Bryn Mawr 2012-2013

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lunicola said:
Thanks for the great info! I didn't know anything about the schedule, so that was helpful to hear about. If you get in, will you be a summer or fall start? Keep us posted! :)
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Glad you found it helpful! Anyone else lurking out there with impressions about the program, definitely post them so applicants (for this year and future years) can benefit.

If I get in (fingers crossed), I'll most likely be a fall starter. I'm finishing up my undergrad this spring, and I don't know if I quite have the stamina to move to Pennsylvania and jump into gen chem two days after graduation... We'll see though!

Also, the silence is killing me. Definitely holding out hope that we'll hear back this week. Right? Maybe? One can always dream...
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Has anyone gotten access to the 2012-2013 postbac class web site yet?
 
anyone with a late Jan/early Feb interview hear back yet??
 
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I had an interview the last week of January and heard back about 2 weeks after that. You should hear back really soon!
 
shortnawkward said:
Anyone who interviewed in jan/ feb heard anything yet?
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Not a peep. I interviewed in the beginning of February, and haven't heard anything yet. I'm a bit surprised, I frankly kind of expected to hear after about two weeks or so... Obviously not the case.
 
I wonder if they are having a committee meeting to decide about everyone who did interviews in that time frame?
Fellow waitees: please post if you hear anything. :)

Evidence Based said:
Not a peep. I interviewed in the beginning of February, and haven't heard anything yet. I'm a bit surprised, I frankly kind of expected to hear after about two weeks or so... Obviously not the case.
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Consider no news good news. I interviewed in late January and received my rejection notification earlier this week.
 
Sorry to hear that jharris! I appreciate you posting, though. Did they give any information as to why? And did you get an email or letter or call?
Wishing you luck if you have other applications out there!

jharris42 said:
Consider no news good news. I interviewed in late January and received my rejection notification earlier this week.
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shortnawkward said:
I wonder if they are having a committee meeting to decide about everyone who did interviews in that time frame?
Fellow waitees: please post if you hear anything. :)
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First off shortnawkward, that's an awesome username. Secondly, I'm definitely assuming that's what's going on here, but if some people have heard back recently and some haven't, that's definitely a bit strange. Could be that they're super backed up on applications and are playing catch up in committee... I interviewed in the first Monday of February, and have heard crickets so far. Where we around the same time?

Jharris, sorry to hear about that. I'm sure you'll have plenty of other options though, good luck!
 
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Yup. First week of Feb.

Evidence Based said:
First off shortnawkward, that's an awesome username. Secondly, I'm definitely assuming that's what's going on here, but if some people have heard back recently and some haven't, that's definitely a bit strange. Could be that they're super backed up on applications and are playing catch up in committee... I interviewed in the first Monday of February, and have heard crickets so far. Where we around the same time?
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shortnawkward said:
Yup. First week of Feb.
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Just emailed the office at Bryn Mawr, and was told the committee would be meeting over the next day or two, and we'd hear by Monday. Looks like the wait is almost over! (Just means I'll be obsessively checking my email over the next few days...)
 
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i interviewed a couple of weeks ago and heard today via phone call that i was accepted.
 
I also interviewed in early February and heard back today that I've been accepted. I'm very excited - and torn!
 
Congrats OneLeven and GreenMed. I got the call from Jodi today too :) Difficult decision ahead...
 
what are the other programs that you are considering?
 
Hopkins & Goucher, although still waiting to hear from Goucher.
Each program has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, but they all seem to balance each other out. I think it comes down to which particular strengths/weaknesses are important to you, given your priorities and circumstances. Aspects of each program I'm considering are class size, quality of instruction, quality of advising, med school admission statistics, research/shadowing/volunteering opportunities, and barriers to social life. I'd love to hear what everyone else is considering, too.
 
I'm trying to decide how I personally would rank and decide between (in alphabetical order) Bryn Mawr, Hopkins and Scripps. I really enjoyed the class I attended at Bryn Mawr, and I think the big pluses there are the size of the classes and the ease of interacting with the professors. I think I might learn best in that environment (which may result in a higher GPA). On the other hand, the clinical experiences at Hopkins are stronger, and if anything that's where my med school application is currently weak. To pick Scripps would be a decision (most likely) not to use a med school linkage... but which would just keep me in CA through the post-bac year and glide year (and maybe into med school), and less cross-country moves is good.

So, that's why I'm torn.
 
i am trying to decide between scripps and bryn mawr.

I heard that the linkage from scripps to Pitt is now a straight 3.75 gpa, and NO MCAT required.

Do you know if that changed for Bryn Mawr too?
 
Would those of you that were accepted mind posting your stats--including whether you had previously taken any science courses? Thanks.
 
