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onelastshot said:
I found it help if I switched from safari to google chrome and not sure if that's the real issue but the web stays logged in for me
Click to expand...
I did that too, it still timed out for me...but a little less often haha

Also, did anyone received a confirmation email when they submitted? I didn't receive one
 
nontrad1997 said:
I did that too, it still timed out for me...but a little less often haha

Also, did anyone received a confirmation email when they submitted? I didn't receive one
Click to expand...

They said they won’t send e-mails, there will only be status updates on the portal in regards to submission and completion of processing.
 
Does everyone just re-list all the amcas activities in the OHSU activities section?
 
onelastshot said:
Thanks for your reply! Do you know if we should list presentations and publications in that section too?
Click to expand...
because of the format, I would say presentations yes, publications better fit them in one of the 6 short answer questions.
 
For what it’s worth for OOS students my class has about ~27% OOS it sounds like I am also OOS but I fit the mission group for MD/MPH! I highly suggest applying that route if you are interested in public health and have great experiences no need for higher stats!
 
FuturePedsDoc1993 said:
For what it’s worth for OOS students my class has about ~27% OOS it sounds like I am also OOS but I fit the mission group for MD/MPH! I highly suggest applying that route if you are interested in public health and have great experiences no need for higher stats!
Click to expand...
This makes me so happy! I am an OOS MD/MPH applicant also and I definitely down have high stats haha
 
FuturePedsDoc1993 said:
For what it’s worth for OOS students my class has about ~27% OOS it sounds like I am also OOS but I fit the mission group for MD/MPH! I highly suggest applying that route if you are interested in public health and have great experiences no need for higher stats!
Click to expand...

For the MD/MPH, you need a specifically public health letter don't you?
 
SouthernGeorgiaPines said:
where would it even say "complete" because my portal just says submitted on 8/XX
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It says there will be no status updates until the application has been processed. I’m assuming it will go from saying that it was submitted on such a date to saying something along the lines of “application is complete. Review pending.”
 
neurofanatic213 said:
It says there will be no status updates until the application has been processed. I’m assuming it will go from saying that it was submitted on such a date to saying something along the lines of “application is complete. Review pending.”
Click to expand...
Or in My case accepted pre-interview 😛
 
How are people going about answering the competency question?
 
Taskha said:
Hey guys! In the secondary portal, I noticed that there is a section of "extracurricular" asked us to list past experiences. Is this similar to the primary app? Should I paraphrase a little bit?
Click to expand...
I broke the 3 categories into a 3 paragraph statement: pre-professional, thinking/reasoning, science competency. Shared a few new stories/activities for each (try not to repeat your primary or essay question material)
 
Did anyone dealt with OHSU & courses evaluated from other countries? I know they want to see an evaluation from WES, but does it need to be delivered before the 2 weeks deadline for the secondary?
Usually schools want the WES evaluation after making an offer.
 
I have decided to take a gap after getting WL this year and will apply again next year with a stronger app, but for those in my shoes last year applying, here are a few things i wish I knew.

OHSU is going to take forever to review your app. I mean, forever. I didnt hear a peep after i was completed until my II in february, and again didnt hear anything until I got waitlisted on June 1st, it's a lot of waiting, I'd expect them to be even slower this year

Despite how slow they are, OHSU really actually evaluates you as a person, not as a pair of statistics. After a certain point in the process adcoms are blinded to your MCAT and GPA (confirmed by asst. dean of admissions on my interview day). I am IS with a 3.45 and 507->511 MCAT, so nothing special, even below the average, and still got interviewed and on the WL. During my feedback review with the Dean of admissions (who does not participate in actual student admissions, just oversees) told me everything that kept me from getting an outright acceptance was non stats related. She didn't mention my GPA once and even said "dont retake the MCAT". im sure a 520 would definitely put me higher on their list, but they use GPA and MCAT as a baseline to say "okay this person can handle the academic rigors", but not as this sliding scale where they see a 3.8/ 515 substantially better than a 3.7/512. The dean even told our interview group "I've never admitted someone to this school and thought, 'I wish their MCAT was 2 points higher', what matters is who you are". So hopefully this will put to rest some anxiety for IS students applying with mediocre stats. (OSS, im sorry to say, but unless you fit a mission group you will need those high stats to stand out unlike IS students). My main feedback was actually about my responses in my 1 on 1 interview and one "bad" interview in my MMI, not my GPA, mcat or ECs.

As stated above, do your feedback review if you don't get in NO MATTER WHAT, even if you don't want to apply OHSU again. The information is invaluable and the things that kept me from an A was actually a lot different from what I expected (more related to my interview as opposed to my ECs or grades).

