Official Umdnj-som Class Of 2011

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munchkin910

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HI EVERYONE

Congratulations on getting acceptance to UMDNJ-SOM!! I figure I'll start this since no one else has!

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:clap: Congrats Munchkin! I would almost do anything to be in your position. So are you planning on matriculating?

I haven't sent in my deposit yet, but I am strongly leaning towards marticulating.

I hope you hear about your acceptance soon!! We can be classmates !:)
 
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I'm waitlisted. does that count? :confused:
 
i'm a current 1st yr and just wanted 2 say congrats. if u have any q's, i can try and answer them as well.
 
i'm a current 1st yr and just wanted 2 say congrats. if u have any q's, i can try and answer them as well.

Thanks!

How are you enjoying your first year? Is it difficult to find housing in the area?
 
Thanks!

How are you enjoying your first year? Is it difficult to find housing in the area?

1st yr is all good. still trying 2 work out my groove but its a work in progress and hopefully, i will b a disciplined studying machine b4 2nd yr and not the crammer that i have been my whole life.

we r in the suburbs so there's alot of diff types of living situations around but i would suggest once u decide u wanna come, 2 start looking early (if u got in right now, u prob have some time) cuz if u look late (i was someone who got off the WL), alot of places r taken (i didn't get 2 move in til half a month after school started but lucky me, my parents live in cherry hill). ppl also meet potential roommates at accepted students day but sdn is great 2 "meet" classmates early and find roommates. i got permission from paula watkins 2 put 2gether sth 2 help incoming students w/ looking 4 apts...last yr, all we got was just a list of places. i want 2 put 2gether an apt search guide w/ comments from current students on their personal experience w/ their complexes and email addresses so that u guys can email them...but we won't work on it til next semester.

so some advice now. look early and always tell them u r a umdnj student and ask 4 student discounts. alot of the complexes will give u sth like 1-2 month(s) off and/or reduced security deposits. also if u have pets (like i do), certain places don't allow pets or require u 2 declaw ur cats, etc. so make sure u find out if u need 2 know. i think that the most of my class is concentrated at echelon glen, the village, the landings (at pine lake), and stonington court. also, do a drive by at night 2 c what the situation is like - u know, like no drug deals in the parking lot, the complex/parking lot is well lit, stuff like that.
 
1st yr is all good. still trying 2 work out my groove but its a work in progress and hopefully, i will b a disciplined studying machine b4 2nd yr and not the crammer that i have been my whole life.

we r in the suburbs so there's alot of diff types of living situations around but i would suggest once u decide u wanna come, 2 start looking early (if u got in right now, u prob have some time) cuz if u look late (i was someone who got off the WL), alot of places r taken (i didn't get 2 move in til half a month after school started but lucky me, my parents live in cherry hill). ppl also meet potential roommates at accepted students day but sdn is great 2 "meet" classmates early and find roommates. i got permission from paula watkins 2 put 2gether sth 2 help incoming students w/ looking 4 apts...last yr, all we got was just a list of places. i want 2 put 2gether an apt search guide w/ comments from current students on their personal experience w/ their complexes and email addresses so that u guys can email them...but we won't work on it til next semester.

so some advice now. look early and always tell them u r a umdnj student and ask 4 student discounts. alot of the complexes will give u sth like 1-2 month(s) off and/or reduced security deposits. also if u have pets (like i do), certain places don't allow pets or require u 2 declaw ur cats, etc. so make sure u find out if u need 2 know. i think that the most of my class is concentrated at echelon glen, the village, the landings (at pine lake), and stonington court. also, do a drive by at night 2 c what the situation is like - u know, like no drug deals in the parking lot, the complex/parking lot is well lit, stuff like that.

Thanks for your advice.

But did you say drug dealers??? :eek: Which area would you say is the safest???
 
Thanks for your advice.

