2019-2020 Kaiser (Tyson)

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peachyhoney said:
Congrats! Do you think you're likely to go?
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I am honestly still processing the whole thing and have lots of thoughts, but none of them are coherent!

I am 93% sure I will go. I can't see myself turning it down if nothing else, just from a financial perspective. I think I totally put myself in to the mindset that I would never get in so it's almost like I never really considered it an option. I think it being a new school is a big risk and hard to tell what we will go on to do. However, like I said, I have a really strong interest in health policy and health systems sciences and Kaiser seems like an ideal place to learn all of that. I don't think I'm going to withdraw my other apps just to see how things go.

Ask me again in two months after I've processed LOL
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emf96 said:
I am honestly still processing the whole thing and have lots of thoughts, but none of them are coherent!

I am 93% sure I will go. I can't see myself turning it down if nothing else, just from a financial perspective. I think I totally put myself in to the mindset that I would never get in so it's almost like I never really considered it an option. I think it being a new school is a big risk and hard to tell what we will go on to do. However, like I said, I have a really strong interest in health policy and health systems sciences and Kaiser seems like an ideal place to learn all of that. I don't think I'm going to withdraw my other apps just to see how things go.

Ask me again in two months after I've processed LOL
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Congrats I’m so happy for you!
 
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emf96 said:
I am honestly still processing the whole thing and have lots of thoughts, but none of them are coherent!

I am 93% sure I will go. I can't see myself turning it down if nothing else, just from a financial perspective. I think I totally put myself in to the mindset that I would never get in so it's almost like I never really considered it an option. I think it being a new school is a big risk and hard to tell what we will go on to do. However, like I said, I have a really strong interest in health policy and health systems sciences and Kaiser seems like an ideal place to learn all of that. I don't think I'm going to withdraw my other apps just to see how things go.

Ask me again in two months after I've processed LOL
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Congratulations!!
 
emf96 said:
I am honestly still processing the whole thing and have lots of thoughts, but none of them are coherent!

I am 93% sure I will go. I can't see myself turning it down if nothing else, just from a financial perspective. I think I totally put myself in to the mindset that I would never get in so it's almost like I never really considered it an option. I think it being a new school is a big risk and hard to tell what we will go on to do. However, like I said, I have a really strong interest in health policy and health systems sciences and Kaiser seems like an ideal place to learn all of that. I don't think I'm going to withdraw my other apps just to see how things go.

Ask me again in two months after I've processed LOL
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After interviewing here, this is my #1 choice! If I were to be accepted, I would 100% go here. I also have a strong interest in health systems science and family in the area. Additionally, I really like the use of new teaching techniques and technology. I also think Kaiser is a really cool system and I’ve heard great things about their residencies.
 
I don’t know how a brand new school which has not completed their construction or filled faculty positions is going to be. In five to ten years it will be great. Not very sure about now.
 
CaliforniaAsian said:
Interview experience was great, but I’m not hopeful for my chances here. Only one MD-PhD spot and a large number of interviewees.
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what do you mean by that? I was under the impression that any admitted student is welcome to explore dual degrees at some of these partnering schools. But KP isn’t even in the accreditation process to offer PhDs...?
 
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emf96 said:
what do you mean by that? I was under the impression that any admitted student is welcome to explore dual degrees at some of these partnering schools. But KP isn’t even if the accreditation process to offer PhDs...?
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You would do your PhD at a partner institution like Caltech
 
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Bond-HydrogenBond said:
You would do your PhD at a partner institution like Caltech
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right, but I didn’t think they had a pre determined number of slots for that. At my interview day they kinda made it sound like if you wanted to do it they would help make it happen. Idk tho bc ya girl is stopping after the next degree lmao
 
emf96 said:
right, but I didn’t think they had a pre determined number of slots for that. At my interview day they kinda made it sound like if you wanted to do it they would help make it happen. Idk tho bc ya girl is stopping after the next degree lmao
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Yes, I also got that impression. I thought in my head “wait.......we apply for this prior to matriculation”, which hints that perhaps they will have a way to pursue a PhD internally? Or they’re just spewing out whatever sounds good just to simply have something to say.
 
emf96 said:
right, but I didn’t think they had a pre determined number of slots for that. At my interview day they kinda made it sound like if you wanted to do it they would help make it happen. Idk tho bc ya girl is stopping after the next degree lmao
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The PhD would be separate funding & generally biomedical PhDs bank roll tuition & stipend. But if med school is free I don’t see a point to doing a PhD, when plenty of MDs do research.
Also, I’m right there with you — one more degree & im done.
 
Fruitjuice said:
Yes, I also got that impression. I thought in my head “wait.......we apply for this prior to matriculation”, which hints that perhaps they will have a way to pursue a PhD internally? Or they’re just spewing out whatever sounds good just to simply have something to say.
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They will not have a way to pursue a PhD internally. It is through Caltech. It is also doubtful that you’d be able to apply for the PhD program as an MS1, because that would be taking a spot from the next year. They only have the funding for one MD-PhD student per year because the class size is still planned to be 48 students for the foreseeable future (47 MD-only and one MD-PhD). It may increase to 96 students after they graduate their first class.

