Hey! I'm a graduate from the University of Cincinnati's SMP program from several years ago. I ended up graduating from UC medical school and am now a Neurosurgery resident. I didn't see a thread for this year, so I figured I'd start one. Please let me know if you have any questions about the program.
University of Cincinnati SMP 2022–23
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Hi
thanks for starting this thread.
I am from California and have applied to medical school and was unsuccessful so now I am looking at SMP programs and really leaning towards applying here.
How is the curriculum?
How is it living in the city?
Are there people who are from other states that were in your program? Were you originally from another state?
thanks for starting this thread.
I am from California and have applied to medical school and was unsuccessful so now I am looking at SMP programs and really leaning towards applying here.
How is the curriculum?
How is it living in the city?
Are there people who are from other states that were in your program? Were you originally from another state?
I was in the same boat - I applied one year and didn't get in so ended up doing the SMP.
The curriculum involves taking roughly half of the first year of medical school. So you take certain classes alongside the M1s and get to show that you can handle medical school courses. Then you take a mix if physiology and biostats type courses which are overall easier than the M1 courses. Its sort of nice because you get a little bit of a time advantage in that you take the same classes as M1s, but you have more time to study for them.
Cincinnati is a great city to live in. I loved it there. I had several classmates from California and they really liked Cinci, too.
I was from a different state and I would say that the majority of my classmates were not from Ohio. The nice thing is, doing this program lets you be an in-state applicant for medical school. Meaning, you get to apply in-state to all of the Ohio medical schools (Toledo, Cincinnati, Neomed, Ohio State, Case Western), and if you get accepted to an Ohio medical school you get to pay in-state tuition.
Hope this helps - can't promise that I'll respond in a timely fashion but will try to help as much as I can
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Hi, thank you for starting this thread! I am a former Cincy undergrad and have just applied to their SMP program while in my gap year. I have also applied to Tufts and Tulane's SMPs. I applied to all 3 on Feb 1 and so far I've only heard back from Tufts they gave me a deadline to reply on March 5. Cincy is my 1 program so I'm hoping to be accepted there! I'm worried I won't hear back from Cincy before the Tufts deadline, any advice?
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Anyone got a decision yet?
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I just got my acceptance today! I applied on February 2. I called UC a few days ago and they said that they are reviewing this set of applications from this month and will be giving answers within this week so hopefully you should hear back from them soon. Good luck!
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I applied end of January!
insouciant12
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Congrats!! Would you mind sharing general stats? I'm not sure if I'm competitive enough for this program
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My MCAT score is mediocre and my GPA is a 3.75. I feel like my stats are on the higher end for this type of program but not high enough for UC's med school. I wanted to do it because I wanted to go to UC's med school and this program is great at showing UC med that you are a competitive applicant. I think you could get in with an MCAT of ~504 and a lower GPA as long as you apply early!
Hi folks, I'm currently in the SMP program and would like to share that I am extremely happy here. From my experience the mentorship from students/faculty is just out of this world. The program is invested in your success and I've heard many amazing stories from alumni, including those currently in the 2021-2022 cycle.
If you are determined to prove your academic chops Cinci is a great place to do it. The program is rigorous and you will learn a LOT--I can confidently say this past year has been the most growth I have experienced as a student.
I'd be happy to answer any questions!
If you are determined to prove your academic chops Cinci is a great place to do it. The program is rigorous and you will learn a LOT--I can confidently say this past year has been the most growth I have experienced as a student.
I'd be happy to answer any questions!
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Is the program admissions competitive?
I applied end of January, and didn't hear anything. Based on above, people who applied after me heard back. I reached out to admissions twice and they told me they were still reviewing. Today I got rejected. So I'm wondering, is it competitive?
I applied end of January, and didn't hear anything. Based on above, people who applied after me heard back. I reached out to admissions twice and they told me they were still reviewing. Today I got rejected. So I'm wondering, is it competitive?
