2020-2021 UNC - Chapel Hill

[MAGABLM]

I help with interviews, but I'm not on adcomm, so I'm sorry to say I don't know.

No apologizes necessary - your inside scoop is invaluable. Please let us know if interviews have actually stopped when you can.

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[itachisimp]

I saw some waves first week of Feb, third week and then mid March (deadline) from last year. Also I'm pretty sure there were a couple days in Nov and Dec this cycle when decision came out that they had interviews those days/weeks so we might still hear back this week. May the odds be ever in our favor everyone ✊

 

[alibon]

No apologizes necessary - your inside scoop is invaluable. Please let us know if interviews have actually stopped when you can.

I just went back in my emails actually and found a recent one where they said feb 1 was the last day. They're definitely done y'all.

 

[Mary G’s]

This wait is absolutely killing me. I'm trying to plan out my life and I'M PLANNING IN A VACUUM. ugh. This is comparably as bad as studying and taking the MCAT... AND NOT KNOWING IF I HAVE TO RETAKE THE MCAT.

thank you for reading. i need more wine.

 

[Mary G’s]

The more ya’lls write on here the more I start checking my portal like crazy. And I impatiently await the decision.

you and me both. I can go several days without succumbing to my SDN mania... then I spend probably 2 hours perusing through different school posts and trying to decipher what this could possibly mean. My only consolation is knowing that I am not the only one. I am here for you.

 

[alibon]

This wait is absolutely killing me. I'm trying to plan out my life and I'M PLANNING IN A VACUUM. ugh. This is comparably as bad as studying and taking the MCAT... AND NOT KNOWING IF I HAVE TO RETAKE THE MCAT.

thank you for reading. i need more wine.

Lol I do too. Y'all have been a great way of procrastinating studying for step... don't be like me when you get to med school haha

 

[bm5498a]

This wait is absolutely killing me. I'm trying to plan out my life and I'M PLANNING IN A VACUUM. ugh. This is comparably as bad as studying and taking the MCAT... AND NOT KNOWING IF I HAVE TO RETAKE THE MCAT.

thank you for reading. i need more wine.

this is the post!! exactly how I am feeling rn

 

[PremedNC]

This wait is absolutely killing me. I'm trying to plan out my life and I'M PLANNING IN A VACUUM. ugh. This is comparably as bad as studying and taking the MCAT... AND NOT KNOWING IF I HAVE TO RETAKE THE MCAT.

thank you for reading. i need more wine.

if i can offer advice, as a reapplicant... definitely plan on retaking the MCAT. plan like you arent getting into med school just to be safe. start studying, start prepping your app again

 

[FutureMed2021]

if i can offer advice, as a reapplicant... definitely plan on retaking the MCAT. plan like you arent getting into med school just to be safe. start studying, start prepping your app again

I also feel like my MCAT is low but they didn't ask any concerns about my MCAT during the interview so I don't know how to judge this. I will restudy but its hard to when you are waiting to hear back and have no idea what to expect.

 

[alibon]

I also feel like my MCAT is low but they didn't ask any concerns about my MCAT during the interview so I don't know how to judge this. I will restudy but its hard to when you are waiting to hear back and have no idea what to expect.

I wouldn't have expected them to ask about it during the interview really. I expected them to ask about a couple of my lower grades, but they never did that either. I don't think they really get anything out of asking about it. And like we've discussed before, if you made it to the interview, they decided your MCAT was sufficient enough to be successful in med school. If you really think its one of the worse points on your app though, it can't hurt to get a higher score. But I wouldn't expect just improving your score to be sufficient to get you in next year either; I would work on some other things as well- volunteering, medical experience, research, or whatever else.

 

[FutureMed2021]

I wouldn't have expected them to ask about it during the interview really. I expected them to ask about a couple of my lower grades, but they never did that either. I don't think they really get anything out of asking about it. And like we've discussed before, if you made it to the interview, they decided your MCAT was sufficient enough to be successful in med school. If you really think its one of the worse points on your app though, it can't hurt to get a higher score. But I wouldn't expect just improving your score to be sufficient to get you in next year either; I would work on some other things as well- volunteering, medical experience, research, or whatever else.

Ok so basically what I'm understanding is that my MCAT is good enough for UNC based on getting an interview so the factors that play a role now heavily is your interviews? So one of the main factors that plays a role into getting an acceptance is your interviews, LOR, extracurricular activities with little emphasis on MCAT? Thank you for answering our questions! Having a UNC student on here is great and I really appreciate your help!

