Brown Med Class of 2011

[i'm the map]

To shed more light on the PLME over-diversity, check out next year's entering PLME class:

http://harvard.facebook.com/s.php?k=20004&id=2260810811&s=0

if that doesn't work, just search groups for "PLME '11/'15"

oh the non-sea of white male faces.

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[moomix906]

Are any of you looking to find a place with another entering M1 student, or how are you looking to find roommates (unless you're getting a one-bedroom)?

hey yeah, I was thinking of rooming with a couple of M1' actually, that would be nice. I heard that Brown, in late May, gives us contact info so we can contact one another about housing, so i was going to be lazy and wait for them

 

[KardiacKiehl]

hey yeah, I was thinking of rooming with a couple of M1' actually, that would be nice. I heard that Brown, in late May, gives us contact info so we can contact one another about housing, so i was going to be lazy and wait for them

Yea, I'm in the same boat ...

 

[tanzaniancane]

pemulis - thanks for the info on the 3rd/4th yr and answering my questions... Congratulations to everyone once again! I am pretty much leaning towards coming to Brown now - about time to move on from miami..
By the way, the whole diversity talk is very interesting - I couldn't make it to second look but my interview day actually had a good mix of folks... i guess it really depends on what day you interviewed - facebook group idea is excellent and this way we can start to mingle..
Am definitely planning to getting roommates for the first year - i guess laziness is upon all of us and I'll wait on them sending us the contact info too!
So what's everyone doing for their summer? Any fun exciting plans, anyone?

 

[moomix906]

does anyone know how much of 3rd/4th year is totally unscheduled? I know there are 8 weeks of elective in whatever you want, but how much additional time is just left open?

 

[M. furfur]

theoretically, almost a full year can be elective (broadly defined--so this might include some research time, away rotations, etc.). many finish all requirements, including elective requirements, by december of fourth year and spend the rest of their time finishing research projects, traveling for fun, or participating in the 8th semester program--the equivalent of a sabbatical
http://bms.brown.edu/students/curriculum/8thsemester.php

 

[Brown429]

wait so you can finish medical school in 3.5 years? And then take 6-8 months travelling? How can you do that "theoretically"?

 

[moomix906]

don't a lot of people at any med school take really light stuff or barely anything at all anyway nov-feb, when doing their PGY interviews?

m. furfur, how hard is it to get the Tropical medicine in Kenya rotation? It says its only offered two months a year, so realistically you only have one chance to rotate there, no?

 

[M. furfur]

you can definitely "finish" in 3.5 years--most do. you do this by making sure you don't leave large gaps between core clerkships. that being said, many people continue to do rotations they feel will prepare them for intern year and don't spend the entire semester traveling.

moomix, you are right about the kenya rotation--as i understand, it is offered during one time during the year. i'm not sure how hard it is to get in since it appeals to people with a specific interest and requires a substantial time committment abroad (2 months is a long time to be away during the summer between third and fourth year--unless you are sure tropical medicine is your thing). my guess is that if it something you want to do, you will be able to do it.

 

[moomix906]

hey, we dont need a deposit do we? or do we need to do anything at all, save drop everybody else?

 

[reverend doc]

hey, we dont need a deposit do we? or do we need to do anything at all, save drop everybody else?

My understanding is that we should be fine if we just drop everybody else.

Can anyone else confirm?

 

[KardiacKiehl]

I think just dropping everyone else is right.

 

[GatorDoc07]

why doesn't Brown have an average MCAT or GPA or anything like that?

 

[moomix906]

i think usnews says the stats for 2005 are 11.3 mcat and 3.6(5?) gpa. I dunno why they dont list on their website

also, i dont know if that includes plme or not...

 

[old_boy]

i think usnews says the stats for 2005 are 11.3 mcat and 3.6(5?) gpa. I dunno why they dont list on their website

also, i dont know if that includes plme or not...

plme's don't take the mcat, but i'm not sure about GPA.

 

[reverend doc]

this is the sound of me deciding to go to Brown. After wringing my hands over the send button on those withdraw emails, I did it. I'm on my way to Providence this fall!

