CCOM Class of 2009

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Manifesting said:
Hi Chachie, thanks for your posting with answers to my questions! I appreciate even more your sweet offer to babysit and lend a supportive ear to my family relocation concerns.

It's funny; no sooner did I post the question about not receiving the financial aid forms when the mail arrived with the expected info. I am eager to try the email system and admitted student link to check out the housing info. I agree with you--having our very own student email address helps to make the acceptance feel real.

Have a great day, Chachie and fellow '09ers. 😍
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If y'all, (or anyone really) needs help moving stuff come school time, that's me.

I'm a bouncer/person-that-always-gets-asked-to-help-people-move 👍
 
is there a CCOM thread for 07 students yet?
 
Dr. MTB said:
The acceptance felt real to me when my bank account had 1000 less dollars in it. :laugh:
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Very True!
 
Just to let everyone know, the interact now part of the midwestern website has been updated and now includes the accepted student checklist, and housing/meal applications.
 
Dr. MTB said:
Just to let everyone know, the interact now part of the midwestern website has been updated and now includes the accepted student checklist, and housing/meal applications.
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Thanks for the info.
 
hey all!

I am so happy I am finally a part of this thread! 😀 😀 I just got accepted this past tues and recieved the official letter on friday 1/28. I am withdrawing my acceptances to UNE and LECOM and KCOM for this one! So happy I'm here!

I probably will be looking at on campus housing as well. How do the apartments look inside? It seems like the most economical and convenient choice as a first year.

Also, is it really difficult to get into the campus? I noticed when I interviewed that the everyone has to check in with security. Do your guests need a pass?

Anyway, glad to be here and if anyone needs any info on fun things to do in chicago before school starts, let me know. I presently live in Hyde Park, just south of chicago, and can clue you in to fun things to do here! congratulations everyone and i look forward to meeting you all! 😀
 
The apartments are pretty plain - although they do have a lot of storage space which was something I was worried about. It's basically a two room apartment - your kitchen/living area combined with a door going back to the bedroom/bathroom. Guests do need a pass to get on campus. Security is pretty tight but they are all really nice.
 
Sanny - Congrats on your acceptance! I currently live in Madison, WI and am always in the Schaumburg area because I have family there. If anyone else is the in the area, maybe we can all meet up sometime?

For on campus housing, are you all thinking about the apartements or dorms? Anyone know of any pros/cons to either?

Thanks so much and have a great day!
 
Stripes said:
Sanny - Congrats on your acceptance! I currently live in Madison, WI and am always in the Schaumburg area because I have family there. If anyone else is the in the area, maybe we can all meet up sometime?

For on campus housing, are you all thinking about the apartements or dorms? Anyone know of any pros/cons to either?

Thanks so much and have a great day!
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Hey..Im down to meet up, I live in Hoffman Estates, a suburb right next to Schaumburg. My damn password or login is still not working for that MWU website! Ive been wanting to put an application in for on campus apartments. Anyone else still having this problemo?
 
FYI, there is a thread in the Drs. Lounge about a midwest meet to be held in Chicago the weekend of March 19-20. A ton of us are coming from all over the Midwest (from Omaha to NYC)

Should be fun.
 
BERNZ,

I still can't access my e.mail, still don't know why. I've called them and they say they're working on it. But, through the interact now section, and the accepted student list, you can send in your housing application through that. I'm still trying to figure out how to rank everything. Hope this helps. I'll send out another message the next time I'm in Schaumburg too!

Buckeye - Thanks, I'll check out the thread.

Have a great day!
 
Thanks stripes and buckeye, that midwest meeting sounds cool. I will definately try to make it!
 
Congrats on your acceptance, Sanny, and welcome to the CCOM c/o 2009!!!

Since you offered, I'll ask a question. If you can't answer, no problem, but perhaps you know someone who can or know of a good, objective resource. We are doing our homework, but I would love an insider's opinion:

I am married with two teens, 9th and 11th grades next fall. Thus, I will not be living on campus, but want to live very close, definitely within ten miles. In your opinion, being a current Chicago resident (and native?), which suburb within that ten mile radius of CCOM has the most to offer a family, in terms of safe, clean, affordable homes, excellent public high school, good community services (police, fire, parks/rec) and easy access to commuter rail system?

Thanks a bunch and again, congrats! 🙂
 
Manifesting said:
Congrats on your acceptance, Sanny, and welcome to the CCOM c/o 2009!!!

