2023-2024 Illinois

[chilly_md]

2023-2024 Illinois Secondary Prompts

No character limit is indicated, brevity is typically appreciated by schools as rule of thumb.

1. What characteristics, qualities, or attributes do you possess that have helped you to deal with conflict and change?

2. Which characteristics, qualities, or attributes of UICOM attracted you to apply for medical school here?

3. An important part of UICOM’s identity is the concept of “one college, three campuses.” The curriculum is identical on each campus; however, each campus has unique characteristics. Please describe what you have learned about at least two of our three campuses.

4. What are some of the causes and consequences of prejudice and injustice? What does an individual’s response to prejudice and injustice reveal about their character? What is the role of a bystander who witnesses prejudice or injustice?

5. UICOM values a wide range of perspectives. Describe an aspect of your own perspective, value system, or lived experience that is important to you and how it would contribute to the diverse and collaborative community at UICOM.

6. Have you applied for admission to medical school previously?
Yes/No
If you are reapplying this year please describe what you have done during the past year.

7. Have you ever matriculated into and not completed a professional/graduate program?
Yes/No
Please describe the circumstances of why you did not complete the program of study.

Good luck to everyone applying!

Interview feedback:

University of Illinois College of Medicine Interview Feedback

Review of University of Illinois College of Medicine Interview Feedback. Get the latest information, opinions of fellow students, and LizzyM and SDN Rankings.

www.studentdoctor.net

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[chilly_md]

UICOM website says they require 3 LORs (and gives specific combinations that we can use). However, on MSAR it states minimum of 3 and maximum of 10. Does anyone know which one is accurate? I was thinking of submitting between 4-6.

Go by the website. It does not appear to specify the maximum, but I highly recommend stopping at 4. Maybe 5 if the extra letter really adds something substantial that would not be present in your app otherwise. 6 is unnecessarily too many.

 

[Twodogs]

Does anyone have the secondary yet?

 

[Rite1234]

Nope

 

[srs.md]

oos secondary received!

 

[srs.md]

Secondary questions:

1. What characteristics, qualities, or attributes do you possess that have helped you to deal with conflict and change?

2. Which characteristics, qualities, or attributes of UICOM attracted you to apply for medical school here?

3. An important part of UICOM’s identity is the concept of “one college, three campuses.” The curriculum is identical on each campus; however, each campus has unique characteristics. Please describe what you have learned about at least two of our three campuses.

4. What are some of the causes and consequences of prejudice and injustice? What does an individual’s response to prejudice and injustice reveal about their character? What is the role of a bystander who witnesses prejudice or injustice?

5. UICOM values a wide range of perspectives. Describe an aspect of your own perspective, value system, or lived experience that is important to you and how it would contribute to the diverse and collaborative community at UICOM.

6. Have you applied for admission to medical school previously?
Yes/No
If you are reapplying this year please describe what you have done during the past year.

7. Have you ever matriculated into and not completed a professional/graduate program?
Yes/No
Please describe the circumstances of why you did not complete the program of study.

 

[dotsquared]

+1 IS

 

[deltacarotene]

+1 OOS

 

[AnxiousCapybara]

Damn they really changed all of their prompts

 

[orbitgum231]

Does anyone know if there is a word or character limit for these prompts?

 

[SultanateIV]

Damn they really changed all of their prompts

Crying pre-written tears

 

[lifetimeBenefit53589]

Do any of these prompts have a word or character limit?

 

[reptilian]

it doesnt look like there is any word/character limit... unless I'm missing something

 

[Gotjokes_345]

They really changed the whole thing L-O-L

 

[dotsquared]

Do any of these prompts have a word or character limit?

There does not appear to be when I put my answers in. I am just aiming for around 300-500 words cause I believe that's what it was last year

 

[bravemonwooper]

secondary received, OOS, verified 6/27

 

[Feeny]

Secondary received, OOS

 

[FoxyC]

There does not appear to be when I put my answers in. I am just aiming for around 300-500 words cause I believe that's what it was last year

there was no word limit last year. They normally want short answers, 1000-2000 characters would be my guess

 

[chilly_md]

Damn they really changed all of their prompts

If others who received this secondary can confirm the changes and which questions are being asked, we will pin the prompts at the top.

 

[albb28]

If others who received this secondary can confirm the changes and which questions are being asked, we will pin the prompts at the top.

Prompt changes are accurate (unfortunately). There's no word limit as far as I've been able to tell. Good luck everyone!

