Wake Forest Anyone?

I interviewed there in October. The area is beautiful and I also thought that it's not too small. I guess it matters where you are coming from to begin with.

The interviews were some of the easiest to handle. More conversational and interesting, none of that stress and pressure I've had from other schools. Really laid back, great attitude. Students are down to earth. That is all in comparison to some of the other schools I was at.

 

I thought it was ok. Nothing blew me away. I didn't like winston too much. I was waitlisted and have decided not to pursue it at all. If I had to be there I suppose I would be fine not super happy but not dissapointed.

 

I had similar feelings when I went there. Nothing really jumped out. The students didn't have the passion as with other schools and talked more about social stuff than the school.

Overall, I think it's a great school, but expensive and ok location. I know people weren't fond of the Medical Guild (doctor's wife following you around all day), but our doctor's wife was very funny and helpful.

 

I read that several people got interview invites when they called to ask their status. Coincidence, or is that how Wake chooses who they interview? Does anyone know what it means to be in Wake's "top interview pool?" Has anyone not been told they were in the top pool but got an interview anyway?

 

Hey there! As a regular tour guide I have some things to say that may clear up some questions you had about your day at Wake. The reason why you didn't see anyone in the hospital is because the tour guides won't take you up onto the floors or into the emergency department. And if you stop to think about why, it makes perfect sense. A group of people in suits would just be in the way, it impinges on the privacy of the patients and is just really unnecessary. You know what a hospital looks like and Wake is just the same. It is the biggest trauma center/hospital in western North Carolina, trust me. It is busy..all the time. It doesn't sleep and it wasn't asleep when you were there, you just weren't in the areas where the excitement was happening. In fact, Wake is an even better hospital to be working in because it's private and consequently, beautiful (and at the forefront of technology but that's a whole other post). From what I've seen, all patients have their own rooms and the floors are very pretty. The pediatric surgery waiting room and pediatric ED waiting rooms are amazing. And I bet you didn't see the rooftop playground? I always show that...it's really cute and has quite a view of Winston Salem. The tour guides probably didn't tell you exactly where you were at every moment (I try to say "you are in the hospital" and "you are in the school") but it's hard because the building is very confusing unless you actively work in it. Sorry about the confusion.

As for your interviewers....they are supposed to be laid back. Now, if one was nodding off on you, then you need to tell admissions. But if they were just chill and chatting with you, that's a good thing. Wake's purpose in the interview is not to grill you or freak you out. Wake trains clinicians and I think after talking to you for 15 minutes, the idea is that they should have a pretty decent idea of whether or not you'd make a good doc. Those people you interviewed with don't vote on your acceptance. But they do give their impressions of you as a person to the committee. That makes a huge difference. You may be smart (and you have to be to get an interview) but can you interact with people, can you laugh, can you take time to enjoy life, etc.


As for the students, they are so so awesome. We are laid back and that's a GOOD thing. But we are also incredibly stressed out. I have never been more stressed in my life but at the same time, I've never had more fun in my life. And I think that speaks volumes for the school. They keep you busy and keep you stimulated but at the same time, enough of my sanity remains that I can go out and have a fun time. Now, if you had come to the school next Friday, you may have seen a different bunch of people. First years have an exam next Friday but right now, we're just going to class and doing our thing. I hope you can see after your day at Wake that we are a genuinely happy bunch and enjoy what we're doing. Wake is a wonderful school with incredible resources not only in its facilities, but it's faculty, support staff and students. Good luck to you wherever you end up!! PM me if you have any further questions.

 

Ha, you weren't kidding when you said you still prowled these boards. Its also nice to hear that you are showing the playground now!

I second this.

When I first interviewed here, I wasn't blown away at all. I thought it was a good school but nothing really stood out (except the awesome laptop they "give" you). I wasn't even going to come here until Wake called me up with an amazing financial aid offer (which they do have, despite what the $4000 cup of coffee talk might suggest).

