*-*-* The Official TMDSAS Questions Thread 2011 *-*-*

[ninefivethree]

Which school?

texas a&m. one of the essays is "Describe any circumstances indicative of some hardship, such as, but not limited to, financial difficulties, personal or family illness, a medical condition, a death in the immediate family, educational disadvantage, or disability." i already wrote about this for one of the optional essays on tmdsas

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[TexasHopeful]

texas a&m. one of the essays is "Describe any circumstances indicative of some hardship, such as, but not limited to, financial difficulties, personal or family illness, a medical condition, a death in the immediate family, educational disadvantage, or disability." i already wrote about this for one of the optional essays on tmdsas

Is it mandatory? I would honestly just leave it blank.

 

[bigslick]

Is it mandatory? I would honestly just leave it blank.

Yeah, I wrote something along the lines of "I have not experienced any such hardships." and was accepted. As for copying and pasting, I think it might be better to just say something like "I have described my hardship of ______ in my ______ essay."

 

[bigslick]

I have a quick question regarding the english requirement!! I know that schools require you to have taken one year of college english...and I was wondering if anyone knew if Old Testament Literature and New Testament Literature would complete this requirement? On the tmdsas website OT and NT Lit were listed as english classes...but I didn't know if this meant that they fit the 1 yr english requirement...

If it's listed as English classes, then it'll satisfy the 1 year English requirement.

 

[ninefivethree]

Yeah, I wrote something along the lines of "I have not experienced any such hardships." and was accepted. As for copying and pasting, I think it might be better to just say something like "I have described my hardship of ______ in my ______ essay."

thanks! i'll write something like what you said 🙂

 

[noshie]

one of the secondaries has 4 additional essays. one of my optional essays for tmdsas fits perfectly for one of the secondary essays. i don't really know how to rewrite it. should i just copy/paste or keep trying to change it?

You should rewrite it. I have started all of my Texas secondaries and I don't think I saw one that was the same... There were some "why do you think you should go here" questions, but those should be answered specifically (not just why you think you would make a great addition to the med school class, but why you think you fit their school). So which school are you talking about??

 

[ninefivethree]

You should rewrite it. I have started all of my Texas secondaries and I don't think I saw one that was the same... There were some "why do you think you should go here" questions, but those should be answered specifically (not just why you think you would make a great addition to the med school class, but why you think you fit their school). So which school are you talking about??

texas a&m has this "Describe any circumstances indicative of some hardship, such as, but not limited to, financial difficulties, personal or family illness, a medical condition, a death in the immediate family, educational disadvantage, or disability. (Do not leave blank. If not applicable, please so indicate.)" and i already wrote an essay answering that really well for tmdsas

 

[dusk2don]

.

 

[Whiteshoes]

What do yall think about the new requirements about Math courses. Personally this is screwing me over. I have taken up to cal 3 :/
What's so special about statistics anyways lol?

Got this from TMDSAS website

"Beginning with the EY 2012 application, the following schools will require 3 semester hours of Statistics to fulfill the math requirement (Calculus will not be an option to meet this requirement):

Medical Schools Requiring 3 Sem. hrs. Statistics:
The University of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio
Texas A&M HSC College of Medicine
Texas Tech University HSC School of Medicine
UNT HSC – Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine



The following schools will continue to require 3 semester hours of either Calculus OR Statistics:

Medical Schools Requiring 3 Sem. hrs. Calculus OR Statistics:
UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Texas Tech University HSC Paul L. Foster School of Medicine at El Paso



Beginning with the EY 2012 application, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston will drop the math requirement all together."

Questions:

Does EY 2012 mean people starting an application in 2012 have to take statistics or people who will be accepted 2012 & applied 2011(next yr)? I was going to wait til senior yr but now I definitely want to apply next yr, because im already a tad behind in my course work.

Concerning the biochemistry and i guess statistics too, do i have to take that before i apply or just before i graduate?

thoughts?

 

[noshie]

What do yall think about the new requirements about Math courses. Personally this is screwing me over. I have taken up to cal 3 :/
What's so special about statistics anyways lol?

