Dukes Anonymous :)

[FemalesCANTDriv]

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Only 2? How disappointing. You'll have to fill me in on the details.

Both asian girls (DP and SC).

CONGRATS on being done with Medicine!!!

 

[pagemmapants]

Hahaha, of course, I love our little asian lasses.

Nope, not single. 😉 Not since July anyway.

 

[diosa428]

Hahaha, of course, I love our little asian lasses.

Nope, not single. 😉 Not since July anyway.

If anyone is curious about the story behind pagemma's non-singleness, do a search for last years thread. There you shall find the answers.

PS, if any of you guys have questions about Duke, feel free to ask. We're just entertaining ourselves, but are very happy to answer questions if we can.

 

[DulyNoted]

Kinda off topic from the previous posts, but does a 36 MCAT average strike anyone as a little high? According to US News, the enrolled class of 2010 had an average of 33.3. A ~3 point jump in 1 year seems like the admissions criteria must have changed significantly OR the applicants themselves became that much more competitive. Though if you search profiles on MDapps for accepted to Duke in 2007, the MCAT numbers ARE insane...

I wonder also because this statistic was mentioned in the same breath as the school's USMLE average (reportedly 40 points above national mean, or an average of upper 250s). Even our student tour guide found that hard to swallow.

I guess I'm just looking for hope that this year's accepted class doesn't have an average MCAT of like 41 with an enrolled student body average of 39 something. I love Duke. Please overlook my shameful sub-40...

 

[diosa428]

Kinda off topic from the previous posts, but does a 36 MCAT average strike anyone as a little high? According to US News, the enrolled class of 2010 had an average of 33.3. A ~3 point jump in 1 year seems like the admissions criteria must have changed significantly OR the applicants themselves became that much more competitive. Though if you search profiles on MDapps for accepted to Duke in 2007, the MCAT numbers ARE insane...

I wonder also because this statistic was mentioned in the same breath as the school's USMLE average (reportedly 40 points above national mean, or an average of upper 250s). Even our student tour guide found that hard to swallow.

I guess I'm just looking for hope that this year's accepted class doesn't have an average MCAT of like 41 with an enrolled student body average of 39 something. I love Duke. Please overlook my shameful sub-40...

Admissions didn't become more competitive. Our class (the class of 2010) took an unprecidented number of students from the waitlist due to the bad publicity the school was getting at the time because of the lacrosse scandal. Our average MCAT is therefore lower than that of basically all the other classes, which have averages of 35-36. However, we are a much cooler bunch 😎

Who told you the average USMLE was in the 250s?? Was that mentioned by admissions? That seems awfully high, especially since there are usually several students every year who decide they don't want to go into residency and merely take the USMLE b/c it's required to graduate, and therefore don't study for it and do poorly. I think our average has typically been in the mid-230s.

 

[DulyNoted]

Admissions didn't become more competitive. Our class (the class of 2010) took an unprecidented number of students from the waitlist due to the bad publicity the school was getting at the time because of the lacrosse scandal. Our average MCAT is therefore lower than that of basically all the other classes, which have averages of 35-36. However, we are a much cooler bunch 😎

Who told you the average USMLE was in the 250s?? Was that mentioned by admissions? That seems awfully high, especially since there are usually several students every year who decide they don't want to go into residency and merely take the USMLE b/c it's required to graduate, and therefore don't study for it and do poorly. I think our average has typically been in the mid-230s.

Ah, I see. Wonder if I should start the Krispy Kreme party now or wait till after I receive the thin letter...

The person that said the USMLE was +40 is in a position to know, but posting names doesn't make for good manners.

 

[pagemmapants]

See, when Duke says that they're average is 35, what they're really saying is that they've got a few people with 42s, a lot between 32 and 37 and a couple of people with 30s. Seriously. I can think of at least 3 classmates off the top of my head who I'm pretty sure got 40+ MCATs. I can also think of at least 3 classmates off the top of my head who I know for a fact got <33 - and we really don't discuss that kind of thing very much so that's just from the people I know fairly well.

Suffice it to say, we're a pretty diverse group when it comes to the MCAT - our spread is probably a lot wider than some people might think. 5+5+5/3 = 5. 1+10+4/5 is also 5.

Then again, without diosa's abysmal score, we might have a class average of 38. She's one of them outliers who scored lower than her BMI.

 

[FemalesCANTDriv]

... even though diosa loves men who have a really large BMI.

