General Admissions & OTCAS Samuel Merritt

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Chreez

Chreez

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Has anybody heard back from this program?
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I just got an email yesterday inviting me to an interview on Dec. 5th! I have to confirm a time by Nov. 25th.
 
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for those who got an interview coming up, how are you preparing? what type of questions to expect ? thank !
 
Good luck in your interviews! The questions are ones that you should be able to answer without studying for them. They ask the same five questions for every applicant, so as to be fair.

Respectful answer: I am not independently wealthy, but I am very happy to be a current student at SMU. It is expensive, but it is also not six figures for a degree. Let me tell you some things that our money goes towards, which some have complained about not having: Our faculty, all PhDs, are wonderful, and they personally teach the classes instead of leaving it up to someone else. In fact, many of the faculty put their cell phone numbers on the syllabus so we can call if we ever have questions about our assignments. The faculty also actively works to avoid favoritism and politics; they treat us like professionals. The facilities meet our needs, and are available to students not just for class times, but any time they are needed. Our cadaver lab is amazing; other schools I considered didn't even have anatomy because of the cost, but I have learned so much more at SMU than I did in my pre-requisite classes. The school provides free, high-quality tutoring for anyone who asks for it, and has many other resources available to students who need help. I have never felt like my education was lacking, and I absolutely recommend this program to anyone who asks.

MOT4ME, you have asked this same question for at least 3 years in the Samuel Merritt topics. I understand that the only bottom line for you is the $$, and your message is clear on many different threads. I do not understand why you insert these comments into a place where people want updates about interviews and admissions.
 
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CaliKnitter said:
Good luck in your interviews! The questions are ones that you should be able to answer without studying for them. They ask the same five questions for every applicant, so as to be fair.

Respectful answer: I am not independently wealthy, but I am very happy to be a current student at SMU. It is expensive, but it is also not six figures for a degree. Let me tell you some things that our money goes towards, which some have complained about not having: Our faculty, all PhDs, are wonderful, and they personally teach the classes instead of leaving it up to someone else. In fact, many of the faculty put their cell phone numbers on the syllabus so we can call if we ever have questions about our assignments. The faculty also actively works to avoid favoritism and politics; they treat us like professionals. The facilities meet our needs, and are available to students not just for class times, but any time they are needed. Our cadaver lab is amazing; other schools I considered didn't even have anatomy because of the cost, but I have learned so much more at SMU than I did in my pre-requisite classes. The school provides free, high-quality tutoring for anyone who asks for it, and has many other resources available to students who need help. I have never felt like my education was lacking, and I absolutely recommend this program to anyone who asks.

MOT4ME, you have asked this same question for at least 3 years in the Samuel Merritt topics. I understand that the only bottom line for you is the $$, and your message is clear on many different threads. I do not understand why you insert these comments into a place where people want updates about interviews and admissions.
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I really appreciate your input, CaliKnitter! I am also preparing for the interview at Samuel Merritt on 12/5. It's great to know that I current student loves their program so much. It is a pricey program, but I've heard nothing but great things about the program. As far as the interview goes, is it a group interview, a 1-on-1 interview, or is it panel-based? Thank you so much!
 
For the interview, you will be the only interviewee in the room, but there will likely be two professors and one or two current students. Good luck!
 
CaliKnitter said:
For the interview, you will be the only interviewee in the room, but there will likely be two professors and one or two current students. Good luck!
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Thank you so much, CaliKnitter. That is really helpful. Thanks for your thoughts on Samuel Merritt's program. It really helps to know someone loves it so much
 
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Good luck to those being interviewed on Dec 5! I am also one of those people. I do have a question about the interview: what general questions might be asked? I am trying to prepare for it. Thanks.
 
Will there be a 2nd batch of invitations sent out this mid December or the emails that were sent in mid November are the final interview invitations?
 
Huckleberry Pim said:
Will there be a 2nd batch of invitations sent out this mid December or the emails that were sent in mid November are the final interview invitations?
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Yes, there are more interviews in January. Last year, I got my invitation to interview in early December.
 
CaliKnitter said:
Yes, there are more interviews in January. Last year, I got my invitation to interview in early December.
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Thank you for your response. I almost lost an ounce of hope. Obviously, my anxiety of anticipation is holding up well. I can only just remain calm and focus on other things as a distraction. Of course I would be very hurt if I get rejected.
 
Huckleberry Pim said:
Thank you for your response. I almost lost an ounce of hope. Obviously, my anxiety of anticipation is holding up well. I can only just remain calm and focus on other things as a distraction. Of course I would be very hurt if I get rejected.
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I'm hoping for an interview invite this month for January as well! On past threads it looks like people were invited around December 8th. Is SMU the only school you applied to? This process is so nerve-wracking.
 
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othopeful92 said:
I'm hoping for an interview invite this month for January as well! On past threads it looks like people were invited around December 8th. Is SMU the only school you applied to? This process is so nerve-wracking.
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Yes, it is the only school I applied so far. I recently moved to California and we live on an Air Force Base and SMU and Dominican are the only school that is near us (approximately an hour commute without traffic). Dominican MOT is a 3 year program and my wife is only assigned to be in here less than 3 years (unless she can get an extension). I'll probably apply to Dominican in case I don't get in SMU. And yes, it is nerve-wracking especially as I text this post.
 
How did the interviews go this weekend for those who participated?
 
paxanna said:
How did the interviews go this weekend for those who participated?
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I felt like it was pretty relaxed! There were two groups, split into morning and afternoon. I was in the morning group. They briefly explained that they will be offering a doctorate program and the entering class will be able to choose if they want to do the masters or doctorate (And you can wait until you're almost done with the masters to decide if you want to continue with the doctorate or not, so no pressure!). Then they introduced the staff, we had a writing sample, and then they conducted individual interviews. If you weren't interviewing, you could spend your time asking questions to current 1st and 2nd year students. The interviews were super short too - they limit it to 10 questions and there's no pressure to bring any questions to ask them. They made sure to emphasize that they don't add/dock points for asking questions. You'll be interviewed by 2 faculty and 1 or 2 current students. And you can leave as soon as your interview is done!
 
