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How do you cater an application to a specific school?


shepp11

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U of T: Emphasize research and the contribution medical sciences makes to improving the lives of others.

 

McMaster: Wishy washy human rights clubs and ECs will help you here. Stuff like Amnesty International

 

Queens: It really helps you application here to make your ECs sound as great as possible. Use buzzwords and meaningless sloganeering to create the impression that you are highly involved in various activities. Student council and club leaderships are an unwritten requirement here.

 

For the rest, it is random, but these three schools have areas that they do emphasize, so if you want to go to any of these schools, start hand-tailoring your application now.

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What about for Western? :)

 

-Get 2 years that are >=3.70 on the OMSAS scale (satisfying the 3/5 rule)

-Get an MCAT >=30 with no section lower than 8 (advantage of SWOMEN)

 

Obviously you'll need much more than this to shine in the interview

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Here's my guide for Ontario:

 

Toronto: PhD

McMaster: Memorize Doing Right/Selling yourself in 8 minutes

Western: Invent a time machine and go to an appropriate high school

Ottawa: Work your ass off during undergrad, if post-undergrad... then might as well slack

Queens: ?

NOSM: See Western

 

qft/win, 10 char

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McMaster: Wishy washy human rights clubs and ECs will help you here. Stuff like Amnesty International

 

Queens: It really helps you application here to make your ECs sound as great as possible. Use buzzwords and meaningless sloganeering to create the impression that you are highly involved in various activities. Student council and club leaderships are an unwritten requirement here.

you have no idea what you're talking about

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you have no idea what you're talking about

 

Did I strike a nerve? Let's face it, McMaster is run by people who like thinking they are "humanitarians" and "innovating medical education". Being a head on the clouds idealist (at least during the MMI and CASper) is really helpful if you want to be accepted. But of course you'll disagree with me, that getting into McMaster is as easy as that, because you want to think that it is exclusive and truly selective because you go there right? That line of thinking is as predictable as McMaster's admissions criteria.

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Did I strike a nerve? Let's face it, McMaster is run by people who like thinking they are "humanitarians" and "innovating medical education". Being a head on the clouds idealist (at least during the MMI and CASper) is really helpful if you want to be accepted. But of course you'll disagree with me, that getting into McMaster is as easy as that, because you want to think that it is exclusive and truly selective because you go there right? That line of thinking is as predictable as McMaster's admissions criteria.

 

You sound mad, dude. Did McMaster reject you?

 

- From a guy who never went and probably will not go to McMaster

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How would that stuff help you? Mac doesn't look at ECs...

 

Just because they don't look at EC's doesn't mean EC's won't help you out. In these human rights clubs, you will learn how to spout your unrealistic goals and in general become a person disconnected from reality. You will then take this skill, and apply it to the MMI, and this will maximize your chance for admittance.

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Just because they don't look at EC's doesn't mean EC's won't help you out. In these human rights clubs, you will learn how to spout your unrealistic goals and in general become a person disconnected from reality. You will then take this skill, and apply it to the MMI, and this will maximize your chance for admittance.

 

Exactly, a 70% MMI makes a world of difference.

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Since you need to be strong academically to get an interview in the first place, I would like to see schools turn into a 100% interview style. Each person who get an interview is smart enogh, so leave it to those who are more socially able, and research to those who can't talk to others

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Just because they don't look at EC's doesn't mean EC's won't help you out. In these human rights clubs, you will learn how to spout your unrealistic goals and in general become a person disconnected from reality. You will then take this skill, and apply it to the MMI, and this will maximize your chance for admittance.

 

I'm somewhat skeptical that participating in such clubs grants you an ability to talk in such a way that you would otherwise not be able to do. I'm just not convinced that you really need all those ECs for Mac.

 

Also, while someone with unrealistic goals and a somewhat overzealous demeanor may not be too good, the same is true of a cynic - we really don't need more of those kinds of doctors.

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Since you need to be strong academically to get an interview in the first place, I would like to see schools turn into a 100% interview style. Each person who get an interview is smart enogh, so leave it to those who are more socially able, and research to those who can't talk to others

 

There are few ideas that I would consider 100% bad, and this is one of them. Do you really want med selection to be MORE vague and random than it already is? Do you really want your admittance to be based on what you wore on the day of the interview, your voice, how you look, how firm your handshake was, your race and many other superficial things?

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There are few ideas that I would consider 100% bad, and this is one of them. Do you really want med selection to be MORE vague and random than it already is? Do you really want your admittance to be based on what you wore on the day of the interview, your voice, how you look, how firm your handshake was, your race and many other superficial things?

 

I think what you say (and how you say it) is much more important than any of the stuff that you listed.

 

Except for the handshake... that's crucial.

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I think what you say (and how you say it) is much more important than any of the stuff that you listed.

 

Except for the handshake... that's crucial.

 

What you say and how you say it? There are a lot of applicants who answer questions is pretty much the exact same way, so why do some get in while others don't? Their eye-contact and voice (is it annoying or not? Do they speak with confidence etc.) is what delineates between a successful and unsuccessful applicant in these cases. Making med schools 100% interview will just help the model-looking social butterflies with melodious voices and superficial opinions get in even more often than they already do.

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What you say and how you say it? There are a lot of applicants who answer questions is pretty much the exact same way, so why do some get in while others don't? Their eye-contact and voice (is it annoying or not? Do they speak with confidence etc.) is what delineates between a successful and unsuccessful applicant in these cases. Making med schools 100% interview will just help the model-looking social butterflies with melodious voices and superficial opinions get in even more often than they already do.

 

Well then, try to NOT answer it like everyone else if you want to stand out.

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Well then, try to NOT answer it like everyone else if you want to stand out.

 

There are two problems with that idea

 

1) How are you supposed to know what other applicants say during their interview? You could think up an anecdote that you think is the bee's knees but someone else will have already said it to the same interviewer.

 

2) Being too different and "standing out" is exactly the way to go, if rejection is what you seek.

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There are two problems with that idea

 

1) How are you supposed to know what other applicants say during their interview? You could think up an anecdote that you think is the bee's knees but someone else will have already said it to the same interviewer.

You just have to go with your gut feeling, I suppose. As you said, there's no way to know what other people say. It doesn't matter. The key is to be yourself, and let your passion flow into your answers.

 

Obviously the latte portion of that will offend you, but to each his own.

2) Being too different and "standing out" is exactly the way to go, if rejection is what you seek.

 

I suppose it depends on how different you are. Or rather, it depends on which aspects are different.

 

There's nothing wrong with thinking outside the box. Even so, the thinking process is much more important than anything that you actually say (unless you say something that's some sort of red flag)

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You just have to go with your gut feeling, I suppose. As you said, there's no way to know what other people say. It doesn't matter. The key is to be yourself, and let your passion flow into your answers.

 

Obviously the latte portion of that will offend you, but to each his own.

 

What you mean is be yourself, so long as "yourself" is a right fit for thier program. And yes, it does offend me that being a passionate sheep, espousing ideas you don't even believe yourself is what it takes to get in.

 

I suppose it depends on how different you are. Or rather, it depends on which aspects are different.

 

There's nothing wrong with thinking outside the box. Even so, the thinking process is much more important than anything that you actually say (unless you say something that's some sort of red flag)

 

The thinking outside the box medical schools are looking for is "This person volunteering in the slums of Rio de Janeiro instead of Africa, what an innovative and unique individual!". And what constitutes raising a red flag? Just because I believe something they don't its worth me being rejected?

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