Mercer and MCG

[bubbleyum]

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I interviewed this past Monday. The admission officer told me they COMMONLY take 70 off the wait list. Figure, out of 1000 in-state apps, about 500 are interviewed. They make 190 offers and then take 70 off the wait-list. You're looking at about 1:2 odds any way you cut it. That's still not great, but as far as med schools go. Good luck to all yall!

actually, they get about 2000 applications (of course, mostly in-state) and interview less than 500 for 190 spots in the class.

 

[bubbleyum]

Thanks for the advice! I think that MCG wants to have 190 acceptances out by the beginning of April. If, byt that point, they do not have that many acceptances out, or if people had recently declined acceptance, then they will send out whatever amount of acceptances to fill up to 190 by April. Then they make the waitlist. Usually about 40-50 are taken off the waitlist because MCG doesnt overaccept.....This is my udnerstanding, please correct if you heard or know differently.
I wrote my committee interviewer an update/kind of letter of intent email yesterday, so its probably a good thing that I did that now, before the end of March.

If you dont mind me asking, what was so bad about your interview? I know they try pretty hard to make people feel comfortable. Were your interviewers not good?

hey dcdawg.

yes, my interview was horrible because i was asked a lot of questions that made me go "huh??" and couldn't answer promptly in an intelligent manner. and i could tell my interviewer just thought i was so dumb. i felt like a total loser and had to wipe away tears while waiting for the elevator to take me down. i'm pretty sure he would carry a lot of weight with the admissions committee as well, because he's been there for a loooong time and was an executive director at one of their major hospitals. (that was the interview with my commitee representative. the second interviewer was a psychiatrist who asked pretty standard questions but was kinda filled with some awkward silences cause he would just stare at me after i answered his questions. like for MINUTES.)

in all fairness to myself though, he really did ask me some hard questions, and phrased them in a cryptic way. like, instead of asking me, "so where do you envision doing your residency and practicing after you graduate from med school?" he said "so, 4 years of med school. THEN WHAT??" i told him i have a lot of friends and family in atlanta and i've been living here for the past 12 years, i like it, i will probably be committed to staying in georgia near my loved ones, to which he replies, "what? atlanta!! our school is looking to train physicians who are willing to go out and work in the underserved areas of rural georgia! so, what do you know about rural medicine??" and of course, i do not know anything about rural medicine. never really lived in the "country." and this kind of stuff went on during the whole rest of the interview... i dunno. i just know in my heart it was a disaster.

the dean of admissions and office staff and all were all very nice though. you could tell they wanted everybody to feel comfortable and like their school. and nobody else that day had bad interviews. so i think i was just especially lucky that day.

now i am sad again. *sigh*

 

[Tallulah]

i thought if you interviewed and don't hear anything by end of march that means you are waitlisted or rejected... i interviewed feb 8th, but i had such a terrible interview i am assuming rejection. am hoping for at least a waitlist. they also said the waitlist is already ranked when they first make it, and your rank does not change regardless of new grades and letters.

if you want to send in letters of intent, do it now!

do they tell u your rank if you are waitlisted?

 

[max831]

I

 

[DCDAWG]

hey dcdawg.

yes, my interview was horrible because i was asked a lot of questions that made me go "huh??" and couldn't answer promptly in an intelligent manner. and i could tell my interviewer just thought i was so dumb. i felt like a total loser and had to wipe away tears while waiting for the elevator to take me down. i'm pretty sure he would carry a lot of weight with the admissions committee as well, because he's been there for a loooong time and was an executive director at one of their major hospitals. (that was the interview with my commitee representative. the second interviewer was a psychiatrist who asked pretty standard questions but was kinda filled with some awkward silences cause he would just stare at me after i answered his questions. like for MINUTES.)

in all fairness to myself though, he really did ask me some hard questions, and phrased them in a cryptic way. like, instead of asking me, "so where do you envision doing your residency and practicing after you graduate from med school?" he said "so, 4 years of med school. THEN WHAT??" i told him i have a lot of friends and family in atlanta and i've been living here for the past 12 years, i like it, i will probably be committed to staying in georgia near my loved ones, to which he replies, "what? atlanta!! our school is looking to train physicians who are willing to go out and work in the underserved areas of rural georgia! so, what do you know about rural medicine??" and of course, i do not know anything about rural medicine. never really lived in the "country." and this kind of stuff went on during the whole rest of the interview... i dunno. i just know in my heart it was a disaster.

the dean of admissions and office staff and all were all very nice though. you could tell they wanted everybody to feel comfortable and like their school. and nobody else that day had bad interviews. so i think i was just especially lucky that day.

now i am sad again. *sigh*

Im sorry to hear that. That certainly sounds tough. I had a similar interview at another school where I left feeling like I didnt interview as well as I could have. You never know how itll turn out though. Best of luck with everything. Keep us posted how it turns out.

 

[Tallulah]

Im sorry to hear that. That certainly sounds tough. I had a similar interview at another school where I left feeling like I didnt interview as well as I could have. You never know how itll turn out though. Best of luck with everything. Keep us posted how it turns out.

I'm not sure who you had but there are a couple of interviewers at MCG who are known for asking really tough questions and making you uncomfortable, but everyone I know who had those interviewers eventually got into MCG, so I wouldn't worry too much!

