Texas Pre-Meds

Getting into Med School is Hard? Not with BeMo.
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ttt
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i am an aggie. and i do not know.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Bit late, but I'm a texas premed aiming for UTMB, UTSA, UT-H, or TAMU med school class of 2009.

I visited UTSA this summer and I must say, it makes UTSW look bad. I loved it.
 
ttt = "to the top"
 
This is my first post and I just wanted to say to say that you guys have been really helpful. I took the MCAT last August but am taking it again this August. Do you guys think that the med schools will still offer me an interview before they get the second MCAT score. Also, do you think taking the MCAT again is going to push my app back and hurt my chances of getting in. I got a 10V 11PS 7BS R.
Pickle Salt, I love the swingers quote. you're so money baby, and you don't even know it.
 
Camel,

You don't need to worry, in my opinion. First of all, your score is decent to begin with. The average at Houston is something like a 27, and the averages at Galveston and UTSA are similar. These are all very respectable schools. Retaking it only tells the schools that you're serious about this stuff and you're a hard worker. I think that you will get interviews if your gpa is decent, too.

To all,

I'll be out of town til next saturday! talk to you guys then...

....and FINALLY! Somebody recognizes the movie my quote is from! i was beginning to lose faith in my fellow pre-meds. You guys are so money.
 
Yea--more TX premeds.

If you look on the TMDSAS website they have stats of accepted students v. applicants for theTX schools (not including Baylor, I think). Anyhow, I think the ave MCAT scores of all applying to TX schools was about a 25, and the ave of all accepted was a 29. If you look in the MSAR--the ave MCAT in 2001 for Houston was 27, A & M 29, Galveston 28, San An 28, Baylor 34, and Dallas (according to US News) 32. My advisor has always stated if you plan to retake the MCAt in Aug don't ever indicate it b/c it will hold your application up significantly--schools won't evaluate your app until they get your Aug MCAT scores around Oct (about a month before the deadline). However--Galveston interviews candidates without MCAT scores as long as their GPA is 3.5+. So you might want to contact each school to determine their procedures.

Camel--are you a bio major? your composite MCAT is good for the TX schools, but I don't know what the ADCOMS might think of your bio score. I've always heard a 27 (9,9,9) is better than a 27 (10,10,7). Do you have other items in your app that show you can excel in bio and that the bio section was just a fluke (i.e. your science GPA, being a science major, science related EC's)? i ultimately think you'll be fine b/c you VB score is pretty good and that's generally the most important section. Your one weakness (no one has a perfect app) might be that bio score so you might want to concentrate your personal statement on your bio related EC's, or a bio class that you really enjoyed...to illustrate you won't have a problem with bio in medical school. Don't mention your Bio MCAT score directly in your personal statement. By expanding on your science activities the ADCOM will draw the conclusion without you bringing your weakness to thier attention.

good luck.
 
hey intrepidation--

weren't you the one a while back who had info on TX rural programs? If it's not too much trouble would you mind posting where you found out about these programs--website or phone number?

Thanks.
 
Originally posted by The Mysterious Stranger
hey intrepidation--

weren't you the one a while back who had info on TX rural programs? If it's not too much trouble would you mind posting where you found out about these programs--website or phone number?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I got your PM and tried sending but there was some error last week. Anyways, heres the stuff:

Matt:

Thank you for your interest in rural health. I admire your initiative in investigating all of your choices early. ORCA adminsters a program called the Outstanding Rural Scholar. How this works is you will need to find a community to sponsor you that is underserved. The community will pay for half of your med school expenses and ORCA will match the other half. Your obligation to that community will be for every year you are sponsored, you will provide services for a year. There are several communities in Texas that are aware of this program and utilize it well. Others are unaware of it. I am attaching infomration about this program and if you have additional questions, please contact the program administrator, Dave Darnell. In addition, we have two other programs available for primary care physicians. One is callled the Texas HealthService Corps. This is a yearly stipend you may receive, up to $15,000 per year, each year you are in residency. Also, the obligation is a year for year basis. Lastly, we have a program that provides start up money, up to $50,000, to begin a practice, solo or joining an existing practice, in an underserved area. Also, I am attachinf info on these. NOTE: you may only participate in ONE of the THREE programs, so choose carefully. Feel free to contact me with further assistance. I wish you the best of luck. GO EAGLES!!!

Sincerely,
Robin Wright
ORCA



-end message-

Go eagles is a reference to my college, UNT.

SDN won't let me attach pdf's so wait a minute while I zip them and upload them to my site.

-edit-

www.uniball-central.com/mattmed/txrural.zip should be what you need.

Which plan are you most intrested in?

I prefer having the community pay half and the state paying half, but this only works if you can get a community to sponsor you.
 
