UIC MSP program

[chessodoc]

Hey all

So I received an E-mail about an invite to the UIC MSP Molecular and Cellular Biol "retreat" on March and 7. Obviously I am uber-excited but I can't help to think that this is not an interview...nowhere in the E-mail does it say anything about an interivew.

It also says " Please note that you will be contacted by the MSP office separately."...would this be the actual med school invite? Also...do you guys think they would be on different dates? (i.e. I have to come back for the actual interview)...I am so confused how this process works at UIC.

Oh and get this, apparently the MSTP and MSP admissions committees have absolutely nothing to do with each other.

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[konfuciuz]

I received the same email today and I replied inquiring about the interview process. I was informed that we should be hearing from the MSP office soon regarding an interview. From what I could find under the FAQ section of the MSP website it appears that the MSP does not conduct interviews until individual graduate programs give the "ok".

 

[imbored]

Hey all

So I received an E-mail about an invite to the UIC MSP Molecular and Cellular Biol "retreat" on March and 7. Obviously I am uber-excited but I can't help to think that this is not an interview...nowhere in the E-mail does it say anything about an interivew.

It also says " Please note that you will be contacted by the MSP office separately."...would this be the actual med school invite? Also...do you guys think they would be on different dates? (i.e. I have to come back for the actual interview)...I am so confused how this process works at UIC.

Oh and get this, apparently the MSTP and MSP admissions committees have absolutely nothing to do with each other.

Do you happen to live around the area of urbana? It seems to me that this is an invite to a social event that they are holding so you can get to know them better....not an interview, per se. So you definitely should contact them on Monday to clarify.

And yeah, I think many of us get confused for a brief moment at some point about UIC having two different MD/PhD programs.

 

[tomhobbes]

UIC runs the traditional MD/PhD program and recently became an MSTP (07?). UIUC runs a separate dual-degree Medical Scholars Program (MSP), with the MD portion taught entirely in Urbana. The MSP is PhD-oriented and program admission is contingent upon admission first to the graduate department.

The main difference in program layout is that MSP students start their PhD research first, taking their M1 coursework piecemeal during their research years. Most take M2 in their last PhD year prior to defense, when research is winding down and writing up. M3-4 are same as other programs.

Note the primary AMCAS app to the UIC MSTP and UIUC MSP both go to the same University of Illinois medical system. Secondaries go to the separate locations.

 

[chessodoc]

So if we received the PhD E-mail...we expect to receive the MD E-mail too right? I hope? lol

And how can we start medical school in the last years of PhD? Isn't the medical school located in Chicago? Also, writing the PhD thesis while doing med school is going to be excruciating.

 

[tomhobbes]

Applicants need the nod from both grad dept and MSP adcom. One might be more difficult to obtain than the other, depending on grad dept. But grad dept is a must and is completely separate from the MSP adcom.

Most MSPs complete M1 by the end of their PhD, and some will have started M2.

In essence, while the traditional MD/PhD layout is the typical 2+4+2, UIUC's MSP follows more of a 6+2, where the six is a combined PhD + M1 + M2, the exact sequence and composition of which is up to the student. Some folks prefer the six years they spend in lab (may be part-time while completing M1 or 2) to four in the traditional 2+4+2. While they may clock in the same total number of hours over those 6 years as a regular 4-year PhD student, the extra length of time might be beneficial depending on the nature of the research. E.g. studies allotting animal grow time; in that situation clocking in 60 hrs over 4 days might not be as valuable as 60 hrs over a couple of weeks. Generally, M2 is only started when the PhD is winding down/in the writing stage.

Preference for MD/PhD program layout is definitely a personal thing, and probably takes into account the nature of the science as well.

U of I medical system has campuses at Urbana and Chicago. MSPs spend M1-4 in Urbana, excepting aways. Admin and faculty are also separate. Although the Urbana M1 class starts out with ~100 students, most of these non-MSPs leave for satellite campuses in Rockford and Peoria M2-4. Clinical M2-4 in Urbana revolves largely around the MSPs.

caveat: I've been using 4 years simply as an ideal number for the duration of the PhD. As a PhD-centered program, that number varies according to grad dept., and at the end of the day the dept decides what it takes to graduate.

Hope this clarifies the confusion about the program.

 

[chessodoc]

Applicants need the nod from both grad dept and MSP adcom. One might be more difficult to obtain than the other, depending on grad dept. But grad dept is a must and is completely separate from the MSP adcom.

Most MSPs complete M1 by the end of their PhD, and some will have started M2.

In essence, while the traditional MD/PhD layout is the typical 2+4+2, UIUC's MSP follows more of a 6+2, where the six is a combined PhD + M1 + M2, the exact sequence and composition of which is up to the student. Some folks prefer the six years they spend in lab (may be part-time while completing M1 or 2) to four in the traditional 2+4+2. While they may clock in the same total number of hours over those 6 years as a regular 4-year PhD student, the extra length of time might be beneficial depending on the nature of the research. E.g. studies allotting animal grow time; in that situation clocking in 60 hrs over 4 days might not be as valuable as 60 hrs over a couple of weeks. Generally, M2 is only started when the PhD is winding down/in the writing stage.

Preference for MD/PhD program layout is definitely a personal thing, and probably takes into account the nature of the science as well.

U of I medical system has campuses at Urbana and Chicago. MSPs spend M1-4 in Urbana, excepting aways. Admin and faculty are also separate. Although the Urbana M1 class starts out with ~100 students, most of these non-MSPs leave for satellite campuses in Rockford and Peoria M2-4. Clinical M2-4 in Urbana revolves largely around the MSPs.

caveat: I've been using 4 years simply as an ideal number for the duration of the PhD. As a PhD-centered program, that number varies according to grad dept., and at the end of the day the dept decides what it takes to graduate.

Hope this clarifies the confusion about the program.

Well kind of...but there is still lots of confusion.

So after receiving the Open House invitation for the graduate weekend, will we for sure receive an invitation from the MSP office to interview? Otherwise, whats the point of going to visit a program if you are not even accepted to that school.

 

[chessodoc]

Sorry for being a typical panicky premed, just got the MSP invite.