2024-2025 UT San Antonio (Long)

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PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Sorry if I am about to word vomit right now, but match day is coming up so many of us are deeply analyzing our ranking lists lol.
*****

What are your genuine, genuine, sans kool aid thoughts on the non-P/F preclerk of Long?

Has the non P/F nature of long affected your mindset and stress regarding tests, to the point you may have wished it wasn't a thing?

Do you believe when Ad-coms/medschool staff say it helps for residency which is why they have it over p/f, even when PD polls say preclerk grades are lower priority when it comes to decision making, or do you think it is for other reasons Long decided non p/f was the move?

Since you are an MS4, do you have any evidence that it has impacted your residency applications positively or negatively?

Would you have preferred P/F, and what would you say for someone for example that might choose UTMB over Long because of P/F curriculum and a desire to not want uneeded stress from preclerk (i.e. someone who likes to use 3rd party to study and spends preclerk gunning for step mastery over everything and doesn't wanna worry about in house exams and/or graded tests)?

**************************
>> For context of my thought process, during my interview session with Long students, P/F was brought up and these were some of the comments

> it doesn't really hurt or harm you in residency apps due to not being a priority for PD
> it can be annoying for those who are type A but in reality other things matter more for residency
> one ped's gunning ms4 at Long (you might know who lol...) said his preclerk grades basically played 0 role in his residency apps
> they say that most people honors or near honors most classes either way, so it's not that big of a deal
> but if all these things are true.... what's the point of graded curriculum at all! med students for the most part are already self-driven type-A people when it comes to school. it seems like a nuisance if its either not affecting you or just an annoying stressor.
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If being graded stresses you out this much, make it a major factor in your rank list
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CheeesyBoi said:
What has been your most and least favorite part about Long?
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Not OP, but one of their classmates. I'm also an MS4 who interviewed a lot of applicants this year. I would say I've had an overly positive experience.

  • Favorites:
    • My classmates. I'd say that the admissions committee generally does a great job of putting together a class that embodies our culture of camaraderie and support. There were countless times where my classmates helped me out both with schoolwork and in things that came up outside of school in my personal life. I have a very small group of close friends with a larger pool of "school friends" who were always willing to help me even if we weren't close. In terms of academics, there was so much teamwork going on in terms of studying - shared anki decks, shared study guides, tips for excelling on each rotation, etc. I would assume most schools have this level of support between classmates, but you never know.
    • Flexibility. Once you finish the pre-clinical curriculum in February of MS2, you can use the rest of the time until July for electives, research, step 1 studying, or even early rotations! Some people in each class are even able to shift their entire clinical rotations 4 months early and finish the core clerkships in February of their MS3. This frees up a lot of time that you can spend on studying for step 2 (still scored), away rotations, research, electives, vacation, or just finishing your degree requirements early.
    • Diversity of core clerkships. I feel that most premeds are overly focused on the pre-clinical curriculum when that isn't really the most important part of medical education. I think one of the huge pros of Long is the diversity of rotation sites for each core clerkship. We rotate at University Hospital, the VA Medical Center, Brooke Army Medical Center (one of the largest military hospitals in the US), and various clinics throughout San Antonio. I appreciate the experiences I've had at each of these hospitals and the perspective it has given me on our healthcare system. Obviously the patient populations are wildly different among these hospitals so you are able to treat many different populations in our community.
    • Cost/Value. As an out of state student, you cannot beat the value of a medical education at a Texas medical school. Obviously not as important for in state applicants who are deciding between different Texas schools, but out of state students pay in-state tuition at Long which saves an incredible amount of tuition money over your time in medical school. Most medical students graduate with a significant loan burden and while you should be able to pay it back no matter which specialty you decide on, having less loans is always a good thing. I chose Long over more "prestigious" schools that would have been a significant cost burden. I am still waiting for match results, but I am incredibly happy that my past self chose the cheaper option.
  • Least Favorite:
    • Clinical Skills Course - I felt like the clinical exams we were taught did not really replicate the actual exams you would perform on clinical rotations. Additionally, it felt like there was a lot of busy work that would get in the way of studying for other courses at times. I appreciated the time and effort that standardized patients put into helping us learn, but sometimes they were out of pocket and would just mark you off for random things that don't actually make you a better physician (e.g. if they didn't like the phrasing you used when explaining something, or thought you didn't perform an exam when you really did). In the end, this is a small gripe because the overwhelming majority of people do fine in the course and get Honors. It just can get annoying, though.
    • Interprofessional Education. I believe it is a licensing requirement for all medical schools, but the required interprofessional education was just a huge waste of time in my opinion. Essentially you get paired up with students in the other professional schools (nursing, PT, dental, PA, etc.) and then have to work through scenarios together, eventually playing out a skit. It was a big waste of time that did not add any value to my medical education. Probably not a big deal at all (maybe like 6 hours of total time across all of medical school?) and also probably required at other schools.
 
