Baylor CM 2008 Applicants Thread

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OncoCaP

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If you are considering applying to Baylor College of Medicine, here is a thread for you. You can reply with questions here about Baylor CM, what are your chances, etc. Baylor Medical Students (including those just starting) will help answer your questions. In addition, if you want a facebook version of this thread, you can find it here: http://facebook.com/group.php?gid=2389689052 . Good luck! :luck::luck::luck::hardy:
 
Yea, no one really told me about research until Fall of my 3rd year. I already knew I was going to be busy studying for MCATs in Spring so there wasn't much I could do about it. *cry*

I suppose I could start trying to get some experience in Fall, even if it doesn't show up on my app to show that I have interest now (even though it hasn't been explored). If Baylor (or any other med school) asks "why haven't you done research?", then I want to answer their question with a positive "I'm doing some right now!" and that should turn things around. 😀
 
Hey, thanks for starting this thread and congrats to those of you who just got in. 🙂

I decided to apply to Baylor because I'm really interested in their international medicine focus. I'm in Africa right now and though Baylor doesn't have a clinic in the country I'm living in, two of the neighboring countries do have clinics and I've heard great things about them from people who've been there. If I got into Baylor, I'd be really interested in spending time volunteering/working at their international clinics, especially the ones nearby, as I speak the languages passably and am quite familiar with the local cultures. What kinds of opportunities are there to do that? Summers? Electives abroad?
 
TheRealMD said:
Yea, no one really told me about research until Fall of my 3rd year. I already knew I was going to be busy studying for MCATs in Spring so there wasn't much I could do about it. *cry*

I suppose I could start trying to get some experience in Fall, even if it doesn't show up on my app to show that I have interest now (even though it hasn't been explored). If Baylor (or any other med school) asks "why haven't you done research?", then I want to answer their question with a positive "I'm doing some right now!" and that should turn things around. 😀
Click to expand...

Although research experience can be helpful, you don't need research to get in. However, if you don't do research, you need to do something else to demonstrate your interest / aptitude in medicine. BCM graduates excellent physicians some (many?) of whom have no interest in research; it's optional. Looks like you have already done several shadowing experiences. It's important to discover what you like and are good at; develop those skills and interests. Just doing research because you are "supposed to" wouldn't be my strategy (although I did do research and I like it). Have you considered joining some of the different pre-med service organizations? They sometimes have service projects that are good experiences and are looked upon favorably. What are your interests and passions in medicine? What do you care about? How could you explore those interests further while an undergraduate? Also, even if something doesn't show up on the application, you'll have a chance to tell your interviewer about it.

It looks you're a URM, which is a huge plus when applying anywhere since med schools are working really hard to admit diverse classes (BCM is very good at admitting a diverse class, in my opinion). Umm, are you really 18 yrs old? BCM also has some very nice URM scholarships that you could potentially get.
 
hazel16 said:
Hey, thanks for starting this thread and congrats to those of you who just got in. 🙂

I decided to apply to Baylor because I'm really interested in their international medicine focus. I'm in Africa right now and though Baylor doesn't have a clinic in the country I'm living in, two of the neighboring countries do have clinics and I've heard great things about them from people who've been there. If I got into Baylor, I'd be really interested in spending time volunteering/working at their international clinics, especially the ones nearby, as I speak the languages passably and am quite familiar with the local cultures. What kinds of opportunities are there to do that? Summers? Electives abroad?
Click to expand...

That's one of the nice things about Baylor CM: there is a lot of flexibility in the rotations with electives, etc. Although you could do summers, you can also work away rotations and short international trips into your curriculum. One student on SDN told me about trip that she took representing BCM at an international conference (at BCM's expense). As long as you are organized and plan ahead, it seems to me you should have many opportunities in this respect. Hopefully one of the BCM students who has done some of the international trips will answer your question. Either way, you may want to check out these links, e-mail the contacts, and ask about opportunities for medical students. These opportunities might even be available to you without regard to the school you wind up going. Here are a couple of links that I pulled of a search at www.bcm.edu:

http://www.bcm.edu/findings/vol4/is4/06apr_n1.html
http://bayloraids.org/
 
hazel16 said:
Hey, thanks for starting this thread and congrats to those of you who just got in. 🙂

I decided to apply to Baylor because I'm really interested in their international medicine focus. I'm in Africa right now and though Baylor doesn't have a clinic in the country I'm living in, two of the neighboring countries do have clinics and I've heard great things about them from people who've been there. If I got into Baylor, I'd be really interested in spending time volunteering/working at their international clinics, especially the ones nearby, as I speak the languages passably and am quite familiar with the local cultures. What kinds of opportunities are there to do that? Summers? Electives abroad?
Click to expand...