OneLeven, rumor I am hearing is that Pitt dropped the MCAT requirement for linkage across the board. I am not sure if the GPA requirement applies just Postbacc GPA or cGPA.
 
Scripps made a point to bring that up (3.75 UG and 3.75 PB), Bryn Mawr didnt mention anything.
 
Yeah I would suspect that is the case for any of the Pitt linkages. I think the old requirement was like a 35 MCAT with no subset less than 11? I mean Pitt is a great medical school and it'd be nice to avoid a year, but with stats like that coming out of a top notch postbacc school, hell, where can't you go?
 
so where did you hear that pitt dropped the MCAT for linkages across the board? Di they tehn put in a limit of how many people can link from each program (similar to what Brown did with their link's).
 
Got the acceptance call yesterday! Super pumped. Interviewed the beginning of February.

memebot said:
Hopkins & Goucher, although still waiting to hear from Goucher.
Each program has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, but they all seem to balance each other out. I think it comes down to which particular strengths/weaknesses are important to you, given your priorities and circumstances. Aspects of each program I'm considering are class size, quality of instruction, quality of advising, med school admission statistics, research/shadowing/volunteering opportunities, and barriers to social life. I'd love to hear what everyone else is considering, too.
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LIke a lot of other people here, I'm debating between BM and another awesome program (Goucher in my case). I frankly think both Bryn Mawr and Goucher are fantastic, and are pretty similar in most ways. They both seem to have awesome advising, great camaraderie among the post bacc class, really engaging lectures, and tons of clinical opportunities. Additionally, it seems like grads from both programs can pretty much go wherever they want for med school.

I think the differences between the two programs really come down to size. Goucher is right around 30, while BM is more than twice as large at 80 ish. The small class size at Goucher means that things are more intimate, and the whole class is super super close. Definitely got a feel for that at interview day. On the other hand, there seemed to be a great amount of class cohesion at BM too, and a little more variety and diversity among the post baccs. Additionally, because of the larger class size, it seems that there's more stuff going on outside the classroom at BM. I really liked the idea of the focus groups, and all the extra events that seemed to be going on. (To be fair, we'll be so busy who knows how much we'll be able to take advantage of it...)

There are a few minor things, like location (I think the Bryn Mawr/Philly area slightly wins out over the Towson/Baltimore area), but overall I'll be picking nits to see where I end up.

GreenMed said:
I'm trying to decide how I personally would rank and decide between (in alphabetical order) Bryn Mawr, Hopkins and Scripps. I really enjoyed the class I attended at Bryn Mawr, and I think the big pluses there are the size of the classes and the ease of interacting with the professors. I think I might learn best in that environment (which may result in a higher GPA). On the other hand, the clinical experiences at Hopkins are stronger, and if anything that's where my med school application is currently weak. To pick Scripps would be a decision (most likely) not to use a med school linkage... but which would just keep me in CA through the post-bac year and glide year (and maybe into med school), and less cross-country moves is good.

So, that's why I'm torn.
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Congrats Green Med! Definitely agree, the orgo lecture on our interview day was fantastic. I definitely see where you're coming from about clinical experience, but it seemed like Bryn Mawr had a plethora of opportunities available to the post bacc class. Not as familiar with Hopkins' program, but I feel like you certainly wouldn't be lacking for volunteer opps at Bryn Mawr.

jharris42 said:
Would those of you that were accepted mind posting your stats--including whether you had previously taken any science courses? Thanks.
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Stats:
1470 SAT/35 ACT
3.93 GPA
A year of volunteering in a medical setting (mental health)
Research experience with clinical populations in psychiatry and neurology (part time for three years, including an honors senior thesis)
A bit of shadowing

For people who are attending (or at least strongly considering it), will you guys be summer or fall starters? I'm leaning towards the fall, but we'll see.
 
Congrats to everyone who has recently gotten an acceptance from Bryn Mawr! (And also to those who have known for a while :))

Would anyone who is a current (or recent past) post-bac at Bryn Mawr be able to lay out their complete schedule for us to see? I am deciding between Bryn Mawr and Hopkins and somehow am left with the impression that Hopkins packs a lot more into the schedule... but maybe I'm missing something at Bryn Mawr?

As Evidence-based has said above, we know that next year the Bio/Physics/Organic lectures will be Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 9AM-12PM. There are labs associated with each of these classes (which we could either put on M/W/F afternoons or on T/Th mornings). There will be an Intro to Practice of Clinical Medicine course one evening. There will need to be several hours put aside for volunteering experience. Can you remind me how many classes have additional "recitations" and when they occur? What else do we need to be accounting for in the schedule?

On average, how many hours a week do you end up putting into your post-bac activities (courses, volunteering, studying)? Do you feel like there is any time left over?

