2024-2025 Alabama

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2024-2025 Alabama Secondary Essay Prompts:

State of Residence Section:
1. Non-Alabama Resident with Ties to Alabama: Describe any ties or meaningful experiences you have had related to the state of Alabama or UAB Medical Center (1500 characters)

2. All Applicants: if the area you spent most of your life before college differs from where you currently consider your permanent address, please explain (1500 characters)

Essay Section:
1. Where do you see yourself in your medical career fifteen to twenty years from now? (750 characters)

2. Learning from others is enhanced in educational settings that include individuals from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Please describe your personal characteristics or experiences that would add to the educational environment for your classmates. (750 characters)

3. Describe a patient interaction with the healthcare system. This could be a direct patient observation (in person or virtual) during a shadowing experience, a personal experience within the healthcare system, or a family member or friend who had a memorable interaction within the healthcare system. What did you learn from this experience? (750 characters)

4. Describe a fulfilling or challenging community service experience and how you grew personally from the experience. (750 characters)

5. UAB Medicine provides quality health care and compassionate service to every patient, every time, regardless of their individual differences or circumstances. Our academic medical center attracts patients from across the world who represent many cultures, religions, lifestyles, and economic backgrounds. Why are you specifically interested in beginning your medical education in this environment, and how do you feel that your previous experiences will prepare you for this unique learning environment? (750 characters)

6. OPTIONAL: Describe your identity and how it has impacted the development of your values and attitudes toward individuals different from yourself and how this will impact your interactions with future colleagues and patients (750 characters)

7. OPTIONAL: Please share any information you want us to know about you that is not included in your AMCAS application or in this secondary application. (750 characters)

Good luck to all applying!
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University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine Interview Feedback

Review of University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine Interview Feedback. Get the latest information, opinions of fellow students, and LizzyM and SDN Rankings.
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Last edited:
Friend that is an incoming MS1 at UAB did not want to dox their account, so I'll be posting on their behalf. My two cents is that based on what I know, most everything seems legit:


Hello everybody. I would like to shed some light on the admissions process at Heersink. As with everything on the internet, TAKE EVERYTHING I SAY WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. All the following info I have heard from a combination of adcom members, attendings, and students at the school over the years I did my undergrad at UAB.

Holistic review: This school takes holistic review very seriously. They sort of do an inverse of what UCSF does to the extent that they use MCAT and GPA for II screening, but as soon as a candidate gets an II, MCAT and GPA become non-factors (except for recruitment scholarships), as in that they are blinded to them when the app goes to the entire adcom for final review. When screening, they are looking to see if the (IS) candidate's MCAT and GPA meet a certain threshold to the point where they think that they will be able to handle the rigors of medical school well (like 512+), meaning that they don't really care if somebody has a 515 versus a 526. As a counterpoint to this, I have heard an adcom member say that they are impressed when they see a 520+.

Mission: There are some schools that are stat "lovers" and others that are service "lovers," but Heersink is a rural primary care "lover." I have heard adcom members literally state that a very good way to get accepted is to say that you are passionate about doing rural primary care in the state of Alabama. Obviously, if your EC's can't back this up, then they'll smell BS and reject you. Heersink also loves their non-trads and military people.

OOS: I may change my mind once I get to meet more people, but OOS'ers tend to fall into one of three categories (I am sure that there are exceptions): people in the BS/MD program, URMs (particularly Hispanics), and people from Ivy undergrads. I would also suspect that people with strong ties to Alabama / Bham make up some of the OOS'ers. Breaking this down a bit more, the state of Alabama has a 4% Hispanic population, and Heersink is a school that is committed to building a diverse physician workforce. Because of the very few number of Hispanic applicants from Alabama, Heersink has to allocate seats to OOS Hispanic URMs from around the area. The ones that I have met are from Florida. Regarding the Ivy undergrad, idk why but for OOS ORMs, Heersink is an Ivy undergrad "lover," particularly for candidates from California that went to a good undergrad in California then fell through the cracks of applying to med school in Cali and are only left with Heersink.
I have also heard that for OOS applications, unless there is something very captivating (any of the things mentioned before), even if it is a good app, most of them get trashed because there are too many people applying for too few seats. Not to discourage anyone from applying, but if you do not meet any of the criteria discussed above, think carefully before sending them your money.

IS: Because Heersink receives money from the state of Alabama, they favor IS candidates because they are more likely to return to Alabama to practice. What this means is that IS apps get at least 2 sets of eyes from screeners before a decision is made to send an II or a pre-II R. On the contrary, OOS apps only get one set of eyes.

Admissions: Heersink has rolling admissions meaning that the earliest you can hear back is about 2 weeks after your interview (Thursday evenings and Friday mornings) once the adcom convenes for a meeting. If you don't hear back, then that is not the worse news in the world because you are still in the running. It is possible to get accepted later on in the cycle without getting WL'ed if you don't hear back. If you really mess up your II, then they will post-II R you around the same time when you would hear back (~2 weeks). Their WL also has 2 tiers, and nobody from the second tier has ever gotten an A.

