for all you Pitt applicants

[indiamacbean]

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Hey guys,
I just wanted to start a little thread for those applying to Pitt who have questions about the school, city, students, why people pick Pitt over other schools, etc. I know that a couple of current first years read this board and would be happy to answer questions. I don't know how often I'll be checking SDN but I'd like to help out when I can. cheers and good luck.

 

[28129]

I'm applying to Pittsburgh.

One thing I will tell you, it ain't for the location. Pittsburgh dukes it out with Cleveland and Syracuse for "most miserable city".

 

[Wardens]

I actually like the location of pittsburgh and think it's a great city. Oakland is beautiful . . . but I haven't yet seen it in the winter.

Anyway, I am curious why you chose pittsburgh over other schools. I also heard from some students that they are feeling some increased pressure to do research. Does that bother you at all or any of your classmates interested more in clinical work? Thanks.

 

[auster]

Originally posted by ShantanuThakur
I'm applying to Pittsburgh.

One thing I will tell you, it ain't for the location. Pittsburgh dukes it out with Cleveland and Syracuse for "most miserable city".

It is a cliche to think that Pittsburgh is ugly with nothing much happening - in fact it is incredibly vibrant with a range of neighborhoods each with their own character. It is incredibly cheap to live here - which gives me more money to spend doing the things I enjoy... You can live in a huge place for very little money, and most neighborhoods are very safe.
I really think that most people who are unhappy with the city they are living in aren't trying to like the city. Most cities of Pittsburgh's size or larger have more things to do than most people take advantage of. If you are bored here, I would say that it is your fault - the combination of things to do in the city with hikes and such available within an hours drive more than fill my time.

 

[Doctor Octopus]

I agree with auster. My conception of Pittsburgh before I came here for an interview was of a polluted, burned out industrial shell of a city. Instead, I was quite moved by the beauty of the many hills overlooking the rivers, which are spanned by bridge after bridge. If you come here, take a good look around and you will fall in love.

 

[coll]

Hey guys,
for anyone applying to Pitt right now- I know I posted earlier under another thread, but I wondered if any of you could tell me what the secondary questions are. I am having trouble getting to the website--keeps freezing up my computer and would like to work on it this weekend. Thanks!

 

[Wardens]

It seems it can be a temperamental website. Here ya go, coll:

(Courtesy of Brownie2003)
1) Describe a personal experience which resulted in a substantial moral or ethical dilemma. What
was the outcome? We are reluctant to accept assertions that you have never encountered such a
situation. Please do not address cheating in an academic setting.
(Limit your response to 250 words or less.)

2) (Optional) The recruitment of a diverse student body is a major goal of the University of Pittsburgh's Medical School Admissions Committee. Please tell us whether facets of your life and education to date would contribute to the achievement of this goal. Such facets might include your early education, socioeconomic status, culture, race/ethnicity and work experience.
(Limit your response to 250 words or less.)

 

[indiamacbean]

I just wanted to echo things that other people have said about Pittsburgh and Pitt. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and spent two years after college living there. Before I came to Pitt, I definetly had very serious misconceptions about the city and whether I would enjoy living here. The city is not as dense and hectic as NYC,SF,LA, Boston but does have a lot going on. For me, close access to nature was important and there are great parks within the city and a short drive away. Cost of living is really really low here which means you can live better on less loan money which is important. As to the school itself, I have been impressed with Pitt from the day I came for my interview with their caring for each individual student and the resources they have available to realize each students professional aspirations. A couple of things which impressed me about the school are:
-Pitt is ranked 8th in the country in NIH funding and this is increasing every year.
-Student score on average one standard deviation above the mean on Step1
-Pitt has amazingly strong critical care, EM, Transplant, Psychiatry and Geriatrics programs.
-Most importantly though has been the intelligence and affability of the majority of my classmates. this is not a school that is gunner friendly even though there will always be a couple in every class.

Once people come for their interviews I would be happy to talk one on one with people. Good luck with the secondary and be sure to pay attention to the ethical dilemna question. cheers

 

[juddson]

. . .How optional is the optional question on the secondary?

Judd

 

[hamedn]

It actually didn't exist last year on the secondary as far as I can remember, but I may be wrong. In my experience I would only wrtie something there if it will be meaningful, don't waste the adcoms time with something written only to take up space. As far as the city, I lived in the Boston area my entire life and I haven't missed it so far. Pittsburgh has just about everything you could want from a city, just not in the numbers that other cities have. For examle, instead of 100 bars there may only be 50 here. The city is also very youth friendly with discounts abound and cheap living. The same goes for me as far as answering questions and stuff.