*Disclaimer: Yes, I know these programs are both very intense and require a lot of hard work. I am just trying to figure out if the level of work is pretty equivalent. Perhaps my perception that Hopkins requires more work is because their tutorials are for credit and because they require a full year of calculus, so I would need to take four classes fall semester instead of three.
 
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I'll go ahead and say that you can't go wrong here. All of the programs that are being discussed are excellent. Even if you're logical, go with your gut- pick the one that feels like an environment in which you'd be successful. Linkages are great, but they aren't everything (this coming from someone who picked a program with the most linkages). Go with the program that's going to give you the best shot at starting this new path. If you're interested, I believe I started a very similar thread to this one when I was debating between Bryn Mawr, Goucher, and Hopkins in the past.

Here's the way my year went:
Spring Session I: Gen Chem, 5 weeks, starting in May. A week of class material covered each day, plus lab. You will be strongly discouraged from trying to volunteer, etc, since you're probably just getting the hang of this science thing.
Spring Session II: Gen Chem II, same as before. This ends, if I remember correctly, so that you get pretty much the entire month of August off, returning right around the 24-27th. Go home and float in a pool for awhile.

Orientation will be the next few days after that, and then classes will start according to a regular college schedule (final exams in early December). I took Orgo I, Orgo I Lab, Physics I, Physics I Lab, Bio I, and Bio I Lab in my first semester. This is echoed in your Spring semester, which starts in January after a hefty break and goes until the beginning of May (just replace each class in my fall schedule with "II" instead of "I"). Pace is slower, but material amount is greater. You'll be more efficient with the sciences and find a rhythm.

How much of a life will you have during your year? It depends. Most people will find that they are working much, much more than they are used to, but the things that are really important in one's life remain. Your work-life balance in any of these programs will depend on the target GPA you're looking for (study more, have fun less, get better results). Some people had multiple priorities that they needed to balance, and their schoolwork was worked into that equation. Personally, I have a zillion hobbies, but I chose to sustain only one or two with regularity during my year (running in particular was a great stress reliever, since the neighborhoods around Bryn Mawr are beautiful). Luckily, my interest in forgotten pastimes hasn't waned since my "year off" :)

Hope this helps!
 
Hi DMBSatellite, thanks for chiming in with your thoughts; it's appreciated. I'd say that I understand the formal class structure at Bryn Mawr, but can you remind me of all the additional probably-highly-recommended activities that are involved? For example, which of the science courses have an additional fairly formal "recitation" with the professor or with a TA? (How "required" is attending such recitations?) When do these occur? And for the Peer-Led-Instruction (PLI), how often and when do those occur?
 
Hi GreenMed, not a problem! So, recitation usually takes place 2x/week (once for orgo), and PLI is the same. These will be either early in the morning before classes or later in the evening (6, 7 PM). They should never conflict with class time.

Both recitation and PLI are completely and utterly optional, and you'll probably find that some of the sessions are more helpful than others. Frequently, you can even just take PLI sheets and complete them on your own time. They usually recommend going to all the PLI and recitation sessions at the beginning of the semester until you can be confident as to which ones you'll need to attend regularly. During the year, you will have either 1 or 2 of these sessions scheduled every day, but they're only really there to help you (the exception is Orgo Recitation, which has quizzes sometimes).

You'll have PLI pretty much every day during the summer sessions, and it's absolutely crucial and helpful to go, since doing problems is the fastest way to solidify your knowledge.

You'll be too busy to meet with focus groups more than once in a blue moon, realistically.
 
Thank you for the run-down on the recitations and PLI! Do you have the option of doing morning OR evening PLI, or are some of the classes' PLI sessions only in evenings?

I guess I'm still trying to figure out how many of my evenings will be my own. I know the intro to clinical medicine class (which sounds great!) is in the evening, and if the PLI is evenings as well, I wonder what time I'll typically be getting home.

In any case, though, it's great that Bryn Mawr offers so much support and that is IS up to you to decide how much of it to use.
 
Hello all! I was recently accepted to both Bryn Mawr and Hopkins, and am trying to make a decision (by this Thursday... yikes!). I'm strongly learning towards Hopkins, because I'm more interested in getting the clinical/research experience than volunteer/community experience. It just feels weird to be turning down Bryn Mawr. I've also been waiting to hear form Tufts (their app deadline hasn't even passed) but it sounds like Hopkins and Bryn Mawr are the more respected programs.

Has anyone had to make this decision? What were your deciding factors?

I guess I'm hesitant to choose Hopkins wholeheartedly just because of the hearsay I've been exposed to about the area and about the undergraduate atmosphere. Of course, I've spoken to some current students and they seem to love the area. They're all realistic about the work level, but that doesn't phase me. Anyway, let me know! I'm so glad I found this thread!
 
