2017-2018 University of Iowa (Carver)

Getting into Med School is Hard? Not with BeMo.
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ekmf27050 said:
That's useful to know, thanks!!

Any input on Step 1 being after clinical rotations? That was my other concern about Iowa is that there doesn't seem to be much structured Step 1 support.
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Im wondering the same thing
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ekmf27050 said:
That's useful to know, thanks!!

Any input on Step 1 being after clinical rotations? That was my other concern about Iowa is that there doesn't seem to be much structured Step 1 support.
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Insidious said:
Im wondering the same thing
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I have not taken Step yet, so I can't really say. We get 4 weeks of protected time that are immediately after a 4 week winter break, so the time seems adequate. The other classes have done well, improving upon prior and national averages, so scores don't seem to be impaired. In regards to structured support, there are tutor groups, suggested schedules, class meetings, and a class resource page with a variety of things. We don't have like a kaplan course or Uworld given to us, but I would rather have the flexibility to make my own schedule. I am sure if you are someone who needed more structure, it could be given to you, but I have not personally experienced it yet.
 
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aafhem said:
I agree with this. I'm currently deciding between here and my state school. Carver would be cheaper but the grading system and the vibes I got from the students is holding me back. Of all my interviews, students here were the most stressed. I felt like the school itself provides adequate support but they seemed overwhelmed
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Hopefullysomeday67 said:
I was wondering the same thing.
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I agree with everything @Cawolf said but I want to add in my 2 cents here. The grading system is inconsequential to 90% of the class. Sure, we all wants honors but near honors or pass is just fine. Honors isn't divvied up by percentile so theoretically, everyone could get honors. There's no competition. The flow of resources between classes and within your own class is constant!

Vibes? I'm not sure who you guys talked to at your interviews but it certainly wasn't me or anyone I can think of in the class. Sure, we all get a little stressed at times. I know plenty of people (myself included) who go to the gym upwards of 3 times a week, have taken up NEW hobbies in medical school (I'm learning French right now), and travel home at will. I spend at least one night a weekend with my friends. Even held down a relationship there for a while. You don't need to study 24/7. Maybe the folks you talked to hadn't quite adjusted yet? As you would expect, there's a steep learning curve at the beginning of M1 year. That will be true regardless of which institution you choose.

And to whomever asked about Get Acquainted Day, go if you can! It was a really fun day and I met a lot of people that I'm close with today.

If anyone wants more detail, please feel free to message me!
 
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Maybe this is a coincidence, but has anyone else noticed that all the waitlist movement has been on Wednesday mornings? Does this means it's a manual process and they only update it once a week? Or maybe that's just how it's been with my position on the waitlist.
 
Hobbsyy said:
Maybe this is a coincidence, but has anyone else noticed that all the waitlist movement has been on Wednesday mornings? Does this means it's a manual process and they only update it once a week? Or maybe that's just how it's been with my position on the waitlist.
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I haven't noticed this with my waitlist position. I last noticed movement last Tuesday and then the Friday before that. But mine does appear to move about once a week as well.
 
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restlessdriven said:
Vibes? I'm not sure who you guys talked to at your interviews but it certainly wasn't me or anyone I can think of in the class. Sure, we all get a little stressed at times. I know plenty of people (myself included) who go to the gym upwards of 3 times a week, have taken up NEW hobbies in medical school (I'm learning French right now), and travel home at will. I spend at least one night a weekend with my friends. Even held down a relationship there for a while. You don't need to study 24/7. Maybe the folks you talked to hadn't quite adjusted yet? As you would expect, there's a steep learning curve at the beginning of M1 year. That will be true regardless of which institution you choose.
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Thanks! It's hard to tell from interview day and chatting with a couple students online-- you recognize that you may be getting a biased (high-stress) sample, but it's still a red flag you don't want to ignore. My biggest concern from the "weird vibes" was that when Iowa moved from 2 pre-clinical years to 1.5, that they crammed content instead of cutting some stuff. It seems like you don't feel this is the case?
 
ekmf27050 said:
Thanks! It's hard to tell from interview day and chatting with a couple students online-- you recognize that you may be getting a biased (high-stress) sample, but it's still a red flag you don't want to ignore. My biggest concern from the "weird vibes" was that when Iowa moved from 2 pre-clinical years to 1.5, that they crammed content instead of cutting some stuff. It seems like you don't feel this is the case?
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No problem! And no, I don't think that's the case. I had friends in the class that just graduated, the last class on the old curriculum. By their observation and the observations of the class after them (1st on the new curriculum), the administration cut out a lot of redundancy. Don't get me wrong, sometimes you might have 4 lectures in a day and feel a bit stretched thin. But attendance isn't required and you're free to digest material at your own pace. You're still learning everything you need to be successful in clerkships and to set you up for Step 1.