 

[KardiacKiehl]

I found an apartment about 1 mile north of campus for 925/month (no utilities) with garage parking that I'm very interested in. Anyone want more info (I'm looking for a roommate)?

 

[i'm the map]

925? yikes! i was under the impression that if you're paying more than 600 dollars, you might as well be living in boston. i know some current first-years who have a swank place for 575. i'll post if i find a place.

 

[KardiacKiehl]

925? yikes! i was under the impression that if you're paying more than 600 dollars, you might as well be living in boston. i know some current first-years who have a swank place for 575. i'll post if i find a place.

It's 925 for two people ... so 462.50/month. It's actually quite cheap and nice.

 

[pls accept me]

How has the curriculum changed for the first 2 years? Looking at some of BMS' old USMLE data (up to 2004), the pass rate/mean was kind of low compared to some other med schools. How about learning ECGs and stuff like that?

 

[moomix906]

where did you find the data on the pass rate for medical schools? can you post a link?

 

[pls accept me]

where did you find the data on the pass rate for medical schools? can you post a link?

You can find a few school's on the internet, and there's a thread somewhere on SDN on it. Brown's (they have a pdf on boards on their website somewhere) is the first that I've seen where it has been below 90 for a couple of years, but I don't know if it is statistically significant.

 

[transmetropol]

After many weeks of chewing my nails off, I finally got my phone call. Im staying in Prov...if anyone has any questions about apartments etc. Give me a shout, since I already live here See you guys in August...

 

[Pemulis]

How has the curriculum changed for the first 2 years? Looking at some of BMS' old USMLE data (up to 2004), the pass rate/mean was kind of low compared to some other med schools. How about learning ECGs and stuff like that?

It is well known around here that 2003-2004 were bad years for Brown USMLE takers. However, there has been massive change at the school since then (including a new dean, a new curriculum, and a stronger emphasis on boards prep), and the problem seems to have been corrected. Board scores for the past few years are back up, and my second year friends who are studying for the beast right now seem to feel pretty good about it (or at least as good as it's possible to feel about taking the USMLE). As an interesting aside, if you look at the match lists for the classes that took the boards in 2003 and 2004 (the '05 and '06 matchlists), they're no worse than other years (in other words, they're pretty darned good), so the low board scores for those years didn't really seem to hurt people in terms of career choice.

 

[moomix906]

After many weeks of chewing my nails off, I finally got my phone call. Im staying in Prov...if anyone has any questions about apartments etc. Give me a shout, since I already live here See you guys in August...

hey man, congrats!! must be an awesome feeling to get in after waiting so long. Any chance you've seen a housing listing for 3-5 people that a handful of MS0's could snag?

 

[transmetropol]

You should totally look on Craigslist...good keywords are eastside (the neighborhood right around Brown), brown, miriam/hope st (which is where I live, about a 15 minute walk from where our classes are and a little cheaper than the eastside), wayland (10 minute walk), and fox point/wickenden. You can also try the housing site at Brown, which also has some listings. And finally, bilodeau realty and samson realty are very good (bilodeau has lots of apts where heat and electricity are included--awesome in the winter months).

 

[Jaymaster]

Do you guys know how the grading is supposed to be at Brown for the first two years? The admissions staff had told me that it was P / F except for a few sections of some of the courses. This is supposed to be a new thing starting next year.

Can you guys confirm/clarify this?

 

[moomix906]

undoubtedly way late but the two classes at Brown are pass fail grades sent to the registrar. But apparently the smaller sections within integrated medical sciences are graded H/P/F - the grading manual didnt say whether or not those grades show up on a transcript, probably not? But second year on is H/P/F

 

[CindyLou]

hi everyone!

just thought I would come in and say hi to my fellow 2011 M1's.

i entered Brown Med through PLME. after talking with my advisor and now M2's there is a big mix of students and there is some inital division since PLMEs didn't take the MCAT and we never had an offical GPA (its a Brown thing...no one has a GPA), but after the first few weeks its fine.

i cant wait to meet all of you on aug15th!