SFSU Formal Post-Bacc 2013

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And definitely don't take my word for it -- I would give them a call to see for sure. They are all really nice and seem to want to help as much as possible.
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Did anyone else apply to Mills? My SF interview is this weekend, and if I get in it's between those two. SFSU seems like a good compromise between Mills and East Bay.
 
I was wondering if anyone knew about what medical schools SFSU postbacc students(AETs) were accepted to after completing the program? And were the accepted right after program completion?
 
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I have an interview there this Saturday! Who else gonna be there?
 
neuronerddd said:
I was wondering if anyone knew about what medical schools SFSU postbacc students(AETs) were accepted to after completing the program? And were the accepted right after program completion?
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Maybe you should post your question in a fourth thread? :laugh:

"Success Rate: Now that the CCT is over six years old, we have accumulated sufficient data on acceptance rates. From the 2007-2008 to the 2010-2011 application cycle, 60 of 75 Formal Post-Bac applicants were accepted into medical, dental, podiatry, nursing or veterinary medical schools, an overall success rate of 80%. We expect this high rate of success to continue into future cohorts. Although we have little data pertaining to the AET, which was recently established, our Dental Post-Bac Program, which also works with academic enhancers, may be a good predictive model; it has a success rate of about 90%."

Source: http://online.sfsu.edu/brothman/formal_program/summary.html

They don't post any specific data on schools so I would recommend calling them with your specific questions.
 
I got in! CCT Cohort 8 :) I'm looking forward to meeting everybody. Good luck!
 
Me too! CCT Cohort 8 - look forward to meeting everyone, a little nervous about going back to school, and now I have 2 months to make the big move because I'm an ocean away! eek! :D
 
Hi all! I interviewed last Saturday and also received a final admission offer today! I will be entering CCT Cohort 8. I am looking forward to meeting everyone at Chem Boot Camp! :)
 
I interviewed in person :) Not taking chem bootcamp (currently finishing up gen chem in JC) but I'll see all of you for sure in the required math bootcamp!
 
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I got in!! Now to figure out housing. If anyone else who's heard back is starting to wonder about where they're going to live... PM me. I am relocating from Portland, OR. Going to be quite the task to do in under 2 months!! :)
 
As someone who went through the absolute horror of relocating to SF and finding housing a year ago, I cannot stress enough: be prepared for the hunt. Getting a sublease for the first month my partner and I were here was the best decision we ever made: it gave us time to orient ourselves and a place to call home for the long apartment hunting process. If you want to live in SF count on spending at least a couple of weeks apartment hunting and competing with IT professionals for housing. Get your credit report in order and be ready to put down a deposit on the spot. Daly City and the Lake Merced area are much less competitive and close to campus. East Bay is also less competitive and cheaper, but entails a long commute. Also -- Craigslist scams are rampant -- I consider myself pretty savvy after the last year, but in looking for an apartment this year was almost scammed a couple of times. If it looks too good to be true (1br apartment in North Beach for $1400!) It probably is. I don't mean to scare anybody, but these are things I wish somebody had told us when we moved here, and the housing climate has only gotten worse since then. Gook luck!
 
Just interviewed yesterday! It was very relaxed and not a stressful experience. There was some down time before, between, and after interviews, so it was great to talk with the other applicants!

@Scienceiskewl, when did you interview? I'm reading to much into little details, like how you posted this message the day after I interviewed. A small part of me is thinking maybe you interviewed the same day as me and they just sent out notices and since I have not gotten an email, I have been rejected. This is going to be a long waiting period..... =/
 
I would not be worried! From what it sounds like, they put much more energy into initially screening our applications than they do into "weeding out" people through the interview. Honestly I think by the time you are invited for interview, they are pretty sure about you already. Like you noted yesterday, it is designed to be low stress and allows the admissions committee to put a name to a face. I interviewed last Saturday, so it took over a week for me to hear back. I got really stressed out that it was taking so long, but now I am super excited!
 
Just got the acceptance email!!! A great weight has been lifted off my chest! See you other AET's this summer!! =)
 
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Congratulations!

Have any of the CCT's who interviewed on 4/13 heard back re decisions?
 
