University of Miami, Class of 2010

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McMD said:
So I was really bored at work and reading up on the proper attire for UM and it said "no flip-flops"...I could have sworn like 5 students were wearing flip-flops when I interviewed. By the way, this wasn't in the "clinical setting" section either-so this would have been in the classroom setting. Can someone verify this information?
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hmmm....never heard that before...i saw a couple of girls wearing flipflops at my interview date also...maybe it means no flipflops in a clnical setting because i don't see how wearing flipflops to class could be detrimental...
 
yeah, there was a different section for "clinical setting" attire though-so it looked like it was for the classroom setting!! Maybe it's a policy that just gets ignored-who knows.

When Deuist gets back from vacation, we'll ask him!
 
McMD said:
yeah, there was a different section for "clinical setting" attire though-so it looked like it was for the classroom setting!! Maybe it's a policy that just gets ignored-who knows.

When Deuist gets back from vacation, we'll ask him!
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hopefully so....otherwise my dreams of waking up late and showin up to class in bball shorts, tshirt and flipflops will be dashed....
 
jon0013 said:
hopefully so....otherwise my dreams of waking up late and showin up to class in bball shorts, tshirt and flipflops will be dashed....
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yeah...the dress code said "no t-shirts" as well.
 
RunnerMD said:
There were definitely girls AND guys at my interview wearing flip flops. Also, there were two girls wearing jean capris and tank tops....so if you can wear that, I don't see why you can't wear a t-shirt...hmm...
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Ok, sweet...that's what I thought...I was just bored at work and looked up the "dress code" in their handbook to check.
 
RunnerMD said:
Ok, so today, I finally sucked it up and started the loan application process...and guess what? I found an (IMO pretty significant) error on the UM website. According to their estimate budget, they allot $11,800 for room and board (broken down in the following way: 680/rent, 145/utilities, 355/food (per month))--However, when you add 680+145+355 and multiply by 12, you get $14,160...a difference of $2360!!! Sooo....that could potentially be a big problem (since we are only allowed to borrow up to a fixed amount based on the budget). Anyway, I called the fin aid office, and I'm waiting to be called back. I'll keep you updated.
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So the fin aid office only assumes the amount borrowed for the time you are in school. Since we have next summer off, they take off 2 months of the expenses since we could have a job, etc. to pay for those 2 months...so for 10 months the amount they calculated is correct. Sorry to disappoint! 🙁
 
Runner, which company did you go with? T.H.E.?


I'm also soooo excited about starting school! Does anyone know if the Fall Ball is for MS1's or MS2's??
 
I will be attending the Miami campus in the fall. I was wondering if anyone knew of specific apartments where a lot of medical students live...especially in the brickell or grove areas.
 
check the incoming freshman page, it specifically lists apartments that are popular among med students. Also, the yahoo group for the class of 2010 has a few current med students posting where other students are living. Hope that helps!
 
Hi! My name is Dan and I got accepted to Miami @ FAU about a week ago. I have been emailing current students (maybe some people who are on here as well), and I have started having some concerns. I am expecting an offer from USF in the next week or two (according to Mr. Larkin), and am trying to decide between the two (I am going to go visit FAU soon).

My current concerns are:

1) I have feedback from a student at FAU who is concerned that the lectures at FAU are very different from the ones at Miami, and the teachers much less experienced. This has translated into having to listen to/watch the Miami lectures as well and a general feel of discontinuity and uncertainty about being prepared for exams. I really need to know if anyone else feels this way (that you are behind/catching up with Miami main campus), or do you feel like both campuses are adequately preparing you for the boards.

2) Do you feel that you are looked at differently or as lesser than the students on the main campus in any way? This may be a matter of perception, but if it is perceived by a lot of people it is something I worry about.

In terms of Miami @ FAU vs. USF, I really don't know what I'm going to do. A graduate of Miami med told me to just go with USF since it is almost half as expensive and it is a decent school. I think there are quite a few people who have this dilemma of state school vs. private, and it is a tough nut to crack. Like one of those macadamias.

