2020-2021 UCLA (Geffen)

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II ! I have already picked a date and received a confirmation email for it. However, I have not gotten a VITA request yet. In their email they mentioned I should be getting it "shortly" so I am wondering if maybe it is a mistake... Has anyone else experienced this?
 
quickaskz said:
II ! I have already picked a date and received a confirmation email for it. However, I have not gotten a VITA request yet. In their email they mentioned I should be getting it "shortly" so I am wondering if maybe it is a mistake... Has anyone else experienced this?
Click to expand...
VITA requests come out every Thursday. If your II was sent after last Thursday, you'll be receiving it this Thursday.
 
how bad is it if i don't submit my secondary in time for the deadline? i still want to submit my secondary but i'm wondering if i'll just automatically be rejected at this point for turning it in late
 
gaypremed123 said:
how bad is it if i don't submit my secondary in time for the deadline? i still want to submit my secondary but i'm wondering if i'll just automatically be rejected at this point for turning it in late
Click to expand...
Might be worthwhile to send them an email asking for a deadline extension (with a valid excuse) rather than submitting it late.
 
dcceelo said:
Does anyone know when they stop sending secondaries? I still have not received mine. I may have been screened out.
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I just got one yesterday, primary was verified 8/31 so I think they're still sending them.
 
erenyeager said:
Bruh the UCLA secondary be like "tell me about the most important activity in your life in 800char" and also spend 4000 char describing your work experience lol. So, I'll talk about my patient care in 800char and how I worked as a cashier for 2 months so I could buy an XBOX in 4000 char. Seems legit.
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Makes sense, people need more space to describe least important activities in life as that is what most people do! 🙂
 
So, for the "most important non-academic activity" I'm tempted to write about how I'm really interested in wine.
I volunteered at Murray's cheese in NYC for a while, worked at a wine startup, and I go to tastings and stuff to learn. Its a hobby and side passion but is this what they're looking for?

Or should I go for something more "app-friendly" like traveling and immersing in local cultures?
 
NordicTrekker said:
So, for the "most important non-academic activity" I'm tempted to write about how I'm really interested in wine.
I volunteered at Murray's cheese in NYC for a while, worked at a wine startup, and I go to tastings and stuff to learn. Its a hobby and side passion but is this what they're looking for?

Or should I go for something more "app-friendly" like traveling and immersing in local cultures?
Click to expand...
I would say go with your true answer, they’ll see a thousand answers about traveling and other cultures but maybe none about the same experiences you’ve had.
 
NordicTrekker said:
So, for the "most important non-academic activity" I'm tempted to write about how I'm really interested in wine.
I volunteered at Murray's cheese in NYC for a while, worked at a wine startup, and I go to tastings and stuff to learn. Its a hobby and side passion but is this what they're looking for?

Or should I go for something more "app-friendly" like traveling and immersing in local cultures?
Click to expand...
I'm slightly biased because I'm a NYC native and LOVE Murray's cheese, but I think that sounds way cooler than the generic traveling answer, so they're more likely to remember your app for that.
 
NordicTrekker said:
So, for the "most important non-academic activity" I'm tempted to write about how I'm really interested in wine.
I volunteered at Murray's cheese in NYC for a while, worked at a wine startup, and I go to tastings and stuff to learn. Its a hobby and side passion but is this what they're looking for?

Or should I go for something more "app-friendly" like traveling and immersing in local cultures?
Click to expand...

I would definitely do the wine & cheese if that is more meaningful.

For all of you out there doing the travel thing - don't worry about it being cliche. If it is true, then that is what you should write about and that will show in the answer. If it is just because you think that is what you should write about, that may also come across. Remember that at an interview you may be asked about your experiences and your answers will verify your essay or not!
 
dcceelo said:
Does anyone know when they stop sending secondaries? I still have not received mine. I may have been screened out.
Click to expand...
I just got the UCSF one today and I have low stats so I wouldn’t count yourself out yet
 
boulderdoc1 said:
I believe I heard somewhere PRIME wouldn't be getting IIs until Novemberish? Could be wrong though.
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can you get a regular geffen interview invite without a prime one and then get the prime one later? or does the prime interview count for both programs
 
ducks_are _the best said:
can you get a regular geffen interview invite without a prime one and then get the prime one later? or does the prime interview count for both programs
Click to expand...

PRIME interview counts for both. If you apply PRIME and receive a regular interview invite I would assume it is because you have been passed over for the PRIME program (I think this is a very rare scenario however)...

But Drew UCLA and Geffen UCLA are different schools and admissions and will have two separate interviews...
 
