Im NOT from Northern Ontario, Problem?

[DoctorSJ]

Hey family,

I'm applying to NOSM, but i'm worried. I've attended Laurentian University for my undergraduate degree however I grew up in Brampton, ON. Which is in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). I've lived in Sudbury for 4 years. (hoping that helps my case!)

 

From your experience do you think NOSM will be interested in accepting a student like myself? It seems that NOSM is interested in offering mainly students who grew up in Northern Ontario acceptance. Any helpful information will be accepted!

 

Thankyou!

[Hockeynut]

You are at a disadvantage although there are a few (~3) people every year that get in who aren't from Northern Ontario. I believe someone on here said that one person at the interview claimed to be from the GTA and never been to or lived in Northern Ontario. So it is possible, and your UG and living in Sudbury help, although like I said you are disadvantaged when content is 1/3 pre interview score and 1/6 post interview.

[Real Beef]

From everything I have heard from NOSM is that you do not get 'context credit' for going to school in the North. This is a point that premeds get confused all the time 'Ill just go do my undergrad at Lakehead or Laurentian then get into NOSM' ... not how it works.

 

Doing your undergrad in the North shows an interest in the North and you can certainly describe your experiences in the North, do volunteering while here, become engaged in the community, get to know the culture/demographics which do count for alot but again do not factor in the context score but strengthen your application elsewhere rather than someone who is truly North naive.

 

Good luck.

 

Remember if you get an interview, you want to rock it and if they send out the same number of invites this year everyone invited has a mathematical chance of getting in ... previously the bottom pre-interview scores couldnt even get in if they got a perfect on their interview so they reduced the number sent out, so if invited rock the interview and you have a chance.

[Hockeynut]

From everything I have heard from NOSM is that you do not get 'context credit' for going to school in the North. This is a point that premeds get confused all the time 'Ill just go do my undergrad at Lakehead or Laurentian then get into NOSM' ... not how it works.

 

Doing your undergrad in the North shows an interest in the North and you can certainly describe your experiences in the North, do volunteering while here, become engaged in the community, get to know the culture/demographics which do count for alot but again do not factor in the context score but strengthen your application elsewhere rather than someone who is truly North naive.

 

Good luck.

 

Remember if you get an interview, you want to rock it and if they send out the same number of invites this year everyone invited has a mathematical chance of getting in ... previously the bottom pre-interview scores couldnt even get in if they got a perfect on their interview so they reduced the number sent out, so if invited rock the interview and you have a chance.

 

Isn't this always the case

[Real Beef]

Isn't this always the case

 

Yes this is always the case but the approach you take to interview prep may be different. By that I mean I know people in my class who didnt prepare for the interview, the whole 'I have a great personality and I can adapt to any question they throw at me'. This is a very dangerous approach as you will not have developed a framework for answering ethical scenarios (i.e. having read 'Doing Right' and practicing heavily), havent read about specific Northern Health & social issues that may come up and practiced critically analysing arguments.

 

So if he/she were a person who thought they could wing it or do minimal prep for the interview I would caution them not to be so cocky and prep like there is no tommorow as I did ... leave nothing to chance. Maybe some people are the second coming of Jesus and can dazzle interviewers with thei charm, natural intelligence, logic and life experience but 99% of people need to prep hard to rock the intervew and then relax and be yourself once you get to the interview.

[Hockeynut]

Ahhh ok makes sense, still torn on how one should prepare for an interview. (Haven't decided what the optimal strategy is, guess I should get on this haha)

[BK47]

I had a friend back from undergrad who interviewed for NOSM and was from the GTA, and I don't think he had any connections to Northern Ontario. He interviewed there but I don't think he ended up being accepted.

 

So its possible and there's hope, just not the greatest shot.

[ohno]

I have one friend who was offered an interview at NOSM despite the fact that she's Toronto born and Toronto raised. She did have extensive traveling experience across the globe though, not sure if that's what made her stand out.

[rmorelan]

I had a friend back from undergrad who interviewed for NOSM and was from the GTA, and I don't think he had any connections to Northern Ontario. He interviewed there but I don't think he ended up being accepted.

 

So its possible and there's hope, just not the greatest shot.