Got this from TMDSAS website

"Beginning with the EY 2012 application, the following schools will require 3 semester hours of Statistics to fulfill the math requirement (Calculus will not be an option to meet this requirement):

Medical Schools Requiring 3 Sem. hrs. Statistics:
The University of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio
Texas A&M HSC College of Medicine
Texas Tech University HSC School of Medicine
UNT HSC – Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine



The following schools will continue to require 3 semester hours of either Calculus OR Statistics:

Medical Schools Requiring 3 Sem. hrs. Calculus OR Statistics:
UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
Texas Tech University HSC Paul L. Foster School of Medicine at El Paso



Beginning with the EY 2012 application, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston will drop the math requirement all together."

Questions:

Does EY 2012 mean people starting an application in 2012 have to take statistics or people who will be accepted 2012 & applied 2011(next yr)? I was going to wait til senior yr but now I definitely want to apply next yr, because im already a tad behind in my course work.

Concerning the biochemistry and i guess statistics too, do i have to take that before i apply or just before i graduate?

thoughts?

Entering Year 2012= EY 2012... We are applying for EY 2011 now, so we should be fine. However you will have to take stats if you are applying next summer because you will be trying for EY 2012... But, what do you mean you want to apply senior year, yet you will just apply next year instead? Will you be a junior next year?? Because you can’t apply that far out before graduating...

I would HIGHLY recommend taking biochem regardless because that’s usually one of the first classes you take in med school, and its freaking hard! Yes, just take it before you graduate. As long as you have it prior to entering med school you are fine. But you need to list it as planned course work when you apply so you will meet the school requirements.

 

[noshie]

texas a&m has this "Describe any circumstances indicative of some hardship, such as, but not limited to, financial difficulties, personal or family illness, a medical condition, a death in the immediate family, educational disadvantage, or disability. (Do not leave blank. If not applicable, please so indicate.)" and i already wrote an essay answering that really well for tmdsas

Hmm... Well the TMDSAS questions were:

1.Briefly state any unique circumstances or life experiences that are relevant to your application. 2500 characters.

2.Describe any personal characteristics and/or important or challenging experience you have had that will contribute to the diversity of/or provide educational benefits to the student body. 2500 characters.

So I guess I can see how you may have answered something similar to the A&M question... Are there any other experiences that have been hard on you. I talked about working full-time during high school and college in the TMDSAS question, and in the A&M question I wrote about my mother’s mental illness... Is there any way you can change it up? You must have more than one challenging experience in your life! Right? Think about it... It can really be anything. Just make sure to end it with what you learned from it and how it relates to your future as a physician.

 

[noshie]

Looking back at what I wrote, it wasn't really something that affected me; rather, it was something that affected other members of my family. Maybe I should just leave it blank like bigslick advised!

I made the mistake of doing that with my first draft... I wrote about my father's struggle when he left his country to come here at 17, and how education has played a big part in my life because of it. But it was too focused on his struggle rather than mine. When I had my husband read it he told me that it probably needs to be something more personal. Remember, this application is about you, not your family...

 

[locationsuit]

Two questions:
1. Am I filling out the right one? I clicked on the 2010 Supplementary Application form (shouldn't it read the 2011) and created an account. It says "TAMHSC College of Medicine 2011 Secondary Application" at the top, but says "Certification for 2010 Secondary Application in the middle."

2. Also, I have submitted the secondary. However it does not state that I have completed my secondary application (under the Complete tab) when I go back to the homepage. Anyone else having this issue?


Thanks for your help.

 

[noshie]

Two questions:
1. Am I filling out the right one? I clicked on the 2010 Supplementary Application form (shouldn't it read the 2011) and created an account. It says "TAMHSC College of Medicine 2011 Secondary Application" at the top, but says "Certification for 2010 Secondary Application in the middle."

2. Also, I have submitted the secondary. However it does not state that I have completed my secondary application (under the Complete tab) when I go back to the homepage. Anyone else having this issue?


Thanks for your help.

I submitted mine yesterday so I hope it’s the right one! Mine didn’t say it was submitted yet in the check box either, but that’s because I think they wait for the money to reach them first! Also, it is the 2011 secondary because that’s what it says at the very top of the application. That’s all that matters. I'm sure that certification at the bottom is just a misprint.

