Guest Krish Posted April 3, 2003 Report Share Posted April 3, 2003 Hi aneliz, I know you mentioned before that your interview experience at U of T was "horrible" and I also know you got in. Would you mind sharing what was bad about it. Thanks in advance. Krish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest UWOMED2005 Posted April 3, 2003 Report Share Posted April 3, 2003 Hey Krish, I'm not Aneliz but if you want some testimonials from other med students (2nd year at UWO) who also thought their interviews didn't go well, check this link out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ian Wong Posted April 3, 2003 Report Share Posted April 3, 2003 Moved out of the General Premed forum into the UWO forum... Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aneliz Posted April 3, 2003 Report Share Posted April 3, 2003 It wasn't so much the interview itself...it was the treatment by the UofT admissions staff, the attitudes of the UofT med students and the overall 'way admissions works at UofT' that turned me off. Here is a summary of my experiences at UofT: To start with, I received absolutely NO word from UofT until very late (like last week) of April. In late April I received an e-mail from Bill Gregg (?) with the subject line "invitation for interview" that said "see attachment for details". Problem was that their attachment wouldn't open. So I called UofT and asked them to resend it. And they did....the next day...but it still didn't work. So I called them back and asked if they could tell me when my interview was...and they refused to do that and said that they would mail me a copy of the letter and that I "would have to wait until it came". So I did. And by the time the letter came in the mail, I had exactly 5 days to prepare. So I get to UofT on my interview day (Mother's Day) and make it to the med sci building....it looks abandoned....not a person to be seen anywhere. So I wander in looking for the mysterious room that we are supposed to report to....the rooms in med sci have four digit numbers...which are seemingly random to me. So after a couple of wrong turns, I find this room. And I go in and try to check in. And get a nasty remark from the woman at the desk that I can't check in for another 10 minutes because my sheet said to be there at 11 and it is now only 10:53. I go back in at 11 and she registers me with a lot of moaning and groaning...and she hands me a sheet of paper with my "group number" on it. So I asked what the groups were for....and she said "I can't tell you that, you have to go to the conference room". I didn't know where this conference room was so I asked her how to get there....and she snarled that I just had "to walk to the end of the hall". So, I set off down the hall...still no signs of any students...or anybody else for that matter. And I get to the end of the hall (lined by closed office doors) and I am met by a set of double doors....no conference room in sight....so I turn around to go back the way I came....and on the trip back down the hall, I run into a couple of UofT med students...so I ask them how to get there....they look at each other and start laughing....then they tell me that I'm never going to get in if I can't even find my way to the conference room.... Turns out that you had to go to the end of the hall, through the doors, to the end of the next hall, turn right, go through a cloakroom and then into the Dean's conference room. Once there, we are in our 'groups' with a couple of med students....my 'group leaders' spent this time grouching about UofT....how the curriculum "looks good on paper but really sucks", how much tuition, books, equipment, living expenses, etc are in Toronto, how little clinical exposure they get, how much things suck in general, etc. Then we are herded off to an 'information session' where we are told that we are special because 'UofT has decided that we potentially meet their ideals' and that we will find out in June if we really do. They also inform us that there will be absolutely no personal feedback for unsuccessful applicants and to not harass the office until after the 15 June if we haven't received anything because they like regular mail and it isn't their fault if the mail is slow. After that, the med students take over....showing a video and talking about life as a UofT med student...they are exceptionally proud of their 5 mens hockey teams....but they have no athletics to offer for the women (other then watching the five hockey teams)....next it's question time...someone asks the students about UofT's curriculum (what makes UofT special?) and they are told "we're not answering that because you are fishing for interview answers". Next we go on tour....because even though we were told to be there at 11, my interview is actually at 2...and some people don't have an interview until 3. During the tour, the students grouch about life in Toronto, how the faculty doesn't care about the students, how much tuition is going up next year, why they can't get any good clinical experience, etc. They also inform me that they don't know everybody in their class, that they have no computer or lounge facilities for the med students, etc. Next its interview time...the two students assigned to take me to my interview room don't know where it is and we get lost getting there....when we finally do make it there, I am almost late for the interview. Meanwhile, the person in the room next to me is being told that their physician interviewer is a no-show and that their interview will have to be cancelled for the day....they can come back tomorrow. Which is all fine and good if the person wasn't from Vancouver.... The interview itself wasn't too bad....friendlier then my UWO one actually...but with some strange questions thrown in. So, I had decided by the