my semi-solicited advice

[Lulu8]

Hi adcomm

There's been a whole thread on women's interview suits, but I wanted to get your oh-so-valuable opinion. Do you think a skirt suit or pants suit comes across better to interviewers? (provided they both look equally good on the interviewee.) I can't decide if pants are better because they are more serious and professional or if a skirt is better because it is more conservative and traditional.

Thanks for your advice!!

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[DE12MD]

great thread - - bump!

 

[adcomm]

Hello,
I have a dilemma on my hands that I need help with:
I requested LORs from: my Korean teacher, the dean of my college, and the director of the clinic that I volunteer in (a physician and a harvard grad), back in May. I explained the whole medical school application process to them and said that I was taking the august MCAT. The LORs from my Korean teacher and the dean (she knows me personally because I worked as her assistant the summer before starting college) were complete in late July, but I never got the letter from the Physician.
Last week I got an email response from her (finally) and she explained that she's still dealing with the fact that her husband had passed away last year and that she might take a lot longer to write it. She had volunteered to write my LOR b/c she knew I was applying when I talked to her before. Basically, I can't really count on her letter. I feel really bad for her.
I do have other people that I can request LORs from, namely my research PI. He's REALLY nice. He wrote me a good mid-quarter evaluation. But my question is:
1. How do I tell him it's a late request without jeapordizing the content of the LOR,
while
2. Not telling him he's my last resort?
3. If the LORs from the people I have listed above are strong, is there a problem with the fact that I don't have a LOR, from, say ,my Ochem prof?

Are these letters that are going to your school's committee? Or does your school not have one. Honestly, if you know your PI well and he's as nice as you say he is, I might go the "honesty" route. Don't mention the fact that he's a backup- tell him a letter writer you had lined up a long time ago fell on some hard times, and most human beings will understand. If you've been a good student and are a decent person it won't hurt your LOR- **** happens and everyone knows it. If your LORs are strong they're strong, but it is a good idea to have someone that can attest to your ability to learn science among them- sounds like your PI would be perfect for this. Don't wait any longer.

 

[adcomm]

Hey adcomm,
I was wondering what your response would be to a mistake in 1 of 7 LORs. One professor wrote a sentance saying that I have a twin sister who is sick that I take care of. This is blatantly untrue as I do not even have a sister and it is not mentioned anywhere else in my application. Obviously, he made a mistake and I know that he was working on several letters at the same time as mine.
My question is how bad does this make me look?
I am really concerned, so thank you for your help.

7 LORs? Dear god. Apparently something happened between when I applied and now.

It really sucks when that happens with your letter- it's an honest mistake, but it makes the person look like they don't know you. If you think there's a delicate way to have him rewrite it, do so, otherwise just address it if/when it comes up in interview (didn't you waive right to view anyway?). Most people/interviewers know that this happens from time to time, even with the most well-meaning letter writers.

 

[adcomm]

Hi adcomm

There's been a whole thread on women's interview suits, but I wanted to get your oh-so-valuable opinion. Do you think a skirt suit or pants suit comes across better to interviewers? (provided they both look equally good on the interviewee.) I can't decide if pants are better because they are more serious and professional or if a skirt is better because it is more conservative and traditional.

Thanks for your advice!!

I think as long as you're put-together and comfortable it will matter to very, very few interviewers. This is 2006.

 

[DE12MD]

7 LORs? Dear god. Apparently something happened between when I applied and now.

It really sucks when that happens with your letter- it's an honest mistake, but it makes the person look like they don't know you. If you think there's a delicate way to have him rewrite it, do so, otherwise just address it if/when it comes up in interview (didn't you waive right to view anyway?). Most people/interviewers know that this happens from time to time, even with the most well-meaning letter writers.

I did waive the right to view them, so there was no way for me to know. But what I was really afraid of was that it will make me look as if he didn't really know me, when that is not actually the case. I'm just glad that its not a huge deal...