Any advice about anything related to any of this would be awesome. I just finished reading all bajillion pages of this forum, and a lot of it was really helpful.
 
d4....Deuist would be able to answer your questions the best, however, he is on vacation-don't know when he'll be back.

I'm am an incoming student, so I don't know much about Miami@FAU, but if you are seriously concerned with the FAU campus (which I don't think you should be)....you can always request to transfer to the main campus before July 1st.

Congrats on your acceptance and good luck on the WL movement at USF.
 
I was in the same situation you are in as I'm sure many other students were too. I declined USF to go to UM@FAU, I'm an incoming Freshman so take my advice with a grain of salt. I know it's hard to do, but what school would you go to if tuition was the same? Probably Miami. You shouldn't pick the school just because of the cost. I see going to FAU as an advantage since classes are so small. It's like getting the best of both worlds by having small classes the first two years and then traing at Jackson. I'm sure the kids at Miami will look differently at the FAU students, but why? Many of the students chose to go to FAU and eveyone has similar MCAT scores anyway so there's no reason for the students at Miami to think they're better. Besides, on your diploma it says "Miller School of Medicine" for everyone.

I heard similar things about the teaching at FAU. So maybe we don't have to go to all the lectures at FAU and you can watch the Miami lecture instead. Maybe I like FAU so much is because I live in Boca and my commute is 10 minutes.
 
I'm also an incoming student, but one of the first years that spoke with us when I interviewed also said that he (a miami student) didn't feel prepared for the Boca material that was on the exam. So I guess it works both ways.

He said that they were working on fixing things though....
 
I've been taking the UM at FAU summer gross anatomy series as an undergrad and can vouche for the fact that there are indeed some kinks that need to be ironed out btwn Miami and FAU campus. However, the problem is not btwn branch students, but rather effective professor-professor communication btwn campuses, but one which I feel the are working hard on improving rapidly.

Also, so everyone knows, this year's incoming class at UM at FAU will be the last "2+2" class. Every class thereafter will spend all 4 years at FAU, and at that time, the diploma will still say UM, with at FAU tacked onto it. How that will affect match lists in 5 years, I do not know. No one does. Nor will we know how it will affect USMLE's. That's unpredictable at this point. But you gotta be hopeful 🙂

Additionally, the Biomed Dept where the school is now housed, is in the middle of administration overhaul. The current Chair is leaving before fall, and is being replaced, and the Biomed Dept is also being changed to a new College of Biomedicine, so there's a lot of head-wobbling going on with all the new changes happening so quickly. It has, at times, led some med-students to fan flames for being guinea pigs, although I can say the honchos in charge of the program (Dr's Markowitz, Rose, Friedland, Gelb - are truly loved by the students - although I am still an undergrad - I've had my fair exposure to them, and they're great, dedicated doctors).

Moreover, one valid concern heard from the current students is the teaching ability of a few select professors. Some of these professors speak very poor/broken English and thus are highly ineffective as med-school lecturers, despite all of them being brilliant researchers. As a result, many med-students that I'm friends with say that they end up going to those professors' lectures rather infrequently, and watch the UM video-feeds from the Nerdery or from their homes instead.

But - they also say there are a handful of teachers that are absolutely fabulous. I can personally tell you, Bob Blanks, the anatomist for med-students, is a wonderful, sage of a man, who will hold weekend review sessions for you, and will tell you long stories to make you remember random anatomy facts, and likes to associate learning techniques and methodology within his curriculum. Taking his anatomy has been a blessing, and, although rough on the brain, a blast.