But did you say drug dealers??? :eek: Which area would you say is the safest???

i was half kidding about the drug dealers. i have heard of some drug deals going down late at night at some of the complexes in their parking lots but dunno if its rumor or truth. voorhees (echelon glen or the village, both complexes r literally right next 2 each other and 5 min from school) is very safe but more expensive. marlton and cherry hill r similar but farther away (15 min). stratford (where the school is) seems pretty safe (although i've heard numerous times 2 stay away from woodmere, they're not pet friendly so i didn't consider it) and lindenwold has some sketchy areas but u can find places that r ok. i checked out police reports 4 the various complexes in lindenwold cuz i was looking at stonington court at 1st but they had 500+ calls 2 the police last yr (though i wouldn't call stonington an unsafe complex) which my parents didn't like but what did it 4 me was that i heard their new management sux which seems true. someone there had their roof collapse cuz even though they warned mgmt that their ceiling leaked every time it rained nothing got done. my friend also had 2 move 2 another apt in their complex cuz he had a similar (w/o the roof collapsing) situation. pine hill is not as safe i think but it dep really on what u call safe. so like i said, really do a drive by late at night at the places u r considering and figure out if u feel safe in that situation cuz u might b coming home late at night from studying. i would stay away from anything on gibbsboro road. i heard that there was a shooting at landings but most of my friends who live there don't feel threatened and it was an isolated incident (could've happened anywhere really). and sth i like 2 do whenever i move, call up the po-pos (police) and ask their opinion - here they're not allowed 2 tell u cuz someone working at an apt complex pretended 2 b a student and when the cop said sth bad about the complex where this person worked, i guess they tried 2 sue...the manager at timber ridge (townhomes, u need a roommate unless u can afford it cuz they're all 2 bdrms) had a copy of the police report 4 all the complexes in lindenwold so that is how i saw it. i think the police told me 2 look online on the nj state website, i can look 4 the web address 4 u but don't have time now since we have genetics final exam on mon and i haven't studied yet. but i can look later.
 
I got accepted to UMDNJ last week. This is definitely my top choice so far. I am just wondering if the school is in some kind of financial trouble because the tour guides said they have budget cut this year and wasn't able to offer the interviewee lunch. Hopefully the situation will not be bad enough to affect the quality of education here. thanks
 
I got accepted to UMDNJ last week. This is definitely my top choice so far. I am just wondering if the school is in some kind of financial trouble because the tour guides said they have budget cut this year and wasn't able to offer the interviewee lunch. Hopefully the situation will not be bad enough to affect the quality of education here. thanks


Yea, I'm also skeptical about that too. The tour guides said that the school was also cutting back on gym memberships as well as other things i can't remember right now.
 
has not had an impact on education at this point and definitely should not in the future. our new dean is excellent and this place is committed to our education first and foremost.

J
 
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Hi,

I am a first year, so please feel free to field any questions and I will try to check this when I can. Lunch is still provided for the interviews. There was about a week while the cafeteria switched from one vendor to another, and they didn't know how to process the free lunches... somehow that rumor got started. Yes, there has been budget cuts- but the school has been really accomodating and making sure that the students have what they need. The YMCA membership use to be free, but now we can choose to pay 120/year for full access - which isn't bad, if you just signed up it would be 520/year. Also, the school has a gym, but since it is open to the public you do have to buy a membership to it, I think that is about 80/year. But anyways, I think the biggest point to make is that the budget cuts haven't had an impact on education. Hope you come here :)

Yea, I'm also skeptical about that too. The tour guides said that the school was also cutting back on gym memberships as well as other things i can't remember right now.
 
Hi,

I am a first year, so please feel free to field any questions and I will try to check this when I can. Lunch is still provided for the interviews. There was about a week while the cafeteria switched from one vendor to another, and they didn't know how to process the free lunches... somehow that rumor got started. Yes, there has been budget cuts- but the school has been really accomodating and making sure that the students have what they need. The YMCA membership use to be free, but now we can choose to pay 120/year for full access - which isn't bad, if you just signed up it would be 520/year. Also, the school has a gym, but since it is open to the public you do have to buy a membership to it, I think that is about 80/year. But anyways, I think the biggest point to make is that the budget cuts haven't had an impact on education. Hope you come here :)

Thank yous for your input! How are you enjoying your first year??
 