 

[Jamorama]

how did you guys cope with the wait until march?? seems like such a long time still....uugggh its killing me

 

[DulyNoted]

I've got a lot of questions, I guess:

How receptive is the school to students doing international health research for their third year? I'm particularly interested in Asia, any of your classmates going or plan to go there? Does Duke have funding available for that type of thing or must you apply for grant money elsewhere?

Can anyone comment on the relative value of letters of intent / interest at Duke? If I remember correctly, a few posters now at Duke have said that they felt their letters were instrumental in gaining acceptance...

 

[diosa428]

I've got a lot of questions, I guess:

How receptive is the school to students doing international health research for their third year? I'm particularly interested in Asia, any of your classmates going or plan to go there? Does Duke have funding available for that type of thing or must you apply for grant money elsewhere?

Can anyone comment on the relative value of letters of intent / interest at Duke? If I remember correctly, a few posters now at Duke have said that they felt their letters were instrumental in gaining acceptance...

Duke is pretty open to students doing international health work. There's some funding, but a lot of it comes from outside sources. Duke will fund several students to go to Singapore to the new med school to do research, but that's basic science research. If you really want to do international health work, you should look into applying for the Fullbright or a Fogarty. Duke also sends a couple of students to Tanzania every year.

I personally wrote several letters of intent to Duke, as did a couple of other current Duke students, but I also know of students who got in off the waitlist who didn't, so I can't comment on the relative helpfulness of it. But it certainly doesn't hurt, so I'd recommend it if you're sure you want to go to Duke.

 

[SnoPearl]

I guess I'm looking for motivation to work on Duke's secondary... Someone earlier mentioned the great aid packages that you get, I was just wondering what the merit scholarship options are?

 

[GZA]

I guess I'm looking for motivation to work on Duke's secondary... Someone earlier mentioned the great aid packages that you get, I was just wondering what the merit scholarship options are?

please, nobody motivate her

 

[pagemmapants]

I guess I'm looking for motivation to work on Duke's secondary... Someone earlier mentioned the great aid packages that you get, I was just wondering what the merit scholarship options are?

Who the hell knows? Apparently they invented a bunch of new merit scholarships the year after I got admitted but as far as I know the only non-need-based full rides in my class have a racial component, or are MSTP, or are the NC Fuller scholarship. There are people walking around with 40+s and publications with no scholarships and I don't now how the heck else you prove "merit". From what I can tell, anything listed as an "endowed fund" generally goes to cover that portion of your FA package that is designated as the "Duke Grant" before they get around to assigning you a named scholarship halfway through your first year.

What they don't tell you when they quote that "average debt of 70k" statistic is that a good number of people here DO have rich mommy/daddy syndrome and that there are a number of us >$50k+/year borrowers walking around that cancel them out. We're the ones who get a little bit nauseated when someone mentions the whole 20/200 debacle which we WEREN'T EXACTLY COUNTING ON when we signed up for this.

The exceptions are those scholarships that you might get 3rd year for research (most of which have nothing to do with Duke SOM itself) and scholarships you might get for 4th year by doing excellent 3rd year research. Of course, neither of those are guaranteed when you come in, so it's a little bit of a gamble. I will say that *most* people (from what I've heard) get at least partial funding for 3rd year and there are a good number of named scholarships awarded at AOA day when rising 4th years present their research.

However, you don't seem all that motivated to come here and you have three acceptances already. If you know right now that you will go to any of those three over Duke, why bother? (FWIW - a lot of people end up trying to decide between either UMich and Duke or WashU and Duke. Just one of those things, I guess)

 

[qtpai]

please, nobody motivate her

Please.

 

[SnoPearl]

Who the hell knows? Apparently they invented a bunch of new merit scholarships the year after I got admitted but as far as I know the only non-need-based full rides in my class have a race requirement, or are MSTP, or are the NC Fuller scholarship. There are people walking around with 40+s and publications with no scholarships and I don't now how the heck else you prove "merit". From what I can tell, anything listed as an "endowed fund" generally goes to cover that portion of your FA package that is designated as the "Duke Grant" before they get around to assigning you a named scholarship halfway through your first year.

What they don't tell you when they quote that "average debt of 70k" statistic is that a good number of people here DO have rich mommy/daddy syndrome and that there are a number of us >$50k+/year borrowers walking around that cancel them out.

Also, you don't seem all that motivated to come here and you have three acceptances already. If you know that you will go to any of those three over Duke, why bother?

