2017 Nontrad Applicants' Progress Thread

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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Just finished up interview at UW, and I have to say, all it did was reaffirm why I want to go there. The staff (as well as at OHSU) were unbelievably friendly, helpful, and seemed to genuinely care. Really put some things in perspective. Also, we were able to sit in on lecture (I have a few friends that are MS1's so it was cool seeing them in class), and it was realllllly interesting to actually see what a "day in the life" was like. I really reminded me of my favorite physio lecture, but now combined with a case study. I have to admit, I feel exceedingly lucky to have interviewed at both places. Just based on the admissions office alone and interactions with others this and last cycle, I felt like I would be "at home" if I got into either place.
 
mavric1298 said:
Just finished up interview at UW, and I have to say, all it did was reaffirm why I want to go there. The staff (as well as at OHSU) were unbelievably friendly, helpful, and seemed to genuinely care. Really put some things in perspective. Also, we were able to sit in on lecture (I have a few friends that are MS1's so it was cool seeing them in class), and it was realllllly interesting to actually see what a "day in the life" was like. I really reminded me of my favorite physio lecture, but now combined with a case study. I have to admit, I feel exceedingly lucky to have interviewed at both places. Just based on the admissions office alone and interactions with others this and last cycle, I felt like I would be "at home" if I got into either place.
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Mavric, I hope you get in the UW - we need good docs.
 
Afropolitan said:
What's the best city to live in?


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San Francisco!! It's EXPENSIVE but so worth it (at least in my head haha). Boston is pretty awesome too. For some reason, people think NYC is the go-to city in the northeast but imho NYC is overrated and Boston has so much to offer.
 
Afropolitan said:
What's the best city to live in?
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You do realize you'll never get an unbiased answer to this question, right? :laugh:

I agree with whomever said a small to medium sized city beats out a large one for QOL. Some smaller cities here in the South I liked that will never make the top ten list for our coast-centric SDN population:
- Austin, TX
- Birmingham, AL
- Charlotte, NC
- Charlottesville, VA
- Hattiesburg, MS
- Huntsville, AL
- Mobile, AL
- Sarasota, FL
- Savannah, GA
- Tallahassee, FL
 
Can anyone explain the whole October 15th thing? Do schools traditionally send out their first acceptances on that date?
 
beebreezy said:
Can anyone explain the whole October 15th thing? Do schools traditionally send out their first acceptances on that date?
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Aamc traffic rules. Schools can't send out normal decisions before that.
 
tskiihii said:
Guys, random but has it really hit any of you that you are actually going to become a doctor?

Just got another interview invite and idk it just hit me like a ton of bricks... such a humbling and overwhelming...but still good feeling.
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Yeah now its been the . Can I actually afford to go to medical school
 
tskiihii said:
Guys, random but has it really hit any of you that you are actually going to become a doctor?

Just got another interview invite and idk it just hit me like a ton of bricks... such a humbling and overwhelming...but still good feeling.
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No because I've only had two IIs (one that I haven't attended yet), so my confidence levels aren't quite that high. It has hit me that, "Omg, I'm actually in the process of applying to med school," though, which is legitimizing in itself. Felt like I'd never get here when I started my prereqs in January of 2014.
 
tskiihii said:
Guys, random but has it really hit any of you that you are actually going to become a doctor?

Just got another interview invite and idk it just hit me like a ton of bricks... such a humbling and overwhelming...but still good feeling.
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I paid my deposit yesterday and had an "oh %#^*! This is actually happening" moment.


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Gibbward said:
One school I interviewed at said that earliest we'll hear back from them is the 17th. Though if a school doesn't do phone calls and you just hear back via email/the portal, I can see how you could get your decision on the 15th.
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The MSAR lists school-by-school if they are sending out offers on the 15th or 17th.

Also, a little late to the party. Graduated in 2014. Already had one interview at University of Iowa and one II at University of Michigan. Nervous about how being a non-trad is going to affect my chances
 
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TheRealJohnDorian said:
The MSAR lists school-by-school if they are sending out offers on the 15th or 17th. If anyone has questions about specific schools, but doesn't have MSAR access, let me know and I'll tell you what it says!

