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Originally posted by kokonut
I think they're all being sent out on the 4th (Thursday). At least, that's what was told to me. That means we've got until Friday or Saturday until the first people hear.

goodluck everyone!!!
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Oh, how I wish that I could go to sleep tonight and wake up on March 8th, when the decision letters are presumably out. Am I the only one feeling this?
 
The website says that the letters are to be sent today. So which is it?
 
I don't plan on getting any work done this week. My mind is too preoccupied.

Unfortunately, im going to be screwed when finals roll around next week.
 
Originally posted by JulianCrane
The website says that the letters are to be sent today. So which is it?
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Well in years past, they haven't always stuck exactly by the guideline they posted. I'm assuming the admissions office knows when they're going to be sent out. I did hear different things from different people -- one person seemed to imply that the letters were going to all be sent out by Thursday (meaning some might be sent out earlier), and the other person said that all the letters would be sent out on Thursday. Either way, it works out best if you just don't expect your letter to be sent out prior to thursday, and are pleasantly surprised if it reaches you any earlier 🙂
 
I know what you mean, looseygoosey, I can't get any work done either and I have a huge exam on Fri, not to mention so much data analysis to do at lab.

I can't help feeling that the process has a huge random component to it. When I interviewed at HMS for MD and for MSTP everyone I met was extraordinary. I wonder how they choose between all the qualified applicants.

Anyway, best of luck to all and please keep us informed as the decisions come around.
 
Everyone reading this probably interviewed at Harvard. I know I did. But I was just curious...where have you guys gotten into already? Probably some crazy shiit I'm guessing. All I'm sitting on is an NYU acceptance, a Columbia waitlist, and waiting to hear back from Cornell.
 
My HST interview didn't go so hot - so if I get an acceptance, we'll definitely know there's a lot of randomness to this!
Seriously though, I never felt so inadequate in my life...and I don't think I interview too terribly normally.
 
I hear you...my second NP interviewer fielded a call from his wife during our talk, and he didn't seem to have many questions or care that much. My first one had been really cool, though.

Thanks to all you who have been hounding them for letter info and sharing it.
 
Originally posted by oasis786
My HST interview didn't go so hot - so if I get an acceptance, we'll definitely know there's a lot of randomness to this!
Seriously though, I never felt so inadequate in my life...and I don't think I interview too terribly normally.
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Amen to that, oasis786! If I get into NP, we'll know the "decision process" involves the old dart-tossing technique 😛 Still, I credit my NP interview experience for helping me to land other great acceptances. Good luck everyone!

Oh, I had a question for everyone out there who may be lucky enough to make the decision: Financial considerations aside, what schools (if any) would you go to over Harvard? I'm from the northeast, so Boston is less than exciting.
 
Hi viking,

I wasn't terribly impressed by NP (i.e. I don't think PBL is for me) so I would go to Hopkins over it. However, HST is currently my top choice.

Good luck to all!
 
Ok, so here's the latest word from the admissions office:

Q: When will letters go out?
A: All letters will be sent out by the 5th
Q: Have some letters already been sent out?
A: Not that I know of.

If anyone else hears anything, please post.
 
Thanks for the info, Jugador. Good luck, everyone!
 
Are most people waiting until they hear back to fill out the online CSS profile thing for financial aid? Or is this something you do in advance just in case? Thanks!
 
Originally posted by summervacation
Hi viking,

I wasn't terribly impressed by NP (i.e. I don't think PBL is for me) so I would go to Hopkins over it. However, HST is currently my top choice.

Good luck to all!
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I agree with you, summervacation. I'm uncertain about PBL, and I don't know if I want to risk it. Besides, Hopkins is more my speed and closer to opportunities for my girlfriend in DC (but I'm waitlisted there for now). The more difficult choice would be between Stanford and Hopkins... Best of luck getting into HST this week! 😎
 
Originally posted by JulianCrane
The website says that the letters are to be sent today [march 1]. So which is it?
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Trying (not very successfully) to distract myself, I was surfing Harvard's website.

