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did you get a confirmation email or anything before the interview, giving you details on where to go, etc on the day of? i'm going next week and i was wondering about this. thanks!
for those who already interviewed at ICO:
- Thread starter melucla
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Yes, you do get a confirmation email from them telling you where to go and such. I got the confirmation email 3 days prior to my interview. They are really on top on their game so I was really impressed. If you have questions regarding transportation, the RC, hotel, places to visit, etc let me know. Btw, I recommend Midway Int'l Airport over O'Hare since MDW is closer to ICO than O'Hare. Good luck!
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Thank you!
I was actually wondering what the best way to get to the airport is. I have a ride from, but not back to the airport from ICO. I was thinking of reserving a shuttle, I dont mind paying $20 or so. Any particular recommendations? (I am flying from MDW). Also, I have a few hours to burn after my interview, where could I do some nearby sightseeing? (Particularly local food places, thats considered uniquely Chicago...I'm a foodie 😉 ) Thanks for the info!
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When is your interview? I'm going to be there next week, too. I'm checking the city out the day before, I have a full day there first. I plan on taking public transportation from the airport since it's only $5 and I need to save money anywhere I can!
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where are you guys planning to stay?
I tried to see an opening at the apphost... but they told me they didn't have any openings for the night before my interview in november.
I was looking at hotels.com, expedia, and other hotel sites and not very popular names or at least decent ones seem to be near (preferably walking distance) to ICO. Can you guys let me know when you go to the interview how and where you ended up staying?? and how that worked out? Thanks guys!!!
I tried to see an opening at the apphost... but they told me they didn't have any openings for the night before my interview in november.
I was looking at hotels.com, expedia, and other hotel sites and not very popular names or at least decent ones seem to be near (preferably walking distance) to ICO. Can you guys let me know when you go to the interview how and where you ended up staying?? and how that worked out? Thanks guys!!!
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have you looked at the Best Western there? i believe it was only like 2 mi from ICO. I'm staying at the RC but I was looking into hotels before, and that was the best one i found.
I can offer some traveling experience since I was just there last week. I stayed at the RC by the way.
From MDW I took the Omega shuttle for $18 to campus. Since I stayed at the RC I had to check in at the security office. I then met with my ambassador at the security office. She took me to the RC, we had dinner, watched America's Next Top Model 🙂p), she gave me a tour, then we parted ways. My interview was the next day at promptly 9:15am. Interview ended at around 2pm. I took the train to MDW. If you don't want to walk 5-6 blocks to the train station you can buy round trip tix from Omega for $30 and they will pick you up from campus. If you decide to take the train back I must warn you that you will have to walk 5-6 blocks across a really bad neighborhood before you get to the train station. Lets say that neighborhood is worse than Detroit's neighborhood. So girls, please try to cover yourself as much as you can. It was a very hot humid day and I had on a sweater! The campus itself is very safe. They have cameras everywhere and retired police officers monitor cameras 24/7. I was very impressed with the school and my interview experience was very pleasant.
In terms of where to go around ICO, I don't know if there's anything around there that's in walkable distance. One lady told me the nearest food place they have is Starbucks.
I stayed in Chicago for 4 days. The first night I stayed at the RC. The remaining nights I stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott near MDW. From MDW, you can catch a free midway hotel shuttle that will take you to all midway hotels including Sleep Inn, Hilton Inn and Suites, Hampton Inn, Courtyard, Marriott. It's the red trolley looking shuttle that comes every 20 minutes. Anytime that I want to go somewhere I would take the shuttle from my hotel to the airport then from the airport take the train to downtown. It's really convenient and cheap. The train was very easy to use since it just loops around. If you're in Chicago, you just have to visit downtown. It's so beautiful and there are tons of places to eat. I suggest stopping by Magnificent Mile, Millenium Park, Hancock Tower, Sears Tower (tallest tower in the U.S), Navy Pier (gorgeous), Chicago's Institute of Art. I stopped by Chinatown b/c I was craving dimsum. Lets say downtown Chicago is San Francisco times 2! It's very clean and upscale.
I initially wanted to stay at a hotel near Downtown for the sake of convenience but it was way too expensive. Staying at midway hotels work out best since it was cheap and they provided free shuttle service to and from MDW. I got a good deal at Courtyard for $90/night. Service was great. They have a business center so you can go there to use the internet and print your boarding pass. TGIF is right next door and some Irish pub and Starbucks is within a minute walk.
Anyways, I hope I didn't confuse you all with my ramblings. Let me know if you have any questions.
From MDW I took the Omega shuttle for $18 to campus. Since I stayed at the RC I had to check in at the security office. I then met with my ambassador at the security office. She took me to the RC, we had dinner, watched America's Next Top Model 🙂p), she gave me a tour, then we parted ways. My interview was the next day at promptly 9:15am. Interview ended at around 2pm. I took the train to MDW. If you don't want to walk 5-6 blocks to the train station you can buy round trip tix from Omega for $30 and they will pick you up from campus. If you decide to take the train back I must warn you that you will have to walk 5-6 blocks across a really bad neighborhood before you get to the train station. Lets say that neighborhood is worse than Detroit's neighborhood. So girls, please try to cover yourself as much as you can. It was a very hot humid day and I had on a sweater! The campus itself is very safe. They have cameras everywhere and retired police officers monitor cameras 24/7. I was very impressed with the school and my interview experience was very pleasant.
In terms of where to go around ICO, I don't know if there's anything around there that's in walkable distance. One lady told me the nearest food place they have is Starbucks.
