Ask LizzyM Anything 2013 edition

[LizzyM]

In what has become an end of the year tradition (we've done it twice before, so isn't it tradition?), here's the 2013 edition of Ask LizzyM Anything.

Last Call... please submit your questions by 3:30 PST on 12/31.

However, I will not answer :
•"what are my chances?" (there's a separate place for that)
•"will you read my personal statement?"
•"where do you work?"
or hypothetical questions

Keep in mind that there may be 100 different ways to do med school admissions and I'm familiar with only one and at a top tier private school so take what I say with a grain of salt.

I will be answering over the next 10 days or so but I'll also be baking, cooking, singing, sleeping, doing some volunteer work, feasting and drinking so it may take a few hours to get to you. Thank you for your patience.

And don't forget to check out LizzyM's Elf on the Shelf, another SDN tradition.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=877807

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Members don't see this ad.

 

[AdrianVeidt]

How do you feel about M's death at the end of Skyfall?

 

[jeghaber]

What's your biggest pet peeve? In life or in admissions?

 

[phunky]

How does communication between the interviewer and the admissions committee work? Are they on the admissions committee? Do they write a letter recommending the interviewee? Describing them?

 

[deleted382095]

What's the ideal number of hours for shadowing and clinical volunteering prior to apply to MD/DO schools? I can understand the importance of shadowing experiences (different specialty and duration), but I'm not sure about the clinical volunteering part though.

 

[SilentSoldier]

What's your drink of choice?

 

[solitarius]

LizzyM,

I don't think I've ever experienced being scrutinized and judged to the extent that I have been during the medical school application process. It starts with revealing your details to strangers to write letters of evaluation. It extends to baring all my skeletons and flaws in my essays. It continues with being crossed up and scrutinized during interviews. I realize this profession is demanding, and that future incidents of malpractice could make our life hellish. But is one able to maintain some degree of privacy as one journeys through medical school & residency & practice? Or is there more soul-bearing incidents built into our training & practice?

 

[masaraksh]

Do your coworkers know you're THE LizzyM? If so, whats that like at work?

 

[neusu]

What's the best career path to position oneself to be Dean?

 

[chillaxbro]

Do you have an MD? What did you major in college?

 

[LizzyM]

How do you feel about M's death at the end of Skyfall?

@AdrianVeidt , Might it be that M faked her own death?

 

[CyberMaxx]

What is your favorite holiday food????

 

[LizzyM]

What's your biggest pet peeve? In life or in admissions?

@jeghaber In admissions: misspelling the name of my school on the secondary. (It happens more often than you think.)
In life: stepping into a subway car and standing in the doorway rather than moving in and making room.

 

[LizzyM]

How does communication between the interviewer and the admissions committee work? Are they on the admissions committee? Do they write a letter recommending the interviewee? Describing them?

@phunky The interviewer communicates to the adcom in writing. It is not a "letter" but a form covering the topic areas that the committee is concerned with. There are a few interviewers who are also on the adcom but for the most part they are different groups of people. Of course, each school is going to be different and in some places the interviewers may make an oral presentation to the adcom or be available to answer questions that the adcom might have about the applicant or to clarify their written remarks.

 

[compstomper]

Thank you so much for taking the time from your schedule to answer our questions. All your advice has been invaluable in contributing to my success this application cycle, please keep up the great work.

My question is more open ended, so I understand if you don't have the time to go into details. With the opening of new MD & DO medical schools in the US, and with the number of US medical students getting ever closer a 1 to 1 parity with the number of residency spots, what do you think the future for current/soon to be medical students will look like? I know the situation is grim for US IMG or foreign medical school graduates, but I was wondering how it would affect US MD students Insofar as difficulty in matching to residency, possibility/likelihood of increased funding via medicare to increase number of residency spots, possibles changes in difficulty for future medical school applicants, etc.

Happy holidays LizzyM

 

[LizzyM]

What's the ideal number of hours for shadowing and clinical volunteering prior to apply to MD/DO schools? I can understand the importance of shadowing experiences (different specialty and duration), but I'm not sure about the clinical volunteering part though.

@Chemistry Cat 3.0

Why are you volunteering? if it is to learn about the clinical environment, keep volunteering until you feel you have adequate experience to make a decision about making a career in that environment. If it is to help people who need help, keep volunteering until no one needs your help there or until your circumstances change and you can no longer provide help there and you move on to help in other settings.

