California Med Schools - 2005 Applicant Zone part 01

[DoctorMalki]

Man oh man! Freaking 1 AM in the morning here and I get an e-mail from them saying I got an interview, of course only a few hours after having posted a mini-rant about not hearing anything! Maybe they read these boards or something. I don't even know what to think, this is the first good news I've heard from anybody in a long time!

Thanks everybody! Good luck to y'all too!

Congratulations!! That is really great news! I am desperately waiting for an email

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[Tra La La]

Iggyboop, you are correct, my interview did not go too smoothly. But, I believe that UCLA looks very heavily at other factors. Don't second-guess yourself.

I called...2nd look weekend is on Saturday, April 16.

 

[crimsoncash]

I recently interviewed at UCLA and really enjoyed the trip. The admissions office staff were most kind and welcoming (extremely helpful!), and my fellow interviewees were conversational and friendly. The student tour guides showed us around the building, including the graduate reading area and library, and were more than happy to answer any questions about living conditions, classes, and the integrated PBL system. My interviewer was located in the Medical Plaza so I got a chance to check out the hospital before my meeting. The interview went smoothly and was very laid-back. The extensive worksheet the interviewers have to fill out on each interviewee is quite impressive. I came away with a very good impression. Even the taxi ride from campus to LAX during rush hour wasn't that bad. It only took about 35 minutes or so, and I was able to catch my flight.


Good luck to everyone waiting to hear back, including post-secs, pre-interviewees, and post-interviewees!


Best,
Crimsoncash

 

[UCLAstudent]

Thanks for the info, Tra La La! I'll definitely be there.

 

[Tra La La]

Thanks for the info, Tra La La! I'll definitely be there.

I hope to see you there.

Congrats again!

 

[UCLAstudent]

Congrats to you, too!

 

[PreMedAdAG]

So I think I decided to not even bother sending in my Davis secondary. They sent it to me a month ago and it's due tomorrow. It's so late in the game that I feel like I'd be pursuing a waitlist spot, which isn't even worth it to me. Besides, if none of the other UC's have bothered to interview me yet, I figure Davis won't be any different.

Hey Jeffy, if you look at who's been accepted from SDN, not many people have been accepted there.. which means there are still spots! I'd say hammer the secondaries out and cross your fingers!

 

[tacrum43]

pending review ~ a few months

review in process - less than a week.

You should be hearing very soon from UCI regarding an interview.

good luck.

I've been "Review in Process" for over four weeks now. Didn't get one of those interview invites at 12am on Friday for 3/1. . Page still says review in process and when I called in the morning they told me that I was not rejected and they were still considering my file. They're my first choice school and I sent an update letter, so hopefully that will help me to get an interview for their last date. (UCI, if you're reading this: Please give me an interview, I'll even bake cookies for everyone there! Yes, even the mean lady that answers the phone.)

 

[Medikit]

I'm currently rejected from my top-choices UC Davis, and UCSF. I'm at hold at UCI and UCSD which I suppose is better than being rejected and I sent in my UCLA secondary last week. Still no word from Loma Linda. Can anyone give me some moral support? I'm thinking about sending inquery emails to UCI and UCSD like some other have done. My GPA went up from a 3.44 to a 3.49 after getting A's in pchem and virology. It's actually 3.5 after an A I got during intercession but that won't be on my transcript untli the end of the spring semester. Think I should tell schools about this?

 

[Stanford_Playah]

I'm currently rejected from my top-choices UC Davis, and UCSF. I'm at hold at UCI and UCSD which I suppose is better than being rejected and I sent in my UCLA secondary last week. Still no word from Loma Linda. Can anyone give me some moral support? I'm thinking about sending inquery emails to UCI and UCSD like some other have done. My GPA went up from a 3.44 to a 3.49 after getting A's in pchem and virology. It's actually 3.5 after an A I got during intercession but that won't be on my transcript untli the end of the spring semester. Think I should tell schools about this?

Medikit, I would definitely send in updates with information like what you describe above. Updates helped me several times after long periods of not hearing anything. In fact, if I were you, I would send something every 2-3 weeks so that they know just how much you're interested. What have you got to lose?

Good luck!

 

[w0ggy]

Besides grades, what other things should be included in an update letter?

 

[D_LOVE]

Are any of you CA residents passing on USC b/c of tuition???

 

[UCLAstudent]

Are any of you CA residents passing on USC b/c of tuition???

D_LOVE, tuition is partially why I turned down USC. Gotta love the UC tuition. I guess the other reason is the Trojan factor, haha.

 

[lulubean]

Are any of you CA residents passing on USC b/c of tuition???

that is the reason i am turning it down - although its really hard to pass up that clinical experience...

 

[el dudarino]

Hi everyone - sorry if I missed this info in this or another thread, but does anyone know when USC's 2nd look week is? Thanks.

