Duke Part II

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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OK so I guess everyone's head is in the gutter at this point then.... hahahhahahaahahahhahahahahaahhaha.... I'm out of control. You ppl are hilarious. :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
 
if EI had worked there last year, i most certainly would have LOI-D him. 😍
 
Oh good lord, Kirexhana, you and the entire rest of the class whos doors swing even remotely in that direction. 😉

:::wonders if EI actually reads this:::
 
blackrsx said:
Keep believing. Never give up your dream(s)! Never!!!kekekekekekke
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Black... you are hilarious. Everyone say a big congrats to ole Black, the newest member of Baylor c/o 2011 :clap: BTW, if yall didnt know... me and black are best buds and he is kept up to date on all of the latest that goes down on the Duke thread. I didn't know if I had ever formally introduced him to all of yall but ya... there it is. 😍
 
Baylor almost got me. Duke won out. As a result, my bank account hates me.
 
Rocky6 said:
if you sent it by email, did you get a response back and from who?
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No, I didn't get a response back. However, I sent a brief email to Sir Richard Wallace yesterday, and he sent me an email back. So... I hope they got it.
 
FemalesCANTDriv said:
No, I didn't get a response back. However, I sent a brief email to Sir Richard Wallace yesterday, and he sent me an email back. So... I hope they got it.
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تشكر، سپاس ، سپاسگزاري ، اظهارتشكر، تقدير، سپاسگزاري كردن ، تشكر كردن.
 
Rocky6 said:
تشكر، سپاس ، سپاسگزاري ، اظهارتشكر، تقدير، سپاسگزاري كردن ، تشكر كردن.
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Agar oon Farsi e, man nemitoonam bekhoonamesh... bebakhsheed. Shomah Irooni hastin?
 
19 days.

:luck: :luck: :luck:

PS: I leave tomorrow morning for DC, so byong, ryan, DrD, etc... keep up the good work 👍
 
Khahesh mikonam. Vali agar shomah Irooni nistin, chi hastin?[/QUOTE]

armani
 
A few questions...

(1) How is the advising system for 3rd year, residency, etc?

(2) Walk me throught the Step 1 process. I have seen that the Duke website says that it is only mandated that your research advisor give you 2 weeks. What if you want 4-5? It would be nice to have about a week break after 2nd year then 4-5 weeks to study for step 1. So would they let you "only" do 10 months for the 3rd year? I just don't want to feel rushed, especially since you haven't seen the stuff for a year.

Thanks!
 
Lests55 said:
A few questions...

(1) How is the advising system for 3rd year, residency, etc?

(2) Walk me throught the Step 1 process. I have seen that the Duke website says that it is only mandated that your research advisor give you 2 weeks. What if you want 4-5? It would be nice to have about a week break after 2nd year then 4-5 weeks to study for step 1. So would they let you "only" do 10 months for the 3rd year? I just don't want to feel rushed, especially since you haven't seen the stuff for a year.

Thanks!
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1. The school has 4 advisory deans. You get one right fron the beginning, and 1st year you have weekly lunches with them in small groups. You obviously will probably meet faculty along the way that advise you, but these deans really are there for you.

2. The third year is pretty chill. It is my understanding that most people treat the day like a 9-5 job...there doesn't seem to be as much studying, etc., to do. So they study throughout the year and take step I in the spring.
 
I thought someone said most students took step 1 within a few weeks after 2nd year, and then did the 3rd year. (Such that they are "separate")
 
Lests55 said:
I thought someone said most students took step 1 within a few weeks after 2nd year, and then did the 3rd year. (Such that they are "separate")
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I am 99% sure they take it in the spring. Otherwise we'd have no time to study [like me, studying right now for a monday exam...ha ha].
 
