Official 2008 Secondary Discussion Thread part 2

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Status
Not open for further replies.
Members do not see this ad.
phoenix1 said:
University of Washington? Not following you.... What's an FIB? The only thing I can come up with is Former Investment Bankers, and I'm not one of them. Or wait, maybe Formerly In Business? Guess an attorney might work for that category.... Where did you hear they like such applicants?

Anyway, as for UW, I considered it, but thought that they take very very few OOS, and those they do take show a dedication to rural/underserved areas. While continuing to volunteer at a free clinic is vital to "where I see myself in 10 years," I also want to pay off loans and will likely end up somewhere I can do that AND volunteer. Didn't think that's what UW was looking for in an OOSer. Or did I get the question completely wrong?
Click to expand...

UW = University of Wisconsin... Madison is pretty close to Chicago, about 1.5-2 hours northwest. Don't worry about the FIB comment, just um... interpret it to mean "people from illinois" I noticed you applied to MCW and just wondering why you didn't apply to UW...

BTW when spoken at least, UW meaning washington is typically pronounced U-Dub, while UW (wisconsin) is pronounced U-W (as the letter is usually pronounced)
 
For those of you filling out / who have filled out OHSU's (Oregon) secondary app, did you answer the optional supplemental information section. It says, "This information is being requested on a voluntary basis. Responding to the questions will allow these factors to be considered in the admissions process." I feel like it may actually hurt my chances if I answer them because I haven't had to overcome adversity regarding economic, education, ethnic/cultural, or family situations. And I'm not an URM.
 
drizzt3117 said:
UW = University of Wisconsin... Madison is pretty close to Chicago, about 1.5-2 hours northwest. Don't worry about the FIB comment, just um... interpret it to mean "people from illinois" I noticed you applied to MCW and just wondering why you didn't apply to UW...

BTW when spoken at least, UW meaning washington is typically pronounced U-Dub, while UW (wisconsin) is pronounced U-W (as the letter is usually pronounced)
Click to expand...

Ah. Didn't apply there because they require biochem and 2 semesters of math. I'd be willing to take biochem (thus I applied to USC), but not willing to take math. Too bad, because otherwise it sounds like a great place.

FIB..... I think someone told me what that meant last time I was in Madison. Hrmmmm.... It'll come to me. Something derogatory about people from IL who weekend in WI.
 
phoenix1 said:
Ah. Didn't apply there because they require biochem and 2 semesters of math. I'd be willing to take biochem (thus I applied to USC), but not willing to take math. Too bad, because otherwise it sounds like a great place.

FIB..... I think someone told me what that meant last time I was in Madison. Hrmmmm.... It'll come to me. Something derogatory about people from IL who weekend in WI.
Click to expand...

Ah i see, yeah, some of the requirements are a bit stringent. They wouldn't let you use AP, or count stats?

I'm sure you will figure out what it means if you keep digging but you're on the right track haha Don't worry, we love our neighbors to the south 🙂
 
When I looked at my printed application after submitting my application to USC (Keck) I found that all of my paragraph breaks had disappeared. I looked at the instructions and didn't find anything suggesting this was to be expected. Anyone else with similar problems with the Keck secondary?
 
drizzt3117 said:
Ah i see, yeah, some of the requirements are a bit stringent. They wouldn't let you use AP, or count stats?

I'm sure you will figure out what it means if you keep digging but you're on the right track haha Don't worry, we love our neighbors to the south 🙂
Click to expand...

Errr.....ummm.....never took any math in college, and no AP math credit to speak of. That would be the problem. Hence, I didn't apply to any school that requires math or calc. Had some Chicago schools required it, I would have dealt with it and taken it last year during my post-bac. But since they didn't....

Oh, and FIB - what a classy acronym. Looked it up. Need not say more.
 
phoenix1 said:
Errr.....ummm.....never took any math in college, and no AP math credit to speak of. That would be the problem. Hence, I didn't apply to any school that requires math or calc. Had some Chicago schools required it, I would have dealt with it and taken it last year during my post-bac. But since they didn't....

Oh, and FIB - what a classy acronym. Looked it up. Need not say more.
Click to expand...

Oh, don't most schools have a stats requirement? I didn't know whether they did or not. Yeah, WI ppl are a classy bunch, hope you weren't offended though, I thought most IL ppl were familiar with the acronym.
 
For Drexel, they ask you to classify your previous institutions as "junior college, undergraduate, post-baccalaureate undergraduate, or graduate."