A lot of us were disappointed when we heard there was only one spot and we asked the MD/PhD director for ways around it, such as coming in with our own grants and funding. Still no dice. I suspect a factor is that the curriculum is structured around the 8 student small groups, so taking additional MD-PhD students means either accepting additional students (not happening) to keep the class size a multiple of 8 or reducing the corresponding number of MD spots. The latter is difficult because they want to graduate a number of students in 4 years for accreditation purposes, so something like 40 MD-only and 8 MD-PhD is not ideal.

Note that the other dual degree programs are with masters level degrees, and we did not ask about those.
 
CaliforniaAsian said:
They will not have a way to pursue a PhD internally. It is through Caltech. It is also doubtful that you’d be able to apply for the PhD program as an MS1, because that would be taking a spot from the next year. They only have the funding for one MD-PhD student per year because the class size is still planned to be 48 students for the foreseeable future (47 MD-only and one MD-PhD). It may increase to 96 students after they graduate their first class.

A lot of us were disappointed when we heard there was only one spot and we asked the MD/PhD director for ways around it, such as coming in with our own grants and funding. Still no dice. I suspect a factor is that the curriculum is structured around the 8 student small groups, so taking additional MD-PhD students means either accepting additional students (not happening) to keep the class size a multiple of 8 or reducing the corresponding number of MD spots. The latter is difficult because they want to graduate a number of students in 4 years for accreditation purposes, so something like 40 MD-only and 8 MD-PhD is not ideal.

Note that the other dual degree programs are with masters level degrees, and we did not ask about those.
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Unless they get MSTP funding, it is kind of waste of their time trying to pay for a student to attend Caltech for 4 years while their own MD school is free. They might as well work like Cleveland Clinic - one extra year for research while the med school is free. MD-PhD is waste of money for a free MD school.

This might all change when the school is no longer free.
 
texasvandy said:
Unless they get MSTP funding, it is kind of waste of their time trying to pay for a student to attend Caltech for 4 years while their own MD school is free. They might as well work like Cleveland Clinic - one extra year for research while the med school is free. MD-PhD is waste of money for a free MD school.

This might all change when the school is no longer free.
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You can’t apply for MSTP funding until you’ve graduated MD-PhD students and have a critical mass of current students and faculty. Somewhere along the lines of 5+ students per year and 40 students overall. Furthermore, MSTPs often invest MORE of their own money into the MD-PhD once they receive MSTP status. In other words, it can be more expensive for the school to be MSTP than not MSTP. Why is it a waste of time or money when MD-PhDs are considered to be the most prestigious students to a med school’s program, especially when Kaiser wants to increase its reputation? The PhD is funded by Caltech, but that doesn’t change my point.
 
CaliforniaAsian said:
You can’t apply for MSTP funding until you’ve graduated MD-PhD students and have a critical mass of current students and faculty. Somewhere along the lines of 5+ students per year and 40 students overall. Furthermore, MSTPs often invest MORE of their own money into the MD-PhD once they receive MSTP status. In other words, it can be more expensive for the school to be MSTP than not MSTP. Why is it a waste of time or money when MD-PhDs are considered to be the most prestigious students to a med school’s program, especially when Kaiser wants to increase its reputation? The PhD is funded by Caltech, but that doesn’t change my point.
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I am not so sure Kaiser can accept MD-PhDs based on Caltech funding PhDs.

A free medical school should not care to cater to MD-PhDs, especially when they have no name yet. This simply defeats their goal of starting up a medical school and having too many dueling objectives.

Your opinion can vary from mine.
 
texasvandy said:
I am not so sure Kaiser can accept MD-PhDs based on Caltech funding PhDs.

A free medical school should not care to cater to MD-PhDs, especially when they have no name yet. This simply defeats their goal of starting up a medical school and having too many dueling objectives.

Your opinion can vary from mine.
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I interviewed at Kaiser as an MD-PhD. Caltech is funding the PhD. These are the directors’ words, not mine. The “free” medical school isn’t a philanthropic gesture catered to medical students. It’s an investment by Kaiser to attract top quality students and establish a reputation. The MD-PhD does not conflict with that goal. *Especially* because they have no name yet, there is extra attention to every aspect of the program and students.
 
CaliforniaAsian said:
I interviewed at Kaiser as an MD-PhD. Caltech is funding the PhD. These are the directors’ words, not mine. The “free” medical school isn’t a philanthropic gesture catered to medical students. It’s an investment by Kaiser to attract top quality students and establish a reputation. The MD-PhD does not conflict with that goal. *Especially* because they have no name yet, there is extra attention to every aspect of the program and students.
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This. Having interviewed here, lack of funds or rationing of resources is definitely NOT going to be a problem.
 
