UofT Interview Invites/Regrets 2018

[fremulon]

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 12:52pm

Result: Regrets

cGPA: 4.00 

MCAT: Met cutoffs

ECs: I thought they were above average

Essays: meh

Year: 3rd Year UG

Geography: IP

[erythrocyte]

35 minutes ago, Acceptmenextcyclehowbowdah said:

Why does this forum only give me 10 likes per day. I've been a premed for over half a decade now.....

You can like me tomorrow 

[coffeeandtea]

TIME STAMP: Mar 16 @ 12:47pm

Result: Regrets

GPA: 3.95 (wGPA)

MCAT: reached cutoffs 

ECs: some research (~5 poster presentations), mental health volunteering, the rest is pretty average 

Essays: felt pretty good about them

Year: 4th Year UG

Geography: IP

First time applying, so not a ton of experience with the process. Honestly just glad to have finally heard back. Got one interview at another school, but not too sure how it went (keep feeling worse and worse about it everyday lol). 

[gumbaline]

TIME STAMP: Mar 16 @ 12:50pm

Result: Regrets

GPA: 3.91 (wGPA)

MCAT: 507

ECs: undergrad research in 3 labs, undergrad journal section editor, writing mentor, not a lot of volunteering, a few jobs over the years

Essays: did them last minute, probably could have made them better

Year: 4th Year 

Geography: IP

 

Kind of expected this with the types of applicants I've seen getting invites, not too discouraged because I'm going to redo my MCAT and try again! Was not a typical premed applicant - only realized in 3rd year psych/neuro degree that I wanted to try, and had to self-teach a lot of science courses I hadn't taken. Good experience overall, and glad I went through it when I did and learned about the process. Good luck to everyone still waiting!

[MD.VA]

TIME STAMP: Mar 16 @ 12:43pm

Result: Regrets

GPA: 3.91 (wGPA)

MCAT: 515

ECs: 4 years of customer service experience, 2 yrs hospital volunteering across several departments, dental office volunteering, club exec, mentor, undergrad research in 2 different health/medically-relevant labs, grad cancer research, extensive teaching experience as a TA (eight courses in 2 years!), research project supervisor, recreational sports.

Essays: I thought they were great. Had them edited a few times. 

Year: 2nd year MSc

Geography: IP

This is my second rejection from UofT, which is my home school. I honestly thought my application was very strong this year. I think luck definitely plays into it quite a bit. I didn't get any interviews last year - this year I scored TWO (McGill & Western)! Can't wait to find out those results. I'm moving over to the McGill page now as acceptances will be coming out in one week and I can finally focus on that instead of worrying about UofT.

Everyone else that got rejected, keep on trying! You can do it! Good luck

[Comprehensible]

TIME STAMP: Mar 16 

Result: Invite

GPA: 4.00

MCAT: Above cutoffs

ECs: Hospital volunteering, exec of a club, a cool job, a few academic awards, hobbies, etc. I didn't have any real research other than volunteering until this year (4th year project), but I briefly mentioned the project in one of my essays since I couldn't put it on my OMSAS sketch.

Essays: I have no idea. I'm generally a pretty good writer, but these things are hard to judge.

Year: 4th year undergrad

Geography: IP

[Queen]

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 12:52pm

Result: Regrets

WGPA: ~3.8

MCAT: Met cutoffs

ECs: Research heavy (4 pubs—3 first author; 10 abstracts from posters at local, national and international conferences; mentoring student write manuscript and research volunteers; full time employment as clinical research coordinator. I will have two-three more first author pubs from my masters (my supervisor even wrote this in her grad letter). volunteering at hospitals, community agencies  and student campus health Promotion. Part-time Jobs in undergrad (student engagement etc)

Essays: incorporated personal experiences and canmeds as much as I could. Spent a month on them.