johnnycashiscool said:
What is the day to day like?
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I'm assuming you are asking about preclinicals. This still varies based on how you approach studying: are you gunning for all honors? Or do you just want to pass and enjoy your free time? I wanted to do well in preclinicals so I studied a lot.

You generally have classes from 8am-12pm M-F with roughly 25% mandatory attendance. Then if you are in first semester, you have anatomy in the afternoons from about 1-5pm 2-3x per week. Mix in a clinical skills session (~2-3 hours) about once every 3-4 weeks.

The way my day was set up was I woke up around 7-8am and studied the previous day's material using Anki until 12pm, had a 1 hour lunch break, then would watch the recorded lectures for that day's material. I made my own Anki cards which was very time consuming and I'd usually finish by 8 or 9 pm. If there was anatomy, I'd have to go to the lab for that too. Altogether I'd say my days of studying in preclinical would average out to like 8am-10pm. I saved Friday and Saturday nights for hanging out with friends/family, exploring San Antonio, etc.


johnnycashiscool said:
Like how long do you have time to study prior to an exam and do you have time to take off after an exam?
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Our preclinical modules range in length. The first one you start off is Biochemistry which is 8 weeks long. The shortest one is the heme module (2 weeks), while most are around 4-6 weeks in length. The nice thing about Long is that you get a dead week before each exam where you literally have nothing scheduled to give you time to prepare for the upcoming final exam for that module. I would often have more time to relax during those weeks since I had prepared so well each day leading up to the exam. Some of my friends who didn't study as much as I did would have to cram during those weeks to learn all of the material they had fallen behind on.

johnnycashiscool said:
How many required stuff do you have to go to on your average week?
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If you are a first semester student (still have anatomy in the afternoons), you have 2-3 labs per week and the other classes would probably require about 3-5 sessions. One day a week there is "Synthesis" which is essentially team-based learning that is a required 2-3 hours of your Friday during first year.
 
PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Sorry if I am about to word vomit right now, but match day is coming up so many of us are deeply analyzing our ranking lists lol.
*****

What are your genuine, genuine, sans kool aid thoughts on the non-P/F preclerk of Long?
Click to expand...

If someone tells you that they prefer grades to p/f they are straight up lying lol. Obviously we would prefer p/f, but that isn't to say there isn't a benefit to grades. I think the main benefit is that it forces you to study more (if you want to Honor). Because you are putting more effort into studying for these in-house exams, it still helps you prepare for Step 1 (which is the foundation for your clinical knowledge and will greatly help you do well on rotations + step 2). I kept up with all the material and was able to do a 1 week dedicated for Step 1 which allowed me to start clerkships early. That is a huge Long-specific pro imo.

PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Has the non P/F nature of long affected your mindset and stress regarding tests, to the point you may have wished it wasn't a thing?
Click to expand...

Medical school is stressful regardless of grades vs. p/f exams. I don't think it should be a huge factor in your decision though unless you have severe test anxiety about grades. Just keep in mind that most schools still have graded clerkships so it's not like you can escape this forever.

PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Do you believe when Ad-coms/medschool staff say it helps for residency which is why they have it over p/f, even when PD polls say preclerk grades are lower priority when it comes to decision making, or do you think it is for other reasons Long decided non p/f was the move?

Since you are an MS4, do you have any evidence that it has impacted your residency applications positively or negatively?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't agree that grades necessarily helped for residency application over p/f preclinical. Literally no residency interviewer has ever brought up my preclinical grades one way or another. The only thing I would worry about is that your preclinical grades can affect eligibility for AOA which Long still has. Getting inducted into AOA is a huge benefit for residency applications, but is not the end-all be-all especially with Step 2 still being scored.

PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Would you have preferred P/F, and what would you say for someone for example that might choose UTMB over Long because of P/F curriculum and a desire to not want uneeded stress from preclerk (i.e. someone who likes to use 3rd party to study and spends preclerk gunning for step mastery over everything and doesn't wanna worry about in house exams and/or graded tests)?

**************************
>> For context of my thought process, during my interview session with Long students, P/F was brought up and these were some of the comments

> it doesn't really hurt or harm you in residency apps due to not being a priority for PD
> it can be annoying for those who are type A but in reality other things matter more for residency
> one ped's gunning ms4 at Long (you might know who lol...) said his preclerk grades basically played 0 role in his residency apps
> they say that most people honors or near honors most classes either way, so it's not that big of a deal
> but if all these things are true.... what's the point of graded curriculum at all! med students for the most part are already self-driven type-A people when it comes to school. it seems like a nuisance if its either not affecting you or just an annoying stressor.
Click to expand...

If grades for preclinical is really that stressful to you, then yeah going to Long doesn't seem to be your best bet. But I personally didn't even think about that as the most important factor to me. I'm not familiar with your personal situation, but I hated Galveston/Houston so would prefer Long because of San Antonio. Also, keep in mind that UTMB has different rotation sites that may or may not be as strong for the specialty you choose.
 
I got a scholarship decision 2 days ago! In the email they mention I can still apply for additional scholarships, does anyone know if these can be used for COL? Or is it only for tuition?
 
bsajeev said:
I got a scholarship decision 2 days ago! In the email they mention I can still apply for additional scholarships, does anyone know if these can be used for COL? Or is it only for tuition?
Click to expand...
It depends on how the scholarship funds are given over to you.
Some scholarships are credited directly to your account at the med school, those would go towards your tuition and fees. If instead they give you a check, you could use the funds where needed
 
bsajeev said:
I got a scholarship decision 2 days ago! In the email they mention I can still apply for additional scholarships, does anyone know if these can be used for COL? Or is it only for tuition?
Click to expand...
Any scholarships you receive will be credited to your account for tuition only. However, if you have already paid for the tuition, the money will bounce back to your bank account as a refund. At that point, you could use it for COL expenses. That's been my experience over my time in school here.
 
SpaghettiJones said:
If someone tells you that they prefer grades to p/f they are straight up lying lol. Obviously we would prefer p/f, but that isn't to say there isn't a benefit to grades. I think the main benefit is that it forces you to study more (if you want to Honor). Because you are putting more effort into studying for these in-house exams, it still helps you prepare for Step 1 (which is the foundation for your clinical knowledge and will greatly help you do well on rotations + step 2). I kept up with all the material and was able to do a 1 week dedicated for Step 1 which allowed me to start clerkships early. That is a huge Long-specific pro imo.



Medical school is stressful regardless of grades vs. p/f exams. I don't think it should be a huge factor in your decision though unless you have severe test anxiety about grades. Just keep in mind that most schools still have graded clerkships so it's not like you can escape this forever.



I wouldn't agree that grades necessarily helped for residency application over p/f preclinical. Literally no residency interviewer has ever brought up my preclinical grades one way or another. The only thing I would worry about is that your preclinical grades can affect eligibility for AOA which Long still has. Getting inducted into AOA is a huge benefit for residency applications, but is not the end-all be-all especially with Step 2 still being scored.



