Anything MCW

[Gij]

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I have an interview coming up at Medical college of Wisconsin. Based on what I have heard, I have a really good impression of the program. However, I would like to know more. Current students, those who have interviewed and anybody else that has some information can be really helpful. I am suggesting some specific things to discuss as these are what I would like to know most about, but any other comment/opinion is welcomed.

1. The student host program: it will be great if someone could give me some detail so I could know what to expect.

2. Other than the new building stuff and helpful people, which I have heard about, is there anything that stands/stood out?

3. Is there anything about the nature/philosophy of the organization that is not obvious in their website (for example I am not applyting to Georgetown, but I've learned that Georgetown is very concerned with ethics abortion issues etc.)?

4. General positive and negative aspects of going to MCW (this is very broad)

5. Interview itself: Do they know your stats? General advice can be helpful.

Thank you all very much, and best of luck to everybody!

 

[thinknofu3]

I can only tell you my interview experience:

First, and you know this, the facilities are insanely impressive. Everything is new and shiny. The director of admissions is direct, but nice and helpful and likes to mingle with the students - he seems like a cool guy (I've spoken with him on the phone too and he's very helpful, feel free to ask him anything).

As far as the interview, you get interviewed by two people on the committee, which is comprised of current students, and faculty (some who are MDs, some who aren't). I had one student (I think and M3) and a PhD who's on the faculty. Both interviews are open-file, so be prepared for the possibility of questions about your specifics - for me it was stuff like, why did you choose your major (i'm non-science), etc. Basic stuff. The PhD launched into hypothetical, ethics-type questions. That is tough for some people, thankfully I have taken classes on the subject and it happens to be one of my favorite things to discuss, so I ran with that. The interviewer seemed pretty impressed (I'm 99% sure he's the reason I got an acceptance). Oh yeah - half the people have their tour before their interviews, half after. I took my tour afterwards, and the student tour guides were nice and helpful. Everybody seemed enthusiastic about the place, and it seemed like a great place to go to medical school. That's probably not where I'll end up going (for geography reasons, not anything having to do with the school), but I would recommend it highly to anybody, it seems like a fantastic school overall.

 

[Gij]

I can only tell you my interview experience:

First, and you know this, the facilities are insanely impressive. Everything is new and shiny. The director of admissions is direct, but nice and helpful and likes to mingle with the students - he seems like a cool guy (I've spoken with him on the phone too and he's very helpful, feel free to ask him anything).

As far as the interview, you get interviewed by two people on the committee, which is comprised of current students, and faculty (some who are MDs, some who aren't). I had one student (I think and M3) and a PhD who's on the faculty. Both interviews are open-file, so be prepared for the possibility of questions about your specifics - for me it was stuff like, why did you choose your major (i'm non-science), etc. Basic stuff. The PhD launched into hypothetical, ethics-type questions. That is tough for some people, thankfully I have taken classes on the subject and it happens to be one of my favorite things to discuss, so I ran with that. The interviewer seemed pretty impressed (I'm 99% sure he's the reason I got an acceptance). Oh yeah - half the people have their tour before their interviews, half after. I took my tour afterwards, and the student tour guides were nice and helpful. Everybody seemed enthusiastic about the place, and it seemed like a great place to go to medical school. That's probably not where I'll end up going (for geography reasons, not anything having to do with the school), but I would recommend it highly to anybody, it seems like a fantastic school overall.

Thanks a lot, can I ask you if you stayed with one of the students?

 

[oldman]

when i interviewed there, i stayed with a student. he drove me to campus and got me breakfast. also got some inside scoop stuff. thought it was helpful.

 

[taddpole]

gij- when is your interview? I have one feb 3....


😱

 

[thinknofu3]

I did not stay with a student - I drove up the morning of the interview.

 

[Tiger26]

I have an interview there next week too, and I was wondering if anyone knows the cutoff between when they interview people for acceptances outright and just for spots on the waitlist. Also, if you're interviewing for a spot on the waitlist, does your ranking depend on when you're interviewed or do you get reranked again for the waitlist? Thanks

 

[Gij]

I am hoping that we are not interviewing for the waitlist.

 

[indo]

The interviewer will read your application right before they interview you.

 

[Gij]

Just wanted to bring this to people's attention again. I didn't get enough feedback.