Also, a little late to the party. Graduated in 2014. Already had one interview at University of Iowa and one II at University of Michigan. Nervous about how being a non-trad is going to affect my chances
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I think the MSAR says October 1st for MCG, the only school I'll have interviewed with by the 15th/17th. :/
 
tskiihii said:
Guys, random but has it really hit any of you that you are actually going to become a doctor?

Just got another interview invite and idk it just hit me like a ton of bricks... such a humbling and overwhelming...but still good feeling.
Click to expand...

I had this exact same thought while driving back from my interview yesterday. I've been at this process for three years, and at times it has seemed like this period would never come. Its getting real now, and you start to remember how big of a deal it actually is. Its easy to lose sight of the gravity behind it all...but yeah its surreal
 
QuentinT88 said:
I had this exact same thought while driving back from my interview yesterday. I've been at this process for three years, and at times it has seemed like this period would never come. Its getting real now, and you start to remember how big of a deal it actually is. Its easy to lose sight of the gravity behind it all...but yeah its surreal
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Man, you don't have to tell me twice. I delayed my app a whole year due to studying for the new mcat and taking extra coursework for it. Life happens and age is not such a huge factor to me anymore, but health is priority now that I'm not young and as lean as I once was.
 
Interestingly, getting my first II was wayyyy more emotional and exciting than my first acceptance. I think that really says something about my feelings towards said school - but again - I know I would rather be there than not if that's what it comes down to it.


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An II is the first time the application process starts becoming tangible. An acceptance is when it becomes real.
 
mavric1298 said:
Interestingly, getting my first II was wayyyy more emotional and exciting than my first acceptance. I think that really says something about my feelings towards said school - but again - I know I would rather be there than not if that's what it comes down to it.


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I too have been accepted by said school and have similar emotions towards it. Still thinking about that deposit.
 
Hey fellow nontrads!! I'm super pumped and wanted to share my progress!! I'm a re-applicant and I have my first interview at my top choice tomorrow and a couple of days ago I received another II that I will be attending later this month! Woot!! I'm so excited!! I can't believe these schools actually want to interview ME! Eeeeeee!! :happy: Good luck, everyone!!
 
tskiihii said:
That was it for me, so much so that I immediately went back to read my secondary again trying to figure out why they picked me. Lets just hope we are accepted this cycle, this process is so emotionally tasking, not sure I want a do-over.
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Joke is on the schools that don't send me II's my responses to all secondaries were the same!
 
tskiihii said:
That was it for me, so much so that I immediately went back to read my secondary again trying to figure out why they picked me. Lets just hope we are accepted this cycle, this process is so emotionally tasking, not sure I want a do-over.
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I'm a reapplicant, it's exhausting!
 
Pretty silent over here. Complete at 17 schools and have 1 rejection. Pretty much what I expected, though I never received secondaries from two of my state schools where I thought I'd get past the screens. I have a few secondaries I didn't complete that I might still send in the next two weeks, but my focus has been on my SMP. I bombed the first exam in my SMP and was debating whether it was worth it to continue pushing forward, but then I got 100% on the second one so I don't think that first test is going to be a problem for my final grades. I have a guaranteed interview here in a few months, so really going at things as if that is my one and only shot.
 
BlastedHeath said:
Pretty silent over here. Complete at 17 schools and have 1 rejection. Pretty much what I expected, though I never received secondaries from two of my state schools where I thought I'd get past the screens. I have a few secondaries I didn't complete that I might still send in the next two weeks, but my focus has been on my SMP. I bombed the first exam in my SMP and was debating whether it was worth it to continue pushing forward, but then I got 100% on the second one so I don't think that first test is going to be a problem for my final grades. I have a guaranteed interview here in a few months, so really going at things as if that is my one and only shot.
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First time applicant?


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mavric1298 said:
Interestingly, getting my first II was wayyyy more emotional and exciting than my first acceptance. I think that really says something about my feelings towards said school - but again - I know I would rather be there than not if that's what it comes down to it.