 

[Andre04]

I did waive the right to view them, so there was no way for me to know. But what I was really afraid of was that it will make me look as if he didn't really know me, when that is not actually the case. I'm just glad that its not a huge deal...

How did you see the mistake then?

 

[DE12MD]

How did you see the mistake then?

It was brought up in my first interview.

 

[juiceman311]

adcomm:

The PI of my undergrad research lab had to have open heart surgery this summer and has been unable to write my LOR as his doctors have not cleared him to work yet. Anyways, my letter committee decided to send my packet of letters to all my schools anyways without his with a letter stating his health condition and that they would forward his letter as soon as he is healthy enough to write it. Fastforward 1.5 months to now, and he hasn't been able to do it, and schools have considered me 'Complete' since they received the packet, but they're still waiting for that letter. Now, the lab has decided that my research mentor (post-doc) will write the letter on the PI's letterhead (with the PI reading it over, approving it, and possibly signing it--not sure) with a brief explanation at the top that the PI is not healthy enough to do it himself, but that everything in the letter has been okay'ed by him first.

My question: will med schools be turned off by this, or will they more-or-less understand the situation since it has been completely out of my hands? I submitted all my secondaries by mid-August, and have been considered 'Complete' at almost every school since late-August.

 

[Andre04]

It was brought up in my first interview.

Whoa!

But you weren't even slightly tempted to go along with it?

 

[DE12MD]

Whoa!

But you weren't even slightly tempted to go along with it?

haha not really. im a pretty honest person, so i just told him that a mistake was made and then we brushed it off. i was so stunned when he told me about it that i couldn't have lied if i wanted to anyway...

 

[adcomm]

adcomm:

The PI of my undergrad research lab had to have open heart surgery this summer and has been unable to write my LOR as his doctors have not cleared him to work yet. Anyways, my letter committee decided to send my packet of letters to all my schools anyways without his with a letter stating his health condition and that they would forward his letter as soon as he is healthy enough to write it. Fastforward 1.5 months to now, and he hasn't been able to do it, and schools have considered me 'Complete' since they received the packet, but they're still waiting for that letter. Now, the lab has decided that my research mentor (post-doc) will write the letter on the PI's letterhead (with the PI reading it over, approving it, and possibly signing it--not sure) with a brief explanation at the top that the PI is not healthy enough to do it himself, but that everything in the letter has been okay'ed by him first.

My question: will med schools be turned off by this, or will they more-or-less understand the situation since it has been completely out of my hands? I submitted all my secondaries by mid-August, and have been considered 'Complete' at almost every school since late-August.

I think that'd be fine. Honestly I think most places would just have the post-doc write it and the PI read and sign it, with no explanation. But you can't really ask for that. Any variation of it will be understood.

 

[juiceman311]

Okay cool. Well, this PI is a relatively "well known" name in the healthfield for his work, or at least he tries to make us believe. So, getting aletter from him tends to be a 'big deal' I suppose, and he likes to edit the mentors' letters since his name carries weight. He won't write an unqualified applicant an amazing letter for Harvard, but will write an amazing one for their state school (if he/she is qualified), so he takes his time w/ letters with care and detail -- hence why I've had to wait for 2 months now.

 

[Carl Weathers]

How is it viewed if you get a cover letter from a premed advisor, as opposed to a committee letter? Does this happen a lot? My advisor said it doesn't matter much either way, but I don't know to be honest. In this context, the cover letter is just my recomendations all put together in one package, with not much input from the committee. Thanks for any help.