 

[NuttyEngDude]

Hi Lizzy and thank you for doing this.

Some folks I know who are also going through the app cycle with me feel this year seems more competitive than ever. This opinion could be because we are now on the inside rather than the outside looking in. It also could be influenced by the delay the AAMC had in verifying apps this year. So I'm wondering, from your perspective, how does this year's application season compare so far with previous years in terms of the competitiveness of the applicants?

 

[okokok]

What is your favorite holiday food????

I really love the urgency of this question

 

[LizzyM]

What's your drink of choice?

@SilentSoldier Who's buying?

 

[chem4ever]

What are your opinions on letters of intent? Does your adcom take a letter stating "I will attend this school if you accept me" seriously? Also, if one does write that, would you know if that would affect the offering of a merit-based scholarship (since they don't need to recruit that person anymore)?

Thank you so much for all your help!!!!!!

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM,

I don't think I've ever experienced being scrutinized and judged to the extent that I have been during the medical school application process. It starts with revealing your details to strangers to write letters of evaluation. It extends to baring all my skeletons and flaws in my essays. It continues with being crossed up and scrutinized during interviews. I realize this profession is demanding, and that future incidents of malpractice could make our life hellish. But is one able to maintain some degree of privacy as one journeys through medical school & residency & practice? Or is there more soul-bearing incidents built into our training & practice?

@solitaries If you are asking strangers to write letters on your behalf, you are doing it wrong.
No one asks you to bare your skeleton (if you have more than one skeleton, you may have a rare genetic condition that adcoms may find fascinating) nor must you reveal all your flaws... we are not your confessor. Tell a story of who you are and why you would be a good choice for medical school and the profession or medicine.

 

[SN12357]

How are merit scholarships awarded at your school? Are they given to the candidates perceived as most deserving/best overall candidates, or are they used more as recruiting tools to attract students who might otherwise go elsewhere? Or is there another factor in play I'm not thinking of?

 

[LizzyM]

Do your coworkers know you're THE LizzyM? If so, whats that like at work?

@masaraksh As far as I know, my coworkers do not know. I'm Clark Kent as far as they're concerned.

 

[masaraksh]

I'll just be going down the USNWR med school rank list classifying schools as 'yeah, i could misspell that' and 'impossible to misspell'.



edit: 99% certain LizzyM is not an adcom @ Yale, Duke, Stanford.

 

[Bovary]

Hi LizzyM, thanks for doing this!

• Is the minimum number of LORs (e.g. a committee letter, or three science professors, depending on what your school requires) an actual minimum, or would having only the bare minimum be a red flag?

• What place do hobbies have in the Activities section? Should hobbies (e.g. instrument, writing, sports, underwater basket weaving, etc) be bundled in one activities section — or what would raise a red flag for "this person is just padding their activities section"?

• Are there diminishing returns for very-high MCAT/GPA? For example, the difference between a 38 and a 43 is 5 "LizzyM points", but is the 43 really seen as "5 points better" than the 38 since they both have such high scores?

• What's the minimum amount of research one would have to do so that you'd believe their claim that "I want to go to your school because it's a research powerhouse, and I want to do research"

Thanks a lot! I really appreciate your trustworthy advice on these forums.

 

[LizzyM]

What's the best career path to position oneself to be Dean?

@neusu Good Heavens! Do you really want that job? You need mad skills as a researcher (to have credibility of as an academic physician), skills in grantmanship and mentorship and leadership. You have to love administration, policy and relationship building. The dean is also the face of the medical school so that requires quite a bit of social events and face time with administration, faculty, students, alumni and donors.

As you may notice, there is little or no room for patient care. If you are going to medical school to become a Dean, you might not be a good fit for med school.

 

[LizzyM]

Do you have an MD? What did you major in college?

@chillaxbro
I am not an MD. I'd rather not reveal my major.

 

[Euxox]

What's your favorite part of being on an admissions committee? Also, do you ever get tired of answering the same old questions on SDN over and over again? It seems like it could get tedious after a while, but we're all glad that you take time out of your day to help us. Thanks again LizzyM!

 

[chem4ever]

If you are going to medical school to become a Dean, you might not be a good fit for med school.