 

[MsDoctorO]

I know the pain of uncertainty; this is my second application cycle. Funny though, I actually didn’t send in a secondary to UNC last cycle because I didn’t think my MCAT was high enough, and this cycle I sent it in thinking to myself “eh nothing to lose might as well”. I was soooooooo surprised to get an interview. February is still pretty early and a lot of movement has yet to happen. I was in denial about having to reapply until late April last year. I think decisions were trickling out every month until May, and everyday I was frantically refreshing my email and checking my phone wishing to catch the trickle of that good news. It’s painful, and becomes some strange addictive pattern of highs and lows. But in reality, for at least me if not a lot of us, our lives for the next year are dependent on that news, and it’s stressful being in that limbo.

Any who, at this point I would say maybe start considering reapplication. If you have to retake the MCAT definitely plan for that. I know with COVID that extracurriculars, shadowing, job experience can be tricky, but that might be something to start googling and see what’s out there. Just put yourself in a position of preparation and readiness and lookout for your future self so that if you do need to reapply you have your bases covered. You don’t want to go into a state of panic in a few months (like I did). You have the opportunity to prepare calmly, and you have time.

I’m very, very thankful to have some DO acceptances, as my MCAT expires after this cycle and the thought of studying for and retaking it being 4 years out of school felt to me like the plot of some psychological horror thriller.

Wishing you all the best, friends. We are in this together.

 

[alibon]

Ok so basically what I'm understanding is that my MCAT is good enough for UNC based on getting an interview so the factors that play a role now heavily is your interviews? So one of the main factors that plays a role into getting an acceptance is your interviews, LOR, extracurricular activities with little emphasis on MCAT? Thank you for answering our questions! Having a UNC student on here is great and I really appreciate your help!

Yeah basically. When they look at your app the first time to decide whether to give you an interview, MCAT is obviously one of the factors, but so is everything else you submit. If they look at all of it together and decide to give you an interview, then yeah it was good enough. They aren't going to interview you and then be like "well everything looks great and they interviewed really well, but their MCAT is a few points too low, so they don't get in." They wouldn't bother interviewing you unless your MCAT and grades show that you can do med school and not fail out first year.

That being said, if you don't get in, and you know you can do better on the MCAT (and I'm not talking about like 2 points, because that's a waste of your time and money) then sure go ahead and improve that. But to turn a no into a yes takes more than improving that one score. You need to look for the other weak spots in your app and work on those too. And I agree with the people above, think about this as if you are going to have to reapply, because its easier to plan things ahead of time, and then if you get in you can cancel those plans pretty easily. They're going to want to know what you did with the time between applying the first time and applying again and they're going to want to see work and growth in that time. What are you doing now or in the next 8 months that you can talk about at your next interview? How are you going to answer questions about what's different from your last application that should get you in this time? If your only answer is your MCAT score went up a few points, you're not gonna get in. But there are a dozen other things you can do to make your app stand out the second time around.

 

[alibon]

I know the pain of uncertainty; this is my second application cycle. Funny though, I actually didn’t send in a secondary to UNC last cycle because I didn’t think my MCAT was high enough, and this cycle I sent it in thinking to myself “eh nothing to lose might as well”. I was soooooooo surprised to get an interview. February is still pretty early and a lot of movement has yet to happen. I was in denial about having to reapply until late April last year. I think decisions were trickling out every month until May, and everyday I was frantically refreshing my email and checking my phone wishing to catch the trickle of that good news. It’s painful, and becomes some strange addictive pattern of highs and lows. But in reality, for at least me if not a lot of us, our lives for the next year are dependent on that news, and it’s stressful being in that limbo.

Any who, at this point I would say maybe start considering reapplication. If you have to retake the MCAT definitely plan for that. I know with COVID that extracurriculars, shadowing, job experience can be tricky, but that might be something to start googling and see what’s out there. Just put yourself in a position of preparation and readiness and lookout for your future self so that if you do need to reapply you have your bases covered. You don’t want to go into a state of panic in a few months (like I did). You have the opportunity to prepare calmly, and you have time.

I’m very, very thankful to have some DO acceptances, as my MCAT expires after this cycle and the thought of studying for and retaking it being 4 years out of school felt to me like the plot of some psychological horror thriller.

