UPenn 2014 cycle updates!

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thank you everyone!! 😍 i did not expect this much of an out pour in messages for me lol but it is sooo great and like i said again I LOVE SDN!! and everyone on here 😀 EXCEPT BRODIATRIST :laugh:

For everyone else still waiting :xf::xf::luck:👍 and don't "trick" me while posting in the acceptances thread!!! lol

nude mouse- awesome group! i joined!

IM GONNA BE A PENNWE!!! 😀
 
Haha, I forgot about Brodiatrist! 😛

So I was looking at last year's acceptances and it looks like everyone got their acceptance call shortly after their interview (except one equine person). It also looks like nobody came off of Penn's waitlist. Can we safely assume that if we are on "hold", it's probably a no-go?
 
I don't know what "hold" means, but I do know we got at least one (and I'd bet it was many more than that, it's just that I am only aware of the one) person off the waitlist last year.
 
This is exactly what Mr. Keiter said during our interview group talk "if your application is put on hold this means that we will set it aside and compare you to people in the next group of interviews. we may choose to accept or reject you at any time and your application may make it as far as the end of our decision making process when we will make a final decision on it" So it sounds like they are really undecided, if they wanted to put you on the waitlist already they could have, but i guess you show more potential and they just can't make a decision on you so they want to interview everyone else before they decide.
 
I still have not heard from them. It has been a week. What do you all think I should do? It seems that people have already been called.
 
DachshundsVet said:
I still have not heard from them. It has been a week. What do you all think I should do? It seems that people have already been called.
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OOOh, do you mind calling Monday and reporting back to the rest of us who haven't heard? I've never called Fridays (on interview days); I figure they're plenty busy...
I've already called/emailed so many times they know who I am. No one on SDN has reported interview invites in the last 2 weeks...strange.
 
BLACKAT I'M SO EXCITED AND HAPPY FOR YOU!! Congrats on your acceptance!!

I guess this means you won't be coming out to IL to meet your long lost twin lol I'm sad about that but so happy that you are in!
 
I had an interview last Friday so I am waiting to hear what the decision is. If I don't hear from them this weekend I will definitely be calling them on Monday. But I won't be asking about interview invitations if that is what you specifically want to know. Sorry : /
 
Hey there Tco87! Ah, I am going nuts over here. Please come visit me : (
 
DachshundsVet said:
Hey there Tco87! Ah, I am going nuts over here. Please come visit me : (
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What are you doing Sunday? Would you like to get lunch with me? I know we can't get Vic's but there's a lot of other good places to grab food!
 
Tco87 said:
What are you doing Sunday? Would you like to get lunch with me? I know we can't get Vic's but there's a lot of other good places to grab food!
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Yes, most definitely. I haven't been in the "sushi mood," recently so that works out! Actually, I haven't had much appetite for anything since my future is being held captive by Penn at the moment. Hopefully I will start to get hungry by Sunday. So yes, it's a date!
 
I got the call last night at 8:30pm...you can imagine how surprised I was after waiting anxiouslyyyy ALL week =)

I am VERY impressed with Penn, but I was still unsure about a couple of things...I know that some students are put off by the fact that in their schools curriculum they do not get to work with live animals until the 3rd year or so. Does anyone know if this is the case with Penn?

Also, I went to a SUNY (NY State) school for undergrad and cant help but feel a little intimidated by the prestige that comes with Penn. I absolutely loved the school, but can anyone comment on the competitiveness between students? Of course everyone is different and some competition may exist at a certain level, but specifically I was wondering how the grading works. A couple of my friends are currently in med school and for some of their classes only a certain amount of As, Bs, etc are given out, which obviously gives rise to competition between students. Does anyone know how the grading is with Penn? or most vet schools for that matter?
 
You will get the best, most solid science education at Penn. I don't get people turning down schools because they're not playing with puppies & kittens from the get go. Yes, your first two years are classroom - for crying out loud you're going to be PHYSICIANS. There's a lot of medicine to learn.

However, there are the Clinical Skills classes, which have hands-on opportunities. In addition, there are tons of clubs, tons of wet labs, tons of opportunities to be hands-on with animals. (I have a family member who is a Penn Vet student; I am not). IMHO the overall quality of education Penn students receive is beyond compare.

Believe me, third year will roll around in the blink of an eye and you'll be hands-on enough with the best medical education foundation obtainable anywhere in the world.

I'm sure the current students will chime in about the competitiveness, and I'm sure every class has its gunners, but from what I hear, the Penn students are extremely helpful to one another and are a tight, fun, supportive, fun, group. (Did I say fun?)
 
Lechatnoir said:
BLACKAT I'M SO EXCITED AND HAPPY FOR YOU!! Congrats on your acceptance!!