Isn't neusu the guy that started the "ask a neurosurgery resident anything" thread? Why do I feel like he doesn't really need to go to med school? lol

 

[Ace-Co-A]

It seems important that physicians develop a well thought-through position on health care policy, especially as the effects/limitations of the Affordable Care Act become clear. During the interview stage of the application process, what are admissions committees looking for, in terms of knowledge about healthcare policy, from applicants? Are there any misconceptions out there about what is expected from an applicant and her/his knowledge of healthcare policy?

Do you have any book/literature recommendations to help guide undergraduates and medical students as we try to remain vigilant about the impact of the Affordable Care Act?

 

[LizzyM]

What is your favorite holiday food????

@cybermaxx12 I don't have a favorite... there are so many holiday delights.

 

[sunflower18]

Thank you so much for doing this!!

1) how much of a LizzyM point difference between GPA and MCAT is allowable without raising eyebrows? Like if you have a 3.3 and your MCAT is a 43, that's a 10 point LizzyM difference. Or, conversely, if you have a 4.0 and a 30, also 10 point difference. Are these large differences viewed unfavourably, or are they not taken into account?

2) Is it better for the personal statement to list but not really elaborate on a whole slew of reasons why one wants to be a doctor? Or is it preferable for the applicant to choose one or two reasons and tell stories that go in depth about them?

3) Can activity descriptions continue the task of answering "why do you want to be a doctor"? Especially the space for most meaningful seems like a good place to say how this activity caused the applicant to understand the medical profession and their own traits better. Is this seen as strange or okay?

Thank you!

 

[LizzyM]

Thank you so much for taking the time from your schedule to answer our questions. All your advice has been invaluable in contributing to my success this application cycle, please keep up the great work.

My question is more open ended, so I understand if you don't have the time to go into details. With the opening of new MD & DO medical schools in the US, and with the number of US medical students getting ever closer a 1 to 1 parity with the number of residency spots, what do you think the future for current/soon to be medical students will look like? I know the situation is grim for US IMG or foreign medical school graduates, but I was wondering how it would affect US MD students Insofar as difficulty in matching to residency, possibility/likelihood of increased funding via medicare to increase number of residency spots, possibles changes in difficulty for future medical school applicants, etc.

Happy holidays LizzyM

@theercster There is political pressure to increase funding for medical residency spots. There well may be a musical chairs situation where some US grads are left without a position after match/scramble and they will do something to buff their application (research, MS, etc) and try again. Rinse and repeat with the next graduating class. There may be US grads who would prefer to buff their residency applications than to take a family medicine residency in some backwater county and those slots may still go to FMGs who are not as fussy. How this will trickle down to US med school applicants, I have no idea. If we see too many US grads not going on to residency and being essentially unemployable, there will be even more pressure to increase funding for residency spots. Whether Congress will go along wit that remains to be seen.

 

[nemo123]

I'll just be going down the USNWR med school rank list classifying schools as 'yeah, i could misspell that' and 'impossible to misspell'.



edit: 99% certain LizzyM is not an adcom @ Yale, Duke, Stanford.

Stanford is often misspelled as Standford.

Anyways, if your colleagues don't know you're LizzyM, does your dean/someone else know?

 

[LizzyM]

Hi Lizzy and thank you for doing this.

Some folks I know who are also going through the app cycle with me feel this year seems more competitive than ever. This opinion could be because we are now on the inside rather than the outside looking in. It also could be influenced by the delay the AAMC had in verifying apps this year. So I'm wondering, from your perspective, how does this year's application season compare so far with previous years in terms of the competitiveness of the applicants?

@NuttyEngDude Seems about the same as last cycle. I'd say things have been kicked up a notch in the past 3-4 years compared with 7-10 years ago but from year to year it doesn't seem like a big change.

 

[GoPelicans]

What is your favorite interview question to ask?

 

[capit]

I'm an applicant with competitive stats and suitable ECs for a good in-state school. Could the complete silence from other schools be caused by an assumption that I will be accepted to and attend the state school? Might it be worthwhile to send update letters to these schools? Am I overthinking this?

Thanks, and best wishes for a wonderful holiday!

 

[LizzyM]

What are your opinions on letters of intent? Does your adcom take a letter stating "I will attend this school if you accept me" seriously? Also, if one does write that, would you know if that would affect the offering of a merit-based scholarship (since they don't need to recruit that person anymore)?

