Guest Kirsteen Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 Hey there, Just when I thought the US applications were a complete waste of last summer's time and money... Did anyone else happen to apply to The Chicago Medical School this year? I just received a fairly sizeable interview package in the mail from these guys--big shocker as I wasn't expecting much from the US "investment" at all. :eek Has anyone hereabouts interviewed there and would care to comment on their experience? moo, if you wouldn't mind, what's your take on The Chicago Medical School? Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moo Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 Kirsteen, you applied just this past cycle and just heard back from them for an interview? It's a decent school. It will get you where you want to go. I mean, it's not the best of schools, and the first two years are spent in North Chicago, but don't be deceived, it's actually very rural and there isn't much to do out there. The curriculum I hear is very traditional and you should keep that in mind. However, you do move into the city third year and rotate through Cook County Hospital. In terms of reputation, it (unfairly?) gets bashed a lot. That's basically because their entrance GPA is around 3.4 but this is mostly because a lot of their class is drawn from their "Applied Physiology" program which is basically a program that people who couldn't get into med school the first time around do. The people in that program take med school type classes and if they maintain a GPA of 3.0 or something like that they will get admitted into their medical school. Just FYI, Northwestern's new Dean of Students, and my preceptor for my physical diagnosis course here at Northwestern both graduated from Finch/CMS. I knew someone who got into Finch my year (Canadian) and they offered her a 20000 scholarship. I don't know if she went but she was deciding between Georgetown and UT. BTW, I didn't know you applied to US schools this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 Hi there moo, Thanks for your candour. I appreciate hearing some of the local scoop. Yes, I applied to a select number of US schools this year, seemingly ages ago, back in June/July. It was my first year doing so. I've gotten the boot from about half of them thus far and am still awaiting word from the rest. CMS/Finch is the first interview invitation I've received and I'm definitely going to give it a go (I've chosen an interview date of April 7th). If nothing else, I've heard that their facilities are quite modern. Do you have any idea how much cab fare would cost from around the Hancock Tower up to CMS/Finch? Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moo Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 The Hancock? That's actually right by where I live and right near Northwestern's campus. You planning on staying in downtown Chicago? Anyway, from the Hancock, it'll probably be about a 50-60 minute cab ride, depending on traffic, which will cost you about 40-50 bucks. A cheaper way would be to take the "L" (red line)to Union station and then take the Metra up there via the Union Pacific North Line (total coast shouldn't be more than 5-6 bucks). If you are arriving at OHare, you can take the "L" straight downtown to Union station and then just take the Metra up. I should also add that Cook County is really a great place to rotate through. The show ER is modeled after Cook County, if you didn't already know. You'll see a lot of the nitty gritty stuff and most of the people who go there don't have insurance so (good or bad) you will get a lot of hands on experience. Good luck on your interview! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest thesaug Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, Congrats on the interview! Good luck! thesaug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Hey there, moo and thesaug, thanks very much for your wishes. It'll be great to get back to Chicago and moo, yes, I'll be staying near the Hancock on Michigan. If you're up for grabbing a latte at one of the Starbucks on the Magnificent Mile, I'd be pleased to buy you one. Thanks for the taxi and L-tips. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moo Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Kirsteen, If you have any more questions about Chicago, or if you're up for grabbing coffee or some dessert (there's Cheesecake Factory, name says it all) you can email me at cantor2537@yahoo.com. Hope you have a great time here. I know you were here earlier but just gotta say, Chicago really is a great town and the people here really know how to take care of their guests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gonzo23 Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, Congrats on chicago! I don't mean to make light of your rejections, but whereall did you apply (if you don't mind me asking)? Mainly b/c from seeing your posts and your ability to snag OOP interview spots at Canadian schools, I can't understand why you wouldn't be competitive in the US! My next shot was going to be to apply to the states, but your profile seems worlds stronger than mine, so it makes me weary to hear that even you are having issues down south. cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest studentz Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, Congrats on the interview. Check http://www.studentdoctor.net, they have the