 

[coco]

I flew in on Thursday night and met with other applicants at the airport. Then a shuttle came and picked us up, took us to MCW. There were students there waiting for us with dinner. We met other applicants and current students, then we watched a video about MCW. About 8 students sat up front, and answered any questions that any of us had. Everyone was SO nice.

After everyone was done, they read off the names of the students and who you would be spending the night with. So you meet your host and they take you home. My host was SO awesome, she was so great. Even though she had to study, she stayed up with both of us (there were 2 of us staying at her house), we had a cup of tea by the fire and asked her a ton of q's about the school, the students, the programs, etc. It really was great! after we went to be she had to go study too! anyway, in the morning, she made us breakfast and drove us to school. We took our suitcases to the admissions office.
There was nothing to do till lunch time so we went to class with her, watched part of the lecture. After that you're free to do whatever you want. I met up with an old classmate of mine who goes to school there now, and sat in the library, checked my email. You'll see tons of applicants sitting around the cafeteria and you'll meet a lot of people. You'll also see all those people at lunch as well since you're all going to be eating in the same place.

Then you jhust go and sit in the room and the dean will start the day. You get a folder with your interviewers' names and where they are located. Everything is SOOO organized. I'm serious, it was like WOW!
I was in the group that had the later interviews. SO they split us up into groups of 4 and took us on a tour of the whole building. Then they help you get to your interview. All the interviewers are in the same area, they're just ready in the rooms. You wait outside until they're ready (cuz they go over your file real quick). I'm not sure if the MCATs are there, but one of my interviewers had mentioned my grades, I saw my essay in front of him as well as my picture. SO I'm thinking it's completely open file. Both my interviewers were MDs, very nice people.

I got asked several ethical questions, about my background, why wisconsin, what i knew about the school and if i had any questions. I also got asked a few questions about health policy but i heard read a little about it which helped me make sense of what i was going to say. THe interviews are short, but everyone is really nice. Just be yourself, talk about your strengths. What i got asked by both interviewers was what qualities I think a physician should have and they kept asking for more attributes I almost ran out of them haha.

I wasn't really surprised with anything about their philosophy. What I was told by a lot of students is that since it's a private shcool, they really do take care of you and want to make your experience great. One of the students gave me an example about how accomodating the school is to any of your needs and how their whole purpose is to help you out.

I had an awesome time there. And you meet so many people who might be your classmates and it's great. It's my only acceptance as of now and I think I would enjoy going there as a student. Everyone was so helpful and even the admissions staff were great. The building is new which gives it a great feel, since everything is just so clean and neat. hehe

Oh, and i dont know if you're flying there, but at the beginning of the day, they ask how many people need to go back to the airport and they'll call a shuttle for you, so you dont even need to worry about transportation back to the airport. I was SOOOO impressed because I've been to 4 other interviews and none of the schools cared about how you got there or where you stayed. This was one of the best interviews I went to. GOod luck and post more questions if you have any! let us know how it goes!

 

[Gij]

I flew in on Thursday night and met with other applicants at the airport. Then a shuttle came and picked us up, took us to MCW. There were students there waiting for us with dinner. We met other applicants and current students, then we watched a video about MCW. About 8 students sat up front, and answered any questions that any of us had. Everyone was SO nice.

After everyone was done, they read off the names of the students and who you would be spending the night with. So you meet your host and they take you home. My host was SO awesome, she was so great. Even though she had to study, she stayed up with both of us (there were 2 of us staying at her house), we had a cup of tea by the fire and asked her a ton of q's about the school, the students, the programs, etc. It really was great! after we went to be she had to go study too! anyway, in the morning, she made us breakfast and drove us to school. We took our suitcases to the admissions office.
There was nothing to do till lunch time so we went to class with her, watched part of the lecture. After that you're free to do whatever you want. I met up with an old classmate of mine who goes to school there now, and sat in the library, checked my email. You'll see tons of applicants sitting around the cafeteria and you'll meet a lot of people. You'll also see all those people at lunch as well since you're all going to be eating in the same place.

Then you jhust go and sit in the room and the dean will start the day. You get a folder with your interviewers' names and where they are located. Everything is SOOO organized. I'm serious, it was like WOW!
I was in the group that had the later interviews. SO they split us up into groups of 4 and took us on a tour of the whole building. Then they help you get to your interview. All the interviewers are in the same area, they're just ready in the rooms. You wait outside until they're ready (cuz they go over your file real quick). I'm not sure if the MCATs are there, but one of my interviewers had mentioned my grades, I saw my essay in front of him as well as my picture. SO I'm thinking it's completely open file. Both my interviewers were MDs, very nice people.

