MSUCOM-DocGibby

[reddy]

DocGibby,

can you tell me where most of the D.O. students live while attending MSUCOM? Are most on or off campus? From your posts you seem pretty knowledgeable about the program and the area. Thanks!

Reddy

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[DOATC2B]

Hi Reddy. I know you specifically wished to talk to DocGibby, but I might be some help until DocGibby responds.

I'm not in medical school, but I am an undergrad at MSU (5th year). There is one graduate dorm (Owen Hall) which is not far from East Fee Hall. However, I think I would be fairly safe in saying most med students do not live there. If you are set on living on campus, that would be the best bet. It's not a bad place, but for the $$ it is much nicer to have a place of your own (or apartment to share). There are many affordable decent apartment complexes in the area. You can also rent a house if you have a few buddies to join in (I currently live in a house, but I think an apartment would end up cheaper.)

If you have any questions you can email me.

 

[DocGibby]

Reddy,

From what I've found out, most (if not all) DO students live off campus. Like the previous post says, there's only one grad dorm. Of course since MSU is a full fledged university, your competing against hundreds (if not a few thousand) of grad students for a handful of rooms. There's plenty of off campus housing. I got a deposit down on a single bedroom apt. about 3 miles from campus. Prices run just about the entire price spectrum. They seem pretty reasonable, though. Check out www.rent.net they've got a great listing of apartments for east lansing and the surrounding area. Let me know how things turn out. Sounds like I'll see you in the fall.

 

[reddy]

Doc Gibby and DOATC2B,

thank you both. I will try the website. I had checked out the MSU website, but having your first hand opinion is more valuable. I will be in East Lansing this month for an interview. I have an extra day and planned to check out some apartments to get a feel for the area. It's very late in the year for an interview. My chances are probably not good, but you never know.

Reddy

 

[DocGibby]

Reddy,

You might surprise yourself and get accepted. Just stay calm and collected in the interview and you'll probably get in. When I applied last year there was about 20 spots left about this time. Plus they only interview a handfull of people a week. There was two, including myself, at my interview. So the class fills slowly, which is good for you. Remember, just getting an interview is about 3/4 the battle. It's up to your performance during the interview to make the deciding factor.

Good luck

 

[Hulio]

Doc Gibby or anyone else who knows the answer,
I interview at MSUCOM late Jan and was placed on the alternate list. i was told that the waitlist id going to be rank. any idea what criteria they use to rank the wait-list and how much of a shot do i have of making the class of 2004. thanks for your help in advance

 

[DocGibby]

Hulio,

The ranking list is an interesting topic. I explained this to someone else a few months ago on a previous string (sorry I can't remember which one). Hopefully my memory is still good. Basically, they somehow compile all your achievements into a numerical ranking system which determines your acceptance. Obviously your grades and MCAT factor into this ranking. In addition, they look at some broad encompassing categories which are derived from your application.
They are as follows:
1) Do you have a clear understanding of what Osteopathic medicine is?

2) How much do you want to become an Osteopathic Physician (not an MD wannabe)?

3) How badly do you want to become a Michigan State Spartan?

You may ask where they get the answers to these intriging questions. The primary sources are your secondary application (remember that 2 - 3 page essay you wrote? or that check list of Osteopathic experiences ie did you read any osteopathic books, shadow a DO, visit a web site, etc...?) and your interview which helps to fill in the missing pieces.

One last thing, the list changes continuously due to the constant addition of applicants which may rank higher or lower than you. Therefore a mediocre or even weak canidate who applies early will rank higher when there are less applicants in the pool in august and a relatively strong candidate will catipult to the top of the rankings when the competition is relatively light. Yet another reason for everyone out there to apply early (sorry i'm getting off the track here). I hope this answers your question. I'm sure they're are some other factors to the ranking that aren't listed above, but I believe these to be the major factors based on my experience with their application process. I hope this answers your question. Feel free to email me if you need additional info.

Good Luck.

 

[Hulio]

Doc-Gibby,
Thanks a lot for the info. You are the man. i could not agree with you more about sending your application as fast as possible. i actually turned in my secondary the first week of sept. but it turned out that they lost one of my letter of recommendation. After two months of searching, I had to turn in another letter and that delayed my application. I am still a little confused, are you telling me that people who get wait-listed first rank higher than people who get waitlisted later in the process?. It seems from your other posts that this is your second time applying. Were you wait-listed the first time? and if you were, when were you told about your rank on the wait-list. Again, thanks a lot for all the info. Not getting into MSU is not the end of the world for me. I have already been accepted at CCOM but MSUCOM is a state school for me and I love the state of Michigan.

 

[DocGibby]

Ahh a fellow Michigander, why didn't you say so. Actually my post was refering to the general ranking system that determines who gets accepted. There's no special list for "wait-listed" applicants. Sounds to me like your application was pretty solid, but that incident with the letter of recomendation hurt you pretty bad. Tough love, I guess, what are you gonna do? By the time you got that January interview their is only around 30 spots or less left, the applicant pool is at its heights and those three criteria I listed become critical.

My situation you ask?

Actually it was somewhat similar to your own. In a nutshell, I applied late in the first place in combination with a late letter of recomendation (my recomender forgot to send it). My application was finally completed on the last possible day of the application period deadline (how's that for cutting it close). There's basically no spots left by the time they reviewed my app. I didn't even get an interview let alone wait-listed (despite fairly strong GPA and MCAT scores). I was told later that I was 8th place on the list of remaining applicants to recieve an invitation to interview. Furthermore, that other applicants where much stronger in the criteria I listed then I was. This conclusion was reached because of my lackluster essay, which barely answered any of those criteria questions. I spent the summer retooling my essay, and strengthening my application through more volunteer work, shadowing etc.. Reapplied in June and sent my secondary in ASAP. I got one of the very first interviews of the current application period and was accepted about a week after that. Well that's my story. I hope it offers some inspiration to you.

 

[reddy]

DocGibby,

Thanks for the encouragement and the information. Can I ask for your opinion-do you think my being accepted to another D.O. school already will hurt my chances of getting an offer from MSU? This is, of course, provided that the rest of my application is strong enough.

I'm a fellow Michigander too. Go Spartans!!! I'm a Spartan fan all the way! I hope MSU advances beyond the sweet 16.

Reddy

[This message has been edited by reddy (edited 03-19-2000).]

 

[DocGibby]

Absolutely not Reddy. They realize, as every other school does, that it is extremely difficult to get accepted to med school and that your applying to several schools in order to increase your chances. I was accepted at UHSCOM before my MSU interview and they didn't care. I'm can't even remember if they asked me if I was accepted anywhere. During the interview, I was asked if I applied anywhere else and I informed both MSU and UHS that I applied to several Osteopathic Schools as well as two in-state Allopathic School (Wayne and MSU). I simply explained my reasons for applying to both, how I would choose between the schools and it basically became a non-issue.