 

[justin5790]

Hi adcomm, I know everybody's sick of these, but I am 25 , caucasianand am applying for the first time this year, 32 MCAT, probably around a 3.65 overall, 3.6 science/math gpa. I don't have many ec's, because I've worked throughout college. I work as an anesthesia tech at a hospital (no patient contact), have volunteered for Big Brothers Big Sisters for about 7-8 months, have been a research assistant in a genetics lab for a year, no publications (although I have been told I will be listed on one, but probably will not be published for quite a while-it's a huge project), have shadowed some anesthesiologists through my job, member of the bio club, play violin, and that's about all I put on my app. I have worked in restaurants (currently at a 5 star for 10 years, and have been a kitchen manager. I'm fairly sure I stand a pretty good chance at my state school, but would like to go somewhere else. Looking at the profiles of the people on this site really makes me look kind of boring (to me anyway). I think I interview well, but don't know how many I'll get..what do you think...is my only option going to be a state school? Thanks for your insight!!! Also, I'm a little late applying..I submitted 8/15, waiting for review

 

[BNSN]

How important is it to join AED? I have absolutely zero interest in that society and what they do. Literally none. I am perfectly able to explore the medical field on my own terms.

I have lined up a wonderful research opportunity at a large, very well-funded neuroscience lab at my university (UAB) and I am doing a volunteer activity that I am very passionate about -- telephone counselor at a suicide hotline. The former takes up 15 hours a week; the latter, around 5.

Between those hours and the journal club I am a member of, I have no time to do anything else.

Is it better for me to do lots of things superficially? Or should I do these three activities indepth and commit a lot of time to them? I want to opt for the latter -- have a very short resume with 3 serious activities that I (hopefully) will excel at.

Any advice? Am I doing stupid ECs?

Thanks

 

[adcomm]

How is it viewed if you get a cover letter from a premed advisor, as opposed to a committee letter? Does this happen a lot? My advisor said it doesn't matter much either way, but I don't know to be honest. In this context, the cover letter is just my recomendations all put together in one package, with not much input from the committee. Thanks for any help.

if you have a committee, the letter should come from the committee.

that being said, sometimes the committee letter is nothing more than the recommendations in one package. but it should be with their stamp on it.

 

[adcomm]

Hi adcomm, I know everybody's sick of these, but I am 25 , caucasianand am applying for the first time this year, 32 MCAT, probably around a 3.65 overall, 3.6 science/math gpa. I don't have many ec's, because I've worked throughout college. I work as an anesthesia tech at a hospital (no patient contact), have volunteered for Big Brothers Big Sisters for about 7-8 months, have been a research assistant in a genetics lab for a year, no publications (although I have been told I will be listed on one, but probably will not be published for quite a while-it's a huge project), have shadowed some anesthesiologists through my job, member of the bio club, play violin, and that's about all I put on my app. I have worked in restaurants (currently at a 5 star for 10 years, and have been a kitchen manager. I'm fairly sure I stand a pretty good chance at my state school, but would like to go somewhere else. Looking at the profiles of the people on this site really makes me look kind of boring (to me anyway). I think I interview well, but don't know how many I'll get..what do you think...is my only option going to be a state school? Thanks for your insight!!! Also, I'm a little late applying..I submitted 8/15, waiting for review

SDN is not reality, SDN is not reality, SDN is not reality...

 

[adcomm]

How important is it to join AED? I have absolutely zero interest in that society and what they do. Literally none. I am perfectly able to explore the medical field on my own terms.

I have lined up a wonderful research opportunity at a large, very well-funded neuroscience lab at my university (UAB) and I am doing a volunteer activity that I am very passionate about -- telephone counselor at a suicide hotline. The former takes up 15 hours a week; the latter, around 5.

Between those hours and the journal club I am a member of, I have no time to do anything else.

Is it better for me to do lots of things superficially? Or should I do these three activities indepth and commit a lot of time to them? I want to opt for the latter -- have a very short resume with 3 serious activities that I (hopefully) will excel at.

Any advice? Am I doing stupid ECs?

Thanks

I had no interest in what AED was doing at my school, so I got together with a friend and pretty much took it over. We made it do fun and interesting things and got to know the head of the committee well in the meantime. You shouldn't do anything "superficially" just for the sake of doing it, but I would encourage you to keep your options open- maybe team up with AED and do a suicide awareness table at the student union, take a break and spend a summer doing another kind of volunteering, etc.

