Michigan State University (MSUCOM) Discussion Thread 2013 - 2014

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Peterako said:
Application complete. Feels good.
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I spent over 2 weeks writing and re-writing the essays in between studying for an exam and writing another paper. I am soooo glad to have this one off my back and liking how it turned out.
 
Ubiquinator said:
nope
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That is crazy that they don't interview. Anyways... would you consider leadership positions in like student government, etc. as volunteering? I wasn't paid but I did work. What about like high school music groups?

Also for the additional information... what are people doing for this section?... I want to write about a challenge that I recently faced that may have delayed my medical school application and I had some personal growth...
 
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tinylilron said:
That is crazy that they don't interview. Anyways... would you consider leadership positions in like student government, etc. as volunteering? I wasn't paid but I did work. What about like high school music groups?

Also for the additional information... what are people doing for this section?... I want to write about a challenge that I recently faced that may have delayed my medical school application and I had some personal growth...
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I def didn't put leadership positions down...I only put things that I coordinated via leadership positions.

If I put college leadership down, I'd have to add 10 more items and I know that's not what they're asking/looking for.

Sent from my SPH-L720
 
sudo said:
I def didn't put leadership positions down...I only put things that I coordinated via leadership positions.

If I put college leadership down, I'd have to add 10 more items and I know that's not what they're asking/looking for.

Sent from my SPH-L720
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I just don't remember the specifics of what I did in high school too much... I graduated high school in 2003... :-/

Also they did say "Volunteer work is anything you have done for which you haven't been paid from which an individual, group or organization benefited." I could say that being a founder of a National Biological Honor Society is an activity in which my campus benefited, but I suppose that is not what they are looking for... :-/

What about doing summer research that was unpaid?

Also, I noticed in the upload files section that they ask for an unofficial transcript. Do they need this? Don't they already have this through AACOMAS?

Overall, I feel like I am just repeating what is already in my AACOMAS for the volunteer part with the exception of adding high school volunteer activities? Was this the same for a lot of you?
 
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tinylilron said:
I just don't remember the specifics of what I did in high school too much... I graduated high school in 2003... :-/

Also they did say "Volunteer work is anything you have done for which you haven’t been paid from which an individual, group or organization benefited." I could say that being a founder of a National Biological Honor Society is an activity in which my campus benefited, but I suppose that is not what they are looking for... :-/
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I think listing that would look more like filler material instead of what they're looking for... That's what I think though. Maybe someone else can offer their thoughts too

Sent from my SPH-L720
 
tinylilron said:
I just don't remember the specifics of what I did in high school too much... I graduated high school in 2003... :-/

Also they did say "Volunteer work is anything you have done for which you haven't been paid from which an individual, group or organization benefited." I could say that being a founder of a National Biological Honor Society is an activity in which my campus benefited, but I suppose that is not what they are looking for... :-/

What about doing summer research that was unpaid?

Also, I noticed in the upload files section that they ask for an unofficial transcript. Do they need this? Don't they already have this through AACOMAS?

Overall, I feel like I am just repeating what is already in my AACOMAS for the volunteer part with the exception of adding high school volunteer activities? Was this the same for a lot of you?
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If you don't remember the volunteer activities you did in high school then I would deem them not significant enough to list on your app. You should list volunteer activities that provided personal growth for you and made a significant impact on others.

I would not list any kind of research. You are the one primarily benefiting from performing laboratory research whether it was paid or not.

Upload transcript file is for current/next semester grades updates

As far as the additional information section make sure its significant. This section is for current activities updates, life crises, marriage, divorce, birth of a child etc. As far as personal growth or reason for a late application, this is not the place for that. No offense.

Yes, you will be repeating your primary app on your sec app with the exception of listing high school activities. Everyone basically relisted their volunteer activities in college.
 
Ubiquinator said:
If you don't remember the volunteer activities you did in high school then I would deem them not significant enough to list on your app. You should list volunteer activities that provided personal growth for you and made a significant impact on others.