Since you offered, I'll ask a question. If you can't answer, no problem, but perhaps you know someone who can or know of a good, objective resource. We are doing our homework, but I would love an insider's opinion:

I am married with two teens, 9th and 11th grades next fall. Thus, I will not be living on campus, but want to live very close, definitely within ten miles. In your opinion, being a current Chicago resident (and native?), which suburb within that ten mile radius of CCOM has the most to offer a family, in terms of safe, clean, affordable homes, excellent public high school, good community services (police, fire, parks/rec) and easy access to commuter rail system?

Thanks a bunch and again, congrats! 🙂
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hi!! i'm a current ms-I and have lived in the chicago-area my whole life. i'm currently living in the lagrange area (with my husband), which is beautiful, has an awesome little downtown area, and has a metra station. it might be a little pricey, but everything around here is. just my 2 cents 🙂
 
Hi Junk! Thanks so much for responding to my question with info about Lagrange. I will definitely check it out. If you don't mind me pressing for more info, does Lagrange have its own school system? Does the high school (or schools) have a good reputation? I have heard & read good things about schools in Downers Grove & Naperville, I am very eager to learn more about lesser known communities, such as the very wonderful sounding Lagrange. I remain open to further input from you and others familiar with the south suburbs near school. Thanks again! 😀
 
Manifesting said:
Hi Junk! Thanks so much for responding to my question with info about Lagrange. I will definitely check it out. If you don't mind me pressing for more info, does Lagrange have its own school system? Does the high school (or schools) have a good reputation? I have heard & read good things about schools in Downers Grove & Naperville, I am very eager to learn more about lesser known communities, such as the very wonderful sounding Lagrange. I remain open to further input from you and others familiar with the south suburbs near school. Thanks again! 😀
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Hey Manifesting,

I would suggest Schaumurg/Hoffman Estates. They have great schools such as Conant high, Schuamburg High, Hoffman Estates high. Great towns with great community stuff and woodfield mall, were I have spent countless hours of my life working and having a good time. Buffalo Grove is a bit more of a drive to midwestern, but they probably have the best public school system in the state. hope this helps some.
 
Hi Bernz! I appreciate the info you posted and I will look in to those areas as well. Would you be able to estimate how long, on an ordinary weekday, it would take to commute from Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates or Buffalo Grove to MWU? Are you planning to make that commute yourself? I am glad to know about the BG schools. How do the schools in Schaum/HE compare to those in Downers Grove or Naperville, based on their reputations and your perceptions? Sorry for all my questions, but there are so many choices and possibilities to explore. Thanks for sharing some Chicagoland scoop with me.
 
Manifesting said:
Hi Bernz! I appreciate the info you posted and I will look in to those areas as well. Would you be able to estimate how long, on an ordinary weekday, it would take to commute from Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates or Buffalo Grove to MWU? Are you planning to make that commute yourself? I am glad to know about the BG schools. How do the schools in Schaum/HE compare to those in Downers Grove or Naperville, based on their reputations and your perceptions? Sorry for all my questions, but there are so many choices and possibilities to explore. Thanks for sharing some Chicagoland scoop with me.
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Hi Manifesting,

On the day of the interview, I stayed at a relatives house in Hoffman Estates. I left their house around 6:30 AM and got to CCOM by 7AM with a heavy downpour and taking a wrong turn. At least from the area my relatives live, I'm going opposite traffic, except where the freeway splits to head downtown. I'm not sure if this helps. Oh, and my uncle was saying that there was a good high school in the area that my cousins will go to if they stay there... I can't really remember the name... maybe Fremt? I'll ask and let you know!

Stripes
 
Manifesting said:
Hi Bernz! I appreciate the info you posted and I will look in to those areas as well. Would you be able to estimate how long, on an ordinary weekday, it would take to commute from Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates or Buffalo Grove to MWU? Are you planning to make that commute yourself? I am glad to know about the BG schools. How do the schools in Schaum/HE compare to those in Downers Grove or Naperville, based on their reputations and your perceptions? Sorry for all my questions, but there are so many choices and possibilities to explore. Thanks for sharing some Chicagoland scoop with me.
Click to expand...

I believe the school stripes is talking about is Fremd. This is an excellent high school located in the city of palatine. This city is also right next to schaumburg. Time wise, the schuamburg area to midwestern will take about 20 minutes (without rain and making wrong turns..ofcourse 😉 ) you would basically take 355 south all the way down exiting on butterfield. From the BG area i would probably say 30-40 minutes, also taking 355 south down to butterfield. Naperville I think is probably also about 20 minute drive coming in formt he other direction. They also have great school such as Waubonsie Valley. I am unfamiliar with schools in downers grove, so cant suggest anything there.
 