 

[NorCalGirl]

Are any of you CA residents passing on USC b/c of tuition???

Yes, that was one of my reasons.

 

[Jeffy]

Hi everyone - sorry if I missed this info in this or another thread, but does anyone know when USC's 2nd look week is? Thanks.

I dunno when it is, but I'm sure I'll be there. Not to learn more about the school or anything crazy like that but simply to hopefully meet some of my future classmates.

 

[calberkeleygrl]

Hi! I've never posted on this before. But I thought maybe one of you could help! I have had pretty bad luck with CA schools. I have receieved no interviews, and am on hold at UCSF, UCSF JMP, UCSD, UCI. I was rejected from UCLA and Davis, but UCLA is currently rereviewing my application. Havent heard from USC.

I have 30S and a 3.6 gpa. I know tons of other factors go into this, but are these weak #s preventing me from getting interviews? I'm an author on a couple publications as well. Now I am trying to figure if I should retake the mcat! Any input? Thank u so much!

 

[cammy1313]

Hi! I've never posted on this before. But I thought maybe one of you could help! I have had pretty bad luck with CA schools. I have receieved no interviews, and am on hold at UCSF, UCSF JMP, UCSD, UCI. I was rejected from UCLA and Davis, but UCLA is currently rereviewing my application. Havent heard from USC.

I have 30S and a 3.6 gpa. I know tons of other factors go into this, but are these weak #s preventing me from getting interviews? I'm an author on a couple publications as well. Now I am trying to figure if I should retake the mcat! Any input? Thank u so much!

You sound solid to me. I think you might just be unlucky applicant number 5001 out of the 5000 apps with your numbers that they have the time and resources to consider. Unfortunately, a lot of perfectly fine candidates get passed over here in CA because of the sheer volume of applicants and not enough schools

 

[abababa]

How do you get a school to rereview you after you get rejected? Do you just show up at the admissions office? Thanks.

 

[calberkeleygrl]

You sound solid to me. I think you might just be unlucky applicant number 5001 out of the 5000 apps with your numbers that they have the time and resources to consider. Unfortunately, a lot of perfectly fine candidates get passed over here in CA because of the sheer volume of applicants and not enough schools

I also sent my AMCAS in August. Maybe applying late did it. I am considering applying again if I don't get in in CA, but it's so hard to know whether to retake the test since its not THAT bad a score.

 

[bridge01]

calberkeleygrl
did you take the mcat in august?

 

[calberkeleygrl]

calberkeleygrl
did you take the mcat in august?

No I took it in April. I just joined the lab I work at though and wanted to make significant progress on my publication before applying, so I applied late.

 

[cammy1313]

No I took it in April. I just joined the lab I work at though and wanted to make significant progress on my publication before applying, so I applied late.

I don't think anyone with a 30 or better on the MCAT should retake, it's definately a good score. The late app was pro'ly a HUGE factor. Im a reapplicant and the first time around I applied in August and got nothing from CA schools while this time I applied in June and recieved secondaries and interviewed at a couple. But, if you're truly committed to medicine, I would consider going out of state. There are plenty of great schools you are a shoe-in for in other parts of the country.

 

[Shorty43]

Hi! I've never posted on this before. But I thought maybe one of you could help! I have had pretty bad luck with CA schools. I have receieved no interviews, and am on hold at UCSF, UCSF JMP, UCSD, UCI. I was rejected from UCLA and Davis, but UCLA is currently rereviewing my application. Havent heard from USC.

I have 30S and a 3.6 gpa. I know tons of other factors go into this, but are these weak #s preventing me from getting interviews? I'm an author on a couple publications as well. Now I am trying to figure if I should retake the mcat! Any input? Thank u so much!

Hi Cal... sorry to hear that.. but i feel like a lot of people are in that boat. I have a 31, 3.72 from a "top 5 undergrad" and still didn't get any interviews from any cali schools... usc included (in-state resident)... it blew my mind.. but like everyone says.. the process is very unpredictable. Just wanted to let you know others are in the same boat. Best of luck. I'm still waiting to hear on my first acceptance.

 

[supersnuffles]

I also sent my AMCAS in August. Maybe applying late did it. I am considering applying again if I don't get in in CA, but it's so hard to know whether to retake the test since its not THAT bad a score.

Hey Calgirl,

How on earth did you convince UCLA to rereview your application? They had said that they would not reconsider or allow appeals until April. Would you mind sharing how you managed to work your magic?

Thanks.

 

[calberkeleygrl]

Thanks for all your replies. I actually have been studying for the mcat again, but maybe I should wait it out.

I wrote a letter of intent and an update to the dean, and he thanked me for writing to him and said he has sent my application to the ad-comm to be reviewed. If that is the word on appeals, I am sure it is in a pile with a bunch of others waiting to be reviewed so I wou'dnt fret.