I made my decision between the programs today - and it's going to be Bryn Mawr!

It was not an easy choice, but now that's it made, I'm very excited to get started. For me, the deciding factors came down to: 1) smaller classes, with just post-bac students, 2) a cost which is ~$7000 less, and 3) proximity to family. Obviously that last one is somewhat personal!
 
I think between two such great schools you can just follow your heart. They will both get you to Med School. :) I personally love the Baltimore/DC area. However, I really doubt that there will be *that* much time for fun, so I'm less concerned about the atmosphere as what I can get out of the academic experience.

Redheadbkb said:
Hello all! I was recently accepted to both Bryn Mawr and Hopkins, and am trying to make a decision (by this Thursday... yikes!). I'm strongly learning towards Hopkins, because I'm more interested in getting the clinical/research experience than volunteer/community experience. It just feels weird to be turning down Bryn Mawr. I've also been waiting to hear form Tufts (their app deadline hasn't even passed) but it sounds like Hopkins and Bryn Mawr are the more respected programs.

Has anyone had to make this decision? What were your deciding factors?

I guess I'm hesitant to choose Hopkins wholeheartedly just because of the hearsay I've been exposed to about the area and about the undergraduate atmosphere. Of course, I've spoken to some current students and they seem to love the area. They're all realistic about the work level, but that doesn't phase me. Anyway, let me know! I'm so glad I found this thread!
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I'm looking for Bryn Mawr housing, starting this summer, and my husband and I are seriously considering Home Properties of Bryn Mawr, which is about a mile from campus. Does anyone here on SDN know someone who's living (or lived) there who might have anything to say about it? How about Radnor House?

(We're not looking at the Conwyn Arms or Mermonts because they're right next to big streets and the R5 train, and one of the most important things to us is that the apartment be as quiet as possible.)
 
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I got my invitation to interview a few days ago. Scheduled for March 19. I'll be en route on my way home from Acapulco--hope I have a healthy glow rather than a dorky sunburn. :)

EEEEEEE nervous already.
 
OneLeven said:
Can anyone confirm the Pitt linkage at BM has dropped the MCAT requirement?
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The only linkage I know of with BM that does not require the MCAT is with U of Rochester...I can neither confirm nor deny that Pitt has dropped the MCAT requirement, but someone else may have more up-to-date information....
 
I was told that Pitt dropped the MCAT requirement for linkers.
 
Does anyone know the turnaround time for Bryn Mawr this late in the admissions cycle? I was interviewed about a week ago...
 
postbacspec said:
Does anyone know the turnaround time for Bryn Mawr this late in the admissions cycle? I was interviewed about a week ago...
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Two and a half weeks for me. I was also early February. Sounds like you can probably expect somewhere between 1 and 3 weeks, depending on when you interviewed vs. when the admission committee met.
 
can more of those who were accepted post some of their stats and volunteer/work experience? i'm curious as to what they are really looking for. thanks!
 
Just got confirmation that my deposit was received today, so I'm officially joining the Bryn Mawr Class of 2012-2013! Pretty psyched about it. Now I'm just finding it difficult to stay motivated until the fall when I'll be starting...
 
Evidence Based said:
Just got confirmation that my deposit was received today, so I'm officially joining the Bryn Mawr Class of 2012-2013! Pretty psyched about it. Now I'm just finding it difficult to stay motivated until the fall when I'll be starting...
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Yay, glad to hear you chose Bryn Mawr!! You could start in the summer, then you'd have less time to lose motivation! ;)
 
lunicola said:
Yay, glad to hear you chose Bryn Mawr!! You could start in the summer, then you'd have less time to lose motivation! ;)
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Oh believe me lunicola, I've thought about it. Just did the math readiness exam from the physics department, and for some reason got really pumped about it. Apparently I haven't had enough algebra in my life, because I was getting a little too excited about solving equations... It will be kind of nice to get back to that kind of work, at least for me. In reality though, I could probably use the summer off. Just finishing up undergrad, and if I started in the summer, I would literally graduate, pack all my stuff up, move down to BM, and start classes two days later. Don't know if I could start classes two days post graduation and keep my sanity... But then again, waiting all this summer to start might be just as difficult.

Regardless, pumped to start. :D
 
Hi everyone! I'm excited about starting this summer, and looking forward to meeting all of you (although I think I did meet a few of you in February!)

I saw that last year's class has a Facebook group, has anyone started one for 2012/2013? I'm happy to create one, if not. With the new Facebook rules, I think that I have to actually be friends with you to add you to a group, so shoot me a private message with your name and school/network, and I'll add you. :)
 
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