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Unconditionalloves said:
UCSD has Prime? do you mean UCSF?
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Wait- just reread your post. Yes, UCSD has a PRIME program as well! Sorry for the confusion.
This is from their website (below) & theres also a separate tab for it on the secondary!

"UC San Diego School of Medicine (SOM) Program in Medical Education – Health Equity (PRIME-HEq) is part of a system-wide effort at the University of California to train physicians better able to meet the needs of the diverse Californian population who are traditionally underserved by the medical system."
 
finn1234 said:
Wait- just reread your post. Yes, UCSD has a PRIME program as well! Sorry for the confusion.
This is from their website (below) & theres also a separate tab for it on the secondary!

"UC San Diego School of Medicine (SOM) Program in Medical Education – Health Equity (PRIME-HEq) is part of a system-wide effort at the University of California to train physicians better able to meet the needs of the diverse Californian population who are traditionally underserved by the medical system."
Click to expand...
A ok, Thank you.
 
Secondary received! Verified on 8/7. Anyone know if UCSD screens? According to MSAR they do....
 
YeMustBeBornAgain said:
Secondary received! Verified on 8/7. Anyone know if UCSD screens? According to MSAR they do....
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They definitely screen, so congrats! 🙂

Per their email: " The University of California-San Diego School of Medicine (UCSD SOM) Admissions Committee has reviewed your primary AMCAS application, and would like to invite you to submit a secondary application."
 
Email received about updates and adding things to the portal:

UPLOADS WE WILL CONSIDER

Please use this Document Upload feature for the following things:

Explanation of MCAT "hardship"

  • We are interested in knowing about circumstances related to COVID-19 that you feel had an impact on your ability to achieve your maximum score (e.g. if you had test cancellations, had to drive to another city or state, or otherwise feel your performance was impacted by MCAT testing center closures)

Honestly considering doing this. My test was cancelled multiple times, I did have to drive to another state, and studying for the MCAT mid pandemic was definitely rough. I've never done an update letter before (although I will when my article gets published here soon) so I am nervous!
 
Konnorrrr said:
Email received about updates and adding things to the portal:

UPLOADS WE WILL CONSIDER

Please use this Document Upload feature for the following things:

Explanation of MCAT "hardship"

  • We are interested in knowing about circumstances related to COVID-19 that you feel had an impact on your ability to achieve your maximum score (e.g. if you had test cancellations, had to drive to another city or state, or otherwise feel your performance was impacted by MCAT testing center closures)

Honestly considering doing this. My test was cancelled multiple times, I did have to drive to another state, and studying for the MCAT mid pandemic was definitely rough. I've never done an update letter before (although I will when my article gets published here soon) so I am nervous!
Click to expand...

what article?
 
Konnorrrr said:
Email received about updates and adding things to the portal:

UPLOADS WE WILL CONSIDER

Please use this Document Upload feature for the following things:

Explanation of MCAT "hardship"

  • We are interested in knowing about circumstances related to COVID-19 that you feel had an impact on your ability to achieve your maximum score (e.g. if you had test cancellations, had to drive to another city or state, or otherwise feel your performance was impacted by MCAT testing center closures)

Honestly considering doing this. My test was cancelled multiple times, I did have to drive to another state, and studying for the MCAT mid pandemic was definitely rough. I've never done an update letter before (although I will when my article gets published here soon) so I am nervous!
Click to expand...
How are you doing this without sounding like you are complaining? I am in a similar situation and Im considering doing this too
 
YeMustBeBornAgain said:
How are you doing this without sounding like you are complaining? I am in a similar situation and Im considering doing this too
Click to expand...
I'm truly only doing it because they state "we are interested in knowing about..." I tried to explain the difficulties I saw, then did one short paragraph about what I learned from the situation. I tried my best to not say anything about scoring better or underperforming, just about the difficulties and what I did to counteract them.
 
YeMustBeBornAgain said:
How are you doing this without sounding like you are complaining? I am in a similar situation and Im considering doing this too
Click to expand...
Here's what the email says they do not want you to do:

UPLOADS WE WILL NOT CONSIDER

Please do NOT upload:
  • Information related to your MCAT score that is not covered above (e.g. “I consistently scored 4 points higher on practice exams” or “I did not sleep well the night before my exam”).
  • Application "updates" from the past few weeks such as new grades or new activities. Grades and activities that do not appear on AMCAS or your secondary application will not be considered.
  • A formal CV or resume
  • New letters of recommendation
From this, it sounds like it's okay to be a little "complain-y" about the MCAT hardships they stated. Do try to be specific however about how it impacted your testing ability. For instance, driving to another state could require booking hotels or driving at ungodly hours, which could be a financial burden or cause undue anxiety. Multiple test cancellations could mean that you are forced to take a test during a busier schedule where there is less time to study. Try to be as practical and straightforward as possible, but also tell it like it is. They're asking for it and genuinely want to know.
 
