LECOM - Bradenton Discussion thread 2008-2009

[jcrewtriathlete]

To the other Feb 2nd interviewees: good luck finding a hotel room. The Super Bowl is in Tampa the day before our interview and there's hardly anything available. If you do find one, it isn't cheap.

Unbelievable. I just called around too and it's not good news... I asked LECOM's office if they have student hosts, but apparently there's nothing like that to help defray interview costs... does anyone know if it's a bad idea to ask about rescheduling, esp since they didn't give us a choice of dates?? I'm sure we're all on budgets but this interview alone might suck me dry... or if there are any current students who are reading this and would be willing to put an interviewee up for the night...?? sigh...

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[worlddoctor23]

Why don't all the interviewees for that particular day get together and share one or two hotel rooms, or however many it would take to make it affordable for everyone. Try explaining to the school the problem that exists and they may agree to put you in touch with the other interviewees and then you guys can go from there. Your other bet might be a hostel.

 

[bioman2006]

Unbelievable. I just called around too and it's not good news... I asked LECOM's office if they have student hosts, but apparently there's nothing like that to help defray interview costs... does anyone know if it's a bad idea to ask about rescheduling, esp since they didn't give us a choice of dates?? I'm sure we're all on budgets but this interview alone might suck me dry... or if there are any current students who are reading this and would be willing to put an interviewee up for the night...?? sigh...

I managed to find a "reasonable" room through Hotels.com. It's about 20 minutes from the school, but it's better than nothing at this point. I think there's a Days Inn going for about $105/night plus tax near campus, but it didn't have very good reviews.

I just hope the traffic isn't too horrendous during my drive down on Sunday.

 

[bioman2006]

Unbelievable. I just called around too and it's not good news...

Yeah...my initial thought was, "geez, how many people are they interviewing that day? Why are there no rooms available?" Then I put the dates together.

 

[Pink Candy]

Hello everyone!! I am super happy because I have an interview on LECOM-B this upcomming wednesday. Is anybody else going to be there that day?? Which of the LECOM-B students are going to be there?? I would like to know, so maybe I can meet some of you. Also, I am getting very anxious, so please if someone has interviewed at LECOM on 2009, can you post the interview questions on the interview thread? The ones there are from December 08.

Thanks a lot guys, I really appreciate your support!!!!

The questions won't have changed from the December interviews. Honestly, I don't think they change them very much from year to year.

This is not the interview to stress about. It's the one to be relaxed and friendly at, and to show them how personable you are, so your PBL group members won't want to murder you...

Congrats! I think I'll be one of the 2nd years having lunch with your group and giving a tour that day so feel free to bring any questions you may have.

Like digitl said the questions should be the same. It's really nothing to stress over. At this point they've already decided you are "qualified" enough to get in, now it's really just a chance for you to see if the school/PBL is what you want and to help them decide if you'd be a good fit for the curriculum.

Great!!! so nlax30, what are going to be wearing so i can see you? and digitlnoize, are you going to be there too?? I think is going to be a fun and relaxed day!!! I will have a gray outfit, hope you can identify me!!! Thanks a lot guys!!!!

 

[digitlnoize]

Great!!! so nlax30, what are going to be wearing so i can see you? and digitlnoize, are you going to be there too?? I think is going to be a fun and relaxed day!!! I will have a gray outfit, hope you can identify me!!! Thanks a lot guys!!!!

I won't be at your q & a, per se, but I may be around...

 

[Pink Candy]

Digitlnoize how can i know it is you on wednesday??

 

[digitlnoize]

Digitlnoize how can i know it is you on wednesday??

I'll come dressed up as Mr. Snuffleupagus.

 

[cleoscat3]

Hello,

Anybody else interviewing on Monday? I get into town Saturday evening from California and will be checking out Bradenton and the surrounding area on Sunday.

Let me know if you're interested in hanging out!

i'm driving over monday morning so i'll see you there!

 

[worlddoctor23]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

 

[MSmentor018]

To the other Feb 2nd interviewees: good luck finding a hotel room. The Super Bowl is in Tampa the day before our interview and there's hardly anything available. If you do find one, it isn't cheap.

regarding hotels: some places have a LECOM discount for interviews. I stayed at the comfort suites (it's a little pricey) on university ave for a few days for interview/look for housing and they gave me 50% off so it wasn't that bad!! that was in 06

 

[beachblonde]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

My app was complete in mid-late November. I got my interview invitation a few hours before the "you're complete" email came.