 

[Disinence2]

Hello,

In response to your “SDN is not reality” comment I would like a little clarification. This website has been consistently stressing me out for a little over a year because my application does not even remotely compare to the average SDN network. What percentage of extreme over achiever type applicants would you say you review each year. What if I don’t have a 40+ on my MCAT or a 4.0 with 3 years working at a patient care tech while curing aids. Could you tell me a little about the average applicants?

haha I basically just need reassurance that not all applicants have a 30+ gpa and perfect EC’s

this site gets to me sometimes!!

 

[ForbiddenComma]

Here's a few random tips I've picked up from my own experience, those of my classmates, residents and an adcom member I know... disclaimer: as always these are opinions and don't apply to every school. Always research your target schools beforehand to see what they want. It's not a bad thing if you aren't a match with school X... that just means you are a better match for school Y.

a) You are more than your GPA + MCAT. Whether you like it or not. There are endless tales of woe from 3.8GPA/33MCAT people who got shot down from all their picks, as well as miracle stories from applicants who are weak on paper, and yet had "something" that piqued the interest of an adcom member. Try to differentiate yourself from the herd.

b) Interviewers re-use the same generic questions for most of the interview... "why do you want to be a doctor" and all that. But that does not make them unimportant questions. Try to have an answer that is non-generic, and yet believable.

c) Of course, don't be TOO honest. If your goal in life is "Set up a bunch of derm clinics and milk rich old ladies dry to fund my private yacht," you may want to keep that to yourself. Common sense, people!

d) The MCAT verbal section is often the most important section of the test, in the eyes of adcoms. It tests your logic and how quickly you learn things from unfamiliar material. This is usually more relevant to med school than, say, the physics of a swinging pendulum.

e) Some schools are primary-care oriented. Others are research-oriented. Yes, every school wants to be everything, but the vast majority fall into one category or the other. It is not hard to tell where a particular school is focused. Oodles of clinical volunteer experience or Doctors Without Borders trips will impress some schools more, and first authorships are better for the others. (although neither will hurt for any school of course!) D.O. schools are almost universally primary-care oriented.

f) Writing style, skill, vocabulary and creativity count in your essays. Of course, they logically "shouldn't" since it's medicine we're interested in, not English Lit. But the people who read em are human. They get floods of boring biographies that do nothing but rattle off achievements and E/Cs that are already on the person's AMCAS app -- do something different!

g) and take all advice, including mine, with a grain of salt. There are so many variables that it's impossible to control for them all. Good luck.

 

[steppwolf]

SDN is not reality, SDN is not reality, SDN is not reality...

Twilight zone, maybe?

 

[vashka]

I would like to know how early is early? Does someone really have to apply in June or can it go until a September verification of the application? Also, I'd like to hear from an adcom what a good reason would be for switiching careers. It seems like any answer is the wrong answer and would imply the inability to commit and choose properly. Thanks.

 

[Wackie]

Dear adcomm,


How do you really view EMT's that have actually used it (ex: ER tech, 911 service)? I've heard two points of view:

1.) EMT's are a dime a dozen.

2.)OMG'z an EMT! Your acceptance letter is in the mail! (Okay maybe not so excited, but you get the point.)

Thanks for taking the time to answer all of our questions.

 

[adcomm]

Hello,

In response to your “SDN is not reality” comment I would like a little clarification. This website has been consistently stressing me out for a little over a year because my application does not even remotely compare to the average SDN network. What percentage of extreme over achiever type applicants would you say you review each year. What if I don’t have a 40+ on my MCAT or a 4.0 with 3 years working at a patient care tech while curing aids. Could you tell me a little about the average applicants?

haha I basically just need reassurance that not all applicants have a 30+ gpa and perfect EC’s

this site gets to me sometimes!!