What if you took a class at a community college after you graduated undergrad? Does this count as "junior college" or "post-baccalaureate undergraduate"? And how about if you took a community college class while still enrolled in your degree-granting undergrad institution? (like during the summer).
 
drizzt3117 said:
Oh, don't most schools have a stats requirement? I didn't know whether they did or not. Yeah, WI ppl are a classy bunch, hope you weren't offended though, I thought most IL ppl were familiar with the acronym.
Click to expand...

Luckily for me, no. None of the 26 I applied to require any math, let alone stats. Some schools require one or two classes of "math," while others require one year of calc. Some will let you substitute stats for one of the calc or math classes (some don't). While there's probably a school or two that outright requires stats, I don't recall any off the top of my head. I'm guessing that there are more schools that require biochem than stats. And I see about 7 that require biochem.

Too bad I don't know any acronyms for our neighbors to the north.... cheesehead? Doesn't really cut it. So to speak.
 
rogerwilco said:
For Drexel, they ask you to classify your previous institutions as "junior college, undergraduate, post-baccalaureate undergraduate, or graduate."

What if you took a class at a community college after you graduated undergrad? Does this count as "junior college" or "post-baccalaureate undergraduate"? And how about if you took a community college class while still enrolled in your degree-granting undergrad institution? (like during the summer).
Click to expand...

i only included the two schools i matriculated at. undergrad and grad. i only took one class at a cc (during a summer). i didnt think they would care (psych class - not a required class). they have my amcas. i dont even understand these schools that want us to list classes. it's like ummm did you take a look at that huge document i submitted to you with everything i ever did on it? so annoying.
 
prettymonkey said:
i only included the two schools i matriculated at. undergrad and grad. i only took one class at a cc (during a summer). i didnt think they would care (psych class - not a required class). they have my amcas. i dont even understand these schools that want us to list classes. it's like ummm did you take a look at that huge document i submitted to you with everything i ever did on it? so annoying.
Click to expand...





Yeah it's very annoying, and makes for a lot of extra work. Someone mentioned that when this happens (they used Columbia as the example), it may be because they only "recently" (last decade or so) started using AMCAS, and prior to that they got most of their info from you from their secondaries. Probably not so in this case, but possible for other schools that require a brand new personal statement, or all your science coursework.
 
phoenix1 said:
Luckily for me, no. None of the 26 I applied to require any math, let alone stats. Some schools require one or two classes of "math," while others require one year of calc. Some will let you substitute stats for one of the calc or math classes (some don't). While there's probably a school or two that outright requires stats, I don't recall any off the top of my head. I'm guessing that there are more schools that require biochem than stats. And I see about 7 that require biochem.

Too bad I don't know any acronyms for our neighbors to the north.... cheesehead? Doesn't really cut it. So to speak.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure if there's any commonly used acronyms to describe WI ppl but I'm sure ppl can come up with something 🙂

I guess I had always thought some sort of math was required but thats cool that many schools don't require it. I suppose it could be useful in some situations but probably not too many in MS.

Strangely enough, UW considers me a WI resident, but MCW does not. I talked to the dean of admissions there, and chatted with him for a bit and he told me it probably wouldn't matter anyways lol (I'm not sure that's a good thing, but just to keep myself in a good mood I'll assume it is)
 
drizzt3117 said:
Strangely enough, UW considers me a WI resident, but MCW does not. I talked to the dean of admissions there, and chatted with him for a bit and he told me it probably wouldn't matter anyways lol (I'm not sure that's a good thing, but just to keep myself in a good mood I'll assume it is)
Click to expand...

I would say it's definitely a good thing. He's saying that your stats are so stellar that your residency doesn't even matter. At least, that's what I'd be thinking if I were MCW!
 
Is anyone complete at AECOM (Albert Einstein), Dartmouth, Drexel, Keck USC, NYMC, NYU, SUNY Downstate, or Ohio State?
 
Hey, so Upenn says twice on their secondary that if you're not going with a committee letter, your letters "will be mailed directly by the recommender to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid."

Hm. I'm guessing this means we're not supposed to use interfolio for UPenn? Has anyone clarified this with them? Kind of a pain in the neck...
 
ShanghaiDidact said:
Hey, so Upenn says twice on their secondary that if you're not going with a committee letter, your letters "will be mailed directly by the recommender to the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid."

Hm. I'm guessing this means we're not supposed to use interfolio for UPenn? Has anyone clarified this with them? Kind of a pain in the neck...
Click to expand...

I used VirtualEvals to send them a packet of letters from my school electronically (just like Interfolio), and it registered on my status page just fine.
 
Surf Rx said:
Is anyone complete at AECOM (Albert Einstein), Dartmouth, Drexel, Keck USC, NYMC, NYU, SUNY Downstate, or Ohio State?
Click to expand...

i was complete at Dartmouth on 7/17. i received an e-mail saying that my application was complete.
 
