better to be in-state in Oregon or Washington?

[MomTo2Boys]

I would love some advice.

My husband is taking a job in Portland on the border between Oregon and Washington state. We can live in either state.

I am a non-traditional (read: early 30s) mom of 2 who is hoping to get into medical school. I have a BS already and, thankfully, I had very good grades. My last 2 years of college I got all As and 1 B... I calculated and the University of Washington's grade weighting system would get me something truly great like a 3.7+. (Probably wouldn't be so high for Oregon because Washington's way of calculating really makes my grades look great.) If I were to guess I would say that my math/science GPA is probably a 3.5 or so.

My husband's job is incredibly stable~ we could live in Portland forever if we wanted (or move to Seattle later on, but moving is expensive and uproots the children) but I've been reading about how in-state students are not getting a whole lot of love from OHSU, and that is starkly contrasted with UWash and their allergy to anyone out-of-state. Plus, UWash is much cheaper than OHSU.

So what to you guys think?? Is it better to be a Washington resident and try for UWash or an Oregon resident and try for OHSU? 😕

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[MomTo2Boys]

Oops.. and by the way, when I say "truly great" I meant to say "WOW!! This grade weighting system at UWash rocks!" and NOT that I think my grades are worth bragging about. They wouldn't be that high at any other school and that's nothing, I know, compared to the grades of a lot of other applicants.

 

[Ihateverbal]

I think you've answered for yourself...sounds like Uwash =)

Look at your GPA and your MCAT and see how competitive you are at these schools...even if you are a resident, if your score is out of range...you may not have a shot and these two states only have 1 med school each.

Look at the acceptance rate for each school and how many apply/interview/accept. That should help guide you.

 

[goodlookinrebel]

I do believe that UW is alot like UofA here in AZ, as in that they only look at applications from state residents and residents of western states without a medical school, like Wyoming and Montana, whereas OHSU takes all applications. They(UW) are also one of the highest rated medical schools and hospital systems in the country. Seattle is an amazing town, as is PDX. I say work in Portland, live across the river in Vancouver, and go for UW when the time comes.

 

[DrMidlife]

I'd vote the other way. If your husband and family are in Portland, and you have the numbers for OHSU, definitely go with Oregon. Managing med school at UW, with your family in Portland, is not very different from managing it from California or Nebraska. Seattle-to-Portland is a 3 hour drive in great traffic - more like 5 hours unless you drive in the middle of the night and never on holidays. Or take the train or a plane and you still spend about an hour on the road getting to the station or the airport. Add the cost of a 2nd residence and you just ate up the tuition difference anyway. Where are the kids going to live and who is going to take care of them while you're in school? Yep, better go with Portland.

Plus there's no sales tax in Oregon, and PSU has excellent postbac premed support if you're taking more classes.

Do you think the OR residents who aren't getting in to OHSU have great numbers? I bet not. I don't think that OHSU vs. UWash are particularly different in how much they love residents or non-traditionals or research-publishers or what have you.

And keep in mind that planning to attend any one particular med school is asking for trouble. Better kill the MCAT, and start working in a lab and volunteering the second you hit the ground in Portland. Or Vancouver.

Plus I'm a WA resident. Don't crowd me. 🙂

Best of luck to you.

 

[MomTo2Boys]

Hey there, Dr. Midlife ~

Oops! I guess I wasn't clear....

I know that it's insane to try to get into any particular medical school, but as an in-state student one hopefully gets a little bit of a helpful push, right? So I guess I'm asking ~ if all else is equal ~ is it better to be an in-state student trying to get into Washington or an in-state student trying to get into Oregon. (Because everyone knows that if I came on and said, hey, guys, is it more beneficial to be an in-state student in California or an in-state student in Texas that Texas would probably win, right?)

I'm not at ALL trying to act like I'm *all that* and that I'd be a shoo-in anywhere... I'm just trying to figure out which might give me a better chance.

And my husband's job is very flexible. If I was insanely lucky enough to get into Washington, he could transfer to Seattle.

Thanks for the help!

 

[searun]

experience before you submit your application. That is a huge factor in getting accepted to OHSU. It is important at all schools, but OHSU really really puts an emphasis on it. OHSU is not that impressed with high MCAT scores, as long as you pass the threshold, around 31 or so.