Wishing you all the best, friends. We are in this together.

There is some great advice in here about preparing for reapplying. On one of the notes about finding job experience/shadowing/extracurriculars, I know a lot of hospital microbiology labs are looking for help right now with the extra testing burden of covid, and those are decent jobs that pay well and count as good experience. Additionally, I know UNC has volunteering opportunities with COVID and vaccine administration that is also open to undergraduates (no idea about people who are no longer associated with UNC, but I'm sure they'd appreciate the help so check it out). Here's the link about that- Carolina COVID-19 Student Service Corps seeks volunteers | UNC-Chapel Hill. Lastly, the state of NC has something called COVID strike teams (I believe you need a CNA or EMT license for this), which help by sending people to help in the COVID wards of nursing homes in the state who are having covid outbreaks. I know they need people if you have the education to help there. Just throwing out a few things in case y'all are interested.

 

[Secondtimeisacharm]

I know the pain of uncertainty; this is my second application cycle. Funny though, I actually didn’t send in a secondary to UNC last cycle because I didn’t think my MCAT was high enough, and this cycle I sent it in thinking to myself “eh nothing to lose might as well”. I was soooooooo surprised to get an interview. February is still pretty early and a lot of movement has yet to happen. I was in denial about having to reapply until late April last year. I think decisions were trickling out every month until May, and everyday I was frantically refreshing my email and checking my phone wishing to catch the trickle of that good news. It’s painful, and becomes some strange addictive pattern of highs and lows. But in reality, for at least me if not a lot of us, our lives for the next year are dependent on that news, and it’s stressful being in that limbo.

Any who, at this point I would say maybe start considering reapplication. If you have to retake the MCAT definitely plan for that. I know with COVID that extracurriculars, shadowing, job experience can be tricky, but that might be something to start googling and see what’s out there. Just put yourself in a position of preparation and readiness and lookout for your future self so that if you do need to reapply you have your bases covered. You don’t want to go into a state of panic in a few months (like I did). You have the opportunity to prepare calmly, and you have time.

I’m very, very thankful to have some DO acceptances, as my MCAT expires after this cycle and the thought of studying for and retaking it being 4 years out of school felt to me like the plot of some psychological horror thriller.

Wishing you all the best, friends. We are in this together.

Ditto!!! 100% every word! I gave up a DO spot last cycle to pursue my MD goals. No acceptances this cycle as yet and did not apply to DO! Will persist but will need to bite the bullet aand retake the MCAT after back-up masters plan!😌😌 Good advice @MsDoctorO

 

[FutureMed2021]

No updates??

Nothing yet. I don't know if people got updates who were not on SDN.

 

[ToMD2025]

Also waiting. 11/16 interview

 

[FutureMed2021]

Dang nothing so far

 

[drdp69]

I figure the next time we hear something will be next week. What's the typical chain of events? Portal change on Monday then phone calls on Tuesday or Wednesday?

My portal changed on a Tuesday

 

[bm5498a]

I almost wish they did like Brody and let us know how many offers have been made...but at the same time, I don’t because my anxiety would shoot through the roof

 

[ToMD2025]

If they could track our username and match it to our applications, we most certainly will be rejected for our lack of patience 😂😂

Ok UNC ..... I don’t want to give you ideas now ... 🥴

 

[Mary G’s]

If they could track our username and match it to our applications, we most certainly will be rejected for our lack of patience 😂😂

Ok UNC ..... I don’t want to give you ideas now ... 🥴

I think I’ve only checked the portal 7 times today. Better than yesterday. I checked it probably upwards of 20 times.

 

[Mary G’s]

I almost wish they did like Brody and let us know how many offers have been made...but at the same time, I don’t because my anxiety would shoot through the roof

Brody made some offers today according to the thread. Looks like they are clearing the December interview dates.

 

[MsDoctorO]

I think I’ve only checked the portal 7 times today. Better than yesterday. I checked it probably upwards of 20 times.

+5000000

 

[FutureMed2021]

Brody made some offers today according to the thread. Looks like they are clearing the December interview dates.

