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Accepted/Rejected/Waitlisted??? (for current applicants)


Guest Ian Wong

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Result: Rejected (OOP)

cGPA: 4.0

MCAT: 130.5

EC: 8 (I was surprised I even got an interview invite)

MMI: Honestly, I felt like the MMI questions weren't that stimulating to me. I might have gotten bored of the repetitiveness I found in several stations and followup questions, and as I result wasn't as interested in answering them elaborately. Alternatively, a large factor in my performance is that I had received my Dal acceptance shortly before and thus didn't feel the pressure hinging on this interview!

Nevetheless, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to get to know UofA and think it is an awesome school. Congrats to those of you who were accepted, I am certainly very happy for you! Best of luck to anyone on the waitlist, I hope the uncertainty ends sooner than later for you!

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Result: Accepted (IP)

GPA: 3.72

MCAT: 125/127/125/125 (502)

EC: Nursing for the past 3 years in critical care and ER, volunteering 4h/week with a community mental health agency, student group President, scholarship to go to the US and learn about addictions treatment there, soccer, no research

MMI: this was my very first interview anywhere and I was so nervous but I had a really good group and we made each other laugh and at the end I felt very comfortable with how I did. My panel interview went well for me and I think I had 2 stations that really did not go well for me. 

This was my first time applying to U of A!!! I was rejected pre interview from U of C. I'm so excited to join the incoming class!

 

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Result: Accepted

Geography :IP 

GPA: 3.98

MCAT: 521

Degree : 2nd year MSc

E.C: Lots of diverse things including research (2 pubs), living abroad, etc

Interview : I didn't feel great about the MMI, but I felt like I'd knocked the panel out of the park. Either way, it seems to have gone well enough!

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Result: Accepted!!

Geography :IP 

GPA: 3.8x

MCAT: 520

Degree : 4th year BSc

E.C: Several long-term commitments with >300 hours in each. 

Interview : The interview felt pretty good, as I was a little less nervous at the U of A than at other schools due to being more prepared. The MMI was still difficult, with two stations that I felt like my answers weren't great. The panel was not bad, and I really enjoyed being able to talk for the longer period of time it provides. 

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Result: Accepted!!

Geography :IP 

GPA: 3.6

MCAT: 510

Degree : Masters

E.C: I've been involved in a lot of volunteer, opportunities, community, projects/research (some health related, but mostly not)

Interview: I think it went well(ish) but it was hard to tell. I enjoyed the panel!! 

 

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Accepted

GeographyIP 

cGPA/wGPA: 3.70/3.81

MCAT: 526  CARS132

Degree : BA Honours (2016)

E.C: Everyone's postings are usually so vague! Here's a specific list of EC's for those of you who find it helpful: ongoing volunteer work for a small global health NGO since Fall of 2016 (Mata Jai Kaur Maternal and Child Health Centre; part-time in Canada and full-time in India for 3 months); volunteer internship in the Office of Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson (3 months); high-school summer internship at the Stefan Pukatzki bacteriology lab through Alberta's HYRS program; consistent summer employment at the Telus World of Science Edmonton (3 summers full-time, 1 summer part-time); "Executive Facilitator" (pretentious title, hey?) for the McGill Philosophy Student Association; 1 publication in Pensées Canadiennes (national undergraduate philosophy journal); typical activities/hobbies (9 years of dance, 12 years of music).

Interview: I was fortunate to interview in Calgary before I interviewed at the U of A and I feel that U of A's MMI questions were considerably more straightforward. I didn't like the way that the panel interview was embedded amongst the other MMI stations and I felt that I was a little "thrown-off" afterwards. I imagine that this was the case for others as well. I don't have much experience to compare against but I would certainly say that U of A had the easier interview between the two!

Congratulations to all those who were invited and who were waitlisted! I sincerely hope to have the opportunity to learn with and from you in the future!

And for those of you who didn't make it further than the interview, it bears repeating that a considerable part of this process is luck and having the perseverance to apply again. If you made it to the interview, you WILL be accepted--it's just a matter of time.

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Result: Rejected

Geography: IP

GPA: 4.0

MCAT: 523

Degree: Graduated BSc. June 2017

E.C: 4/17. This is the same score I received an interview with last year, yet I had 150 more volunteer hours, 500 more work hours, and a volunteer trip to Africa on this application. I have no clue why these additions resulted in no score increase, but I guess that's U of A for you!