Hey, where can I find more info on Baylor's international medicine focus? I'm really interested in this as well.
 
Do you know how bad it is for OOS? I heard enrollment is like 80% Texans. It's on my list, but a definite reach.
 
Taylorcraft46 said:
Do you know how bad it is for OOS? I heard enrollment is like 80% Texans. It's on my list, but a definite reach.
Click to expand...

Here's 2005's stats:
Applied Interviewed Accepted Enrolled
Total: 4,326 631 275 168
In-state: 1,388 354 174 127
Out-of-state: 2,938 277 101 41
Women: 2,020 271 136 81
Minorities: 2,062 309 144 88
International: 117 13 5 1

As you can see, they interview quite a few OOS. Just do well in the interview.
 
OncoCaP said:
Although research experience can be helpful, you don't need research to get in. However, if you don't do research, you need to do something else to demonstrate your interest / aptitude in medicine. BCM graduates excellent physicians some (many?) of whom have no interest in research; it's optional. Looks like you have already done several shadowing experiences. It's important to discover what you like and are good at; develop those skills and interests. Just doing research because you are "supposed to" wouldn't be my strategy (although I did do research and I like it). Have you considered joining some of the different pre-med service organizations? They sometimes have service projects that are good experiences and are looked upon favorably. What are your interests and passions in medicine? What do you care about? How could you explore those interests further while an undergraduate? Also, even if something doesn't show up on the application, you'll have a chance to tell your interviewer about it.

It looks you're a URM, which is a huge plus when applying anywhere since med schools are working really hard to admit diverse classes (BCM is very good at admitting a diverse class, in my opinion). Umm, are you really 18 yrs old? BCM also has some very nice URM scholarships that you could potentially get.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I really AM 18. In fact, I notice you're in Austin so if you want to come up to the UT campus sometime, we can sit down and chat. 😀

Oh, and I already joined a ore-med society about a year ago.
 
I heard that in addition to giving TX residents priority, BCM also gives slight favor to Baylor Undergrad students (or has some kind of agreement to interview a certain number)... anyone know if there is any validity to this?
 
TheRealMD said:
Thanks for the info. I really AM 18. In fact, I notice you're in Austin so if you want to come up to the UT campus sometime, we can sit down and chat. 😀

Oh, and I already joined a ore-med society about a year ago.
Click to expand...

Wow, you're getting an early start!

I'm actually not on the UT campus on a regular basis anymore. I work remotely; I've moved to Houston metro. However, feel free to stay in touch via this SDN thread or the "Baylor College of Medicine Class of 2012 Applicants" facebook group.
 
nyct said:
I heard that in addition to giving TX residents priority, BCM also gives slight favor to Baylor Undergrad students (or has some kind of agreement to interview a certain number)... anyone know if there is any validity to this?
Click to expand...

There are some programs where undergraduates are admitted to Baylor as part of a program, such as Rice to Baylor CM (http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/RiceBaylorIndex.asp) and Baylor U to Baylor CM and various small colleges to Baylor CM.

Other than these programs, Rice students are heavily represented at BCM (~40 come from Rice in the incoming class). If anything, Rice students seem to have a slight advantage. However, I didn't go to Rice and most BCM students didn't. Baylor admits students from many different schools, from UC system schools to Harvard, and even some community colleges. Clearly it's competitive. You need to have the academic stats, MCAT, and EC's to get in.
 
nyct said:
I heard that in addition to giving TX residents priority, BCM also gives slight favor to Baylor Undergrad students (or has some kind of agreement to interview a certain number)... anyone know if there is any validity to this?
Click to expand...

Why would they? Baylor College is in no way affiliated with BCM. A MS4 at a Health Professions Fair at UT Austin clearly pointed that out to me (also that BCM is in Houston, everyone thinks it's in Waco like the College).
 
OncoCaP said:
There are some programs where undergraduates are admitted to Baylor as part of a program, such as Rice to Baylor CM (http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/RiceBaylorIndex.asp) and Baylor U to Baylor CM and various small colleges to Baylor CM.

