mikeb88 Posted January 25, 2012 Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 I just got a regret in the email This is my first cycle and first response. I'm not too upset about it, though. I went into the cycle with low expectations, hoping for the best. Here are my stats: GPA~3.2-3.3 MCAT 31 O SWOMEN MSc 2 publications, 1 under review ~12 abstracts and conferences 2 awards for research Average ECs Like I said, I'm not dwelling on this too much. My stats aren't great, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take! I'm doing a 2nd UG to bring up my GPA and I plan on rewriting the MCAT this summer. Still waiting on UofT, Mac, and Queens! Congrats to everyone who received an invite! You all worked hard and deserve it! Best of luck to everyone this cycle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 Hey guys! I've been reading all of your posts, but haven't written anything until now. I just got my email. I got an interview!!! Good Luck to EVERYONE! Congrats ... a good time to pipe up if any. I snagged an interview as well. Good luck with your interview prep. Beef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 25, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2012 I just got a regret in the email This is my first cycle and first response. I'm not too upset about it, though. I went into the cycle with low expectations, hoping for the best. Here are my stats: GPA~3.2-3.3 MCAT 31 O SWOMEN MSc 2 publications, 1 under review ~12 abstracts and conferences 2 awards for research Average ECs Like I said, I'm not dwelling on this too much. My stats aren't great, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take! I'm doing a 2nd UG to bring up my GPA and I plan on rewriting the MCAT this summer. Still waiting on UofT, Mac, and Queens! Congrats to everyone who received an invite! You all worked hard and deserve it! Best of luck to everyone this cycle Do 'killer' on the second undergrad. Good luck with the other med schools you applied for! Beef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lwu018 Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 I just got a regret in the email This is my first cycle and first response. I'm not too upset about it, though. I went into the cycle with low expectations, hoping for the best. Here are my stats: GPA~3.2-3.3 MCAT 31 O SWOMEN MSc 2 publications, 1 under review ~12 abstracts and conferences 2 awards for research Average ECs Like I said, I'm not dwelling on this too much. My stats aren't great, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take! I'm doing a 2nd UG to bring up my GPA and I plan on rewriting the MCAT this summer. Still waiting on UofT, Mac, and Queens! Congrats to everyone who received an invite! You all worked hard and deserve it! Best of luck to everyone this cycle Hey Mike, I also received a rejection letter from NOSM yesterday. I must admit I am very disappointed and rather upset. Two years ago, I was in a similar position as you (i.e. Finishing up my Masters degree with a GPA score of around 3.2 and receiving a rejection letter from NOSM). I returned back to complete a second undergraduate degree and was able to bring my GPA up to 3.85 (including the +.2 for the masters). Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be sufficient for NOSM. If you haven't started your second undergrad degree, I would highly recommend doing it in northern Ontario to up your context score, since I understand that you are from the SWOMEN area. I'm thinking back and kicking myself for not having done my second undergraduate up there. As far as I'm concerned, my GPA and autobiographical sketch are rather strong, and so the context is the only potential downfall for me. Just in case you are wondering, here's a quick overview of my stats GPA: First undergrad GPA - 3.2 Second Undergrad GPA - 3.65 + 0.2 for Masters = 3.85 MCAT: 33 - 11 / 11 / 11 / O Context: I have lived in a rural Ontario community (Haliburton County - population < 2000 ) for 18 years of my life, 5 of those years include working with rural businesses. I also lived in Moose Factory -- an aboriginal community located in Northern Ontario -- for one year. Both of my parents still reside in Haliburton County. My father has also been the sole family physician for this community for about 8 years now. Autobiographical Sketch: - Published 4 peer reviewed scientific journal articles (I am lead author for 2 of these papers) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=luke%20wu - 10 abstracts - 3 are published abstracts in peer reviewed journals. I presented over 6 poster presentations and 4 oral presentations, including one international conference - 16th ISCT meeting in Philadelphia -Received 5 academic awards / scholarships worth a total value of $22,000 -Volunteered around 600 hours between the Ottawa Distress Center and the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (I received a $2000 award for my efforts at CHEO) -Followed 6 different specialists for a full 8 hour day each. I participated in a program hosted by the stem-cell network which linked it's research trainees with physicians to stimulate discussion between biomedical researchers and clinical practitioners. In addition, I have spent a full week shadowing a rural family physician. -Co-founded and still running a science radio show for 2 years (Peer Review Radio). I have invested well over 400 hours into this activity. I also started up a student club (Scientific Innovation for International Advancement) and co-chaired my department's student curriculum committee at the University of Ottawa for one year. -Participated in various athletic and artistic activities (e.g. ultimate frisbee (team captain for a year), fencing, aviation , photography, and piano). All in all, I think it may be worthwhile for you to consider finishing your second undergraduate up North if possible. I think it is the best way to prove to NOSM that you will stay there once you graduate, since being from a rural community outside of Northern doesn't seem to be enough. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for both of us regarding the other schools. Best of luck and I hope things turn up for the both of us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Hey Mike, I also received a rejection letter from NOSM yesterday. I must admit I am very disappointed and rather upset. Two years ago, I was in a similar position as you (i.e. Finishing up my Masters degree with a GPA score of around 3.2 and receiving a rejection letter from NOSM). I returned back to complete a second undergraduate degree and was able to bring my GPA up to 3.85 (including the +.2 for the masters). Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be sufficient for NOSM. If you haven't started your second undergrad degree, I would highly recommend doing it in northern Ontario to up your context score, since I understand that you are from the SWOMEN area. I'm thinking back and kicking myself for not having done my second undergraduate up there. As far as I'm concerned, my GPA and autobiographical sketch are rather strong, and so the context is the only potential downfall for me. Just in case you are wondering, here's a quick overview of my stats GPA: First undergrad GPA - 3.2 Second Undergrad GPA - 3.65 + 0.2 for Masters = 3.85 MCAT: 33 - 11 / 11 / 11 / O Context: I have lived in a rural Ontario community (Haliburton County - population < 2000 ) for 18 years of my life, 5 of those years include working with rural businesses. I also lived in Moose Factory -- an aboriginal community located in Northern Ontario -- for one year. Both of my parents still reside in Haliburton County. My father has also been the sole family physician for this community for about 8 years now. Autobiographical Sketch: - Published 4 peer reviewed scientific journal articles (I am lead author for 2 of these papers) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=luke%20wu - 10 abstracts - 3 are published abstracts in peer reviewed journals. I presented over 6 poster presentations and 4 oral presentations, including one international conference - 16th ISCT meeting in Philadelphia -Received 5 academic awards / scholarships worth a total value of $22,000 -Volunteered around 600 hours between the Ottawa Distress Center and the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (I received a $2000 award for my efforts at CHEO) -Followed 6 different specialists for a full 8 hour day each. I participated in a program hosted by the stem-cell network which linked it's research trainees with physicians to stimulate discussion between biomedical researchers and clinical practitioners. In addition, I have spent a full week shadowing a rural family physician. -Co-founded and still running a science radio show for 2 years (Peer Review Radio). I have invested well over 400 hours into this activity. I also started up a student club (Scientific Innovation for International Advancement) and co-chaired my department's student curriculum committee at the University of Ottawa for one year. -Participated in various athletic and artistic activities (e.g. ultimate frisbee (team captain for a year), fencing, aviation , photography, and piano). All in all, I think it may be worthwhile for you to consider finishing your second undergraduate up North if possible. I think it is the best way to prove to NOSM that you will stay there once you graduate, since being from a rural community outside of Northern doesn't seem to be enough. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for both of us regarding the other schools. Best of luck and I hope things turn up for the both of us! Dude, that is a strong application! I suspect that you will get better news from the other schools as your application can not be ignored. As you likely know context is 1/3 of your preinterview score. If you get a 9/10 on your GPA, 8/10 on your ABS/Essays and 0/10 on context score it unfortunately disables your application against applicants who are only average in your stronger parameters (GPA, ABS) if they score a 8-10/10 on the context score. They would only need average scores in tho GPA and ABS to rise above you in the rankings. I guess all of that is obvious but really emphasizes the need to concentrate your efforts on the weakest link, context score, as effort in this area would give you the biggest return on your investment rather than concentrating on increasing/improving your already strong credentials which would only marginally improve your chances. Moving to Northern Ontario for school unfortunately may not have been the tipping point either as they do not count time spent in school up north towards the context score ... I have heard this many times and was actually mentioned in one of their Admission information sessions if I remember correctly. So what a person would need to do is move to Northern Ontario, set up a life and let there context score naturally increase .... a hard feat to accomplish for premeds who usually want to do things that are