Meet with a dean as a pre-med?

[Beau Geste]

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I'm considering meeting with the dean of the medical schools I'm interested in applying to to go over my grades, etc. to give feedback on what my strengths/weaknesses are from a med school point of view.

1. Is this a good idea?
2. If so, when would be the best time to do this?
3. Is there anything else I should address with the dean (in general)?

THANKS!

 

[njbmd]

I'm considering meeting with the dean of the medical schools I'm interested in applying to to go over my grades, etc. to give feedback on what my strengths/weaknesses are from a med school point of view.

1. Is this a good idea?
2. If so, when would be the best time to do this?
3. Is there anything else I should address with the dean (in general)?

THANKS!

Hi there,
If you have received an invitation from the deans of the medical schools for meetings then meet with them and bring your information. Do realize that this is getting to be a very busy time for them as applications/interviews are at high season and their time may be scarce. If you have the meetings already scheduled then don't be late.

One thing that you may want to consider is obtaining professional medical school admission counseling from a professional medical school admissions counselor. I would strongly encourage any non-traditional student to do this before investing thousands in tuition and exam fees. A professional medical school counselor will individualize a strategy that puts you in the best position for admission. These counselors also help you with choosing schools that would be a good fit.

njbmd 🙂

 

[Febrifuge]

1. Is this a good idea?
2. If so, when would be the best time to do this?
3. Is there anything else I should address with the dean (in general)?

1. Yes. In fact, it's a great idea for any non-trad (or anyone, if you ask me).
2. As NJB says, sometime when that dean-person is not hip deep in applications would be preferable, but it's worth a shot; the worst they can do is say there's no time to do it now.
3. As long as the two of you define it as an informal, info-gathering discussion, you should be able to ask just about any question that might occur to you. Especially ask about how you and "the process" will get along, since if you do this you will be spending your life in the process, and the process will have you as a component.

I did exactly this at the very beginning of my process; I scheduled time, I said I was starting to think about medicine as a direction, and I wanted to know what things I should know. 😉 I brought unofficial transcripts, and a brief but clear spiel about why and how I had come to this decision. The guy told me it would be tough, maybe really tough (considering my GPA), but I should do it if I felt compelled and really wanted it, because it's people with that drive who make the best doctors. Two and a half years later, he's been right on all counts. This is incredibly hard, and totally worth it.

 

[MoosePilot]

1. Yes. In fact, it's a great idea for any non-trad (or anyone, if you ask me).
2. As NJB says, sometime when that dean-person is not hip deep in applications would be preferable, but it's worth a shot; the worst they can do is say there's no time to do it now.
3. As long as the two of you define it as an informal, info-gathering discussion, you should be able to ask just about any question that might occur to you. Especially ask about how you and "the process" will get along, since if you do this you will be spending your life in the process, and the process will have you as a component.

I did exactly this at the very beginning of my process; I scheduled time, I said I was starting to think about medicine as a direction, and I wanted to know what things I should know. 😉 I brought unofficial transcripts, and a brief but clear spiel about why and how I had come to this decision. The guy told me it would be tough, maybe really tough (considering my GPA), but I should do it if I felt compelled and really wanted it, because it's people with that drive who make the best doctors. Two and a half years later, he's been right on all counts. This is incredibly hard, and totally worth it.

I did so, too. It helped let me know that I was competitive at my first choice and also helped me develop a congenial professional relationship with director that's made me so much more comfortable throughout the process.

 

[mshheaddoc]

I met with dean and also the admissions counselors. Great way to get things started and know what you need to do 🙂

 

[Beau Geste]

Good deal! I've got my list of schools and questions to ask, but when would be a good time to contact them? Or, when have most school finished their major rounds of interviews?

 

[LooKing4Ward]

How persistent should one be in seeking advice? I have a very low gpa and am desperately seeking any kind of advice and been asking pre-med, post-bac, and medical school advisors, directors, and counselors and I either get no repsonse or one reply (and sometimes they don't even answer my questions)? I understand it's a busy time but I really don't know what else to do. I'm starting to take it negatively that maybe they just have no ideas what to advice someone like myself.

 

[Beau Geste]

Good deal! I've got my list of schools and questions to ask, but when would be a good time to contact them? Or, when have most school finished their major rounds of interviews?

 

[MoosePilot]

Good deal! I've got my list of schools and questions to ask, but when would be a good time to contact them? Or, when have most school finished their major rounds of interviews?

I bet most schools will be doing interviews until Feb-ish.

 

[mshheaddoc]

Contact now and just ask you know that its interview season but was wondering when the best time to come in would be. They don't interview every day of the week (most schools) so they would hav ea free hour here or there. If you have ANY contacts at the school it would really help too!

 

[efex101]

I e-mailed pretty much all the schools I was applyin to *before* I applied. Most medical schools will not talk to you about this if you are applying that same year. I first e-mailed then during "slow" time aka not during peak interview/selection time which starts in high gear in October and goes through April. I received responses from all medical schools and it served me to really narrow down my selection of which ones to apply to.

 

[QofQuimica]

I also did this before I applied, and I know that y'all are probably sick of reading me advocate doing this by now. 😉 The year before I applied (but after I had my MCAT results back), I met with three admissions directors at three different schools, and I spoke to a fourth one by telephone. In my experience, your state schools will be very amenable to helping you this way, but I also found that the admissions staff at U. Miami were willing to meet with me. I don't know how typical that is for private schools, b/c unlike some of them, Miami heavily favors in-state residents. But if any of you are living in FL, I can tell you that all of the FL state schools are willing to meet with and advise pre-applicants, even during interview season. I went to visit these schools in the late fall (like Novemberish). But I had to wait until interview season was basically over in Feb. to go to Miami. So I'd say that if you want help right now, ask your state schools. Both of mine gave me appointments within a week of my calling to ask for one. And I'm still tremendously glad that I asked for this criticism before I applied, because it really helped me.