I wasn't blown away with Wake until I got here and started interacting with the faculty, attendings, and most importantly, the other students in my clas. The hospital is absolutely amazing and usually always brimming with activity. The parts that we show you applicants really doesn't have any bearing on patient care since its mainly the school, Watlington hall (which is all offices), the cafeteria, and the hallways in between. It's not until you get here and they take you up to see patients during the 1st week that you'll really get a chance to see Baptist Hospital at its finest. I know it sucks that you didn't get to see awhole lot of that but I hope you can take my word for it.

If you met students talking about hanging out rather than studying, you were probably meeting some of my fellow members of the first year class. It just turns out that our group dynamic allows us to do that. We do play hard, some more than others, but we work hard too. Really hard. Med school isn't easy, no matter where you go. Our class just has a good way at hiding our stress. But if stress is what you are looking for, its there.

So, yeah, moral of the story. Go wherever you can be happy but don't be surprised if where you are happy is one of the last places you'd expect. I learned that through my experience and I am thrilled that I did.

 

Thanks for this information about Wake. Any opinions from the current med students about the curriculum.. the admissions people seemed really proud of the curriculum and I actually liked many aspects of it.

 

do you get an email after they review your file? i callled them a few wks ago and the lady was like "it seems like your file has been reviewed" and left it at that......i was like wtf...is there some sort of top interview pool, regular interview pool, etc etc?

 

I got the same response recently... who knows.

 

Hi there, I'm an MSIII at Wake, so I've been through the whole basic sciences curriculum. I am a big fan of our curriculum, I have felt very prepared for my clinical rotations and especially for the clinical reasoning which is such a big part of third year. Problem based learning is a big deal here, which I couldn't be happier about. I really liked the way the PBL parts related to what we were learning in lecture, and I had some great faculty facilitators who really made us think about the clinical problems relevant to each case. Of course, there are some sections which are less than perfect but my feeling is that you're going to find that no matter where you go. Additionally, there is a Core Teaching Initiative group that works to improve the quality of teaching, and an active curriculum review system in place.

I've been very happy here at Wake both in and out of school, I'd be happy to answer any questions about the school that you have

 

I interviewed at Wake last month, and I was one of those who found the experience to be a pleasant one. I was under the impression that Wake does not offer merit scholarships to out of state residents... am I just wrong about this? And if Wake does offer out of state residents merit scholarships, when are the students typically notified? And does anybody have any idea about how many (if any) out of state scholarships are awarded each year? Many thanks for the help!

 

Yes, this is what concerned me... nice to see actual students vouching for their school because they're the best judge of what it will be like. Thanks for the replies.

I think the adcom meets Jan 11, so the holiday season is going to feel like a million years of waiting

 

For those of us who will be reviewed at the Jan 11 meeting, when will we actually hear something?

 

I think they said you will hear something shortly after that.. they will send an e-mail with an attached document and a snail mail letter if memory serves me correctly (both indicate the decision). Hopefully the Week of Jan 11.

 

Anyone have a list of the days applicants are reviewed? I don't interview until Jan 20th... do they only review app's once a month?

 

They told us at the interview when we'd be reviewed. Unfortunately I don't know of any lists that would answer your question.

If I remember correctly, they meet 10 times a year, so once a month sounds about right.

 

I interviewed on Nov 11, and our committee meeting is next week (Dec. 14 I think). The wait wasn't so bad because I've been really busy with end of the semester classwork, but after I am done with finals on Tuesday I am probably going to get anxious from sitting at home and waiting for news.

I really enjoyed the school when I visited. The students may seem exceptionally laid back, but a lot of that just depends on whether or not they have a test coming up. I am also curious as to how many scholarships are given to out-of-staters. A full ride (or even half-tuition) scholarship would definitely be a deciding factor for me. I'd still go to Wake even if they didn't give me a scholarship, though.