I have shared pretty much everything I know, and I hope that this sheds a bit of light onto the nebulous process that is med school admissions and that this info can help you all make more informed choices.
 
Reminder: PREview is "highly" RECOMMENDED but not required.
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2024-2025 list of schools and their SJTs

Updated July 2, 2024 (page updated June 11) on The AAMC PREview® Professional Readiness Exam Participating Medical Schools and MSAR reports Look at the 2023 list to see if your school(s) wanted you to take an SJT. PREview scores are automatically released to AMCAS. Examinees do not need to...
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damien_chazelle_fan said:
Friend that is an incoming MS1 at UAB did not want to dox their account, so I'll be posting on their behalf. My two cents is that based on what I know, most everything seems legit:


Hello everybody. I would like to shed some light on the admissions process at Heersink. As with everything on the internet, TAKE EVERYTHING I SAY WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. All the following info I have heard from a combination of adcom members, attendings, and students at the school over the years I did my undergrad at UAB.

Holistic review: This school takes holistic review very seriously. They sort of do an inverse of what UCSF does to the extent that they use MCAT and GPA for II screening, but as soon as a candidate gets an II, MCAT and GPA become non-factors (except for recruitment scholarships), as in that they are blinded to them when the app goes to the entire adcom for final review. When screening, they are looking to see if the (IS) candidate's MCAT and GPA meet a certain threshold to the point where they think that they will be able to handle the rigors of medical school well (like 512+), meaning that they don't really care if somebody has a 515 versus a 526. As a counterpoint to this, I have heard an adcom member say that they are impressed when they see a 520+.

Mission: There are some schools that are stat "lovers" and others that are service "lovers," but Heersink is a rural primary care "lover." I have heard adcom members literally state that a very good way to get accepted is to say that you are passionate about doing rural primary care in the state of Alabama. Obviously, if your EC's can't back this up, then they'll smell BS and reject you. Heersink also loves their non-trads and military people.

OOS: I may change my mind once I get to meet more people, but OOS'ers tend to fall into one of three categories (I am sure that there are exceptions): people in the BS/MD program, URMs (particularly Hispanics), and people from Ivy undergrads. I would also suspect that people with strong ties to Alabama / Bham make up some of the OOS'ers. Breaking this down a bit more, the state of Alabama has a 4% Hispanic population, and Heersink is a school that is committed to building a diverse physician workforce. Because of the very few number of Hispanic applicants from Alabama, Heersink has to allocate seats to OOS Hispanic URMs from around the area. The ones that I have met are from Florida. Regarding the Ivy undergrad, idk why but for OOS ORMs, Heersink is an Ivy undergrad "lover," particularly for candidates from California that went to a good undergrad in California then fell through the cracks of applying to med school in Cali and are only left with Heersink.
I have also heard that for OOS applications, unless there is something very captivating (any of the things mentioned before), even if it is a good app, most of them get trashed because there are too many people applying for too few seats. Not to discourage anyone from applying, but if you do not meet any of the criteria discussed above, think carefully before sending them your money.

IS: Because Heersink receives money from the state of Alabama, they favor IS candidates because they are more likely to return to Alabama to practice. What this means is that IS apps get at least 2 sets of eyes from screeners before a decision is made to send an II or a pre-II R. On the contrary, OOS apps only get one set of eyes.

Admissions: Heersink has rolling admissions meaning that the earliest you can hear back is about 2 weeks after your interview (Thursday evenings and Friday mornings) once the adcom convenes for a meeting. If you don't hear back, then that is not the worse news in the world because you are still in the running. It is possible to get accepted later on in the cycle without getting WL'ed if you don't hear back. If you really mess up your II, then they will post-II R you around the same time when you would hear back (~2 weeks). Their WL also has 2 tiers, and nobody from the second tier has ever gotten an A.

I have shared pretty much everything I know, and I hope that this sheds a bit of light onto the nebulous process that is med school admissions and that this info can help you all make more informed choices.
Click to expand...
Hey, thank you for the information. I was going to apply to UAB this cycle, but I do not have any direct link to the state apart from living in Mississippi for 2.5 years and about 3 hours from the school. Is this enough to show some ties to the school? I will be a URM (Black, not Hispanic) OOS applicant.
 
I also have friends who attend UAB. Some of this tracks and some is wrong.

Holistic review: I hear the review is very holistic and ADCOM can’t see grades. They consider 500 MCAT the cutoff. The average MCAT is 509. This creates a large group of students who fail courses and have to repeat exams over break or are forced to repeat a year. Admin uses 5 years as a normal graduation timeline because they assume a certain number of students will fail.

OOS: The state caps them at 20 out of state students and half of those spots are reserved for the BS/MD and MDPHD admits. If you get in OOS other than those paths it’s because you have strong ties to the state or are from a URM group. My friends didn’t think the Florida Hispanic was accurate but they agree that Hispanic or Black students probably get OOS spots because of mission.

