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Why isn't Pomona the best place to live? I don't know much about the area. Are all of the surrounding areas still 'city' (i.e. do you feel like you are living in L.A.)
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WESTERN/COMP Discussion thread 2007-2008
Started by mshheaddoc
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Why isn't Pomona the best place to live? I don't know much about the area. Are all of the surrounding areas still 'city' (i.e. do you feel like you are living in L.A.)
It's old, run down, poor, and has lots of crime (not unlike downtown LA or the area around USC medical center).
The surrounding areas (diamond bar, upland, rancho cucamunga, claremont) are much better than pomona proper in comparison.
However, I choose to live far away from campus at the beach, which I find to be far better than any of those places
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It's old, run down, poor, and has lots of crime (not unlike downtown LA or the area around USC medical center).
The surrounding areas (diamond bar, upland, rancho cucamunga, claremont) are much better than pomona proper in comparison.
However, I choose to live far away from campus at the beach, which I find to be far better than any of those places
yeah I could do the beach, how far of a drive is that?
I looked on Helix's website. But, there weren't any apts open!
Anyway, if you want to live in a beach city, without traffic, you are talking 30 minutes MINIMUM drive. I'd say realistically, you are looking at 45 minute drive each way if not an hour. How long is it taking you to get to/from school from your beach city home? And, with the Western's ultra low budget for room/board, how are you affording the beach home?
Anyway, if you want to live in a beach city, without traffic, you are talking 30 minutes MINIMUM drive. I'd say realistically, you are looking at 45 minute drive each way if not an hour. How long is it taking you to get to/from school from your beach city home? And, with the Western's ultra low budget for room/board, how are you affording the beach home?
I'm pretty sure they do. I think I sent my MD letter through interfolio. My pre-med letter was sent via virtual evals though
Distance for me is about 46 miles which takes about 45 minutes each way, but I live west a bit. If you lived directly south, like in newport or even huntington, it wouldn't take quite as long. The longest it has ever taken is about 90 minutes and that was with wicked accidents on 2 freeways.
I lived near campus the first year, and it just wasn't worth it for me. I'd rather commute twice a week to campus and live in a decent place than live where I'm not happy daily.
Obviously if commuting isn't your thing, there are many other decent places that are closer (see above post re: claremont, upland, rancho, etc...). I'm a seasoned commuter, so it doesn't bother me. Plus I listen to goljan while I drive, so it works out well. In fact I probably wouldn't listen as much if I didn't have the commute time to listen. When I am at home I'm usually streaming the lectures, so I don't regularly get around to listening to goljan at home.
Also, I'm not the only one doing the commute, I know of quite a few people who live in newport, huntington and on the other side in santa monica, weho, etc... just keep your options open, don't convince yourself that you need to be 4 seconds from campus, because you really don't. If you don't believe me, you'll figure it out after first year and be like 'damn that dude on SDN was right!' and you can move then if you want.
As far as affording it, most people have roommates. I have a wife, so that's even better. And don't think that because they budget you X amount for room/board that means you can ONLY spend X that amount on room/board. For example, basically all of the funds you get for "books" can go towards room/board since nobody really buys books.
Lastly, there are always the HPSP and NHSC scholarships if those are your style.
i drove from huntington to ponoma over the summer and it took about an hour. 46 miles in 45 min? You must be speedy gonzeles
All depends on the time of day and the route my friend. I just go with the flow of traffic, I'm not doing like 120mph in the shoulder or anything.
Thanks this was really helpful, I lived in D.C. for a number of years so communtes don't really bother me that much either. The biggest drawback to western to me was the location, but I'm definitly ok with living in Newport or surrounding area
might be picking your brain about this more in the future cyclohexanol
might be picking your brain about this more in the future cyclohexanol
No problem, just PM me whenever.
It's not the best, and it's not the worst either.
It's not a slum or anything, it just seems old, run-down and somewhat poor. Great place for health-care outreach, though, which is something that Western loves.
As far as "Do you still feel like you are living in LA?" Well, no. In Pomona, or any of the surrounding cities, you don't feel like you're living in LA at all...because you're not. Some places feel like Orange County, because they're actually in Orange County...but all of it feels like suburbia. If you choose to go further west, then you're starting to move toward the LA area.
Personally, I love Rancho. 🙂
Anyone interviewing with me on Dec 20th????
does anyone know what kind of question they ask...
this is my first priorty school and i was stupid enough to schedule it the first (official) interview i have ever had in 22 years... first one of my life>.<
I am really nervous now and really want to know what to study for
how long do people usually study for an interview?
does anyone know what is the % of acceptance for those who interviewed?
does anyone know what kind of question they ask...
this is my first priorty school and i was stupid enough to schedule it the first (official) interview i have ever had in 22 years... first one of my life>.<
I am really nervous now and really want to know what to study for
how long do people usually study for an interview?
does anyone know what is the % of acceptance for those who interviewed?