active and do it with fervor ... but it really is just showing a aptitude and dedication to the North. Good luck lwu018, you'll get in somewhere. Beef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taiga gal Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 i got an interview! tears of joy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 i got an interview! tears of joy! Congratulations taiga gal ..... I was thinking about you earlier today ... as much as you can think about someone you have never met and spoken to in person ... . Beef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lwu018 Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Dude, that is a strong application! I suspect that you will get better news from the other schools as your application can not be ignored. As you likely know context is 1/3 of your preinterview score. If you get a 9/10 on your GPA, 8/10 on your ABS/Essays and 0/10 on context score it unfortunately disables your application against applicants who are only average in your stronger parameters (GPA, ABS) if they score a 8-10/10 on the context score. They would only need average scores in tho GPA and ABS to rise above you in the rankings. I guess all of that is obvious but really emphasizes the need to concentrate your efforts on the weakest link, context score, as effort in this area would give you the biggest return on your investment rather than concentrating on increasing/improving your already strong credentials which would only marginally improve your chances. Moving to Northern Ontario for school unfortunately may not have been the tipping point either as they do not count time spent in school up north towards the context score ... I have heard this many times and was actually mentioned in one of their Admission information sessions if I remember correctly. So what a person would need to do is move to Northern Ontario, set up a life and let there context score naturally increase .... a hard feat to accomplish for premeds who usually want to do things that are active and do it with fervor ... but it really is just showing a aptitude and dedication to the North. Good luck lwu018, you'll get in somewhere. Beef Thanks Beef for the response and informing me of the context scoring. It certainly helps to relieve the regret of not having moved up north for the second undergrad. I am hoping that I can get at least one interview this year, as I have been applying for the past 3 years and haven't received a single interview yet. Keeping my fingers crossed. Thank you also for the well wishes and moral booster, helps to rejuvenate some optimism after the rejection letter. Best of luck to you with your endeavors! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RN-MD Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Oh my god! I am so happy for everyone! I wasn't as lucky and was rejected pre-interview for NOSM, but I knew that it was a very very very long shot for me so Im not too bummed. You are all so deserving and I am so proud of everyone who has made it to this point. It is amazing to hear everyone's stories and the hard work and passion that drives you forward to reaching your dreams! For those of you with interviews- you are one step closer- and to everyone who missed out- things happen for a reason- maybe we are just destined to land interviews at other schools, or maybe we still have some growing to do. Either way- we have the rejection out of the way- and are on our way to acceptances! Dont get too down, remember to always be proud of yourself and remind yourself that the best things in life arent easy to get- so keep trying! Hugs for everybody! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaronjw Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Yay for RB! Now go kick ass in the interview and claim your rightful acceptance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Yay for RB! Now go kick ass in the interview and claim your rightful acceptance You are awesome aaronjw ... thanks for the advice. My new interview strategy can be viewed below Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 But before I break some skulls I will politely introduce myself .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northern gal Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 I saw there was a list going and thought I should say that I got an Interview in Sudbury. Anyone who is wanting to get together in the Sudbury area, or online, to prepare contact me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
future_doc Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 i got an interview! tears of joy! Wonderful!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Beef Posted January 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 I saw there was a list going and thought I should say that I got an Interview in Sudbury. Anyone who is wanting to get together in the Sudbury area, or online, to prepare contact me. Congratulations. Ill add you to the list! Beef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWOsw Posted January 27, 2012 Report Share Posted January 27, 2012 For those who were not accepted for an interview this year.... try and try and try and try again and again and again! From what I understand, there are people who have been accepted after 3 (most actually) and even after 5 attempts. Call the school, see what information they can give you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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