 

[FizbanZymogen]

I vote OHSU, as UWSOM seems a little more competative in that they reserve seats for the WWAMI states leaving less for washington applicants. Just my two cents.

 

[DrMidlife]

I'm just trying to figure out which might give me a better chance.

I looked up the numbers and UWash is marginally easier to get into as a resident. But with only one state school each, really I think you should pick the school you like better. Portland as a city gets one more day of rain than Seattle per year, and instead of lakes everywhere there's a river. Portland has one pretty mountain to the east (Hood) instead of Seattle's one to the south (Rainier) and one to the north (Baker). Portland is likely to keep its basketball team; Seattle is likely to keep its football and baseball teams. Portland has no sales tax; Seattle has no income tax. Both are predominantly tree-hugging Birkenstocks-with-socks bike-commuting trail-hiking rock-climbing snowboarding-more-than-skiing massage-practitioning plastic-eschewing-or-at-least-recycling wi-fi-enabled overeducated blue-voting coffee-drinking places. We're mostly friendly.

According to the 07-08 MSAR, UW and OHSU have almost identical MCAT scores and GPAs. UW has an 11 verbal, OHSU has a 10. Oregon admitted 68 residents out of 112 in their class, 61%, against an OR population of 3.4 million. UW admitted 164 WWAMI residents out of 180: if I remember correctly, about 120 seats are WA residents, maybe 75%, against a WA population of 5.9 million. Your competition in both states is equally parented by high ambition, high tech workers.

I still vote OHSU, on intangibles. Come see our prison complex, er, our Health Sciences building at UW.

p.s. I didn't pick up an all-that vibe in your original post. You would have had to mention your 40+ MCAT and some orphans to strut around here.

 

[Hassler]

In my opinion, I think it will be more "beneficial" for you to live in Vancouver, WA than in Portland, OR in terms of med school admissions. Because first of all, you're going to get WA residency which will allow you to apply as an in-state to UW (UW rarely accepts people who are not within the WWAMI region). Secondly, when you apply to OHSU, you can say in your application that you really want to stay near the Portland area for medical school and thus OHSU is one of your top choices. Plus, OHSU accepts a decent number of out of state applicants.

If you're just trying to compare which one it's "easier" to get in as an in-state, it's probably OHSU. But UW is definitely way cheaper and probably has better programs (almost all, if not all, specialties are in the top 10). Both schools do not place huge emphasis on high GPA or MCAT, so I assume good EC's and interviews are probably essential to get in.

Some other things you may not know if you've never been to the two schools:

1. OHSU is on a hill.

2. OHSU accepts a lot of non-trad applicants. I think they said they have the second oldest medical student population (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

3. I think UW requires that you do some 3rd or 4th year rotations at some remote places like MT or WY.

Good luck!

 

[primadonna22274]

As a lifelong Oregonian, I actually considered moving to WA to gain residency then apply to UW.
OHSU does not give a lot of preference to in-state residents and it is really a *private* school. The screwed-up priorities of the Oregon state legislature eons ago pulled so much funding away from OHSU that the school was forced to fund itself in creative ways. Hence, expensive tuition (not a lot of a break for being a resident) and fees. And Portland is getting more and more expensive. No, you don't have sales tax, but you DO have a hefty property tax and your public schools are still perennially underfunded.
My sweetheart and I moved last summer to SC where opportunities were a bit brighter (he's a HS history teacher and couldn't get a permanent teaching job in OR). Sure I miss home but SC schools are much cheaper once I gain in-state residency.
Obviously my vote is for WA.
Good luck to you & your family,
Lisa

 

[melissainsd]

I just wanted to point out that it doesn't matter how UW calculates grades, AMCAS has their own methods.

 

[kevster2001]

It is MUCH easier to try to go for OHSU as a WA resident than vice versa. In addition UW is a much better school. With your stats, if you get above 27( i think ?) you get auto interviewed at UW. I dont think OHSU has such a policy. you also ahve an advantage as a nontrad since UW palces a slightly higher weight to "worldly" experience rather than pure numbers. Live in WA, shop in OR 😀

 

[Doctor Bagel]