Overall, people seem happy. And like I said, the FAU branch is still working hard at improving kinks, and I suspect that will become much easier when it's housed in its own building, and the planned University Hospital is finally built. But I doubt incomings will be around for that. They'll be sleepless residents by then. lol joy oh joy 😉 So - can't say anything about USF, since I'm not familiar with them. But I wish Dr. H would contact me. Although Rel Larkin, as I hear, is simply addicted to his e-mail box to the tune of un-natural levels. lol

I just wish this wait were over; although I find it well worth it, it's a hard one, as I'm sure many of you know, or knew, at one point. It's depressing/frustrating/fear-inducing/nauseating/sweat-pouring all at the same time. lol But, it's what my heart is set on. Hope for the best, right?
 
Great replies! And lots of things to think about.

For me, the small class size could go in either the positive or the negative. Small classes are great for learning (assuming the professor is good, which is another concern at FAU for me). However, with a small class size, if you don't really like who you are with, it could end up being a really torturous 2 years. I believe the inverse is often true of a big/normal class size. Sometimes you can feel like you are lost in a sea of students, but the good thing is that out of those 100+ people, you can usually find a group of people that you become close friends with. I'm not saying at all that I don't get along with a lot of people, but I think you know what I mean.

In terms of money, if they were the same price, you are right, I probably would choose Miami. This is based for me on the brand spankin new sexy facilities that FAU has (i still have to see them, but they sound awesome), and the rotations at Jackson. However, the two schools being the price diffferences they are, I don't think I like Miami 12 grand more. USF has older facilities, but the residency matches that someone (maybe dueleist) posted earlier are really comparable for all three schools. When you look at the matches, there isn't a clear "winner" among the three. If I can get a great education from both, I think I should go with the one that is markedly less expensive as a tie breaker of sorts.

The technology and readily accessible lectures at FAU/Miami are just so hot, though. Being a closet nerd, it is hard for me to turn my heart away from a lecture hall w/ plasma screens 😉

I gotta say, I think I'm gonna have to ride the fence on this one until I can visit both schools again and hopefully get that gut feeling for one or the other. I'm just grateful that I don't have to choose between two schools I dont like.

Thanks everyone for your replies
 
I'm in an airport right now and waiting to board my next flight. Since I have some down time, I'll try to answer all of your questions in one post.

d4nimal said:
1) I have feedback from a student at FAU who is concerned that the lectures at FAU are very different from the ones at Miami, and the teachers much less experienced. This has translated into having to listen to/watch the Miami lectures as well and a general feel of discontinuity and uncertainty about being prepared for exams. I really need to know if anyone else feels this way (that you are behind/catching up with Miami main campus), or do you feel like both campuses are adequately preparing you for the boards.
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There are some people who watch lectures from both campuses (including me). While the fall semester was pretty rough, the spring was largely taught by American physicians who are understandable. The test averages are the same at both campuses, meaning that both sets of professors do a good job of teaching the material. Some people don't watch any lectures, stay at home, only read the textbooks, and they're scoring 90s. In other words, so long as you find a study method that works, you'll be fine.

d4nimal said:
2) Do you feel that you are looked at differently or as lesser than the students on the main campus in any way? This may be a matter of perception, but if it is perceived by a lot of people it is something I worry about.
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Yep, the Miami students are brats. Don't believe me? Tell someone from the Jackson campus that you go to FAU and see how quickly you get the cold shoulder. However, our test averages are the same and FAU students enjoy their classmates more. I'm happier here. However, if your ego and well-being are linked to what others think about you, then by all means you should transfer to prevent your feelings from getting hurt.

McMD said:
So I was really bored at work and reading up on the proper attire for UM and it said "no flip-flops"...I could have sworn like 5 students were wearing flip-flops when I interviewed. By the way, this wasn't in the "clinical setting" section either-so this would have been in the classroom setting. Can someone verify this information?
Click to expand...