seriously, don't let this place get to you. SDN doesn't represent the majority of med students or applicants, through every single one of the forums. I've browsed it while applying, while in basic science years, while in clinicals, while studying for the USMLE, and for better or for worse, it's filled with obsessive overacheivers who spend a lot of time on the internet (clearly I do as well, so calm down, everybody).

what I CAN tell you is that 1/3 of the applications that are "amazing" by numbers don't even make it to interview at my school. there is much more to the application than your stats. this doesn't mean we'll pick up anyone off the street, but the "average applicant" has worked hard, done well for themselves, and is a confident, mature, and altruistic person. no magic involved. the numbers take care of themselves.

if you don't have the stats that coincide with the averages at the top schools, take a second to think if you want SDN as your classmates- it's not like you don't know where the most obnoxious ones on here will end up. they'll tell you. so all you need to do is realize it's OK to not go somewhere that the average is a 40 on the MCAT- you will get an equal (and in some cases, better) medical education at the school where YOU fit best. if the average MCAT is a 31, so be it. there is a lot more to life, and medical school, than numbers.

also realize that in reality, it is usually the applicants who are strongest by numbers that get reviewed first (with 8,000 applications, you have to start somewhere...), who get interviewed first, and by virtue of that, who get offered the first acceptances. my school utilizes their waitlist heavily, knowing that most of the accepts will actually go to the waitlist because of the rolling admissions policy. so take a deep breath, realize that you'll be OK, and try to enjoy your year.

 

[adcomm]

I would like to know how early is early? Does someone really have to apply in June or can it go until a September verification of the application? Also, I'd like to hear from an adcom what a good reason would be for switiching careers. It seems like any answer is the wrong answer and would imply the inability to commit and choose properly. Thanks.

I think I submitted mine in September. Don't put it off any more, though.

Some of the reasons that get favorable reviews are "always wanted to be a doctor, but did XYZ for QRS reason. then realized I still wanted to be a doctor"
or
"became an engineer/nurse/whatever but realized I wanted more human contact/diagnostic opportunity/etc in my day"

 

[adcomm]

Dear adcomm,


How do you really view EMT's that have actually used it (ex: ER tech, 911 service)? I've heard two points of view:

1.) EMT's are a dime a dozen.

2.)OMG'z an EMT! Your acceptance letter is in the mail! (Okay maybe not so excited, but you get the point.)

Thanks for taking the time to answer all of our questions.

if you've actually used it in a meaningful way (more than taking the class and doing a half day per month with the university service) it tends to carry legitimate weight.

 

[Rafa]

Ah, question answered. Thanks adcomm.

 

[yenisha]

THANK YOU ADCOMM!!!!!!!

Your advice about the recommendation letter worked. I got a fast reply when I was honest, but the PI did ask me whether a graduate student's letter holds any weight.
I just wanted to know, if you saw a really positive letter from a GRAD student PI, would you wonder why it wasn't written by someone who already had their doctorate?

 

[adcomm]

THANK YOU ADCOMM!!!!!!!

Your advice about the recommendation letter worked. I got a fast reply when I was honest, but the PI did ask me whether a graduate student's letter holds any weight.
I just wanted to know, if you saw a really positive letter from a GRAD student PI, would you wonder why it wasn't written by someone who already had their doctorate?

I kind of don't think you told me the PI in question was a grad student. Traditionally in research lingo the PI is someone with a degree, who heads the entire lab (not a grad student). Is this the one who wrote your mid-quarter eval? Unfortunately even though that person might know you best, a degree does carry weight when it comes to letters. You should really be talking to your pre-med advisor about this, not me, because I don't know the culture and setup of the committee at your school.

 

[bdecker7]

How does your school take multiple MCAT exam sittings into account? Do you know about other schools?

eg., for theoretical exams 1 and 2,
exam 1: PS=8 VR=13 BS=12 = 33
exam 2: PS=12 VR=12 BS=11 = 35

Is the applicant's effective score:
a)37 (best score from each section)
b)34 (average)
c)35 (most recent)
d)33 and 35 (unweighted)
e)something cool that I don't even know about

 

[45408]

How important is it to join AED? I have absolutely zero interest in that society

You should've just answered your own question. Don't like it? Doesn't really help you attain your goal? Don't do it.