I would not list any kind of research. You are the one primarily benefiting from performing laboratory research whether it was paid or not.

Upload transcript file is for current/next semester grades updates

As far as the additional information section make sure its significant. This section is for current activities updates, life crises, marriage, divorce, birth of a child etc. As far as personal growth or reason for a late application, this is not the place for that. No offense.

Yes, you will be repeating your primary app on your sec app with the exception of listing high school activities. Everyone basically relisted their volunteer activities in college.
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What do they mean by "life crisis" though? I interpreted this as life challenges. No one in my family died or anything but I became unemployed in 2009 and worked odd jobs to pay the bills and get health insurance.

Also, even though this is my first time applying to MSUCOM (I think) I took the MCAT in 2006 and they will see that. I feel like I need to explain why I am re-applying now after so much time has passed since my undergrad, etc.

Otherwise, I am not sure what else to put here besides knowing Spanish and my current activities.

I feel like it is especially important to give them as much information as possible since they do not interview.

Also, in the leadership section. I was wondering if I should put which activities I am interested in being involved in at MSUCOM in addition to my leadership style. What do people think about this?

PS. Has anyone actually called MSUCOM? I had a question about their secondary but it seemed like they did not want us to be calling them as stated on the recommendation portion of their secondary "Phone calls to the Admissions office slows the process so please refrain from phoning, if possible."

Thanks for all your help guys!
 
I just checked the portal and for some reason it states that my app is incomplete. It looking like I never submitted my app.

WTF I paid the secondary fee and now it looks like I never filled out the submission section. I have the call them tomorrow because this is a huge error.

And how are you guys still doing the app my app was due Aug. 1 2013.
 
maybemed2013 said:
I just checked the portal and for some reason it states that my app is incomplete. It looking like I never submitted my app.

WTF I paid the secondary fee and now it looks like I never filled out the submission section. I have the call them tomorrow because this is a huge error.

And how are you guys still doing the app my app was due Aug. 1 2013.
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Mine is due the middle of this month. I am realizing that I may not have 1000s of hours of community service and I am out of state... I wonder what my chances at this school are...
 
Hey guys!
Do you know if it is required that I shadow a DO? I have shadowed about 5 MD's and have worked at a hospital and all that... I know it's kind of late, but yeah... Everything is ready to go, but I realized that maybe I should have shadowed a couple of DO's... the last place I worked, the doctors there are actually helping with Marian (I'm in indy) DO school curriculum. If I add that would that count towards anything similar to me shadowing a doctor? I did shadow a couple doctors in that clinic prior to me working there.

Thanks guys!! Good luck in this cycle! 🙂
 
pigcat said:
Hey guys!
Do you know if it is required that I shadow a DO? I have shadowed about 5 MD's and have worked at a hospital and all that... I know it's kind of late, but yeah... Everything is ready to go, but I realized that maybe I should have shadowed a couple of DO's... the last place I worked, the doctors there are actually helping with Marian (I'm in indy) DO school curriculum. If I add that would that count towards anything similar to me shadowing a doctor? I did shadow a couple doctors in that clinic prior to me working there.

Thanks guys!! Good luck in this cycle! 🙂
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i don't believe it's required at all. you should be fine as long as you can say why DO in your secondary. could mention the thing about marian when writing that though
 
tinylilron said:
Mine is due the middle of this month. I am realizing that I may not have 1000s of hours of community service and I am out of state... I wonder what my chances at this school are...
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I have way under 1000 hours of community service, and not the best GPA in the world. Everyone has flaws in their application, and at this point it is just a matter of waiting for an e-mail/phone call.

maybemed2013 said:
I just checked the portal and for some reason it states that my app is incomplete. It looking like I never submitted my app.

WTF I paid the secondary fee and now it looks like I never filled out the submission section. I have the call them tomorrow because this is a huge error.