Thank yous for your input! How are you enjoying your first year??

Hi all!
I'm also a first year here, and definitely agree with all that ames said :)

As far as enjoying the first year...well...studying is less than fun, but when you have the great classmates that I do, it's not so bad. and don't think that you can't have a life while you're in med school bc we definitely have our fair share of fun times :)
I'm from the chicago area so moving to NJ was a big transition, but I'm happy with my choice to come here(though I was very happy to make my way back home for thanksgiving!)
so anyway, feel free to ask if you have questions!
 
So, do you know anything like, the percentage of students that matched into their 1st and/or 1st & 2nd choice last year? All that kind of stuff I can't seem to find about this school, like match lists, board scores, etc., etc... Kinda hard to compare to other schools without it. So far the only numbers I can compare are class size, and tuition!! :laugh:
BTW, from the earlier conversation about this, we got no lunches at our interview, either...
 
i have a copy of last yr's match list (and maybe the year b4) in excel 4mat that i got from the school. it doesn't say whether they got their 1st/2nd choice, just where they matched and what specialty. i don't know the exact numbers, but i've heard that we generally beat the natl average on comlex. the school provides a comlex boot camp course 4 u during ur 2nd yr and i think they get 5-6 weeks off 2 study 4 the comlex. there was a glitch w/ the lunches 4 a while b/t how the office could pay the cafeteria - they were changing over the old coupons or sth - but they r now again serving lunches. PM me 4 the match list if u like.

So, do you know anything like, the percentage of students that matched into their 1st and/or 1st & 2nd choice last year? All that kind of stuff I can't seem to find about this school, like match lists, board scores, etc., etc... Kinda hard to compare to other schools without it. So far the only numbers I can compare are class size, and tuition!! :laugh:
BTW, from the earlier conversation about this, we got no lunches at our interview, either...
 
Paula mentioned that usually about 90% match into their 1st choice. That seems amazingly high, if it's true! WOW!

Are there apartments around the school that are NOT in large complexes??
 
Paula mentioned that usually about 90% match into their 1st choice. That seems amazingly high, if it's true! WOW!

Are there apartments around the school that are NOT in large complexes??

what do u mean by 'large' exactly?
 
what do u mean by 'large' exactly?

Well, I really mean are there apartments that aren't a part of any sized complex. You know - do like, 2 or 3 family houses exist where you rent the upstairs, or something?! It seems like all I saw while there were complexes.
 
Well, I really mean are there apartments that aren't a part of any sized complex. You know - do like, 2 or 3 family houses exist where you rent the upstairs, or something?! It seems like all I saw while there were complexes.

since the school is in suburbia, there r bound 2 b alot of complexes but i do know ppl who live in condos, houses, or rent part of a house. so if u really want a situation like that, u can find them but u might need 2 look harder and some of them might not b as close 2 school. quite a few students live at timber ridge which r 2 floor townhouses w/ 2 bdrms. really dep on what u like. i lived in houses where i either rented a room or a floor since sr yr in college but i don't find a prob w/ living in a complex now. although b4 this yr, i've almost always been on the top floor exc once so i have 2 deal w/ hearing the guy above me walk sometimes but it doesn't bother me since i'm a night owl. the admissions office usu releases a sort of 'classifieds' later where students looking 4 roommate list their living situations.
 