I've also lived in th Chicago area all my life and while the schools and areas mentioned in Schaumburg/etc are fine, I don't think there's any need to live that far away. Downers Grove has 2 high schools (north and south), and other schools in the DuPage Valley conference are also pretty decent including Wheaton-Warrenville South and the Glenbards. Overall the western suburbs are for the most part pretty nice and I think would be perfectly fine for raising a family. Look at the towns of Downers, Lombard, Wheaton, and Glen Ellyn for your needs if you want to be a little closer to school.
 
Thanks to all of you who are sharing info on suburbs and high schools. I appreciate your input so much; it is really helping to narrow the search. Any additional information from those in the know is welcome! 🙂 🙂 🙂
 
C'mon guys were letting this thread seep to the bottom of the barrel...Lets pick it up a lil bit? Ill start...So im finally parting ways with my precious 750.00 deposit ive had sitting around for about a month, in the morning. Im going to miss the lil buggers, all 750 of em. But its going to a great cause! Aside from that, I started my first real job, since graduating in december. I work for Countrywide Financial as an Account Executive. (Sweeeet corporate title, eh? 😎 ) *Watch out, sales pitch* So...if anyyy of you need a home loan, refinance, etc...hit me up! hint hint..Manifesting....J/K...no but seriously..Do it!! So basically, as of right now my life revolves around work, playing Halo 2 online (im the Greatest) and poker. Im trying to get my fill now, cuz come September, there will be none...next...
 
BERNZ said:
C'mon guys were letting this thread seep to the bottom of the barrel...Lets pick it up a lil bit? Ill start...So im finally parting ways with my precious 750.00 deposit ive had sitting around for about a month, in the morning. Im going to miss the lil buggers, all 750 of em. But its going to a great cause! Aside from that, I started my first real job, since graduating in december. I work for Countrywide Financial as an Account Executive. (Sweeeet corporate title, eh? 😎 ) *Watch out, sales pitch* So...if anyyy of you need a home loan, refinance, etc...hit me up! hint hint..Manifesting....J/K...no but seriously..Do it!! So basically, as of right now my life revolves around work, playing Halo 2 online (im the Greatest) and poker. Im trying to get my fill now, cuz come September, there will be none...next...
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Same here, just working and enjoying life. My little niece also loves to occupy my time. Congrats on your job and your title, very nice. I love poker too, texas for me. On most Friday nights, my oldest brother has texas holdem games for us 5 and if I'm not working, I try to win their money 🙂 As CCOM students, we'll have to continue this tradition into med school. I also won 60 bucks on the super bowl, which should of happen because it was also my birthday 🙂
 
Poker is fun, but Euchre is badass!
 
Hey Bernz! Thanks for bumping our class thread with your update and getting the discussions started again. You sound very excited about your job--congrats! Our current mortgage is with Countrywide, so I would have no problem sending business your way when we move if at all possible.

I suppose your employer does not know of your educational plans? I am working as a self-employed private tutor, but I've done such a good job and my students are making A's, so I'm losing business! Now, with interviews over, I would like to work more and bank some money before school starts. Hmmm, perhaps a med school acceptance does not make one unemployable in a "real" job? If you don't mind sharing, how did you approach the situation?

OK everyone, you'll have to teach me (and my husband!) how to play Euchre. I've never played, but if all of you poker fans like it, it must be fun.

I'll end with a question about Chicago. Hope you guys are not getting sick of me. The opinions you have shared have helped so much. I suppose I'll keep asking until you tell me to zip it. 😳 😀

About secondary schools again:
My impression is that there are oodles of private girls/boys schools in or near the inner city, but few in the suburbs. This indicates to me that the public schools in/near the city are not so great and the private schools provide an alternative, but that the high schools in the burbs are very good to excellent. Would you guys agree with this perception? I've read the websites for many of the public high schools and I am very impressed, but I have two concerns: 1) the suburban public high schools are HUGE (Downer's North has about 2200 students and that is one of the smaller schools I have found); 2) competitiveness of the socio-economic climate (think 'Mean Girls'). Can any of you locals/natives shed light on my concerns?

Thanks everyone!
 
Hey thanks Chachie and Manifesting, yea the job and people are cool! Happy belated Birthday to you Chachie! Well, when i applied for the job and interviewed, i basically told them i applied to med schools but was not accepted and waitlisted at a few and hinted i probably would not get in. As it worked out, they liked me and offered me the position. So come august, ill just tell them i was recently accepted and give my two weeks notice. My friends and I only play Texs Hold em, no limit. I love it. we will definately have to play once school starts. I have no i dea what Euchre is, but im willing to learn and play. As far as private vs. public schools, im not sure maybe someone else can fill in their, but definately let me know if I can be of any assistance on your home loan situ, Manifesting. 😀
 
OO you know what's gonna be so cool? Manifesting is going to have us over for dinner and study sessions every night. Yay!