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Assuming that the 2nd batch of email invitations will be going out shortly... my heart pounds heavily.
 
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Got an invite this morning for an interview January 9th!
 
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Got mine as well! What time slot are you in? I'm 8:30
 
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January 9, but no meeting time yet.
Congratulations to all for reaching this stage. Happy Holidays and good luck to all of you!
 
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Does anyone know how many people are typically invited to interview and how many people are accepted?
 
othopeful92 said:
Does anyone know how many people are typically invited to interview and how many people are accepted?
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Hmm.. When I went to interview Dec 5th,i want to say there were at least 30 people each in the morning and afternoon groups (so at least 60 people that day?). I'm assuming it will be the same for the second interview date. I don't recall how large the cohort is though :/
 
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aliq said:
Hmm.. When I went to interview Dec 5th,i want to say there were at least 30 people each in the morning and afternoon groups (so at least 60 people that day?). I'm assuming it will be the same for the second interview date. I don't recall how large the cohort is though :/
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For 2014, the cohort was... 39. Pretty small :/ (Good for learning, not as good for getting in...)
 
othopeful92 said:
Does anyone know how many people are typically invited to interview and how many people are accepted?
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Yay! I got an email invitation to an interview as well! Jan 9th! As for the number of interview invitations, the school site says a maximum of 150 interviews.
 
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aliq said:
I felt like it was pretty relaxed! There were two groups, split into morning and afternoon. I was in the morning group. They briefly explained that they will be offering a doctorate program and the entering class will be able to choose if they want to do the masters or doctorate (And you can wait until you're almost done with the masters to decide if you want to continue with the doctorate or not, so no pressure!). Then they introduced the staff, we had a writing sample, and then they conducted individual interviews. If you weren't interviewing, you could spend your time asking questions to current 1st and 2nd year students. The interviews were super short too - they limit it to 10 questions and there's no pressure to bring any questions to ask them. They made sure to emphasize that they don't add/dock points for asking questions. You'll be interviewed by 2 faculty and 1 or 2 current students. And you can leave as soon as your interview is done!
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Hello, I have a question in regards to the writing sample during the interview! Is it OT related? Is it timed?
 
I also have an interview January 9th! Mine's at 1130! Good luck to you all!
 
arrowz said:
Hello, I have a question in regards to the writing sample during the interview! Is it OT related? Is it timed?
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I'm not too sure how much I'm allowed to divulge regarding the content of the writing sample.. It is timed. I think they gave us 45 minutes to do it, which was plenty of time. However, I will tell you that I and everyone else I talked to thought it was really straightforward and simple. I honestly wouldn't worry about it!

I wouldn't worry too much about the interview portion either. They ask the same 5 questions to each interviewee and I thought they were all pretty easy to answer. You don't really need to prep that much for it. All in all, they made the day pretty relaxing!
 
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around this time last year people were receiving early admissions decisions from the school.. has anyone heard back yet :heckyeah:?
 
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Yes, I heard back via email! :) Super happy!
Good luck to everyone interviewing in a few weeks! The interview process was really, really informative. As someone above said, it was pretty relaxed. The interview day was for you to also interview them. Many current students are present to talk about the program with you!
 
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Sorry to jump in to the thread a little late, but I received the email admissions offer on Dec. 11th. Congrats NorCalOT! Good luck to all those interviewing...like everyone has already said, the interview was really relaxed and friendly. Just be yourself and express your passion for OT!
 
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Did anyone else just get an email saying that the class is full and they didn't get in? I was invited to interview this Saturday and the email does not mention the interviews at all which I find strange.
 
paxanna said:
Did anyone else just get an email saying that the class is full and they didn't get in? I was invited to interview this Saturday and the email does not mention the interviews at all which I find strange.
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I didn't get that email! I was at the earlier interview if that makes a difference?
 
paxanna said:
Did anyone else just get an email saying that the class is full and they didn't get in? I was invited to interview this Saturday and the email does not mention the interviews at all which I find strange.
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I didn't get that email and I'm supposed to be interviewing this Saturday as well. This makes me nervous though....
 
Ok, this makes me less nervous because why would they have invited me at all only to reject me three days before the interview?
 
Just got off the phone with Drew Ward and everything is fixed. My invitation to interview was missing the line where it said to confirm your slot with the department so I never confirmed, this kicked me to the reject pile. But since it wasn't my fault I now have a slot and will be interviewing as planned on Saturday!
 
paxanna said:
Just got off the phone with Drew Ward and everything is fixed. My invitation to interview was missing the line where it said to confirm your slot with the department so I never confirmed, this kicked me to the reject pile. But since it wasn't my fault I now have a slot and will be interviewing as planned on Saturday!
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Oh good! Glad you got it cleared up. Good luck this Saturday! :)
 
Hi all! Does anyone know which room/area of the campus we are supposed to be in?

I assume the OT department, but the invitation only gave a street address and pre-interview anxiety is starting to set in a little :confused:
 
wafflesoverpancakes said:
Hi all! Does anyone know which room/area of the campus we are supposed to be in?

I assume the OT department, but the invitation only gave a street address and pre-interview anxiety is starting to set in a little :confused:
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my email says the 4th floor of the Medical Office Building (MOB)
 
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Has anyone heard back this week about admissions decisions? I'm so nervous!
 
I was accepted via email today, but I interviewed on 12/5!
I hope everyone gets good news soon!! :)
 
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