Surf Rx said:
Is anyone complete at AECOM (Albert Einstein), Dartmouth, Drexel, Keck USC, NYMC, NYU, SUNY Downstate, or Ohio State?
Click to expand...

Yeah. I submitted my secondary to NYU on 7/19 and received an email that I was complete on 7/27. I submitted to USC on 7/25 and all of the items were checked off on 8/06.

Not sure how we know we're complete at Drexel. My status page says that my supplemental was "finalized" on 8/08 (and my photo and payment received on 8/08 too), but I have no idea if that means they've downloaded my LORs from VE yet or not (there is nothing on the page about LORs). Does anyone know how Drexel lets you know when you're complete?
 
phoenix1 said:
Yeah. I submitted my secondary to NYU on 7/19 and received an email that I was complete on 7/27. I submitted to USC on 7/25 and all of the items were checked off on 8/06.

Not sure how we know we're complete at Drexel. My status page says that my supplemental was "finalized" on 8/08 (and my photo and payment received on 8/08 too), but I have no idea if that means they've downloaded my LORs from VE yet or not (there is nothing on the page about LORs). Does anyone know how Drexel lets you know when you're complete?
Click to expand...

phoenix,

weren't the course requirements for USC hard to meet? I thought they required biochem and molecular biology...? Good luck with your application here though! (employee of USC)
 
My status page reads:

Our records indicate that your Secondary Application has been received, but it has not been determined whether your application is complete or not at this time. Once that determination has been made, you will be notified via email.

I submitted Aug. 1. When did you submit and when did your status page change?
 
drizzt3117 said:
phoenix,

weren't the course requirements for USC hard to meet? I thought they required biochem and molecular biology...? Good luck with your application here though! (employee of USC)
Click to expand...

Funny thing is, I happened to take two summer courses of Molecular Cellular Biology at Columbia Univ. about 12 years ago for kicks. Never thought it'd come in handy for anything (especially since that was pretty much my only science class in undergrad before my postbac this past year). Pretty neat to be able to put that old class to some use! As for biochem, yeah, I'd have to take that. But I checked with USC, and so long as its completed prior to matriculation it'd be fine. So, I figure if I get an acceptance or waitlist, I'll take it for spring semester, or in the first summer session next summer before matriculating. That's actually the only school I applied to that requires a course I really don't have. I went to UCLA for grad school and have very fond memories of LA (it grew on me by the end of my third year there). Of course, not applying to UCLA because they require calc!

The only other school I'm not so sure of regarding requirements is UIC. They require two psych classes and one sociology or anthropology, but I've heard from varying sources that sometimes they'll take a different combination of those classes. Also, perhaps I can argue my way into getting a law school class or ethics class or even a study abroad class counted for their behavioral science requirement. But if they won't budge, that would probably be a reason not to go to UIC if I'm accepted somewhere else I like. I really don't relish shelling out the dough or the time to take psych 102 (already have 101) or a sociology class at this point.

I see you mentioned that you're working at USC. What's your opinion of the med school/campus/area? It's silly to admit, but I've never been to the USC campus.
 
phoenix1 said:
Funny thing is, I happened to take two summer courses of Molecular Cellular Biology at Columbia Univ. about 12 years ago for kicks. Never thought it'd come in handy for anything (especially since that was pretty much my only science class in undergrad before my postbac this past year). Pretty neat to be able to put that old class to some use! As for biochem, yeah, I'd have to take that. But I checked with USC, and so long as its completed prior to matriculation it'd be fine. So, I figure if I get an acceptance or waitlist, I'll take it for spring semester, or in the first summer session next summer before matriculating. That's actually the only school I applied to that requires a course I really don't have. I went to UCLA for grad school and have very fond memories of LA (it grew on me by the end of my third year there). Of course, not applying to UCLA because they require calc!
Click to expand...

You did postbac at NW?

I see you mentioned that you're working at USC. What's your opinion of the med school/campus/area? It's silly to admit, but I've never been to the USC campus.
Click to expand...

Well, there are two campuses, the UPC (University Park Campus) which is in South-Central LA, and not particularly safe, although it's somewhat nice looking, and the HSC (Health Sciences Campus) which is where USC Med School and LA County Hospital are, in Lincoln Heights, which is somewhat nicer. I work at HSC and it's pretty safe, the environment is pretty nice, and the students seem to have a pretty good time. The new LA County Hospital is opening this year, which is good, the biggest complaint about USC before was the crappy facilities at the old LACH. There are plenty of nearby places to live that are pretty nice and not particularly expensive and pretty cheap. I live in Pasadena, where I imagine a lot of other USC med students live, and it's a pretty nice neighborhood with even a slight urban feel to it, unlike most of LA. Anyways, to sum it up, I like the campus and SC is one of my top choices.
 
drizzt3117 said:
You did postbac at NW?