I guess this means you won't be coming out to IL to meet your long lost twin lol I'm sad about that but so happy that you are in!
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oh no lechatnoir!! i was going to PM you but haven't gotten the chance yet. i was just telling my mom about my long lost twin who i won't get to meet now lol boo!! who knows, maybe later in life we'll do an externship near each other?!?!
 
Angelus9 said:
You will get the best, most solid science education at Penn. I don't get people turning down schools because they're not playing with puppies & kittens from the get go. Yes, your first two years are classroom - for crying out loud you're going to be PHYSICIANS. There's a lot of medicine to learn.

However, there are the Clinical Skills classes, which have hands-on opportunities. In addition, there are tons of clubs, tons of wet labs, tons of opportunities to be hands-on with animals. (I have a family member who is a Penn Vet student; I am not). IMHO the overall quality of education Penn students receive is beyond compare.

Believe me, third year will roll around in the blink of an eye and you'll be hands-on enough with the best medical education foundation obtainable anywhere in the world.

I'm sure the current students will chime in about the competitiveness, and I'm sure every class has its gunners, but from what I hear, the Penn students are extremely helpful to one another and are a tight, fun, supportive, fun, group. (Did I say fun?)
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👍 don't have much time to respond cuz i need to run out the door but basically this one sentence sums up (only) ONE of the bests parts about penn!!!

"during clinicals instead of 3 people being assigned to one patient to diagnose, you will be assigned to 3 patients by yourself, and be the head vet" ~grad student on tour

awesome! i can't wait for the amazing case load!
 
BlacKAT thats really funny about your 610 area code call confusion because I experienced the same thing. I actually didnt pick up at first because I thought "hey its not a 215 area code, its 830 at night, im pretty cozy watching project runway reruns". You shouldve seen how fast I jumped out of my chair when I listened to the voicemail and heard Mr. Keiters voice.
 
I know I was told that 4th year Penn Vet students usually have 3 cases to themselves, but I also heard from someone who just finished their 4th year that that's no longer the case in some areas, like internal medicine, because of the economy. I talked to her several months ago, so things may have changed (again).

What has everyone else heard?
 
I love Shanomong.

Add Best Senses of Humor and Best at not taking themselves too seriously to the "Bests" for Penn.

Tco87, the economy is affecting everyone everywhere, so schools all over are having the same problem (not saying Penn is, but I'm sure everybody all over the country is feeling the pinch), and this recession, like all the other recessions, is temporary. Things will be different (better, I'm sure) next year and the years after.
 
Shanomong said:
I'm not seeing how less money would mean fewer cases for students, since we're the labor that pays to be there?
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In that people are doing less. IOW, in a bad economy, those that would've sent their animals to UPenn for the best tx, may now not be able to afford that, and will stay closer to home, or not have procedures or colic surgeries or other things done that they could afford in a better economic climate. Same for veterinary practices everywhere, I'm sure, but I can understand it hitting the expensive places.
 
"Oh and we do grade on an A/B/C scale, anything below a C is failing. But I don't see how that breeds competition, since you'll only know your friends GPA's, if even theirs. We do get a class ranking at the end of the year."

I actually feel like I learned a lot from the students on the tour, but I definitely thought of some more questions after I left. What I meant by the A/B/C question was that I wasnt sure if certain classes only gave out a certain amount of each letter grade or not. This was just something I was curious about.
 
I do know that Penn had several students from other vet schools come and do a rotation through their SA Internal Medicine department this past year (last 5 months) - all schools have seen a downturn in caseload, but Penn's is still higher than most.

Just something to think about.
 
Hi everyone! I'm new to the forum but I figured I would post that I was accepted to Penn. I received the call Wednesday (2/10) afternoon after interviewing the Friday before 2/5. Oh, and by the way, I live in NC so I am out of state.
 
Hi! I am new to SDN. I think it is really nice that this website exists to help people move forward with their career aspirations.

I was wondering - I am an IS student who applied to Penn. I haven't been offered an interview and I haven't even heard back from Penn yet. Is it safe to say that I will probably be rejected or do you think that I may still have a chance? Should I call the admissions office to check my application? Thanks for any help and congrats to those whom have already been accepted!
 
th1rteen said:
"Oh and we do grade on an A/B/C scale, anything below a C is failing. But I don't see how that breeds competition, since you'll only know your friends GPA's, if even theirs. We do get a class ranking at the end of the year."

I actually feel like I learned a lot from the students on the tour, but I definitely thought of some more questions after I left. What I meant by the A/B/C question was that I wasnt sure if certain classes only gave out a certain amount of each letter grade or not. This was just something I was curious about.
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Nope, there's no set number of each grade. Most classes are not curved, but they will sometimes throw in a 1-3 point "curve" (not a bell, but just a few bonus points to everyone). This usually happens when the average was lower than they expected, or when a question is deemed "bad" by the professor who wrote it or the course organizer. Generally it's ABCF with 90+ = A, 80+ = B, etc. No limits on how many people can get As. They never curve down to my knowledge.
 