Interview: Pass. I had one station where the interviewer told me I knocked it out of the park and another station that I thought was weak. The rest and the panel felt average.

 

It's official: very high GPA and MCAT can't compensate for below average extracurriculars. 

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Result: Rejected

Geography: IP

GPA: 3.66

MCAT: 519 (130/128/131/130)

Degree: 1st year MSc

PA: 6/17

Interview: Pass

 

Yikes, thought I did well enough on the interview to compensate for other parts but unfortunately not.

PA is quite a bit lower than I expected given that I got an interview invite, would have thought with a score like this I would have been gated before interviews. Not too sure how to improve on this since I'm quite busy with my Masters, maybe pushing out a few more pubs would help a bit.

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Result: Accepted

Geography: OOP

GPA: 3.96

MCAT: 508 (129 CARS)  <--Yes, you can get in with a low MCAT as an OOP! 

Degree: Bachelors of Commerce (2012) (No science prereqs)

E.C: Non-trad applicant.  Years of work experience in Investment Banking, Travel Agency.  My volunteering activities are mainly cultural or entrepreneurship related. Won some top-level business awards. Black belt in Taekwondo. Grew up working on a farm. Traveled to over 35 countries. Fitness Mentor/Advocate.  (No research at all)

Interview:  Felt most prepared for the U of A interview as it was my last of 3. The questions were more straightforward than UBC or McMaster.  I really, really enjoyed the panel. I felt like I finally had a chance to talk about myself and show my personality.  The panel interviewers were very nice and conversational as well. I felt iffy on the MMI. On 2-3 stations I did blah and the rest of I did okay. I think my ECs and Panel Interview really pulled through for me. 

I'm just so grateful right now to have received this opportunity. As I am writing this, I still can't believe it. After 6 years of contemplation, denial, and self-doubt, I finally now get the chance to become a doctor. When I found out that the results were released on this forum, I was at my desk at work. I literally just got up and ran out the door. I nervously tried to login to my account and ended up keying my password wrong 3 times. To avoid getting locked out, I had to call my fiancee to check my result on my home laptop where the password was already saved. When he read the admission decision to me over the phone, I crumbled to my knees and started crying.  It was an unbelievable moment. I felt all the worry, pain, and doubt just wash away. I'm sure everyone that walked past me thought I was crazy.  But I didn't care. This was the best day of my life. 


We are, at any moment, capable of pursuing our dreams. - The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
If medicine is your dream, don't give up. Never, ever give up.

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Result: Accepted

Geography: In-province

cGPA: 3.66 by UofA's calculation

MCAT: 519 (130/130/129/130)

EC: Non-traditional applicant, RN for 7 years, lots of clinical research and advocacy, worked exclusively with vulnerable populations.

MMI: Thought it went well - was confident for all but two stations.

First time applying to medical school. Accepted to both UofC and UofA. Will accept UofC because I already live there

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Result: Accepted

Geography: IP

GPA: 3.76

MCAT: 510 (125/127/128/130)  

Degree: Bachelor and Masters of Nursing

E.C: Non-traditional applicant.  No undergraduate science (thank you Khan Academy). Unique work experience through nursing (end of life care, vulnerable populations). Dance competition/teaching/performance. 

Interview: I found 2-3 of the MMI stations pretty challenging (just not much to say). Felt like the panel went really well. This is my first time applying. Very humbled by the offer but I've decided to go with U of C. All the best to everyone!

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Result: Accepted!

Geography :IP 

GPA: 3.54 (I know right!!)

MCAT: 514 (127 CARS)

Degree : Bachelors in Commerce, Masters in Psych, and post-bac sort of year to get science prerequisites for MCAT/some med schools.

E.C: I’m a non-trad mature applicant - graduated from undergrad 6 years ago. First time applying however. A lot of volunteering, professional jobs post-undergrad in mental health as well as oil and gas, research, a lot of shadowing and working at psychiatry clinic, backpacking abroad, masters abroad, etc  

Interview: I thought it went well except for 2 of them. I especially enjoyed the panel!! 

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Result: Accepted

Geography: OOP

GPA: 4.00

MCAT: 528

Degree: BSc

E.C: An unusual summer job, volunteering at a hospital and first response, a few club leadership experiences, a few awards, some lab volunteering but NO RESEARCH (I've done a poster since the application was due)

Interview: I honestly don't remember. I was lucky enough to have a number of interviews and they've all kind of blurred together in my mind.