If you are interested in PRIME, it is a 5 year program right? And if you do happen to apply and are lucky to be accepted, is it a commitment or can you decide to just do the normal MD. Im interested but not sure if I want to do an extra year yet and not sure about finances for an extra year. But I wouldn't mind applying
 
Secondary Received Today! IS Verified: 8/19
Does anyone know how they screen? My MCAT is not the best, but the rest of my app is strong so I was surprised I got a secondary.
 
spiritcat13 said:
What are your stats if you don't mind disclosing?
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Oh sure! I don't mind at all. I'm very open and transparent.

I will preface this by saying I am URM (AA Male, 26, Nontraditional, OOS). My overall GPA is 3.4, my science GPA is 3.01, and 3.8 is AO. I got a 502 (gutter) on the MCAT. So these are my stats and I'm happy to tell you anything else you'd like. I wasn't anticipating getting a secondary, but I did. I completed it in two days so we'll see what the interview turnaround is. I've heard that they don't send a secondary to everyone, however, just because I got a secondary doesn't mean I will get an interview, but it would be cool if I did.

Alright so that's it. I think we've established that I possess the bare minimum for getting a secondary lol 🤣
 
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Thank you so much for your reply and honesty!! Very much appreciated over here and helped a lot 🙂

How long after getting verified did you receive the secondary?
 
spiritcat13 said:
Thank you so much for your reply and honesty!! Very much appreciated over here and helped a lot 🙂

How long after getting verified did you receive the secondary?
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You’re very welcome! I never understood why people are so secretive on here. Maybe they know something I don’t lol.

I was verified on August 12th and I got my secondary on August 17th.

I don’t think I have strong extracurriculars, but my app is very service oriented I think and I had a very well written and compelling personal statement. Also 273(?) hours of research didn’t hurt either
 
Did yall structure your autobiography in chronological order? (childhood, middle, high school, college, etc?)
 
sammyboy123 said:
What happens after 6 weeks?
Click to expand...

In the "secondary complete" email, they say "Depending on the time of year, it can take from 2 – 6 weeks for your file to be reviewed." The six weeks timeline seems to be when people are expecting to hear back!
 
wpneuro said:
In the "secondary complete" email, they say "Depending on the time of year, it can take from 2 – 6 weeks for your file to be reviewed." The six weeks timeline seems to be when people are expecting to hear back!
Click to expand...
I wouldn't hold them to 2-6 weeks. I doubt that is a hard-and-fast rule. If they go over 6 weeks I wouldn't be surprised, but idk.
 
Are you supposed to get an email from UCSD saying they've received your (primary) application? I know I got an email confirming my primary was submitted to UCI but didn't get any from UCSD/UCLA.
 
tropicalness said:
Are you supposed to get an email from UCSD saying they've received your (primary) application? I know I got an email confirming my primary was submitted to UCI but didn't get any from UCSD/UCLA.
Click to expand...

I didn't get one, but got a secondary
 
aristrutz523 said:
I was verified on 8/21, MCAT came this past Tuesday, I'm in-state, ORM, low-stat & secondary tonight.

I literally have no clue how they're screening.
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Gotcha. I'm OOS and it's been 3 weeks. I think I may have been screened out lol oh well
 
Going on 7 weeks post complete...Secondary app completed and confirmed on 07/10. IS so hopefully there will be good news soon!
 
Did anyone just get an email saying UCSD just received their verified primary app? I sent my primary to them 3 weeks ago and am still waiting for a secondary but I'm confused why I got this email just now
 
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tropicalness said:
Did anyone just get an email saying UCSD just received their verified primary app? Lol I sent my primary to them like 3 weeks ago and am still waiting for a secondary but I'm confused why I got this email just now 😵
Click to expand...
Yes I did. Around the same time as you. Did it say additional screening is required before deciding a secondary?
 
what time is the deadline to submit? is it like 11:59 pm one month later or 12 am one month later
 
tropicalness said:
Did anyone just get an email saying UCSD just received their verified primary app? Lol I sent my primary to them like 3 weeks ago and am still waiting for a secondary but I'm confused why I got this email just now 😵
Click to expand...
Ditto. I opened the e-mail up fully expecting a hard NO, so at least it's not there yet. :nailbiting:
 
Hold! Completed mid-July and OOS with no ties.

Anyone know how flexible the status is?
 
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