I stayed in Chicago for 4 days. The first night I stayed at the RC. The remaining nights I stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott near MDW. From MDW, you can catch a free midway hotel shuttle that will take you to all midway hotels including Sleep Inn, Hilton Inn and Suites, Hampton Inn, Courtyard, Marriott. It's the red trolley looking shuttle that comes every 20 minutes. Anytime that I want to go somewhere I would take the shuttle from my hotel to the airport then from the airport take the train to downtown. It's really convenient and cheap. The train was very easy to use since it just loops around. If you're in Chicago, you just have to visit downtown. It's so beautiful and there are tons of places to eat. I suggest stopping by Magnificent Mile, Millenium Park, Hancock Tower, Sears Tower (tallest tower in the U.S), Navy Pier (gorgeous), Chicago's Institute of Art. I stopped by Chinatown b/c I was craving dimsum. Lets say downtown Chicago is San Francisco times 2! It's very clean and upscale.
I initially wanted to stay at a hotel near Downtown for the sake of convenience but it was way too expensive. Staying at midway hotels work out best since it was cheap and they provided free shuttle service to and from MDW. I got a good deal at Courtyard for $90/night. Service was great. They have a business center so you can go there to use the internet and print your boarding pass. TGIF is right next door and some Irish pub and Starbucks is within a minute walk.
Anyways, I hope I didn't confuse you all with my ramblings. Let me know if you have any questions.
It's a one-on-one interview. I had a resident as my interviewer. It was not like an interview..more like a conversation. I did ask questions here and there as she was telling me her story. I was lucky b/c she was so nice but I heard some interviewers aren't so nice as they try to make you look bad by pointing out your weaknesses and ask your questions relating to laws/politics 😱.
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THANKS SOOOO MUCH FOR SHARING THAT! I was looking at the hotels downtown as well.. but they start their rates from 150s. YIKES! I was also looking at the hyatt convention center but that is also 133. I think I might take your advice now and do the hotel trolley by midway then the downtown train. I think I may have to lug my bags to the interview though. 🙁 I'm glad the interview worked out so well for you! thanks again!
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Hey! I interviewed there almost 3 weeks ago and got my acceptance phone call yesterday, yay! I flew into Midway and took the Omega shuttle ($18 one way, straight to the school) from there and my student ambassador met me on the curb. He took me over to security and showed me around the RC (I stayed there that night). The interview wasn't really stressful at all. Beware though, there is a very abrasive doorman named Anthony that gets his kicks out of trying to scare applicants before their interview. He rapid-fired questions at the four of us girls and didn't even listen for an answer, yes, tried to make us look a little stupid, but just remember that that guy has nothing to do with you getting into the school or not. They took the four of us back to a room and gave us a rundown of how the day would go. One by one we went back with an admissions lady to "review our file", which pretty much consists of her verifying that you have everything in and gives you the opportunity to explain anything you feel you might need to. They ask how YOU think you did throughout undergrad, on the OAT, etc. Then we were all brought back together again to write an essay (we had 10-15 minutes to write it, I believe). Following the writing sample, we were each picked up by a different faculty member for the one-on-one interviews. I believe my interviewer had read my impromtu essay. The interview lasted the full 45 minutes, but it was very easy conversation. She didn't ask me any hard or tricky questions, and it was open file. Really, it was just the two of us getting to know each other. She was very helpful in getting me acquainted with the program there (got me brochures for the extra curriculars I was interested in, took her test schedule down to show me how all the tests were laid out, etc.). She was really friendly and smiled at everything I said - made me feel really comfortable. Following the one-on-ones, we were taken on a tour of the school with two student ambassadors. They were a little lack-luster and the tour was pretty confusing, but it gives you a good idea of the facilities. Finally, we had lunch with 3 students in a private room (the lunch was provided, we ordered what kind of sandwiches and chips we wanted earlier in the day) and wrapped up the day with the dean of admissions. After the interview, I went back over to the RC and had like 2 hours of downtime. I'd already checked out of my room, but they're cool with letting you hang out in the lobby area (there are pool and ping pong tables there). Fortunately, I'd brought some magazines that I wanted to flip through, so I just sat in a corner of the RC and chilled until my scheduled Omega shuttle came for me. It was actually kind of fun sitting there because there was a great radio station playing and I sat facing the road where all of the students were coming out of the school after classes. They didn't really see me sitting in there, but I got to watch all of them interact and head off to wherever when classes were out. If you were wondering about questions to ask, don't worry too much about it because you'll have many that you want to ask throughout the day just because you're there and they'll come up as you learn more. Beware, they do ask you at EVERY step of the way if you have any questions, so it's good to spread them out and not shoot all of your questions to one person. Ask whatever you want to know to make sure the school is right for you - how much clinical experience you'll get before graduating, how the externships work, what a "day in the life" of a student is like, how much you can expect to study and how much free time you'll have, what the test style is, how much you'll get to interact with your classmates and upperclassmen, how safe the area really is, etc. etc. etc. You'll have tons of questions come to you when you actually start picturing yourself going to school there. It's like, "wait a second, I've got make sure this place fits my needs as a student, too." Good luck, and just be yourself. If they like you, then that's awesome, but if they don't, why would you want to be there anyway? Their loss! Feel free to shoot anymore questions our way. 🙂
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So I'm interviewing in November.. but going to hear from them in January since OAT will be taken then.
Can you guys 'guesstimate' what percent the seats would be taken and accepted by end of January?
I'm starting to think I should take my OAT earlier.. but then I know I won't be as focused and ready for it. I need to get at least a 350 I'm sure.
Can you guys 'guesstimate' what percent the seats would be taken and accepted by end of January?
I'm starting to think I should take my OAT earlier.. but then I know I won't be as focused and ready for it. I need to get at least a 350 I'm sure.
