UIC applicants?

[charlatangirl]

Hi,

Just thought I'd leave my thoughts about one of my top choices, UIC, particularly because I haven't seen many posts here about this school. (It IS a great school after all!)

I have been attending this school for almost two years as a masters's student in Public Health, and I've found that it's just about one of the most diverse, relaxed campuses one could hope for. The urban setting is fantastic as well, particularly if you're interested in working within underserved areas/populations. Rotations at Cook County is not particularly appealing, but on the flip side, if you can make it there, you'll make it, yes, anywhere.

I will be sure to post interview feedback soon, but til then, if anyone wants to swap stories about this school, I'm game!

~charlatangirl

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[isidella]

I am a big fan of UIC. I interviewed there for the MD/PhD program and really liked it. Problem is they accepted me and wanted a final answer within three weeks (they do not like to offer seats until there is a body to fill it). Three weeks passed and they offered my slot to someone else. It is such a wierd policy. I felt like I was not allowed the time to make a decision about them and that they were rushing to have people to fill the seats. I sure need more than 3 weeks to decide where I will be spending the next 7+ years of my life. . . But it is not over, my seat may still be available if I choose to take it (unlikely).

UIC has the best pharmacognosy program in the nation and the new biomed research bldg is awesome (the one with the double helix staircase). The student research is impressive and the faculty is diverse. One prof said to me, "We know we are not Harvard, but that makes us try even harder." I really like that attitude.

I wish the admin people would have told me about the violent attacks against women that happened on (near?) campus, right before my interview. I was walking all around the Halstead and Taylor area, totally oblivious because I just assumed the restaurants they suggested were in safe areas. (I admit, bad for me to assume anything)

The MD/PhD students I met there were the best of all I have met in this process. If it wasn't for the program rushing my decision. . .

 

[charlatangirl]

yeah, the red tape and weird bureaucratic conventions are inescapable with state schools. especially one as big as UofI.

i quite agree with you that the UIC attitude is wonderful. i've started to realize that, more so than the slightly more prestigious chicago schools (basically nwu and u of c), UIC is a really open-armed community for immigrants, minorities and people who are just, well, sort of unconventional. which to me is really intriguing.

too bad their narrow time window didn't allow you to attend! i've noticed that most grad students here are super-satisfied.

as for the attacks on women - unfortunately this sort of thing is also an inevitable statistic in a major urban setting. if you're smart, then chances are you will be ok. i was robbed TWICE - count 'em, twice - at hopkins. once i was at home and the guy came in my bedroom and took my stereo and my phone, as well as my purse! fortunately he left the 250-year-old violin...

cheers,
~charlatangirl

 

[Explosivo]

Originally posted by charlatangirl
Hi,

Just thought I'd leave my thoughts about one of my top choices, UIC, particularly because I haven't seen many posts here about this school. (It IS a great school after all!)

I have been attending this school for almost two years as a masters's student in Public Health, and I've found that it's just about one of the most diverse, relaxed campuses one could hope for. The urban setting is fantastic as well, particularly if you're interested in working within underserved areas/populations. Rotations at Cook County is not particularly appealing, but on the flip side, if you can make it there, you'll make it, yes, anywhere.

I will be sure to post interview feedback soon, but til then, if anyone wants to swap stories about this school, I'm game!

~charlatangirl

Well there have been a few threads on Illinois schools where you might find some things of interest on UIC:

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53483&highlight=UIC

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=60301&highlight=UIC

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=59245&highlight=UIC

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=56721&highlight=UIC

As for me I am currently holding a spot at the Chicago campus but I'm looking at other schools also. As for it being a relaxed campus, I'm not so sure. Most of the med students I spoke to informally (outside of the interview day) seemed fairly stressed out--more so than students from other schools. Perhaps I misunderstood what you meant by relaxed.

Also, Cook County Hospital doesn't exist anymore. It closed down and was replaced by a brand new one called John Stroger Hospital with all the modern conveniences the old one lacked. Rush has kind of taken it over though.