They've updated the posted date for Admissions decisions from March 1 --> March 5.

Interesting. At least they keep it up-to-date. 🙂
 
anyone wanna call the admissions office and try to get a lock down on the exact date (this thurs or this fri)?
 
seems like the fifth is pretty much the consensus.
 
hi everyone
wanted to let you all know, that pre-interview rejections are now being received. i got mine today in the mail ( i live in cambridge, ma). i threw away the envelope so don't know the postmark date, but i assume it was mailed yesterday.

GOOD LUCK!! HMS is a great place to study medicine............
loomis
 
loomis,

Thanks so much for the update! Any news helps. And I wish you all the best with the rest of the applications. Keep us posted.
 
hey, no worries drne1. make like ohm, man.

if it makes you feel any better, i just sent out a bunch of update emails with the wrong date on the letter attached. as in, wrong year. hello, my name is stupid...
 
So, (and this is probably going a little too far) I checked last year's Official HMS post and here is what I've been able to conjure up:

1) The first post of a pre-interview rejection was on March 4 from Mass
2) A post-interview rejection reached someone on March 7
2) The post-interview decisions reached North/East on March 8

If the process is the same this year, and today is Wed, the earliest people will hear, unless you're in MA is probably Monday

Here is the link the the forum: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/sho...465&perpage=20&highlight=harvard&pagenumber=4

Good luck to everyone!
 
Niema - Thanks for the great research/analysis. You're awesome - good luck!

🙂
 
Originally posted by strangeattractor
seems like the fifth is pretty much the consensus.
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So if letters are mailed on the 5th...people should start hearing perhaps this weekend? Hopefully!
 
Someone needs to call again tomorrow. These schools have a tendency to change their story everyday. Remember the whole Columbia fiasco? For all we know some letters were sent out today and some more will be sent out tomorrow.
 
I don't think there's a conflict, Jugs.

Last year, the pre-interview rejections went out on Mar 3 and post-interview decisions went out on Mar 6. The year before that, pre-interview rejections went out Mar 25, and post-interview decisions went out on Mar 29.

There is a slim probability that they'll send out in batches today and tomorrow, but most likely, it'll be pre-interview on Mar 2 and post-interview on Mar 5, which would hold true with previous years' patterns.

If anyone were to call, I think the only real question would be whether they're going to send some out today and some out tomorrow, or all out tomorrow.

I think I agree with what Niema said ... probably Bostonites will hear news on Saturday, and everyone else next week.

i hate this waiting! :scared:
 
Let me sing a song to try and pass the time and take our minds off this:

We say hooray! Hooray! Hooray!
There's never an Eli can teach us to play!
Harvard! Harvard! Harvard!
See how the bleachers blue turn pale with fright;
Send a cheer across to bleach 'em nice and white!
Oh, look at the way we smash and rip 'em through
While the blue bulldog howls "Boo-la, boo-la, boo!"
Let out your voices now so loud and hale,
'Tis a fun'ral ode we sing to Eli Yale.
Oh, give us a yell 'Hi! Hi!' for Harvard,
For the Crimson today!
 
Originally posted by viking1224
I agree with you, summervacation. I'm uncertain about PBL, and I don't know if I want to risk it.
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I felt like the description of PBL I got at Harvard was somewhat vague. I understand the logistical difficulties, but it would have been helpful to sit in on a PBL session at HMS. Or maybe they could have shown us a sample PBL case.
 
Originally posted by bigbaubdi
I felt like the description of PBL I got at Harvard was somewhat vague. I understand the logistical difficulties, but it would have been helpful to sit in on a PBL session at HMS. Or maybe they could have shown us a sample PBL case.
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I was lucky and managed to sit in on a PBL session when I interviewed (between my interviews, I tagged along w/ a current student). Personally, I loved it - but I can see that it might not be ideal for everyone. There was a prof and 6 students (someone was at a doctor's appt - and it seemed important that she had a good excuse).

