I Hate VSAS/Applying for Aways

[xanthomondo]

I love applying for an away at sites (and spending the stupid $15 per school) and then calling them a month down the road and asking when I would receive a decision to hear "Oh, there was never an opening for those blocks - our own students filled them out earlier this year with their lottery"

I just want to ask why the hell would they offer them on VSAS and make us waste our money applying? If you call the schools ahead of time you just hear "blah blah blah you need to apply though VSAS."



More and more each day I start to think that every hoop we have to jump through in this stupid process was simply put in place so that we could be milked for more and more money.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Guillemot]

What if you had to pay to apply to work at a job? People would call that a scam I believe.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Yeah...I found out the hard way that aways during the second block are basically impossible to get. It makes sense, but like you said, they shouldn't offer spots that aren't actually there. Oh well, at least I get to go where I want for the 4th block.

On another note, why the hell is there not a standardized immunization form for all these places? If they can't all agree, just go by the most stringent requirements, and be done with it. All this filling out and uploading of paperwork to communicate the same information to each school individually is a colossal PITA. At this point, I'm pretty used to hemorrhaging cash because schools tell me to, but I'm not at all a fan of having to keep track of all the fine print BS. Get your **** together, AAMC.

 

[drizzt3117]

Yeah...I found out the hard way that aways during the second block are basically impossible to get. It makes sense, but like you said, they shouldn't offer spots that aren't actually there. Oh well, at least I get to go where I want for the 4th block.

On another note, why the hell is there not a standardized immunization form for all these places? If they can't all agree, just go by the most stringent requirements, and be done with it. All this filling out and uploading of paperwork to communicate the same information to each school individually is a colossal PITA. At this point, I'm pretty used to hemorrhaging cash because schools tell me to, but I'm not at all a fan of having to keep track of all the fine print BS. Get your **** together, AAMC.

weird, I got all the aways I applied to more than a month ago. I thought the process was pretty seamless, personally.

 

[MilkmanAl]

I applied more than a month ago, as well. Maybe it's an anesthesia thing.

 

[xanthomondo]

Yeah...I found out the hard way that aways during the second block are basically impossible to get. It makes sense, but like you said, they shouldn't offer spots that aren't actually there. Oh well, at least I get to go where I want for the 4th block.

On another note, why the hell is there not a standardized immunization form for all these places? If they can't all agree, just go by the most stringent requirements, and be done with it. All this filling out and uploading of paperwork to communicate the same information to each school individually is a colossal PITA. At this point, I'm pretty used to hemorrhaging cash because schools tell me to, but I'm not at all a fan of having to keep track of all the fine print BS. Get your **** together, AAMC.

OMG yes I agree. There are only so many ****ing ways you can organize how you want your immunization records organized.

weird, I got all the aways I applied to more than a month ago. I thought the process was pretty seamless, personally.

Must depend on specialty. I know medicine aways are easier to get, but for ophtho there's only 2 students per block so they get filled quickly (often by students at the school rather than outsiders).

I applied more than a month ago, as well. Maybe it's an anesthesia thing.

Is that what you're doing? Gassing?

 

[MilkmanAl]

Yar!

 

[2012mdc]

I love applying for an away at sites (and spending the stupid $15 per school) and then calling them a month down the road and asking when I would receive a decision to hear "Oh, there was never an opening for those blocks - our own students filled them out earlier this year with their lottery"

I just want to ask why the hell would they offer them on VSAS and make us waste our money applying? If you call the schools ahead of time you just hear "blah blah blah you need to apply though VSAS."



More and more each day I start to think that every hoop we have to jump through in this stupid process was simply put in place so that we could be milked for more and more money.

I only applied to one away through VSAS but the process was very simple. I searched on VSAS and found the one I wanted, called up the coordinator to find out exactly what I needed to and when I needed to do it by.

I guess some schools do a better job of letting you know which months are realistic for visitors better than others do

 

[username456789]

Some specialties have a more streamlined/easier process than others. As someone else pointed out, getting a spot in a larger elective may be a lot easier than getting one in a traditionally "smaller" elective like ophtho, derm, etc where they only offer a spot or two each month (and obviously give first priority to their own students).

Also, applying for a spot in August particularly is difficult, since a lot of students opt to do a home elective/sub-I in their field of choice first in July, then do an away rotation in that field in August. I applied to quite a few (~12 or 13) places back in mid/late-April for an August rotation in a very small competitive field, and I only just got an acceptance two days ago (after 4 "seat's taken" responses, a la Forrest Gump). There are still a bunch of other places that haven't even offered a decision one way or another, but I'm pretty excited about the one acceptance I got so far so I'll probably roll with it. But you can bet I've spent nearly 2 months sweating it out, wondering if I was gonna have anywhere to go when August rolled around (and thus was sort of in a holding pattern as far as scheduling the rest of my first half of 4th year).

The immunization form deal is the worst. And my school takes "72 hours" to "process" any paperwork you drop off at the student health department. Which means I can fill out all my immunization forms using my own records, drop the form off, and it takes 3 days for a doc to pick it up and sign the bottom of it.

 

[xanthomondo]

Some specialties have a more streamlined/easier process than others. As someone else pointed out, getting a spot in a larger elective may be a lot easier than getting one in a traditionally "smaller" elective like ophtho, derm, etc where they only offer a spot or two each month (and obviously give first priority to their own students).