Lests55 said:
I thought someone said most students took step 1 within a few weeks after 2nd year, and then did the 3rd year. (Such that they are "separate")
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you can take it whenever you want during third year. there was a girl who took it in september (second year ends mid august) and my roommates (both third years) took it between feb and april of this year. a number of their friends also took it recently/have yet to take it. i hope this gave you a better idea 🙂
 
Lests55 said:
I thought someone said most students took step 1 within a few weeks after 2nd year, and then did the 3rd year. (Such that they are "separate")
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I've heard from a few upperclassmen that most tend to take it about 4-5 weeks after 3rd year begins. Research is really flexible, provided you don't get a Howard Hughes (which requires 12 months of research), and a lot of poeple only do 10 months worth their 3rd year. However, like Dookter said, other people decide to take it towards the end of their 3rd year. Me personally, I'm hoping to take a week after 2nd year, take 4 weeks to study, take the test, then start 3rd year research.
 
MrBurns10 said:
I've heard from a few upperclassmen that most tend to take it about 4-5 weeks after 3rd year begins. Research is really flexible, provided you don't get a Howard Hughes (which requires 12 months of research), and a lot of poeple only do 10 months worth their 3rd year. However, like Dookter said, other people decide to take it towards the end of their 3rd year. Me personally, I'm hoping to take a week after 2nd year, take 4 weeks to study, take the test, then start 3rd year research.
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Sounds like what I would choose as well.
 
See, I've actually heard a different way to do it, which is what I think I'm planning on doing:

Take the Step 2 before you take the Step 1 right after 2nd year when all of the clinical stuff is fresh in your mind. Then do research while studying throughout your research year, take a few weeks at the end to study hardcore, then take Step 1 like April/May of year 3.

There is nothing that says you can't do this, by the way. Also, it lets you get some idea of what the USMLE exams are like on the step 2 before you take the step 1 which tends to be weighted more heavily by res directors. Also, your PE skills will never be as good again as they are at the end of 2nd year so it's good to do the Step 2 CS at that point as well.
 
pagemmapants said:
See, I've actually heard a different way to do it, which is what I think I'm planning on doing:

Take the Step 2 before you take the Step 1 right after 2nd year when all of the clinical stuff is fresh in your mind. Then do research while studying throughout your research year, take a few weeks at the end to study hardcore, then take Step 1 like April/May of year 3.

There is nothing that says you can't do this, by the way. Also, it lets you get some idea of what the USMLE exams are like on the step 2 before you take the step 1 which tends to be weighted more heavily by res directors. Also, your PE skills will never be as good again as they are at the end of 2nd year so it's good to do the Step 2 CS at that point as well.
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This is the way I've heard of people doing it...
 
Yeah, just to basically agree with what Burnsie said - I think most third years only do 10 months of research, unless they get a grant that says they have to do 12 months.
 
pagemmapants said:
There is nothing that says you can't do this, by the way. Also, it lets you get some idea of what the USMLE exams are like on the step 2 before you take the step 1 which tends to be weighted more heavily by res directors. Also, your PE skills will never be as good again as they are at the end of 2nd year so it's good to do the Step 2 CS at that point as well.
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Do step 2 before step 1? That's interesting, I honestly hadn't heard of this. Not a bad idea at all, although I think I want to get studying for and taking step 1 over with as soon as possible...
 
It's days like this that make me miss gross anatomy.

Lamotrigine? Levorphanol? Lopiramide? Loratidine?
 
MrBurns10 said:
Judging by the little green lights under your, diosa's, and my names, we're being REAL productive.
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I want facebook to start including a timer of how much time per day you are logged in. I bet my facebook usage adds up to at least 24 hours/week.
 
diosa428 said:
I want facebook to start including a timer of how much time per day you are logged in. I bet my facebook usage adds up to at least 24 hours/week.
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I prefer to stalk people in person, either from a distance behind my travel collapsable stalking bush or even closer from behind my frighteningly-realistic Angela Lansbury mask.
 
pagemmapants said:
It's days like this that make me miss gross anatomy.

