ACCEPTED!

Ha! This will be my last blog entry on this blog.

About 4 hours ago, I got the acceptance email I've been waiting for from Ross University School of Medicine. I applied for their January 2009 class. The January class was full and I'm bumped to May -- but I'm in!

It's been a long time coming.

I'll probably edit this post in the future to tell more of the details, but this is the last entry. I don't expect to be accepted into any U.S. schools -- not with my GPA & MCAT. There is a slight chance I might be able to get into an osteopathic school if I apply broadly and re-take the MCAT. I'm also still waiting to hear verdicts from six U.S. schools and one other Caribbean school (St. George's University), but I have a feeling this is it.

I'm keeping this blog separate for other premed students wanting premed info.

My new medical school blog, where I'll continue to post updates:
Medical School: A Non-Traditional Approach

Thanks for reading.

Thanks for leaving replies.

I'm past one (huge) bump in the road to becoming a doctor, but it's not over yet.


The Four Books Every Premed Student Must Read:

If I could do it all over again, as a premed student if I could only read four books these are the books I wouldn't live without::

• Med School Confidential is your guide from high school through residency. I can't recommend this book enough. Forget 4 books. If you could only buy and read 1 book, this is the book that will get you into and through medical school.
• Essays That Will Get You into Medical School is your primary reference when approaching your personal statement. It begins with tips, how to's, and strategies, but then goes into a section that has actual essays written by actual students listed with the medical schools who accepted them. (This is the first hand stuff that I like.)
• The Medical School Interview is your glimpse into the medical school interview from two perspectives: from the student being interviewed and from the person doing the interviewing. Both of them are important to have a better understanding of how the interview really works.
• Complications is the best first hand account of a doctor's days and nights that I've ever read (and I've read a lot). He's a great writer and he has a great story. This is the book that I added to the old list. If your goal is to become a doctor and you want to know more about what goes on inside the mind of a doctor, this is the book you want to read. I think it's important to know this stuff. It's pleasure reading and... it's not. This is what you're getting yourself into after all.

I consider these four books required reading for all premed students. Feel free to disagree. But above all others, these books helped me to accomplish my goals. I'm sure they can do the same for you. Good luck.

Interview Feedback - Allopathic Medical Schools - Ross University School of Medicine (Dominica Caribbean)

Here is a link to my interview feedback for Ross University on The Student Doctor Network: LINK.

For all those out there curious about specific questions that were asked, here's a list of just about every question that was asked (with follow-up questions):

1. Tell me about your family?
2. What interests you about becoming a doctor?
3. When did you first hear about Ross?
4. What does your family think about becoming a doctor?
5. What does your family think about going to school in the Caribbean?
6. Why do you want to go to Ross?
7. Why didn't you pursue Nursing instead of Medicine?
8. How would you describe your academic career?
9. How would your friends describe you?
10. Do you have research experience?
11. Do you have any clinical experience?
12. Did you work while in college?
13. Name one quality that you have that will help you as a doctor?
14. How was your MCAT experience?
15. If there was one thing you could improve about yourself, what would it be?
16. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
17. Is there anything else you want to tell me?
18. Do you have any questions for me?

With my application to assist her, she also began asking a series of questions in a time-line format, beginning with my life immediately after high school. I've attended 3 different colleges, I've held a number of different jobs, and I've gone through a period of time where I didn't know what I wanted to do in life. This was good for me because it gave me an excellent opportunity to paint a picture about my life and my motivations leading up to this point.

Some of the follow-up questions included questions about my family and moving to Dominica. She seemed particularly interested in what exactly my family thought about going to the Caribbean for medical school. Still, I think it was a very tame interview and I got off easy. (I over prepared.)

edit: One more thing: She began the interview by telling me she just finished reading through my application. She casually flipped the pages and scanned it one last time as I sat down. It was a little confusing because during the interview, she asked many questions that could have been answered by reading the application in front of her. I wasn't sure whether she hadn't actually thoroughly read the entire thing and just skimmed it or if she just wanted to hear me answer the questions aloud and in my own words. Either way, I had no choice but to answer the questions as best I could.

"I was just wondering if I have to go to medical school i will have to start college allover again."

Anonymous writes:

"this is really helpful. I am a junior at a Business School, majoring in Accounting. And I am presently 17 years old. I was just wondering if I have to go to medical school i will have to start college allover again. this was really helpful"

As long as you finish your degree in Business, all you have to do is make sure you've taken the required sciences classes. These classes include 1 year of Biology, 1 year of General Chemistry, 1 year of Organic Chemistry, and 1 year of Physics. Some schools also require 1 semester of math (either Calculus or Statistics) and 1 year of English.

To find out exactly what the requirements are for each school, I suggest visiting their school websites.

Also, keep in mind that a few of these classes can be taken at community college. So in that sense, you won't have to "start college all over again" -- at least not financially. "1 year of Biology" is a little misleading since bio classes go by so many different names in many different schools. To figure out which ones will satisfy the biology requirement, make sure you stop by the counselor's office and see if the school has a pre-med adviser. Ask them in person just to make sure.

Assuming you've already finished your English requirement, you will be able to finish the rest in two years. This is mostly because General Chemistry is usually a pre-requisite for Organic Chemistry. Then again, you never know. If you ask around, you may find that your school allows both to be taken at the same time.

Taking Biology, Gen Chem, O. Chem, and Physics within 1 year may be possible, but I wouldn't recommend it.

"You have a 95% chance of acceptance..."

j/m.d. writes:

"You have a 95% chances of acceptance if you can show the dedication that you obviously have and the amazing desire to want to undergo a rigorous profession. You did great, my friend. If nothing goes, you get on the waiting list which is automatic acceptance for the following semester, NO fears at all. I was accepted the day after, however I began to realize what studying medicine in general was like, much less in a rougher environment like Dominica"

I'm sure you're right. I hope you're right... but I won't believe it until I see it.

I'm still crossing my fingers for other schools, but getting accepted into Ross will just be a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. It's really holding me back right now. I'm not in panic mode yet with my current studies. I still have a little wiggle room left, but if I don't get down to business soon I'm going to be in real big trouble.

It's like I'm looking forward before I'm finishing what I'm currently doing.

If I get the good news I think concentrating on my current studies will be a lot easier.