 

[ball1313]

hi all,

i'm taking a class this summer at a local college and have put that into my application. i'm done with all my pre-reqs, mcat, etc., I'm just taking this class for interest. i'll send the transcript once the class is over, but do i have to indicate that this transcript is going to be on its way only later this summer? will this slow down my app? i already clicked the box that said that this would be a current/future class. is there more that i have to indicate (like on AMCAS, i had to click a box that this transcript wasn't required because it was a future class).

thanks!

 

[noshie]

hi all,

i'm taking a class this summer at a local college and have put that into my application. i'm done with all my pre-reqs, mcat, etc., I'm just taking this class for interest. i'll send the transcript once the class is over, but do i have to indicate that this transcript is going to be on its way only later this summer? will this slow down my app? i already clicked the box that said that this would be a current/future class. is there more that i have to indicate (like on AMCAS, i had to click a box that this transcript wasn't required because it was a future class).

thanks!

I think I understand your question... If you don’t put a grade in I’m sure they will understand that you will be turning in a transcript with the grade once the class is over. Plus, they are familiar with how long summer classes are, so they will be anticipating it is a future class. It should not slow down the application, they will send it out when you are finished and then when you send them a new transcript they will send this new information to the schools later in the summer after receiving your transcript.

 

[noshie]

TMDSAS is starting to annoy me... So, I saw that message about having to change your SSN on the MCAT page in order for your scores to be uploaded. However I already submitted and can’t edit this page. I messaged them about this yesterday and the help desk told me to email a specific person and include my SSN for her in the email... I did this. The lady I emailed then told me to check it this morning to see if the scores were posted and that she had fixed the issue so it would be on there this morning. I checked all day and then decided to resend an email to the same lady to inform her that they were in fact not up. She sent me a kind of rude email back about resending them and being impatient. I just emailed her once yesterday because they told me to, and once today because she told me that they would be up today.

What’s the freaking point of having a message box if they don’t want you to ask them questions? This is the second time someone has told me to be patient about something. I am not really impatient... I have only emailed once about technical issues in saving my ECs (which was actually broken and I was the one that informed them of it), once about MCAT scores not being up a week after I had already submitted my application and once about not being able to fix the SSN for my MCAT scores to go up.

Ugh sorry for the venting, I just hate that they are so unprofessional about people asking questions. I paid them already so I am technically a customer. I really don’t appreciate the attitude. I understand that they must have tons of whiney people asking stupid questions all day long, but I feel that my questions are legitimate. And even if they aren’t, they shouldn’t treat me like I’m a child…

TMDSAS is getting a 👎 from me today...

 

[Whiteshoes]

Entering Year 2012= EY 2012... We are applying for EY 2011 now, so we should be fine. However you will have to take stats if you are applying next summer because you will be trying for EY 2012... But, what do you mean you want to apply senior year, yet you will just apply next year instead? Will you be a junior next year?? Because you can’t apply that far out before graduating...

I would HIGHLY recommend taking biochem regardless because that’s usually one of the first classes you take in med school, and its freaking hard! Yes, just take it before you graduate. As long as you have it prior to entering med school you are fine. But you need to list it as planned course work when you apply so you will meet the school requirements.

I think ill have to take stats then i think.. Im not applying this year. I will be beginning my junior yr this fall 2010 and open up an application 2011 next cycle. So does that make me EY 2012 or EY2011 application?

 

[noshie]

I think ill have to take stats then i think.. Im not applying this year. I will be beginning my junior yr this fall 2010 and open up an application 2011 next cycle. So does that make me EY 2012 or EY2011 application?

EY 2012, You apply in 2011 for the med school class that starts in Fall 2012. That sucks tho! Stats is lame!!!

 

[dusk2don]

.

 

[ball1313]

no MCAT score for me, and i asked AMCAS to send them a LONG time ago. SSN correctly inputted, too!

 

[TexasHopeful]

MCAT Dates You Entered
Test Type Import Date Test Date
MCAT 5/25/2010 1/30/2010

Does this mean they got my score in? I don't see the numbers anywhere.

 

[SweetRain]

For those applying for private schools through AMCAS in addition to TMDSAS:

Did you re-use your personal statement? My TMDSAS PS is about ~4700 characters long. I think that's fine for TX schools but it's actually 500 characters shorter than AMCAS PS limit.