Ah, thanks for the info. I am unmotivated because of their daunting secondary, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't choose Duke over my other schools. Obviously I would need to actually visit in order to know if I would like to really go there, but for me, money will be a very strong element of my decision. Unfortunately without any information on scholarship decisions yet, my preference on schools really means very little at this point.

 

[Dr Durden]

We first years did luck out with several more full-tuition merit scholarships than the usual class (sorry pagemmapants 🙁), not all of which went to URMs. However, that's maybe a dozen at most selected from several thousand truly phenomenal applicants from around the world. I'm amazed everyday by my classmates' intelligence and accomplishments, not to mention their affability.

And this will make me unpopular in pre-allo, but I think using secondary essays to choose your medical school is amongst the lamest of cop-out criteria (along with number of people per cadaver in anatomy 😴). Come on, it's a few hours of writing, and even if there's a lot to answer, I'm sure you can tweak the majority from responses you gave to other schools. I'm having a blast here at Duke--yes, even during finals week--and doubt I could be happier elsewhere. To think, I could be missing out on this incredible experience just because I decided to be lazy for a few evenings last year.

 

[j dizzle]

Here's a complaint about Duke: no textbooks. I initially thought this would be a good thing, but what it really means is you have to sort through the lecture's ramblings to write your own mini textbook and then study from that. At least that's what I have to do to make sense of everything. I miss the old days of good solid references for my studies. Does anyone else feel that way?

 

[panther42]

Here's a complaint about Duke: no textbooks. I initially thought this would be a good thing, but what it really means is you have to sort through the lecture's ramblings to write your own mini textbook and then study from that. At least that's what I have to do to make sense of everything. I miss the old days of good solid references for my studies. Does anyone else feel that way?

Actually, JDizzle, Duke has a lot of textbooks. They keep them all at this place called the library. You should check it out sometime. 🙂

 

[Tropicana100]

Got an invite today from Duke. I was surprised because I only finished my secondary a week ago. It was a fast turnaround time!! I was very excited but after reading this thread and realizing that they reject 3/4 of interviewees I'm not feeling so hot anymore. Oh well, I guess I should be thankful still.

Hang in there, Tropicana, my fellow cardinal! I'm intensely jealous of your Cornell and UCSD invites! But unfortunately I'm on hold at UCSD =(

Thanks! good luck at your Duke interview, you'll have a great time.

and go cardinal! we're making a comeback 🙂

 

[diosa428]

Here's a complaint about Duke: no textbooks. I initially thought this would be a good thing, but what it really means is you have to sort through the lecture's ramblings to write your own mini textbook and then study from that. At least that's what I have to do to make sense of everything. I miss the old days of good solid references for my studies. Does anyone else feel that way?

?? When we were first years, every lecture had an assigned reading in a textbook or a "lecture notes" handout. But nobody actually read anything but the notes group notes.

 

[diosa428]

Who the hell knows? Apparently they invented a bunch of new merit scholarships the year after I got admitted but as far as I know the only non-need-based full rides in my class have a racial component, or are MSTP, or are the NC Fuller scholarship. There are people walking around with 40+s and publications with no scholarships and I don't now how the heck else you prove "merit". From what I can tell, anything listed as an "endowed fund" generally goes to cover that portion of your FA package that is designated as the "Duke Grant" before they get around to assigning you a named scholarship halfway through your first year.

What they don't tell you when they quote that "average debt of 70k" statistic is that a good number of people here DO have rich mommy/daddy syndrome and that there are a number of us >$50k+/year borrowers walking around that cancel them out. We're the ones who get a little bit nauseated when someone mentions the whole 20/200 debacle which we WEREN'T EXACTLY COUNTING ON when we signed up for this.

The exceptions are those scholarships that you might get 3rd year for research (most of which have nothing to do with Duke SOM itself) and scholarships you might get for 4th year by doing excellent 3rd year research. Of course, neither of those are guaranteed when you come in, so it's a little bit of a gamble. I will say that *most* people (from what I've heard) get at least partial funding for 3rd year and there are a good number of named scholarships awarded at AOA day when rising 4th years present their research.

However, you don't seem all that motivated to come here and you have three acceptances already. If you know right now that you will go to any of those three over Duke, why bother? (FWIW - a lot of people end up trying to decide between either UMich and Duke or WashU and Duke. Just one of those things, I guess)

Deep breath.... shelf is almost over.