I imagine that the turnaround isn't that fast for everyone's apps, but they appear to respond quite quickly.

 

[worlddoctor23]

Thanks beachblonde. I submitted my app late december and just got confirmation that my school sent my letters over to lecom, so I hope I hear something soon.

 

[bioman2006]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

My invitation came four days after my file was complete, which was on January 4th.

 

[painmd87]

Submitted AACOMAS in October... snafu... verified in late December (that sucked)... submitted completed secondary Dec. 30... complete a few days later


And I get the awesome "Will be re-reviewed in late February" status.

They require for one LOR from a DO and from the pre-professional committee. But it doesn't say anything about additional LOR. Is it uncouth to send more letters, especially if they are from non-science profs? Or am I waiting my time?

 

[cleoscat3]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

complete in november. got the invite exactly one week later

 

[digitlnoize]

complete in november. got the invite exactly one week later

From my experience, they are VERY fast about getting back to you. That being said, they can't invite everyone...

I know it's hard, but just be patient, and hopefully you'll hear something soon.

 

[lainey234]

With the intensity of anatomy and general grind of medical school starting day one I wouldn't even want the white coat ceremony until the start of semester two. Besides that, I feel like I earned it more just by coming back, heh. Different schools do it different ways. If I could take any wild guess as to why LECOM-B waits to do it in January two reasons come to mind. First off not everyone makes it after the first semester of medical school. My class for example unfortunately lost 14 students. Besides that a second reason comes to mind as I type this post in my Ohio home. It's like 72 degrees and sunny down there and a mere 27 degrees and snowy here. With such a diversity of states representative of a typical class, with many students coming from the midwest in particular, it's a great opportunity for friends and family to celebrate an honorable event and enjoy some nice weather for a weekend in the middle of winter. Just a guess though.

I'm fairly sure I will be attending Lecom-B next year. This statement scares me though. 14 seems so high. I'm comfortable with my choice for Lecom, I think it will work very well for me. But is that number average or high? If it is high, why do you think that is? Thanks for the input.

 

[digitlnoize]

I'm fairly sure I will be attending Lecom-B next year. This statement scares me though. 14 seems so high. I'm comfortable with my choice for Lecom, I think it will work very well for me. But is that number average or high? If it is high, why do you think that is? Thanks for the input.

I think it is a little high, but remember that we had ~170 people in our class to begin with. Many med schools have a high attrition rate , esp in the 1st semester.

I do believe the other classes lost less though, but I'm not sure.

Why did we lose them? I didn't know most of the lost ones...which is saying something. This is definitely a school where it helps to have study buddies...other than that...no idea...

 

[worlddoctor23]

Thanks digitlnoize, cleoscat3, and bioman2006. I appreciate the input. Sorry to hear that painmd87. Look at it this way, it's better to get a slow yes, than a quick no. Hang in there.

 

[worlddoctor23]

Does the invite come in email or letter form?

 

[bioman2006]

Does the invite come in email or letter form?

They called me and then sent a confirmation e-mail.

 

[Falling Gator]

Submitted AACOMAS in October... snafu... verified in late December (that sucked)... submitted completed secondary Dec. 30... complete a few days later


And I get the awesome "Will be re-reviewed in late February" status.

They require for one LOR from a DO and from the pre-professional committee. But it doesn't say anything about additional LOR. Is it uncouth to send more letters, especially if they are from non-science profs? Or am I waiting my time?

I called the admissions before I sent in my additional LOR's, and they said it was fine if I sent in a few if I felt it would strengthen my application. I ended up sending in 3 total (well the extra on top of DO and pre-prof. committee). One from my supervisor at work because I was employed all through undergrad. One from a science professor/dean of my college. The last from my research supervisor because I was a Research Assistant for a year. I felt that those helped complete the picture of who I am, and may also attribute to any average/mediorce grades I received.

 

[painmd87]

I called the admissions before I sent in my additional LOR's, and they said it was fine if I sent in a few if I felt it would strengthen my application. I ended up sending in 3 total (well the extra on top of DO and pre-prof. committee). One from my supervisor at work because I was employed all through undergrad. One from a science professor/dean of my college. The last from my research supervisor because I was a Research Assistant for a year. I felt that those helped complete the picture of who I am, and may also attribute to any average/mediorce grades I received.

thanks for the tip

And thanks for the encouragement, worlddoctor

 

[jcrewtriathlete]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

Completed primary application mid-October, verified 12/3, completed LECOM secondary 12/19 (had to wait on a LOR), interview invite via phone and confirmation e-mail on 1/8 for Feb 2nd. Heather could not have been nicer btw.

hope this helps!