Lamotrigine? Levorphanol? Lopiramide? Loratidine?
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Lamotrigine: good for mania and pain.
Levorphanol: post op analgesic
Lopiramide: prevents diarrhea, by not being able to cross into the BBB, but you get constipation
Loratidine: H1 antagonist, for allergies....

oh lord... to be up at 230 AM studying this crap. all this caffiene is making me want to peeeeeeee

now if you could answer the Bu's for me

Bupropion, Buprenorphine, Buspirone...
 
Alright, so the financial aid packages are rolling in... things are looking pretty good for Duke. 😍

Still, I have a couple of niggling concerns that came up during my visits to other schools, and I was hoping some of our M1s might be able to make me feel better.

1) Duke's facilities: not really as exciting as other med schools' of the same caliber. I mean, an anatomy lab's an anatomy lab, but there is something to be said for a school that wants to keep updating its facilities. I've always heard that a place is growing if you see a lot of construction around, and when I was there, I didn't see any. Another student I talked to also said that her Duke interviewer cited the facilities as one of Duke's weak points. Thoughts? Perhaps I wasn't looking... I was too enamored with the neo-Gothic architecture and the gorgeous gardens to really look all that closely.

2) The administration: I've heard some mixed things from current Duke undergrads... but of course their opinions are not as valuable as those of actual medical students. Still, several people have mentioned that they felt like the Duke administration did not make the needs and concerns of the medical students their top priority. The undergraduates felt that they had been treated that way, but got the distinct impression that they would not be treated likewise as med students, both by the med school administration and the Duke institutional administration. For example, Vandy falls all over itself for its med students. They had the Chancellor of the university come speak to us, prospective med students. They had their local congressman come speak to us, prospective med students. Not just the med school administration, but the entire institution seems to be highly receptive to the concerns of its med students. Clearly, I'm not expecting a congressman to show up to my lectures, and I have no doubt that Duke Med would take care of its students, but I'm just afraid that it might not be as supportive of its students as it could be. Now, I really have no idea, and from what I could tell, the Duke admin is just fine... but I'm looking for effusive praise here. 🙂

3) Extracurriculars: I thought I was completely on board with the Duke curriculum, but I'm getting a little panicky about the compressed first year. Listening to and watching the students at the other schools with the P/F first year... I know it's silly, but it would be kind of nice to have time to be in musicals and have dance groups and produce clever little skits. Of course, I could probably give all that up for Duke's third year... I dunno. I just want to remain a well-rounded human being--or as well-rounded as a med student could possibly be. Based on Duke's Second Look, it sure seemed like the most you guys get a chance to do outside of study is go out for drinks... lots and lots of drinks. 😉 Not that that's a bad thing, but it can't hurt to have a little variety in life, right?

4) Quality of education: I know, it's Duke. Of course it's good. But some students at other schools brought up a few good points that gave me a little pause. Like, anatomy is weak and embryology is glossed over. Even a current Duke med student said that the residents regularly make fun of Duke med students because they don't know as much as they should. Clearly, Duke turns out successful doctors, but do you ever feel like there's going to be a gap in your medical knowledge that will turn out to haunt you later on?

5) Durham: I grew up in the suburbs of Northern Virginia. I go to school in the town of Charlottesville. For one thing, it's safe. I can park my car a block away, leave it unlocked, and come back a week later to find my CD player still there and my car intact. I can walk home alone after a night at the library and feel completely safe, as long as the way is well-lit. I know in some of the apartments within walking distance of the Duke Medical Center, there are break-ins reported, etc., every year. Clearly, Durham is not St. Louis or Nashville or NYC, but still... in comparison to what I'm used to, it might as well be. True, that has it's pros and cons, but safety (and to some extent, housing) is definitely in Charlottesville's favor. You can get a much nicer apartment at a walking distance from UVA Medical Center for cheaper than the apartments that are at a walking distance from Duke Medical Center.

Sorry, long post, but I'm trying to procrastinate here, and I also just want to be as sure as possible that I'm going to make the right choice. Duke's been number one since the beginning, but I guess I'm feeling like I need to step back and re-evaluate, just in case.
 