I got asked several ethical questions, about my background, why wisconsin, what i knew about the school and if i had any questions. I also got asked a few questions about health policy but i heard read a little about it which helped me make sense of what i was going to say. THe interviews are short, but everyone is really nice. Just be yourself, talk about your strengths. What i got asked by both interviewers was what qualities I think a physician should have and they kept asking for more attributes I almost ran out of them haha.

I wasn't really surprised with anything about their philosophy. What I was told by a lot of students is that since it's a private shcool, they really do take care of you and want to make your experience great. One of the students gave me an example about how accomodating the school is to any of your needs and how their whole purpose is to help you out.

I had an awesome time there. And you meet so many people who might be your classmates and it's great. It's my only acceptance as of now and I think I would enjoy going there as a student. Everyone was so helpful and even the admissions staff were great. The building is new which gives it a great feel, since everything is just so clean and neat. hehe

Oh, and i dont know if you're flying there, but at the beginning of the day, they ask how many people need to go back to the airport and they'll call a shuttle for you, so you dont even need to worry about transportation back to the airport. I was SOOOO impressed because I've been to 4 other interviews and none of the schools cared about how you got there or where you stayed. This was one of the best interviews I went to. GOod luck and post more questions if you have any! let us know how it goes!

That was detailed. Thanks a lot!!

 

[opmed]

For anyone concerned with waitlists and MCW, here's the scoop:

You will know beforehand if you're interviewing only for the waitlist or not. I interviewed for the waitlist last year and my interview invite came with a notice attached saying that I was only interviewing for a waitlist spot. They even reminded everyone the day of the interview that it was only for a waitlist spot. My interview was mid-February last year. I'm not sure how full the class is right now, but I would expect it to be full by the end of February if not sooner.

The waitlist ranking has nothing to do with when you interviewed. You can find out what your ranking is sometime in the week after May 14th by calling the admissions office. Last year, there were two waitlists, one for in-state students and one for out-of-state students. The OOS waitlist was about 3x the size of the in-state list (~150 compared to 50).

That being said, I hope you don't have to deal with the waitlist business, and if you do, I hope it turns out the best for everyone. MCW is a great school though, and despite going through the waitlist process, I'm still very positive about it.

 

[bubblez]

I flew in on Thursday night and met with other applicants at the airport. Then a shuttle came and picked us up, took us to MCW. There were students there waiting for us with dinner. We met other applicants and current students, then we watched a video about MCW. About 8 students sat up front, and answered any questions that any of us had. Everyone was SO nice.

After everyone was done, they read off the names of the students and who you would be spending the night with. So you meet your host and they take you home. My host was SO awesome, she was so great. Even though she had to study, she stayed up with both of us (there were 2 of us staying at her house), we had a cup of tea by the fire and asked her a ton of q's about the school, the students, the programs, etc. It really was great! after we went to be she had to go study too! anyway, in the morning, she made us breakfast and drove us to school. We took our suitcases to the admissions office.
There was nothing to do till lunch time so we went to class with her, watched part of the lecture. After that you're free to do whatever you want. I met up with an old classmate of mine who goes to school there now, and sat in the library, checked my email. You'll see tons of applicants sitting around the cafeteria and you'll meet a lot of people. You'll also see all those people at lunch as well since you're all going to be eating in the same place.

Then you jhust go and sit in the room and the dean will start the day. You get a folder with your interviewers' names and where they are located. Everything is SOOO organized. I'm serious, it was like WOW!
I was in the group that had the later interviews. SO they split us up into groups of 4 and took us on a tour of the whole building. Then they help you get to your interview. All the interviewers are in the same area, they're just ready in the rooms. You wait outside until they're ready (cuz they go over your file real quick). I'm not sure if the MCATs are there, but one of my interviewers had mentioned my grades, I saw my essay in front of him as well as my picture. SO I'm thinking it's completely open file. Both my interviewers were MDs, very nice people.

I got asked several ethical questions, about my background, why wisconsin, what i knew about the school and if i had any questions. I also got asked a few questions about health policy but i heard read a little about it which helped me make sense of what i was going to say. THe interviews are short, but everyone is really nice. Just be yourself, talk about your strengths. What i got asked by both interviewers was what qualities I think a physician should have and they kept asking for more attributes I almost ran out of them haha.