 

[jcrewtriathlete]

They require for one LOR from a DO and from the pre-professional committee. But it doesn't say anything about additional LOR. Is it uncouth to send more letters, especially if they are from non-science profs? Or am I waiting my time?

i sent six: pre-health advisor (no committee at my undergrad), two grad science profs, one undergrad non-science/MD, former employer (an MD), and my DO letter. got an interview invite the week the admissions office opened back up after was complete, so im assuming that sending extra letters doesn't hurt. however, i don't know how much of my application they looked over before offering an interview - i think some people get offers before their files are complete(?)...

 

[PBL DO]

i sent six: pre-health advisor (no committee at my undergrad), two grad science profs, one undergrad non-science/MD, former employer (an MD), and my DO letter. got an interview invite the week the admissions office opened back up after was complete, so im assuming that sending extra letters doesn't hurt. however, i don't know how much of my application they looked over before offering an interview - i think some people get offers before their files are complete(?)...

Some people get offers to interview before their files are complete, I was one of them. My file had everything necessary to be considered complete minus one LOR from a faculty member of my undergrad (I had one, needed two). I had several LORs from DO physicians to the point where it may have been considered overkill. Does sending extra LORs hurt your application? I think it depends. It is perfectly alright to send in more than necessary but you should think about the quality of the LOR and who is actually writing in your behalf. If you are sending in extra letters that are mediocre and from various people not necessarily related to the profession it's not worth it. If you believe you have some very strong letters that must be seen by the administration it is perfectly alright to do so.

My second faculty member LOR happened to also be a DO. I was offered an interview and went through the whole process without my application technically being considered complete. It took me a week or so to get the letter in and have the administration understand it was written as a faculty recommendation and not necessarily to be considered by another DO. They wouldn't tell me my status after the interview although they had already made a decision on me before my final letter was in. In case your wondering, I got in.

 

[jcrewtriathlete]

i agree with PBL DO. i think schools would consider a random assortment of employer/character letters overkill, but if you're torn between professors who are providing letters from courses you did well in and MDs/DOs with whom you have a good relationship, i'd say go for it and submit as many as you can before you hit their limit. my rationale for my letters was: prehealth advisor - obvious reasons, plus she was impressed with my pers statement/cv; first grad science prof is my thesis advisor; second grad prof fulfills a second science letter; non-science undergrad MD - he's the head of the ED at my undergrad and a great guy who wrote the letter that got me into grad school; MD employer - he's a fairly well known GI in DC, and i'm interested in internal medicine; and DO letter came from an infectious disease doc, and ID is my main area of interest (at this point). hopefully i didn't misjudge, but i checked my list with several MD and DO schools and no one seemed to have a problem with my lineup.

since i took two years off to work with the MD in DC, it would be difficult to rationalize leaving that letter out. and i don't think i could have done without the other letters.

in short, use your best judgment - if you can think of two reasons to send a letter for every one reason why not, then go ahead and send it.

hope this helps...

 

[airforcedukie]

I'm the oddball who's been complete since probably....june or july..but haven't followed up on too many schools since I was pretty set on USUHS until I realized they weren't going to respond. I still haven't heard anything definitive since then and I interviewed back in Oct. but as soon as I sent my fall grades to schools, BOOM, I get all kinds of responses and 2 interviews from LECOM & NOVA. I'm concerned since my numbers are on the low end due to some crappy orgo 2/physics grades (bc duke science classes are designed to 'weed out' premeds...our orgo exam avg was around 30% most of the time)...i think my sci/math gpa is around 3.2ish and my overall is 3.44...mcat of 26P. soooo just wondering what my chances are at lecom/nova/etc places.....being in AFROTC I'm doing HPSP so all "paid for" and etc....have a backup job as a behavioral scientist (psych major/writing thesis/etc)....but definitely want to go into medicine...and I'm thinking more now DO/MPH. As far as my app goes, the only weak points are my sci grades, which have pulled down my overall GPA....i've gotten mainly B's then a few not-so-hot grades in the above mentioned classes. i have tons of ECs/ROTC awards/leadership/etc....and the other interviews I've had have gone extremely well, I think it's just that some adcoms just can't shake my numbers.

Also..........anyone interviewing this fri (1/17) -- email me! / PM me/ whatever.

thanks!!!

