Howard, Meharry, UT, WashU and MCW

I'd like to learn about any OPM application, secondary and interview experiences with these schools.
Thanks!

Try the search function for each of these. Natalie Belle (njbmd) went to Howard and is one of the original OPM members. We've got someone - I think it's jblue? - who just started at Meharry. I don't know if I've heard anyone mention the others but there could very well be some comments about them buried in here somewhere.
When you search, be sure to reset the time frame for your search. Default is 30 days and you'll want to go back longer than that.

Dr. Natalie Belle, a current surgical resident at UVA, graduated from Howard University so I’m sure she will respond soon. She’s pretty awesome. Sorry I can’t help you out. sad.gif
Love,
Stacy

I dont attend WashU but it was my 2nd choice school.
WashU tended to be very young relative to other schools, of course there were a fewer OPMs there but not as many compared to the other “top” med schools like Harvard or Hopkins.
They seem very interested in numbers, they currently have the highest MCAT average in the country (approx 36). I think they are on a quest to become the #2 school in US News (right now they are tied with Hopkins). Their vision to moving up the rankings is to take the high MCAT scores which gives them “bonus” points in the rankings.
Their yield is pretty low compared to the other top schools (they have to accept about 10% of their applicants to fill the class whereas other schools in the same caliber accept only 5% or so).
I applied there because they have one of the best MD/PhD programs in the country. They have loads of cash from private sponsors like the Olin Foundation which helps them out a lot. They have a strong committment to MD/PhDs which I liked.
The students there were friendly, just younger like I said earlier. Many of them didnt have the kinds of life experiences that I saw at other places. They were mostly bookworms who studied day and night to ace the MCATs and get as close to a 4.0 GPA as possible. Before I start getting hate mail on this, let me reiterate I said “mostly”, not “ALL” so I know there are always exceptions.
The “young, studious” mentality that WashU looks for in applicants didnt really bother me that much, but I did notice it and some other older applicants didnt like it. I dont necessarily think that WashU is a bunch of gunners or ultra-competitive personalities; they all seemed nice and friendly to me. But I do think that WashU’s emphasis on numbers detracts some from the diversity of its students.
Its a great school though, and I think it gets a bad rap for being in St. Louis. If it was on the east/west coast, I think their yield would be substantially higher.

Mary, thanks for the search tip! MD/PhD Slave, thank you for your in-depth account of your experience with Wash-U. Stacy, thanks for pointing me toward Dr. Belle.

QUOTE (minawill @ Aug 12 2003, 12:20 PM)
I'd like to learn about any OPM application, secondary and interview experiences with these schools.
Thanks!

I'm at UTMB in Galveston. My experience with most of the Texas schools (just on the off chance that your UT meant Texas and not Tennesse) was that they were very open to non-trads. The students I met at all of my interviews were very friendly and mature.
With the possible exceptions of Baylor and UT Southwestern, none of the Texas schools obsess about USNWR rankings so you don't run into many hypercompetitive types. Having said that, all of the students I've met from Baylor and UTSW have been great, too. smile.gif
Take care,
Jeff

Hi, Jeff!
Thanks for your input. I was referring to U of Tennessee (Memphis). Guess I should have been clearer about that, as I'm not too hip about TX schools. Anyway, it's good to hear about nontrad experiences at as many schools as possible. What year are you at UTMB?

Its sort of surreal reading this thread about Wash U and being full of young brainy types. you see, I was in one of the original gifted programs in Arkansas and one of my classmates (Greg Finn, MD) went to Wash U! yes, he was one of the brainiest in the high school I attended, and despite being another one of the only twenty in that original program, here I am today, 40 years old, just now getting it together and trying to get in somewhere, anywhere. So much for being “gifted”. <!–emo&<_dry.gif
Kathy

I am also applying to the U of TN (my home state) and have visited the school. Mr. Strother comes to my undergrad often to give talks about the medical school as well. It is a great school for the med students get tons of hands on at the various hospitals. They mostly take in-state folks but I am sure that there is a percentage of out of staters with close ties to TN that they also take. I would be more than happy to attend that school and actually a lot of the folks from my school applying to medical school end up there. Good luck!

QUOTE (minawill @ Aug 13 2003, 12:31 AM)
Hi, Jeff!
Thanks for your input. I was referring to U of Tennessee (Memphis). Guess I should have been clearer about that, as I'm not too hip about TX schools. Anyway, it's good to hear about nontrad experiences at as many schools as possible. What year are you at UTMB?

Howdy!
I'm a third year at UTMB, a school with one of the lowest tuitions in the nation. smile.gif
Take care and good luck with your applications!
Jeff

Efex101,
Have you already submit UT Memphis's secondary? And do you know if they wait for verified apps before sending them out?

Actually my two public state med schools have not sent secondaries yet (at least not to me) so I have no idea when this will happen. ETSU did send me an e-mail acknowledging receipt of my AMCAS but I have heard nothing from U of TN…