If they are clearing December dates does that mean anybody who interviewed in December basically didn't get accepted and will soon get rejected

 

[dneqv94]

If they are clearing December dates does that mean anybody who interviewed in December basically didn't get accepted and will soon get rejected

Not sure where this is coming from. That’s a huge jump to think that people who interviewed at UNC (or even ECU) in December would be rejected just because someone who interviewed at ECU in December was recently accepted. Look at multiple threads past plus think reasonably (not saying you’re not) and I doubt that what you’re saying is the case.

 

[FutureMed2021]

Not sure where this is coming from. That’s a huge jump to think that people who interviewed at UNC (or even ECU) in December would be rejected just because someone who interviewed at ECU in December was recently accepted. Look at multiple threads past plus think reasonably (not saying you’re not) and I doubt that what you’re saying is the case.

I completely agree with you, I was just asking the person who said that they were clearing the December interview dates, what exactly they meant by that

 

[Mary G’s]

I completely agree with you, I was just asking the person who said that they were clearing the December interview dates, what exactly they meant by that

The people from the Brody that were accepted interviewed in early December (per their posts). I’m not saying that if someone who interviewed in early December and didn’t get a phone call was going to get rejected. My personal thoughts on the matter are that because I interviewed there in January, and they seem to be working through December interview dates, I can calm my tits.

 

[anatomynerd]

I checked my portal yesterday and it did not have this. Did anyone get a NC residency checklist bar under the interview confidentiality agreement in their portal? Pretty sure this means nothing but I'm basically grasping for good news haha

 

[DontSugarCoatIt]

I checked my portal yesterday and it did not have this. Did anyone get a NC residency checklist bar under the interview confidentiality agreement in their portal? Pretty sure this means nothing but I'm basically grasping for good news haha

Good attention to detail. I do not have the NC Residency checklist on my portal. Maybe it’s a good sign for you! Any admitted students that can weigh in on this?

 

[FutureMed2021]

I don't have one either and I don't know if that means anything

 

[effervescentseaotter]

The residency determination form was only sent out to those who are OOS/may have clicked the wrong button and who now want to apply for instate tuition and such

 

[FutureMed2021]

From personal experience from a couple week ago regarding a post fafsa confirmation email, unless you actually get a call, email or decided status on portal (which can be good or bad), nobody should get their hopes up because it's easy to fall into that trap of thinking something means something since everyone would love some news after this long wait. I believe next week is when UNC is going to start sending out acceptances so lets hope for the best.

 

[Mary G’s]

From personal experience from a couple week ago regarding a post fafsa confirmation email, unless you actually get a call, email or decided status on portal (which can be good or bad), nobody should get their hopes up because it's easy to fall into that trap of thinking something means something since everyone would love some news after this long wait. I believe next week is when UNC is going to start sending out acceptances so lets hope for the best.

let's hope

 

[DontSugarCoatIt]

Somebody once told me the world was gonna roll me

 

[dneqv94]

Somebody once told me the world was gonna roll me

I ain't the sharpest tool in the sheeeeed.

 

[ToMD2025]

This is veryyyy off topic but do you guys think living alone in med school is a good idea? Ofc not factoring in the financial aspect

 

[Mary G’s]

This is veryyyy off topic but do you guys think living alone in med school is a good idea? Ofc not factoring in the financial aspect

Financially, it may be easier to have a roommate. Are you referring to more of not having to worry about noise while studying or for some other reason?

 

[Lucille95]

This is veryyyy off topic but do you guys think living alone in med school is a good idea? Ofc not factoring in the financial aspect

MS1 here! Most people I've met so far (which is probably not a representative sample because COVID) live with roommates, but definitely wouldn't be odd to live alone! The people who live alone said that they mostly want to have guaranteed alone/quiet time for studying, and for them the expense was worth it (your budget math changes quite a bit for most people when you get to med school-- things that feel like they might be a luxury you can consider an investment in yourself if it's truly going to help you be a better student. For me, that's shipping out laundry if I'm desperate and just too wiped out to haul it to my apartment's laundry building. For plenty of people, that's living by themselves.

I think most of the people who have roommates are either living with their families or are living with other health-allied students who are also studying during those times/understand the need for a good study environment. I have a roommate I knew in college, and when she heads off I'm going to be seeking a med/dental/nursing student roommate to fill in. Maybe a grad student.

That's my 2 cents!

PS I have so much respect for y'all applying this year. UNC has never been great about staying in contact with applicants but I can only imagine it's worse this year. Hang in there!