Don't freak out, you'll do fine.
Back when I interviewed, I went through a mock with my wife, talking about strengths and weaknesses (common question), etc... probably took about an hour.
Acceptance rate of interviewees is 90%
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i am scared of the MD : DO schools questions, because i thought i will have pretty good chance of getting into a DO school i want, so only applied to several DO schools, but i also applied to MD schools cuz my mom forced me to, u know, chinese parents....
"Did you apply to MD schools?" is the easiest question you can possibly get.
The answer is "I wanted to find the best school for me, so I applied to places where I thought I might fit in. In my experience (assuming you have health care/clinical experience), the MD's and DO's I have known are indistinguishable from each other in practice, so the letters I earn with my medical education will not factor into my decision."
The answer is "I wanted to find the best school for me, so I applied to places where I thought I might fit in. In my experience (assuming you have health care/clinical experience), the MD's and DO's I have known are indistinguishable from each other in practice, so the letters I earn with my medical education will not factor into my decision."
For those of you who've already interviewed, were you asked any specific questions from your secondary--specifically the essays?
I'm working on my essays right now, and I'm trying to figure out when they'll be reading them and most focused on them: before the interview, during the interview, or after the interview (during the committee evaluation)?
I'm working on my essays right now, and I'm trying to figure out when they'll be reading them and most focused on them: before the interview, during the interview, or after the interview (during the committee evaluation)?
I was invited for an interview pre-secondary app submission. During the interview, I was not asked specifically about my essays. A few questions were asked about volunteer experiences and extracurricular activities. Hope that helps.
Does anyone know the interview schedule at Western univ? is it just one 30 minute interview?
Yes, it is. Probably won't even take 30 minutes.
I know they do review your entire application before your interview.
I wasn't asked anything specific about my secondary essays. It was "standard" stuff: why medicine, why osteopathic, strengths/weaknesses, volunteer exp, research, if i ever missed a deadline, #MD and # DO.
Thanks for the info! I have not received a ltr yet.
I live in west LA. Its 50 miles from my house to Pomona, or 1.25 hours. During anatomy & anatomy lab I was on campus every day, but now I come only for the required ECM or OMM labs. Its a hard drive on the crowded LA freeways and will take a toll on any "seasoned" commuter and their vehicles.
Yes, you do not have to live in Pomona, but you don't to live by the beach either. On a weekend you can get to most beaches in LA or Orange County within 30 min to 1 hour. Most of the cities that cyclohexonal and stringerbell have mentioned are a better alternative to Pomona. Just hop on the 210, 10, or 57 freeways and you are in Pomona within 20 minutes.
I love the beach & the mountains of CA too, but recently I've been spending my time streaming lectures from home. It will probably be like that for the next 1.5 years.
Lastly, my personal favorite city is Pasadena, CA. Home of the Rose Bowl.
Check out Old Town & Colorado Blvd & the beautiful Huntington Gardens.
Yes, you do not have to live in Pomona, but you don't to live by the beach either. On a weekend you can get to most beaches in LA or Orange County within 30 min to 1 hour. Most of the cities that cyclohexonal and stringerbell have mentioned are a better alternative to Pomona. Just hop on the 210, 10, or 57 freeways and you are in Pomona within 20 minutes.
I love the beach & the mountains of CA too, but recently I've been spending my time streaming lectures from home. It will probably be like that for the next 1.5 years.
Lastly, my personal favorite city is Pasadena, CA. Home of the Rose Bowl.
Check out Old Town & Colorado Blvd & the beautiful Huntington Gardens.
Hey-
I ended up getting an interview for january 31st- but i called and asked to move me up if anyone cancelled (i live in san diego) and it happened!! So- I ended up interviewing Nov. 15th instead and now I am still waiting- i called admissions and they said that they mailed out the letters last Friday---Im nervous- it took a long time🙁
btw halloweenie, my mcat was P-9, V-9 and B-10 total 28
my overall GPA was 3.1 and i am not sure what my science was: something dreadful like 2.7 or something worse probably 🙁
-and sure enough that is what we talked about in the interview.
god- i hope i got in...
S
sle3pyguii
I never really knew how bad Pomona was. I go to school at the U of Arizona (undergrad), but I live in Valencia. Is Pomona really just slightly better than East LA?
Parts of it. I'd say East LA is worse, but not by much. Some parts in pomona are pretty ok, unlike East LA which is just all crappy.