I wasn't really surprised with anything about their philosophy. What I was told by a lot of students is that since it's a private shcool, they really do take care of you and want to make your experience great. One of the students gave me an example about how accomodating the school is to any of your needs and how their whole purpose is to help you out.

I had an awesome time there. And you meet so many people who might be your classmates and it's great. It's my only acceptance as of now and I think I would enjoy going there as a student. Everyone was so helpful and even the admissions staff were great. The building is new which gives it a great feel, since everything is just so clean and neat. hehe

Oh, and i dont know if you're flying there, but at the beginning of the day, they ask how many people need to go back to the airport and they'll call a shuttle for you, so you dont even need to worry about transportation back to the airport. I was SOOOO impressed because I've been to 4 other interviews and none of the schools cared about how you got there or where you stayed. This was one of the best interviews I went to. GOod luck and post more questions if you have any! let us know how it goes!

wow...thanx for all the info coco. i was wondering when the interview day ends and how long it takes to get from the school to the airport?

 

[Gij]

For anyone concerned with waitlists and MCW, here's the scoop:

You will know beforehand if you're interviewing only for the waitlist or not. I...

Great post. Thank you, this made me feel more positive. Just wondering if you happen to know roughly how many from the waitlist get in. An estimate will be sufficient. Thanks!

 

[45408]

The interviewer seemed pretty impressed (I'm 99% sure he's the reason I got an acceptance).

FYI, your acceptance is based solely on your interview once you reach the interview stage. MCAT, GPA, ECs, etc. Don't matter any more. If you get to the interview, you are all on equal ground.

Interviews are completely open file. They had my whole AMCAS in front of them - year by year GPA, MCAT, work/activities, and PS.

As for the MCW....the medical complex surrounding the school is immense and still growing. MCW is one of the fastest growing research med schools out there, and they just built a really big research facility (actually, it's not done yet, but it's gone up very quickly - probably be functional in less than a year). Froedtert is a large, attractive (but not overly opulent) level 1 ER. You can do all of your M3 and M4 rotations within one block of MCW. Children's hospital is #3 in the nation. The students are friendly, the housing is fairly affordable, and it's fairly likely that I'll be there next year.

 

[opmed]

Great post. Thank you, this made me feel more positive. Just wondering if you happen to know roughly how many from the waitlist get in. An estimate will be sufficient. Thanks!

I think the amount of waitlist movement varies every year. There seemed to be less movement last year than in past years. In years before last year, they said they had years where they run through 50-150 people. Last year was a little different, I think in that fewer people dropped out of the class than before. So, it's next to impossible to tell you an exact number, but one thing I can say for sure is that the out-of-state waitlist will have significantly more movement than the in-state waitlist.

 

[coco]

wow...thanx for all the info coco. i was wondering when the interview day ends and how long it takes to get from the school to the airport?

THe interview days ends around 4, 430. We had to wait around at the end to make sure the interviewers didn't want to interview anyone else for a 3rd interview. So after the dean was given clearance, they let us go. I think the shuttle was waiting at 5 pm. And even during rush hour, it only took about 30-35 min to get to the airport. I was really worried I would miss the flight, but it's a relatively small airport, so we were all OK. I think my flight was at 645 or smthg, i cant remember exactly. But all 8 of us made our flights (6 of us being on the same one hehe).

 

[DoctorFunk]

I'm a current M1 at MCW and would be happy to answer any questions those of you interviewing or accepted at the school might have. I don't have any connections with admissions or anything like that, but I'll probably be able to answer general questions about your first classes and the school's atmosphere. Feel free to PM or drop a line here.

 

[Hawkeye Kid]

I'm a current M1 at MCW and would be happy to answer any questions those of you interviewing or accepted at the school might have. I don't have any connections with admissions or anything like that, but I'll probably be able to answer general questions about your first classes and the school's atmosphere. Feel free to PM or drop a line here.

Me too, except I'm an M4 and I do have connections in admissions (though I don't know how influential they are). Also, I'm one of the student interviewers, so if you need to know specifics on that you can throw them my way. (FYI there is no "standard interview" at MCW--we have complete freedom in how we conduct the interviews)

 

[45408]

Hawkeye - you wouldn't happen to be applying for trauma surgery residencies, would you?