 

I have had a few friends from similar backgrounds interview - but again never actually accepted or waitlisted. I still think that generally makes sense considering the school's mandate.

[Real Beef]

I have had a few friends from similar backgrounds interview - but again never actually accepted or waitlisted. I still think that generally makes sense considering the school's mandate.

 

Agreed. When I interviewed for my eventual spot I was actually surprised by the number of people I met from other parts of Canada who did not have a connection to Northern Ontario and seemed to be quite urban-centric. However, in the end I did not see these people in my class.

 

As mentioned interviewing and gaining acceptance are two different beasts ... though both are admirable accomplishments.

 

Beef

[bikekp]

I am from a small town in BC, and I got an interview this cycle. I think you need a rural connection to stand much of a chance with the context score. I'm guessing that my context score is relatively high because my gpa is only 3.78 and I wouldn't say my ECs are anything special. I'm assuming that nosm has to let in a few students from out of province and outside of northern Ontario because they have federal and provincial government funding.

[drTat]

I'm from a small rural community in the Northern Yukon - got a chance for an interview after applying twice - so there is hope for those who don't live in Ontario! Although it does seem that a majority of those accepted are Ontario residents...

[Real Beef]

I'm assuming that nosm has to let in a few students from out of province and outside of northern Ontario because they have federal and provincial government funding.

 

Your assumption is incorrect. NOSM selects the best candidates that represent their mission statement and mandate which from time to time may happen to be someone from outside of Northern Ontario but always some strong connection to rural and remote Canada ... not frequently though but occasionally. Certainly my class has people from rural Nova Scotia and Yukon.

[bikekp]

I think they do actually have to let in a few out of province/northern ontario students, because they let in 3-6 every year. That being said, I think almost all of them are from rural areas. Unless NOSM is the exception, every school in Canada has to let in students from out of province, the number is certainly not high, and it is clearly harder to get in. I could be wrong of course, but NOSM's mission is to train physicians to work in rural and remote areas of Northern Ontario and Canada, which means that students from out of province would fit this description.

 

I have an interview, so clearly there is something to be said about coming from a rural area outside of Northern Ontario, especially because I did not get an interview at any other school in Ontario.

[Real Beef]

I think they do actually have to let in a few out of province/northern ontario students, because they let in 3-6 every year.

 

I have an interview, so clearly there is something to be said about coming from a rural area outside of Northern Ontario, especially because I did not get an interview at any other school in Ontario.

 

You have a very funny concept in your head.

 

NOSM has several seats reserved for an Aboriginal stream so they do have to fill those minimum of seats though more successful applicants who are Aboriginal can get in. Also while there are no specific seats for francophone applicants they are at certain advantage in the application process so they tend to be represented in the incoming classes. However there is no mandate that NOSM must have applicants from outside of Ontario due to funding. Sure if you are from rural Canada elsewhere you may have your context score boosted but you are getting an interview on the merits of your GPA, Autobio sketch and context score in comparison to weaker applicants-in-province or otherwise.

 

So theoretically they do not have to admit any out of province applicants if all out of province applicants score below all in province applicants (which is an extreme example but I am illustrating a point). It just so happens that every year out of province applicants who have a strong context score (read rural/remote elsewhere) score overall higher than some inprovince average applicants so there tend to be a few.

 

Just because every year a few out of province applicants get in you can not conclude that NOSM must admit a few due to funding agreements ... lol. Looking at stats and making incorrect conclusions is what has misled medicine and health research for years in certain areas (ex. cardiovascular disease and dietary fats) so be careful how you interpret data.

 

Beef

[bikekp]

Alright, but I can tell you that I know first hand from speaking with Deans of 2 different medical schools in Canada, they do have that requirement and it has to do with federal funding. Maybe NOSM is the exception as it is definitely different from all other schools in the country. I'm not an expert, and that was not a mis-interpretation of data, just passing on the information that I have. All medical school admissions processes are cryptic to some degree, nobody has all the answers or the formula for them, we can only work with what we are given.

 

Regardless of what is true or not, NOSM DOES accept students from outside of Ontario every single year, unless they are lying on their website. Which, is the point of this thread. Not being from Northern Ontario is not necessarily a problem, but obviously as with any school with in province criteria, it is more challenging.