 

[nlax30]

I'm the oddball who's been complete since probably....june or july..but haven't followed up on too many schools since I was pretty set on USUHS until I realized they weren't going to respond. I still haven't heard anything definitive since then and I interviewed back in Oct. but as soon as I sent my fall grades to schools, BOOM, I get all kinds of responses and 2 interviews from LECOM & NOVA. I'm concerned since my numbers are on the low end due to some crappy orgo 2/physics grades (bc duke science classes are designed to 'weed out' premeds...our orgo exam avg was around 30% most of the time)...i think my sci/math gpa is around 3.2ish and my overall is 3.44...mcat of 26P. soooo just wondering what my chances are at lecom/nova/etc places.....being in AFROTC I'm doing HPSP so all "paid for" and etc....have a backup job as a behavioral scientist (psych major/writing thesis/etc)....but definitely want to go into medicine...and I'm thinking more now DO/MPH. As far as my app goes, the only weak points are my sci grades, which have pulled down my overall GPA....i've gotten mainly B's then a few not-so-hot grades in the above mentioned classes. i have tons of ECs/ROTC awards/leadership/etc....and the other interviews I've had have gone extremely well, I think it's just that some adcoms just can't shake my numbers.

Also..........anyone interviewing this fri (1/17) -- email me! / PM me/ whatever.

thanks!!!

If you have already received an interview invite here then they've pretty much already accepted your grades/scores as acceptable and now want to see if you're a good fit for the school/curriculum and vice versa.

I'm not sure what the averages are looking like these days but I'd probably guess you are right in the pack and meet most of the averages.

 

[beachblonde]

So decisions were rendered for early Jan interviewees today....any news, anybody?

I was very glad I got the chance to see the school and interview, but I'm not quite sure if it's a good fit for me. What are people's feelings on that? If you aren't totally in love with it from the get go, should you go elsewhere?

 

[devlyyn]

Well, I just got back from spending the weekend in Bradenton/Sarasota. I will be starting there in the fall but I wanted to bring my wife down to show her the area. For those looking for hotels: I wouldn't worry about the game because there are TONS of random hotels on Tamiami tr in sarasota. We found a 2 room suite for $49/night. Seriously, if you can rent a car when you get there (a must in my opinion) just take a drive and you'll be able to find a room. The weather was AWESOME though. Mid- to upper seventies and the water was warm enough for me to go swimming. We actually brought our dog and spent most of the time at the dog beach in Venice. I'm gonna love it down there...

 

[kaika1104]

So decisions were rendered for early Jan interviewees today....any news, anybody?

I was very glad I got the chance to see the school and interview, but I'm not quite sure if it's a good fit for me. What are people's feelings on that? If you aren't totally in love with it from the get go, should you go elsewhere?

Check your portal website. They said that we would get the decision letter before the changed the portal information, but I got my decision and I interviewed on 1/7/09.

 

[beachblonde]

Check your portal website. They said that we would get the decision letter before the changed the portal information, but I got my decision and I interviewed on 1/7/09.

It just says "decision made," not what the decision is. Does that mean waitlist or rejection?

(edited to add: ok, maybe I should do a search)

 

[DocHas]

I'm the oddball who's been complete since probably....june or july..but haven't followed up on too many schools since I was pretty set on USUHS until I realized they weren't going to respond. I still haven't heard anything definitive since then and I interviewed back in Oct. but as soon as I sent my fall grades to schools, BOOM, I get all kinds of responses and 2 interviews from LECOM & NOVA. I'm concerned since my numbers are on the low end due to some crappy orgo 2/physics grades (bc duke science classes are designed to 'weed out' premeds...our orgo exam avg was around 30% most of the time)...i think my sci/math gpa is around 3.2ish and my overall is 3.44...mcat of 26P. soooo just wondering what my chances are at lecom/nova/etc places.....being in AFROTC I'm doing HPSP so all "paid for" and etc....have a backup job as a behavioral scientist (psych major/writing thesis/etc)....but definitely want to go into medicine...and I'm thinking more now DO/MPH. As far as my app goes, the only weak points are my sci grades, which have pulled down my overall GPA....i've gotten mainly B's then a few not-so-hot grades in the above mentioned classes. i have tons of ECs/ROTC awards/leadership/etc....and the other interviews I've had have gone extremely well, I think it's just that some adcoms just can't shake my numbers.

Also..........anyone interviewing this fri (1/17) -- email me! / PM me/ whatever.

thanks!!!