 

[Gij]

Me too, except I'm an M4 and I do have connections in admissions (though I don't know how influential they are). Also, I'm one of the student interviewers, so if you need to know specifics on that you can throw them my way. (FYI there is no "standard interview" at MCW--we have complete freedom in how we conduct the interviews)

Thanks Dr Funk and Hawkeye kid. Since you know more than some of us about the admission process I thought to ask about something that has been puzzling to me. From the feedbacks that I have read, a great majority of people seem to think that they have done well on the interview and that the MCW staff were the most organized and friendly people. If by the time of interview, the interviewee's stats are no longer important, and if a good fraction of poeple do well, then a high proportion of those who get interviewed are offered an acceptance at some point. Is that true?

PS. at this stage of the game, I really want to get some positive news (like my first acceptance).

 

[scotttennis]

Gij,

Good luck at your interview! You'll do fine. Is it on the 20th? To prepare for my interview I just read about the school on their website, reviewed interview questions on SDN, and reread my AMCAS application. I was interviewed by a "student" (actually a resident) and a faculty doctor. The interviews were conversational; it was very easy to just be myself. The interviewers mainly asked me about my classes/interests and experiences of the past summer (I volunteered in Costa Rica/Nicaragua). There was no real difference between the student and faculty interviewer. Both were extremely nice and their questioning reflected a desire to find out more about me. There were no questions about specific grades or ethics. However, as mentioned earlier, the interviewers have no set questions and, subsequently, whatever line of questioning the interviewer feels appropriate is fair game. At the end of the interview our group (I interviewed on Jan. 6th) was told that they still had room for all 60 of us. I've heard that MCW interviews for acceptances into early February, but each year may be different.

Overall, I loved MCW. The interview was great. It was well-organized and showcased its students and facilities very well. I had also interviewed at my state school, Wisconsin. While facilities there are excellent as well, its interview/tour did a poor job of "selling" itself. MCW on the other hand does a terrific job of presenting itself.

I live only an hour away from MCW so I just drove up that morning and did not need a student host. However, I did hear numerous positive things from the out-of-state applicants that had a student host. Part of the benefit of the host program is that you can talk to current students and see where/how they live. Don't worry if you can't get a student host, though. There are plenty of opportunities to ask questions throughout the day.

One last thing: Don't worry about the size of your interview group. You are not competing with the students there. MCW weeds applicates out prior to the interview. There are most likely plenty of spots in the class or on the waitlist still available. Good luck!

(BTW, I just got my acceptance (my first!!) at MCW on Saturday. I am ecstatic!)

 

[Hawkeye Kid]

Hawkeye - you wouldn't happen to be applying for trauma surgery residencies, would you?

1. no
b. i don't think you can apply for trauma surgery residency. trauma/critical care is a fellowship, generally completed by those that have completed a general surgery residency.

 

[Hawkeye Kid]

Thanks Dr Funk and Hawkeye kid. Since you know more than some of us about the admission process I thought to ask about something that has been puzzling to me. From the feedbacks that I have read, a great majority of people seem to think that they have done well on the interview and that the MCW staff were the most organized and friendly people. If by the time of interview, the interviewee's stats are no longer important, and if a good fraction of poeple do well, then a high proportion of those who get interviewed are offered an acceptance at some point. Is that true?

PS. at this stage of the game, I really want to get some positive news (like my first acceptance).

I agree with almost everything I have read above. Obviously, I'm going to tell you that I love MCW, and I do. I have worked fairly extensively with Mike Istwan and think he does his job very well, as do all of the people in the admissions office. Your interview day will be well-organized, you'll have your questions answered, you'll generally be taken care of well.