In theory, we do have a dress code: no flip-flops, no T-shirts, no scrubs in class and professional attire in the hospital. The reason for the dress code is that patients and donors pass through the halls of the medical school and form opinions about the school based upon the students that they see. In reality, the dress code quickly falls apart by the second week. For FAU students, you are prohibited from wearing shorts while in class and the administration will harp at you if your clothes get out of hand.

inflamesdjk02 said:
Anyone know what goes on at the so-called "Games Day"?
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You play a series of games that are similar to middle school gym class. There's the tug of war, the relay, the egg toss, and whatever else you can think of. At the end of the day, you'll get your assignments to your academic society, the group that will teach you about clinical skills and share study secrets. You'll then spend the next four years hating the people in your society.

Algorhythmik seems to have a handle on many of the happenings at FAU. Like he said, the school is in a transition period. I encourage anyone conflicted over this campus to contact the administration.


I'm off to catch my plane.
 
deuist said:
Yep, the Miami students are brats. Don't believe me? Tell someone from the Jackson campus that you go to FAU and see how quickly you gt the cold shoulder. However, our test averages are the same and FAU students enjoy their classmates more. I'm happier here. However, if your ego and well-being are linked to what others think about you, then by all means you should transfer to prevent your feelings from getting hurt.
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HA ha. I'm pretending not to know you already, though only because of consistently getting picked last for the egg toss in middle school.
 
deuist said:
I'm in an airport right now and waiting to board my next flight. Since I have some down time, I'll try to answer all of your questions in one post.





Yep, the Miami students are brats. Don't believe me? Tell someone from the Jackson campus that you go to FAU and see how quickly you gt the cold shoulder. However, our test averages are the same and FAU students enjoy their classmates more. I'm happier here. However, if your ego and well-being are linked to what others think about you, then by all means you should transfer to prevent your feelings from getting hurt.





I'm off to catch my plane.
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can't tell if you are being sarcastic or not....
 
Oh, I'm not going to start crying because the Jackson kids dont like me and they steal my lunch, but it would just be nice if everyone got along great. I think you know what I mean. Everyone always looks at the dynamics of the students between their classmates as a factor, so just a standard inquiry.

I think the best proof that the FAU students are doing just as well is the test averages, so thanks for that. I just have to bone up on my study skills. I have been out of school for a year, so the only thing I have been studying is why my dog thinks its ok to eat my candles.
 
Welcome to the main campus inflames!!

Is the orientation combined for the FAU and Miami students?...(just wondering)

What kind of dog do you have d4nimal?
 
Hi... does anybody know if the class is still full post june 15th. Its hard assesing my chances when the admission doesn't give out where on the waitlist you are. I've been told to look for something in the mail in the next week or so, but I've been told that for the past month. I'd really hate to sign a lease for a place at another med school and then find out the my first choice has accepted me. Well I guess i'm ranting but if anybody has any info, it would be greatly appreciated!!
 
deuist said:
Yep, the Miami students are brats. Don't believe me? Tell someone from the Jackson campus that you go to FAU and see how quickly you get the cold shoulder. However, our test averages are the same and FAU students enjoy their classmates more. I'm happier here. However, if your ego and well-being are linked to what others think about you, then by all means you should transfer to prevent your feelings from getting hurt.
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I find the comment which deuist made very interesting – but let me explain my perspective to all of you attending FAU in 2 months. I don’t really think that my class has a negative view of our FAU classmates. I can’t think of anyone I know who dislikes the people from FAU simply because they attend a different campus. However, I can see where deuist is coming from. In slightly less than a year our class has become a fairly close group. Most of the roughly 150 students at the Miami campus know each other well. Over the past year we have been exposed to our FAU classmates on a number of occasions and while these meetings have been someone limited and brief I at least know who they are and what their names are. I can understand why they might feel they get the cold shoulder since they are usually grossly outnumbered by Miami students at any event and it is clear that we don’t know the FAU students as well. I really don’t think we try to ignore them we just don’t know them as well and aren’t as close of friends. Also, when we do get together with the FAU students they tend to hang out with each other rather than us (for the same reasons) so it is a 2 sided street.

I do feel bad that we don’t get more time to know our FAU colleagues, but I think this will change somewhat during our clinical years. I am sorry that deuist and other FAU students feel that we are giving them the cold shoulder but I don’t think it is intentional and it can be explained by sociological principles.