 

[moonshapedpooll]

If others who received this secondary can confirm the changes and which questions are being asked, we will pin the prompts at the top.

can confirm they are accurate

 

[premed917]

Secondary questions:

1. What characteristics, qualities, or attributes do you possess that have helped you to deal with conflict and change?

2. Which characteristics, qualities, or attributes of UICOM attracted you to apply for medical school here?

3. An important part of UICOM’s identity is the concept of “one college, three campuses.” The curriculum is identical on each campus; however, each campus has unique characteristics. Please describe what you have learned about at least two of our three campuses.

4. What are some of the causes and consequences of prejudice and injustice? What does an individual’s response to prejudice and injustice reveal about their character? What is the role of a bystander who witnesses prejudice or injustice?

5. UICOM values a wide range of perspectives. Describe an aspect of your own perspective, value system, or lived experience that is important to you and how it would contribute to the diverse and collaborative community at UICOM.

6. Have you applied for admission to medical school previously?
Yes/No
If you are reapplying this year please describe what you have done during the past year.

7. Have you ever matriculated into and not completed a professional/graduate program?
Yes/No
Please describe the circumstances of why you did not complete the program of study.

@chilly_md

 

[SultanateIV]

Is the text for #1 smaller than the rest? Also, do you guys have a check next to International Documentation in the status section?

 

[chilly_md]

Thanks @srs.md for providing the prompts and @albb28 and @moonshapedpooll for confirming.

 

[dlosamtto]

Is anyone else having trouble accessing the education portion of the chicago campus on the website?

 

[Gotjokes_345]

Hi everyone, does anyone know how we should approach this question on the secondary, are we just supposed to state facts about the campuses? Oror maybe integrate our experiences in there somewhere (not sure how though)?

--- An important part of UICOM’s identity is the concept of “one college, three campuses.” The curriculum is identical on each campus; however, each campus has unique characteristics. Please describe what you have learned about at least two of our three campuses.---

 

[albb28]

Hi everyone, does anyone know how we should approach this question on the secondary, are we just supposed to state facts about the campuses? Oror maybe integrate our experiences in there somewhere (not sure how though)?

--- An important part of UICOM’s identity is the concept of “one college, three campuses.” The curriculum is identical on each campus; however, each campus has unique characteristics. Please describe what you have learned about at least two of our three campuses.---

I don't really get how to best answer this question either honestly. I used a lot of points about 2 campuses in the "Why Us" essay right before. I approached this question by just describing campus-specific opportunities I would partake in if I were there.

 

[goat12]

can anyone else not find the option to apply to scholarly concentration in the supplemental application?

 

[albb28]

Did you guys have an option for selecting a Rural Medicine Program? There was nothing on my secondary application that asked that, or any scholarly concentrations for that matter.

 

[moonshapedpooll]

Did you guys have an option for selecting a Rural Medicine Program? There was nothing on my secondary application that asked that, or any scholarly concentrations for that matter.

i noticed this too. they also have an Urban Med program I was gonna apply to, but don't see anything about concentrations on the portal/in the essays

 

[albb28]

i noticed this too. they also have an Urban Med program I was gonna apply to, but don't see anything about concentrations on the portal/in the essays

When I opened the essay section in the portal, I saw a rural medicine prompt pop up and disappear instantly. It looks like there's some glitch there. I submitted my application already, and it's been marked as complete so I think I'm just going to wait and see if anything happens.

 

[Dr. Doofenshmirtz]

I have no word or character limit available. Has anyone emailed them to find out any specifics?

 

[FriendlyStranger]

What is the deal with the word limits? Does it look bad to submit a full fledge essay for each of these questions?

 

[bwxxy]

if UICOM is gonna reject me you bet they're reading my long-ass essays

 

[km1119]

Does UICOM tend to offer scholarships/financial aid? The OOS tuition is super high.

 

[goat12]

anyone know how long they take to mark "international documentation" as received?

 

[chilly_md]

Does UICOM tend to offer scholarships/financial aid? The OOS tuition is super high.

This is not a school known for that in the past. They use the high OOS tuition for funding. Hence, I do not usually recommend this school for OOS applicants.

 

[Gotjokes_345]

What is the deal with the word limits? Does it look bad to submit a full fledge essay for each of these questions?

Wondering the same thing. Even in instances where we might write a full essay for some prompts and end up with smaller ones for some of the other prompts, idk :/

 

[j_diggity]

IS secondary received today, 7/18, at noon! Was AMCAS verified Friday, 7/14. Hooray for one of my top choice schools! Now if only they hadn't completely changed all their prompts, I would be ready to submit today...

 

[km1119]

IS secondary received today, 7/18, at noon! Was AMCAS verified Friday, 7/14. Hooray for one of my top choice schools! Now if only they hadn't completely changed all their prompts, I would be ready to submit today...

