How is the friendliness of the admissions office?
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How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?
No responses
How did you prepare for the interview?
Read their website and all the literature they sent; this website; went over my AMCAS; researched many of the major medical issues (unnecessary), particularly money/Medicare issues on AAMC.org; reviewed my independent study; reviewed specifics of the research in which I'm assisting; answered every possible med school interview question I could find on the net for myself; got interview tips from my boss, who is a clinical faculty member elsewhere; got as much sleep as I possibly could.
What impressed you positively?
Everyone was friendly, helpful, and encouraging. Great area for winter sports. Undergrad is a division 1A school, if you happen to be into college sports. As a NY resident, it's a lot cheaper than a private school would be. It is a MAJOR hospital for the area (serves something like 17 counties), and a level 1 trauma center. They also offer an alternate clinical years program that is community-based, which is great particularly if you're interested in primary care.
What impressed you negatively?
It's very much a college town. When I drove around the campus at 8 p.m. the previous evening, NOTHING was happening. There was a basketball game that night; two guys (not students) tried to sell me tickets while I was parked near the school. It will be a real culture shock coming from NYC if I go to school there. And, it's 4-5 hrs. from NYC- club deprivation would/will be very difficult for me. I didn't realize how far away it was until I made the drive. If you're coming from NYC, look into taking JetBlue- they're supposedly really cheap to Syracuse.
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
That my shoes were not adequate for the snowy, icy hills around campus. I should have brought a second pair for walking around outside.
What are your general comments?
Everyone was extremely supportive. My first interview was with a 4th year student who was very open and honest about his own experiences as a non-traditional applicant (which I am) and as a student. He didn't probe my background much or pose any difficult questions. It seemed that he gave me more information (both good and bad) than I gave him. Our interview lasted maybe 45 minutes.
My second interviewer was a faculty PhD. He was very friendly and open. He did ask some difficult, in-depth questions about my record, but that's necessary when you have as atypical a history as mine. After we spent the first 30-45 minutes clarify the timeline of my life since high school, we just chatted about all sorts of things. We ended up spending an hour and a half talking.
These were just about the least stressful interviews I could imagine. One of the other applicants interviewed on the same day said they had a stress interview. They absolutely should have reported this to the (VERY friendly) admissions staff!
The tour wasn't very extensive. We just saw a little bit of the hospital, the anatomy lab, some of the class rooms, and the cafeteria. It might have been nice to see more of the campus (dorms, gym, whatever). But there was a fair amount of snow on the ground and quite cold, so none of us wanted to do as much outdoor walking as would have been required.
What are your suggestions for the admissions office?
No responses