If grades for preclinical is really that stressful to you, then yeah going to Long doesn't seem to be your best bet. But I personally didn't even think about that as the most important factor to me. I'm not familiar with your personal situation, but I hated Galveston/Houston so would prefer Long because of San Antonio. Also, keep in mind that UTMB has different rotation sites that may or may not be as strong for the specialty you choose.
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Thank u so much for your answer. To put it into context, I went to an undergrad with a major which had a lot of extra dumb **** that actively hurt my premed experience and got really jaded from it. I learned how to study and got a good mcat despite my major being dumb and saying it would prepare me for the mcat and saying it’s a pipeline major while having extraneous and fluff classes with idiotic homework requirements that made everyone’s undergrad cumbersome and tedious. I want to go to a school which is actively invested in my success, especially in curriculum design.

If I feel it isn’t, I’m going to rank it lower. That’s why I value pass fail and STEP focused curriculum, because I appreciate schools which respect its students enough to trust them to be adults about their education without having to hold their hand with incentives like grades. Ffs we’re future doctors, having the threat of grades and not getting an A vs a B shouldn’t be the motivation to study hard.
 
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PolarIceLongLastingFlavor said:
Thank u so much for your answer. To put it into context, I went to an undergrad with a major which had a lot of extra dumb **** that actively hurt my premed experience and got really jaded from it. I learned how to study and got a good mcat despite my major being dumb and saying it would prepare me for the mcat and saying it’s a pipeline major while having extraneous and fluff classes with idiotic homework requirements that made everyone’s undergrad cumbersome and tedious. I want to go to a school which is actively invested in my success, especially in curriculum design.

If I feel it isn’t, I’m going to rank it lower. That’s why I value pass fail and STEP focused curriculum, because I appreciate schools which respect its students enough to trust them to be adults about their education without having to hold their hand with incentives like grades. Ffs we’re future doctors, having the threat of grades and not getting an A vs a B shouldn’t be the motivation to study hard.
Click to expand...

Yeah if it's really that important to you, then rank Long lower. I will say that valuing any school because of its curriculum is silly because everyone learns from the same resources anyway for USMLE exams (First Aid, Sketchy, UWorld, etc.) - note that none of these are from the schools themselves lol.

I'm not sure which other schools you are considering but the vast majority have graded clerkships so that should also be something to consider. I will say I really enjoyed the way Long graded us during clerkships. Essentially there are 2 separate categories for your grade - the shelf (standardized exam after every rotation) and your evaluations. You have to "honor" both of these to get an overall honors for the rotation. People always like to meme online about how preceptors give every student 3/5. Well, the nice thing is that the average evaluation you need to honor the "eval" part of the clerkship grade is often a 3.5 which is easily attainable. As long as you treat everyone with respect and have normal social skills you should have no problem "honoring" the eval portion of the clerkship. That means your grade ultimately rests on how well you perform on the shelf, which you can easily improve by studying. If you put in the time, you can honor any rotation. I believe most rotations had around 45-50% honor rate for my class.

Compare this to other medical schools: I've talked with a friend of mine who attends a T20 med school (outside Texas) and their shelf is only 10% of the grade for clerkships, with a graded OSCE (simulated patient encounter). This puts a higher emphasis on subjective evaluations for your grade which sounds like a nightmare. Long is at least more objective in this regard which makes you feel like you have more control over your grade. If you did poorly on the shelf, you don't have anyone else to blame except yourself...
 
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To the current students answering questions, how are the research opportunities at Long? Are they a huge step down from the opportunities available in Dallas/TMC, or is research still readily available at Long? Thanks in advance!
 
BluthBananaStand said:
To the current students answering questions, how are the research opportunities at Long? Are they a huge step down from the opportunities available in Dallas/TMC, or is research still readily available at Long? Thanks in advance!
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I cannot speak to the research opportunities at other institutions, but if you are big into research, you will be able to find projects here at Long. I would assume that both UTSW and Baylor might have projects "fall in your lap" more often. In San Antonio you would have to make an extra effort to seek these opportunities out.