Sunnyshine, I am in the same boat as you are, and it's so unbelievably unnerving to wait this long from my IS. 🙁 I am accepted to 2 schools so I am more than happy, but I was really banking on at least an interview from Penn.

I called the admissions office on Friday, but I imagine they were pretty busy with interviews, so I left a message just inquiring about the status of my application. If they don't get back to me by tomorrow afternoon, I'm going to call again and I'll let you know what they tell me. Good luck!
 
I know it's REALLY hard to wait, but it must be unbelievably irritating for them to have to field all these phone calls from anxious applicants. When they have a final decision on you, they will let you know. In the meantime, do you really want to risk pissing someone off by taking time out of their day, asking a question that will be answered in due time?
 
dgm said:
I know it's REALLY hard to wait, but it must be unbelievably irritating for them to have to field all these phone calls from anxious applicants. When they have a final decision on you, they will let you know. In the meantime, do you really want to risk pissing someone off by taking time out of their day, asking a question that will be answered in due time?
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I've called several times and emailed Mr. Keiter. The last time we spoke he remembered me (remembered as in knew I called/emailed multiple times already) and although he seemed very busy he was also very understanding of this nerve-racking process.
If anyone plans on calling can you post an update here? Thanks!
 
They've always been really nice to me, too - I would just be too chicken to call attention to myself just for that, in case it somehow pushed me from the "maybe" into the "no" pile!
 
Right? I know if I call I'll end up making a complete ass of myself.
I would love to know whether I should give up hope, or budget for travel for an interview, or start planning to move to Scotland in the summer if I don't get in to Tufts.... *tears hair out* :scared:
 
dreamdancefarm said:
Hi everyone! I'm new to the forum but I figured I would post that I was accepted to Penn. I received the call Wednesday (2/10) afternoon after interviewing the Friday before 2/5. Oh, and by the way, I live in NC so I am out of state.
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Woot woot for NC! We need some more North Carolinians up here... 😀
 
Penn really is probably swamped with calls and applications right now, so I guess I should just wait until I hear from them. It is just so nerve racking because I have no idea where I am in the application process 😕. Does anyone know how much longer they will be doing interviews and/or if an applicant has to have an interview to be admitted?
 
You do have to interview to be accepted, but I couldn't tell you how many interview invites are left to go out. I'm not sure you need to abandon all hope just yet.
 
Thanks for the help dgm. I am just going to sit tight and keep hoping for the best.
 
sunnyshine said:
Thanks for the help dgm. I am just going to sit tight and keep hoping for the best.
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I'm not sure if this makes it better or worse, but you are not alone! There are a few of us on SDN still waiting hear something. If you need to vent, feel free to PM me! In the meantime, try to stay positive -- now, if I could only take my own advice 😉
 
I'm still waiting too, although I've pretty much given up hope. Somehow, I don't think Penn liked my GPA all that much. Which is kind of good, because I kind of want to leave the east coast and live in the country.

But hey, if I happen to get an interview, I certainly won't complain!
 
cowgirla said:
I'm still waiting too, although I've pretty much given up hope. Somehow, I don't think Penn liked my GPA all that much. Which is kind of good, because I kind of want to leave the east coast and live in the country.

But hey, if I happen to get an interview, I certainly won't complain!
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well, my gpa and my verbal gre is not liked much either. and i was asked to defend myself in my interview. i did not know then that i was defending myself to the dean of admissions (which is probably good because i was more relaxed). I guess i did a good job because they still liked me. during the interview i'd say 95% was about my experiences and future goals, and then 5% talking about my gpa and gre. I didnt say too much except that i had personal problems and ive learned from my past mistakes and am now able to focus better academically. I did not make any excuses and i did not mention the deaths that happened. But i think they liked the positive spin that i put on it by saying how much i have improved myself and matured (and giving specific examples of it).

So don't give up hope if you have low stats! they really do look at trends and your experiences. The one thing i had going for me even though my gpa was low is that in every science class i got a C in, I also got an A in ( orgo I vs orgo II), etc. so i think that proved that i am capable of achieving better grades than i did.
 
sunnyshine said:
Penn really is probably swamped with calls and applications right now, so I guess I should just wait until I hear from them. It is just so nerve racking because I have no idea where I am in the application process 😕. Does anyone know how much longer they will be doing interviews and/or if an applicant has to have an interview to be admitted?
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Don't worry, I haven't heard anything either. I e-mailed them the first week in Feb and they said I was still under active consideration and the final interview invites will be going out in early March. Hope that helps.
 
LCD1988 said:
Don't worry, I haven't heard anything either. I e-mailed them the first week in Feb and they said I was still under active consideration and the final interview invites will be going out in early March. Hope that helps.
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MARCH?!?!?! :bang:
 
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