EmbellisMaVie said:
1) Duke's facilities: I've always heard that a place is growing if you see a lot of construction around, and when I was there, I didn't see any.

2) The administration: I've heard some mixed things from current Duke undergrads... but of course their opinions are not as valuable as those of actual medical students.

4) Quality of education: I know, it's Duke. Of course it's good. But some students at other schools brought up a few good points that gave me a little pause. Like, anatomy is weak and embryology is glossed over. Even a current Duke med student said that the residents regularly make fun of Duke med students because they don't know as much as they should.

5) Durham
.
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1 I went to ugrad here, and trust me, 4 years ago the place was entirely different. There's an entirely new library and art museum. If you are looking for growth in the sciences, there is a new gigantic interdisciplenary engineering building and the new French Science Building. Much of this stuff is out of sight from the "tour" you get during the med school interview. There are a lot of huge research buildings at Duke (in all honesty, on the interview trail I never saw another school come close ---- yet, I may not have looked hard enough). There's also a new emergency room at Duke North and there are plans to expand and upgrade the OR floor in Duke North in the coming years. Duke's growing and it has space to grow since it owns the majority of the land in the area.

2 As a duke ugrad, i would say the administration was generally ok. The major problems ugrads had were with the housing admin. I dont think the ugrad problems would reflect on the med school since its an entirely different admin in command. That said, I am not sure of the reputation of the Duke admin. Richard Wallace seems pretty awesome, and anytime I have talked to or called anybody (such as the fin aid office), everyone has been incredibly friendly.

4 I am scared of having sizable and noticable differences in medical knowledge as well. What sort of justifies it for me is that duke students do incredibly well on the boards (but at the same time, it appears they have more time to study for it and so they can self-teach any weak spots comfortably) and match incredibly well. I think its safe to say that whatever is dilluted or knocked out of the first year schedule is of little to no practical importance. If it were, the medical reputation would have diminished over the years and this general 1 year preclinical plan wouldnt have been going on for decades now.

5 Durham sucks. Safety in Durham around the Duke area is generally good. You can and do hear stories about break-ins every now and then but I would say they are not commonplace. Where med students live there is generally nothing to worry about (apt complexes). if you are living in a house, it depends on where the house is, but in general, again, i wouldnt be thinking of safety as a big turn-off from Duke.
 
Clearly, 4:20 AM is designed for panicking about med schools instead of sleeping. Thanks for the insights, Stolen. You gave me a lot of the responses I was hoping I'd get.

Housing admin sucks everywhere. Luckily, we won't have to deal with that.

pagemmapants said:
Sorry, dude - no responses 'til 12:00. 🙂
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Thanks for nothing, pagemmapants. 😛
 
EmbellisMaVie, you couldn't have summed up my nagging doubts any better if you tried! I have to make up my mind between Duke and WashU this week, and I'm couldn't be more grateful for having such a helpful and enthusiastic band of MS-1s on here (even if they're busy in the morning 😉).

Oh, and before anyone calls "blasphemy" for naming another school on this beloved thread, know that I'm just trying to avoid starting another annoying VS thread in the main forum. From searching through archives, I see Dookter and Rex faced the same dillema...
 
Dr Durden said:
EmbellisMaVie, you couldn't have summed up my nagging doubts any better if you tried! I have to make up my mind between Duke and WashU this week, and I'm couldn't be more grateful for having such a helpful and enthusiastic band of MS-1s on here (even if they're busy in the morning 😉).

Oh, and before anyone calls "blasphemy" for naming another school on this beloved thread, know that I'm just trying to avoid starting another annoying VS thread in the main forum. From searching through archives, I see Dookter and Rex faced the same dillema...
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Yep, the main two schools in the end for me were WashU and Duke....let me do some work and I will get to all these questions within a day or two if not today...I had an exam followed by a 3 hour autopsy, so I have to stream lecture....And I am SOOOOOO worn out....damn...
 
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