And how are you guys still doing the app my app was due Aug. 1 2013.
Click to expand...

I would definitely give them a call on that one. My app isn't due until the 8th, but I submitted mine a few days ago and it says the submission is complete and I have everything but my letters of rec in, so maybe you forgot to do that last section after you paid the fee?
 
Hi, is anyone here applying to DO/PhD program?
 
Wait, so this school doesn't interview?

Is it worth submitting the secondary if I am OOS and below their average MCAT and GPA?
 
tinylilron said:
What if your an OOS, average MCAT, above average GPA and less than 1000 volunteer but lots of research?
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Average mcat + above avg gpa + below avg volunteer hours = average applicant when it comes to numbers.

Depends on how above avg your gpa is? Are both your cgpa & sgpa substantially higher than a 3.5, such as 3.9.

Depends on how below avg your volunteer hours are? Avg is 850. Do you have <250 hours?

Personally, I would just submit your secondary and let the adcoms decide.
 
Is it worth filling out the secondary if you're below average on GPA and MCAT, but have about 200 volunteer hours?

Does MSUCOM interview?

Where did you hear that the average volunteer hours are 850?

Thanks!
 
elephantcaptain said:
Is it worth filling out the secondary if you're below average on GPA and MCAT, but have about 200 volunteer hours?

Does MSUCOM interview?

Where did you hear that the average volunteer hours are 850?

Thanks!
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I would say your chances are slim, but for $106 I'd still apply.

No, MSUCOM does NOT interview.

I heard 850 from past years threads, medical students at MSUCOM, and the website.
 
Ubiquinator said:
I would say your chances are slim, but for $106 I'd still apply.

No, MSUCOM does NOT interview.

I heard 850 from past years threads, medical students at MSUCOM, and the website.
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Does anyone know around what time we should hear about interviews/rejections? I submitted secondary today.
 
Albein said:
Does anyone know around what time we should hear about interviews/rejections? I submitted secondary today.
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MSUCOM DOES NOT INTERVIEW!

Rejections? Shouldn't you be asking about when acceptances/waitlists come out?

Last few years the first wednesday of Sept is when the first batch of acceptances go out.

Sept 4th for Americans and a few weeks later for Canadians, I presume.
 
Ubiquinator said:
MSUCOM DOES NOT INTERVIEW!

Rejections? Shouldn't you be asking about when acceptances/waitlists come out?

Last few years the first wednesday of Sept is when the first batch of acceptances go out.

Sept 4th for Americans and a few weeks later for Canadians, I presume.
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Hey Ubiquinator....does msucom interview?

HA JK. you have been answering that question alot. talked with an admission person the other day and she said they are going to try and CALL applicants that they accept...therefore they may make the calls on thursday..starting sept 5....idk how long that will last seems like a lot of work. Just wanted to add that little tid bit for what its worth
 
Ubiquinator said:
MSUCOM DOES NOT INTERVIEW!

Rejections? Shouldn't you be asking about when acceptances/waitlists come out?

Last few years the first wednesday of Sept is when the first batch of acceptances go out.

Sept 4th for Americans and a few weeks later for Canadians, I presume.
Click to expand...

I've read through the forums too, and it seems MSUCOM only interviews people they have questions for or are on the fence about.
 
Ubiquinator said:
MSUCOM DOES NOT INTERVIEW!

Rejections? Shouldn't you be asking about when acceptances/waitlists come out?

Last few years the first wednesday of Sept is when the first batch of acceptances go out.

Sept 4th for Americans and a few weeks later for Canadians, I presume.
Click to expand...

Momentary brain fart. I apologize!

For the photo, you guys just did a head shot right?
 
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Is anyone else having trouble getting their letters of recommendation in?

I submitted mine using the VirtualEvals service, which sent them 7 days ago and sent me confirmation of that, but after contacting MSUCOM they said that they don't have them.