Is that considered too short, and is that frowned upon? I trimmed it very carefully over time so I think adding in anything would just ruin my essay..

 

[noshie]

For those applying for private schools through AMCAS in addition to TMDSAS:

Did you re-use your personal statement? My TMDSAS PS is about ~4700 characters long. I think that's fine for TX schools but it's actually 500 characters shorter than AMCAS PS limit.

Is that considered too short, and is that frowned upon? I trimmed it very carefully over time so I think adding in anything would just ruin my essay..

I used the same one. I don't think it's a big deal, 300 characters is just about a sentence or two more...

 

[noshie]

UT Southwestern ordered to pay Egyptian-born doctor $3.6 million for discrimination, retaliation

SHAME SHAME

http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2010/05/24/daily35.html

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...cience/stories/052710dmetnassar.40453734.html

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-rele...-employment-discrimination-case-95029599.html

"Drs. Levine and Fitz then worked to block Dr. Nassar from taking the new position at Parkland Hospital by refusing to give him a favorable recommendation and warning Parkland not to hire him. Because of these coordinated efforts to undermine his offer from Parkland, Dr. Nassar was forced to take a position at a hospital and medical school in California."

Know who Dr. Fitz is?? "Dr. Greg Fitz was chairman of the university's department of medicine then and now is dean of the medical school."

The DEAN OF THE MEDICAL SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


People need to seriously rethink about applying to this institution!!

Well, I work at UT Southwestern... And we got an email from the President of UTSW about this situation. He clarified it, and I think it was all due to a lack of communication.

I love UTSW, everyone there is so nice. I have really never worked in a place where there is no office drama and backstabbing going on. I work in the Surgery department and everyone is respectful and kind. When I went to orientation they pretty much told us that our campus is held to a standard and we need to be extra nice to everyone there. Every day when I walk down the halls people I've never met stop to say Hi or start a conversation. It's something that I have never seen before. Even when I was on the UNTHSC campus it was nothing like this. The med school is top notch, the education is crazy awesome and the medical faculty is always willing to help. Every school has its politics, and sometimes this can turn out badly. But don't base your decision of picking a med school on that.

This is part of what they said in the email...

"Rather than undermining Dr. Nassar's career as alleged, personnel files clearly showed that his division chief, Dr. Beth Levine, and his then department chair, Dr. Greg Fitz, acting on behalf of UT Southwestern, had recommended and obtained a promotion for him prior to his decision to leave. As demonstrated at the trial, Dr. Nassar's personnel file contained letters of support and recommendation from both Dr. Fitz and Dr. Levine. We believe these documents make clear that UT Southwestern acted without discrimination or malice, contrary to Dr. Nassar's claims and his present employment demonstrates that no actions of UT Southwestern damaged or undermined his career. UT Southwestern has the utmost confidence in Dr. Levine and Dr. Fitz, who have been exemplary in their leadership responsibilities. We further believe the claims of damages were grossly inflated by Dr. Nassar's lawyers and were not supported by the testimony or by documentary evidence nor is the size of the award supported by applicable law."

 

[SweetRain]

For those who submitted the optional essays, how much time did you spend on it?

My advisor strongly encouraged me to finish them. I spent a great deal of time on my personal statement but given that these optional ones are shorter and "optional", I was thinking it's not as important. Did you have anyone proofread them just like the PS?

Also, I'm trying to have everything submitted by June 1. Is that considered early? (How early is early?) And if my transcripts aren't mailed in yet will my app not be considered complete?

 

[SweetRain]

Sorry to ask so many questions..What did you all do about photos?
I'm thinking maybe I'll just take my own picture at home...

 

[dusk2don]

.

 

[ninefivethree]

Sorry to ask so many questions..What did you all do about photos?
I'm thinking maybe I'll just take my own picture at home...

I wore a button down shirt and had a friend take a picture of me in front of a white wall. I cropped it so it was shoulders and up and made sure it was the right size and added it

 

[ninefivethree]

My gpa is fixed!!!

 

[addo]

.