Other than these programs, Rice students are heavily represented at BCM (~40 come from Rice in the incoming class). If anything, Rice students seem to have a slight advantage. However, I didn't go to Rice and most BCM students didn't. Baylor admits students from many different schools, from UC system schools to Harvard, and even some community colleges. Clearly it's competitive. You need to have the academic stats, MCAT, and EC's to get in.
Click to expand...

However, isn't that overrepresentation due to the fact that BCM reserves spots from the Rice/Baylor Bac/MD program?
 
TheRealMD said:
Why would they? Baylor College is in no way affiliated with BCM. A MS4 at a Health Professions Fair at UT Austin clearly pointed that out to me (also that BCM is in Houston, everyone thinks it's in Waco like the College).
Click to expand...

I know they aren't affiliated, but they used to be. Maybe it's just some crazy story I heard that's totally false, but I remember hearing that one of the agreements at their split was that BCM would interview a certain number of BU applicants each year. I was just curious if anyone had heard a similar story...
 
TheRealMD said:
However, isn't that overrepresentation due to the fact that BCM reserves spots from the Rice/Baylor Bac/MD program?
Click to expand...

Rice seems to have a strong representation relative to its size, even considering that program.
http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/RiceBaylorFAQs.asp
"...After the interviews, 20 students were selected as Rice/Baylor Scholars with the expectation that 15 would accept a place in the program." This is well short of the ~40 Rice students that are rumored to have gotten in this year. I'm not sure that UT Austin, a school many times the size of Rice has nearly as many students coming to BCM. There is a strong Rice representation at BCM; no question about it.
 
nyct said:
I know they aren't affiliated, but they used to be. Maybe it's just some crazy story I heard that's totally false, but I remember hearing that one of the agreements at their split was that BCM would interview a certain number of BU applicants each year. I was just curious if anyone had heard a similar story...
Click to expand...

If anything, the Baylor U students indicated that only the Baylor U / Baylor CM program students got into BCM this year from there. It doesn't seem like there is an "advantage" for Baylor U students relative to others.
 
I am also applying to Baylor, I am pretty sure my stats are competitive so good luck to everyone. Baylor is probably my top choice due to location in TX and in the giant med center. On paper and from what I hear from friends the school looks great, but I wont really be sure until I visit.
 
I know from a numbers perspective I'm below the Baylor stats, but can the other parts of my app make up for these deficiencies?

Undergrad: Univ of Texas at Austin
B.S. Microbiology
3.6 GPA, 3.3 BCPM

Graduate: Tulane Univ.
M.S. in Public Health
3.95 GPA

9 VR, 12 PS, 13 BS for 34N

Lifeguard, Pool Manager for 3 summers
French hornist in marching band, basketball band, volleyball band
Peace Corps Volunteer - 2 years in Cameroon as health educator w/ lots of clinical exposure during service
Who's Who among Students of American Colleges and Universities
Research on Invertebrate Transgenesis at Tulane; 12 hrs/week for one year

What do you think?
 
Jolie South said:
I know from a numbers perspective I'm below the Baylor stats, but can the other parts of my app make up for these deficiencies?

Undergrad: Univ of Texas at Austin
B.S. Microbiology
3.6 GPA, 3.3 BCPM

Graduate: Tulane Univ.
M.S. in Public Health
3.95 GPA

9 VR, 12 PS, 13 BS for 34N

Lifeguard, Pool Manager for 3 summers
French hornist in marching band, basketball band, volleyball band
Peace Corps Volunteer - 2 years in Cameroon as health educator w/ lots of clinical exposure during service
Who's Who among Students of American Colleges and Universities
Research on Invertebrate Transgenesis at Tulane; 12 hrs/week for one year

What do you think?
Click to expand...

I am not sure why you are asking them...they are not on the admissions committee...I hope you take most things said on this board with a grain of salt. Just apply and hope for the best...that is all you can do. There really is no use worrying about this stuff now

good luck 👍👍👍😀
 
OncoCaP said:
If anything, the Baylor U students indicated that only the Baylor U / Baylor CM program students got into BCM this year from there. It doesn't seem like there is an "advantage" for Baylor U students relative to others.
Click to expand...

I know that Rice has a very strong affiliation with Baylor...at one time there was word of Rice getting involved in the operations of the medical school...not sure how true that statement was...but it was being spread around campus while I was there.

Baylor would be an awesome school to attend...I am a Cali resident though
 
Jolie South said:
I know from a numbers perspective I'm below the Baylor stats, but can the other parts of my app make up for these deficiencies?