So I should NOT take the mcat? I guess retaking it to get an equal or barely higher/lower score would only hurt.

Hey Calgirl,

How on earth did you convince UCLA to rereview your application? They had said that they would not reconsider or allow appeals until April. Would you mind sharing how you managed to work your magic?

Thanks.

 

[faradayampere]

Thanks for all your replies. I actually have been studying for the mcat again, but maybe I should wait it out.

I wrote a letter of intent and an update to the dean, and he thanked me for writing to him and said he has sent my application to the ad-comm to be reviewed. If that is the word on appeals, I am sure it is in a pile with a bunch of others waiting to be reviewed so I wou'dnt fret.

So I should NOT take the mcat? I guess retaking it to get an equal or barely higher/lower score would only hurt.

wow, that is impressive ... none of the dean I wrote to actually replied

anyway, I called UCLA today, and was told that if I want to appeal, I should write to the dean. I'll probably try ... maybe it works? Who knows??

 

[JumpingGenes]

I wrote a letter of intent and an update to the dean, and he thanked me for writing to him and said he has sent my application to the ad-comm to be reviewed. If that is the word on appeals, I am sure it is in a pile with a bunch of others waiting to be reviewed so I wou'dnt fret.

When you wrote the dean, was it a letter of INTENT or a letter of INTEREST? Did you send it pre-interview or post-interview?

Intent = "If you let me in, I WILL definately attend your school"
Interest = "Would really love to go there, but I am not committing myself"

Thanks for the info. Must have been a premium letter to get an actual response from the dean.

 

[supersnuffles]

So I should NOT take the mcat? I guess retaking it to get an equal or barely higher/lower score would only hurt.

The general rule of thumb (not everyone's thumb, just the one floating around here) is do not take the MCAT over unless you are under 30, or know that without any doubt you will do at least 3 points better.

But this is not everyone's rule. And if you think that if you studied harder, had no classes, less distractions, you would improve by a lot, I'd say, go for it. But again, it is an entire couple of months of studying AGAIN, and 7 more hours of your life in a little room that's either too hot or cold with the person next to you frantically erasing shaking the entire table while eraser poo gets all over you (sorry, bad personal experience).

Good luck.

 

[scott858]

Has anyone who interviewed at UCSF in early January heard back for an acceptance yet?

 

[UCLAstudent]

Has anyone who interviewed at UCSF in early January heard back for an acceptance yet?

I interviewed in early November and haven't heard back yet.

 

[CalGoldenBear]

Has anyone who interviewed at UCSF in early January heard back for an acceptance yet?

when i interviewed, they told us we wouldn't hear back for at least 8 weeks... it took about 14 weeks for me to actually hear back post-interview, so you might have to wait a little while longer if you interviewed in early jan.

 

[canttouchthis]

Hey I was talking to some admissions folks who told me that generally people who arent having their parents pay for med school will choose any UC over pretty much any private school that isn't in the "top 20". Basically I got into Davis which I loved and think i'm going to choose it over some privates that are considered way better research institutions and have far more prestigious names. Is the hike in the UC tuition making it not worth it anymore? Does anyone have anything bad to tell me about davis or the downside of attending a UC? I know the right thing to do is probably go to Davis unless some of my dream schools come through next month, but it is real hard to forget 12 years of being surrounded by people who wanna know the rank of everything.

 

[lulubean]

i think you've got the best of both worlds - davis is a great (and highly ranked) school! enjoy!

 

[LoneCoyote]

Hey I was talking to some admissions folks who told me that generally people who arent having their parents pay for med school will choose any UC over pretty much any private school that isn't in the "top 20". Basically I got into Davis which I loved and think i'm going to choose it over some privates that are considered way better research institutions and have far more prestigious names. Is the hike in the UC tuition making it not worth it anymore? Does anyone have anything bad to tell me about davis or the downside of attending a UC? I know the right thing to do is probably go to Davis unless some of my dream schools come through next month, but it is real hard to forget 12 years of being surrounded by people who wanna know the rank of everything.

If you loved Davis I suggest you come. I think it's a great medical school that will give you lots of options for your future career, especially if you plan to stay in California. The tuition hikes are bad, and I expect to see more of them. But I still think the education you get here is worth it and it is still significantly cheaper than most privates unless you get phenomenal aid (ie Stanford). And I think the aid here is pretty good... it was better than I had expected. The cost of living here is a bit lower than at most of the other UCs, so that helps too.