 

[vooweevoo]

You should've just answered your own question. Don't like it? Doesn't really help you attain your goal? Don't do it.

Not really. Don't like orgo chem? Don't do it! The issue with 90% of the questions asked has to deal with the realization that although they might not like doing it, will it help them? Nothing wrong with that, an altruism motivation isn't always required to do the "right thing". The gist of your post is on as far as you're better of doing something you like as opposed to grudgingly get through something and not getting anything out of it. But a lot of people truly are torn and for them it's hard to see things like that.

 

[45408]

Not really. Don't like orgo chem? Don't do it! The issue with 90% of the questions asked has to deal with the realization that although they might not like doing it, will it help them? Nothing wrong with that, an altruism motivation isn't always required to do the "right thing". The gist of your post is on as far as you're better of doing something you like as opposed to grudgingly get through something and not getting anything out of it. But a lot of people truly are torn and for them it's hard to see things like that.

Yes, because I was referring to prereqs.

It doesn't have to be altruistic at all - I bailed out of my boring clinical volunteering at a hospice as soon as I got a job as an EMT. Why? Because it was 100x more exciting, and I got paid. Not for any other reasons.

 

[shaggybill]

Adcomm, does your school accept pre-req's from Community Colleges? My question is how will an adcom view a student who has 2 of his pre-reqs (two semesters of gen-chem)from a CC, and would be willing to retake them again at a 4-year university during his Sr. year, but won't have them on his 4-year transcript in time for the application process? Will his application be tossed out the window? Perhaps this question is too dependent on each school, but how would you yourself view it?

 

[Disinence2]

This may have been addressed elsewhere, but is it common practice to review myspace/facebook/other online sites to try to find more information about applicants?

Not that I have anything ide like to hide...

 

[adcomm]

How does your school take multiple MCAT exam sittings into account? Do you know about other schools?

eg., for theoretical exams 1 and 2,
exam 1: PS=8 VR=13 BS=12 = 33
exam 2: PS=12 VR=12 BS=11 = 35

Is the applicant's effective score:
a)37 (best score from each section)
b)34 (average)
c)35 (most recent)
d)33 and 35 (unweighted)
e)something cool that I don't even know about

it comes up on our committee summary sheet as 35. during the presentation the interviewer might mention "second try" or whatnot, but it's usually in a favorable context. ("studied harder, retook the test and brought the score up"). if there was something disasterous (single section less than 7) on a previous attempt, it'll come up because it's a predictor of poor USMLE performance. but isn't necessarily fatal.

 

[adcomm]

Adcomm, does your school accept pre-req's from Community Colleges? My question is how will an adcom view a student who has 2 of his pre-reqs (two semesters of gen-chem)from a CC, and would be willing to retake them again at a 4-year university during his Sr. year, but won't have them on his 4-year transcript in time for the application process? Will his application be tossed out the window? Perhaps this question is too dependent on each school, but how would you yourself view it?

at my school it wouldn't kill you, as long as the rest of your transcript is solid and your MCAT section score was good. you wouldn't have to retake it.

 

[adcomm]

This may have been addressed elsewhere, but is it common practice to review myspace/facebook/other online sites to try to find more information about applicants?

Not that I have anything ide like to hide...

no. hell, only one or two people on the committee know about/read interview feedback.

 

[Mac11]

no. hell, only one or two people on the committee know about/read interview feedback.

Can you guarantee that no one will look on a facebook/myspace page? It's not that I don't trust you, its just that I keep hearing people telling me to "clean up facebook", etc.

 

[45408]

Can you guarantee that no one will look on a facebook/myspace page? It's not that I don't trust you, its just that I keep hearing people telling me to "clean up facebook", etc.