Don't rely on yourself being a natural interviewer. I've actually been told by providers that "I bet you interview well". Turns out my lack of interview prep may have been the deciding factor for me this year! Even if youre naturally social and good in job interviews, this is different. You'll have not only students judging you in your MMI (my one bad MMI which set me back a lot was with a student who thought I was 'talking down' to him) but professors and experienced physicians as well. I think while the physicians liked my no nonsense style, the students may have taken that a different way. Really try and be impartial as possible in every MMI station, and recognize who your interviewer is and tune your behavior to that.

Don't check SDN every day, it will compound your anxiety, check your portal and email, because knowing whether other people are getting accepted/rejected is largely unrelated to you. SDN is not an accurate representation of the applicant pool.

I know people who actually got the A will be able to give some more valuable advise, but seems like all those guys are superstars anyway, so just wanted to throw a little knowledge via experience out for new applicants. GOOD LUCK!
 
Last edited:
BigPremedGuy said:
I have decided to take a gap after getting WL this year and will apply again next year with a stronger app, but for those in my shoes last year applying, here are a few things i wish I knew.

OHSU is going to take forever to review your app. I mean, forever. I didnt hear a peep after i was completed until my II in february, and again didnt hear anything until I got waitlisted on June 1st, it's a lot of waiting, I'd expect them to be even slower this year

Despite how slow they are, OHSU really actually evaluates you as a person, not as a pair of statistics. After a certain point in the process adcoms are blinded to your MCAT and GPA (confirmed by asst. dean of admissions on my interview day). I am IS with a 3.45 and 507->511 MCAT, so nothing special, even below the average, and still got interviewed and on the WL. During my feedback review with the Dean of admissions (who does not participate in actual student admissions, just oversees) told me everything that kept me from getting an outright acceptance was non stats related. She didn't mention my GPA once and even said "dont retake the MCAT". im sure a 520 would definitely put me higher on their list, but they use GPA and MCAT as a baseline to say "okay this person can handle the academic rigors", but not as this sliding scale where they see a 3.8/ 515 substantially better than a 3.7/512. The dean even told our interview group "I've never admitted someone to this school and thought, 'I wish their MCAT was 2 points higher', what matters is who you are". So hopefully this will put to rest some anxiety for IS students applying with mediocre stats. (OSS, im sorry to say, but unless you fit a mission group you will need those high stats to stand out unlike IS students). My main feedback was actually about my responses in my 1 on 1 interview and one "bad" interview in my MMI, not my GPA, mcat or ECs.

As stated above, do your feedback review if you don't get in NO MATTER WHAT, even if you don't want to apply OHSU again. The information is invaluable and the things that kept me from an A was actually a lot different from what I expected (more related to my interview as opposed to my ECs or grades).

Don't rely on yourself being a natural interviewer. I've actually been told by providers that "I bet you interview well". Turns out my lack of interview prep may have been the deciding factor for me this year! Even if youre naturally social and good in job interviews, this is different. You'll have not only students judging you in your MMI (my one bad MMI which set me back a lot was with a student who thought I was 'talking down' to him) but professors and experienced physicians as well. I think while the physicians liked my no nonsense style, the students may have taken that a different way. Really try and be impartial as possible in every MMI station, and recognize who your interviewer is and tune your behavior to that.

Don't check SDN every day, it will compound your anxiety, check your portal and email, because knowing whether other people are getting accepted/rejected is largely unrelated to you. SDN is not an accurate representation of the applicant pool.

I know people who actually got the A will be able to give some more valuable advise, but seems like all those guys are superstars anyway, so just wanted to throw a little knowledge via experience out for new applicants. GOOD LUCK!
Click to expand...

This """" Don't check SDN every day, it will compound your anxiety, check your portal and email, because knowing whether other people are getting accepted/rejected is largely unrelated to you. SDN is not an accurate representation of the applicant pool. " """ is the best advice and the hardest to follow.

Thank you.
 
Has anyone been marked complete? If so, could you share how the home page looks like?
 
How in the world are you guys approaching prompt #4?
 
So I'm looking at their missions groups as an OOS applicant, and I'm confused about what specifically they're looking for in order to count as a mission group applicant.

I read on reddit that the superior achievements in academics means 3.7 and 513 as a minimum. Is this correct, and how does anyone know this? Did they email admissions or something and admissions gave these stats?

And for the overcoming adversity mission group, this could be so many different things. Like are they looking for personal adversity in terms of overcoming a disadvantaged status, or maybe a medical condition or disability? And for contributing to diversity in healthcare, this again could be so many different things. Like are they looking specifically for someone who is URM, someone with a non-science degree?

Does anyone know if I should be fitting a certain specific criteria as an OOS applicant in order to be considered as part of the mission group?
Also, if you are OOS like me, do you mind sharing why you're applying to this school if they specifically said you must fit into a mission to even be considered?