 

[AspiringDOC2010]

I submitted the primary app. yesterday along with the check. Transcripts already in. Reapplicant here. I'm okay, right? I know this thing opened up on May 3rd, so I'm about 4 weeks out. I'm not too late, am I? Anyone know what's the verification time like? And are the apps. already being sent to the schools or are they sent out starting like in mid-June? Thanks.

 

[ninefivethree]

I submitted the primary app. yesterday along with the check. Transcripts already in. Reapplicant here. I'm okay, right? I know this thing opened up on May 3rd, so I'm about 4 weeks out. I'm not too late, am I? Anyone know what's the verification time like? And are the apps. already being sent to the schools or are they sent out starting like in mid-June? Thanks.

i sent mine in over a week ago and the status is still "tmdsas processing" and all my transcripts etc have been in since tuesday. i think they were waiting for the gpa calculation error to be fixed to send anything but it seems like it's fixed now so i'm not sure when exactly everything is going out. btw, in my major at my school, i know of about 15 people applying and most haven't even finished half the app. hope that helps!

 

[SweetRain]

For those attending UT Austin;

How long did it take for TMDSAS to receive your transcript? I just found out that TMDSAS office is in Austin, so I was hoping that it would be a little faster. It completely slipped my mind to request a transcript and I'm gonna do that first thing Tuesday morning, but I'm sort of in a panic because I thought I would be submitting early...

 

[AspiringDOC2010]

i sent mine in over a week ago and the status is still "tmdsas processing" and all my transcripts etc have been in since tuesday. i think they were waiting for the gpa calculation error to be fixed to send anything but it seems like it's fixed now so i'm not sure when exactly everything is going out. btw, in my major at my school, i know of about 15 people applying and most haven't even finished half the app. hope that helps!

Thanks. Yeah, I can't imagine it would be late submitting now, even if it's Texas - since most people still need Spring grades. Guess I'm just a little extra neurotic since I'm reapplying... 🙂

Oh, one last question - will TMDSAS process the app. w/o my letters? I'm waiting on one more letter and my writer should have it done by Tuesday/Wed.

 

[addo]

Oh, one last question - will TMDSAS process the app. w/o my letters? I'm waiting on one more letter and my writer should have it done by Tuesday/Wed.

You can submit the application, without all the lors being in.

 

[bigslick]

For those attending UT Austin;

How long did it take for TMDSAS to receive your transcript? I just found out that TMDSAS office is in Austin, so I was hoping that it would be a little faster. It completely slipped my mind to request a transcript and I'm gonna do that first thing Tuesday morning, but I'm sort of in a panic because I thought I would be submitting early...

Don't worry, you're still considered "early". They don't even start handing out the first batch of interviews until July, and the whole point of submitting early is so that you get one of the "early" interviews, so spots don't fill up before you even got a chance to interview.

 

[TexasHopeful]

My MCAT score says "imported 5/25/2010." Does this mean they got my score?

 

[noshie]

I submitted the primary app. yesterday along with the check. Transcripts already in. Reapplicant here. I'm okay, right? I know this thing opened up on May 3rd, so I'm about 4 weeks out. I'm not too late, am I? Anyone know what's the verification time like? And are the apps. already being sent to the schools or are they sent out starting like in mid-June? Thanks.

You are not too late! I sent mine May 12th, they got my money the next day... They still have not sent out my application to the schools. Everything seems in order and done, so it really didn't take that long to verify. My status page shows that they got everything. I'm thinking sometime next week they will send it out hopefully.

My MCAT score says "imported 5/25/2010." Does this mean they got my score?

Yes!!!

 

[SweetRain]

Okay, I know this question's been asked a million times, but what are your opinions on the optional essays?

My advisor told me that they aren't really optional and strongly encouraged me to finish them. But at the same time, I think the adcoms would be more annoyed if I'm just using it as a filler especially when they have to read so many of them.

I'm just not sure what to do because I don't really know what to write about and I want to submit my app soon. But I don't have the strongest stats and I was wondering if schools would think that the applicant is not interesting enough or "not desperate enough."

Is anyone in the same situation?

 

[locationsuit]

Anyone submitted the UTSW secondary yet?