Undergrad: Univ of Texas at Austin
B.S. Microbiology
3.6 GPA, 3.3 BCPM

Graduate: Tulane Univ.
M.S. in Public Health
3.95 GPA

9 VR, 12 PS, 13 BS for 34N

Lifeguard, Pool Manager for 3 summers
French hornist in marching band, basketball band, volleyball band
Peace Corps Volunteer - 2 years in Cameroon as health educator w/ lots of clinical exposure during service
Who's Who among Students of American Colleges and Universities
Research on Invertebrate Transgenesis at Tulane; 12 hrs/week for one year

What do you think?
Click to expand...

Like Riceman said, the admissions committee isn't giving evaluations here, so if you think you might want to go to BCM, just apply and see what happens.

That said, I think your app looks decent from what we can see here. Wouldn't surprise me if you made it assuming that everything is great (interview, LORs, etc.).
 
hazel16 said:
Hey, thanks for starting this thread and congrats to those of you who just got in. 🙂

I decided to apply to Baylor because I'm really interested in their international medicine focus. I'm in Africa right now and though Baylor doesn't have a clinic in the country I'm living in, two of the neighboring countries do have clinics and I've heard great things about them from people who've been there. If I got into Baylor, I'd be really interested in spending time volunteering/working at their international clinics, especially the ones nearby, as I speak the languages passably and am quite familiar with the local cultures. What kinds of opportunities are there to do that? Summers? Electives abroad?
Click to expand...

Where in Africa? I'm in South Africa right now doing research for the summer. Don't you love how internet access connects everybody?

Baylor's combination of research, international work, and school program seem exciting! I just put in my primary AMCAS app, so will follow this thread with interest. Best of luck to everybody.
 
Jolie South said:
...
Undergrad: Univ of Texas at Austin
B.S. Microbiology
3.6 GPA, 3.3 BCPM

...
What do you think?
Click to expand...

Jolie, I looked at your app again, I was wondering about the BCPM. It seems low to me. Is there any way that you could take some BCPM undergrad classes to get that up? I think your MS is a positive factor, but I'm a bit concerned that med schools use UG GPA as a kind of "first cut" and that you'll never make it pass a computer filter (if they used one, which I don't know). I don't mean to stress you out; I'm just telling you what I might consider if I was in your shoes.
 
Mbekweni said:
Where in Africa? I'm in South Africa right now doing research for the summer. Don't you love how internet access connects everybody?

Baylor's combination of research, international work, and school program seem exciting! I just put in my primary AMCAS app, so will follow this thread with interest. Best of luck to everybody.
Click to expand...

I was really surprised that BCM did as much internationally as they do. I always thought of them as being at the huge Texas Medical Center in a big city and that local work there would keep them busy. It was a pleasant surprise.
 
OncoCaP said:
Jolie, I looked at your app again, I was wondering about the BCPM. It seems low to me. Is there any way that you could take some BCPM undergrad classes to get that up? I think your MS is a positive factor, but I'm a bit concerned that med schools use UG GPA as a kind of "first cut" and that you'll never make it pass a computer filter (if they used one, which I don't know). I don't mean to stress you out; I'm just telling you what I might consider if I was in your shoes.
Click to expand...

Not possible. Have no money and work full time. I'm retaking Organic 2 though. The only time I got a grade below a B in college was that class.

I kinda hoped that my 13 and 12 on PS and BS would make up for this. Does it work that way?

I partied a lot and really didn't care about grades in undergrad. I DID really focus and study in grad school and for the MCAT. I thought that they might see this.
 
Jolie South said:
Not possible. Have no money and work full time. I'm retaking Organic 2 though. The only time I got a grade below a B in college was that class.

I kinda hoped that my 13 and 12 on PS and BS would make up for this. Does it work that way?

I partied a lot and really didn't care about grades in undergrad. I DID really focus and study in grad school and for the MCAT. I thought that they might see this.
Click to expand...

If you have done all you can, then go with what you have. However, my impression is that more competitive schools like BCM can choose people with excellent GPAs, MCATs, ECs, LORs, interview.... 34N is well above average, but you'll be going up against a lot of Texas Natural Sciences majors with GPAs >= 3.7 and MCATs not that far off from yours. Medical application folklore is that GPA & MCAT are used as a first cut. I'm not saying that's a good system, but that's the way I understand it to work.
 
Hi All,

I am really hoping for Baylor as well! From all I have read and heard, I really like the school so far! Could you please tell me my chances by looking at my stats? and what do they generally look for in their applications?

thank you so much!
 