So the all important question is, how far away from the school is the nearest Starbucks?? I have to get my hot chocolate fix there, and only there will do! :D
 
So the all important question is, how far away from the school is the nearest Starbucks?? I have to get my hot chocolate fix there, and only there will do! :D

there r like 4-5 diff starbucks, all w/in 10-15 min drive from school. i actually prefer panera bread which is 5 min from school and nearer 2 my apt. much cozier and free internet! some other students also go 2 coffeeworks cafe which is also about 5 min from school. we also have a borders and bn close by, both w/ coffee shops. i'm not sure about in the opposite (non-voorhees/marlton) direction from school what coffee shops there r but i'm sure they're aplenty. :D

and if u're in2 coffee, as a class fundraiser, the class of 2010 has a automatic coffee/tea maker installed in the student lounge. i think its 75 cents and no cleanup. u just pick up the flavor, put the little covered cup w/ the coffee/tea contents in2 the machine, put in ur money and it makes the beverage 4 u and fills a styrofoam cup and then cleans up the little plastic cup that held the grounds. sorry no hot chocolate.

dude, i think my cat is bigger than ur dog (is it a bichon?)
 
there r like 4-5 diff starbucks, all w/in 10-15 min drive from school. i actually prefer panera bread which is 5 min from school and nearer 2 my apt. much cozier and free internet! some other students also go 2 coffeeworks cafe which is also about 5 min from school. we also have a borders and bn close by, both w/ coffee shops. i'm not sure about in the opposite (non-voorhees/marlton) direction from school what coffee shops there r but i'm sure they're aplenty. :D

and if u're in2 coffee, as a class fundraiser, the class of 2010 has a automatic coffee/tea maker installed in the student lounge. i think its 75 cents and no cleanup. u just pick up the flavor, put the little covered cup w/ the coffee/tea contents in2 the machine, put in ur money and it makes the beverage 4 u and fills a styrofoam cup and then cleans up the little plastic cup that held the grounds. sorry no hot chocolate.

dude, i think my cat is bigger than ur dog (is it a bichon?)

Cool - I can survive there, then. :laugh:
Many cats are bigger than my dog - he weighs 8 lbs, height from floor to shoulder is about 12". He's a poodle, but he can jump 4 feet high - no kidding. Circus dog. :laugh: Oh yeah, and he's bitten me a few times & I've had to get stitches in my face from it. But he's mostly very sweet...:laugh:
 
does anyone know when is a good time to start looking for housing if i plan to move in april/may?
 
does anyone know when is a good time to start looking for housing if i plan to move in april/may?


exactly the question i had! also, if we plan on moving in earlier in the summer how should we go about finding roommates?
 
Will anyone be moving from central Jersey?
 
Cool - I can survive there, then. :laugh:
Many cats are bigger than my dog - he weighs 8 lbs, height from floor to shoulder is about 12". He's a poodle, but he can jump 4 feet high - no kidding. Circus dog. :laugh: Oh yeah, and he's bitten me a few times & I've had to get stitches in my face from it. But he's mostly very sweet...:laugh:

dang..stitches? yeah, both my porker cats r over 10 lbs. so is the poodle coming?
 
exactly the question i had! also, if we plan on moving in earlier in the summer how should we go about finding roommates?

u can find roommates: 1) on sdn, 2) get a list of ppl looking 4 roommates from the office (i think it might b 2 early 4 this just yet), 3) meet them at accepted students day.

alot of complexes don't know availabilities 2 many months in advance so i wouldn't say start at the beginning of the yr or anything like that. but a good 2-3 months in advance should suffice. maybe march/april/may if u wanna start slow and take ur time and r planning 2 move in in july/aug (white coat ceremony is usu last sun in july). i got off WL so i looked in june 4 july/aug and that made things harder since alot of places were taken. i think summer months prob also have less leases open (esp if the complexes knew in april/may and someone has already reserved the apt even though someone won't move out til july). call around, i totally went over my minutes doing this :) just 2 test the waters if u like. don't 4get 2 ask 4 student discounts (they'll want a copy of ur acceptance letter) cuz alot of places give 1-2 months off rent, reduced security deposits, etc. i ended up having 2 move in after school started which is ok cuz my parents live nearby but i know someone else who had 2 find someone 2 stay w/ cuz he wasn't from close 2 here and also had 2 move in later. also, if u're looking for 2-3 bdrms, those r more of a commodity and harder 2 find the later u look. i looked 4 a classmate who lived in cali and alot of places didn't have 2 bdrm openings in june (and weren't gonna have any open til sept). so if u're gonna have roommates, i'd look a little earlier than most. i'm working on sth 2 help u guys out w/ this but not til after finals so i'll tell u when the details r more confirmed.
 
dang..stitches? yeah, both my porker cats r over 10 lbs. so is the poodle coming?