I'm not even sure what to do at this point, if one service is saying they sent them and MSU is saying that they never got them.
 
almostkorean said:
Is anyone else having trouble getting their letters of recommendation in?

I submitted mine using the VirtualEvals service, which sent them 7 days ago and sent me confirmation of that, but after contacting MSUCOM they said that they don't have them.

I'm not even sure what to do at this point, if one service is saying they sent them and MSU is saying that they never got them.
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Why did you contact MSUCOM in the first place?

MSUCOM doesn't seem to welcome telephone calls from impatient and neurotic applicants. If VirtualEvals sent you a confirmation that they electronically delivered the letters, then MSUCOM will have them.

I received this email from there several weeks ago:

"The issue that many of you were having regarding not being able to upload your photo to your file has now been resolved. Anyone that was not able to upload their photo should now be able to do so. Additionally, many of you had questions regarding when your letters of recommendation that were sent to Interfolio and VirtualEval would appear in your file. Please note that the administrators of our new electronic system will retrieve the letters from both Interfolio and VirtualEval soon and they will automatically be flooded into your file. You should be able to view them by going to the Status/Document tab once they are retrieved.

We thank you all for your patience during our transition to the new system."
 
Jumpstartmy5HT said:
Why did you contact MSUCOM in the first place?

MSUCOM doesn't seem to welcome telephone calls from impatient and neurotic applicants. If VirtualEvals sent you a confirmation that they electronically delivered the letters, then MSUCOM will have them.

I received this email from there several weeks ago:

"The issue that many of you were having regarding not being able to upload your photo to your file has now been resolved. Anyone that was not able to upload their photo should now be able to do so. Additionally, many of you had questions regarding when your letters of recommendation that were sent to Interfolio and VirtualEval would appear in your file. Please note that the administrators of our new electronic system will retrieve the letters from both Interfolio and VirtualEval soon and they will automatically be flooded into your file. You should be able to view them by going to the Status/Document tab once they are retrieved.

We thank you all for your patience during our transition to the new system."
Click to expand...

Why wouldn't I contact them when there's a discrepancy like this, isn't that what they are there for? The letters are the last step before my app is complete, and a week is more than enough time to have them processed. Hardly neurotic IMO.

Anyways, I just emailed them showing them my VirtualEvals confirmation that my letters were sent on 7/31 and they told me that I will have to resubmit them 😕

edit: Just contacted the reference letter service I used to send the letters, and they told me the letters were sent and downloaded, so the problem is on MSU's side. She told me that I'm gonna have to talk to MSU to sort it out which, as the above poster pointed out, won't be too easy. After reading some previous posts about how long it took others to get their letters marked as received maybe I should just wait a bit..
 
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almostkorean said:
Why wouldn't I contact them when there's a discrepancy like this, isn't that what they are there for? The letters are the last step before my app is complete, and a week is more than enough time to have them processed. Hardly neurotic IMO.

Anyways, I just emailed them showing them my VirtualEvals confirmation that my letters were sent on 7/31 and they told me that I will have to resubmit them 😕
Click to expand...

I reviewed my app status. I submitted on 7/3, and my letters weren't added until 7/11. I bet the volumes are higher for them now, and it will probably take a little longer to add in the letters.

Is it free to resend via VirtualEvals? I used Interfolio, and they only charge once per institution for electronic deliveries.
 
Jayb82388 said:
Hey Ubiquinator....does msucom interview?

HA JK. you have been answering that question alot. talked with an admission person the other day and she said they are going to try and CALL applicants that they accept...therefore they may make the calls on thursday..starting sept 5....idk how long that will last seems like a lot of work. Just wanted to add that little tid bit for what its worth
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Sept 5th! Darn it, I just received an II for that day at another school.
 