CaliforniaAsian said:
I interviewed at Kaiser as an MD-PhD. Caltech is funding the PhD. These are the directors’ words, not mine. The “free” medical school isn’t a philanthropic gesture catered to medical students. It’s an investment by Kaiser to attract top quality students and establish a reputation. The MD-PhD does not conflict with that goal. *Especially* because they have no name yet, there is extra attention to every aspect of the program and students.
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Why would you want to go to a school which is just starting out as an experiment and attend some other school entirely for a Ph.D. and expect an expansion of such a program though? Students who are interested in MD/PhD would want to attend a defined program to spend those 8-9 years where their medicine and research experiences have a way to mesh.
 
texasvandy said:
Why would you want to go to a school which is just starting out as an experiment and attend some other school entirely for a Ph.D. and expect an expansion of such a program though? Students who are interested in MD/PhD would want to attend a defined program to spend those 8-9 years where their medicine and research experiences have a way to mesh.
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1. Why would you want to go to a school which is just starting out as an experiment? If you’re here in this thread, then that means you’ve answered this for yourself.
2. Why would you attend some other school entirely for a PhD? It’s Caltech. Same reason why USC and UCLA have intense competition for their MD/PhD programs with Caltech.
3. Why would you expect an expansion? I don’t think I ever said I expect an expansion any time soon. I only said they plan to take one student per year for the foreseeable future. I did provide an explanation as to why the program is valuable though
4. What do you mean by “defined program?” No program is going to hold your hand through the MD/PhD or say, “you have to do this and that exactly as we tell you.” It’s also not like MD/PhD programs have a focus or a specific department. They’re collaborations between the med school and grad school. Med school and grad school experiences almost never “mesh.” Your research could be related to what you want to do (cancer research and oncology for example), but the synthesis of those experiences come later in your career. Your medical interests are also highly subject to change because you’ve never practiced medicine before, but research is something you should have a few years of experience as an MD/PhD applicant.
5. I don’t think you should generalize what MD/PhD students “would want.”
6. What do you have against MD/PhD?
 
aayz345 said:
just curious but would you recommend asking a school if they have a travel subsidy for FAP applicants prior to interviewing? I don’t want to give off the wrong vibe, but interviewing is friggin expensive
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I asked Kaiser a few days ago and my interview is in two weeks. So I would recommend and worse that happens is that they say no. I don't think it gives off the wrong vibe, but that's just my opinion!
 
Bond-HydrogenBond said:
I asked Kaiser a few days ago and my interview is in two weeks. So I would recommend and worse that happens is that they say no. I don't think it gives off the wrong vibe, but that's just my opinion!
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Has anyone who isn't technically FAP asked for financial assistance with flights? I'm not quite FAP but am considering canceling interviews on account of travel expenses.
 
HG17 said:
Has anyone who isn't technically FAP asked for financial assistance with flights? I'm not quite FAP but am considering canceling interviews on account of travel expenses.
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Just explain where you are at and whether you qualify. The worst that can happen is that they say no!
 
Got my financial aid offer letter and it was more than generous. Outside of tuition, CoA is 35k for living expenses and transportation etc and they offered me... 35k in grants... Theres absolutely no question where I’m going to matriculate now, so stoked for this opportunity!
 
doa718 said:
Got my financial aid offer letter and it was more than generous. Outside of tuition, CoA is 35k for living expenses and transportation etc and they offered me... 35k in grants... Theres absolutely no question where I’m going to matriculate now, so stoked for this opportunity!
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wow congrats. Definitely happy for you.
 
kwabena said:
wow congrats. Definitely happy for you.
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Thank you. I’m incredibly humbled. Have lived in a working class family hovering around the poverty line w/ a single mom my whole life. All I’ve ever known is financial struggle, but this is certainly a welcome break! Wish everyone here nothing but the best as well
 
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doa718 said:
Thank you. I’m incredibly humbled. Have lived in a working class room hovering around the poverty line w/ a single mom my whole life. All I’ve ever known is financial struggle, but this is certainly a welcome break! Wish everyone here nothing but the best as well
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Congratulations. Now you have the opportunity not to worry about paying for medical school while you focus on school.
 
doa718 said:
Got my financial aid offer letter and it was more than generous. Outside of tuition, CoA is 35k for living expenses and transportation etc and they offered me... 35k in grants... Theres absolutely no question where I’m going to matriculate now, so stoked for this opportunity!
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I haven’t gotten my financial aid package yet, but I did get a grow-your-own-palm tree-kit and a hand written note from Dean Schuster, which is arguably the best swag so far. Do you think if I don’t keep my tree alive then I don’t get to matriculate? Is this a CASPer 2.0?? What’s the catch??
super happy for you and excited to be your classmate next year!
 
emf96 said:
I haven’t gotten my financial aid package yet, but I did get a grow-your-own-palm tree-kit and a hand written note from Dean Schuster, which is arguably the best swag so far. Do you think if I don’t keep my tree alive then I don’t get to matriculate? Is this a CASPer 2.0?? What’s the catch??
super happy for you and excited to be your classmate next year!
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Got the same package and thought it was super sweet haha looking forward to meeting you at second look!
 
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