Personally, I DID NOT want to be in the classroom for another 2 years. The idea was abhorrent. And to me, taking Step post core year makes perfect sense. I threw my hat in with Iowa because I knew I could swallow the pill of a 1.5 pre-clinical in favor of more time in clerkships to explore specialties and to have the best shot at Step. Scores say the new curriculum is working so far!

Hope that answers your questions! To be clear, I don't think Iowa is perfect but I've never regretted coming here for a second!
 
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Hobbsyy said:
Maybe this is a coincidence, but has anyone else noticed that all the waitlist movement has been on Wednesday mornings? Does this means it's a manual process and they only update it once a week? Or maybe that's just how it's been with my position on the waitlist.
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I don’t know that there is a particular day or anything, but I can confirm that it is manually updated
 
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Has anyone been accepted off the IS alternate list yet? I’ve just noticed that my position has moved up several spots on the list and was curious if this was due to withdrawals or acceptances. Also, I’ve been lurking on SDN for a while and finally got an account, so hi everyone!
 
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Rhinorrhea said:
Has anyone been accepted off the IS alternate list yet? I’ve just noticed that my position has moved up several spots on the list and was curious if this was due to withdrawals or acceptances. Also, I’ve been lurking on SDN for a while and finally got an account, so hi everyone!
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I was accepted off the IS list and I've heard of a few others. You should see quite a bit more movement as we get closer to traffic day. Good luck!
 
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Hawk Eye Pierce said:
I was accepted off the IS list and I've heard of a few others. You should see quite a bit more movement as we get closer to traffic day. Good luck!
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Does anyone know if there have been acceptances given to the OOS waitlist yet?
 
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A question for current students – what systems are in place to get you set up with faculty/physician mentors? Are you assigned a preceptor to shadow during the pre-clinical years? The other school I’m considering has a pretty extensive network of physicians and faculty set up within their learning communities that work with your PBL small group, advise, and are available for you to shadow. From what I understand about Iowa, there are directors/managers of the learning communities, but I’m wondering how much opportunity there is for actually building relationships with faculty.


Another sort of related question – are the PBL sessions led by a faculty member or by upper level medical students? And are the groups and session leaders the same throughout the pre-clinical years or does it change?
 
hk94 said:
Does anyone know if there have been acceptances given to the OOS waitlist yet?
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Also curious about this. I've moved up 6 spots total on the OOS waitlist, but I'm wondering if that's from accepted people giving up spots or just people ahead of me on the waitlist giving up spots.
 
fearthefrog said:
A question for current students – what systems are in place to get you set up with faculty/physician mentors? Are you assigned a preceptor to shadow during the pre-clinical years? The other school I’m considering has a pretty extensive network of physicians and faculty set up within their learning communities that work with your PBL small group, advise, and are available for you to shadow. From what I understand about Iowa, there are directors/managers of the learning communities, but I’m wondering how much opportunity there is for actually building relationships with faculty.


Another sort of related question – are the PBL sessions led by a faculty member or by upper level medical students? And are the groups and session leaders the same throughout the pre-clinical years or does it change?
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It really depends on your interests. There are student interest groups, faculty talks, mentoring "fairs" for certain specialties, and other ways to meet faculty. If you are interested in research, there is a mentor database where you can browse faculty and their projects to find something that interests you. The pre-clinical years have 3 shadowing experiences a semester, but you don't get to pick your specialty or faculty. I had no issue finding a mentor in my field of interest, and everyone I know has been successful in finding faculty to shadow or work with. It isn't really driven by the learning communities, but more by the departments or specialties.

The PBL weekly sessions are led by faculty. The groups and leaders are the same through the semester, but change 3 times through the year as the semester changes. There is one group that stays constant through the pre-clinical years, who you do small group clinical stuff with.

Hope that helps!
 
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My IS waitlist movement so far seems to compare favorably to the amount of movement from the previous couple years. Since I'm right on the border of getting accepted or not based on previous years movement I'm hoping it is a good sign.
 
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Does anyone know anything about the CRISP program? I'm trying to figure out which towns are eligible in either Jones or Linn county. I'm looking at a town like Anamosa, but I am unsure if it is too close to Cedar Rapids. Marion shouldn't be an issue, since its population is only about 38000. If anyone has any insight, I would greatly appreciate it!
 