 

[OMFB]

However, you don't seem all that motivated to come here and you have three acceptances already. If you know right now that you will go to any of those three over Duke, why bother? (FWIW - a lot of people end up trying to decide between either UMich and Duke or WashU and Duke. Just one of those things, I guess)

Interesting. Right now UMich and Wash U are two of my top choices (not saying Duke isnt, I just havent filled out my secondary/interviewed, and I prefer not to judge a school until I've interviewed). Did any of you Duke students come down to those choices? And if so, what set Duke apart for you? What about the three schools (aside from research) causes students to come down to them? Thanks!

 

[j dizzle]

Actually, JDizzle, Duke has a lot of textbooks. They keep them all at this place called the library. You should check it out sometime.

What I meant was, the classes aren't organized around a particular textbook. I'm not saying this is bad for everyone, but I like knowing that all the information I need for a class is well defined in one book.

 

[Tropicana100]

What I meant was, the classes aren't organized around a particular textbook. I'm not saying this is bad for everyone, but I like knowing that all the information I need for a class is well defined in one book.

Is that the strength of the Duke curriculum though, that class materials are constantly modified by professors to reflect the most current and practical information that an outdated textbook cannot offer?

 

[FemalesCANTDriv]

What I meant was, the classes aren't organized around a particular textbook. I'm not saying this is bad for everyone, but I like knowing that all the information I need for a class is well defined in one book.

Hah... what do you call Human Structure?

 

[diosa428]

What I meant was, the classes aren't organized around a particular textbook. I'm not saying this is bad for everyone, but I like knowing that all the information I need for a class is well defined in one book.

Neuro will be like that. Path is kind of like that, but no one actually does the reading in Robbins and the micro books are not helpful.

 

[Dr Durden]

Hah... what do you call Human Structure?

I call it the single greatest piece of scientific literature in existence.


(Judging from posting times, I see that you & jdizzle don't care about your elderly patients getting heart failure)

 

[Dr Durden]

Interesting. Right now UMich and Wash U are two of my top choices (not saying Duke isnt, I just havent filled out my secondary/interviewed, and I prefer not to judge a school until I've interviewed). Did any of you Duke students come down to those choices? And if so, what set Duke apart for you? What about the three schools (aside from research) causes students to come down to them? Thanks!

It came down to WashU and Duke for me. Aside from financial aid, some objective things that tipped the scales in favor of Duke was:

Only one year of basic science classes with no curve to grades.
An entire (3rd) year to pursue my own interests.
Videorecorded as opposed to audiorecorded lectures.
It got me out of the Midwest.
It has some winning D1 athletic teams.
It's closely associated with a great undergrad campus.
Cheaper cost of living.

What I liked about WashU:

They seemed to throw more money at their students (if you've seen their student center, you know what I mean)
Their entire first year was P/F.

There were also some subjective things that made me a Blue Devil, but I'll let you form your own opinions after visiting the schools and talking with current students.

 

[j dizzle]

I call it the single greatest piece of scientific literature in existence.


(Judging from posting times, I see that you & jdizzle don't care about your elderly patients getting heart failure)

Blast! Caught in my prejudice against the elderly!

Tell me you're not serious about Human Structure! I think it would be a great book for those who already have a good background in anatomy, but to try to learn anatomy for the first time from that book is terrible!

 

[j dizzle]

Is that the strength of the Duke curriculum though, that class materials are constantly modified by professors to reflect the most current and practical information that an outdated textbook cannot offer?

Current, yes. Practical, not so much. By the way, I'm not saying that I regret coming to Duke, I'm just pointing out something about the curriculum (at least in Molecules & Cells and Normal Body) that may be undesirable to some.

 

[Dr Durden]

Blast! Caught in my prejudice against the elderly!

Tell me you're not serious about Human Structure! I think it would be a great book for those who already have a good background in anatomy, but to try to learn anatomy for the first time from that book is terrible!

Oh I'm definitely not serious about that. What I really call Human Structure is kindling.

 

[j dizzle]

Oh I'm definitely not serious about that. What I really call Human Structure is kindling.

Forgive me for not picking up the sarcasm, but I have spoken with those who actually... dare I say it... like Human structure!😱

 

[pagemmapants]

Ah, the venerable branchiostoma. Since it's manifestation all evolution beyond has been in vain, for can one imagine a more perfect being? I hardly think so.

 

[pagemmapants]

Shelf is OVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

Look out world, I'm on PEDS next and back in the realm of the living!