Thanks Manifesting, you are a sweetheart🙂
 
Buckeye(OH) said:
OO you know what's gonna be so cool? Manifesting is going to have us over for dinner and study sessions every night. Yay!

Thanks Manifesting, you are a sweetheart🙂
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Yeaaa...I cant wait...I loveee me sum lasagna...baked chicken....veggiess...yummmy! 😍
 
Well sure, guys, you can come over all the time, it will be fun. After all, we'll have the house and should have plenty of room to study and play euchre. But you know that along with the house comes noisey, nasty kids and nosey, smelly dogs. You knew that, right? Oh, and before I forget, I should tell you something: I HATE TO COOK!!! I taught myself how and I do it because I have to, but I really don't enjoy it. Sorry to mess up the visions of home cooking dancing through your heads. Really I am! Boys are so cute when they start talking about food. I have a solution, however! You guys bring the food to my house and do the cooking and THEN we'll have a party. Or, I could get my sister to come visit. She'll cook up a storm for all of us. I'm so much more fun when I'm not stressed out by cooking. 😀
 
Buckeye(OH) said:
Actually, I do cook.

And I cook Indian food very well🙂
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Than its settled...buckeye, put me down for some chicken tikka, chiicken makni and 2 tandoori nan!! On those all night cram sessions, ill cook the breakfast...scrambled eggs.
 
Thanks for the birthday wishes Bernz.
And count me in with the dinners by manifesting! I'm 100% Italian-american, so I can have grandma and mom make us some home-made food!
I don't know how to play Euchre, but I'm up for it 🙂
 
Wow, this is sounding like more fun with every post and each description of ethnic culinary delights! I do love to eat food caringly prepared by family and friends. Despite my dislike for the daily grind of cooking family meals, I am ABLE to cook a few yummy things, so don't write me off entirely. Unless I have scared you off with my kids and dogs? Oh, geez! How are we going to find time to study?

Say, that reminds me... When you toured with the student hosts, did they devote any time to discussing the pros and cons of attending lecture? Two second year students I met stated that they only attended class when required, that they slept and studied during class hours and that they were able to maintain good (even high) grades. I'm the good dooby type who has always attended lectures, even though I am not an auditory learner and often find lectures overwhelming and/or frustrating. It would be difficult for me to change styles and skip lectures, but perhaps this is a valid method for carving out extra time in the day. I never study well at night anyway. What are your opinions? :idea:
 
If there is one thing I can't stand, its a professor that gives out notes and then just reads from them.

If such is the case, you won't find me in class.
 
Seems like you guys have planned a lot since I've been off in la-la land. I love texas hold em poker... I'm just a bad lier so most of the time people can totally read me, especially when I start to giggle... I've played euchre a while ago... someone would just have to remind me. Oh, and I cook chinese/Vietnamese/mexican food that can be thrown in the mix too. Plus I only know how to make HUGE amounts of it because everyone knows that asian families are humungo! Ha ha.

Oh, plus I finally decided CCOM was it, and put in my last 750... my bank account will never be the same after this...
 
Manifesting said:
Wow, this is sounding like more fun with every post and each description of ethnic culinary delights! I do love to eat food caringly prepared by family and friends. Despite my dislike for the daily grind of cooking family meals, I am ABLE to cook a few yummy things, so don't write me off entirely. Unless I have scared you off with my kids and dogs? Oh, geez! How are we going to find time to study?

Say, that reminds me... When you toured with the student hosts, did they devote any time to discussing the pros and cons of attending lecture? Two second year students I met stated that they only attended class when required, that they slept and studied during class hours and that they were able to maintain good (even high) grades. I'm the good dooby type who has always attended lectures, even though I am not an auditory learner and often find lectures overwhelming and/or frustrating. It would be difficult for me to change styles and skip lectures, but perhaps this is a valid method for carving out extra time in the day. I never study well at night anyway. What are your opinions? :idea:
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I think everyone pretty much starts out with this same attitude, which is probably a good thing. Everyone is afraid they'll "miss" things if they skip lecture, but in reality that's rarely the case. You will notice how with each passing quarter, attendance gets smaller and smaller as people realize their time is better spent actively studying than dozing off in a lecture hall. The schedule is just too draining to spend all day in class and then study for several hours every night. I got a lot more done by going to a couple classes a day and studying on my own more often.