Your interviewers will have read your file if they so choose, but I don't know of anyone that doesn't. I will usually break the 30 minutes into thirds:
first third I have you talk about things in your application. This could be explaining poor grades, why you took a class I've never heard of, how you got into paint-by-numbers, whatever. This is pretty much the only time in my interview in which you may feel like you need to be defensive, but I personally don't think it's bad. If you have red flags in your app, I'll ask about them. Got a 18 on the MCAT? I'll ask, even if you followed that up with a 33. Usually I don't care so much what your answer is, just that you've thought about how/why you screwed up and how you fixed it. In medical school you'll have times when you flub stuff and I think its important to see that you can formulate a mature and responsible response. (it's really sorta like "tell me about a time when you faced adversity..." but I give you that part and have you talk about it.)
second third i'll ask a few questions about your path to medical school, your opinions on medicine, etc. I think many people come to medicine because it's the cool/tough/whatever thing to do. Maybe they've "always wanted to be a doctor" but since it's always been the plan, they've never really critically thought about it. Those people will not be happy/successful medical students and I think every class has a few. This shouldn't be tough--if you truly want to do this you'll have a great answer. The rest of the second third we'll talk about cool stuff that you've done, etc so I can get a feel for the non-medical person.
third third is your chance to ask questions to me. Remember, you're interviewing the school as well, so make sure it's a place you want to be. Things to ask student interviewers (and tour guides) include living, administrative response to complaints, academic support, extracurricular stuff, etc. Don't ask me about financial aid--it's expensive, you get loans, you (supposedly) pain them back someday--that's what I know about it. You'll have a finaid session during the afternoon to address your concerns. You can ask anyone about strengths/weaknesses, why they're at MCW, etc, but know that you'll get incredibly varied responses to those questions. Best advice I got on the residency interview trail: if it's important to you, ask several people about it.

So, that's that. Like I said, it's how I interview. I have no idea what others do, though I would think it's somewhat similar. I make it structured like that so that I make sure I get it all done in 30 minutes, and it's not necessarily three 10 minute segments--if you app is perfect I'm not gonna dig for badness to make you explain.

Oh, and speaking of the application, I have personally never heard that everyone is on level ground once they get to the interview, nor do I necessarily believe it. I do believe that if you get interviewed the committee thinks you can hack it academically, but if you and someone with worse GPA/MCAT have similar interviews, you get the spot I think. I take those things into account when I make my recommendations to the committee, though a bad interview will trump poor MCAT scores any day. BUT, maybe y'all know something I don't know and they disregard my grade/MCAT/extracurric comments when they make decisions.

OK, this is getting l o n g . Hopefully it answers your questions. Don't sweat the interview--it's a good day. The night before is insanely helpful (again, if it's important to you, as many people) and the day is laid-back. Safe travels and good luck.

 

[45408]

1. no
b. i don't think you can apply for trauma surgery residency. trauma/critical care is a fellowship, generally completed by those that have completed a general surgery residency.

I was just asking, because if the answer was yes, then I would've guessed that you were my student interviewer, but it doesn't seem like it. 😉

 

[Gij]

Gij,

Good luck at your interview! You'll do fine. Is it on the 20th? To prepare for my interview I just read about the school on their website, reviewed interview questions on SDN, and reread my AMCAS application. I was interviewed by a "student" (actually a resident) and a faculty doctor. The interviews were conversational; it was very easy to just be myself. The interviewers mainly asked me about my classes/interests and experiences of the past summer (I volunteered in Costa Rica/Nicaragua). There was no real difference between the student and faculty interviewer. Both were extremely nice and their questioning reflected a desire to find out more about me. There were no questions about specific grades or ethics. However, as mentioned earlier, the interviewers have no set questions and, subsequently, whatever line of questioning the interviewer feels appropriate is fair game. At the end of the interview our group (I interviewed on Jan. 6th) was told that they still had room for all 60 of us. I've heard that MCW interviews for acceptances into early February, but each year may be different.

Overall, I loved MCW. The interview was great. It was well-organized and showcased its students and facilities very well. I had also interviewed at my state school, Wisconsin. While facilities there are excellent as well, its interview/tour did a poor job of "selling" itself. MCW on the other hand does a terrific job of presenting itself.

I live only an hour away from MCW so I just drove up that morning and did not need a student host. However, I did hear numerous positive things from the out-of-state applicants that had a student host. Part of the benefit of the host program is that you can talk to current students and see where/how they live. Don't worry if you can't get a student host, though. There are plenty of opportunities to ask questions throughout the day.

One last thing: Don't worry about the size of your interview group. You are not competing with the students there. MCW weeds applicates out prior to the interview. There are most likely plenty of spots in the class or on the waitlist still available. Good luck!

(BTW, I just got my acceptance (my first!!) at MCW on Saturday. I am ecstatic!)