I doubt any school's policy is "DON'T LOOK AT APPLICANTS' MYSPACE," so it's always fair game. Facebook is closed to the public, but your Myspace is not (unless you change its settings). Always consider the Internet to be fair game. Try googling your name and see what comes up.

 

[liverotcod]

Can you guarantee that no one will look on a facebook/myspace page? It's not that I don't trust you, its just that I keep hearing people telling me to "clean up facebook", etc.

I'm going to look at it.

Why do you have it, if you don't want anyone to look at it?

 

[Rafa]

Try googling your name and see what comes up.

I did that, and apparently an album of mine named 'Continuum' came out just last week.

 

[adcomm]

I did that, and apparently an album of mine named 'Continuum' came out just last week.

sup, mayer

 

[45408]

I did that, and apparently an album of mine named 'Continuum' came out just last week.

that's funny - somebody put out an album called "The Sound of Revenge" in my name.

 

[stiffany]

Adcomm: So I was looking at a finalized secondary essay a little while ago (using parts of it for another essay) and I noticed two typos!

Using "lead" instead of "led"

Forgetting to delete part a word so the sentence reads "another other means" instead of "any other means"

Should I quit being a high-strung premed and stop freaking out about these errors or will this lead the admissions committee to believing I'm either A. too lazy to proof-read (I did, just missed these two errors) or B. that I have inadequate command of the English language? The particular school in question is at the top of my list (although I'd be happy to go to any school on my list).

 

[rachmoninov3]

dear adcomm,

what do you think of sending thank you notes to the people who interviewed you? I've done this for the last two times with no effect, now that my interviews when well (assistant dean saying I had a 'very good chance' and that if I got in anywhere else to call him immediately and he'd see what he could do for me at his school), I was wondering if I should send them again or not.
If I did it last time and didn't do it this time does it look bad, or do interviewers just think that thank you notes are an annoying way for applicants to try and kiss @ss?

 

[zimmie256]

dear adcomm,

what do you think of sending thank you notes to the people who interviewed you? I've done this for the last two times with no effect, now that my interviews when well (assistant dean saying I had a 'very good chance' and that if I got in anywhere else to call him immediately and he'd see what he could do for me at his school), I was wondering if I should send them again or not.
If I did it last time and didn't do it this time does it look bad, or do interviewers just think that thank you notes are an annoying way for applicants to try and kiss @ss?

Good question... And I'd like to add a follow-up. If you don't view thank you notes for interviews negatively, what do you think should be included in a good thank you note? (to make it not seem like ass-kissing while still expressing how you liked the school, enjoyed the interview and chance to learn more about the school)

 

[adcomm]

Adcomm: So I was looking at a finalized secondary essay a little while ago (using parts of it for another essay) and I noticed two typos!

Using "lead" instead of "led"

Forgetting to delete part a word so the sentence reads "another other means" instead of "any other means"

Should I quit being a high-strung premed and stop freaking out about these errors or will this lead the admissions committee to believing I'm either A. too lazy to proof-read (I did, just missed these two errors) or B. that I have inadequate command of the English language? The particular school in question is at the top of my list (although I'd be happy to go to any school on my list).

this is one where I have to agree with people who freak: there is no excuse for errors on statments, gramatical or otherwise. a secondary is less likely to kill you (the personal statement is totally unforgivable) but there is a chance it will get noticed. hope for the best, there's no reason to freak about something you no longer have control over. and next time get several other people to read it, or read it SLOWLY outloud to yourself, word by word.

 

[adcomm]

dear adcomm,

what do you think of sending thank you notes to the people who interviewed you? I've done this for the last two times with no effect, now that my interviews when well (assistant dean saying I had a 'very good chance' and that if I got in anywhere else to call him immediately and he'd see what he could do for me at his school), I was wondering if I should send them again or not.
If I did it last time and didn't do it this time does it look bad, or do interviewers just think that thank you notes are an annoying way for applicants to try and kiss @ss?

neither. it's just a nice thing to do. do it.