As a lifelong Oregonian, I actually considered moving to WA to gain residency then apply to UW.
OHSU does not give a lot of preference to in-state residents and it is really a *private* school. The screwed-up priorities of the Oregon state legislature eons ago pulled so much funding away from OHSU that the school was forced to fund itself in creative ways. Hence, expensive tuition (not a lot of a break for being a resident) and fees. And Portland is getting more and more expensive. No, you don't have sales tax, but you DO have a hefty property tax and your public schools are still perennially underfunded.
My sweetheart and I moved last summer to SC where opportunities were a bit brighter (he's a HS history teacher and couldn't get a permanent teaching job in OR). Sure I miss home but SC schools are much cheaper once I gain in-state residency.
Obviously my vote is for WA.
Good luck to you & your family,
Lisa

Yeah, op, listen to Lisa. 🙂 I love, love, love Portland and hope to maybe get back there some day, but Oregon's a bad place to be for premeds. As someone mentioned above, you can't get into UW if you're not a Washington resident (well, there are some narrow exceptions, but they're not for Oregonians). However, being an Oregon resident gives you very little advantage at OHSU. So, if you live in Vancouver, you can apply to both schools and maybe have a shot at both.

The teaching thing just points out the weirdness of Portland, too. In lots of other areas, there's actually a teacher shortage. In Portland, it's the exact opposite. It's super hard to find a job as a teacher. Portland's a tough city in lots of ways.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Do you think the OR residents who aren't getting in to OHSU have great numbers? I bet not. I don't think that OHSU vs. UWash are particularly different in how much they love residents or non-traditionals or research-publishers or what have you.

Umm, I got rejected by OHSU with a 33 and a 3.8 gpa. Sure, they're not great, but in almost every state, they're good enough for admission to your state school. I'm not the only one, either. Check out our b&tch thread last year. 🙂 On the other hand, some Oregon residents with 24s and 3.2s get in. OHSU is just super subjective, meaning that for applicants it feels very arbitrary.

 

[geogil]

I would like to second the comments about OHSU being friendly to non-trads. THey most definitely are. Also, as someone else said, scores are less important than shadowing and health care experience, this is according to the dean of admissions who visited UO last year. If you guys are able/planning on living in portland long-term, then live on the oregon side of the river, since you won't have to relocate to go to school. OHSU is also shifting their bias of admissions to favor instaters. A couple cycles ago, 35% of the class was instate, now it's more like 60%. Good luck

 

[TheGalvaniFrog]

According to US News & Report, the in state acceptance rate for OHSU is 23%, while for U of W it's 20%. Not that much difference in term of chances for in-state applicants.

But I agree with the previous comment that while OHSU acceptance plenty of OOS students, while U of W doesn't. So it seems a better bet to live in Vancouver, enjoy the no-sales tax across the river and the decent chances at both medical school. One thing you might want to clear up is the tuition issues if you do eventually matriculate to OHSU as a Washington resident; I heard OHSU has some pretty inflexible rules regarding that.

 

[etsuprinthead]

at OHSU, in-state is preferred ONLY until the interview process -- if you make it to an interview, they don't give a d@mn whether you're in-state or out. which doesn't make much sense to me -- it seems like the best out-of-state-ers are still going to get interviews and admission, so they could accept only out-of-state students if the best 120 were o-o-s. though they say that 70% of their students are still in-state.

 

[Chulito]

at OHSU, in-state is preferred ONLY until the interview process -- if you make it to an interview, they don't give a d@mn whether you're in-state or out. which doesn't make much sense to me -- it seems like the best out-of-state-ers are still going to get interviews and admission, so they could accept only out-of-state students if the best 120 were o-o-s. though they say that 70% of their students are still in-state.

I've interviewed at several OOS state schools, and they've all said the same thing. One of my UNC interviewers explained their system to me. He said that it would be cruel to invite people to interview who have very little chance of being accepted, so they screen OOS applicants heavily before offering interviews to them, and then only offer enough OOS interviews so that the same percentage of them can be accepted as of IS interviewees. So, for example, UNC has only a small number of spaces for OOS students, and a lot of spaces for IS students. They extend interview invitations to roughly 4-5 times as many OOS applicants as they have OOS spots, and 4-5 times as many IS applicants as they have IS spots. Thus once you are at an interview, your chances of being accepted are 20%-25% regardless of your state citizenship. They also adjust those numbers to take into account the greater likelihood that OOS applicants will turn down an offer, but I don't want to look up the numbers and do the math right now. The point remains that OOS applicants have it tougher when trying to get an invitation to submit a secondary and when trying to get an invitation to interview, but after that it is a level playing field. I'm guessing that this is true at lots of state schools with a preference for IS applicants.