Not sure what is meant by: YOU MUST COMPLETE THE TMDSAS PRIMARY APPLICATION BEFORE YOU CAN COMPLETE THIS SECONDARY APPLICATION.

Does UTSW have to acknowledge receipt of primary before you can submit?

 

[GlamDoc]

Okay, I know this question's been asked a million times, but what are your opinions on the optional essays?

My advisor told me that they aren't really optional and strongly encouraged me to finish them. But at the same time, I think the adcoms would be more annoyed if I'm just using it as a filler especially when they have to read so many of them.

I'm just not sure what to do because I don't really know what to write about and I want to submit my app soon. But I don't have the strongest stats and I was wondering if schools would think that the applicant is not interesting enough or "not desperate enough."

Is anyone in the same situation?

For TMDSAS, you should do all of them, in my opinion. What you think is filler, may not be filler to them. Why take the risk of not putting something down? Worst case scenario, they won't be in love with the essay and will just glaze over it.

It's a struggle to write filler, I know, as I'm trying to edit one of my optionals right now. 🙂

For the secondaries though, I'm not sure. That hardship one... I honestly can't think of something significant to put down.

 

[noshie]

Anyone submitted the UTSW secondary yet?

Not sure what is meant by: YOU MUST COMPLETE THE TMDSAS PRIMARY APPLICATION BEFORE YOU CAN COMPLETE THIS SECONDARY APPLICATION.

Does UTSW have to acknowledge receipt of primary before you can submit?

I submitted mine... I saw that too, but I had already submitted my primary so I figured it wouldn't matter. They sent me an email confirming the receipt of my secondary and just said that they would only consider me once they received the primary. I think it was no big deal...

For TMDSAS, you should do all of them, in my opinion. What you think is filler, may not be filler to them. Why take the risk of not putting something down? Worst case scenario, they won't be in love with the essay and will just glaze over it.

It's a struggle to write filler, I know, as I'm trying to edit one of my optionals right now. 🙂

For the secondaries though, I'm not sure. That hardship one... I honestly can't think of something significant to put down.

+1, I think both the primary and secondary optional questions are pretty much mandatory... I have a hard time understanding why many people say they don't have anything to write. Think outside the box and pull anything from your life that fits. The hardship one is pretty hard if you have not had any financial or personal difficulties. However, if you do what it says and indicate that you have never had a hardship in your life, that will look really bad... Pull apart your life and find something!

 

[KTD]

I only did one of the optional essays last year (the second one) and it was fine-I interviewed everywhere I applied and had 3 Texas acceptances in November. I think optional means optional, but if you have stuff to say it can only help you to say it.

 

[Coug42]

I only did one of the optional essays too.

 

[AspiringDOC2010]

Optional essays? Eh, I skipped those since I didn't really have anything substantial to add. And I'd rather submit early than pound my head for a week or two trying to come up with something. I hope it won't be a problem...

 

[TexasHopeful]

Sigh. So I'm in the same boat as many other people, I'm sure: My Optional Essay #2 would be a perfect fit for A&M's secondary question. I don't want to repeat myself, but I want other Texas schools to be able to see this information as well. What do I do?

 

[SweetRain]

Sigh. So I'm in the same boat as many other people, I'm sure: My Optional Essay #2 would be a perfect fit for A&M's secondary question. I don't want to repeat myself, but I want other Texas schools to be able to see this information as well. What do I do?

...so true. I would branch out the experience into different examples and anecdotes. And describe how you would interact with your classmates for the optional essay and describe how you are culturally diverse in a more broad sense for the secondary.

I know it's pretty much the same thing but oh well.

 

[AspiringDOC2010]

Question: Anyone know what's the verification time like if you submit now? 2, 3 weeks? Anyone? Thanks!

 

[DrDrummer]

I'm applying through TMDSAS for the first time-- was wondering this early in the season, how big of a difference does the submission date make? I have two of my three letters of recommendation in-- I'm a non-trad so I'm using one from my supervisor alongside two profs-- but am still waiting on the third, a philosophy professor of mine.

Should I submit now, with the two letters in place, and hope that the schools are contacted if we have a letter added to the file or whatever after submission? Or is TMDSAS either a system where I A.) can't, or B.) shouldn't do that if I'm not super-ultra-confident about my chances to get in.