Congratulation!! That's great that they told you this early. Now you don't have wait anymore, or maybe you'll wait but not so anxiously. I certainly hope to get a straight answer soon. I need to know if I have to be looking for a job next year or not. So, as it is the case probably for many of you, my life is on hold and that's not a good place to be. Hopefully, I will hear something good soon. Thanks again.

 

[Gij]

I agree with almost everything I have read above. Obviously, I'm going to tell you...

This was great. Thanks a lot!

 

[Hawkeye Kid]

I was just asking, because if the answer was yes, then I would've guessed that you were my student interviewer, but it doesn't seem like it. 😉

That's strange, because I'm not sure who would tell you that they were applying to trauma surg residencies, since like I said before, they don't exist. Perhaps they're planning on trauma after gen surg, or maybe they're just dirty liars... 😉

 

[midwest77]

hey everybody...FYI. i got an interview invite today for February 17th...and it said SPECIFICALLY that i was interviewing for a spot on the waitlist. they said they had two dates FEb 17th or March 3rd with spots open...so i am guessing that if it didnt say that in your email, that you are still interviewing for a spot. i am still really excited since i wasnt expecting to hear back from them since i didnt submit my application until oct 10th. anyone else interviewing then? let me know how your interviews go!!!!

 

[drwannabe44]

Me too, except I'm an M4 and I do have connections in admissions (though I don't know how influential they are). Also, I'm one of the student interviewers, so if you need to know specifics on that you can throw them my way. (FYI there is no "standard interview" at MCW--we have complete freedom in how we conduct the interviews)

Hello, I really enjoyed your input on how they conduct interviews in one of your later posts. Thanks

 

[oldman]

Do they always give free stuff away? For med school I got a t-shirt, and for residency I got a coffee travel mug.

 

[indo]

You got a coffee mug? Sweet.

 

[pratik7]

Do they always give free stuff away? For med school I got a t-shirt, and for residency I got a coffee travel mug.

Yup they still give out T shirts but no coffee mugs. But they do give you a mug during orientation 😀

 

[oldman]

cool. i like free stuff!

 

[Gij]

I did my interview a while ago and here is how it was (if that interests you) Looking at the interview feedbacks, I had a very good feeling about MCW. The first interview was just as I expected, but the second one was horrible. It really made me think about how they select people who do the interviews. The guy who interviewed me was not an MD (he had a PhD of some sort), but what bothered me the most was his poor knowledge of medical issues. I don't know what qualifies somebody to become an interviewer. It felt to me like the guy had come up with the questions ten minutes prior to the interview by googling something like "What to ask in a medical school interview" (he was actually reading from a list). The questions were so cliché that almost any applicant knows what "THE" right answers are. In cases like this you get into trouble if you analyze the problem (as your are normally expected) from a couple of angles, because they have thought/read about only one aspect.
I really liked the people and the school. My host was very nice. The city was not to die for but it was ok. I think my second interviewer maybe was an exception, but it left a really bad taste in my mouth. I might be wrong, but I think had I been interviewed by anybody else I would have recieved an acceptance letter rather than "we put you on the waitlist" letter. Still I am hoping that the movement in the list give me a second chance as I think the school is decent.
.

 

[oldman]

I did my interview a while ago and here is how it was (if that interests you) Looking at the interview feedbacks, I had a very good feeling about MCW. The first interview was just as I expected, but the second one was horrible. It really made me think about how they select people who do the interviews. The guy who interviewed me was not an MD (he had a PhD of some sort), but what bothered me the most was his poor knowledge of medical issues. I don't know what qualifies somebody to become an interviewer. It felt to me like the guy had come up with the questions ten minutes prior to the interview by googling something like "What to ask in a medical school interview" (he was actually reading from a list). The questions were so cliché that almost any applicant knows what "THE" right answers are. In cases like this you get into trouble if you analyze the problem (as your are normally expected) from a couple of angles, because they have thought/read about only one aspect.
I really liked the people and the school. My host was very nice. The city was not to die for but it was ok. I think my second interviewer maybe was an exception, but it left a really bad taste in my mouth. I might be wrong, but I think had I been interviewed by anybody else I would have recieved an acceptance letter rather than "we put you on the waitlist" letter. Still I am hoping that the movement in the list give me a second chance as I think the school is decent.
.

that's too bad. the rules of the interview trail is you'll run into someone who does a bad job of interviewing. sometimes it's cause they are inept, sometimes it's on purpose. they stress you out and watch the reaction.