Well, there are two campuses, the UPC (University Park Campus) which is in South-Central LA, and not particularly safe, although it's somewhat nice looking, and the HSC (Health Sciences Campus) which is where USC Med School and LA County Hospital are, in Lincoln Heights, which is somewhat nicer. I work at HSC and it's pretty safe, the environment is pretty nice, and the students seem to have a pretty good time. The new LA County Hospital is opening this year, which is good, the biggest complaint about USC before was the crappy facilities at the old LACH. There are plenty of nearby places to live that are pretty nice and not particularly expensive and pretty cheap. I live in Pasadena, where I imagine a lot of other USC med students live, and it's a pretty nice neighborhood with even a slight urban feel to it, unlike most of LA. Anyways, to sum it up, I like the campus and SC is one of my top choices.
Click to expand...

Nope, post-bac at Loyola for various reasons (scheduling and the fact that NU was requiring that I take math and a recent bio class PRIOR to starting their program - sheesh). Yeah, I thought Pasadena was great. Generally, how many minutes is it from Pasadena to the med school?
 
phoenix1 said:
Nope, post-bac at Loyola for various reasons (scheduling and the fact that NU was requiring that I take math and a recent bio class PRIOR to starting their program - sheesh). Yeah, I thought Pasadena was great. Generally, how many minutes is it from Pasadena to the med school?
Click to expand...

15-20 min depending on how schizophrenic the traffic lights are.

I shadowed a general surgeon that did post-bac, followed by med school at Loyola, FWIW...
 
drizzt3117 said:
15-20 min depending on how schizophrenic the traffic lights are.

I shadowed a general surgeon that did post-bac, followed by med school at Loyola, FWIW...
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm really hoping I have a good shot at Loyola, and that they count that I did my post-bac there for something. Other than the location outside of the city, it sounds like an ideal med school with almost creepily happy med students (or so I've heard). But I have yet to actually journey out to Maywood to see it in person.

Anyway, USC just went up another notch in appeal. I had no idea med students could conveniently live in Pasadena. I can totally see my dog and I happily trotting down the streets of Pasadena in the winter. Not having to deal with the Chicago winters might make up for having to go back to take undergrad biochem. But to be honest, I think my MCAT's a bit low for USC. But we'll see.
 
Email from Emory just now:

We are happy to report that we have upgraded the online Emory Supplemental Application for 2008 and will be able to accept credit cards (VISA and MasterCard) for payment of our $90 application fee.

Testing of the new site is now underway. We appreciate your patience as we continue to work with our programmers to fine-tune this additional upgrade.

The 2008 Emory Supplemental Application site should be live within the next few weeks. We will send you more details as soon as possible.

Stay tuned!

Emory University School of Medicine
Office of Admissions
 
phoenix1 said:
Yeah, I'm really hoping I have a good shot at Loyola, and that they count that I did my post-bac there for something. Other than the location outside of the city, it sounds like an ideal med school with almost creepily happy med students (or so I've heard). But I have yet to actually journey out to Maywood to see it in person.

Anyway, USC just went up another notch in appeal. I had no idea med students could conveniently live in Pasadena. I can totally see my dog and I happily trotting down the streets of Pasadena in the winter. Not having to deal with the Chicago winters might make up for having to go back to take undergrad biochem. But to be honest, I think my MCAT's a bit low for USC. But we'll see.
Click to expand...

SC is a great school. The one thing I have heard is that they strongly favor ppl with a connection to the school (which is one of the reasons I chose to work here). A lot of people did the SC postbac just to try to get into Keck, but I have heard mixed things about it. We'll see what happens, I suppose.

Yeah, USC students live in Alhambra, Pasadena, Monterey Park, LA (north east cities, like Silverlake, Echo Park, Glendale) all over really. I know a few students that live in Santa Monica and other beach cities as well but I'm not sure if it's worth the commute to live on the beach.
 
yaaaaaay I have finally received the university of toledo's secondary... do they screen apps....it seems like they do on their website... I was a little nervous I wasn't going to get one.... and I know it has been mentioned but does drexel screen??? I still haven't received theirs...

Mel🙂
 
dancinRN1022 said:
yaaaaaay I have finally received the university of toledo's secondary... do they screen apps....it seems like they do on their website... I was a little nervous I wasn't going to get one.... and I know it has been mentioned but does drexel screen??? I still haven't received theirs...