Ergo, vis-à-vis, concordantly – have no fear if you plan on going to FAU – we don’t hate you as much as you think… 😉
 
To the person who asked, I have a Yorkie named Yoshi. He is a purebred, but he is also like 14 pounds, so he is a monster.

swfla, when I emailed Dr. Hinkley, he told me I was rapidly coming to the top of the list. I know this isn't exactly telling you where you are, but it was a whole hell of a lot more helpful than the standard school answer of "we will notify you if there are any changes in your status."

So I think the fact that he's telling you to look for something in the mail is a good sign. I know the feeling, because despite my indecision as to which school I should ultimately pick (now i'm leaning towards FAU), I still haven't even been accepted to the other school yet, when they originally told me it should have been by now. So I am still hoping, but not living or dying, on that other school still offering me a place, though I think now that I would choose FAU. It is tough knowing you are going to make as big a decision as this and you might not even know where you will be until a few days before school. Kinda makes you go 😱

on the other hand, we are so fortunate to be accepted already to at least some medical school, so here is the world's tiniest violin playing a sad song for us +pity+

actually i am just trying to use the smilies
 
Hi everyone,
I heard a while back about a financial information package being sent in the mail from UM. All the information we need seems to be already up on the website, but I vaguely remember someone saying we'd be getting something in the middle of june. Did anyone get anything?
I'm just trying to make sure that I'm getting all important UM mail- my address is updated, but my parents have a tendency to throw out any mail that's not addressed to them (yes, even my mail, without even noticing).

PS- This thread is a veritable goldmine of information. Thank god for this site!
 
UFtoUM, I haven't received anything in the mail either...I don't think last year (or before) they had the finaid website like they do now, so maybe we won't be receiving anything. I'm not sure.
 
i was reading through the website for incoming students and in the calendar, it says something like "final transcripts due"...does anybody know exactly what this means?
 
labelwhore said:
i was reading through the website for incoming students and in the calendar, it says something like "final transcripts due"...does anybody know exactly what this means?
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I'm pretty sure they just mean to send your final college transcripts (I suppose then, your transcripts so that they include spring of 2006). I'm not sure how this applies if you graduated before then.
 
I believe you're correct. I just had my undergrad school send mine again to be safe. I'm sure you've heard the old proverb, "you can never send too many transcripts to the medical school you will be matriculating to in the fall." Confucius said that.
 
Since last year we sent our transcripts to AMCAS, when you matriculate into a school-you have to send your transcripts to the actual school...so yes, send your college transcripts to UM from every institution you attended.

Runner, I think next year I'm going to get the one from MegaLife that is on the website, it looks quite affordable.
 
Are we actually supposed to go over the Biochemistry review they have posted on the website? It's like every friggin' lecture and powerpoint ... all I have to say is, I barely have enough motivation to take my daily shower these days 🙄
 
I'm not positive, but I think we are supposed to look at that biochem material to make sure none of it looks particularly foreign. Like they don't want anyone coming in and thinking the Kreb's cycle was part of menstruation or something. I'm not sure.

I also have to go out and start reading those books, too. That Tuesdays with Morrie book is also a movie, for any of you shortcutter/slackers.

I'm pretty sure we will all be grateful that you have been taking showers. Thank you.
 
d4nimal...what books are you talking about besides the biochem book?

BTW, Inflames...did you ever visit Boca?...are you definitely going to UMiami?...I thought you were trying to decide last time you posted something about it.
 
McMD said:
d4nimal...what books are you talking about besides the biochem book?

BTW, Inflames...did you ever visit Boca?...are you definitely going to UMiami?...I thought you were trying to decide last time you posted something about it.
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http://bioserv.biomed.fau.edu:8080/admissions/reading

I am not sure if the Miami Miami kids have to read those, but I thought we were taking the same courses. I couldn't find that on the regular admissions page, but it was on the FAU one. Hrmm..
 