 

[PhillyRA]

I'm not sure who you had but there are a couple of interviewers at MCG who are known for asking really tough questions and making you uncomfortable, but everyone I know who had those interviewers eventually got into MCG, so I wouldn't worry too much!

I had my interview 1/20 and I'm still waiting too. I really hope to hear soon though.

 

[bubbleyum]

I'm not sure who you had but there are a couple of interviewers at MCG who are known for asking really tough questions and making you uncomfortable, but everyone I know who had those interviewers eventually got into MCG, so I wouldn't worry too much!

thanks. the funny thing is, the whole time we were walking there (mine was the farthest to walk, to the VA hospital), linda devaughn was telling me how nice of a guy this man is. so i was not expecting it at all. i heard the doctor who is a pediatrician is like the nicest interviewer ever. some girl had her on my interview day...

so, when you say "eventually" does that mean they were waitlisted at first?

 

[bubbleyum]

do they tell u your rank if you are waitlisted?

i asked that, they said no. u know mcg is one of the most secretive schools.

 

[vwhan]

hey dcdawg.

yes, my interview was horrible because i was asked a lot of questions that made me go "huh??" and couldn't answer promptly in an intelligent manner. and i could tell my interviewer just thought i was so dumb. i felt like a total loser and had to wipe away tears while waiting for the elevator to take me down. i'm pretty sure he would carry a lot of weight with the admissions committee as well, because he's been there for a loooong time and was an executive director at one of their major hospitals. (that was the interview with my commitee representative. the second interviewer was a psychiatrist who asked pretty standard questions but was kinda filled with some awkward silences cause he would just stare at me after i answered his questions. like for MINUTES.)

in all fairness to myself though, he really did ask me some hard questions, and phrased them in a cryptic way. like, instead of asking me, "so where do you envision doing your residency and practicing after you graduate from med school?" he said "so, 4 years of med school. THEN WHAT??" i told him i have a lot of friends and family in atlanta and i've been living here for the past 12 years, i like it, i will probably be committed to staying in georgia near my loved ones, to which he replies, "what? atlanta!! our school is looking to train physicians who are willing to go out and work in the underserved areas of rural georgia! so, what do you know about rural medicine??" and of course, i do not know anything about rural medicine. never really lived in the "country." and this kind of stuff went on during the whole rest of the interview... i dunno. i just know in my heart it was a disaster.

the dean of admissions and office staff and all were all very nice though. you could tell they wanted everybody to feel comfortable and like their school. and nobody else that day had bad interviews. so i think i was just especially lucky that day.

now i am sad again. *sigh*

Don't be so hard on yourself. Sometimes interviewers will act like this to see how you respond under pressure. When answering questions you don't always have to start speaking right away. Plus that interviewer may have had a bad day was unfortunately taking it out on you. I'm a 3rd year and did 1 rotation (surgery) in Thomasville. The rest of my schedule has me staying in Augusta. I don't have any ideas what rural medicine is like. I really don't think MCG trains people for rural medicine. They give you options in rural towns to do rotations. I probably would have gone outside MCG if my wife wasn't in town.

 

[DCDAWG]

Don't be so hard on yourself. Sometimes interviewers will act like this to see how you respond under pressure. When answering questions you don't always have to start speaking right away. Plus that interviewer may have had a bad day was unfortunately taking it out on you. I'm a 3rd year and did 1 rotation (surgery) in Thomasville. The rest of my schedule has me staying in Augusta. I don't have any ideas what rural medicine is like. I really don't think MCG trains people for rural medicine. They give you options in rural towns to do rotations. I probably would have gone outside MCG if my wife wasn't in town.

Does MCG let you know of your rank if they waitlist you?

 

[neovenom]

Does MCG let you know of your rank if they waitlist you?

no. i was waitlisted at MCG last year and they didn't tell me.

 

[max831]

Mercer fills their class by March 15 and MCG by March 30. If you do not hear something shortly after these dates, then it's all waitlist.

 

[GA Girl]

Mercer fills their class by March 15 and MCG by March 30. If you do not hear something shortly after these dates, then it's all waitlist.

Thanks! How do you know this?

 

[PhillyRA]

Thanks! How do you know this?

As of Weds MCG had 8 more committee meetings before March 30, 2006. So they will try to review all applicants prior to this. Good luck everyone.

 

[Boner]

Mercer fills their class by March 15 and MCG by March 30. If you do not hear something shortly after these dates, then it's all waitlist.

Mercer is definitely conducting interviews through March 23, so their class filling date may be more like March 30, unless someone has heard otherwise directly from admissions.

 

[GAdoc]

Mercer is definitely conducting interviews through March 23, so their class filling date may be more like March 30, unless someone has heard otherwise directly from admissions.

I'm pretty sure March 30 is the next time any of us can expect to hear anything from Mercer. I wrote an e-mail asking about it, and the reply was that they keep a certain (unknown) amount of slots open up until the very last interview (March 23). March 23 is Thursday, so the committee will not meet again until the next Wed (March 29). I'd think notifications would take place the next couple days. Afterwards they will probably form a wait list and send out those letters, followed by the rejection letters. I know this from experience. I had to live through students getting accepted at the end of March last year, then seeing those who got wait listed, and finally I got my REJECTION!!! Good luck to all