 

[alibon]

A lot of my classmates live with roommates (especially with our fellow classmates). I lived with one of my best friends first year (she was also a first year at duke med), which was honestly great. I really appreciated having someone around who I could commiserate with and who was supportive and understood the struggle (all of this went both ways of course). She wanted to be closer to duke this year, so I opted to live alone, which has its ups and downs. Especially during covid, there are times I wish I had people here, though during Step 1 study it has been nice to have my own space. I would say having roommates first year is good, because I think having the support around really helps, especially first year when you're trying to connect with your classmates and getting used to everything med school. And especially if you live with other med students, you'll all be looking for quiet at the same time lol. But like the MS1 above said, plenty of people prefer to have their space and live alone and that's totally cool too. Whatever works for you!

 

[ToMD2025]

MS1 here! Most people I've met so far (which is probably not a representative sample because COVID) live with roommates, but definitely wouldn't be odd to live alone! The people who live alone said that they mostly want to have guaranteed alone/quiet time for studying, and for them the expense was worth it (your budget math changes quite a bit for most people when you get to med school-- things that feel like they might be a luxury you can consider an investment in yourself if it's truly going to help you be a better student. For me, that's shipping out laundry if I'm desperate and just too wiped out to haul it to my apartment's laundry building. For plenty of people, that's living by themselves.

I think most of the people who have roommates are either living with their families or are living with other health-allied students who are also studying during those times/understand the need for a good study environment. I have a roommate I knew in college, and when she heads off I'm going to be seeking a med/dental/nursing student roommate to fill in. Maybe a grad student.

That's my 2 cents!

PS I have so much respect for y'all applying this year. UNC has never been great about staying in contact with applicants but I can only imagine it's worse this year. Hang in there!

A lot of my classmates live with roommates (especially with our fellow classmates). I lived with one of my best friends first year (she was also a first year at duke med), which was honestly great. I really appreciated having someone around who I could commiserate with and who was supportive and understood the struggle (all of this went both ways of course). She wanted to be closer to duke this year, so I opted to live alone, which has its ups and downs. Especially during covid, there are times I wish I had people here, though during Step 1 study it has been nice to have my own space. I would say having roommates first year is good, because I think having the support around really helps, especially first year when you're trying to connect with your classmates and getting used to everything med school. And especially if you live with other med students, you'll all be looking for quiet at the same time lol. But like the MS1 above said, plenty of people prefer to have their space and live alone and that's totally cool too. Whatever works for you!

Thank you for this! This is very helpful!

 

[ToMD2025]

Financially, it may be easier to have a roommate. Are you referring to more of not having to worry about noise while studying or for some other reason?

Yeah I was thinking about the noise or differences in lifestyles, especially if roommates are non med students.

 

[bm5498a]

Hoping to hear some news this week!

 

[Mary G’s]

Yeah I was thinking about the noise or differences in lifestyles, especially if roommates are non med students.

Yeah I totally understand that. If I weren’t married with a kid and dogs and cats, I would opt to live alone. But that’s just my personal preference. I’m sure that if you decide to have a roommate that there will be plenty of other med students looking for a roommate as well, if that is the route you choose to take. I think either option has its own pros and cons.

 

[ToMD2025]

 

[DontSugarCoatIt]

View attachment 329445

 

[MZLI]

Hey, does anybody know if UNC provides application feedback? If you were a reapplicant this year, did you ask UNC for application feedback? Thanks.

 

[dneqv94]

Hey, does anybody know if UNC provides application feedback? If you were a reapplicant this year, did you ask UNC for application feedback? Thanks.

They say somewhere that they do. But when I and a few others asked about it last year we didn’t hear back. They were probably just busy with matriculating students. If you’re concerned about that, one thing to consider is timeline since depending on your app, it might be too late to get feedback and then implement it if you, for example get feedback by mid-year, when the next cycle is already under way. So I’d start seeking that sort of feedback wherever you can since you usually can’t get it at schools you’re still actively applying to!

 

[hamjoints]

Accepted late this evening No phone call or change in my portal status yet so I guess it's kind of variable in how you hear back. Super happy to be here at this moment as a reapp

 

[itachisimp]

Accepted late this evening No phone call or change in my portal status yet so I guess it's kind of variable in how you hear back. Super happy to be here at this moment as a reapp

Congratulations!!!! Every person that hears good news is giving me serotonin