Mel🙂
Click to expand...

Nope, Drexel doesn't screen. They're just sending the secondary out in weirdly timed batches.
 
dancinRN1022 said:
yaaaaaay I have finally received the university of toledo's secondary... do they screen apps....it seems like they do on their website... I was a little nervous I wasn't going to get one.... and I know it has been mentioned but does drexel screen??? I still haven't received theirs...

Mel🙂
Click to expand...

Same here. And I'm OOS with a low MCAT. Much relief because I already did the secondary not realizing there is a screen.
 
for anyone who applied to MCW:

I was filling out the secondary, but they dont mention the address to mail the secondaries. I plan on mailing it through Interfolio. Interfolio, seems like doesnt have MCW on their electronic send list, so they would have to mail it. Now i just need the address to mail it to. Help please?
 
Regarding Loyola Chicago-Stritch:

I know they screen, so if I haven't gotten a secondary yet (verified 3 weeks ago) is it safe to assume that I'm not going to?

Just curious. It's only one of a few left that I'm waiting for (among them being Drexel and Upstate, and they're being weird).
 
sportstownusa said:
for anyone who applied to MCW:

I was filling out the secondary, but they dont mention the address to mail the secondaries. I plan on mailing it through Interfolio. Interfolio, seems like doesnt have MCW on their electronic send list, so they would have to mail it. Now i just need the address to mail it to. Help please?
Click to expand...

I thought MCW had an online app? That's what I used.

As for letters, log onto their online system, they have instructions there I believe.
 
so do you think nursing is a service activity??...they ask you to explain which service activity do you think you has had the most impact on someone else?? or do you think they mean one in which I don't get paid for??

Mel🙂
 
ssquared said:
Regarding Loyola Chicago-Stritch:

I know they screen, so if I haven't gotten a secondary yet (verified 3 weeks ago) is it safe to assume that I'm not going to?
Click to expand...

You can always call them and ask... I wouldn't necessarily assume you weren't going to get one b/c you haven't yet. BTW, its physically mailed.
 
Surf Rx said:
Is anyone complete at AECOM (Albert Einstein), Dartmouth, Drexel, Keck USC, NYMC, NYU, SUNY Downstate, or Ohio State?
Click to expand...

I called AECOM, they're not looking at anything until everything is set for the class starting this fall.

I am complete at NYU and SUNY Downstate, still waiting on Drexel and NYMC to notify me that I'm complete though. I didn't apply to the others.
 
Surf Rx said:
Is anyone complete at AECOM (Albert Einstein), Dartmouth, Drexel, Keck USC, NYMC, NYU, SUNY Downstate, or Ohio State?
Click to expand...


i was complete at NYMC on 8/7. i checked on my application status page.
 
wutwinb said:
i was complete at NYMC on 8/7. i checked on my application status page.
Click to expand...
How did you send in your LORs to NYMC? I submitted my secondary the same day as you but I'm still not complete (unless it was updated in the last several hours since I checked around noon).
 
doinmybest5840 said:
How did you send in your LORs to NYMC? I submitted my secondary the same day as you but I'm still not complete (unless it was updated in the last several hours since I checked around noon).
Click to expand...


my school sent my LORs via VirtualEval on 7/11.
 
how are people tackling questions like "Please describe yourself and your medical career as you see it 10 years from now."? I don't have even a general specialty that I'm leaning towards, and that's making it really hard for me to find something to write about without it being complete BS 🙁
 
1. I'm pretty sure this is a given, but I'll ask anyway. If you're invited to do a secondary, can you send it in before your primary gets verified?

2. And are there schools that do not send out invitations and expect you to just fill out their secondaries?

Thanks.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

wysdoc
  • Sticky
*~*~*~* Official TMDSAS Questions Thread 2025-2026 *~*~*~*~*
2 3 4
Replies
180
Views
13K
thepl.eb
T
chilly_md
  • Sticky
*~*~*~* Official AMCAS Questions Thread 2025-2026 *~*~*~*
2
Replies
86
Views
11K
chilly_md
chilly_md
chilly_md
~*~*~*~*~* Official Letters of Evaluation Questions Thread 2025-2026 *~*~*~*~*~
2
Replies
70
Views
4K
chilly_md
chilly_md
F
Missing part on secondary
Replies
3
Views
1K
futureMD2321
F
chilly_md
*~*~*~* Official AMCAS Questions Thread 2024-2025 *~*~*~*
Replies
24
Views
9K
diltiazemm
diltiazemm
Top