I'm still waiting to hear back from some other schools, and I honestly don't know what my top choice is, but I'd be happy to attend Alberta - they sold themselves really well at the interview date.

 

 
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Accepted (OOP)

Year: Graduated BSc 2014, MSc 2017

cGPA: 3.96

MCAT: 517 (127, 128, 132, 130)

EC: Long-term crisis line responder, Ronald McDonald House family service support, full-time clinical research assistant at a cancer centre / lab technician for immunotherapy research, graduate cancer research (first author paper in revision, posters), a cappella singer (~6 years), long-term hospital volunteering (dialysis clinic, cancer centre, pediatrics unit), a resident summer camp counselor at an Indigenous community in QC, work experience as a server at various restaurants

MMI: I thought two stations were difficult, and found myself giving repetitive answers, but I felt good about other stations due to being able to talk a lot about my relevant personal experiences; the panel was a lot of fun and was a good opportunity to talk about some personal hardships I've overcome 

 

I am a non-traditional applicant. This is my fourth time applying, and I am extremely grateful and HAPPY for finally being able to pursue my life-long dream! While rejections from previous cycles have been painful, I took them as stimulants to keep growing and improving myself. Can't wait to start my new chapter in Alberta, and meet the class of 2022! :D 

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4 hours ago, anon5678 said:

Result: Waitlist

Geography: IP

GPA: 3.98

MCAT: 519

Degree: BSc

E.C: Probably average.

Interview: Felt pretty good.

Anyone have any idea the probability of getting off or the size of the WL? All I can find is data from CMES (Canadian Medical Education Stats) that suggests the WL moves about 50-60 spots. Also does anyone know if UofA rolls the offers out 1-by-1 as people decline, or does it happen in waves at preset dates (eg. the first date being the deadline for initial offers on may 25th)?

I have no clue. Maybe we should create a waitlist support thread so people can update when there is any waitlist movement

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A lot of people who got in are posting what they did for ECs....do you guys also get a score for that? I feel like every year my EC score doesn't go up much even though I put a bunch of new things. Curious as to the EC score of those who got in. 

Cheers.

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27 minutes ago, srumihs said:

A lot of people who got in are posting what they did for ECs....do you guys also get a score for that? I feel like every year my EC score doesn't go up much even though I put a bunch of new things. Curious as to the EC score of those who got in. 

Cheers.

Unfortunately, accepted applicants do not get their ECs score. I believe the average score for accepted applicants from previous years was 7 or 8/ 17. If you are trying to raise your EC average, perhaps focus on diversifying your experiences instead of adding more hours. You should also write your EC in a way that incorporates Canmeds.  If you would like, I can also review 1 or 2 of your entries.

Best of luck :) 

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  • 1 month later...
  • 10 months later...

I'll start for this year

Result: Rejected

Geography: OOP

GPA: 3.79

MCAT: 513, 128 in Cars

Degree: HBSc conferred in 2017

E.C: 10/17, though 12/17 was highest for the cycle so happy about that! A few research projects (no pubs), academic awards and lots of extra curricular activities in undergrad. Post grad, worked at some of the largest start ups in North America and now run my own company. Definitely gained a lot by doing some work post grad, initially was to complete my MPH but will now be doing my MBA.

Interview: Felt pretty good about the majority of the stations. The panel did catch me a tad off guard given the format. Had lost my voice for the entire weekend so happy I pushed through and will relegate my performance to that (rationalization at its finest)

 

Thanks for all the support on this platform, will be accepting an offer for a medical school in States, so probably no more posts on here for a while, atleast until residency time!

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Result: Rejected

Geography: IP

GPA: 3.94

MCAT: 522

Degree: BSc; M.A. (Psychology)

E.C: 6.5/17; Varsity athlete / national team member; 4 years volunteering with a disability group; president of two university clubs; 4 publications & 2 major research funding awards; then some smaller stuff like Summer camps and annual charity event organizing. 

Interview: Pass. Panel interview felt a little surface-level, other stations I felt confident in. 

Pretty floored right now, good evidence that strong numbers alone are not enough. Evidently did not have whatever 'x factor' they were looking for. Was accepted to UofC, but really had my heart set on UofA. Still deciding whether to accept UofC's offer, will likely cave in the next couple of days and do it, but for multiple reasons I felt like UofA was the right school. 

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