 

Ok, I know this isn't exactly keeping with the post topic, but since some Deacons are replying I wanted to ask this. I am from this general area and worked as a medic in Forsyth County before returning to school.Wake Forest is my dream and my goal is to attend in about 4-5 years. So, here's the question, is there any students in your class say 28, 29 or 30 years old?

Dan

 

has anyone been accepted off of Wake's alternate list?
I sent them a letter of interest but I was wondering if a call would help at all. I don't want to sound pushy or overeager, but I'd like to have an idea of where I stand. I know they say that they can't tell you your position on the waitlist in the letter, but will they give you any indication if you call?
Thanks.

 

I was placed on Wake's waitlist initially. One week to the day after being waitlisted, I was accepted. I don't know why it happened this way, but who am I to complain.

 

Hey,

Alot of you were asking about my scholarship and here is what I tell people who take my tour.

Put your name in the hat and apply for financial aid.

While they say there isn't merit scholarships for out of staters, I think they tell you this as to not get hopes too high, etc, I really don't know. I still applied for financial aid knowing this just to see how much scholarship money I could get. I got a mediocre award letter off right off the bat and I thought that was it, Wake is off the list. Then, two days before my college graduation, I get a call saying to expect a updated award letter and I got a full-tuition scholarship (there is actually a half-tuition scholarship of the same name). I was shocked because, like you, I thought there were no such scholarships for out-of-staters.

There are also a host of endowed scholarships. These follow certain restrictions like where you come from, religion, what field of medicine you are interested in, etc. The only way you know whether or not you qualify for any of these is to apply because there are so many. (Along the same lines, I just found out today at a student government meeting that the Medical Center Guild, the ladies who led you around the day of your interview, just raised over $33,000 dollars for the formation of a new scholarship, just so you know)

So, again, just put your name in the hat and you might be pleasantly surprised or you might not get what you expected. Either way, it doesn't hurt to try.

 

Yep...december 14...I'm anxious. I hear it's hard to get an acceptance off the bat, but I'm hoping nevertheless. I'm thinking I'll check my email after my last final. That way I don't get all depressed and fail my final if it's not good news.

 

Thanks for great insight. I'm waiting for an interview invite from Wake, and I'm wondering if I should call them next week since people are telling me they have been getting invites after calling them. I really want to go there and see what it's like after reading your post!

 

Hey there Dan As a member of the class of 2007, I will say that many students are straight out of college, "traditional" students. I myself took one year off after college to work before coming to Wake. There are a good number of nontraditional students in my class including a few with children. The class of 2006 has several members in their 40's I believe, and the class below me also has some older students.

I think the relatively small number of non-traditional students is not due to any bias against them by the admissions committee, it is my impression that the people who apply to Wake are just more likely to be right out of college, I don't know if that is a geographical phenomenon or related to the high cost of tuition that may drive more nontraditional students to apply to public schools. Either way you would not be the only nontraditional student in whatever class you enter. Good luck

 

Yikes, I'm getting nervous!! I wonder (for those of us with news coming out tomorrow) what time they'll be sent? I'm counting on the email since the letter won't make it to me for a couple fo days

 

You can call in the afternoon and ask for a status check.


That is how I found out I was accepted and it was a great X-Mas present.

Now my only X-Mas present is an exam on Friday...

 

I had this experience just this week. I wanted to be like "If I'm in your 'top pool' (whatever that is?), would it be too much trouble for you to...I don't know...contact me about that?"

 

So is it an email if accepted, snail mail if waitlisted/rejected? Or is it something else? I'm just wondering if I should be afraid of my email or mailbox.

 

I'm pretty sure at my interview they told us we'd get an email followed by snail mail. Sounded like it's the procedure for all 3 outcomes.

 

I hope I can sleep tonight...It will be hard not checking my email before finals are over...

 

The AdCom does meet today at 5 PM, but I believe the emails will not go out until Friday. I am just like you, a couple more days is going to be painful!