Just don't want to waste money on this secondary if there is no chance.


1598496721814.png
 
How in the world are you guys approaching prompt #4?
Click to expand...

Ok, I legit am having trouble with this one too! Like, I've had this secondary for about three weeks and this is the ONE question tripping me up. I've jotted some stuff down for each competency but I'm talking about stuff like growing up in a diverse area, helping out classmates to the experiences in my application. I don't know how to connect them all in a "narrative."

Does anybody how to start the essay? :shrug: Thanks!
 
Tetines of Paris said:
Ok, I legit am having trouble with this one too! Like, I've had this secondary for about three weeks and this is the ONE question tripping me up. I've jotted some stuff down for each competency but I'm talking about stuff like growing up in a diverse area, helping out classmates to the experiences in my application. I don't know how to connect them all in a "narrative."

Does anybody how to start the essay? :shrug: Thanks!
Click to expand...
I ended up just talking about few experiences and how they connected to the competencies, rather than a big resume dump.
 
premed06s said:
I ended up just talking about few experiences and how they connected to the competencies, rather than a big resume dump.
Click to expand...

so was it something like "During my experience of ____, I demonstrated cultural competency, reliability, and communication by ____"?
 
How are you answering #2? I have seen people answer it as challenges during medical school since it's worded "in becoming a physician." However other people interpret it is as challenges once you are a physician, and this is how I originally interpreted it.
 
WeakThought said:
So I'm looking at their missions groups as an OOS applicant, and I'm confused about what specifically they're looking for in order to count as a mission group applicant.

I read on reddit that the superior achievements in academics means 3.7 and 513 as a minimum. Is this correct, and how does anyone know this? Did they email admissions or something and admissions gave these stats?

And for the overcoming adversity mission group, this could be so many different things. Like are they looking for personal adversity in terms of overcoming a disadvantaged status, or maybe a medical condition or disability? And for contributing to diversity in healthcare, this again could be so many different things. Like are they looking specifically for someone who is URM, someone with a non-science degree?

Does anyone know if I should be fitting a certain specific criteria as an OOS applicant in order to be considered as part of the mission group?
Also, if you are OOS like me, do you mind sharing why you're applying to this school if they specifically said you must fit into a mission to even be considered?

Just don't want to waste money on this secondary if there is no chance.


View attachment 317015
Click to expand...

I am OOS, but applying to MD/PhD where residency is not a factor in their decision.
 
Taskha said:
Hey guys! In the secondary portal, I noticed that there is a section of "extracurricular" asked us to list past experiences. Is this similar to the primary app? Should I paraphrase a little bit?
Click to expand...
Is it just me, but I don't see an "extracurricular" section on my secondary portal?
 
Tetines of Paris said:
so was it something like "During my experience of ____, I demonstrated cultural competency, reliability, and communication by ____"?
Click to expand...
That's what I'm doing too because I don't really have just a few stories that will demonstrate all fifteen of them.
 
So does anyone know how to answer question 4? I answered it like a list where I mentioned the competency followed by my experience proving it. Does anyone have a better idea?
 
Wow-Zero said:
So does anyone know how to answer question 4? I answered it like a list where I mentioned the competency followed by my experience proving it. Does anyone have a better idea?
Click to expand...
I personally wrote it more in essay form but I think a list would be effective as well! I thought the essay was a bit more organic and natural looking so it didn't seem like I was just checking the boxes. I don't think it will make a big difference either way!
 
wydoc said:
I personally wrote it more in essay form but I think a list would be effective as well! I thought the essay was a bit more organic and natural looking so it didn't seem like I was just checking the boxes. I don't think it will make a big difference either way!
Click to expand...

I get stuck as to whether be blunt or "show", you know what I mean? Like, I'm a clinical research coordinator. Obviously I have to make sure patients understand what is going on and I have to gain their trust. Should I leave it at that or be like "I have great communication skills and hold ethical responsibilities by making sure patients understand blah blah blah". God knows a list would be easier though! Haha
 
Tetines of Paris said:
I get stuck as to whether be blunt or "show", you know what I mean? Like, I'm a clinical research coordinator. Obviously I have to make sure patients understand what is going on and I have to gain their trust. Should I leave it at that or be like "I have great communication skills and hold ethical responsibilities by making sure patients understand blah blah blah". God knows a list would be easier though! Haha
Click to expand...
I opted to use more "show" than "tell" and let them connect the dots... maybe a bit riskier but it was also easier to put it together that way for me after all of the other secondaries I have done
 
champ_rulez said:
Is it just me, but I don't see an "extracurricular" section on my secondary portal?
Click to expand...
It's just the work/activity summary section, asked you to describe all your activities in one sentence, and list the date/hour.
 
Should we add awards to the list of activities? Is it OK to add it? Thanks.
 
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