 

[diosa428]

Shelf is OVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

Look out world, I'm on PEDS next and back in the realm of the living!

YAY DONE WITH MEDICINE. Too bad I'm on surgery next, and therefore still not in the realm of the living.

 

[FemalesCANTDriv]

dude... ackland is a life saver... i wish i had known about this at the beginning of normal body... only a week left... at this time next week we'll be at g-loft trying to forget what we did at g-loft

 

[j dizzle]

What's ackland?

 

[MrBurns10]

How were your shelfs (shelves?), guys? I have a feeling I'll miss family med as soon as medicine starts post-break.

 

[Dr Durden]

Ackland's a set of dissection DVDs which keep you from reeking of formalin and having to saw a man's face in half with your bare hands.

 

[diosa428]

How were your shelfs (shelves?), guys? I have a feeling I'll miss family med as soon as medicine starts post-break.

Someone told me not to bother studying for it, and they were right. There was not one thing I learned from MKSAP that helped me on that test. There were very few questions I knew, some that I had no clue, and the majority I just took an educated guess. But yeah, there's nothing that's going to help you, so don't even bother stressing about it.

 

[MrBurns10]

Someone told me not to bother studying for it, and they were right. There was not one thing I learned from MKSAP that helped me on that test. There were very few questions I knew, some that I had no clue, and the majority I just took an educated guess. But yeah, there's nothing that's going to help you, so don't even bother stressing about it.

That's exactly how I felt after the surgery shelf. Congrats on finishing!

 

[Chaz Michaels]

Hi: Can any duke students comment on the post-inteview process? Do we get a composite score?

 

[pagemmapants]

:😛agemmapants opens her surgery shelf booklet, expecting a veritable onslaught of biliary-tract-related questions. . . she begins reading. . . and is momentarily confused...

"right testicle...?" "inflamed prostate....?" ..... "tuberculin epididymitis?!"

... and she proceeds, with a sigh, to complete the most varied, unpredictable, and almost entirely un-surgically-related exam ever made:::

No seriously.

 

[diosa428]

Hi: Can any duke students comment on the post-inteview process? Do we get a composite score?

You basically won't hear from Duke until March, when they will send you a decision letter. Your application will be scored, but you'll have no idea what that score is.

 

[OMFB]

It came down to WashU and Duke for me. Aside from financial aid, some objective things that tipped the scales in favor of Duke was:

Only one year of basic science classes with no curve to grades.
An entire (3rd) year to pursue my own interests.
Videorecorded as opposed to audiorecorded lectures.
It got me out of the Midwest.
It has some winning D1 athletic teams.
It's closely associated with a great undergrad campus.
Cheaper cost of living.

What I liked about WashU:

They seemed to throw more money at their students (if you've seen their student center, you know what I mean)
Their entire first year was P/F.

There were also some subjective things that made me a Blue Devil, but I'll let you form your own opinions after visiting the schools and talking with current students.

thanks!

also, do you guys ever go to the basketball games? our team is significantly more entertaining this year than last year. last year was like dragging nails down a chalkboard...

 

[Tropicana100]

Application Process Complete

Thank you for your interest in attending the School of Medicine. We deeply appreciate the work you've put into your application but we are sorry to inform you that the Committee on Admissions has not selected you for an interview.


What a sad day. 🙁 Oh well, maybe it was never meant to be. Good luck to all you Dukaholics out there.

 

[pluripotent]

Application Process Complete

Thank you for your interest in attending the School of Medicine. We deeply appreciate the work you've put into your application but we are sorry to inform you that the Committee on Admissions has not selected you for an interview.

I had this message a month ago. My Duke hopes were shattered....... until 1 hour ago when I got an interview invite!! 😱

I am on airs. I am speechless. Above all, I am wondering who intervened on my behalf ( 🙄 looks towards God) to request my application to be reconsidered. It certainly was a pleasant surprise, especially after what I thought would be my last interview for the year on Thursday.

 

[Tropicana100]

I had this message a month ago. My Duke hopes were shattered....... until 1 hour ago when I got an interview invite!! 😱

I am on airs. I am speechless. Above all, I am wondering who intervened on my behalf ( 🙄 looks towards God) to request my application to be reconsidered. It certainly was a pleasant surprise, especially after what I thought would be my last interview for the year on Thursday.

haha wow. congrats!!!

 

[FemalesCANTDriv]

sorry to hear that tropicana. keep you head up.

burns, pagemma, and diosa... ure freakin me out about the shelves 🙁