2019-2020 Duke

BU Medical Sciences
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brownPiano said:
Wow SDN makes me feel bad about myself 🙁
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That's a very good sign that it's time to take a step away from SDN! Once you've submitted your secondaries and gotten all the advice you need, log off. I only hang out here because it gives me a sense of community and something to do while I wait, but when its not serving that purpose, I gotta bounce.
 
Got an II yesterday - anyone know what the "informal get together" the night before the interview is about? I'm interested in going but am wondering what it is, considering that they didn't elaborate at all lol
 
filthy_premed said:
Got an II yesterday - anyone know what the "informal get together" the night before the interview is about? I'm interested in going but am wondering what it is, considering that they didn't elaborate at all lol
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Probably a casual dinner with current students. Quite a few medical schools do this.
 
filthy_premed said:
Got an II yesterday - anyone know what the "informal get together" the night before the interview is about? I'm interested in going but am wondering what it is, considering that they didn't elaborate at all lol
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Assuming it’s the same as the past few years, it’s either at Cocoa Cinnamon (on Sunday nights) or The Parlour (Wednesday nights). Cocoa Cinnamon is a local cafe with cool drinks/snacks. The Parlour is a local ice cream shop.
It is very informal - all interviewees for that date and current students are invited to show up and just chat. No one there has any say in your admission. You absolutely don’t need to dress up at all or anything like that. It’s a setting to get to know people before the interview and ask questions to current students.
And, Duke picks up the tab, so get something good!
 
Nd_Thts_Tha_Givaway said:
LOL i feel you big dawg. Stuck in purgatory and everyday the weight of uncertainty gets heavier. Wish these schools were quicker with the Rs so I wouldn't have to worry about it at least.
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it gives me relief to see another member of the "reasonable application but radio silence" squad
 
sgoyal4 said:
Got an II yesterday! OOS, completed late July, MCAT 520, GPA 3.88, LM 75.8

Btw it seems like the dinner event the night before the interview is informal, what kind of things are people gonna wear lol?
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It honestly doesn’t matter. I promise. It is casual. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in! Students won’t judge you at all nor are they paying attention.

EmbryonalCarcinoma said:
Chinos + button down
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Also feel free to wear shorts and a t-shirt if that’s more comfortable. 🙂
 
ScienceGeek3 said:
Hey guys! I am looking for some advice here. I got the secondary exactly 29 days ago. I have completed my undergrad here, however, I am an international student. I got a 512 with a 3.9 with a great life story, not sure if it is worth writing all the essays if there is probably no return. What do you guys think? Thank you very much!
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Don't know until you try! What I do know is that Duke loves the "Forever Duke" narrative. So many of my classmates did undergrad at Duke, many of the residents I worked with came from Duke/DukeMed, and many Attendings are in the same boat. Already being a part of the Duke family will help your application.
 
MSTP_Girl said:
Were the secondary prompts the same as the MD prompts? Still waiting on verification and don't want to waste time writing all those essays if they're different.
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Replying to this here as well so people can see it if needed:


MD/PhD only requires you to write some of the essays. You don't need to write all seven of the MD essays. Both are 500 words.

1.
Tell us more about who you are. You may provide additional information that expands your self-identity where gender identification, racial and/or ethnic self description, geographic origin, socioeconomic, academic, and/or other characteristics that define who you are as you contemplate a career that will interface with people who are similar AND dissimilar to you. You will have the opportunity below to tell us how you wish to be addressed, recognized and treated.


2.
Critical thinking involves a number of characteristics including creativity, innovation, discernment, emotional intelligence, application and analysis. Describe a situation in which you utilized critical thinking. Why is critical thinking vital in your future?
 
@Seihai I applied to both MD and MSTP so I had to answer all questions.

Here were the questions:

Describe the community in which you were nurtured. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions you hope to make in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Success can arise from failure. What have you gained from your failed experiences and how does this translate in your current way of thinking?

Critical thinking involves a number of characteristics including creativity, innovation, discernment, emotional intelligence, application and analysis. Describe a situation in which you utilized critical thinking. Why is critical thinking vital in your future?

Leadership, teamwork, and communication operate synergistically. What do you value most as a leader and member of a team? What attributes do you possess as a leader and how will you apply them every day?

@MSTP_Girl
 
Elephant_enthusiast said:
@Seihai I applied to both MD and MSTP so I had to answer all questions.

Here were the questions:

Describe the community in which you were nurtured. What core values did you receive and how will these translate into the contributions you hope to make in medicine? What improvements do you think might make the community better?

Describe a situation where you have chosen to advocate for someone who is different from yourself. What does advocacy mean to you and how has your advocacy developed? How do you see it linked to your role as a physician? What risks, if any, might be associated with your choice to be an advocate?

What has been your most humbling experience and how will that experience affect your interactions with your peers and patients?

Success can arise from failure. What have you gained from your failed experiences and how does this translate in your current way of thinking?

Critical thinking involves a number of characteristics including creativity, innovation, discernment, emotional intelligence, application and analysis. Describe a situation in which you utilized critical thinking. Why is critical thinking vital in your future?

Leadership, teamwork, and communication operate synergistically. What do you value most as a leader and member of a team? What attributes do you possess as a leader and how will you apply them every day?

@MSTP_Girl
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If you apply both, then yes, you will have to write all of the essays. I was talking about specifically MD/PhD only.
 
After toiling on this secondary for DAYS, I am finally ready to submit. Too bad that I cannot even recycle most of these prompts! 🙁
Here's to tossing my application and (sweat, tears) into the wind.
I am gone with the wind everyone. Best of luck to you all.
 
Lmao been sitting on this secondary since 7/9...have been done with my other ones for over a week now but am too burnt out to work on this...
 
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sourpatch fetish said:
Lmao been sitting on this secondary since 7/9...have been done with my other ones for over a week now but am too burnt out to work on this...
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Completing the secondary itself is worthy of being the topic of a great challenge essay.
if you dont complete it, it becomes your greatest failure essay.
im just glad it's finally over. PHEW :'(
 
Etude No. 1 said:
@ people who have conquered this beast, did you manage to make it near 500 words for all the essays?
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You absolutely don't need to get near 500 words for all of them. If a couple of your answers are ~300-400 words and you've answered the question I highly doubt they're gonna hold it against you. As long as you don't write 6 of them at 250 words, I wouldn't worry about it too much.
 
I had to cut mine down from well over 500 lol.

That's the hardest part of all of these essays in my opinion. I mean, why even ask the question if you want a 200 word/1000 character response?
 
blax34 said:
I had to cut mine down from well over 500 lol.

That's the hardest part of all of these essays in my opinion. I mean, why even ask the question if you want a 200 word/1000 character response?
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Bro, same problem! My initial Duke essays were all >750 words. There are some folks on here that I have exchanged essays with that are good at the whole “not talking a lot” thing, but I find it difficult to convey what I need to convey in 5 sentences, y’know?
 
Is it worth the money to submit this Labor day weekend? That is realistically when I will be done with it :/
 
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