References: very strong, two from staff MDs I’ve known for couple of years and worked very closely with. One from volunteer coordinator which should be decent 

Year: 2nd year MSc

Geography: IP

I know my GPA is low but it received an interview a couple years back as an UG applicant...*sigh* 

[disneyprincessmd]

TIME STAMP: Mar 16 @ 12:50

Result: Regrets

cGPA: 3.98 

MCAT: above cutoffs (127/128/128/131)

ECs: 4+ years of research, hospital volunteering, 7+ years of youth advocacy+ community work, etcc 

Essays: used clusters + personal experiences, felt good about them

Year: Graduated UG '17

Geography: IP

[Sophie123]

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 12:45pm

Result: Regrets

cGPA: 3.94

wGPA: 3.97

MCAT: 523 (131/128/132/132)

ECs: Average to good, mostly philanthropy - hospital and care home volunteering, therapeutic riding volunteer, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Alzheimer's Society, etc; part-time job during 3rd year; exec in club that volunteers at old folks' home; decade of RCM piano; no laboratory/research ECs though (I've done research courses and really didn't enjoy it, I'm hoping to become a GP and not a lab research doctor).

Essays: I thought they were fairly good, were proof-read by a pro.

Year: 4th Year UG

Geography: IP (went to high school in BC, but now Ontario resident)

 

Was not expecting to get rejected with no interview. I'm guessing one of my referees didn't give a good letter - the Volunteer Coordinators for almost all the volunteer groups I had worked with had retired and refused to give references, and the sole remaining one (fortunately one of my longer-term volunteering places) agreed on the non-negotiable condition that they base it largely on a template provided by the volunteer agency. I knew it wasn't a great situation but they were all I had for philanthropy references (my others were a prof I'd known for 2 years and my piano teacher of 5 years). Perhaps my 128 in CARS was a problem too. I also applied to Mac, Queen's, and UWO and got rejected with no interview from all of them as well, so obviously something serious is wrong considering my GPA and overall MCAT.

[lekker]

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 3:21pm

Result: Invite

Interview date: April 8 

wGPA: 3.93

MCAT: 512 (129/127/128/128)

ECs: Internship abroad, worked throughout undergrad and grad school (part-time during school year and full-time during summer), long-term volunteering in community, 3 first-author publications, 2 conferences

Essays: I spent a couple weeks on them and felt that they were decent

Year: Master

Geography: IP 

[Aconitase]

17 hours ago, Sophie123 said:

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 12:45pm

Result: Regrets

cGPA: 3.94

wGPA: 3.97

MCAT: 523 (131/128/132/132)

ECs: Average to good, mostly philanthropy - hospital and care home volunteering, therapeutic riding volunteer, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Alzheimer's Society, etc; part-time job during 3rd year; exec in club that volunteers at old folks' home; decade of RCM piano; no laboratory/research ECs though (I've done research courses and really didn't enjoy it, I'm hoping to become a GP and not a lab research doctor).

Essays: I thought they were fairly good, were proof-read by a pro.

Year: 4th Year UG

Geography: IP (went to high school in BC, but now Ontario resident)

 

Was not expecting to get rejected with no interview. I'm guessing one of my referees didn't give a good letter - the Volunteer Coordinators for almost all the volunteer groups I had worked with had retired and refused to give references, and the sole remaining one (fortunately one of my longer-term volunteering places) agreed on the non-negotiable condition that they base it largely on a template provided by the volunteer agency. I knew it wasn't a great situation but they were all I had for philanthropy references (my others were a prof I'd known for 2 years and my piano teacher of 5 years). Perhaps my 128 in CARS was a problem too. I also applied to Mac, Queen's, and UWO and got rejected with no interview from all of them as well, so obviously something serious is wrong considering my GPA and overall MCAT.

UofT wants to train academic leaders. Not GPs. You should focus on some solid research. 

[ibelieve.icanmed]

11 hours ago, Aconitase said:

UofT wants to train academic leaders. Not GPs. You should focus on some solid research. 

lol not true at all. 50% of their class goes into family and probably another 20% into internal med. 

you just need to find better referees and probably fix up your ABS.

[Aconitase]

7 hours ago, azm said:

lol not true at all. 50% of their class goes into family and probably another 20% into internal med. 

you just need to find better referees and probably fix up your ABS.