time I left that I didn't want to go to UofT and started praying that I would get into UWO... Other UofT stories from my UWO classmates: - We have a few people in our class that never heard from UofT...not even a rejection letter. - We have one person in our class that was told by UofT that they didn't have an application from her...even though she had confirmation from OMSAS that she had applied. - We have multiple extremely bright, well qualified people in our class that interviewed at (and got in at) multiple schools in Ontario that were rejected without interview from UofT So those are my UofT stories...I share them as personal anecdotes....they are by no means representative of everyone's UofT experience. I have nothing against UofT, I just didn't have a very positive experience with them and that combined with curriculum structure, tuition and living costs caused UofT to not be my first choice. That said, if I had only gotten into UofT, I would have gone...and I have several friends that are UofT med students that are pretty happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MayFlower1 Posted April 3, 2003 Report Share Posted April 3, 2003 aneliz, I'm SO SORRY you went through that. I was completely advantaged in that my wife interviewed at UofT also and had an extremely similar experience. Just for background...she was the gold medalist in Genetics at Western...has her RCA from the Royal Conservatory in Music in Piano...was one of the team stars at Western in varsity basketball...obviously extremely qualified. She was treated like absolute dirt...interestingly, she received a first round acceptance from UofT...was rejected by Ottawa...rejected by Western (?????????????????) and received a first round acceptance from Dal...rejected the UofT and Dal offers and reapplied the second year to UofO and accepted that with a first round offer...she was the second most successful student in her year at UofO...beat out for gold medal by a good friend of ours...but did manage to get the highest mark in Ottawa on her LMCC part II...ha ha...UofT definitely lost out...she is an amazing person and student...you couldn't pay me to apply to UofT...sorry for being so blunt...I can't stand snobbery of any sort. BTW, Western's program seems absolutely fab...I'm sure they're very lucky to have you... Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aneliz Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Thanks Peter...I have the agree with your opinions on UofT...its really too bad that THEY haven't realised this. I think that they outright reject some fabulous people...and their *caring and concern* for the applicants chases away a lot more. I too rejected a first round offer from them...as did many of my classmates. I find that most of the people that I know that are UofT students are there because they either didn't get in elsewhere or they have a great personal attachment to the city of Toronto and find it easier to be there for med school - not through any great love of UofT! I am sorry that your wife didn't get into UWO...she sounds like (and I am sure is) an amazing person and would have been an outstanding applicant. Strange how the med admissions game works out sometimes...I truly believe that a lot of qualified people get the shaft while some "yo-heads" (as my high school physics teacher would call them) manage to slip in the cracks. The system is far from perfect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MayFlower1 Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 aneliz, What I found most bizarre was that UWO didn't offer one of their OWN gold medalists a spot! To quote goldmember...isn't that vierd? Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peachy Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Hey Aneliz, I find that most of the people that I know that are UofT students are there because they either didn't get in elsewhere or they have a great personal attachment to the city of Toronto and find it easier to be there for med school - not through any great love of UofT! Wow. That's an incredibly inflammatory statement. And incredibly insulting both to current U of T students and to those of us applicants for whom U of T is our top choice. I also don't think it's true, at all. While there are legitimate concerns about U of T (which I share) it also remains the top choice of MANY students for reasons which are just as legitimate. For me that's because they have far and away the best MD/PhD program in Ontario. I'm sure the moderators can add lots more. peachy ps I spoke to one student during YOUR INTERVIEW DAY who responded to "Why Western?" with "Because it's the only place that I got in", and seemed to want to make it quite clear that he would have gone to U of T if he had had the option. Just like when you were at your U of T interview, I was not impressed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Biochem10 Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Aneliz, sounds like a really bad experience and totally the opposite of what I experienced at U of T this year. I suppose things are different for everyone, I had great tour guides, who showed us the computer facilities and med lounge and didn't have negative comments about the school. I found all the faculty extremely friendly, especially in the MD/PhD department, I guess they have less students, so they can focus their attention on each of them better. Anyway, most people I have spoke to who went to U of T had great comments about the school, the only complaints were the usual "too much memorization in 1st year", but I think that's pretty common across all med schools. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ge Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Kudos to Peachy for speaking up. This discussion has degraded into a personal vendetta against a high quality school. Many people have had less than ideal experiences with Toronto during the application process, but I am quite confident that the majority of applicants did not. My biggest worry is that this will change the minds of applicants that would have otherwise thrived in Toronto and enjoyed their time there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bj Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Thanks to everyone for sharing your opinions. This thread only confirms for me the fact that admissions and ultimate acceptance at a given medical school is a very PERSONAL process. One person may have a fabulous experience at School X while another may feel cheated by the same school. I think it depends on a lot of factors, including your personality, the personalities of the interviewers, and a million other minute details. Personally, I have had a very bad experience at an otherwise well thought-of school and a very positive experience at another, often berated school. You never know. My advice on my second time around: apply to many schools, because you are bound to find somewhere that "clicks" with your personality. BJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TimmyMax Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Hey all, I agree with bj- med school admissions and acceptance is an extremely PERSONAL process for the reasons mentioned. But just to clarify what aneliz was saying about UT- I have full confidence that her intention was not to bash or insult UT, but to merely share her experience for what it was. The point is that her experience at UT left her with a very sour take on the school and its students, and rightfully so, judging from what she experienced. As an admissions representative at UWO, it is my job to show our applicants a great time and paint my medical school in the best light possible. The admissions weekend is clearly the best time to do this, and here at UWO we take a lot of pride in the number of current med students who volunteer their weekends to help make our applicants feel welcome and show them why Western in such a great school to study medicine at! The point of aneliz's post was to demonstrate that at some schools this is not always the case, and sometimes applicants can be made to feel like an afterthought by how they are treated. I know that at one school I interviewed at, I felt this way. This treatment clearly soured aneliz on the school in question and helped contribute to her final choice of UWO, much to our delight! The take-home message is that the impression gained of a school during one's interview greatly influences one's ultimate choice of schools, should they be fortunate enough to have one. It is when this aspect is ignored by an institution that an applicant usually leaves with a bad taste in his or her mouth. Best of luck! Timmy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aneliz Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 Alright... My post was not intended to be an attack on UofT...I have nothing against the place, they have some outstanding facilities, faculty and students... I was asked by someone on this board to post my experiences at UofT...which I did. I have no problem sharing my personal story...but remember, it is my personal story. I in no way implied that every applicant to UofT is treated in this way or has an experience like mine. I also did not attack UofT...I merely shared what happened to me last year when I applied. As for my statement that "most of the people that I know that go to UofT are there because they didn't get in elsewhere or because they have a personal attachment to the city of Toronto" was not meant to be an attack either. It was a statement of fact. I personally know several UofT students...(went to high school or undergrad with them) and all except for one is there for one of the reasons that I stated. I do not claim to know ALL of the UofT students...or claim that this is the case for ALL of the UofT students...it was just an observation about the reason that the people THAT I KNOW are at UofT. This also doesn't imply that UofT is an inferior school or has a worse curriculum or students then anywhere else. My point was that they potentially chase away many very well qualified students with their seemingly arbitrary and drawn out interview invite process and their treatment of some (not all) interviewees on interview day - because if they got in elsewhere, they might be more likely choose a school where they felt that they were treated better. I was never against UofT...in fact I only applied to two Ontario schools - the two that I thought that would suit my learning style/goals/etc -and UofT was one of them! My opinions on UofT are entirely derived from MY OWN EXPERIENCE in dealing with them during the application process - and their actions dropped them right off my list of places that I felt that I would be happy spending the next four years of my life at. This doesn't mean that I am attacking UofT. There are a couple of important points here: 1. There is a difference between sharing personal stories/experiences and 'attacking' a school...just because the experience with the school wasn't positive doesn't make it an attack on the school to share it. 2. The application process is very personal. Every applicant will have a different experience at each school and will form different opinions from the next applicant. What I may have disliked at UofT, someone else might have liked...and everyone is entitled to their own impressions/opinions. And with that, I think that this discussion has run its inevitable course and I am going to lock it. Andrea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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