Secondary and Interviews

[bigballer27]

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How much time do secondaries take out of your summer? i want to take 2 classes this summer(1 each session) to save myself a full semester of my 4th year (save some $$), but will i be able to do this and apply at the same time?....im taking my mcat april 17th

also, i want to continue to do the research im doing, but does it matter anymore after i apply? like do i need to log my hours and stuff anymore or just go whenever i want to, because if im getting secondaries/interview invites then cant i just ignore that stuff cuz it wont affect my chances anymore?


im a little confused on these topics, please help!

 

[Hifey]

How much time do secondaries take out of your summer? i want to take 2 classes this summer(1 each session) to save myself a full semester of my 4th year (save some $$), but will i be able to do this and apply at the same time?....im taking my mcat april 17th

also, i want to continue to do the research im doing, but does it matter anymore after i apply? like do i need to log my hours and stuff anymore or just go whenever i want to, because if im getting secondaries/interview invites then cant i just ignore that stuff cuz it wont affect my chances anymore?


im a little confused on these topics, please help!

I can't talk to you about your research but it is possible to take classes and fill out secondaries...I did it last summer with 1 class/session and two sessions for the summer.

 

[metallica81788]

I didn't do either (I did work 40hrs/wk), but it's definitely possible.

On my day off, I would just sit down with the essays I had and write the whole thing out. Then I would let it sit for a day and revise it if necessary and I sent most of mine within 4 days of receiving them.

It really helps to have the questions in advance, even if you don't write anything (like I did). You can also use the same answer for multiple secondaries if the questions are similar and you like your answer.

 

[MiniMoo]

I worked 40 hours/week and took 2 classes while filling out secondaries, so it's definitely doable. On weekends, I would stay in basically all day and cram out essays. It was possible to finish 2-3 secondaries on a Saturday or Sunday. Getting essay questions ahead of time definitely helps as well. I would say the actual work of writing the essays isn't that bad, but burnout can be a problem, especially if you end up applying to 25+ schools like I did. So try to pace yourself. But like the poster above me said, you can recycle a lot of material for different schools, so that helps.

 

[Trexate]

Only apply to 4 schools. Then realize you wouldn't want to go to one of them even if you got accepted. Now you're down to 3.

You'd be amazed at how easy it is to fill out secondaries when there are only three of them to worry about.

Obviously how many schools you're applying to will determine how big of a pain in the ass it is. Shouldn't be too big of a problem though.

Personally, I wouldn't slack on the research until you get in. I'd rather do extra, 'unnecessary' work than look like a quitter next cycle.