my financial status asap.

I just called the IT help desk and they gave me my U number (ID number) and helped me reset my pin.

Apparently, they are going to email us in the summer with our U numbers, but if you do not want to wait, the IT help desk was very helpful (pun intended)

 

[waitingtogetinschool]

Does anybody know if the alternate list gets updated over the weekend...

 

[mumbojumb0]

Does anybody know if the alternate list gets updated over the weekend...

I doubt it, but hopefully we'll see some big movement by monday afternoon/evening.

 

[Jarstewa]

Does anyone know whether this text on the application portal actually represents the most recent update, or whether it actually just always lists the current date:

Status as of May 04, 2018

I'm trying to infer whether there's still an update yet to come this afternoon or not.

 

[Pilot2Doc]

Does anyone know whether this text on the application portal actually represents the most recent update, or whether it actually just always lists the current date:

Status as of May 04, 2018

I'm trying to infer whether there's still an update yet to come this afternoon or not.

Nah, I think it lists the current date.

It was the same yesterday and then at around 5:30 updated from 22 to 26.

I’m pretty sure admissions updates it as able before they leave the office.

For that reason I wouldnt expect any changes over the weekend... But we can only hope they make it through another 22 by Monday like they did last weekend

 

[Jarstewa]

 

[Pilot2Doc]

Not a stretch to say... Exactly how I feel. Ha

 

[waitingtogetinschool]

Does anyone know how often they usually post updates?

 

[Jarstewa]

The alternate email claims that they post updates Daily, but as far as I can tell the last update was on Thursday. (Unless there has truly been no movement on the list since then.)

 

[Director Krennic]

According to the AAMC , schools have to give: "A minimum of 5 business days to respond to an acceptance offer [off the alternate list]. This may be reduced to a minimum of 2 business days within 30 days of the start of orientation" . I assume the already busy admission committee waits to handle the requests in waves, versus dealing with each response daily. At least, that is the way I view it!

I'm chilling here in the #45-50 range. Where is everyone else at??

 

[Pilot2Doc]

I’m in the 75-100 range, so hoping for an outlier of a year. Thankfully have an acceptance to an awesome school out of state, but my heart is in Oregon.

Doing the math on the last 12 years, the average alternate acceptance # is 60... There have been 1-2 years where they got to around 100. I’m guessing if it gets to that point I will have already matriculated out of state, but that doesn’t stop me from hoping on an acceptance from OHSU.

 

[Director Krennic]

I’m in the 75-100 range, so hoping for an outlier of a year. Thankfully have an acceptance to an awesome school out of state, but my heart is in Oregon.

Doing the math on the last 12 years, the average alternate acceptance # is 60... There have been 1-2 years where they got to around 100. I’m guessing if it gets to that point I will have already matriculated out of state, but that doesn’t stop me from hoping on an acceptance from OHSU.

Congratulations on your first acceptance! I totally understand your love for Oregon. My heart is here too!
But I'm glad at the end of the day you'll get to be an MD!

I too am trying to predict what this year will be like. I don't have an acceptance anywhere else. With so many already off the alternate list already, I hope it'll be a positive trend for both of us!