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Click to expand...

Getting my II was much more of a high than the actual acceptance. I don't know if it was because the adcom on my interview panel pulled me aside and told me not to worry *wink wink, nudge nudge* or because I got my background check before the actual acceptance so I knew it was coming.


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Dr. Jan Itor said:
Getting my II was much more of a high than the actual acceptance. I don't know if it was because the adcom on my interview panel pulled me aside and told me not to worry *wink wink, nudge nudge* or because I got my background check before the actual acceptance so I knew it was coming.


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I actually got a BG check request before any interviews, and I had no idea how to interpret that
 
tetley said:
I actually got a BG check request before any interviews, and I had no idea how to interpret that
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The official AMCAS Certiphi check? That's weird. I'd have no idea how to interpret that, either. The info they sent me was that it's for accepted and waitlisted students and normal acceptance (non-EDP students) don't start getting their checks until after January 1.


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Dr. Jan Itor said:
The official AMCAS Certiphi check? That's weird. I'd have no idea how to interpret that, either. The info they sent me was that it's for accepted and waitlisted students and normal acceptance (non-EDP students) don't start getting their checks until after January 1.


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Certiphi sends a message stating that the schools will use it , and that you can check your background for a fee before. Or did you get an email from certiphi stating that a school has requested your background check?
 
libertyyne said:
Certiphi sends a message stating that the schools will use it , and that you can check your background for a fee before. Or did you get an email from certiphi stating that a school has requested your background check?
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The email said that a school I had been accepted to requested it. I didn't have to pay anything to see my report before releasing it to the school.

I do have the email AMCAS sent when I submitted that says you can run your own Certiphi check separate from AMCAS for a fee, but this was a different email requesting consent.


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Dr. Jan Itor said:
The email said that a school I had been accepted to requested it. I didn't have to pay anything to see my report before releasing it to the school.

I do have the email AMCAS sent when I submitted that says you can run your own Certiphi check separate from AMCAS for a fee, but this was a different email requesting consent.


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I understood that you got accepted and how they would ask for it, I was curious about the background check @tetley got
 
BlastedHeath said:
Pretty silent over here. Complete at 17 schools and have 1 rejection. Pretty much what I expected, though I never received secondaries from two of my state schools where I thought I'd get past the screens. I have a few secondaries I didn't complete that I might still send in the next two weeks, but my focus has been on my SMP. I bombed the first exam in my SMP and was debating whether it was worth it to continue pushing forward, but then I got 100% on the second one so I don't think that first test is going to be a problem for my final grades. I have a guaranteed interview here in a few months, so really going at things as if that is my one and only shot.
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I love your pic! Also living in CA can be a b****. I was really disappointed when I didn't hear back from one of the UCs that I though I was a shoo-in for, but life goes on 😉
 
libertyyne said:
I understood that you got accepted and how they would ask for it, I was curious about the background check @tetley got
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I got that first email, then several months later got one requesting an official one via Certiphi
I am still so confused about why that happened
 
tetley said:
I got that first email, then several months later got one requesting an official one via Certiphi
I am still so confused about why that happened
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That is weird did you interview at that school?
 
Also just as of note, you CANNOT run your own until accepted - which I found out the hard way last year. I paid that fee, only to find out that if you have been accepted, when you pay it then will send it right away and directly to you, rather than waiting until the school requests it. I didn't think that was the case, and I pushed multiple times on the phone to get a clear answer, and that's what they kept coming back saying...

I told them about that email that everyone gets about paying for it to be able to receive, and they just kept saying that that is basically just an expidite fee

Sorry for any typo's or fake words, I'm dileriously tired and heading to bed


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mavric1298 said:
Also just as of note, you CANNOT run your own until accepted - which I found out the hard way last year. I paid that fee, only to find out that if you have been accepted, when you pay it then will send it right away and directly to you, rather than waiting until the school requests it. I didn't think that was the case, and I pushed multiple times on the phone to get a clear answer, and that's what they kept coming back saying...