Wow, I am way behind in the game. My TMDSAS wasn't set out until 7/31 (transcript problem). When do you think the earliest I will hear from schools could be? I have sent secondaries to UTSA and Tech and am working on the UTSW one. Congrats to everyone on all the interviews, I would be so happy!
 
Hey stranger, you are amazing. Unfortunately, my science gpa is a 3.24. My overall is a 3.47. I wish I would have known not to indicate that i'm taking the MCAT again. You seem extremely knowledgable so I will ask you this question. Since I will be taking the MCAT again, and will have my application looked at towards the end of the app process, isn't the MCAT actually hurting my chances unless I do phenomenal (which is not going to happen)? I sent my apps in a while ago but I guess it was all for nothing since they won't look at them until October. Thanks for your help.
 
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As a fellow Texas resident who'll be going through this herself in a couple years, I was just wondering if a lot of you applying now are applying strictly to Texas schools or if you are applying to some out-of-state schools, too. I know some other premeds who don't plan on applying anywhere but Texas, and I wanted to see if a lot of Texas residents do that. Thanks and good luck to you all! :)
 
I applied to all of the seven schools in Texas on the Texas Medical and Dental application Service, plus Baylor which is on the American Medical College Application Service. Since I had to fill out a completely different application just for Baylor, i went ahead and sent it to a couple of other out of state schools as well. I sent it to Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and Washington University.
 
Thanks Camelman ;) I actually picked up all this stuff from SDN and talking with advisors...you might be right in that taking the mcat again will hurt. I suggest you contact TMDSAS and indicate that you want your mcat status changed. if they won't update your app perhaps you can contact the schools and ask them to make your app active (tell them you don't want to wait for your aug mcat scores). you can still send them your new mcat scores after they arrive. i really don't think your mcat score is bad--you have a very good verbal score, PS is even better. i think there's a good chance you will get interviews even if you choose to wait for your aug mcat scores to come. just talk to some of the schools and see if they will evaluate your app. also see what your advisor thinks. they will probably know each school's procedure in and out. good luck. hope to see you in med school next year.

Texasgirl--you are not behind at all. i do know the panicky feeling though--that others have gotten interviews and your app hasn't been submitted. don't worry though. SW hasn't even begun to compile files for applicants, neither has baylor or tech.

brontehardyeliot--i had the same question for my advisor. he stated that (at least out of the students from my university) most texans don't apply out of state b/c it's very hard to reconile paying 30k+ a year when you could be paying 6k. the advisor stated most texans don't apply out of state, if you look at the MSAR for last year--half the number of applicants applied to baylor when compared to the other tx schools. this probably means that at least half didn't utilize AMCAS and thus didn't apply to out of state schools.

it's comforting knowing other people who are applying to the tx schools with the same concerns and questions. i had thought there weren't that many students from tx on this board. good luck everyone.
 
Hey Everyone, wish me luck, I go to my first interview today! I found out yesterday, that I'll also be going to UTSA on the 26th for an interview too.
 
Originally posted by rjhtamu
Hey Everyone, wish me luck, I go to my first interview today! I found out yesterday, that I'll also be going to UTSA on the 26th for an interview too.
Click to expand...

Hey!!! Congratulations on the interview and GOOD LUCK RJ!!! I interviewed at UTSA in October and everyone at the school seems very nice (although I chose SW). Dean Jones is a cool guy and will answer any questions you have about the school. I was even lucky enough to have an interview with him. However, I wouldn't even call it an interview because I followed him while he prepared for a photo shoot and asked me questions totally unrelated to my application. He ended by telling me that I was a shoe-in (sp?) for acceptance. So if you interview w/ Dean Jones you're pretty much guaranteed a spot. Also, SA has very affordable student housing.

Once again, the best of LUCK!!!!!!! :clap:
 
thanks everyone, the people at A&M are truly a class act, althought I expected no less from them being an Aggie myself. It was overall a wonderful experience. Absolutely no stress at all, and the people on the admissions committee basically threw themselves at us in order to make us feel comfortable. Everything was well organized, and the interviews were very laid back. I've very glad I had my first round here. I'm not so worried about the next ones at all anymore.
 
hey kids :)

Back from vacation and good news on my answering machine. TAMU called for an interview on the 29th! very happy about this and very VERY overwhelmed.... I have two interviews this week, two next week, and one the week after... Wow. I guess i'll be an interviewing professional before classes even start up. :eek:

rj~ thanks so much for the TAMU interview feedback, man. real encouraging to know they're not out to grill us.

peace owwwt
 
um. i guess i should get on the ball and finish that darn tamu secondary. i've done all but tamu. has anyone else been infected with secondary lethargy?
 