 

True - they also said we would know the following week. So I'm not sure why you're all worrying about Wednesday! However, in a room, in Watlington hall someone is either granting your (and mine) wishes, or crushing your dreams.

Relax.

 

Has anybody called and heard from Wake yet?

 

Well I called on Wednesday, and they told me that I probably wouldn't hear until after the 1st because it takes at least a week and a half (and this is also Christmas time) to enter all the decisions in...so I guess we'll be waiting for a while

 

Don't listen to them...said the same thing to me back in the day...it will probably come out friday or monday...they just dont want to be called and want to cover themselves in case it takes a while

 

Good luck guys. And remember, Wake Forest does not give out more acceptances than they have spaces. So if you make it onto the waitlist it's not a bad place to be.

 

Interesting. I wouldn't put it past them. Well, I guess I'll find out sometime. Thanks!

 

I called them today and found out I was in their top applicant pool and scheduled an interview for February 6th because the lady said January was full. Thanks for the info about calling them to schedule an interview! If anyone's going on the same day, let me know!!!

 

To Current Wake Forest Students--

What is the word in Winston-Salem regarding residency success...

How do Wake students do in matching with competitive residencies?

Are there enough opportunities to do research at Wake to better your chances at a great residency?

I am deciding between a few different schools and academic credentials are important to me...

Thanks!

 

So, if the Wake adcom for my interview group meets tomorrow, we will know sometime next week, right?

Also, anyone know if they've given out all the acceptances by now (ie should I be hoping for an acceptance or a waitlist) ?

I'm going to light some candles at Church...


Good luck to everyone!

 

Yo, check out the 2006 NC med school link, ppl post on it everyday, and probably 1/2 the posts are about wake forest. I got waitlisted their 12/19 interviewed 11/11. The general trend seems to be that most everyone gets waitlisted, a couple got accepted, but most ppl get accepted off of the waitlist. And there also seems to be 2 waitlists, one of which accepts ppl the next week or two, and the other group of ppl on the waitlist probably wont hear anything till late march/early april. But they have their meetings on wednesdays, and will send out emails the following friday, monday, or tuesday, but it keeps getting later and later so maybe the following wednesday, who knows. The emails will have a pdf attachment, one for accepted, and one for waitlist, depending what their decision is. The emails go out between noon and 1 pm. Goodluck, but you should really check out the nc med school link, theres lots of us waiting on wake forest, but with any luck maybe you wont be waiting as long,
goodluck,
kevin p.

 

I will add to this that in the class of 2009 there are 4 of us in our 30's and 2 with children, but for some reason our class had less than the usual number of nontrads. The good news is that we are currently in the process of forming a group for students with families to address issues like financial aid and supporting a family, helping spouses find jobs, health insurance, and other issues. There is definitely a push by the students and the administration to make Wake Forest as nontrad friendly as possible.

As for research, about half of the first year class does research during the three months between first and second year. Most of them are funded and I think the pay is $1700/month. Even if you don't get funding the research opportunities are still there. Many of the students that don't do research choose to travel abroad and have sort of a mini 3rd year experience with healthcare in an underserved community. All accounts that I have heard are that these experiences are amazing and you get credit for a 4th year elective (which means that you will get an extra month vacation during your 4th year).

In response to the question about residency match, here is a response that I wrote to that question in another thread:

 

I wouldn't say that waitlisting is automatic at Wake. I got in right away (in October). I am outstate (Minnesota) if that means anything... Not sure if they wait longer on in-states, or if maybe they are to the point where they only have alternate spots available.

 

Committee meets today !!!

 

Don't they actively rank the waitlist as people are being interviewed? For example, even if you interviewed in February, you could be placed at the top of the waitlist and ahead of someone who was placed near the bottom months prior?

 

Makes sense to me. You could ask, but I don't see why it would be any other way. Considering how they emphasized the character of the class they may group us into classes of people and when someone withdraws they fill the position from the classification that applicant was labeled under?

Waiting until March 15!!! Please look at me today!!