The Story Thus Far

So it occurs to me that anyone who was waiting for updates has been waiting for an awfully long time. And that's because so far, I haven't actually said any of the things that I was supposed to. The truth of the matter is that I'm actually not sure what it is that would be safe to share without endangering my chances of getting into any of the schools to which I applied. And I'm not even sure whom I should ask!

Anyway, that means what I'm going to say right now is intentionally vague, and you'll just have to forgive me for it.

First, the application process was unnecessarily painful. In this, I can point a finger at almost every single school to which I applied. The initial application, the one that is sent out to every school, is quite thorough. And it gives a chance to write a personal statement, as well as to explain a little bit about all of the important activities of the last five years. So why, then, do schools want me to list my activities again? Everyone says that one shouldn't repeat anything from the primary application in the secondary applications, but come on! What am I supposed to do? "Well, let's see, I've already talked about volunteering at hospitals... I know! I'll tell them about this new hair product I'm using! Surely they'll think my grooming habits are worth noting." I don't think so. Of course, maybe there's someone out there who has been writing about things like hair products, and they're probably the ones getting into schools.

Ah yes. Getting into schools. Hasn't happened for me, yet. Though I have gone on two interviews! Interview days, it seems to me, are more of a chance for the school to try to impress you, and see whether or not you smell bad and can keep smiling in a room full of other anxious wanna-be-students. I make no guarantee about how I smell, but smiling? That, I've got down. Most of my interviews so far have felt like discussions about... well, about something I know pretty well: me. So far, no one has thrown any curve balls, either. Or if they have, I've been blithely ignorant of them, and that would explain the lack of acceptance letters. Not that there have been many rejection letters, either. But yes, some. I'm not going to list which schools, because on the off chance that someone from an admissions office reads this (hi there! I want to go to your school!), I don't want to give them the upper hand. Except for UNLV. UNLV I can tell you all about. They rejected me. In fact, I'd be willing to guess that any other California resident who applied there also got rejected. As did any resident of any state in the mid west or on the east coast. That's because they only consider Nevada residents and residents of their catchment states, i.e. neighboring states without many med school options. California has med school options. I should know, I applied to nearly all of them.

This brings me to something... well, disturbing, I guess. Many people have already taken out loans for med school. Or at least, for med school applications. That's because in order to really be sure that you have a chance at getting in SOMEWHERE, one has to apply all over the place. For every school added to one's primary application, there's a fee. And then for every secondary application one submits, there's another fee. And then to get to interviews, if they are indeed offered, one has to pay for flights, and typically transportation from the airport, as well as a hotel room. I think, so far, only one school has cost, in terms of all of these expenses, greater than $500, but that's no laughing matter! Unless one finds it funny to already be in debt before med school has even begun. And maybe I do. A little bit.

So why am I writing again, you ask? Because I have another interview on Thursday. And right now I'm trying to find things to do to keep myself entertained instead of packing. Fortunately, I don't have to leave until tomorrow afternoon. However, if it turns out that my suit is all wrinkled when I finally get around to looking at it this evening, I'm going to be a bit annoyed. And by annoyed, I mean run around like a chicken with my head off. To any vegetarian or vegan readers who found that imagery distasteful, I apologize, it's what I've got.

If you'd like to keep track with me, here's the score:
Primary applications: 16
Instant rejections: 1
Secondary applications: 15
Post-secondary rejections (i.e. without an interview) to date: 2
Interview invitations to date: 4
Interviews completed to date: 2
Post-interview rejections to date: 0
Acceptances to date: 0

I'll update this as they happen. And then you can read more if you want.
Or not. =o)