Recent content by Doodledog

Hi - It can seem scary to see match rate numbers and read some of the concerns expressed about the future. The reality however is that there is no real danger of not having a career that is successful in primary care. Matching is not much of an issue for primary care as long as you pass the...

A couple of thoughts from someone who does a lot of global education and research. First, if you want to travel internationally, do it, but recognize that the the trip, even if it includes building toilets, etc, is still much more about you than about the place you go to. Don't write essays...

I certainly concur that's it's an uncommon and positively perceived experience. However, it would be important to make sure that you tell the story well, including why you did it, what you got out of it and how it informs your thinking about your future. The fact that it was English teaching is...

It likely is reportable. As the others have said, no one cares, just list it and indicate you were sorry. Don't waste essay space on it.

Agree with above, transferring is fine. The medical schools you will apply to may ask you about your reasons for transferring and you have solid personal reasons. They won't think less of you for that.

I can't imagine any school not looking at this positively. The key is that this is research you want to do, not who the PI is.

I almost never get in the middle of this type of discussion, but here goes anyway. When the cost difference is relatively small, such as < 50K or so, then it is reasonable to take into considerable some of the other factors. However, when it's this amount, and all debt, it would be a very large...

As a longtime adcom member, I concur entirely with this perspective. We are not looking for fellow applicants to inform us of inaccuracies in other applications. We are looking for outstanding applicants to med school. Please focus on making your own application the best it can be and helping to...

This. You need to find another job post-graduation and re-consider medical school in 3-5 years. You also need some mentoring and counseling that cannot be found on-line.

This is not the perspective at my school whose average (mean, median, etc) is above 32. Although, when counseling premeds, including those interested in my school, I generally do not recommend retaking 32+ scores. However, there are exceptions, some of the rationale being found in other posts on...

Dear Colleague My school doesn't pre-screen and so this person might very well get an interview. S/he would definitely be asked about this and how the applicant described owning the transgression would make or break him/her. I concur with you that it's not likely to be lethal. A LOR from the...

My view is that this is a serious "red flag", but not an absolute deal breaker if you 1) Have an otherwise strong application (including community service), no further incidents and 2) Are prepared to discuss it without "weaseling" your way out of it at an interview. It might be helpful to have...

Posted for a user. Send any responses you wish added by PM to me (Tildy) To give you a bit of background; I used an existing lab report for formatting and detail depth reference, I was so stressed because it was my very first semester and a housing situation that left me homeless for a while...

Just noting a dissenting opinion on this. It would depend on a lot of factors, but I would not consider it something that is MOST LIKELY to harm an application. As always, of course, YMMV.

The following is posted for a member: "I am a MD student in the clinical part of the curriculum. I have a mild-moderate essential tremor which has never been particularly impairing. I occasionally have a patient say something, usually during the physical exam, and I simply tell them "it's not...