Of course that’s what happened. I attended UofT med school. It’s just that they want to train academic leaders. During the interview process (which I’ve done) if someone wants to be a GP it isn’t as impressive as a researcher 

[Edict]

On 3/16/2018 at 8:50 PM, Sophie123 said:

TIME STAMP: March 16 @ 12:45pm

Result: Regrets

cGPA: 3.94

wGPA: 3.97

MCAT: 523 (131/128/132/132)

ECs: Average to good, mostly philanthropy - hospital and care home volunteering, therapeutic riding volunteer, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Alzheimer's Society, etc; part-time job during 3rd year; exec in club that volunteers at old folks' home; decade of RCM piano; no laboratory/research ECs though (I've done research courses and really didn't enjoy it, I'm hoping to become a GP and not a lab research doctor).

Essays: I thought they were fairly good, were proof-read by a pro.

Year: 4th Year UG

Geography: IP (went to high school in BC, but now Ontario resident)

 

Was not expecting to get rejected with no interview. I'm guessing one of my referees didn't give a good letter - the Volunteer Coordinators for almost all the volunteer groups I had worked with had retired and refused to give references, and the sole remaining one (fortunately one of my longer-term volunteering places) agreed on the non-negotiable condition that they base it largely on a template provided by the volunteer agency. I knew it wasn't a great situation but they were all I had for philanthropy references (my others were a prof I'd known for 2 years and my piano teacher of 5 years). Perhaps my 128 in CARS was a problem too. I also applied to Mac, Queen's, and UWO and got rejected with no interview from all of them as well, so obviously something serious is wrong considering my GPA and overall MCAT.

I think it was probably your reference letter and possibly your CARS score (although do not rewrite that MCAT is amazing). If your reference was a template... it would have not come across well. 

Having some research is nice but its not important. Truth be told though, almost every resident will have to do some sort of research project, so having something even if it is in the works will check that research box off. 

If you have a year off, I recommend doing research and work hard at it. You don't have to like it, just grin and bear it. That way, you could use a reference letter from a research supervisor the next year. 

 

[m_jacob_45]

3 hours ago, Edict said:

I think it was probably your reference letter and possibly your CARS score (although do not rewrite that MCAT is amazing). If your reference was a template... it would have not come across well. 

Having some research is nice but its not important. Truth be told though, almost every resident will have to do some sort of research project, so having something even if it is in the works will check that research box off. 

 

Its not likely CARS that was the problem. I know of people that have gotten in with the minimal MCAT requirements. It was probably the letter, like you said. 

[PeterPatting]

TIME STAMP: March 20 @ 4:47pm

Result: Invite (absolute insanity....just absolute insanity....)

Interview date: April 8 

wGPA: 3.87 

MCAT: met cutoffs but JUST barely (overall score is nothing impressive at all)

ECs: Lots of music stuff (RCM for piano at high level, played music/led a band for my youth group for 5+ years, self-taught guitar, song writing but tbh nothing really to show for it). Majored in an allied health profession in undergrad so really tried to incorporate my clinical experiences as much as I could. ZERO research...zilch...nada...nothing. Thought for sure that would make me dead on arrival (in combination with my sub-par wGPA). Had a bit of typical premed stuff - hospital volunteering, tutoring etc... Also tried to include some of my hobbies - stuff you would NEVER expect to see on a professional application lol. When I showed my app to a friend he said "Bro are you sure you want to include that?" I literally tossed them in there because (1) Yes I'm passionate about them (2) I thought there was no way I'd get interviewed so might as well show "all of me." 

tl;dr - BELOW average imo (but I guess not the adcom's opinion lol)

Essays: Spent way too many days thinking about them and not enough days writing them. In the end I'd say I was moderately content with them - some more than others.

Year: 1 year post undergrad

Geography: IP 

I cannot believe I got an interview. I really can't. I know its an interview and not an acceptance but still. I worked myself to death in undergrad and ended up still being (imo) no where near competitive for Canadian medical school admissions. So much self-doubt. So so so much of it. And yet here I am.

[flaminhotcheetos]

1 hour ago, PeterPatting said:

TIME STAMP: March 20 @ 4:47pm

Result: Invite (absolute insanity....just absolute insanity....)

