Should I withdraw my applications?

[DesireMD]

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Hi Everyone!
I haven't posted anything for some time now because I have been so busy. I just wanted some feedback regarding my situation. I am sitting here with 24 secondaries on my desk waiting to be filled out. I have no time between full time work and a full load at school. To make matters worse, I feel unbelievably discouraged. I cannot understand why. My letters of recommendation aren't going as planned and I feel like I am already at a considerable disadvantage with the timing. I am not what you might consider an overly qualified applicant. What should I do? My every thought is governed by the picture of me receiving rejection letter after letter. To make matters worse, my parents, who prefer that I do not pursue this career, are enjoying this situation. I swear if I hear how much my cousins post-dentistry school make one more time, I will

Thanks... this is a great way to vent!!!

 

[jot]

you are hardly at a disadvantage with respect to timing - sdn people are freaks with that regard (yours truly included). if you have already submitted your amcas, i would consider buckeling down and going ahead, you've already sunk in close to 1k, a pretty penny. try to do one a night - you'll still be fine with regards to timing. and remember, after a while, the questions begin to overlap. goodluck.

 

[DW]

yeah, dont be freaked out by what you see here. of course, try to get them in as early as possible, but even if you finish them by the end of september you'll probably beat half the applicant pool at least. my advice, do all the easy ones (whats your name, send a check) ones in one fell swoop. reuse essays as much as humanly possible. once you get a couple done, its really not that bad once you get into the swing of things. and start nagging your recommenders if need be.

 

[wexy]

I totally agree- sort them by no-essay/ essay and do all the non-essay ones in a night.

The number will drop signif from 24 left to do and you will feel a lot calmer when those "application is complete" emails come around.

 

[saiyagirl]

hey desireMD,
i'm with you...i just sent in amcas on aug 9th and will probably send in my secondaries next week, when i get my cash flow. plus, TWO of my recommendors bailed on vacation without sending in my recommendations...so my recs probably won't go anywhere before the end of September! dont worry, we're not late in the game....we're just fine. remember that people on SDN tend to be the ones who get everything done WAY ahead of time--and the rest of the world does it when we do

i agree with the above posters...take it one at a time, and you can definitely do the really easy secondaries first. you've already invested so much into the process, right?

as far as your qualifications--while we have to do our best, this whole thing is largely a big crapshot. i'm not overqualified at all either, but i'm gonna give it my best shot. you're definitely not alone!

good luck!

 

[Sweet Tea]

add my opinion to the above posters-- you're doing better than you think you are. separate your secondaries into essay/non-essay, send off the non-essays, and try to re-use your essays as much as you can. don't let the crazies (and yes, i am a crazy) here on SDN freak you out. slow, deep cleansing breaths, and do what you can when you can. it's too early to be freaking out (i have to keep reminding myself of that )

best of luck!!!

 

[Adcadet]

Originally posted by DesireMD
Hi Everyone!
My every thought is governed by the picture of me receiving rejection letter after letter. To make matters worse, my parents, who prefer that I do not pursue this career, are enjoying this situation. I swear if I hear how much my cousins post-dentistry school make one more time, I will

Thanks... this is a great way to vent!!!

I can relate. I went through the admissions game two years ago, and got rejected by 16 schools. It just helps to realize that you can only attend one school, so all you need is one acceptance. Rejections hurt, but there's no shame in getting rejected from any med school - they're all hard to get into. I view med school admissions as throwing darts - to win you you only need one to stick. Anything more than that is nice in that it gives you more options.

And regarding parents - just ignore them if they're not going to be supportive. But I'd let them know how you feel first as I bet they don't intend to be mean.

And yeah, SDNers tend to get stuff done way early. I was just working on an essay and pulled up my version from two years ago - it was dated late December. So this time around I'm easily 4 months earlier. I also talked to Med Col of Wisconsin the other day - they don't START interviewing people until November. So when I asked if a week delay would harm me the secretary just gave a big sign and said "no" as if she's sick of dealing with pre-meds. And who can blame her - we are crazy

Take care and good luck!
Adcadet

 

[DesireMD]

Thanks everyone! I feel better today and reading these made things even better. Thank G-d for the long weekend!!!! I get to.... drum roll please.... sit in doors and work on my secondaries....

Once again, thanks and best of luck to all of you!

 

[Ninjaboy]

It's easy to say that you not an overqualified student when you compare yourself to people on SDN. Just look at some of the stats >3.9 GPA and >40 MCAT. Even if you aren't overqualified, it doesn't make you underqualified (even underqualified applicants get in). It's easy to second guess yourself when you start getting rejections, but just like adcadet was saying, all it takes is one. That's what I'm hoping for too. As long as you are qualified that's all you need.

 

[cabruen]

We should start the ONE Acceptance Club. I know January and February will roll around here, and SDN will be flooded with posts like....

Advice Please: Hopkins or Harvard????

Should I go MD at UPenn or Md/PhD at WashU???

How do you choose between 7 acceptances???

Poll: Number of Acceptances

Should I interview at Yale -- already accepted at 3 other IVYs?



But who cares. I am hoping desperately for only one letter that starts "The admissions committee is pleased..."

One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One. One.

That is all I want.

 

[SMW]

cabruen, you are wrong about what the posts will be like in January (unless there's a big drop in sensitivity and tactfulness of SDNers from last year to this year). There will be people with multiple acceptances (but very few choosing between Hopkins and Harvard), and, while excited about their acceptances, for the most part they will be understated, considerate and helpful, and will follow the progress that everyone else is making and really cheer when people get their first and/or only acceptance. One is all most people want, but the fact of the matter is that some people are going to be wanted by multiple schools, and usually they're pretty decent people or the schools wouldn't want them. I loved being part of the SDN family last year. Hope you get that one acceptance you're hoping for as soon as possible!