Curious to know how everyone feels about Tech's medical school?
 
I've heard it's a decent school, and that they're pretty competitive but.....Lubbock?:confused:
 
Well, I guess it is just preference. I used to live in Amarillo, which is about 2 hrs. north of lubbock. The only thing i hated was the wind. I hate tiny towns and huge towns, so places like Lubbock fit me perfectly. Lubbock is a college town which is a plus, so there is ample entertainment and things to do. It has the closeness of a small town, but the feeling of a city. There is little violence. I would be scared of 3rd and 4th years though. Half the class goes to El Paso and I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Unless of course you have a calling for border medicine and everything it entails. If you could go to Amarillo it would be great, and I think some go to Midland which would kinda of suck. Anyways, I wouldn't count it out. Always an option right?
 
Fine arguments, my friend.

I guess anywhere's paradise compared to College Station.
 
What is your top choice?
 
UT Southwestern. It's nearest to my family and I've worked there for 2 summers. But the school is so competitive, i dont know if i'll even get an interview. :( Is Tech your top choice? And anyone else have any thoughts on these two schools?
 
UTSW, wonderful school. I have a good friend who goes there, and he loves it. Actually I am a lowly pre-dent. Will be going to UTSA. I know alot about medical school and the application procedure though. I used to want to be a physician and have many friends and a few family members who have applied and are currently applying. I know TONS of people at Tech. I wish you luck in the process. I really hope you get into SW. All the schools are great here in our wonderful state, so hopefully you will be happy at any of them if SW doesn't work out. :)
 
PS> Big Radiohead fan, or is it a joke?
 
big fan and joke :) thanks for your kind words, centrum. best of luck to you too in your dentistry adventures. i've heard so many good things about UTSA. I might be down there in a year too, who knows? :D
 
Yeah it is one of the top dental schools in the country. It is odd that I know so many people in medical school. I was just thinking about it and I know people in most of the state schools here, Michigan and even a person at Brody in NC. Anyways, sorry for the random thought. Take care.

.... I love Fake Plastic Trees, Lucky, Optimistic.. so many others. Radiohead is a great band. Do you like Modest Mouse or Wilco?
 
Modest Mouse - Yes! oh yes! they're lovely.

Wilco - YEAAAAAAAH! they're fantastic. just caught on to them this year thanks to a friend

nice to know my fellow pre-professionals aren't complete dipwads without a taste for good music.
 
nice to know my fellow pre-professionals aren't complete dipwads without a taste for good music.
Click to expand...

:)
 
Hey, I'm also originally from the Amarillo area. So the area wouldn't bother me too much if I ended up going to Tech. West Texas gets too much of a bad rap from people who don't live there, although it's actually pretty nice and a great place to grow up. I would much rather grow up there again a second time rather than in Dallas or Houston like so many other people I know down here. I just can't imagine childhood being the same in a gigantic city like that. I would go out and explore the countryside when I was a kid, hiking through riverbeds and ravines, and up all kinds of hills. Really fun. Those who are really serious about starting families might consider it as an option to city life. Especially Amarillo, that city has grown considerably in the past 10 years now, and they do have a really good medical center too.
 
Originally posted by Pickle Salt
UT Southwestern. It's nearest to my family and I've worked there for 2 summers. But the school is so competitive, i dont know if i'll even get an interview. :( Is Tech your top choice? And anyone else have any thoughts on these two schools?
Click to expand...

do you want to do research? they're extremely research-oriented (which you probably already know ;) ). A school that has 4 nobel laureates on staff does not hold teaching future pracicing physicians as their number one priority. :D i'm sure there are some great teachers on the faculty who are committed to preparing future physicians. However, they're a kick-ass research facility and from talking with current students and faculty it seems they are more geared towards research. It's an awsome school, pickle salt. very prestigious and a good eduacation. hope you get in. i think baylor or galveston are my first choices--both have pros and cons.
 
Yeah Southwestern really is a research-oriented school. That's not why I'm interested in it, though. What I'm interested in is its teaching hospital, Parkland. I've interned at Parkland two summers now and I am convinced that the education one gets there is better than anywhere else in Texas, if not the country. Located in the middle of downtown and the only major hospital in Dallas that accepts patients with no forms of insurance, one is able to observe and learn about so many different human afflictions that are untreatable elsewhere. Forty-plus babies are born there perday, the burn unit is ranked as one of the best in the country, and the ER sees tons of unusual cases every night. And since it's a teaching hospital, everyone's usually very willing to help you out. I just got really good vibes there. The student/faculty attitudes are somewhat competitive, but that's to be expected in such a highly ranked school. If i don't get in as a MSI, I am seriously thinking about attending another medical school and then trying to transfer to UT Southwestern for my clinical years.