 

[charlatangirl]

i forgot about stroger replacing county. strange how those things happen.

i really did get the impression that students there are able to deal with the stress. i'm on an intercollegiate student council that includes public health students, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, and medicine, and the med students are super cool. in addition, a couple of my public health classmates a year ahead went on to UIC med and they love it.

thanks so much for the links! good luck with your med school process...

 

[ForceField]

UIC is a very good school. With great clinical experience, residents of UIC are very well respected and have matched to some of the best programs in the country.

 

[charlatangirl]

my first cousin attended UIC med and is now in a med/peds residency program at Tulane. VERY good program, and the demographic down there is certainly interesting and challenging...

...reminds me of baltimore, only hotter and with better food and MUCH better jazz.

 

[panch]

so here it goes:

i'm a fourth year med student at UIC. i'll try and honestly share some thoughts.

overall i'm happy w/ my decision. i think the best things about our school is the mix of my classmates (w/ ~1/3 underrepresented minortiy, the highest in the nation; also tons of nontraditional students, it's quite interesting to have the doogie housers (sp?) as well as the 40+ parents who've had two or three careers as your classmates ). and the fact that most of us are pretty chill (very little back-stabbing, just 1 or 2 ppl per class, vs. the estimates of 10-15% that i've heard about 'the top schools'). if you work your ass off, you can do well. plus, little of the kumbaya-PBL crap (though we do have some). and we have a wide range of places that we do our clerkships, from cush private hospitals in the burbs to cook county.

don't let ppl tell you that you can't get into the best residencies from here (i've matched at a top five program for neurology, i'm not MD/PhD nor a research guru). sure, you've got to position yourself and do well, but SURPRISE, that's how it works anywhere.

things i hate: the freakin administration here. it's crap, no doubt about it. the office of student affairs here absolutely sucks. just go into it w/ your eyes open, if you need cuddling maybe you need to go elsewhere. also, lectures are extremely hit or miss (mostly miss), but once we realized that most of us decided to use our time for better things, like studying, exercising, chilling, seeing our families, going out... but we have a number of dedicated upperclassmen who spend time giving reviews/tutoring.

overall, i'd advise to seriously consider UIC even if you have multiple acceptances.

also, County is not a major teaching site for us (as of now, third year rotations there are possibilities for peds, gen surgery, and family).

-panch

p.s. please, NEVER, EVER call Cook County by that bastard politician's name. it is, and will remain County to those of us from chicago.

 

[Mr. H]

Hi everyone,

I def. enjoyed UIC, and have been accepted to the chicago campus. I'm very excited about this, but recently I was accepted to Pitt, which I loved! Now i"m sort of in a bind as to which school to attend, as both seem to have awesome clinical years. Money is one of the issues, as an IL state resident I would save a lot, but I'm also interested in going to a very competetive residency. I understand people from UIC get into these programs, but it just seems to me it would def. help a lot going to a prestigious school.
hmmm,
what to do

 

[charlatangirl]

panch -- thanks for the info. i'm really quite stuck on UIC so i hope my interview goes well. i spent a lot of time rock-and-rolling in college (touring the east coast when i should have been studying at hopkins!!!), so my GPA was a bit low, but i have great mcat scores and i'm already a UIC student.

mrH -- i was just talking to my dad about exactly what you're referring to. he's director of radiology at a chicago hospital (my mum's an internist in women's health at the same hosp) and he said that what matters most to residency programs are your boards scores. of course, if you come from hopkins med, that's great, but you can also really shine at a state school, and show your stellar abilities during rotations. these two factors, i think, are some of the most important determinants of where you'll be matched.

good luck to you!
~charlatangirl

ps if you accept at pitt, let me know, so i know there's a spot open at UIC chicago!

 

[bigapple]

i interviewed in early january, and was put in the acceptance range category. do you guys know (of those of you who are already at UIC) if there was a lot of movement last year? this is probably my best shot this year for medical school, and so i really want to get in

 

[shorrin]

I was told at my interview that about 67% get accepted after an interview. Don't sweat it.