They emailed me @ abt 1pm today. I'M IN!!! I'm just so glad I have somewhere to go to this year!
 
Just heard as well! About 5 minutes ago! Excited to start studying (and more) with you all in June!
 
Congrats to everyone who got accepted! I interviewed 4/13 and just heard back today that I was in! Is anyone else deciding between SFSU and other programs?
 
Lawrencems said:
Congrats to everyone who got accepted! I interviewed 4/13 and just heard back today that I was in! Is anyone else deciding between SFSU and other programs?
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Yes. And it's harder than I expected it to be...
 
I really do not want to pay 1500 for rent a month to live alone, unless i absolutely have to...

is anyone else looking for a roommate in the program?!? I anticipate to move by May 15- june1, and stick around for at least a 1 year lease...

this living situation stuff definitely seems challenging.
 
Yah rent blows in SF!

I am curious to hear what people find for living situations and rent.

There are some very shady areas I wouldn't want to rent in.
 
sabs said:
I really do not want to pay 1500 for rent a month to live alone, unless i absolutely have to...

is anyone else looking for a roommate in the program?!? I anticipate to move by May 15- june1, and stick around for at least a 1 year lease...

this living situation stuff definitely seems challenging.
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I'm looking for roommates and hope to move by end of May - PM me :)
 
Definitely would be interested in living with some fellow post bacs! (PM sent )

90 % sure its going to be SFSU, other options are Harvard ex, and Colombia. If anyone has insight or is in a similar situation I'd love to chat ....my eyes are exhausted from reading everything I can dig up. Unfortunately, had to do Skype so missed some of the info they might have shared at the in person interview. I am famiiliar with SFSU as I completed myin BA there, feel free to PM me if you need info on housing stuff I'd be glad to share my experience for whatever it is worth!
 
Anybody mail their letter of intent? I sent mine last week.

If so, did you get a course schedule yet? I'm curious to see what classes are available during the summer. =)
 
I also mailed my letter of intent last week. Still waiting for info re: registration, course schedule.
 
One of the best times all year to find housing near sfsu is this upcoming month. Plenty of seniors are graduating and leaving in June, so I recommend that you start looking now and see if you can get a place lined up for a June move-in date.
 
safe to say i will be getting a rejection letter from the mail. I didn't interview yet so I'll apply for next year again... Btw for those that applied to East Bay, is the GRE required? or am I looking into the masters..
 
I mailed in my letter of intent and it was received. I'm waiting to hear about the course schedule as well. Has anybody had contact with the financial aid office yet? I'm anxious to get the ball rolling on that. I already completed and sent in my FAFSA.
 
FYI, I received two emails from Luna this evening re: the Formal Post Bac google group and summer course info.
 
ALA1022 said:
FYI, I received two emails from Luna this evening re: the Formal Post Bac google group and summer course info.
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I noticed you are pre-dental. Was this email only for pre-dents or did it include CCT/AETs? Just curious because I'm CCT and haven't received anything regarding class schedules yet :) I'm going to email today about financial aid, but also just to be sure I'm not missing anything.
 
I'm in the formal post bac program (CCT cohort #8) but interested in pursuing dentistry, not medicine. :)
 
On interview day, you hang out with everyone in a classroom and usually hear from one or more of the program coordinators. You go to 2 individual interviews and have a one on one conversation for half an hour or so each time. The interviewer is often a current student or recent graduate of the post bac program.

The interviews seem to be more about getting a feel for your personality and giving you a chance to address questions they might have about your background and goals. They're not designed to be stressful or weed people out. If you're invited to an interview, it means that they already like you on paper (meaning they think you will be successful in the program), and your chances of getting in are pretty good. If you don't get accepted after an interview, you can talk to an advisor about strengthening your application and/or academic readiness for the next cycle, and your chances can improve a lot.

You should definitely be prepared to answer the question, "Why do you want to become a doctor/dentist/vet/etc?" That's a question you'll have to answer a lot in the future!
 