The downsides to Davis... I really don't have too many specific complaints. There's about 6 weeks of crappy foggy winter weather that kinda sux. If you are a big time city person you may be a bit bored. But SF is an easy drive away. I go home to the city almost every weekend and we have people in my class who commute from the Bay Area, so you can get away if you want to. There are a lot of people who hang out in Davis and Sac on weekends and seem to find enough to do to stay happy between the free clinics, sports, partes, and doing stuff with classmates.

I think the only other downsides are things that will occur at any school. Medical school is a lot of work and there are good days and bad days and you just have to deal and get though it when you are hitting the bad days. I guess my only big frustration this quarter has been that 2nd quarter is a lot heavier than 1st quarter. So it would be nice if they balanced it a bit more. There is talk of them redo-ing the curriculum, so that may not be as much of an issue for future classes. Feel free to PM me if you have specific questions about Davis and good luck with your decision.

 

[Vacant]

I should have posted my question here.

I'm asking for your opinions on whether to stay in Cali at UCLA or UCSD or go away for top private schools like UPenn or Yale. What would you do if you were in this situation and why?

thanks.

 

[scott858]

I would look at a few things:

Location and score for each school on a 1-40 scale

Residency match list and score on a 1-25 scale

Price/ave student indebtedness and score on a 1-10 scale or a 1-20 scale (if you're sure you want to go into a specialty that pays less, i.e. peds, family practice, public health etc. or if you don't have gobs of money)

Gut feeling for school and score on a 1-25 scale if price isn't an issue or 1-15 if price is an issue.

Add up the scores for each category for each school and go with the highest score.

I think this is a pretty good metric, b/c each category is weighted with approximately the right amount of importance.

Just a few other words, Yale is known as a pretty laid back school, no grades etc. and they match really really well. UCSD pretty much sucks except for the location, their ave board scores were 220 last year and for a school that drills you for two years in preparation i don't think they are doing a great job.

 

[cammy1313]

I should have posted my question here.

I'm asking for your opinions on whether to stay in Cali at UCLA or UCSD or go away for top private schools like UPenn or Yale. What would you do if you were in this situation and why?

thanks.

As I've posted before, residency matching boils down to two things: board scores and quality of clerkship references. The reason top schools match competitively is because the faculty from these schools that administer the recommendations have excellent reputations in the nation. If you rock your boards and have LORs from these prestigious faculty you are golden for any recidency that you like. That said, there is no need to remain in CA if you're only reason is that you'd like to match residency there. I guarantee Yale and Penn will grant you the same opportunities. Not to mention that you are encouraged to do some away rotations during your 4th year, giving you ample opportunity to makes some "connections" at the hospital of your choice. On the same token, I wouldn't neglect the fact that UCSD and UCLA are still excellent schools. They may not be top 5 but they are certainly top 10 and there really isn't a whole lotta difference there to be honest. I would opt for LA over SD (was at UCSD undergrad and was not impressed by the med program or it's students), but this is only my personal preference.

 

[kenshinoro2004]

last year i was in your boat.. got into top 10's in midwest and ucsd/uci in cali..chose uci...love it. Stay in cali if u can, or u won't come back.

 

[getunconcsious]

This one hurts, I got rejected from UCSF post-interview today.

Sorry 2 hear that

But you really should be proud, you made it much further than most!

 

[curiouslygeorge]

Sorry 2 hear that

But you really should be proud, you made it much further than most!

No kidding!

 

[UCLAstudent]

Thanks. At least I am now 100% sure of where I am going next year!

<------------

 

[Tra La La]

This one hurts, I got rejected from UCSF post-interview today.

Sorry to hear that, but hey--you have UCLA! Not too shabby of a medical school

Go Bruins!

 

[bobhagopian]

I got accepted to UC Davis a couple days ago. Since it's my first acceptance, I want to make sure I do everything correctly when I accept their offer. In their letter of acceptance, they didn't mention anything about a deposit to reserve a place in the incoming class. Don't most medical schools require a deposit?

 

[UCLAstudent]

bobhagopian, UCLA didn't require a deposit, either. It must be a UC thing?

 

[lulubean]

congratulations! don't worry, you don't need to send a deposit in at this time.

 

[Luv Nietzsche]

Yay, I got accepted into Davis a couple days ago. That made me *very* happy. But since it's my first acceptance, I want to make sure I do everything correctly when I accept their offer. Specifically, in their letter of acceptance, they didn't mention anything about a deposit to reserve a place in the incoming class. Don't most medical schools require a deposit?

I don't mean to troll -- just that this is my first acceptance and I want to make sure I don't screw it up!

Congratulations!! Can you tell me when did you interview there? Thanks.

 

[bobhagopian]

I interviewed early- to mid-December, maybe December 10 or so? I don't remember the exact date, but it was thereabouts sometime.

 

[scrappysurfer]

There is hope yet. Classes at UCI seem to still have spots.

I finally got my first acceptance today, so the ball is rolling still (at least for MSTP)