 

[Chulito]

.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I've interviewed at several OOS state schools, and they've all said the same thing to me. One of my UNC interviewers explained their system to me. He said that it would be cruel to invite people to interview who have very little chance of being accepted, so they screen OOS applicants heavily before offering interviews to them, and then only offer enough OOS interviews so that the same percentage of them can be accepted as of IS interviewees. So, for example, UNC has only a small number of spaces for OOS students, and a lot of spaces for IS students. They extend interview invitations to roughly 4-5 times as many OOS applicants as they have OOS spots, and 4-5 times as many IS applicants as they have IS spots. Thus once you are at an interview, your chances of being accepted are 20%-25% regardless of your state citizenship. The tougher part is getting an invitation to submit a secondary and getting invited to interview. I'm guessing that this is true at lots of state schools with a preference for IS applicants.

Sort of. I guess the key difference is that OHSU invites lots of more oos people to interview than other schools. Also, some of instaters wind up feeling like we're getting pity invites. They're only inviting us because they have to invite x many instate people, but they're not serious about our application.

Also, most other states school have to fill x amount of their seats with instate students. The school I'm at has to have a class made up of at least 85% instate students. What that means is that they invite a significantly smaller number of oos students to interview.

 

[Chulito]

Sort of. I guess the key difference is that OHSU invites lots of more oos people to interview than other schools. Also, some of instaters wind up feeling like we're getting pity invites. They're only inviting us because they have to invite x many instate people, but they're not serious about our application.

Also, most other states school have to fill x amount of their seats with instate students. The school I'm at has to have a class made up of at least 85% instate students. What that means is that they invite a significantly smaller number of oos students to interview.

Agreed, OHSU is very different from other state schools. All of the schools that I have interviewed at hover at ~90% IS students, and are in fact required to do so. OHSU has a very misterious set of admissions criteria, at least to me. I haven't been invited to interview there, however, so I haven't done as much to study them yet. I'm still hoping to get the chance.

 

[Orthonut]

Live in Vancouver-he can commute to Oregon to work, and you can escape the WA sales tax by a short drive to Jantzen Beach (Home Depot, WalMart, Target, Costco I think too, etc etc etc) It's what ALOT of people do. Hardly anyone lives in Portland and commutes to WA though lol. Just make sure you register your vehicles promptly (ie within 30 days or less, preferably) because the WA state patrol has been doing sweeps to get the tax avoiders who register their cars in OR and then really live in Vancouver.

FWIW, about 1/2 of our veterinary staff are commuters from the vanc. area (one or two have spouses applying to various professional schools to-one to med IIRC)

 

[Hassler]

I just wanted to point out that it doesn't matter how UW calculates grades, AMCAS has their own methods.

Wrong.

UW has its own way of calculating GPA:
[(FR GPA * 1) + (SO GPA * 2) + (JR GPA * 3)]/6

Therefore, it does matter how UW weighs your GPA if you're applying to UW. Your senior year GPA isn't even factored into this formula. Of course, they will still look at your senior year grades if you have them, but those are not used for the initial screening process. Junior year is most important.

 

[Hassler]

Umm, I got rejected by OHSU with a 33 and a 3.8 gpa. Sure, they're not great, but in almost every state, they're good enough for admission to your state school. I'm not the only one, either. Check out our b&tch thread last year. 🙂 On the other hand, some Oregon residents with 24s and 3.2s get in. OHSU is just super subjective, meaning that for applicants it feels very arbitrary.

UW admissions is pretty subjective too (50% of your score is dependent on your interview, while 25% is on GPA and 25% is on MCAT). That is why their avg matriculant is like 31 MCAT and 3.7 GPA (lowest of all the top 10 schools), even though they are a top 10 school and probably have one of the most qualified applicant pool in the nation.

I'm not saying its a good or a bad thing, but just want to point out what they emphasize on admissions.

 

[searun]

I have two friends with superb grades and MCAT scores who now are excelling at Duke and UCSD after being rejected by OHSU. I agree that the process is somewhat mysterious.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

UW admissions is pretty subjective too (50% of your score is dependent on your interview, while 25% is on GPA and 25% is on MCAT). That is why their avg matriculant is like 31 MCAT and 3.7 GPA (lowest of all the top 10 schools), even though they are a top 10 school and probably have one of the most qualified applicant pool in the nation.