I just got a letter of acceptance yesterday and it was postmarked on NOV 12..almost a month to get to me!! Anyway for those of you worried about the area its really not bad..i walked around a few blocks into the "bad" parts and saw nothing that worried me and I was in a suit. Theres a train station practically on campus so even if you dont want to live in that area you can still jump on a train from somewhere else..hope this helps
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Hey- i got waitlisted. i am freakin' out a bit. i interviewed on Novemeber 15 and just found out yesterday🙁 any advice on what to do? I am going to call/write them and continue to let them know that i really want to go here.
Anyone else waitlisted?
Anyone else waitlisted?
phoenix, how did you think your interview went? I have an interview there on jan 31st with very similar stats to yours. Could they really waitlisted you based on your stats? (I don't see why GPA and MCATs would matter at this point once they already gave you the interview).
What percentage of matriculants at Western are from California? I'm curious b/c I'm from out of state, and I'm not sure how much of a disadvantage I may have.
Hey did you interview Dec 6th? I'm dying to find out if I got in or not. Did you just call the admissions office to find out if you got in?
Yea, I was there on the 6th. I called them and asked them what my status was because I have another acceptance that I'm debating. They would only tell me my status over the phone if I faxed them an acceptance letter from another school. So I faxed it last night and they called me this morning. 👍
The only thing is the initial deposit is due January 1st. That's coming up very soon and it sounds like people have been waiting a long time for their letters.
Good luck! I'm seriously thinking of sending my deposit here!
A lot are from california. In my class, just over 50% are from CA, but that doesn't meant you have a disadvantage. The adcom doesn't seem to have any real preference re: state of residence, it just happens to be that lots of applicants are from CA and want to stay there.
My interview's not until Jan 24th, but I'm getting excited already. (or maybe it's because Christmas is coming up and I know what I'm getting and it's awesome) Anybody have a suggestion on the best hotel off the list we're given? I'm leaning towards Shilo Inn cause of the free transportation to/from the airport and school and the low price. I'm also deciding on whether to leave the same day or stick around and wander around the school/hospitals.
Suggestions?
Suggestions?
Shilo Inn is probably a decent choice.
Honestly, I would head back the same day just because there really isn't much to see. You can see the entire campus in 5 minutes, and you can't really just wander around the affiliated hospitals (which are >20 miles away anyway).
Honestly, I would head back the same day just because there really isn't much to see. You can see the entire campus in 5 minutes, and you can't really just wander around the affiliated hospitals (which are >20 miles away anyway).
just threw down the $1000 deposit. my bank account is hurting, but at least i have a seat
You're on a litte bit of a roll now.
That's awesome Archer! I would give anything for your DMU acceptance! 😛 I hope you'll get to stay on the West coast for med school! Good Luck
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Yay! I got accepted to COMP. I am going to change my name to DoctaBoratDO. So glad. I'll buy myself a new wife when I'm done with med school.
Hi-five!
Hi-five!
Why, is your current wife not strong on plow?
I just got an interview invite for the 28th of Feb... I'm stoked because it is my first one! I just assumed I would not get in this year for some reason, but this gives me hope 😀
So I'm looking to book my flight back home after my interview and the only flight I can take out of Ontario is at 9:30pm. I don't really want to wait at the airport for >5 hours, so is it worth it to take the Metrolink to LAX and what departure time would be a safe bet?
Also, for people who interviewed, what do they tell you about the waitlist? Is it ranked, when do they start pulling people off, etc...
Gosh SDN is great, thanks guys
Also, for people who interviewed, what do they tell you about the waitlist? Is it ranked, when do they start pulling people off, etc...
Gosh SDN is great, thanks guys
It might be worth it if the metrolink actually went to LAX. Unfortunately, it doesn't. The closest station to LAX seems to be union station, which is 20 miles from LAX. You could transfer to a bus at union station and take that to LAX, but I would only do that if you plan on missing your flight. My advice, just bring something to do and hang out at ontario. Or, stick around campus for awhile and talk with students, then go to ontario.
As far as the waitlist, or alternate list goes: it is not ranked. However, they do have 2 groups - "high-priority" and regular. The adcom meets every 2 weeks or so, and they pull all of the alternate applications together (hence unranked) and review their applications to see if they want to admit someone at that point. The "high-priority" alternates are given first dibs.
They pull people off all year, all the way up until the first day of classes (and yes, I know people who had that happen). From my experience, a good chunk of people get pulled off the waitlist from May-July.
Lastly, in previous years basically everyone who was a "high-priority" alternate got in, and almost everyone from the regular alternate list got in eventually.
Good luck!
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