Thank you so much for all your help!!!!!!

@chem4ever Letters of intent are bull s ***. My school does not take them seriously. I do not know if writing one would have any impact on the offering of a merit based scholarship but I would highly doubt that anyone writing one would be in the running for a merit based scholarship. (Writing a letter of intent suggests to me that you have not yet been admitted whereas schools make merit based offer after offering their top choice candidates an offer of admission.)

 

[Lya]

@neusu Good Heavens! Do you really want that job? You need mad skills as a researcher (to have credibility of as an academic physician), skills in grantmanship and mentorship and leadership. You have to love administration, policy and relationship building. The dean is also the face of the medical school so that requires quite a bit of social events and face time with administration, faculty, students, alumni and donors.

As you may notice, there is little or no room for patient care. If you are going to medical school to become a Dean, you might not be a good fit for med school.

What do exactly "administration, policy and relationship building" entail? Can you offer examples?

If someone is interested in academic medicine and ultimately administration, what are some realistic timelines (of doing research, mentorship, leadership, etc.) that he or she should expect to reach there? For example, 10-20 years of professorship or being a Chair? I am just curious how all this process works. Not many of us know what exactly their Deans in college/medical school do on a daily basis, besides "social events and face time."

 

[lalalapartay012]

Hello LizzyM! Thanks for doing this I think I can speak for many people when I say that we are very glad that you are willing to take time out of your vacation (and just your time, in general throughout the year) to answer our questions. Here are some questions I hope you can answer:

1. How do you feel about the "ladder rung theory?" Would you say this is the general guiding principle in admissions or is it widely dependent upon school? Do you feel this is the best, most feasible way to assess an applicant?

2. Has there ever been an instance where your (strong) advocation for an applicant was the deciding factor in them being admitted?

3. If you could give advice to future applicants/interviewees, what would you tell them? (does not have to be in regards to medical school application process, but can be about life, in general)

4. What is one aspect of the admissions process that you believe should be changed?

5. What has been your favorite thread/moment/incident as a result of your participation on SDN as LizzyM? (meeting others that were on sdn, funny thread, etc.)

6. Why are you so awesome? And upon your retirement, do you think that you will reveal to all of us your true identity?

 

[LizzyM]

How are merit scholarships awarded at your school? Are they given to the candidates perceived as most deserving/best overall candidates, or are they used more as recruiting tools to attract students who might otherwise go elsewhere? Or is there another factor in play I'm not thinking of?

@SN12357 If you had a million bucks and needed to fill 100 medical school seats with the best candidates you could attract to your school, how would you use the money? (Assume cost of attendance is $70K/yr). I say that because I have no responsibility for doling out merit aid. Your guess is as good as mine.

 

[Remy LeBeau]

Thank you for your contributions to this community. Your advice has been so helpful to so many of us.

My question is this: What's your favorite underdog story from your time as an adcom? Was there someone with borderline stats that just won your heart in the interview? Or maybe you saw a student who overcame childhood adversity and developed into a star student/physician?

Thanks again for all you do!

 

[yankees26]

Hi LizzyM,
Thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it.

I have recently received a supplemental LOR from a prof I TAed a course for. When do you I suggest I send it to med schools? Should I send it before I hear back from the school or should I only send it if I end up on the wait list?

As of now, I have been on 8 interviews- so far I have been only deferred or placed on the alternate list. What have you noticed is the best way to get off the wait list??

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM, thanks for doing this!

• Is the minimum number of LORs (e.g. a committee letter, or three science professors, depending on what your school requires) an actual minimum, or would having only the bare minimum be a red flag?

• What place do hobbies have in the Activities section? Should hobbies (e.g. instrument, writing, sports, underwater basket weaving, etc) be bundled in one activities section — or what would raise a red flag for "this person is just padding their activities section"?

• Are there diminishing returns for very-high MCAT/GPA? For example, the difference between a 38 and a 43 is 5 "LizzyM points", but is the 43 really seen as "5 points better" than the 38 since they both have such high scores?

• What's the minimum amount of research one would have to do so that you'd believe their claim that "I want to go to your school because it's a research powerhouse, and I want to do research"

Thanks a lot! I really appreciate your trustworthy advice on these forums.