I'm not saying its a good or a bad thing, but just want to point out what they emphasize on admissions.

Yeah, neither state is really that great for premeds. I've seen lots of really qualified applicants rejected by both.

Dr.Midlife -- it just sucks to hear insulting comments like x school surely doesn't reject instate applicants with good scores. 👎

 

[DrMidlife]

Dr.Midlife -- it just sucks to hear insulting comments like x school surely doesn't reject instate applicants with good scores. 👎

I had no intention of insulting anyone; my apologies. However, I didn't say good numbers, I said great numbers.

My understanding of "great" is that GPA * 10 plus MCAT is above 70. I should have been more specific.

Regardless, you're correct: my statement that numbers are enough was false. My mistake is that I assume people have killer ECs and interview well, and that premeds know better than to be arrogant or exude a sense of entitlement. I'm amazed lately, on SDN and on campus, how many premeds don't fit that description.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I had no intention of insulting anyone; my apologies. However, I didn't say good numbers, I said great numbers.

My understanding of "great" is that GPA * 10 plus MCAT is above 70. I should have been more specific.

Regardless, you're correct: my statement that numbers are enough was false. My mistake is that I assume people have killer ECs and interview well, and that premeds know better than to be arrogant or exude a sense of entitlement. I'm amazed lately, on SDN and on campus, how many premeds don't fit that description.

wow, so I guess I'm arrogant and "exude a sense of entitlement." Gee, you're winning me over even more. 🙄 Maybe if you had applied to OHSU or knew anything about applying to OHSU, I'd listen to you a little more.

I also think it's funny that you state that your intent wasn't be insulting and then you sling more insults in your last paragraph. Oh and btw, by your definition, I guess I did have "great numbers" and yet got rejected. But, again, there's that darn arrogance and sense of entitlement.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I have two friends with superb grades and MCAT scores who now are excelling at Duke and UCSD after being rejected by OHSU. I agree that the process is somewhat mysterious.

Well, I guess according to our resident OHSU expert Dr.Midlife, they were arrogant and had cr@ppy ecs and interview skills. Apparently, Duke and UCSD are total number ****** and don't care about anything else in your application. Otherwise, OHSU, in their infinite wisdom would surely have accepted them. 🙄

Subjective's subjective -- I don't see why that's a hard concept to grasp. If your interviewer doesn't like your specific ecs, you won't get in. If you somehow remind your interviewer of her mother, whom she hated, you won't get in. If you have pretty bleh ecs yet remind your interviewer of her precious daughter whom she adores, you'll probably get in. These are the downsides of a subjective process.

 

[Wizard of Oz]

According to US News & Report, the in state acceptance rate for OHSU is 23%, while for U of W it's 20%. Not that much difference in term of chances for in-state applicants.

I think that really what this statistic might reflect is the relative populations of both states (5.9 mil for Wash, 3.4 mil for Oregon) given that each state only has one medical school (right now anyway, seems like I heard something about Eugene lately). What I mean is that you're competing with significantly more resident applicants (948) in Washington than Oregon (342).

According to my older MSAR which refers to the class entering 2004-2005, UW took 167 residents and 11 non-residents while Oregon took 46 resident vs. 62 nonresident. OHSU is one of those places willing to throw its obligation to its state's medical community out the window in favor of improving its stats. I was up there in 2001, and they definitely were interested in moving up the ladder research-wise at any cost.

On the other hand, Washington really does want to home-grow docs, but they have seemingly enough great applicants to fill their class mostly in-state.

I see those Wash numbers and cringe. Their class is close to the same size as my school, but they have nearly three times as many resident applicants as we do. Like I say to everybody else, if your kids want to see easier admissions, raise 'em in a low-population state.

 

[TheGalvaniFrog]

According to my older MSAR which refers to the class entering 2004-2005, UW took 167 residents and 11 non-residents while Oregon took 46 resident vs. 62 nonresident. OHSU is one of those places willing to throw its obligation to its state's medical community out the window in favor of improving its stats. I was up there in 2001, and they definitely were interested in moving up the ladder research-wise at any cost.