That has been my experience at least. I am not big into research so probably not the best person to speak about the opportunities at Long. I do know that my classmates who are into more research-oriented fields (Ortho, derm, neurosurg, etc) were able to get the research they needed to match, though.
 
Dumb question - as an OOS applicant, I do not need to rank schools on TMDSAS because I'm not part of the match, right?
 
imoka said:
Dumb question - as an OOS applicant, I do not need to rank schools on TMDSAS because I'm not part of the match, right?
Click to expand...
Correct, OOS applicants are not in the match day system but can be offered admission any time after October 15
 
Can any current students comment on the student culture at Long? What are the atmosphere and overall vibes? I’m looking for a school where the students have a tight knit community and are collaborative in work and studying

If this question has already been asked and answered, I’m sorry! I didn’t see it. But if you could link me to it that would be appreciated!
 
ryanh77 said:
Can any current students comment on the student culture at Long? What are the atmosphere and overall vibes? I’m looking for a school where the students have a tight knit community and are collaborative in work and studying

If this question has already been asked and answered, I’m sorry! I didn’t see it. But if you could link me to it that would be appreciated!
Click to expand...
@ryanh77 there are several comments about this on the last 2 pages of this thread
 
SpaghettiJones said:
Yeah if it's really that important to you, then rank Long lower. I will say that valuing any school because of its curriculum is silly because everyone learns from the same resources anyway for USMLE exams (First Aid, Sketchy, UWorld, etc.) - note that none of these are from the schools themselves lol.

I'm not sure which other schools you are considering but the vast majority have graded clerkships so that should also be something to consider. I will say I really enjoyed the way Long graded us during clerkships. Essentially there are 2 separate categories for your grade - the shelf (standardized exam after every rotation) and your evaluations. You have to "honor" both of these to get an overall honors for the rotation. People always like to meme online about how preceptors give every student 3/5. Well, the nice thing is that the average evaluation you need to honor the "eval" part of the clerkship grade is often a 3.5 which is easily attainable. As long as you treat everyone with respect and have normal social skills you should have no problem "honoring" the eval portion of the clerkship. That means your grade ultimately rests on how well you perform on the shelf, which you can easily improve by studying. If you put in the time, you can honor any rotation. I believe most rotations had around 45-50% honor rate for my class.

Compare this to other medical schools: I've talked with a friend of mine who attends a T20 med school (outside Texas) and their shelf is only 10% of the grade for clerkships, with a graded OSCE (simulated patient encounter). This puts a higher emphasis on subjective evaluations for your grade which sounds like a nightmare. Long is at least more objective in this regard which makes you feel like you have more control over your grade. If you did poorly on the shelf, you don't have anyone else to blame except yourself...
Click to expand...
Clerkship grades aren't a factor to me, but I will consider what you said. I may be valuing preclerk curriculum too much but in my mind, as you said, medical school is stressful no matter what. If I am in a position to choose (which I luckily am), then I will tend towards schools which do not have the added stressor of grades, especially with an in house curriculum. I am being very nitpicky but I have to be
 
ryanh77 said:
Can any current students comment on the student culture at Long? What are the atmosphere and overall vibes? I’m looking for a school where the students have a tight knit community and are collaborative in work and studying

If this question has already been asked and answered, I’m sorry! I didn’t see it. But if you could link me to it that would be appreciated!
Click to expand...
I’m an MS2. I was pretty active in the thread last year and this thread earlier this year I have been a bit busy with school and preparing for third year.

If you are looking for a place that is tight knit and collaborative, I would look no further. Long has somehow mastered the application process in that all of my classmates are incredibly collaborative. They seem to select for high achievers that like team environments. We share resources, including notes and Anki decks. In fact, our class has an entire Google drive dedicated for it. I don’t see competition in our day-to-day interactions - in fact, there are plenty of times where if someone hears of an opportunity or resource, they share it. We are mutually invested in each other’s success and I think it’s incredibly refreshing.