You will figure that time is a precious commodity during the first two years, and you really learn to prioritize your time. It will become apparent which classes are worth attending and which ones are not. And you will have students in your class who range from the go-to-every-class-every-day types to the kinds of people you only see on days of exams. Ultimately everyone finds something that works for them. And yes, it is ok to skip class for things like doing laundry and running errands. It is these kinds of things that keep our lives sane and under some sort of control. Good luck, and enjoy the time before med school starts!
 
Ditto that. It's all about your learning style. I would not recommend starting off your medical school career by skipping every class but you will quickly learn what works for you. If you do better by studying on your own then you should NOT feel guilty for skipping class although it is likely that you will initially feel guilty. You will not miss much "extra" information although I have noticed a question or two on tests that would be difficult to know if you had not been in class.

I attend most lectures but I find that sometimes just hearing something explained differently than the notes helps it stick better. This typically works best for me in conceptual classes like physiology that have less memorizing. On the other hand, I have not gone to many anatomy lectures this quarter. I learn better by actively participating in lab and by repetition, repetition, repetition.

If you do attend class, the key is to maximize your time by actively learning while you are there. If you are not paying attention or falling asleep you might as well be doing something else. Seriously. You will learn that being productive at SOMETHING almost all day is the key to survival (whether that be studying, laundry, eating, RELAXING, sleeping, etc). Don't waste time.
The best way I have found to actively learn in class is to pre-read my notes the night before (just skimming). Then I at least know the flow of the lecture and what I really didn't understand and need to pay attention to. Then I have more time in lecture to clarify things in my margin, listen to the professor, and look at powerpoint diagrams instead of wondering where they are in the lecture notes.

By far though, I would have to say the key to doing well is staying on top of the material. Do not let several days go by without looking at biochem or anatomy or any other subject for that matter (OK, maybe psych 🙂 ). You will have to learn to become satisfied with never getting enough studying done for the night. It is better to go through 50% of the material you need to know for EACH of your subjects EVERY night than it is to just study one subject for a night or two and let the others slide. If you do the latter, it can easily escalate to studying test to test which is probably the worst thing you can do. If you do the former, you will always feel like you have never quite mastered the material (because it will be too much material to really go over in one night) but you will find that come 2-3 nights before the test as you begin to focus on that class, things will come together much easier for you. All those other nights of repetition will be tremendous and allow to you synthesize the material and mop up the details.

Anyhow, enough ranting. Enjoy your time right now. None of you better be studying anything. Any of you. I mean it. Congrats on all your acceptances to a great school.
 
Claymore and delicatefade: Thank you for taking the time to reply to my question with your sincere and informative posts. I am certain that all of us on this c/o 2009 thread will benefit from your comments. Whenever you have time to share additional bits of wisdom, I'm all ears (rather, eyes)!

C/O 2009: What should we talk about now, gang? Are there any more new acceptees out there?

Happy Friday to all. 😀
 
we should talk about how im almost done with this crappy masters and how I can't wait to party/work all summer before going into the dungeon known as medical school
 
Hey everyone,

It's offical now, I'm going to CCOM! I can't wait to meet everyone! Is there anything planned for before classes start? From the posts, it sounds like everyone would like to do something. It'd be really nice to get to know some of you before we start. Maybe we should have a feast!! Sounds like we have some seriously good cooks among us and I can at least bake some killer brownies and cookies if nothing else! Enjoy the weekend!
 
Perhaps and Age/Sex/Location is in order. If you are "old" feel free to leave out your age 😉

Ill start

23
Male
Columbus, Ohio.

PS. The current MSI's claim they will have fun stuff planned. I am also planning on heading down to Shedd Aquarium that Saturday before classes start for some downtown Chicago action.
 
Congrats Sunsun, Welcome to the club!

Male
24
Hoffman Esates, Suburb of Chicago
 
Sunsun: Congratulations! Your enthusiasm makes me smile. When did you interview and learn of your acceptance? Or did you just now make your final decision? I'm curious, as I would like to make my final decision and be gleeful like you. This pre-MS1 purgatory is making me nuts! I really love CCOM and I am honored to have the acceptance, but the idea of moving my whole family to Chicago is becoming more and more overwhelming. So, I am still waiting to hear from Mizzou (post-i/v) and SLU (pre-interview limbo). Anyway, welcome aboard. Happy to have another '09er join our discussions.

To Buckeye: Sorry you're not a happy camper, buddy. When do you wrap up the masters? Keep after it, summer will be here before you know it.

About your poll, here are my answers:

Yes, I'm "old" but age is a state of mind...41
Female
St. Louis, MO

Next....???
 
Manifesting said:
Next....???
Click to expand...

I'm young:
22 (my birthday's in a week, right now I'm 21)
female
right now Hanover, New Hampshire. Originally from Pleasantville, NY (just outside NYC)
 
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