That's interesting, at my interview there this year I got a different impression. Quite a few of my fellow interviewees expressed interest in rural medicine. The medical students we met on lunch mostly aspired to primary care. The presentations made by admission officers paid scant attention to research opportunities and rankings were never mentioned. The school even have a required rural medicine clerkship.

Also, apparently their instate/outstate acceptance ratio has totally changed these last couple of cycles. An 23% overall in-state acceptance rate is pretty average, neither good nor terrible.

 

[acrunchyfrog]

Washington has no state incom tax (I don't know about OR)

Portland has no sales tax (WA does)

Soo..... Live in WA and Shop in Portland!

I have several freinds in Vancouver who chose to live in WA for that reason. That, and gun laws are not as heinous, but that's another thread entirely....

 

[gibson]

I dont think anyone has mentioned this, but if you are a WA resident going to UW, you can be randomly selected to spend your first year in Pullman b/c of the WWAMI program. I know you can claim that this is a hardship, and I'm guessing you'd probably get it with 2 kids (can't think of a better reason), but it might be something to consider...

 

[iheartrain]

why does everyone in OR always bitch about how OHSU doesn't give preference to OR applicants? didn't someone say that the 07-08 MSAR says that 68/112 students in the OHSU first year class are from OREGON? That sounds like a strong preference to me. Everyone thinks that it's so easy to get into UW as a resident but there are alot of WWAMI spots- about 25% of the class. So it's not like it's a CA school where pretty much 100% of the class is from CA (though that doesn't stop people from CA from bitching about THEIR in state school preferences). Also keep in mind that if your husband works in Portland and files income taxes in OR but you want to be a WA resident, you should file non-resident income taxes in OR- otherwise you may get screwed by the taxes when it comes time to determine residency.

 

[melissainsd]

Wrong.

UW has its own way of calculating GPA:
[(FR GPA * 1) + (SO GPA * 2) + (JR GPA * 3)]/6

Therefore, it does matter how UW weighs your GPA if you're applying to UW. Your senior year GPA isn't even factored into this formula. Of course, they will still look at your senior year grades if you have them, but those are not used for the initial screening process. Junior year is most important.

When you apply using AMCAS schools use your AMCAS GPA. There is no place to put in the GPA that the school calculated. For example, my school does grade replacement but AMCAS doesn't. When I applied to my school they saw my AMCAS GPA. Duh.

 

[DrMidlife]

When you apply using AMCAS schools use your AMCAS GPA. There is no place to put in the GPA that the school calculated. For example, my school does grade replacement but AMCAS doesn't. When I applied to my school they saw my AMCAS GPA. Duh.

No, seriously, UW does its own GPA calculation as described by Hassler, for use in automatic screening. UW sees AMCAS' calculation, but from the itemized transcript data that AMCAS provides, UW does its own math. This is not a joke.

As I understand it, UW's weighted GPA is what's used as 25% of your score calculation. The rest of your GPA becomes interesting in the human review of your file.

This is of particular interest to me personally, because UW is going to be auto-screening me out in the 2008 app cycle for grades I earned prior to 1988. Yup.

 

[Chulito]

Melissa-

I think that you misunderstood the UW GPA calculation. The formula that Hassler provided is not calculated by UW undergrad for its students who are applying to myriad med schools, but is rather the formula that UW School of Medicine uses to evaluate applicants coming from myriad undergrad schools. Does that make sense?


Dr. Midlife-

I too have been hurt by their formula. I have 6 years total of undergrad thanks to issues in my second and especially third years. Unfortunately, these are the years that are most heavily weighted in their formula, while my 4th, 5th and 6th years (which are 4.0 across the board) do not factor in the equation at all because I was officially a senior for all three of them. Lastima.

 

[Hassler]

I too have been hurt by their formula. I have 6 years total of undergrad thanks to issues in my second and especially third years. Unfortunately, these are the years that are most heavily weighted in their formula, while my 4th, 5th and 6th years (which are 4.0 across the board) do not factor in the equation at all because I was officially a senior for all three of them. Lastima.

If you're 4.0 across the board in 4th, 5th and 6th years, then I wouldn't worry that much about it. Yes, you might not get the auto-interview if you don't meet the cut-off, but that doesn't mean you won't get interviewed after they evaluate your entire file. They will probably notice your 4.0's (hopefully). Good luck

Friend of mine received interview invitation with below 27 MCAT, so it's definitely possible to be interviewed even if you don't meet the auto-interview cut-off.