Ubiquinator said:
Sept 5th! Darn it, I just received an II for that day at another school.
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well maybe they will leave you a voicemail! haha and she said that was officially the unofficial day. might change of course. the 4th and 5th ill be equally nervous ha
 
Jayb82388 said:
well maybe they will leave you a voicemail! haha and she said that was officially the unofficial day. might change of course. the 4th and 5th ill be equally nervous ha
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Haha! We will see! 28 days....
 
almostkorean said:
Is anyone else having trouble getting their letters of recommendation in?

I submitted mine using the VirtualEvals service, which sent them 7 days ago and sent me confirmation of that, but after contacting MSUCOM they said that they don't have them.

I'm not even sure what to do at this point, if one service is saying they sent them and MSU is saying that they never got them.
Click to expand...

I sent my LORs in 4 weeks ago tomorrow, and they still aren't marked as received... I have a confirmation from VirtualEvals that they were sent and everything. I'm just worried that it will effect my application since my deadline is tomorrow, but I know they highly discourage people form calling them...

Would it be wise to re-send?
 
WingsFan said:
I sent my LORs in 4 weeks ago tomorrow, and they still aren't marked as received... I have a confirmation from VirtualEvals that they were sent and everything. I'm just worried that it will effect my application since my deadline is tomorrow, but I know they highly discourage people form calling them...

Would it be wise to re-send?
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A month hmm. I submitted my sec/letters on 7/1 and the letters were not received until around 7/20.

I would re-send them and if they arent marked as received by next week then maybe you should call them.

They upload the letters in batches, although I presume they upload them more often then once a month?
 
Jayb82388 said:
well maybe they will leave you a voicemail! haha and she said that was officially the unofficial day. might change of course. the 4th and 5th ill be equally nervous ha
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By the way, who told you the 5th was the unofficial day? Just curious..
 
Ubiquinator said:
A month hmm. I submitted my sec/letters on 7/1 and the letters were not received until around 7/20.

I would re-send them and if they arent marked as received by next week then maybe you should call them.

They upload the letters in batches, although I presume they upload them more often then once a month?
Click to expand...

yeah, the LOR section on the secondary said it could take up to 2-3 weeks, but an entire month is a bit past that, so I'm re-sending to be safe rather than sorry. I just want to see that "complete" status on my application status already!
 
WingsFan said:
yeah, the LOR section on the secondary said it could take up to 2-3 weeks, but an entire month is a bit past that, so I'm re-sending to be safe rather than sorry. I just want to see that "complete" status on my application status already!
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Agreed!
 
So the 2014 CIB says this about letters required by MSUCOM: Supplemental application includes essay, non-academic information and two completed evaluations forms.

Does two completed evaluations forms means just two letters of rec.? Do they care who they're from? Professor and Research supervisor or someone else?

Thanks
 
esmitherton said:
So the 2014 CIB says this about letters required by MSUCOM: Supplemental application includes essay, non-academic information and two completed evaluations forms.

Does two completed evaluations forms means just two letters of rec.? Do they care who they're from? Professor and Research supervisor or someone else?

Thanks
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Yes, on their secondary application they ask for 2 letters of rec, and they do not care who they are from.
 
So, I submitted my LoRs yesterday using UoM's letter referencing service. I copy pasted my AACOMAS and sent it.

The kicker is, the id slot only accepts 11 characters whereas the id is actually 12...so the 4 got cut off at the end. Any suggestions?
 
mistermahdy said:
So, I submitted my LoRs yesterday using UoM's letter referencing service. I copy pasted my AACOMAS and sent it.

The kicker is, the id slot only accepts 11 characters whereas the id is actually 12...so the 4 got cut off at the end. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

I go to U of M and use the annoying reference letter service too. Take out the dash before 2014 and all of it fits.
 
Ubiquinator said:
By the way, who told you the 5th was the unofficial day? Just curious..
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Anne Snyder...had a face to face advising appointment with her. shes on the adcom. super nice lady, real encouraging. she said she probably be the one doing the phone calls. Again, she said its still a little work in progess in terms of how they will notify students. just thought i would share.
 
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