Sorry to hear about that. I think whether it is competitive might depend on your MCAT/GPA etc. If you flip through some of the previous Cinci SMP threads you might be able to get a feel for the stats of applicants who get into the program. Sorry I don't have a better answer for you, I don't have much insight into the admissions process.
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Does the MCAT need to be sent to the school electronically or is giving them a print of official score report with code sufficient? I submitted mine last week but it still says for MCAT is pending
I believe you have to send it electronically to the UC College of Medicine through AAMC's MCAT website. I think it took a little past a week for mine to update as "received" on the application checklist. If you already sent your score electronically, I'd give it a little more time.
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How long do you think I should wait until reaching out to the admission committee? It's been about 6 weeks since my application was marked complete.
I normally wouldn't be so anxious, but am holding another acceptance and am hoping to make a final decision soon. I definitely want to go here over the other program though.
I normally wouldn't be so anxious, but am holding another acceptance and am hoping to make a final decision soon. I definitely want to go here over the other program though.
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I was dealing with the same situation don't hesitate to reach out to them! I spoke to Emma Jones on the phone and let her know that I was waiting to hear back from UC since I had another acceptance and that UC was my number one choice. She let me know when they were reviewing the next batch of applications.
Can someone who has recently gone through / currently going through the program speak about its success over the past couple years and how it's been during these COVID times? Specifically, I'm wondering if the program has continued to maintain a good track record of getting people into med school for the latest two classes and if there have been notable changes to the program during these COVID times. Also, is there mandatory class everyday and are all classes recorded? How difficult is completing the thesis? Any other tips / information would be much appreciated. I'm seriously considering attending this fall and being successful in this program is probably going to be the only way I eventually get into med school.
I apologize that I don't have specific numbers for you, but I do know that the majority of students from 2020 got into med school, and as the alumni page shows, more than a quarter of the class got into Cincinnati. I don't know too much about the class of 2021, though I heard the cycle is going well for them too. I've heard no sentiment from anyone that success rates were any different the past couple years, and if anything the alumni only had great things to say about their classes' outcomes.
Most things that changed during COVID have reverted back. Right now it feels no different from going to school pre-COVID, except maybe for the more widespread use of Zoom for smaller meetings/seminars.
There are many classes that have mandatory attendance (Graduate Medical Physiology I, II, Statistics, Neurophysiology, to name a few), but during the med blocks (where we take classes with M1s) the lectures are recorded and attendance is not mandatory. The capstone project is due at the end of the year, and while I can't fully comment on its difficulty yet, I've heard from previous students that it is definitely doable. There will be only one other ongoing class during May, so it looks like there will be ample time for us to engage with the project.
The physiology courses and the med blocks require understanding or memorizing substantial volumes of material within a short time-frame. Try very early on to identify and abolish habits that may prevent you from studying efficiently. Find the right study method for yourself. For example, many students benefit from Anki, but just as many don't use it at all. It's important to find the optimal approach for yourself so that you can benefit the most from the limited time you have to study. Do not ever wait until the last minute to study. Read exam questions carefully to make sure you understand what they're asking. Many of us have left too many easy points on the table from presuming what questions were asking, without reading them carefully.
Hope this helps! Please let me know if there's anything I left unanswered, or if you have any more questions.
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Anyone having trouble with the MCAT score not being received yet? I contacted their grad department and they said they are having issues on their side. Also I received an email that Emma no longer works there.
D
deleted1135735
Did your mcat score ever upload? I had my score sent a while ago and it's still being marked as missing.
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It's been awfully quiet over here. Why are there only 5 other students in the Facebook group when class starts next month? Is there something I should know about?
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I think mine was marked as received few days after my post.
Can any other incoming student confirm that they haven't received orientation or class registration info yet? Getting kind of nervous because I thought we would have received an e-mail by now because the program starts next week. I don't have FB so I can't check the FB class page to see if anything's been said there. Feel free to DM me if you prefer to speak that way or just wanna chat about the program lol.