I met with my advisor today to put together my schedule for the summer. I won't be taking gen chem with the rest of the CCT because I will have completed the series by the time the semester begins, so I had to make sure I could take something else. Anyway, it was a really great experience! The campus was lovely, I really enjoyed meeting my advisor (she was very attentive and helpful), and I don't have to worry about the classes I want filling up. Anyway . . . just feeling really good about the program right now and the semester starting soon. Is anybody here going to take Cell Biology over the summer?
 
Great teacher/student ratio too
 
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Hello everyone! I have taken 3 semesters here at SFSU as an AET, will be applying to medical schools this cycle. I would be happy to answer any questions ya'll have about classes, scheduling, the advisors, SF, etc...

neuronerddd said:
I was wondering if anyone knew about what medical schools SFSU postbacc students(AETs) were accepted to after completing the program? And were the accepted right after program completion?
Click to expand...

People have gotten accepted anywhere and everywhere.
CCTs usually have high GPAs to begin with, so with a 3.8+ at SFSU and a decent MCAT, they usually get into really good schools all over the nation (i.e. all the UCs, top 10, Ivies, you name it).
AETs usually come in with scarred GPAs and it's usually more limited. But some schools AETs have gotten into in last year's and this year's cycle include places like BU, Case Western, UCs, lots of lower tier MD schools, and many DO schools.
 
@Huskydock, what types of opportunities do post-bacc's do while taking classes. Is there any chance for research? I haven't done any as an undergrad and would like to get involved with that. Thanks!
 
huskydock said:
Hello everyone! I have taken 3 semesters here at SFSU as an AET, will be applying to medical schools this cycle. I would be happy to answer any questions ya'll have about classes, scheduling, the advisors, SF, etc...



People have gotten accepted anywhere and everywhere.
CCTs usually have high GPAs to begin with, so with a 3.8+ at SFSU and a decent MCAT, they usually get into really good schools all over the nation (i.e. all the UCs, top 10, Ivies, you name it).
AETs usually come in with scarred GPAs and it's usually more limited. But some schools AETs have gotten into in last year's and this year's cycle include places like BU, Case Western, UCs, lots of lower tier MD schools, and many DO schools.
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Would you recommend volunteering anywhere while you're taking classes?

Also to anyone for the upcoming summer semester....Why do they recommend taking only 9 units during the summer? Is it so that students can acclimate to the school? I'm asking because for summer loan, i've read i needed to take at least 12 to be able to receive 100% of the award
 
enamel88 said:
Would you recommend volunteering anywhere while you're taking classes?

Also to anyone for the upcoming summer semester....Why do they recommend taking only 9 units during the summer? Is it so that students can acclimate to the school? I'm asking because for summer loan, i've read i needed to take at least 12 to be able to receive 100% of the award
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Depends on your position. As an AET, if you already have lots of volunteering, I'd suggest against it since you're here to improve your grades and should take the time to do so. Although, I personally volunteered anyway because I wanted to do something medically-related and see patients, keep fresh in a way, during all the drudgery of school. It's easy to lose sight of what you're working so damn hard for, so I did volunteering to keep focused =).

If you're a CCT, then most certainly you should volunteer because you'll need it for med school admission success. However, I'd probably hold off until the second semester, just to make sure you're acclimated to the schooling.

Volunteering opportunities in SF are plentiful. There are tons of clinics around the city geared towards serving the underserved (although positions are very limited). Most SFSU post-bacs volunteer at CPMC Davies (in Hayes Valley), SFGH, or UCSF. If you have a car, you'd have more options as you could drive out to Oakland for Highland, or Alta Bates, or Berkeley's Suitcase Clinic, or even down to Stanford.

Each class is 3 units. Personally, I took 9 units in the summer. 3 semester classes condensed into 10 weeks will keep you plenty busy. I'm sure they recommend only 9 units because that way, you don't overwhelm yourself and get anything lower than all A/A-'s. That would defeat the purpose of a post-bacc. Do what you think you're capable of, but don't be afraid to take it easy. You can up your units during the year.