I've heard alot of good things about UT Galveston. But I've also heard that its teaching hospital is a prison?! Any comments on this?
 
:laugh: that's pretty funny. i hate questions that say something meant to be rude but then people try to make it un-rude by stating what do you think about it. like the person asked the question really wondering what the person thinks and not with the intention to make snide remarks. most people on SDN do this. but having read your prior responses pickle salt, i can guess you're not one of these people. you're really helpful and nice. and you're a texan! you're statment just reminded me of it and i just wanted to rant on about it. i didn't know galveston's teaching hospital was a prison. don't most schools have more than one teaching hospital though--as in 3,4,5? i'm not sure but when looking in the MSAR most schools mention a whole bunch. i have a friend that goes to SW and she said anyone with a 31 and 3.5 is guaranteed an automatic interview.
 
Galveston has had a pretty rough year so far from the sounds of it. From the Ph.D in the anatomy department selling body parts on the black market, to some of their cadevers that they sell legally possibly being infected with HIV and Hepatitis, to even mixing up some of the cadever's ashes and not knowing to which family they belong. I hope they're able to clean up from this mess pretty soon. It can't help the school at all having these black marks on their rep.
 
rjhtamu,

Where did you grow up? I grew up all over the Texas Panhandle.
 
Galveston's teaching hospital is absolutely NOT a prison. I can assure you of this after having worked there for a long time. Their main teaching hospital (though they have many) is John Sealy Hospital (the official hospital of the State of Texas as per recent legislation). It has a very diverse patient population and since UTMB is the only major medical center serving a great deal of east Texas (apart from the TMC, of course), a lot of interesting stuff does end up at John Sealy.
The above poster's comment about it being a 'prison' is untrue. However, UTMB did win the contract from the Texas Dept. of Criminal Justice a few years back to be the primary care provider for all of the state's prisoners. This ended up saving Texas taxpayers something on the order of $250 million over the past 5 or so years. Having worked at John Sealy's ER, I can assure you that no more than 5% of the people who come in are prisoners...and when they do come in, they are treated no differently (other than having a police officer escort them and being in handcuffs).
Perhaps the best thing about UTMB is its institutional ethos. From its new president, John Stobo, to the lowest cadre of workers, everyone there seems to genuinely take an interest in their community's healthcare. You'd be surprised how rare this is.

Alright, hope i've set the record straight on UTMB. If you have any questions of what the place is like, you can PM me.
 
I spent a great deal of time in Muleshoe, and have no desire to return unless Texas Tech is the only school that admits me. Then it will be my first choice.

I will not consider attending any medical school that does not accept me. Period!
 
Ahh Muleshoe. I have actually been there!
 
Hey ya'll

Just curious to see what you think: I am sending in my certification page this week. Am I really behind? They are waiting for my MCAT scores anyway(august)...but I still feel like I am at a disadvantage. Do any schools invite for interviews without MCAT scores?? Should I start filling out secondaries or will they not know who I am when I send them in? Any info would help...thanks.

angel
 
Hi angel~

Nah you're not behind. Those of us ranting and raving and using alot of exclamation points got our invites to interview extremely early compared to most applicants. I know that most of my invites were first-round interview dates.

UTMB in Galveston's website says it will interview applicants who are taking the August MCAT if they have a 3.5+ gpa.

Go ahead and start filling in secondaries!! It's okay if they get them before they get the primary. They just kinda add everything to your file as it comes so when all your junk is in, that's when they review it.

hope this helps :D
 
Thanks Pickle!!
Good Luck to you.:)
 
bump

anyone heard anything from Southwestern or Tech yet?
 
Hey guys!
dumb question but where do I mail my photo/certification page off to? - Is is the same address listed under the Contact TMDAS link? I couldn't find an address in the instructions and applicant procedures section.
Also is this the same address where my school mails my transcript into.? Thanks
I'm really impressed and envious of how on top of everything you Texans are

And now into my little paper bag
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I'm an out of stater blowing $100 for a single school that takes 90% or something in state! who will potentially blow more if they ever decide to interview me AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
 
Hey--

I am just starting at Texas Tech and was in the same state of unabated anxiety as some of you are in until recently. Just wanted to say that I checked with our admissions office yesterday and they told me interviews would begin around the end of August. Not sure if they've started handing out invitations yet, but they should be real soon if they haven't.

Hope this helps and good luck to all of you.
 
Thanks for the info, castaway.

Bluedeviled, just send all your stuff (photos, LORs, etc) to the address that TMDSAS provides on its website. Under the "Contact TMDSAS" link. It'll all get there. :cool:
 
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