Hey Dukie, UNC student here. My MCAT was a shade higher than yours but my science GPA was even lower (right at 3.0), and my overall was about the same as yours. I got into both LECOM B and NOVA so I'd say you can too. Good luck!

 

[homedum]

If anyone is around the area and needing or wanting a sleeper sofa I am selling mine. 400$. it is 5mons old.. I am selling it because I am withdrawing from LECOM. Let me know asap because it will need to be picked up by Thursday at the latest as im leaving Florida for good after that.

THANKS!

why are you withdrawing an leaving florida? is this a school issue or something personal?

 

[swimchick]

To everyone who is receiving interview invitations recently, when was your application considered complete and how soon after that did you receive an invite?

My app was complete on 12/17 and I was invited to interview on 12/29

Is there anyone else who is interviewing on 1/28?

 

[worlddoctor23]

My app was complete on 12/17 and I was invited to interview on 12/29

Is there anyone else who is interviewing on 1/28?

I wish I could say I was, but nothing yet. Good luck in your interview and thanks for your input.

 

[WMD 172]

interviewed 1\7, Talked to Annette yesterday, found out I got in! Im really excited about being back in Bradenton for two years, and pumped about PBL!

Anyone else from 1\7 know

 

[PunkmedGirl]

interviewed 1\7, Talked to Annette yesterday, found out I got in! Im really excited about being back in Bradenton for two years, and pumped about PBL!

Anyone else from 1\7 know

CONGRATS!!!!!!!! I wish next cycle would hurry up already.

 

[k4med]

Hey. I'm new to this thread, but I interviewed back in November at LECOM-B. I've been waiting for my DO letter to get submitted, and it finally did. My file was supposed to be reviewed on Tuesday, Jan. 13. I was just wondering if most people found out their status by calling LECOM, receiving a call from LECOM, or waiting for their letter to come in the mail. The suspense is killing me! What do you recommend?

 

[koojo]

It's funny, my status has been "Your packet is complete and is at the review board waiting for a decision" every since September 2008. Oh boy

 

[beachblonde]

Hey. I'm new to this thread, but I interviewed back in November at LECOM-B. I've been waiting for my DO letter to get submitted, and it finally did. My file was supposed to be reviewed on Tuesday, Jan. 13. I was just wondering if most people found out their status by calling LECOM, receiving a call from LECOM, or waiting for their letter to come in the mail. The suspense is killing me! What do you recommend?

Go ahead and call. I imagine that they would understand that you're anxious to hear back.

 

[WMD 172]

I called, only bc I live down south, only applied to southern schools, and have to go back up north for school later this week. I wanted to know if I still needed to go to other interviews (there fore flying and taking off 3 days form school.

Good luck!

 

[MSmentor018]

Submitted AACOMAS in October... snafu... verified in late December (that sucked)... submitted completed secondary Dec. 30... complete a few days later


And I get the awesome "Will be re-reviewed in late February" status.

They require for one LOR from a DO and from the pre-professional committee. But it doesn't say anything about additional LOR. Is it uncouth to send more letters, especially if they are from non-science profs? Or am I waiting my time?

not at all, I substituted my committee with a letter from my supervisor, 1 DO letter, 1 professor letter, 1 MD letter, then I wrote one regarding why I chose to do it that way instead of a standard committee letter....5 total

 

[MSmentor018]

It's funny, my status has been "Your packet is complete and is at the review board waiting for a decision" every since September 2008. Oh boy

hmmm...call annette and get an update. but either school, you'll get a great education and it'll be a fantastic ride. I was torn between WVSOM or LECOM, both has a good PBL program. if you do PBL at WVSOM start writing your entrance letter now so that's one thing you don't have to do. good luck!

 

[airforcedukie]

Hey Dukie, UNC student here. My MCAT was a shade higher than yours but my science GPA was even lower (right at 3.0), and my overall was about the same as yours. I got into both LECOM B and NOVA so I'd say you can too. Good luck!

haha awesome.....just curious, which of those do you pref?

 

[airforcedukie]

hey,

anyone out there know anything about how hpsp works coming from ROTC?

 

[Deepa100]

Hi,
I am trying to see if I will have time for a summer session before starting med school. When do MS-1 start classes?

 

[digitlnoize]

Hi,
I am trying to see if I will have time for a summer session before starting med school. When do MS-1 start classes?

We started the last week of July...I expect 2013 will do the same...