FlyHawkFly said:
Does anyone know anything about the CRISP program? I'm trying to figure out which towns are eligible in either Jones or Linn county. I'm looking at a town like Anamosa, but I am unsure if it is too close to Cedar Rapids. Marion shouldn't be an issue, since its population is only about 38000. If anyone has any insight, I would greatly appreciate it!
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Your best bet would be to email the people listed on the CRISP site. They are very nice and helpful at Iowa. Anamosa is like 25 miles city center to city center from Cedar Rapids, but who knows how they calculate it? I am sure they have a list or more information they would be happy to share.
 
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Anybody have success negotiating/asking for more aid? If so who did you speak to?


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yoy3 said:
Anybody have success negotiating/asking for more aid? If so who did you speak to?


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Asked, got rejected. :whistle::laugh:

Nothing ventured...
 
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Just declined my offer-- another OOS spot is open. Best of luck, y'all! <3
 
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Anyone know how long it takes them to process people withdrawing acceptances and for them to update the waitlist?
 
Hobbsyy said:
Anyone know how long it takes them to process people withdrawing acceptances and for them to update the waitlist?
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Just because people are withdrawing acceptances doesn't mean the waitlist will move. If the WL hasn't moved, it means that Carver is still overaccepted since they accept 2x-3x the students for the number of OOS spots. Right now the WL is moving from people withdrawing their waitlist, not their acceptances.
 
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Since there has not been much movement of the OOS waitlist, should I still remain optimistic?
 
Brainotron said:
Since there has not been much movement of the OOS waitlist, should I still remain optimistic?
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Let’s just be patient Brainotron. If you look at last year’s thread, there was absolutely zero waitlist movement before Traffic Day. If you continue to look, the OOS person ranked #22 got in around May 18th, and someone in the 40’s got in some time in July. Traffic Day is on Monday so let’s hope for some movement soon!
 
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Just got accepted off the IS waitlist yesterday!! Carver College of Medicine here I come!
 
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Absby said:
Just got accepted off the IS waitlist yesterday!! Carver College of Medicine here I come!
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Congrats! :) I'm at #2 on the IS waitlist so I have my fingers crossed for some good news early next week.
 
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Thought I would share an update from the bottom of the oos waitlist that I have moved up 22 spots (from withdrawals)
 
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I’ve gone from upper 20’s to the low teens on the IS list if anyone is curious
 
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So for traffic day today...

Is today the day that everyone with multiple acceptances has to hold onto only one now, or is today the LAST day for them to decide that?
 
Just broke into the single digits on the OOS waitlist! Has anyone been accepted off this waitlist? I'm wondering if they are still over accepted or not.
 
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I just got accepted off the IS waitlist!
 
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ACCEPTED!! :D MADE IT INTO THE GOOD PLACE! So many emotions right now!

For posterity and those wanting to keep track, I started off in the top 10 (OOS) and found out today around 1pm West Coast time when I logged on the portal (accepted the offer before I even I got the official email lol). Excited to meet you all this summer!
 
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The upperclassmen already have a Facebook group made for those accepted! Lots of housing opportunities posted right now and your class will use it for study resource exchange, socializing and, of course, memes later. Best of luck to everyone still waiting! Looking forward to welcoming you all next year.

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Cholecystokinin said:
ACCEPTED!! :D MADE IT INTO THE GOOD PLACE! So many emotions right now!

For those wanting to keep track, I started off in the top 10 (OOS) and found out today around 1pm West Coast time when I logged on the portal (accepted the offer before I even I got the official email lol). Excited to meet you all this summer!
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CONGRATS! Also, I'm glad that they are no longer over-accepted for OOS. I just made it to #5 on the OOS WL so im hoping for good news soon!
 
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Update: I moved up an additional 10 spots today alone! So 32 spots total from original position 90+ on the waitlist. I won't be accepted here, but hope this gives the rest of you some hope!
 
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I withdrew the other day (Oos), so I hope someone got my spot! Congrats to everyone! I was loathe the withdraw as this seems like such a great school, but had some luck with my first choice (too close to home to pass up). Good luck all! Maybe we’ll meet again in residency!
 
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Brainotron said:
How long before we start to see movement again?
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I would imagine its a slow burn over the next month. I went up a couple more on the IS list this morning.
 
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Hobbsyy said:
CONGRATS! Also, I'm glad that they are no longer over-accepted for OOS. I just made it to #5 on the OOS WL so im hoping for good news soon!
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Thank you so much. It was such a long waiting game and I can't believe I got into this amazing school. It's still so surreal to me. Based on recent years' numbers (except for 2014 apparently), I have good hopes for you! I believe in you!! We WILL see each other this August :D
 
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Anybody in OOS 30s range feeling lucky in the coming days?
 
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