U of MN: secondary = interview?

[ntxawmx]

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I received the U of MN secondary and am I reading it incorrectly or is it true that they are interviewing everyone who sends back a secondary? This is a change from previous years, right?

 

[drfermin]

ntxawmx,

Out of curiosity, what does the secondary literature say to indicate that? I don't have the materials with me so I was wondering if you could enlighten us. I sent in my secondary about 2 weeks ago and I am still waiting. I was excited to get a secondary as a non-MN resident, though.

 

[Djanaba]

Two years ago, I was instructed to complete my secondary and call to set up an interview. This info was all on the same cover letter. So either a)not all secondaries have automatic interviews or b)you didn't read your cover letter well enough. I haven't a clue what their regular procedure is...

 

[drfermin]

I have a feeling that you both (Djanaba and
ntxawmx) received immediate invites because you are/were strong MN resident applicants. Out-of-staters like me, and maybe the borderline MN applicants, probably have to go through another screening process. But you have me scared enough that I'm going to read that cover letter the second I get home from work!

Good luck to all.

 

[ntxawmx]

Originally posted by drfermin:
ntxawmx,

Out of curiosity, what does the secondary literature say to indicate that? I don't have the materials with me so I was wondering if you could enlighten us. I sent in my secondary about 2 weeks ago and I am still waiting. I was excited to get a secondary as a non-MN resident, though.

My application instructions tell me to call to set up an interview after I've sent in the secondary. I had to read it a couple times because I didn't believe what I was reading the first time. I don't know if they send out different instructions for different people.

 

[ntxawmx]

Djanaba

If you don't mind me asking, are you in med school in Duluth now?

Thanks.

 

[Djanaba]

I don't mind you asking at all! Yes, I am at Duluth, just began MSII. I was accepted to the "southern campus" of the U of MN as well. Feel free to email me with any questions -- [email protected]

(remove the nospam in the address above for the address to work. 'bots are scanning this site for med-related spam target addresses...)

 

[ntxawmx]

drfermin

I called the U a few days ago and they said that they do send out different versions of the cover letter/instructions. I hope that doesn't discourage you. Best of luck!

 

[drfermin]

Originally posted by ntxawmx:
drfermin

I called the U a few days ago and they said that they do send out different versions of the cover letter/instructions. I hope that doesn't discourage you. Best of luck!

Wow! Thanks for relaying that info, it is very helpful; and no, I won't get too discouraged. I didn't even get a secondary last year, and I'm out of state. I grew up just across the bridge in Wisconsin, though, so U of M would be really close to home.

Best of luck to you!

 

[Socceroo4ever]

Just curious as to how much money people have spent just getting to the point where you're mailing out secondaries. I've read over an interesting site on managing finances before, during, and after matriculation (link is from AAMC's page). It seems to me that first of all, applying to all these colleges is one of the two largest expenses, and the other would be interviewing at those campuses. Has anyone felt they've spent far more than they thought they would have by now? Anyone experience the reverse, not spending nearly so much as expected?

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Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in night,
God said "Let Newton be," and all was light.

-- Alexander Pope

 

[drfermin]

Originally posted by Socceroo4ever:
Has anyone felt they've spent far more than they thought they would have by now? Anyone experience the reverse, not spending nearly so much as expected?

Well, I've spent a little less than budgeted since a few schools didn't give me the chance to complete secondaries

Seriously, though, most people haven't interviewed yet, so they could have figured out almost exactly how much they would spend by now. Sometimes there are little-thought-of costs like passport-sytle photos, postage/FedEx, and so forth, but the biggest cost variable is in the interview stage.

Of course, all of this is peanuts compared to the figure they'll come up with for your "estimated contribution" for your first year.

Continued good luck to all--