7summers said:
PRIME interview counts for both. If you apply PRIME and receive a regular interview invite I would assume it is because you have been passed over for the PRIME program (I think this is a very rare scenario however)...

But Drew UCLA and Geffen UCLA are different schools and admissions and will have two separate interviews...
Click to expand...

Geffen also has PRIME.
 
boulderdoc1 said:
Geffen also has PRIME.
Click to expand...

Yes I’m aware. First half of my response is specific to Geffen! Second half of my response I meant that some people confuse Drew UCLA as a prime program Or pathway for Geffen when they are actually separate schools with separate ADCOMS... Sorry if my response was confusing!
 
For those who have heard back, does your app portal say "Your app is complete" or does it say "Under review"?
 
parametz said:
I wonder if this means you got an R if you're complete w/o II. Did it say pending before?
Click to expand...
No I think everyone says complete at secondary submission + LORs and stuff. I just wanted to see if the status changed to "under review" at some point once someone looked at your app
 
cs19981998 said:
they made us sign an NDA on the AMP portal. and they said not to talk about the interview on SDN or anywhere 🤐 sorry bud lol

wish i could help. totally would if i were allowed. you'll all do amazing tho
Click to expand...
where did you have to sign this? I just scheduled for my interview and I am worried if I might have missed something. TIA
 
In this table from US news posted in Case thread back in 2018-2019, it was 52.48 %
forums.studentdoctor.net

2018-2019 Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

I was put on the alternate list. I am pretty discouraged since I loved this school when I visited and moved mountains to make it to the interview... I wish things were different but it is what it is. Congrats to the lucky bunch, you all deserve it!
forums.studentdoctor.net forums.studentdoctor.net
 
luminousleo said:
any last minute advice about vita? very scared!
Click to expand...

(Not the best advice but) Most importantly, relax! Pretend like you're video chatting a friend, you'll come across more personable and less like you're scared stiff. I stumbled over a few words (you know when your brain says one thing and your mouth says another and it gets all garbled) and I just paused, did one of those "Oops it be like that sometimes" smiles at the camera, and kept going. You can take breaks between questions to vent off excess nervous energy by yelling or pacing or jumping jacks, and then settle in for another 4-minute session.

During the 1-minute prep, best to mentally lay out some topic sentence and 3-5 points you wanna hit! Like if the question was "Tell us a time about teamwork" (I haven't actually seen this question), your topic sentence could be "while working on a group project I learned skills in communication, organization, and empathy," and your points would be: (1) explain situation in 1-2 sentences, (2) when you learned communication, (3) when you learned organization, and (4) when you learned empathy. Keep an eye on the time, and sum up at the end your points just in a sentence again: "Overall, this experience with teamwork provided me useful skills that I will carry forward in my career." Kinda crap example, but you get the idea. This is just something I've gleaned from a bunch of those "how to interview" tips and webinars as well!

You're gonna do great! And even if you don't (or feel like you don't), it's fine - this is new for everyone, adcoms know this, go treat yourself to ice cream or good food or whatever after.
 
luminousleo said:
any last minute advice about vita? very scared!
Click to expand...
During UCLA interview Q&A, they mentioned that Vita will be evaluated by current students, so I am assuming they are not going to put too much emphasis on it.
This being the first year of Vita, I am assuming other schools might treat it similarly.
Hopefully this helps you relax a bit. All the best!
 
wpneuro said:
(Not the best advice but) Most importantly, relax! Pretend like you're video chatting a friend, you'll come across more personable and less like you're scared stiff. I stumbled over a few words (you know when your brain says one thing and your mouth says another and it gets all garbled) and I just paused, did one of those "Oops it be like that sometimes" smiles at the camera, and kept going. You can take breaks between questions to vent off excess nervous energy by yelling or pacing or jumping jacks, and then settle in for another 4-minute session.

During the 1-minute prep, best to mentally lay out some topic sentence and 3-5 points you wanna hit! Like if the question was "Tell us a time about teamwork" (I haven't actually seen this question), your topic sentence could be "while working on a group project I learned skills in communication, organization, and empathy," and your points would be: (1) explain situation in 1-2 sentences, (2) when you learned communication, (3) when you learned organization, and (4) when you learned empathy. Keep an eye on the time, and sum up at the end your points just in a sentence again: "Overall, this experience with teamwork provided me useful skills that I will carry forward in my career." Kinda crap example, but you get the idea. This is just something I've gleaned from a bunch of those "how to interview" tips and webinars as well!

You're gonna do great! And even if you don't (or feel like you don't), it's fine - this is new for everyone, adcoms know this, go treat yourself to ice cream or good food or whatever after.
Click to expand...

^I second this advice!! You’ve got this!
 
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