MedHopeful09 said:
@Huskydock, what types of opportunities do post-bacc's do while taking classes. Is there any chance for research? I haven't done any as an undergrad and would like to get involved with that. Thanks!
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Look above for clinical volunteering opportunities. If you have a car, you can obtain research positions anywhere around the bay, i.e. Stanford, UC Berkeley. However, if you're limited to the city, it's okay because there are MANY opportunities to do research in SF. UCSF Parnassus, Mission Bay, Mt. Zion (for cancer research), and SFGH (mostly for emergency medicine clinical research) come to mind. Just make sure that you're not compromising your grades for the research. The best way to go about things is to look at the UCSF Department of X (whatever specialty or subject you think you're interested in), find the faculty page and it'll usually have a small description of their research interests. Just email them and ask to volunteer, have a CV prepared. I know many people who have had success with this method. UCSF Parnassus is only a 10 minute drive or 30 minute public transit ride away from SFSU.
 
Thanks husky for the really good info. Were you part of the aet? How are the classes compared to undergradscience courses?
 
Hey everybody!

Speaking from the CCT perspective, I'm just finishing the program. As a CCT, it's a real challenge to try to fit research, clinical experience, etc. into 2 years while you're also taking all of the core science classes, especially if you're essentially building your resume and science education from scratch like I was. However, if you don't do these extracurriculars while taking classes you'll either be applying to medical school without those experiences or waiting an extra year to build your resume. Each choice has its own pros and cons, and it's ultimately your decision (with input from your advisers) as to which one is going to make you the strongest applicant you can be.

According to some med school deans of admission, they'd prefer an applicant with one or two really committed experiences in which the applicant made a lasting impact as a leader in an organization over a "box checker" applicant who sort of participated in a little bit of every type of experience. You'll also get much better letters of recommendation from the former than the latter path. I think if you follow your interests and passions you will be in good shape in two years, even if you don't end up checking off every box on the application. Non-clinical leadership experiences from your previous life also count and interest admissions people, which is part of the advantage of being a CCT.

A reality of research and clinical experience is that we're untrained students who are entering a very technical and highly regulated field, so the opportunities available to us initially are going to be things like filing paperwork, bringing people coffee, distributing surveys, washing beakers, telling people to eat more vegetables, etc. If you stick with a place long enough, though, you might find opportunities open up, they may teach you some new skills, and you'll find that you get the experience you need to solidify your understanding of the health profession and to solidify your application. If you want to go this route, start early, pick a place where you care about what they do, and stick with it. But also study and get good grades! If the extracurriculars are going to bring down your grades, consider doing them after the classes. Grades are really important, because medical schools are first and foremost concerned with whether the people they admit will successfully make it through 4 years of intense education and get accepted into residencies. That's why the advice you'll get from the advisers is so conservative--they know that it is very hard to fix a GPA brought down by a low grade, while it is easy to do extracurriculars later.

One more thing... post-bacs tend to have interesting backgrounds, nice personalities, and good people skills--those go a long way, and they might make up for weaknesses in science and clinical experience, depending on what schools you apply to. The point is that we can't easily compare ourselves to premed undergrads who might have built up awesome resumes and transcripts over 4+ years, but do not have the maturity and diversity of experience that many post-bacs have.

In any case, you're all on a good path, and I hope you get as much out of this program as I have! Let me know if you have other questions.
 
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Excellent input from Matt above.

enamel88 said:
Thanks husky for the really good info. Were you part of the aet? How are the classes compared to undergradscience courses?
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I am an AET. However, it's weird because I'm actually an AET and CCT hybrid, since I had done most of the sciences, albeit not all. As an AET, you have a ton of flexibility to take ANY classes you need, whether it's a retake or completely new.

In terms of class difficulty, it varies. I come from a fairly cutthroat "pre-med" environment in a competitive UC where it was not uncommon to have 30% averages on orgo exams. SFSU is a nice change of pace. The classes certainly aren't easy. You'll still have to learn the same material and be tested. However, I would say that overall, the exams are very fair. Usually the averages for most exams fall in the high 70s to the high 80s, depending on how nice your professor is. Most people do pretty well, considering post-bacc is that last ditch effort for AETs to pull off good grades for an upward trend.

tl;dr: Classes won't demoralize you like a UC or particularly tough undergrad, but you still have to work hard to get good grades.
 
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