OOS secondary received today, 7/18 also at noon! I was verified yesterday 7/17.

 

[anxiouspremed99]

Wondering the same thing. Even in instances where we might write a full essay for some prompts and end up with smaller ones for some of the other prompts, idk :/

aiming for 300-400 words per prompt, doubt they wanna read more than that

 

[Candyi]

For the second question, can I focus on one campus or more in general for all three campuses? Because there are particular programs I like in one campus

 

[goat12]

anyone know how to apply for the scholarly concentrations? I already submitted and completed my application, but there was no option / mention of scholarly conc

 

[medicallyfragile]

anyone know how to apply for the scholarly concentrations? I already submitted and completed my application, but there was no option / mention of scholarly conc

I believe that you apply after acceptance? I might be wrong though

 

[zzzhaozhuye]

anyone know how long they take to mark "international documentation" as received?

I'm having the same question - how long did it take them to mark yours?

 

[Sunrizon]

I'm having the same question - how long did it take them to mark yours?

I had to email them. Apparently, you need to upload your form I-20 along with your passport and visa too

 

[goat12]

I'm having the same question - how long did it take them to mark yours?

4-5 days after I submitted my app

 

[goat1080]

I believe that you apply after acceptance? I might be wrong though

Incoming M1 at the Chicago campus here. Yes, this is correct. They changed how it worked last year so there was some confusion on when to apply, but it's definitely post-acceptance. Basically, at some point (sorry, I don't remember exactly when), the prompts for the concentrations will appear in the AMP portal, and then you can fill them out. Just for reference, I was accepted into IMED, and I submitted my application at the end of March, received my (2) interviews in mid-April, and was accepted near the end of April. And I think they said you can apply to multiple concentrations, but can only be in 1 if you are accepted into multiple.

One other thing to note is that your campus assignment will affect your ability to do a certain concentration. As in, if you apply to a concentration and get assigned to a campus where that concentration isn't offered, then you won't be able to do it, which is why they have it as post-acceptance I think. They also had a couple of Zoom sessions about scholarly concentrations in November last cycle, but I didn't attend so I'm not sure what they covered or anything.

And if anyone has any questions you think I can answer let me know, and I'll try to help if I can. Good luck everyone!

Edit: added which campus I'm attending

 

[icedamericanopls]

Incoming M1 here. Yes, this is correct. They changed how it worked last year so there was some confusion on when to apply, but it's definitely post-acceptance. Basically, at some point (sorry, I don't remember exactly when), the prompts for the concentrations will appear in the AMP portal, and then you can fill them out. Just for reference, I was accepted into IMED, and I submitted my application at the end of March, received my (2) interviews in mid-April, and was accepted near the end of April. And I think they said you can apply to multiple concentrations, but can only be in 1 if you are accepted into multiple.

One other thing to note is that your campus assignment will affect your ability to do a certain concentration. As in, if you apply to a concentration and get assigned to a campus where that concentration isn't offered, then you won't be able to do it, which is why they have it as post-acceptance I think. They also had a couple of Zoom sessions about scholarly concentrations in November last cycle, but I didn't attend so I'm not sure what they covered or anything.

And if anyone has any questions you think I can answer let me know, and I'll try to help if I can. Good luck everyone!

do you have any suggestions for answering what we learned about each campus at UI COM? especially with the previous question asking about why UI COM, it is a bit difficult to navigate this question so that it does not sound repetitive

 

[goat1080]

do you have any suggestions for answering what we learned about each campus at UI COM? especially with the previous question asking about why UI COM, it is a bit difficult to navigate this question so that it does not sound repetitive

Yeah, I hated when they put semi-overlapping to overlapping prompts on secondaries lol.

I think the biggest thing that would stand out to me would be the sizes of the cities, and the different kinds of opportunities that are associated with them. So for a more rural area for example, you may be seeing a different type of patient population than an urban or suburban area, which can affect the types of patients you get to interact with. It would also therefore likely affect the initiatives the school and other community organizations are involved with, as well as the type of research they could be doing (e.g. wet lab vs clinical trials vs community). If there's a certain interest in medicine you have, you could maybe see if/how the way they provide care, resource, etc. in that field differs between the campuses. That way you can kind of tie it in with your previous question, but expand on it in a unique way. Since they really like to promote the curriculum as being the same between campuses, it could also help you tie into that too since you're also illustrating how they offer the same element of the curriculum at these campuses.

They obviously changed the questions from last year so I didn't have to do this one when I applied, but that's just a thought that comes to mind on how to approach it.