Application Update - Two More Interviews

It's all about finding your fit.

          In the last month, I had two more interviews.  These were an interesting set, because they closely followed each other, and my feelings toward them were so different.

          Part of what has been interesting about this whole process is going to different schools and seeing what does and doesn't work for me.  Honestly, my way of thinking about schools has undergone a massive evolution over the course of this application cycle.  Now, I usually don't even bother asking about the things that were important to me at the first school or two I interviewed at, while I have discovered that a couple other key questions - that I originally never put much thought into - are extremely important.

Application Update - Late Interview Offer

I just thought this was hilarious.

          In the last week I was offered another interview, this one at a school that is right on the cusp between the mid and upper tier.  If I were to be blunt and honest, I would say a mid/upper tier school would be the best fit for me from an admissions standpoint, with a low GPA coming from a relatively prestigious school balanced by a very strong MCAT.

          I think a school of that tier might also be the best fit for me in terms of how I would fare at the school.  As I explained in this post, I have some misgivings about going to a top school.  Even as I am excited by the potentially better access to stellar teachers, facilities, research, and equipment, I am worried about the potential for a highly competitive atmosphere.

Application Update - The Waiting Game

WE HAVE MOVED TO: A Theory of Living  

         One thing that I think many applicants aren't prepared for is how much of a waiting game this whole process is. Honestly, sometimes it feels like that's the main activity of my gap year... waiting. The entire application process essentially takes a year, with applications going out in June and, in many cases, acceptance or rejection coming around March. In the months in between, applicants may or may not be invited to interviews and may receive some acceptances. Technically, the waiting game doesn't even end in March. The bulk of it will end there, although many applicants will be wait listed. Some of those kids may end up remaining on a school's wait list until the day before matriculation.

Application Update - Another Interview

          I was just called for another interview, this one from a mid-tier school out in the midwest.  I'm pretty excited about this one.  From a direct analysis, I am probably more excited about the school I have already been accepted to, but that is before having visited this midwest school.  That analysis also doesn't include the out of state price tag I'll be paying at the accepted school.  That changes things a bit.  Overall, I am very hopeful that I head out there and love it.

          I'm also excited because one of my best friends (since second grade!) lives and works out there now that he has graduated.  I don't get to see him often, and I can't just fly out there without an excuse, so I'm glad to get this opportunity to visit him for a productive reason.  Right now, my plan is to head into town the day before the interview, maybe grap dinner with him, and prep for the interview that night.  After the interview, I'll head over to his place, and hopefully he'll be down to show me just how fun the city can be.

Application Update - Interview at a Top School

No.  It wasn't actually Harvard.  That would just be silly.

          Recently, I interviewed at a top med school.  We are talking top 10 or 15 depending which ranking system you're looking at.  As I described in this article, I am not a stellar applicant.  I have a wildly mediocre GPA only partially balanced by a good MCAT.  Typically these top schools interview kids with great GPAs and great MCATs who have been published and done other spectacular things.  So yeah, I was surprised when I got the invite.  In all honesty, I thought this school in particular was the one I had the least shot at of all 25 on my list.

          I went into town a few days early, because I actually have friends who go/went there for undergrad.  I met up with them for coffee and to watch some football and all the usual things.  The funny thing is that I knew most of these kids from way back in high school or summer vacations.  What does that mean?  Well, when they heard I got an interview there, they had with some shock assumed I had turned myself into a top notch med school applicant who gave up his undergrad experience for perfect grades, when they know me more as the decent student and frat boy.  I was quick to reassure them that things had changed... but not that much.

Application Update - Withdrawal

          Shortly after your acceptance into a school you like, you're expected to begin withdrawing from schools that you are less interested in.  Most medical schools operate on a rolling basis with a finite number of interviews to offer.  If you have been accepted somewhere and are offered an interview at another school that you are no longer interested in, you are only hurting someone else's chances by going to that interview.  That's aside from the financial costs of flying out to the interview and missing a day of work as well as the fact that it can be a pain.  Even as I say that, I have to admit that I have thoroughly enjoyed interviewing and the interview day experience.

          Having been accepted into a medical school, I have had to begin the process of withdrawing from other schools, although I have kept my applications in at a few that are potentially higher up on my list.  I mentioned previously that I had two interviews scheduled in January, but over the course of the last week, I have canceled both of these.  My hope is that it is far enough from those dates that they will be able to offer those interviews to another applicant.  It's kind of an odd feeling knowing that there is a very real possibility I may be completely done with this cycle.  I still have yet to hear back from the other school I interviewed at and the third interview that is coming up, but what I am referring to is the highly likely scenario where I don't get another interview.

Application Update - ACCEPTANCE!

          I was accepted into medical school.  This is a victory.  This is beyond a victory.  I am one of the few who will actually get to do this.  I am going to be a doctor.

          I loved this school when I interviewed there.  I thought things went really well, and I got an awesome vibe there.  I thought the students were cool, and I thought I would fit in well with them.  I also got along extremely well with everyone.  This is a school in south, which excites me since I have lived my whole life in the northeast.  It's time for a change of pace, and I want to broaden my horizons by getting some experience in another part of the country.

Application Update - Where I Am Today

          Unfortunately I started this blog in December, which is pretty deep into this year's med school application cycle.  I wish I had started it a year ago.  Then you could have enjoyed the journey with me as I struggled to pull great senior year grades, graduated, and went on to take the MCAT.  You could have seen my frustration with secondary applications and the waiting game since finishing those applications.  But, I started a few days ago, and that's just the way it is.  I will, however, update you on the process, in what will undoubtedly prove to be a long post.