 

[Doctor Octopus]

At Pitt you can ride the buses anywhere in the whole county for free--just flash your university ID. This is a huge bonus.

 

[soonerpillow]

I think Pitt sounds like a great school and I'm excited about interviewing there, but the tuition for out of staters is >$35,000. That's a big turnoff for me.

 

[Gleevec]

Originally posted by soonerpillow
I think Pitt sounds like a great school and I'm excited about interviewing there, but the tuition for out of staters is >$35,000. That's a big turnoff for me.

Most school's out-of-state tuition approaches 30k a year anyway. Some of the cheaper ones are 22-25k. The non-rolling admissions is problematic for me,

 

[nickdv]

Don't sweat the tuition costs. Yes, it is expensive. And yes, you will be paying it back for quite a while. Honestly though, you're probably going to owe more money than you've ever imagined regardless of where you go. But spend one week here, and you'll realize that you're spending that money well. EVERYONE here is helpful and friendly. The faculty really do care about helping and educating us. Not only will you appreciate these 4 years a great deal, but you'll also come out of it with a great deal of knowledge.

 

[uclachris]

I second everything that has been said by my classmates. I cannot say a single bad thing about Pitt (Ok there is one bad thing and that's the buses arent on schedule very often; but as a student it is free to ride the buses, so I'm not really complaining).

I'm so happy here at Pittsburgh-- incredible classmates with awesome and diverse backgrounds, safe place to live, very student friendly city, great places to do outdoors stuff, fun places to hang out, new facilities being constructed at UPMC (a new Children's Hospital to be completed 07-ish (I think), a new biomedical research building to be completed 05).

Best of luck to all those applying. And give Pitt a shot, there's a very high chance that you'll like it.

C

 

[Street Philosopher]

I liked Pitt and the city. I didn't think the city was too bad. I've seen Baltimore and Detroit and let me tell ya, it doesn't get much worse than those two.

 

[28129]

"I liked Pitt and the city. I didn't think the city was too bad. I've seen Baltimore and Detroit and let me tell ya, it doesn't get much worse than those two."

The city of Detroit, Mich. has nothing, except for the GM WHQ and perhaps Wayne State. Pretty much everything of interest, including the other two auto majors, the remaining academic institutions, young people hangouts, retail shopping, etc., are in the suburbs. Detroit's suburbs are pretty decent. The one's in Oakland County are some of the nicest in the country.

The whole Pittsburgh area, suburbs and city, just strike me as depressing. I say the same about Cleveland.

 

[sunflower79]

hehe. It's weird and cool to see all the peeps in class whom I now know in person post on SDN! 😀

anyway. I agree. I loooove the school. 😍 I know most schools start w/ gross anatomy but I love that we meet live patients before dead ones and actually get to know something about their background and cultural history. I feel that Pitt goes to great lengths to ensure that we graduate as sensitive, caring doctors. And the staff and faculty take such care of ya! Which anatomy professor gives their home and cell phone numbers?

And I love the curriculum in which we don't take more than one hard science at a time.... OK, so anatomy is 6 weeks and some classes in the spring (pharm, path etc) are 2 weeks. 😛 I'll let you know how that goes when we get there. But it sure beats some other schools where you have to take 5 science classes at once!

I hear Pitt is changing its curriculum in a big way for next year, but I dunno the details... any of you know what's happening?

about the city: I have to say I miss San Francisco (e.g. lack of smoke in bars--ppl here smoke like chimneys and drink a lot more beer than wine), but there certainly are things to do. Given that med school will not leave us a lot of time to be bored and go out on the town every night, I think Pittsburgh is a great city. It's small enough to be comforting rather than stress-inducing.

sunflower 🙂

 

[Doctor Octopus]

Originally posted by ShantanuThakur
The whole Pittsburgh area, suburbs and city, just strike me as depressing. I say the same about Cleveland.

You would really like St. George University. It is located on bluffs overlooking the sublime Carribean Sea...😉

Seriously, how much time have you spent in Pittsburgh or Cleveland? Both cities have bad areas, but Pittsburgh is especially cool the way the downtown comes to a point at the junction of the three rivers. Looking down from Mount Washinton is breathtaking, to say the least. Cleveland has an amazing park system that encircles the entire greater Cleveland area. There is also a great view of downtown from the Lakeview Cemetery. Both cities are full of culture, shopping, and entertainment and you don't have to look very hard to find them.

I could go to any large city in this country and get depressed looking at the poor neighborhoods surrounding the downtown. What makes Pittsburgh or Cleveland more depressing to you than any other big city?