 

[bigapple]

but of those people who are 67%, do you think that most got in right away, and the remainder were waitlisters?

that may seem like a stupid question, but then again, i'm a really stupid human being

 

[charlatangirl]

i don't think that's a stupid question at all! don't be so self-deprecating. i was wondering the same thing myself.

thanks to everyone for the info you've provided. like i said, once i have something to offer in the way of inside info, i'll post it asap.

~charliegirl

 

[*fatmike*]

bigapple -

What is this "acceptable range catagory" you found out you were placed into? I thought UIC either accepted, rejected or put you on hold until the waitlist was created in May...at least that is what they told me.

 

[shorrin]

last year I was told that they review every app again at the middle of each month. I interviewed in dec and was accepted in april.

 

[*fatmike*]

Whoa, I thought that was just something they said rather than actually did! Do you know anyone else that has had their app go from post-interview "hold" to acceptance before the waitlist was compiled?

 

[uwcoxswain]

Has anyone received an admissions decision from UIC lately? I interviewed in early February and we were told that we should be hearing in early March.

I was about ready to throttle the mailman this morning when nothing came.

 

[bigapple]

Originally posted by *fatmike*
bigapple -

What is this "acceptable range catagory" you found out you were placed into? I thought UIC either accepted, rejected or put you on hold until the waitlist was created in May...at least that is what they told me.

sorry i was vague about that. i just got that email saying that i was basically on hold, but from viewing some of the posts on this site, it just seemed as if most people get in right away (right after the interview). i just didn't know whether there was much movement off of that waitlist, or if there was movement at all. i had been told before that the acceptance rate post-interview was about 60%, but i'm still pretty anxious. to me a "hold" or "waitlist" means that my chances are still really slim of getting in...

 

[*fatmike*]

Thanks for the clarification. Actually, I think the chances of getting taken off the hold or waitlist sometime between now and when school starts are pretty good. I think they have said that if we make the wait list in may we will get a letter stating what tier we are in, e.g. first quarter, second quartile etc...

 

[calipremed]

uwcoxswain Has anyone received an admissions decision from UIC lately? I interviewed in early February and we were told that we should be hearing in early March.

I'm not sure how to do this quote thing.

Anyway, I also interviewed around the same time. I got an acceptance package last week: large envelope, several pages.

 

[uwcoxswain]

calipremed-

last week!?!? In California?
My mailbox can't be more than 15 miles from the school and I still haven't heard.
I hope that doesn't mean bad news for me...

Congrats though... do you think you are headed there this fall?

 

[panch]

i spent a lot of time rock-and-rolling in college (touring the east coast when i should have been studying at hopkins!!!), so my GPA was a bit low, but i have great mcat scores and i'm already a UIC student.

hey charlatangirl (and by extension, the rest of y'all):
i spent waaaaayy too much time rock-and-rolling (though it was raving in my day, gawd i feel old) during college as well. my gpa wasn't as good as it could've been (plus i wasn't at hopkins, i was at NYU) but i did well on the MCAT and talked the talk during the interview. good luck on the interview, stay cool, make sure that they know you are human (and humane), and talk up research if you have it (that's what i did)

to everyone: good luck on the acceptances rolling in. yeah, UIC tends to be one of those schools that ppl will hang on w/ an acceptance 'til they find out from some of the privates. sorry, but i dunno the games that they play w/ rolling admissions

and yes, we can rock the house for residency match if we work hard during med school and know our stuff. when you look at the prior match lists, also remember that a number of our students are homebodies and/or married and intend to stick around chicago or the midwest.

cheers

 

[uwcoxswain]