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That seems weird. "
For a fee, you may procure your own report from Certiphi Screening, Inc. in advance of the AMCAS-facilitated report by going to "
I assumed you could request it before.
I requested a screen on sunday. I guess I will find out, why do they charge me then if they wont release it ?
 
That's what I said...
It lead to a couple unpleasant calls - I hate getting upset at the poor call center person, but we kept going in circles. I never ended up getting a report


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mavric1298 said:
That's what I said...
It lead to a couple unpleasant calls - I hate getting upset at the poor call center person, but we kept going in circles. I never ended up getting a report


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They charged you ? I would report that to the BBB and dispute charges.
 
I had my CC company go after it, I dunno want ever ended up happening, I was bleeding off so much money from secondaries I completly lost track to check on it. Yeah the whole thing seemed to make no sense. Maybe I just got someone who had 0 clue what they were doing or i dunno, but that's what happened to me last year!


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Do non-trads have any additional considerations when filling out the FAFSA? For example, I worked full time the last two years after getting my bachelors, which will be reflected on the FAFSA. However if/when I start medical school next year, that income will essentially be gone. I'll also have my parents' income on the FAFSA because apparently that's what schools want. Will having both incomes on the FAFSA hurt my ability to get need-based scholarships and/or loans?
 
TheRealJohnDorian said:
Do non-trads have any additional considerations when filling out the FAFSA? For example, I worked full time the last two years after getting my bachelors, which will be reflected on the FAFSA. However if/when I start medical school next year, that income will essentially be gone. I'll also have my parents' income on the FAFSA because apparently that's what schools want. Will having both incomes on the FAFSA hurt my ability to get need-based scholarships and/or loans?
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Depending on your specific situation, age/marital status/etc, many schools may not require you to list your parents. They may recommend it for certain scholarships and grants, but not necessarily require it....
But other than whether or not to include your parents, its pretty starightforward, nontrad or not. You can just have most of the info autofilled from previous years and your tax return. Same as when you completed it for undergrad.
 
I interviewed at Geisel yesterday and loved it. Mostly because rural New Hampshire was stunningly beautiful and reminded me in many ways of my hometown in Oregon. However, my s/o would not like life in Hanover, given his job in the corporate world. Damn life complicating things.

But seriously, Hanover is stunning.
 
gribear said:
I interviewed at Geisel yesterday and loved it. Mostly because rural New Hampshire was stunningly beautiful and reminded me in many ways of my hometown in Oregon. However, my s/o would not like life in Hanover, given his job in the corporate world. Damn life complicating things.

But seriously, Hanover is stunning.
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SO could always live in Boston! Dartmouth is pretty sweet. I also think that y3 and y4 rotations may be away so that might add another hurdle for non trads.
 
gribear said:
I interviewed at Geisel yesterday and loved it. Mostly because rural New Hampshire was stunningly beautiful and reminded me in many ways of my hometown in Oregon. However, my s/o would not like life in Hanover, given his job in the corporate world. Damn life complicating things.

But seriously, Hanover is stunning.
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Agreed! I loved Hanover. But the idea of moving somewhere so remote is a bit intimidating!
 
TheRealJohnDorian said:
Do non-trads have any additional considerations when filling out the FAFSA? For example, I worked full time the last two years after getting my bachelors, which will be reflected on the FAFSA. However if/when I start medical school next year, that income will essentially be gone. I'll also have my parents' income on the FAFSA because apparently that's what schools want. Will having both incomes on the FAFSA hurt my ability to get need-based scholarships and/or loans?
Click to expand...

It's going to be school dependent. My school requires parental info to be considered for need-based aid, even if you're in your 30's with three kids.

It won't impact your ability to get loans, though.


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libertyyne said:
That seems weird. "
For a fee, you may procure your own report from Certiphi Screening, Inc. in advance of the AMCAS-facilitated report by going to "
I assumed you could request it before.
I requested a screen on sunday. I guess I will find out, why do they charge me then if they wont release it ?
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I think his/her case might be a one-off
I bought the general screen and got mine back a few weeks later (All clean!) and I haven't even interviewed yet
 
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