 

[Chulito]

If you're 4.0 across the board in 4th, 5th and 6th years, then I wouldn't worry that much about it. Yes, you might not get the auto-interview if you don't meet the cut-off, but that doesn't mean you won't get interviewed after they evaluate your entire file. They will probably notice your 4.0's (hopefully). Good luck

Friend of mine received interview invitation with below 27 MCAT, so it's definitely possible to be interviewed even if you don't meet the auto-interview cut-off.

Thank you. My composite score is above the minimum, and I've interviewed this year and am currently languishing with so many others in the competitive pool until the end of March. But something like 85% of IS applicants get interviewed, while a little less than 20% of IS interviewees get accepted (maybe less this year). That's the cutoff I'm worried about, the point that my 2nd- and 3rd-year grades may come back to bite me in the arse. 🙁

 

[Wizard of Oz]

glp brought up an interesting point to me this morning. In states where people want to live and set up a practice, they don't have to grow their own physicians. Existing MD's want to move there.

Out in the sticks where I live, the only way we can get docs is to educate them ourselves. So perhaps this is why our acceptance numbers are lower.

 

[melissainsd]

Melissa-

I think that you misunderstood the UW GPA calculation. The formula that Hassler provided is not calculated by UW undergrad for its students who are applying to myriad med schools, but is rather the formula that UW School of Medicine uses to evaluate applicants coming from myriad undergrad schools. Does that make sense?

No, seriously, UW does its own GPA calculation as described by Hassler, for use in automatic screening. UW sees AMCAS' calculation, but from the itemized transcript data that AMCAS provides, UW does its own math. This is not a joke.

As I understand it, UW's weighted GPA is what's used as 25% of your score calculation. The rest of your GPA becomes interesting in the human review of your file.

This is of particular interest to me personally, because UW is going to be auto-screening me out in the 2008 app cycle for grades I earned prior to 1988. Yup.

Sorry I didn't mean to come off badly. I was just really sleepy and the post I was responding too had a little too much attitude for that time of night. It seems like UW is just making more work for themselves and screening out really qualified applicants (like you guys).

 

[gsmithers68]

why does everyone in OR always bitch about how OHSU doesn't give preference to OR applicants? didn't someone say that the 07-08 MSAR says that 68/112 students in the OHSU first year class are from OREGON? That sounds like a strong preference to me. Everyone thinks that it's so easy to get into UW as a resident but there are alot of WWAMI spots- about 25% of the class. So it's not like it's a CA school where pretty much 100% of the class is from CA (though that doesn't stop people from CA from bitching about THEIR in state school preferences). Also keep in mind that if your husband works in Portland and files income taxes in OR but you want to be a WA resident, you should file non-resident income taxes in OR- otherwise you may get screwed by the taxes when it comes time to determine residency.

I believe I have the right to bitch about there only being 68 spots every year for the entire state of Oregon at the ONLY state school. There is nowhere else to go. Period. That leaves Oregon applicants like myself with no other options but to leave the state for schooling. On top of that OHSU's incoming class is 26 y/o every year making people like - coming straight out of undergrad - having to look even harder to find a school. Now, I think Washington residents have the right to bitch also. However, lets be honest, so do Californians. The leading export of that state is probably pre-meds! But to say that we have no right to bitch is a cop out because there is 1 school for over 900 applicants every year. That means even if they accept 100 OR residents... at least 200 "qualified" people are turned down every year by our only state school. What would ultimately be the best is if OHSU would partner with University of Oregon and Oregon State and expand the number of seats. I think this going to happen soon enough.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I believe I have the right to bitch about there only being 68 spots every year for the entire state of Oregon at the ONLY state school. There is nowhere else to go. Period. That leaves Oregon applicants like myself with no other options but to leave the state for schooling. On top of that OHSU's incoming class is 26 y/o every year making people like - coming straight out of undergrad - having to look even harder to find a school. Now, I think Washington residents have the right to bitch also. However, lets be honest, so do Californians. The leading export of that state is probably pre-meds! But to say that we have no right to bitch is a cop out because there is 1 school for over 900 applicants every year. That means even if they accept 100 OR residents... at least 200 "qualified" people are turned down every year by our only state school. What would ultimately be the best is if OHSU would partner with University of Oregon and Oregon State and expand the number of seats. I think this going to happen soon enough.