interviewfeedback.com database up, though I don't know if it has been updated this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 2, 2004 Report Share Posted March 2, 2004 Hi there, moo: cheers for the tip re: the Cheesecake Factory. Sounds yum. I agree with you re: Chicago. The couple of times I've been there I could see why Oprah made it home. Congrats on chicago! I don't mean to make light of your rejections, but whereall did you apply (if you don't mind me asking)? Thanks. Rejections: UNC-Chapel Hill, UCLA, Dartmouth, Duke, Emory, George Washington, Michigan, Northwestern, Pritzker. Pending response: Harvard, Baylor, Keck, Mount Sinai, Johns Hopkins, U. Penn, Yale. Please don't use my application as a yardstick for your own. Relative to many successful US applicants, my cumulative MCAT score is not super-competitive (30). Most probably, your GPA and MCAT scores will differ from mine and many US schools rely heavily on those to determine who gets interviews and who don't. My advice to you would be to check with each school that is of interest to you to see what their general requirements may be and then, resources-willing, apply. studentz: thanks for the reminder re: interviewfeedback.com. I'll definitely be having a wee boo prior to heading over to Chicago. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest studentz Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, Do you have US citizenship or PR status? I ask because I was under the impression that Michigan, and possibly UNC, UCLA, USC and Baylor restricted admission to those with that status? If I'm wrong, please let me know! Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Hi there, No, I do not have either of those statuses. I checked directly with the Admissions Offices of each school before I applied, and each of the ones that I mentioned certainly do accept Canadian applicants. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest malsa Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, I am also interviewing at Finch on the 7th of April! I've seen you around on the boards before, and I know that you too go to U of T. What are your travel plans re: chicago? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 3, 2004 Report Share Posted March 3, 2004 Hey there malsa, Good to hear! I managed to find a decent flight down to Chicago on the 6th, so I'll be arriving the day before the interview and staying in a hotel downtown. We have to be up on campus at 9:30am this next day, and the interviews and tours are supposed to draw to a close by 2pm, so I have a flight back to TO that day, at around 5:30pm or so. How about you? Did you happen to call the Admissions folks at CMS for some additional information re: the interview? One tidbit I learned is that decisions are supposed to emerge re: acceptance, etc., during the third week of April, so we won't have too long of a wait to find out how we fared. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moo Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 There's a thread on SDN about Finch, and here are a couple of comments from someone who actually attended Finch and one who interviewed there. Thought you guys might find this useful. The thread is here Hi, I'm a M4 at Finch (as of Monday, the Rosalind Franklin School of Medicine and Science). I was one of those applicants who dreaded going to Finch and I checked into their early orientation being on the waiting lists at five other schools, thus relinquishing my chances at another school. However, looking back on my experiences, being at Finch has not been so bad. During the first two years, the professors care about teaching and that showed on our class step 1 average of 220. There are excellent clinical opportunities during the third year as you choose from about a dozen hospitals instead of just one teaching hospital and an affiliated VA. The fourth year is the most flexible I have seen as you can do 18 weeks out of town and if you work hard, you can be done in March of your M4 year. Applying for a residency in anesthesia, the only program that rejected me was Duke and I interviewed at Hopkins, Northwestern, University of Chicago, Emory, UAB, UNC, Wake Forest (all top anesthesia programs). Program directors know that our students are taught well and hit the ground running at the start of residency. All that said, there are weak points about my school like the lack of high powered research and a major academic teaching hospital. You also need a car the first two years and it helps a lot the last two years. My top choice for medical school was UIC and I am actually kind of glad I didn't go there based on what my interactions with their students (they complain of lack of financial aid, administrative hassles, professors not caring). If you haven't decided for sure on your med school choice, take a trip to Finch and check it out. and I interviewed at Finch yesterday. I left with an overall positive impression, I think they get a bad rep undeservingly. They do have a few major down sides, however. These would be: a) cost of tuition and housing in the area. (Rent for the school apts ($800 + if I'm not mistaken) is more than rent in Chicago ($500 to $700 easy for places close to the train). actual grades, my tour guide said she "had nothing positive to say about the grading system" and that she and another student were trying to get it changed to some form of P/F. c) location, but the location shouldn't ruin your life. You will be busy with school anyway. Plus you could live in Chicago, and take the train an hour both ways each day and you'd have two hours of gaurunteed study time each day. d) little PBL, if you need that stuff in your first two years this could be a negative, I could swing either way with PBL. Other than those things, the quality of education for years 1 and 2 seemed great, and the fourth year I interviewed with said that the clinical rotations for years 3 and 4 are excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 4, 2004 Report Share Posted March 4, 2004 moo, I haven't had as much time as I would have liked recently to patrol the high-volume SDN site, so thanks very much for cutting and pasting those. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest malsa Posted March 5, 2004 Report Share Posted March 5, 2004 Thanks moo for posting that info about Finch on the boards. To Kirsteen: My travel plans are far from definate right now. I happen to have a midterm the night of the 6th and won't be able to make the last flight out that night. I'm trying to write an earlier sitting of that test, but if it doesn't work out, it looks like I'll be flying in early the morning of the 7th. Good luck Kirsteen! Perhaps we will run into each other in Chicago Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 5, 2004 Report Share Posted March 5, 2004 Hi there malsa, That would be great if you could have your exam time changed. I was considering taking the first morning flight out on the 7th, but the idea of performing brightly after rising and shining at 4am, in conjunction with any potential snags and resultant stressors with the flight or at the airport, convinced me that a flight on the 6th would be best. I'm sure we'll run into each other on interview day, though. As far as I've read, it seems that they interview somewhere between 7-10 applicants per day, and we're all huddled together in the same pre-interview room. Best of luck with your exam! Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest medschoolboy Posted March 5, 2004 Report Share Posted March 5, 2004 I also checked with the admissions office and Michigan "does NOT accept Canadian citizens at this time", but Baylor does. I'm not sure about the other schools Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Hey there moo, I've got some more Finch-picking of your brain to do. Given my complete inability to get a good night's sleep in Calgary last weekend, I figured I'd change my Chicago itinerary. Now, instead of staying over the night before, I'm taking a 6am, Toronto to Chicago flight. (If anyone else is scheduled to be on that flight, let me know!) So, from the airport to Finch, is it relatively easy, i.e., traffic-free, to snag a cab? Alternatively, I was considering renting a car for the day. If I did so, can I expect some smooth driving up to the campus? (I recall when I used to travel to Boston for business on a fairly regular basis. The driving experience there, i.e., lack of lines on the roads, and spaghetti-like highways that can easily send your way on towards New Hampshire when you don't want to be, was often a little thrilling. ) Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moo Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Actually it'll probably be better for you to just go straight from OHare than from downtown. From OHare it's about 30 miles to Finch, so it'll cost you about 30-40 bucks by cab. Traffic might be bad though, but you're heading away from downtown so maybe it won't be too bad. It doesn't seem like a hard drive, so maybe renting a car won't be too bad either. You can get driving directions at mapquest.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 25, 2004 Report Share Posted March 25, 2004 Hi there moo, Thanks for your input. Sounds like a rental car may be the best way to go. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eve76 Posted March 31, 2004 Report Share Posted March 31, 2004 Hi there Kirsteen, I just came across this thread. I interviewed at Finch in early March and what really struck me was how modern/new all the facilities are and also how warm the atmosphere was. All the students I talked to seemed happy there and the interviews were pretty relaxed. The interviewees do all sit together in a small waiting room; once everyone has finished two interviews, you go on a tour with a current student. Also, in case you do decide to take a cab, there is one cab company that goes from the airport to CMS and it costs $37.50. The name should be on the sheet that CMS sent to you with your interview invite. The other thing is you should hear back from them pretty quickly; I heard back in less than 3 weeks. Hope that helps, ~eve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted March 31, 2004 Report Share Posted March 31, 2004 Hi there eve, Thanks very much for your advice. I was actually looking at Chicago car rental rates this morning, so I'm happy to read the taxi fare rate that you posted. Hopefully you received some good news from Finch. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest malsa Posted April 7, 2004 Report Share Posted April 7, 2004 Hi Kirsteen, I interviewed at Finch today and was wondering if you were there. I don't think I ran into you, so I was wondering if you were still trying for the school. Malsa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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