So I got some email from the assistant director of admissions at UIC this morning. It states that the committee has thoroughly reviewed my application at the February meeting but no decision has been made. The committee will continute to review my application and update me each month. WTF?! Is this a waitlist? It seems to me that if I were put on a waitlist, that that would be a decision. Did they just decide to let my app sit around? I dont get it. I interviewed a month and a half ago. Has anyone else gotten an email like this recently or in the past? Does anyone have any clue what it means? Synonymous with a waitlist? What are my chances of gaining admission? The worst part about this is their stupid policy of only allowing calls on Thursdays. I can't even call them and see what the deal is!
Please help


-Incredibly confused

 

[*fatmike*]

Dear Fellow Badger,

You have gotten the famous "hold" email from UIC. This is NOT a waitlist. They will review your app every month until the waitlist is compiled, and send you an email update of its status. If you are not accepted between now and when the waitlist forms, you MAY be put on the waitlist, although there is no garuntee. You can be rejected at teh time the waitlist is formed. If you do make the waitlist, you will get a letter in the mail letting you know what quartile you are in. From there you will wait to see if you get called. According to the assistant ad com officer that sends the email, last year they called people all the way up to the first week of classes!

I am on "hold" as well. Someone correct me if any of this info is wrong, but I gathered it from other SDN'ers and the Admissions office of UIC.

Goodluck!!! Keep us updated on your status!

 

[uwcoxswain]

fatmike-

Sweet... even worse than I imagined.
So this essentially is lower than a waitlist?
If I am "lucky" I am put on the waitlist sometime in the future even below those who were put straight on the waitlist after the adcom meeting? Any idea what the chances of getting in off this wonderful HOLD list are?

Thanks

 

[*fatmike*]

try not to get too down about it. to my knowledge, no one has been put on the waitlist yet. they either accept, reject, or "hold" your application after an interview. those of us who have not been accepted or rejected are put on hold until the waitlist is formed in May.

i have no idea what the chances are of being taken off the hold and given an acceptance before may, but i imagine it could happen.

i hope this helps. again, try not to let it ruin your attitude, just chill out until may and see what happens. if you have any more questions, let me know

 

[charlatangirl]

in the case of UIC, it's hard to say which is better - a hold or a waitlist - but think about the fact that you didn't get a rejection letter!

fyi - i found out about getting into UIC public health school the DAY BEFORE graduating college. THE DAY BEFORE! (hopkins was even worse, they told me in july, but that's a different side of beef.) and the only reason i found out was because i called and pestered them all afternoon.

this is one school that will leave you sweating, hanging by a thread, 'til the last minute. that's the unfortunate reality of it. but i'm there on the thread with you, swinging precariously off a chicago high-rise (as you can tell my brain is addled).

so keep the faith, my good man.

AND GOOOOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!
~cg

 

[calipremed]

Originally posted by uwcoxswain
calipremed-

last week!?!? In California?
My mailbox can't be more than 15 miles from the school and I still haven't heard.
I hope that doesn't mean bad news for me...

Congrats though... do you think you are headed there this fall?

Thanks. I'm not sure. So far UIC is my only acceptance. However, it is not my first choice, being from out-of-state and all.

 

[powermd]

i noticed that you said that your dad is chief of radiology at a chicago hospital. i am really interested in radiology and have no idea how to go about being successful with the radiology match. would you mind asking your father? i REALLY need advice.

ps-i'm not sure how i came upon this site, but best of luck with your med school mission. it will work out. myself and many others have been in the same position as you. GOOD LUCK!!!!

 

[charlatangirl]

hi power,

i will certainly ask my dad. do me a favor - pm me and remind me, as i have a tendency to forget about things like this. ok?

by the way everyone - i found out this week that i am accepted at UIC!!! finally!

*skips around her apartment*

cheers,
sruti

 

[yahooyahoo]

charlatangirl, i just pm'd you.

 

[draino15]

Hey guys,
I just wanted to let you guys know that apparently they are still giving out interview invites. Last week I got a phone call from Connie at UIC, asking me to interview there on the 12th. What do you think about May interviews? May 15th is right around the corner, so why are they still interviewing? It seems like they would know who they want by mid-May.

any ideas?