Also, applying for a spot in August particularly is difficult, since a lot of students opt to do a home elective/sub-I in their field of choice first in July, then do an away rotation in that field in August. I applied to quite a few (~12 or 13) places back in mid/late-April for an August rotation in a very small competitive field, and I only just got an acceptance two days ago (after 4 "seat's taken" responses, a la Forrest Gump). There are still a bunch of other places that haven't even offered a decision one way or another, but I'm pretty excited about the one acceptance I got so far so I'll probably roll with it. But you can bet I've spent nearly 2 months sweating it out, wondering if I was gonna have anywhere to go when August rolled around (and thus was sort of in a holding pattern as far as scheduling the rest of my first half of 4th year).

The immunization form deal is the worst. And my school takes "72 hours" to "process" any paperwork you drop off at the student health department. Which means I can fill out all my immunization forms using my own records, drop the form off, and it takes 3 days for a doc to pick it up and sign the bottom of it.

Yeah, thats why I pre-fill everything out and take it to my doctor. Usually a secretary will stamp it on the spot.

2012mds you're lucky they agreed to speak with you on the phone. I called a school up and was told directly "the lady in charge of visiting students has a policy of not accepting phone calls from medical students and will not return phone messages, try emailing." I emailed her and she responded with a 5 word email that pretty much said "oh well." Completely not useful

Someone whose job it is to coordinate things with medical students but refuses to actually talk to medical students? Who allows them to make that decision?

 

[2012mdc]

Yeah, thats why I pre-fill everything out and take it to my doctor. Usually a secretary will stamp it on the spot.

2012mds you're lucky they agreed to speak with you on the phone. I called a school up and was told directly "the lady in charge of visiting students has a policy of not accepting phone calls from medical students and will not return phone messages, try emailing." I emailed her and she responded with a 5 word email that pretty much said "oh well." Completely not useful

Someone whose job it is to coordinate things with medical students but refuses to actually talk to medical students? Who allows them to make that decision?

yeah I had a complete opposite experience.

Their website gave explicit instructions to contact the coordinator prior to applying on VSAS. It definitely saved me from applying for a month I had no chance to get. I also found out the earliest I could apply to make sure I got it (only 1 spot)

 

[drizzt3117]

I applied more than a month ago, as well. Maybe it's an anesthesia thing.

Oh I meant I had my spots secured more than a month ago, I applied in feb-march.

 

[username456789]

I would just like to say that, although I dislike having to wait forever, I was able to obtain an away rotation position in my (small) field for August and for October (in fact, I had 3 offers for August and 2 for October, and technically there are still like 7 more pending but I'll probably just withdraw).

 

[Bartelby]

The worst I saw was Hopkins--- they don't work with VSAS and they require you to do an entire Hopkins-specific HIPAA training module and print out the certificate just to apply for a rotation. They will not tell you if the rotation you are interested in has openings and they will not let you just do the HIPAA training as soon as you are selected (I called and asked). Absolute disrespect of the applicant's time, especially given that we have all done HIPAA training multiple times.

I decided not to bother with aways there for this very reason. Granted they have no shortage of great applicants willing to take whatever s*** they decide to deal out, but I thought that policy was downright abusive.

 

[2012mdc]

The worst I saw was Hopkins--- they don't work with VSAS and they require you to do an entire Hopkins-specific HIPAA training module and print out the certificate just to apply for a rotation. They will not tell you if the rotation you are interested in has openings and they will not let you just do the HIPAA training as soon as you are selected (I called and asked). Absolute disrespect of the applicant's time, especially given that we have all done HIPAA training multiple times.

I decided not to bother with aways there for this very reason. Granted they have no shortage of great applicants willing to take whatever s*** they decide to deal out, but I thought that policy was downright abusive.

that's the most ridiculous thing I've heard with regards to aways. i guess hopkins earns it's rep

 

[MossPoh]

that's the most ridiculous thing I've heard with regards to aways. i guess hopkins earns it's rep

They could tell people they are required to have passport stamps from 30 different countries, 15 headshots in a portfolio, a CV starting from kindergarten and 3 weeks of mandatory lectures and they'd still have people applying.

 

[UAAWolf]

More and more each day I start to think that every hoop we have to jump through in this stupid process was simply put in place so that we could be milked for more and more money.

I have thought this for years. However I'm very paranoid and cynical so..

 

[astrocreep96]

What time frame did you guys (girls?) apply for spots? I'm doing Ortho aways during two different blocks, one of which is August. I applied as soon as the VSAS applications opened and received offers to each place I applied (one school I applied for in the August time slot even offered early, as well as another school for the later slot). I did have the applications complete including immuno forms, background checks, etc. but overall it was a very smooth process.

 

[2012mdc]

They could tell people they are required to have passport stamps from 30 different countries, 15 headshots in a portfolio, a CV starting from kindergarten and 3 weeks of mandatory lectures and they'd still have people applying.

of course but that doesn't make it right

 

[username456789]

What time frame did you guys (girls?) apply for spots? I'm doing Ortho aways during two different blocks, one of which is August. I applied as soon as the VSAS applications opened and received offers to each place I applied (one school I applied for in the August time slot even offered early, as well as another school for the later slot). I did have the applications complete including immuno forms, background checks, etc. but overall it was a very smooth process.

I applied in mid-April and did not have all my immunization forms uploaded until late April/early May. But then again, I was doing a lot of last minute life changing and applying in February or whenever VSAS opened wasn't really an option.

 

[xanthomondo]

Most of my places didn't accept apps until May so that's when I submitted.

I called a school and they even admitted that they dont review apps in the order they're received - the way they do things doesn't allow them to see who submits first. It's pure luck there.

 

[MossPoh]

of course but that doesn't make it right

Nope. Now dance for me!

 

[xanthomondo]

Nope. Now dance for me!

 

[CptCrunch]

You're gonna love ERAS!