As explained to me, the session I observed was a bit atypical for their usual PBL tutorials b/c they'd been given a case with a full history (it was a 2 y.o. with cystic fibrosis) and were working their way through a set of various discussion questions about the case. (Usually, information about the case is revealed slowly over a series of days - for example, you might only get a patient's initial complaint on the first day, and not get any clinical info about the patient). The students were in the midst of the biochemistry block. Mostly, the students talked - but the professor wasn't completely silent and he helped them sort out which concepts were important to think about and which were more tangential. I've talked to other students who like PBL but warn that sometimes it is frustrating when the other people in your group come to class unprepared.

This waiting is killing me!
 
I didn't get an interview, and got my rejection letter today! Good luck to those waiting!

bonnie
 
Originally posted by FinallyOnMyWay
I was lucky and managed to sit in on a PBL session when I interviewed (between my interviews, I tagged along w/ a current student). Personally, I loved it - but I can see that it might not be ideal for everyone. There was a prof and 6 students (someone was at a doctor's appt - and it seemed important that she had a good excuse).

As explained to me, the session I observed was a bit atypical for their usual PBL tutorials b/c they'd been given a case with a full history (it was a 2 y.o. with cystic fibrosis) and were working their way through a set of various discussion questions about the case. (Usually, information about the case is revealed slowly over a series of days - for example, you might only get a patient's initial complaint on the first day, and not get any clinical info about the patient). The students were in the midst of the biochemistry block. Mostly, the students talked - but the professor wasn't completely silent and he helped them sort out which concepts were important to think about and which were more tangential. I've talked to other students who like PBL but warn that sometimes it is frustrating when the other people in your group come to class unprepared.

This waiting is killing me!
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Thanks for the post.

I too have become a fan of PBL, but I only became one after interviewing at Cornell.

Correct me if I am wrong about this - a traditional lecture-based curriculum might talk about biochemical theory and then use particular cases to illustrate it. On the other hand, a PBL curriculum might start out with some particular case and in the process of learning more about this particular case, you would learn more about the biochemistry of the underlying disease.
 
That's basically what my understanding is. PBL places the onus on you and your group members to formulate and fulfill learning objectives (ie, what's going on, what type of information do we need to understand it, where do we get it, and how does it answer our questions).

I've heard frustrations about the preparation (and attitude) of group members and the level of guidance provided by the proctor/facilitator. Also, one NP kid I met really wanted to switch into HST (which seems to be very difficult, but possible) because he wanted more formal structure and feedback.
 
Thanks for the post.

I too have become a fan of PBL, but I only became one after interviewing at Cornell.

Correct me if I am wrong about this - a traditional lecture-based curriculum might talk about biochemical theory and then use particular cases to illustrate it. On the other hand, a PBL curriculum might start out with some particular case and in the process of learning more about this particular case, you would learn more about the biochemistry of the underlying disease.
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at cornell we actually share many of the same pbl cases as new pathways uses. the only correction i'd add about the pbl curriculum is that you would still have a formal lecture about the biochemistry - it isn't up to you to learn and fill in the gaps through pbl. pbl allows you to think about the things you've learned in a clinical context - complete with lab values, diagnostic devices etc...

if you look at our schedules - we have 1.5 hours of pbl in the morning [mandatory], usually followed by 2 hours of lecture [not mandatory] - which is another way to learn the stuff. i think this is about the same for new pathways.

pbl alone is necessary but not sufficient to complete our type [NP, cornell, a number of other schools] of curriculum - but it can complement it. some subject matter is more conducive to the format than others.
 
the only correction i'd add about the pbl curriculum is that you would still have a formal lecture about the biochemistry
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Yup - I was going to add this to my comments in response to Bigbaubdi but Habari beat me to it. 🙂

Lots of people have talked about NP as if it's only the PBL tutorials. But Harvard (and I guess Cornell, Northwestern, etc.) also have lectures (everyday?) as well. It appeals to me because it seems that they give you lots of opportunities to learn the material in different ways.