I ranked Long first for my match day. I was really torn between it and another school. I have zero regrets about coming here and I would pick the school again if presented with that choice.
 
kit10 said:
I’m an MS2. I was pretty active in the thread last year and this thread earlier this year I have been a bit busy with school and preparing for third year.

If you are looking for a place that is tight knit and collaborative, I would look no further. Long has somehow mastered the application process in that all of my classmates are incredibly collaborative. They seem to select for high achievers that like team environments. We share resources, including notes and Anki decks. In fact, our class has an entire Google drive dedicated for it. I don’t see competition in our day-to-day interactions - in fact, there are plenty of times where if someone hears of an opportunity or resource, they share it. We are mutually invested in each other’s success and I think it’s incredibly refreshing.

I ranked Long first for my match day. I was really torn between it and another school. I have zero regrets about coming here and I would pick the school again if presented with that choice.
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Thank you so much! That's great to hear
 
Welcome to all my future underclassmen and peers!! So excited to have you all join the Long family!

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Congrats to the people who have matched! Does anyone know when Long will issue the offer of acceptance on their end?
 
BeSpec said:
Congrats to the people who have matched! Does anyone know when Long will issue the offer of acceptance on their end?
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My year it was same day in the afternoon
 
effervescent-nerd said:
Match gods blessed me today! Partner prematched in December, and I got my match today (would’ve been my #1 ranking regardless of a man, dw). Long believes in love, y’all! White coat + white dress combo is about to go HARD!!
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What a great Valentine’s Day present! 😂
 
Is there a group chat (like WhatsApp or GroupMe) for incoming med students at Long SOM? The website for the school (under the New Student Checklist) mentions a link that will be made available sometime in March to “join our new friends,” but I’d like to get ahead with connecting with the newcomers to the school if possible.
 
BeSpec said:
Is there a group chat (like WhatsApp or GroupMe) for incoming med students at Long SOM? The website for the school (under the New Student Checklist) mentions a link that will be made available sometime in March to “join our new friends,” but I’d like to get ahead with connecting with the newcomers to the school if possible.
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group me :vomit: 🤢

whatsapp is way better oh god please use whatsapp
 
Dekirun said:
Both apps are so prone to leaking and have glaring vulnerabilities to cyberattacks🙄. I personally keep over 40 carrier pigeons in my employ, never had a single incidence of hacking or loss of connection outside of bird season.
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I regret to inform you that I've hacked your birds

Any updates on an accepted student chat? I'd be down to start one
 
BoctorBro said:
Gotta scholarship decision just a few minutes ago.
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Did you apply specifically for a scholarship, or did they inform you when you matched? When I search scholarships at Long, it says to apply through the student portal, but nothing appears on my AMP. Still researching, thank you 🙂
 
tanglewood2020 said:
Did you apply specifically for a scholarship, or did they inform you when you matched? When I search scholarships at Long, it says to apply through the student portal, but nothing appears on my AMP. Still researching, thank you 🙂
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Hey friend, not the person you asked, but I also got a scholarship and did not apply for it, they informed me of it a little over a week after I pre-matched
 
coolcloud17 said:
Hey friend, not the person you asked, but I also got a scholarship and did not apply for it, they informed me of it a little over a week after I pre-matched
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Thank you so much! I called admissions, and the coordinator said that anybody I heard of getting scholarships must've been from last year, and to wait until late March when a student portal is established for me to apply for scholarships. I'm glad you confirmed that isn't the case; I was really confused. I'm guessing based on what the coordinator said, there's no way to compete for those scholarships that were given out alongside pre-matches? I recieved a good scholarship from an OOS school, does anybody know if they're receptive to emails wrt scholarship negotiations?
 
Dekirun said:
Both apps are so prone to leaking and have glaring vulnerabilities to cyberattacks🙄. I personally keep over 40 carrier pigeons in my employ, never had a single incidence of hacking or loss of connection outside of bird season.
Click to expand...
i just dont like the UI of group me. lol
 
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