DesireMD, glad to hear you're going for it. Don't let your parents get you down! Do let them know you'd appreciate a little support, though.

 

[monster2]

Originally posted by DesireMD
Hi Everyone!
I haven't posted anything for some time now because I have been so busy. I just wanted some feedback regarding my situation. I am sitting here with 24 secondaries on my desk waiting to be filled out. I have no time between full time work and a full load at school. To make matters worse, I feel unbelievably discouraged. I cannot understand why. My letters of recommendation aren't going as planned and I feel like I am already at a considerable disadvantage with the timing. I am not what you might consider an overly qualified applicant. What should I do? My every thought is governed by the picture of me receiving rejection letter after letter. To make matters worse, my parents, who prefer that I do not pursue this career, are enjoying this situation. I swear if I hear how much my cousins post-dentistry school make one more time, I will

Thanks... this is a great way to vent!!!

Vent all you want, but if this is your outlook in your quest to become a doctor, then prepare to be continually disappointed. Jeez, can't you guys get the clue that becoming a physician entails a positive attitude to the reuired tribulations and ordeals? Where's the usefulness of wasting space venting and complaining? Grow up.

 

[mystic_b]

Originally posted by monster2


Where's the usefulness of wasting space venting and complaining? Grow up.

I'm not even going to comment on the irony of that statement.

 

[DW]

ignore the troll

 

[cabruen]

SMW --

Good point. The people on this board are very kind and considerate and extremely helpful. It is a pleasure to talk with the people here. I am proud to be part of the SDN community.

 

[Katie]

Originally posted by SMW
cabruen, you are wrong about what the posts will be like in January (unless there's a big drop in sensitivity and tactfulness of SDNers from last year to this year). There will be people with multiple acceptances (but very few choosing between Hopkins and Harvard), and, while excited about their acceptances, for the most part they will be understated, considerate and helpful, and will follow the progress that everyone else is making and really cheer when people get their first and/or only acceptance. One is all most people want, but the fact of the matter is that some people are going to be wanted by multiple schools, and usually they're pretty decent people or the schools wouldn't want them. I loved being part of the SDN family last year. Hope you get that one acceptance you're hoping for as soon as possible!

DesireMD, glad to hear you're going for it. Don't let your parents get you down! Do let them know you'd appreciate a little support, though.

Um, unfortunately those who are handed acceptances at Harvard and Hopkins, etc. in the very beginning are not necessarily the kindest people; sorry to break it to ya. SMW is one of the exceptions and is very nice and helpful. I have noticed that most of those who give encouragement and applause to those who get 1 or 2 waitlist acceptances for the most part are awesome people like Dra. Foxy who got into their first choice off the waitlist with <30 MCAT. I think that there still are good people on SDN, but there will always be people who think they are the bomb because they have multiple acceptances, perfect grades, and close to perfect MCAT scores, and a fiancee/spouse. Personally, I think everyone on here ought to be proud of their accomplishments regardless of what anyone says. I may not have a sig. other, I may have just squeaked by in Anatomy last year and spent a non-productive summer sitting on my @$$, and I may be attending a school that is not Ivy League and gets bashed on here all the time. But, I am very happy, proud, and blessed to be at a great school in a wonderful city, and I am going to be a doc. good luck, and never give up (I applied twice and a friend of mine in class applied 3X before he got in)!

 

[Curci]

Tufts gets bashed all the time? About what? I always heard that they had a good reputation. ^^;

 

[Katie]

Originally posted by Curci
Tufts gets bashed all the time? About what? I always heard that they had a good reputation. ^^;

Tufts is a great school with a great reputation (top 50 and nationally known). Unfortunately a number of ignorant and/or arrogant pre-meds on here see fit to go on about how there is no way Tufts is worth the money (as if nearly every private school in the country isn't outrageously expensive) and how it is the worst school in the Boston area (not true, but this is somewhat a matter of opinion). If you have good/average stats and are more concerned about going to a school that will give you early clinical exposure and a solid education than going to a research powerhouse, than Tufts is a great place to apply. There are some things about Tufts that are not great, but this is true of every school.

 

[SMW]

Thanks for the kind words, Katie, but I really don't feel like I'm an exception on SDN. I agree with everything else you said. Glad to hear you're happy at Tufts.
I liked it when I interviewed there (they waitlisted me).

 

[Katie]

Originally posted by SMW
Thanks for the kind words, Katie, but I really don't feel like I'm an exception on SDN. I agree with everything else you said. Glad to hear you're happy at Tufts.
I liked it when I interviewed there (they waitlisted me).

hey SMW, I'm sure you would have gotten in off the Tufts waitlist if you'd stuck around. I was also put on hold and then waitlisted post-interview as many on here may remember.. Anyway, there is no doubt in my mind that you did the right thing taking Columbia over Tufts; much as I love Tufts I can't pretend that it has the incredible reputation and affiliated hospitals that Columbia has.. good luck to all applying!

 

[woolie]

Hey Katie, if it makes you feel better, Tufts has an excellent reputation (I grew up in Massachusetts) and while I love Columbia and think it is an excellent school, some of it's facilities are really run down and people I know there are really frustrated by the library and the housing. I don't know why such an excellent school has these drawbacks; they just need a really good renovation.