It's hard to really get a sense of things during one visit - so I hope I'm not wrong - but I think i'll be really happy with this kind of curriculum... That is if - please oh please oh please - Harvard decides to let me in...

(Oh - MissBonnie - Thanks for the update! Congrats on Columbia and best luck of luck at your interview at Yale!!! :clap: )
 
All of this info is golden!

I guess the thing which is most appealing about PBL is the fact that you are starting out with real world examples of particular diseases. Learning is more enjoyable for me when I can make concrete connections between theoretical knowledge and empirical observations.

Habari, do you feel that you have a stronger background in a particular subject because you have to present it to other classmates?

I am curious about this particular aspect of PBL because whenever I have to present information to other people, I usually try to thoroughly prepare myself so that I can present my information in as clear a fashion as possible.

The wait is excruciating....I am hoping that this weekend goes by fast!
 
Today is the day the decisions are sent. Good luck everyone!🙂
 
Habari, do you feel that you have a stronger background in a particular subject because you have to present it to other classmates?

I am curious about this particular aspect of PBL because whenever I have to present information to other people, I usually try to thoroughly prepare myself so that I can present my information in as clear a fashion as possible.
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this really depends on how well you prepare your topic for yourself. some of my classmates spend a couple hours looking over the cases and then integrating their own topic and presenting it in context [presentations should be short - 5 min].
i'll have to admit that i'm not quite as dilligent - and just prepare what i have to present. of the things i have presented, i certainly remember all of the information - from throughout the year. i rarely, however, remember what other people present - which is why a formal source of information is important to me.

i come away having learned one clinical picture for a particular condition and how one would think about diagnosing, understanding and treating it. i've mentioned in another thread that this is certainly not the most efficient way to transfer information - but it keeps things varied and interesting to some extent.

goodluck w/harvard or wherever else you want to go.
 
Does anyone know if HST is emailing out acceptances this year?
 
i somehow doubt it, although i guess we'll know by the end of the day. i think that hst is trying to coordinate their efforts with new pathway this year, so they act jointly more. does anyone else get that impression? They certainly didn't notify applicants on the same day as NP for the last few years ... but this year it appears they're going to. Unless HST mailed out final decisions yesterday in which case I need to check my mailbox ASAP 😀
 
Originally posted by missbonnie
I didn't get an interview, and got my rejection letter today! Good luck to those waiting!

bonnie
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Me too Bonnie! Big fat rejection - but I knew that when I didn't hear from them in January. No worries though. I had my mom read the letter over the phone and then give it to her kindergarten class to use as construction paper. :laugh:

Much luck to all those who interviewed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. 😀
 
Originally posted by Heal&Teach
Me too Bonnie! Big fat rejection - but I knew that when I didn't hear from them in January. No worries though. I had my mom read the letter over the phone and then give it to her kindergarten class to use as construction paper. :laugh:

Much luck to all those who interviewed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. 😀
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A rejection's much easier to take when you know that for sure a month or two ahead of time 😉 Rejection here w/o interview too.
 
...bumping... (don't mean to give anyone heartattacks!)

Wanted to wish everyone a good weekend - although it is going to be excruciatingly LONG! 😛 (except for the lucky ones in Boston).

and Good luck!!!!

(Sorry about your rejections CalBeE and H&T!)
 
ack! (i.e. bump)

good luck everyone!
 
Originally posted by CalBeE
A rejection's much easier to take when you know that for sure a month or two ahead of time 😉 Rejection here w/o interview too.
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Word. Got mine yesterday, too. I applied to Harvard on a whim at the last minute. (Bad strategy, BTW. A waste of $$$) It's by far the least painful of my rejection letters.

That said, good luck to everyone who's waiting!
 
Originally posted by G0S2
Got mine this morning. I am going to frame it!!!
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Was yours a post-interview rejection?
 
Hmmm. I'm in Boston and I just got my mail today and there was no news from Harvard. I'm a little confused ... maybe the mail is still in the Harvard system or something. Did any other Bostonites get news today?
 
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