Interview date: April 8 

wGPA: 3.87 

MCAT: met cutoffs but JUST barely (overall score is nothing impressive at all)

ECs: Lots of music stuff (RCM for piano at high level, played music/led a band for my youth group for 5+ years, self-taught guitar, song writing but tbh nothing really to show for it). Majored in an allied health profession in undergrad so really tried to incorporate my clinical experiences as much as I could. ZERO research...zilch...nada...nothing. Thought for sure that would make me dead on arrival (in combination with my sub-par wGPA). Had a bit of typical premed stuff - hospital volunteering, tutoring etc... Also tried to include some of my hobbies - stuff you would NEVER expect to see on a professional application lol. When I showed my app to a friend he said "Bro are you sure you want to include that?" I literally tossed them in there because (1) Yes I'm passionate about them (2) I thought there was no way I'd get interviewed so might as well show "all of me." 

tl;dr - BELOW average imo (but I guess not the adcom's opinion lol)

Essays: Spent way too many days thinking about them and not enough days writing them. In the end I'd say I was moderately content with them - some more than others.

Year: 1 year post undergrad

Geography: IP 

I cannot believe I got an interview. I really can't. I know its an interview and not an acceptance but still. I worked myself to death in undergrad and ended up still being (imo) no where near competitive for Canadian medical school admissions. So much self-doubt. So so so much of it. And yet here I am.

Can they please let you in, you're awesome!

[PreMedder]

TIME STAMP: Mar 28 @ 4:06pm

Result: Regret

wGPA: 3.96

MCAT: 509

ECs: 3+ years research (2 pubs); Exec for a couple clubs; lots of volunteering within LBGTQ community.

Essays: Worked on it for a week.

Year: 4th Year UG

Geography: IP

Kinda bummed... but it wasn’t really on my mind as I had a couple other interviews to prep for the past couple weeks.

[Blueee]

TIME STAMP: April 6 @ 10:30 am

Result: Regrets

wGPA: 3.97 

MCAT: Met cutoffs

ECs: Probably average or below average for students admitted, 3+ years of research, 1 pub, conferences, volunteering, intramurals, other stuff

Essays: Thought they were good

Year: Completing MSc

Geography: IP 

[OBoyMD]

On ‎3‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 2:53 PM, lmck said:

Time stamp: Thursday, March 15, 2:13 PM

Interview Date: April 8 (MD)

Result: Invite

GPA: 3.95

MCAT: met cutoffs

ECs: volunteering at hospital, former OHL player

Essays: worked hard on them over a few weeks

Year: graduated

Geography: IP

I played in the O, too!

[dreamteam22]

On 3/18/2018 at 10:40 AM, Aconitase said:

Of course that’s what happened. I attended UofT med school. It’s just that they want to train academic leaders. During the interview process (which I’ve done) if someone wants to be a GP it isn’t as impressive as a researcher 

So you're saying if someone says they want to be a GP, and does not mention much about research during the UofT med interview process, they won't be competitive? I would hope that the selection process doesn't discriminate applicants based on their interest in primary care. Would love to hear your insight on this please ! Thanks in advance 

[deathvvv]

I seriously doubt this would happen. U of T has one of the biggest (I think second biggest family medicine residency program after UBC) in Canada. So I doubt being family medicine/primary care hinders you at all. There is emphasis for being researcher/academically inclined but thats more the bonus you get during application for being a grad student. When it comes to interview/file reviews it depends on who reviews you. I have met plenty of u of t alums with little to no research experience at all. So its definitely not a deal breaker

[dreamteam22]

18 hours ago, deathvvv said:

I seriously doubt this would happen. U of T has one of the biggest (I think second biggest family medicine residency program after UBC) in Canada. So I doubt being family medicine/primary care hinders you at all. There is emphasis for being researcher/academically inclined but thats more the bonus you get during application for being a grad student. When it comes to interview/file reviews it depends on who reviews you. I have met plenty of u of t alums with little to no research experience at all. So its definitely not a deal breaker

Thanks

[Aconitase]

On 12/1/2018 at 10:15 PM, dreamteam22 said:

So you're saying if someone says they want to be a GP, and does not mention much about research during the UofT med interview process, they won't be competitive? I would hope that the selection process doesn't discriminate applicants based on their interest in primary care. Would love to hear your insight on this please ! Thanks in advance 

I would agree with the other response. They like academics but you can be a GP and be academic. Saying you have no interest in research maybnkt help though