Just submitted my secondary today and my AMCAS got verified too. Unfortunately, I'm still waiting on a prof to simply sign a LOR she forgot to sign and fax it to Interfolio. She said she would do it yesterday, but nothing has showed up yet.

😡

Still, she did write the LOR one day before she got a C-section which was really nice of her. Only if she had signed it...
 
enigmaticsea said:
Hi All,

I am really hoping for Baylor as well! From all I have read and heard, I really like the school so far! Could you please tell me my chances by looking at my stats? and what do they generally look for in their applications?

thank you so much!
Click to expand...


if i had to apply again, i wouldn't mind applying with your stats. 🙂 best of luck! :luck:
 
mlle3000 said:
if i had to apply again, i wouldn't mind applying with your stats. 🙂 best of luck! :luck:
Click to expand...
thanks mlle3000! does that mean you applied to Baylor? Any tips on what to write on their secondary and how to prepare for interview? appreciate it!
 
enigmaticsea said:
thanks mlle3000! does that mean you applied to Baylor? Any tips on what to write on their secondary and how to prepare for interview? appreciate it!
Click to expand...


yes, i applied to baylor this past cycle and will be attending this year (orientation starts in less than a week and a half!! 😱)

for your secondary, i would just include any info that helps the adcom get to know you (but don't repeat stuff that's already on your AMCAS). i happened to write about my most recent research because i wasn't able to include it on my primary application. however, i think writing about your interests outside of medicine is totally fine as well.

preping for interview - read the interview feed back on this website. i gathered a list of all kinds of questions from the different schools i was interviewing at. some questions i just practiced in my head. for what i thought were harder questions to reply to (like "name 3 weaknesses" or "why do you want to be a doctor") i actually practiced with my brother in a mock-interview setting. whatever works for you. but most importantly during my interview, i stayed calm and just acted like my normal self.
 
anyone receive an interview yet from baylor?
 
fiji said:
anyone receive an interview yet from baylor?
Click to expand...

Based on my experience last year, you won't hear anything about BCM interview invites until about mid-August or later.
 
I had my Letters of Recommendation sent to Baylor yesterday electronically, but my status page still says that they have not received them yet.

How long does it take for them to confirm electronic Letters of Recommendation (through Interfolio)?
 
midn said:
I had my Letters of Recommendation sent to Baylor yesterday electronically, but my status page still says that they have not received them yet.

How long does it take for them to confirm electronic Letters of Recommendation (through Interfolio)?
Click to expand...

Law of applications says that the school you are most interested in will take the longest to process your materials. I'd give them some time. Heck, it took AMCAS 2 weeks to verify receiving my ELECTRONIC transcripts from UT! 👎
 
midn said:
I had my Letters of Recommendation sent to Baylor yesterday electronically, but my status page still says that they have not received them yet.

How long does it take for them to confirm electronic Letters of Recommendation (through Interfolio)?
Click to expand...

Baylor says they update status every 24 hours... Mine were sent electronically through VirtualEval, and sure enough, 24 hours after VirtualEval notified me they had been made available, the status page said they were there. Did Interfolio say they were about to send them or that they were already there?
 
TheRealMD said:
Law of applications says that the school you are most interested in will take the longest to process your materials. I'd give them some time. Heck, it took AMCAS 2 weeks to verify receiving my ELECTRONIC transcripts from UT! 👎
Click to expand...

But they said they update every 24 hours. They received my supplemental application and payment within a day. Bah.

I just want to get into Baylor and withdraw all my other applications...
 
midn said:
I had my Letters of Recommendation sent to Baylor yesterday electronically, but my status page still says that they have not received them yet.

How long does it take for them to confirm electronic Letters of Recommendation (through Interfolio)?
Click to expand...

If after a reasonable amount of time (say a week), your status doesn't update, you can just call up or e-mail the admissions office and ask them. I know there was some item (transcripts or something, I don't remember now) that wasn't marked as received on my status for a long time. When I called them last year, they said that they were not going to update that until a certain date, which helped explain that particular delay. I'm not sure if they process certain information in batches and what/when/how often those batches are exactly. In any case, don't hesitate to contact them as long as you aren't calling them every week with some minor question. :luck:
 
midn said:
I just want to get into Baylor and withdraw all my other applications...
Click to expand...

hopefully you will be lucky enough to hear early on from your schools, but please prepare yourself....this is a long process. patience will be your best friend (and keep you sane).
 
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