Yah - he's really dr jekyl & mr hyde. Totally sweet, gentle, affectionate one minute - then he's chomping on something like he's cujo the next. I have scars on my fingers, my nose (2 stitches this summer!) and my lip (2 stitches several years ago...). He's really my parents dog, so he's staying here. Believe it or not, I will miss him a lot!! :oops: A sucker for punishment.
 
Yah - he's really dr jekyl & mr hyde. Totally sweet, gentle, affectionate one minute - then he's chomping on something like he's cujo the next. I have scars on my fingers, my nose (2 stitches this summer!) and my lip (2 stitches several years ago...). He's really my parents dog, so he's staying here. Believe it or not, I will miss him a lot!! :oops: A sucker for punishment.

cujo might b a more approp name. don't worry, my friend from school has a cat he refers 2 as 'psycho cat' but i know he loves and spoils her anywayz
 
cujo might b a more approp name. don't worry, my friend from school has a cat he refers 2 as 'psycho cat' but i know he loves and spoils her anywayz

I am actually thinking about getting a puppy now so he could be trained by the time I have to move...the only thing is I feel a little guilty leaving the poor dog alone all day while I am in classes
 
I am actually thinking about getting a puppy now so he could be trained by the time I have to move...the only thing is I feel a little guilty leaving the poor dog alone all day while I am in classes

i don't go 2 classes much so it works out 4 me. but i have classmates who do go 2 class and have dogs (some of them r even crate trained). quite a few ppl have pets so it is doable. only reason i couldn't get a dog is that i'm lazy and i'd feel guilty about not walking it.

oh, some of the apts have weight/breed (pits, rotts) limitations on dogs
 
I am actually thinking about getting a puppy now so he could be trained by the time I have to move...the only thing is I feel a little guilty leaving the poor dog alone all day while I am in classes

Yah - dogs are very family (pack) oriented and don't like being left alone for long periods of time. Lots of people do it, and the dog manages, but it may not be the kindest thing for the doggie. When you're in 3rd & 4th year, and internship - you'll probably have a lot of trouble with that...
 
did anyone else get the letter welcoming them to the class of 2010? :laugh:
 
did anyone else get the letter welcoming them to the class of 2010? :laugh:

hahaha, yup...i thought i was going crazy but it def says 2010...i feel bad for paula having to handle the entire admissions process...especially with all the phonecalls from crazy students begging for their decisions
 
hahaha, yup...i thought i was going crazy but it def says 2010...i feel bad for paula having to handle the entire admissions process...especially with all the phonecalls from crazy students begging for their decisions

When did you guys get a letter? I haven't gotten mine yet? Was it a snail mail?

I'm just feeling really paranoid, I've already turned down all my other acceptances and hoping nothing goes wrong from now till matriculating at UMDNJ. :scared:
 
When did you guys get a letter? I haven't gotten mine yet? Was it a snail mail?

I'm just feeling really paranoid, I've already turned down all my other acceptances and hoping nothing goes wrong from now till matriculating at UMDNJ. :scared:

i think it was a few weeks ago...maybe a week or so after their last meeting
 
Eh - no letter for me but they should have gotten the check by now! Oh well.
 
When did you guys get a letter? I haven't gotten mine yet? Was it a snail mail?

I'm just feeling really paranoid, I've already turned down all my other acceptances and hoping nothing goes wrong from now till matriculating at UMDNJ. :scared:

wait no i am confused...the welcoming letter is from last week I believe...I can't really think straight right now, bad bad times
 
wait no i am confused...the welcoming letter is from last week I believe...I can't really think straight right now, bad bad times

Do you mean the acceptance letter? or is this a letter after the acceptance letter?:confused:
 
Do you mean the acceptance letter? or is this a letter after the acceptance letter?:confused:

Nope it was a separate letter that said the following...