Yep, those are nowhere near good odds for any of us. I have a little more respect for UW's system because at least they're trying to focus on instate students -- it's just that they have so few spots that most Washingtonians are left in the cold. OHSU routinely rejects qualified Oregonians to admit oos students (who, btw, pay a lot more in tuition). If I were picking a state to move to when I know I'm going to be applying to med school soon, I'd look for a state that actually has a state supported public medical school instead of a quasi-public institution like OHSU.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Washington has no state incom tax (I don't know about OR)

Portland has no sales tax (WA does)

Soo..... Live in WA and Shop in Portland!

I have several freinds in Vancouver who chose to live in WA for that reason. That, and gun laws are not as heinous, but that's another thread entirely....

About the taxation issue -- if you work in OR and live in WA, you still have to pay Oregon income taxes. However, you pay as a non-resident, and I believe your tax rate is lower. I don't know how the property tax issue works out.

The downside to Vancouver (or the Couve 🙂 ) is that it's just sort of lame compared with Portland. Of course, it's not like Gresham or Hillsboro are better, so it depends on where the op is looking.

Schooling might or might not be an issue. If the op is taking 8 or fewer hours a term, I think she can still get instate tuition at PSU. About the comment above about PSU having good premed counseling, eh, it depends. The one real drag is that if you're working and taking night classes, all you get are adjunct professors. Some are great, some suck -- it really varies. PSU also doesn't offer the chemistry classes at night (at least didn't as of last year), which could again be a pain depending on whether or not the op plans on working. I don't know how PSU stacks up against Clark and WSU-Vancouver, which would be the Washington state options. Clark's a cc, but I don't know if that's an issue for UW.

 

[Hassler]

Sorry I didn't mean to come off badly. I was just really sleepy and the post I was responding too had a little too much attitude for that time of night. It seems like UW is just making more work for themselves and screening out really qualified applicants (like you guys).

😕

I was just stating a fact........

 

[Hassler]

Thank you. My composite score is above the minimum, and I've interviewed this year and am currently languishing with so many others in the competitive pool until the end of March. But something like 85% of IS applicants get interviewed, while a little less than 20% of IS interviewees get accepted (maybe less this year). That's the cutoff I'm worried about, the point that my 2nd- and 3rd-year grades may come back to bite me in the arse. 🙁

Ya, I was in that pool last year. Sucks 🙁

 

[Chulito]

Ya, I was in that pool last year. Sucks 🙁

Are you in now, or did you go elsewhere?

 

[Dianyla]

About the comment above about PSU having good premed counseling, eh, it depends.

From what I know the person they have as of this academic year is an improvement from the person they had working as the premed advisor previously. I met with the old advisor last year and was seriously underwhelmed. Students I've spoken to who have met with the new one have good things to say about her.

The one real drag is that if you're working and taking night classes, all you get are adjunct professors. Some are great, some suck -- it really varies. PSU also doesn't offer the chemistry classes at night (at least didn't as of last year), which could again be a pain depending on whether or not the op plans on working.

They do offer an evening section of general chem now, but this year's evening professor is fresh out of fellowship and (I've heard) is kinda sucky. The good professor usually teaches it at 11am-12pm MWF most years - which could theoretically be disguised as a "lunch break" if you work day shift.

Organic chem is only offered in the mornings, and the professor is honestly the best professor I've ever had. The 9-10am timeslot is a little inconvenient but not too much of a stretch to coordinate with my employer - I just work a slightly later day shift on those days.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

They do offer an evening section of general chem now, but this year's evening professor is fresh out of fellowship and (I've heard) is kinda sucky. The good professor usually teaches it at 11am-12pm MWF most years - which could theoretically be disguised as a "lunch break" if you work day shift.

Organic chem is only offered in the mornings, and the professor is honestly the best professor I've ever had. The 9-10am timeslot is a little inconvenient but not too much of a stretch to coordinate with my employer - I just work a slightly later day shift on those days.

That's great that they're offering gen chem at night, but, yeah, that's what you get in the night classes at PSU. 🙂 Generally, the best professors all teach during the day. IMO, not offering organic at night isn't acceptable for an urban university like PSU. Luckily I had already taken it because I certainly couldn't have taken a morning class and coordinated it with my job. I think you can take it at PCC at night, but then that gets you into the whole cc thing.