@Bovary
There are no tricks and we are not trying to be unfair. If the minimum is three letters, then we are happy if you supply three letters. We don't say, "three letters" and penalize anyone who submits three letters.

Hobbies help us get to know you as a person and not just a list of the same common experiences that every applicant seems to list. List your research, volunteer activities, leadership, employment, teaching and tutoring, then list your artistic endeavors, hobbies, athletics, etc. It should all balance out and not look like padding at all. If you don't have any research, volunteering, leadership, employment or teaching/tutoring, then listing 12 hobbies will look like padding.

I disagree with the powers that be but the diminishing returns on the MCAT seems to be at 40 and for the GPA at 3.9.

Minimum amount of research to declare that you want to do more research: I'd say one summer full-time plus one academic year of intense research (e.g. 15 hrs/wk). Or something equivalent. With intellectual engagement in the design & trouble shooting, not just washing glassware.

 

[swift3y]

Would a single C be grounds to get your admission rescinded?

 

[LizzyM]

What's your favorite part of being on an admissions committee? Also, do you ever get tired of answering the same old questions on SDN over and over again? It seems like it could get tedious after a while, but we're all glad that you take time out of your day to help us. Thanks again LizzyM!

@Euxox If I'm tired of a given question, I skip it. Seems that within the hour, someone will respond and quote one of my old posts.

I like reviewing interview reports plus the applications (whole package) and making my recommendation regarding the final decisions.

 

[LizzyM]

It seems important that physicians develop a well thought-through position on health care policy, especially as the effects/limitations of the Affordable Care Act become clear. During the interview stage of the application process, what are admissions committees looking for, in terms of knowledge about healthcare policy, from applicants? Are there any misconceptions out there about what is expected from an applicant and her/his knowledge of healthcare policy?

Do you have any book/literature recommendations to help guide undergraduates and medical students as we try to remain vigilant about the impact of the Affordable Care Act?

@Ace-Co-A
I don't have any expectations about what an applicant should know about the ACA. I think that from my perspective, the misconception is that we expect the applicants to know much about health policy.
I would recommend treating health policy like any other current event topic and putting your focus on keeping up to date through the NYTimes, the Economist, or the Wall Street Journal or other reputable mainstream publication.

 

[masaraksh]

Stanford is often misspelled as Standford.

Anyways, if your colleagues don't know you're LizzyM, does your dean/someone else know?

Hopkins is pretty high on my list right now. I can see a lot of applicants writing 'John' instead of 'Johns'. UPenn as well (maybe messing up the two n's or spelling of 'perelman').

Harvard, WUSTL, UCSF, UCLA, UCSD, Cornell, Vandy, Columbia, Baylor, NYU, Emory, UNC, Case are all out. Who can't spell those?!

 

[swift3y]

And should I report the C to the school? Or just wait until they request my final transcript?

 

[LizzyM]

Thank you so much for doing this!!

1) how much of a LizzyM point difference between GPA and MCAT is allowable without raising eyebrows? Like if you have a 3.3 and your MCAT is a 43, that's a 10 point LizzyM difference. Or, conversely, if you have a 4.0 and a 30, also 10 point difference. Are these large differences viewed unfavourably, or are they not taken into account?

2) Is it better for the personal statement to list but not really elaborate on a whole slew of reasons why one wants to be a doctor? Or is it preferable for the applicant to choose one or two reasons and tell stories that go in depth about them?

3) Can activity descriptions continue the task of answering "why do you want to be a doctor"? Especially the space for most meaningful seems like a good place to say how this activity caused the applicant to understand the medical profession and their own traits better. Is this seen as strange or okay?

Thank you!

@sunflower18
1) I don't think much about differences between MCAT and GPA. The examples you give usually suggest a story of some sort in the first situation (non-trad with a poor undergrad record but a keen intellect or just mad test taking skills) where the second situation suggests grade inflation and/or a school or curriculum that did not challenge an otherwise average student.

2) I am a big fan of a 5 paragraph personal statement: give me an opening paragraph, three paragraphs each of which details a reason for being a doctor and/or how you have tested your interest, and a summary or closing paragraph. But it is very personal. Just be sure to use page breaks. A single gray paragraph is a killer to read.

3) Going into detail as to why an activity was one of your most meaningful is how the space is meant to be used so I suppose it should be used to describe why it has propelled you toward a career in medicine.