Congratulations on your acceptance to the UMDNJ SOM Class 2010 :laugh: !!!! We are excited to have you as a member of the SOM family !!!

All members of our student body are assigned a University ID Number as social security numbers are no longer used to identify students and staff.

Your university ID number is ...................

Please keep this number in a safe location and refer to it when accessing university services as email, grades and student account information.

If you have any questions pertaining to your University Identification Number , or any other questions as you prepare for classes in August, please fell free to contact the Admissions office at 856-566-7050. We look forward to hearing from you.


I called on monday to ask if they received my check and Jennifer (i think that was her name...) told me that she would email me and never did :(
 
Nope it was a separate letter that said the following...

Congratulations on your acceptance to the UMDNJ SOM Class 2010 :laugh: !!!! We are excited to have you as a member of the SOM family !!!

All members of our student body are assigned a University ID Number as social security numbers are no longer used to identify students and staff.

Your university ID number is ...................

Please keep this number in a safe location and refer to it when accessing university services as email, grades and student account information.

If you have any questions pertaining to your University Identification Number , or any other questions as you prepare for classes in August, please fell free to contact the Admissions office at 856-566-7050. We look forward to hearing from you.


I called on monday to ask if they received my check and Jennifer (i think that was her name...) told me that she would email me and never did :(

actually, that's jen shevlin, paula's secretary who's been on maternity leave since summer. now, that she's back and liz cruz is at her old desk, its kinda funny cuz they set up a large desk 4 jen in the room where the interviewing students have 2 wait and watch the intro 2 umndj video. the desk just looks outta place there, and the fact that their r students in her "office"...hee hee.

anyway, jen is the person we all dealt w/ last summer when applied and she's awesome so i'm sure she'll get back 2 u. if not, just gently remind her cuz i think things might b a little crazy cuz of the holidays and trying 2 get things done b4 the holiday deadlines.
 
Nope it was a separate letter that said the following...

Congratulations on your acceptance to the UMDNJ SOM Class 2010 :laugh: !!!! We are excited to have you as a member of the SOM family !!!

All members of our student body are assigned a University ID Number as social security numbers are no longer used to identify students and staff.

Your university ID number is ...................

Please keep this number in a safe location and refer to it when accessing university services as email, grades and student account information.

If you have any questions pertaining to your University Identification Number , or any other questions as you prepare for classes in August, please fell free to contact the Admissions office at 856-566-7050. We look forward to hearing from you.


I called on monday to ask if they received my check and Jennifer (i think that was her name...) told me that she would email me and never did :(

Really?? I have not received mine yet. :scared: I sent in my deposit early November. All I've got so far was an email to set up my email account and an account on UMDNJ Portal.
 
im excited to see who will be joining us next monday!! good luck to those of you who are waiting!!
 
actually, that's jen shevlin, paula's secretary who's been on maternity leave since summer. now, that she's back and liz cruz is at her old desk, its kinda funny cuz they set up a large desk 4 jen in the room where the interviewing students have 2 wait and watch the intro 2 umndj video. the desk just looks outta place there, and the fact that their r students in her "office"...hee hee.

anyway, jen is the person we all dealt w/ last summer when applied and she's awesome so i'm sure she'll get back 2 u. if not, just gently remind her cuz i think things might b a little crazy cuz of the holidays and trying 2 get things done b4 the holiday deadlines.

ooohhh so that's why that random out of place cubicle was in the middle of the room...i kept wondering why anyone would have their office in the middle of the waiting area :)

it's perfectly fine if she takes her time to get back to me...they deposited my check yesterday so im no longer paranoid that it got lost in the mail! good luck on finals! when will u be done for the holidays?? im sure that u are all looking fwd to the break....
 
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