McMD said:
that's odd. Does anyone know for sure if we're supposed to read those?
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how you get to that site? i wouldnt worry about it because its no where to be found on the incoming freshman website and i doubt anyone was aware of that other FAU site...
 
I just wanted to let everyone know that the finaid office seems to have started approving finaid requests...I've been approved for the stafford loans, but am still awaiting information for the private loans.
 
jon0013 said:
how you get to that site? i wouldnt worry about it because its no where to be found on the incoming freshman website and i doubt anyone was aware of that other FAU site...
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I actually agree. When I got accepted, they sent me the normal Incoming Freshman link. I actually don't even know how I found that other FAU site. Lots of digging. They might have just forgotten to update it for this year. Since our curriculum is supposed to be the same, I would think they'd have put it up everywhere if everyone was supposed to see it.
 
McMD said:
BTW, Inflames...did you ever visit Boca?...are you definitely going to UMiami?...I thought you were trying to decide last time you posted something about it.
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Yeah, I'm attending UM Miami campus. I'm leaving tomorrow to look for a place to live. I'll be in town until Saturday. If anyone else is in the area, feel free to holler at me.
 
RunnerMD said:
What type of health insurance are you guys getting? The one listed on the incoming freshman site?
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I did a little bit of research on other insurance companies, and from what I can tell, it's totally the cheapest. It didn't seem too bad to me. I think I'll end up getting it as soon as I figure out where I'll actually be living in Miami (they need your home address, of course). Additionally, I assume that the in-network providers are going to be close to (or in) Jackson as opposed to who-knows-where-in-Miami.

Anyone else?
 
I called up the FAU campus yesterday to ask about the two websites. The person that I spoke with (the curriculum coordinator) told me that the univeral UMiami website (www.mededu.maimi.edu/admissions) is for all students attending the U of Miami. The other website, which I have no idea how we were supposed to find, is ONLY for the UMMSM@FAU students. Supposedly there are forms and other info specific to FAU on the site that we need to know. I hope this helps.
 
Hmm, so I guess if we are going to FAU we do have to read those books?

I have a feeling, even at FAU, there are going to be a lot of kids who haven't read that stuff, seeing as you have to pretty much be thinking "hey, maybe there is another site for only the FAU kids that they didn't tell me about. and maybe it has extra books on it for me to read. and maybe if i obsessively look for the site for a few hours I will find it."

I think i'll give them a call today and ask them specifically about those reading assignments. FAU kids, stay tuned.
 
Yes! Please let us know about these books. I have heard that in the past they had reading but last year they cut them out. I think it would be weird for them to add them in again, just for the FAU kids.

thanks!

d4nimal said:
Hmm, so I guess if we are going to FAU we do have to read those books?

I have a feeling, even at FAU, there are going to be a lot of kids who haven't read that stuff, seeing as you have to pretty much be thinking "hey, maybe there is another site for only the FAU kids that they didn't tell me about. and maybe it has extra books on it for me to read. and maybe if i obsessively look for the site for a few hours I will find it."

I think i'll give them a call today and ask them specifically about those reading assignments. FAU kids, stay tuned.
Click to expand...
 
Opallife said:
Yes! Please let us know about these books. I have heard that in the past they had reading but last year they cut them out. I think it would be weird for them to add them in again, just for the FAU kids.

thanks!
Click to expand...


I talked to Heidy today, and she told me, for now, to disregard the reading assignment because they are still working on the websites. Someone should contact me soon (in the next few days?) about what the final word on that is. On the FAU site, it does say

"The Professionalism Longitudinal Theme at the School of Medicine has a reading requirement which all incoming medical students must complete before orientation begins."

so I would assume what goes for one school goes for the other. I'll let you know when I know more. I wouldn't think that we would have to read those, since they would be springing like 5 books on us last minute. It would be like "okreadthese5booksbythetimeyoucometostarthiwelcometomiamilet'sbegin!"
 
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