Mission: They definitely want rural and primary care and want students to work in the state after residency. The state has a large black population and URM students get extra mission points because of this. They screen for ECs that fit with their mission. Their mission is also why they take lower MCAT because if you have lower MCAT you may have a harder time getting HP and H and probably won’t be competitive for ROAD specialties.

Active learning: They were told by the accreditation board that they had to have more active learning and less lecture. They built a center for active learning last year and changed their curriculum. My friends say the change has not gone well. Faculty now record their lectures to be watched before a mandatory two hour active learning session. The result is lots more mandatory and in person class and what used to be a one hour lecture you could watch at your pace is now the same lecture plus a two hour class.

It’s still a great school. My friends are generally happy even the ones who are URM. They say there used to be a great diversity office but about a year ago a lot of staff left. Then the state passed anti DEI laws which pretty much shut the office down.
 
Can anyone share the secondary prompts? Are they the same as last year?
 
RedRabbit63 said:
Can anyone share the secondary prompts? Are they the same as last year?
Click to expand...
@wysdoc

State of Residence Section:
1. Non-Alabama Resident with Ties to Alabama: Describe any ties or meaningful experiences you have had related to the state of Alabama or UAB Medical Center (1500 characters)

2. All Applicants: if the area you spent most of your life before college differs from where you currently consider your permanent address, please explain (1500 characters)

Essay Section:
1. Where do you see yourself in your medical career fifteen to twenty years from now? (750 characters)

2. Learning from others is enhanced in educational settings that include individuals from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Please describe your personal characteristics or experiences that would add to the educational environment for your classmates. (750 characters)

3. Describe a patient interaction with the healthcare system. This could be a direct patient observation (in person or virtual) during a shadowing experience, a personal experience within the healthcare system, or a family member or friend who had a memorable interaction within the healthcare system. What did you learn from this experience? (750 characters)

4. Describe a fulfilling or challenging community service experience and how you grew personally from the experience. (750 characters)

5. UAB Medicine provides quality health care and compassionate service to every patient, every time, regardless of their individual differences or circumstances. Our academic medical center attracts patients from across the world who represent many cultures, religions, lifestyles, and economic backgrounds. Why are you specifically interested in beginning your medical education in this environment, and how do you feel that your previous experiences will prepare you for this unique learning environment? (750 characters)

6. OPTIONAL: Describe your identity and how it has impacted the development of your values and attitudes toward individuals different from yourself and how this will impact your interactions with future colleagues and patients (750 characters)

7. OPTIONAL: Please share any information you want us to know about you that is not included in your AMCAS application or in this secondary application. (750 characters)
 
Last edited:
If I don't have ties to Alabama, should I even bother submitting my secondary? I don't want to BS it. Any advice would be appreciated!
 
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futurederm1214 said:
If I don't have ties to Alabama, should I even bother submitting my secondary? I don't want to BS it. Any advice would be appreciated!
Click to expand...
Just a pre-med here, but from what I understand UAB is extremely partial to IS applicants. The MSAR shows less than 1% acceptance for OOS, and some of those are likely strong ties to the state or MSTP, for which they don't have an IS preference. I probably wouldn't bother unless your stats are super strong or if you just have an extra 100 bucks lying around (if the latter, plz send some my way too). Just my 2 cents.
 
problynotadoctor said:
Just a pre-med here, but from what I understand UAB is extremely partial to IS applicants. The MSAR shows less than 1% acceptance for OOS, and some of those are likely strong ties to the state or MSTP, for which they don't have an IS preference. I probably wouldn't bother unless your stats are super strong or if you just have an extra 100 bucks lying around (if the latter, plz send some my way too). Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...
Haha thanks for your advice! But I get FAP so both my primaries and secondaries are waived 🙂
 
Did anyone else's heart skip a beat over that MSTP email? I am hoping and praying for an interview!
 
applyingthiscycle said:
What email i submitted in late july with an LM of 78
Click to expand...
i submitted my secondary in the first week of august, ( regular MD) but i just got an email from their MSTP program “strongly encouraging [me] to see what the UAB MSTP program has to offer” direct quote. I haven’t heard anything since my secondary was completed at the start of august 🙁
 
Has anyone interviewed here already? What is the format of the MMI? Mostly scenario based or open ended questions or mix of both? And how long is each station? Thanks!!
 
For anyone that has interviewed already mine is coming up soon and I would love to ask you a couple of questions. Please PM me. Thank you!
 
Has anyone received an A this week? I tried to check the twitter but I think they deleted it 🥲
 
Did everyone get an email inviting them to Preview Day? I did not submit an application for this school
 
Any idea as to when offers will go out? :/ I wish they still had their twitter active so we have a better idea...
 
aquaboi said:
hopefully by the end of this week :') past forums show the adcoms meeting again the thursday after oct15
Click to expand...
Based on their (now deactivated) admissions Twitter, I think they meet on the 3rd Thursday of every month, with calls going out that Thursday and Friday. They could've changed that this year though
 
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looks like someone got an A today on admit.org. doesn't show when they interviewed tho
 
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