<p>Hey everyone!</p>
<p>I am an undergraduate student at Case Western Reserve University and I just wanted to put it out there that I am available (and totally excited) to answer any questions you have from a student's point of view about the school! I am a Biomedical Engineering major, Pre-Med, and I am a second year student.</p>
<p>Case2015</p>
<p>'2015 thank you.<br>
a.) how difficult is it to obtain Research opportunities during your first 3 semesters at Case–especially in light of the BCPM coursework you are given?
b.) how large are the BCPM courses so far for you?<br>
c.) do you have easy access to your Professors?
d.) are there Shadowing opportunites at Cleveland Clinic, VA, Rainbow Babies, etc?
e.) do you feel that you’ve had access to PreHealth Advising Committee members yet?
f.) how difficult has it been to maintain 3.5 gpa threshold?
thanks again 2015. very much appreciated.</p>
<p>Sorry this has taken so long! Caught up with exams.</p>
<p>a) It’s not. The partnership Case has with UH is fantastic in terms of undergraduate students being able to get research fellowships. I myself started working my third semester at a bioimaging/psychology lab. It is definitely up to the student to find these research opportunities (often through email or office hours), but it is possible! I would recommend waiting until at least 2nd semester so you have some sort of idea of your course load.</p>
<p>b) Generally, at any university, classes get smaller as you increase. My intro biology, chemistry, physics, etc. classes were about 250 students. That being said, Case’s SAGES program ensures that you will have a small class right off the bat first semester, and now, as a second year, I only have two classes above 100 people.</p>
<p>c) I think the single most thing about Case is how approachable the professors are. For example, my intro biology professor played softball one day with me, and my intro chemistry professor is on the executive board for Relay For Life with me. There’s a lot of ways to get in touch with them, and most are very approachable and willing to talk to students and learn about them. I still maintain contact with both my biology and chemistry professors (in fact, I have my chem prof’s cell phone number!)</p>
<p>d) This is kind of a restate, but there are plenty of shadowing opportunities, especially through pre-medical groups on campus such as DHW, Phi Delta Epsilon, and Rainbow Babies Dance-a-Thon. You can easily email faculty at CC or UH and find opportunities on your own as well. For example - with DHW, I spent a day in a surgery lab learning how to suture, and this was my first semester.</p>
<p>e) Unfortunately not yet, but that’s more a combination of me not searching out those opportunities because I have them elsewhere. The pre-medical adviser is hard to get in touch with fall semester because of the overwhelming number of applicants Case has. If you are proactive about it, it is definitely possible to schedule a meeting with him (his name is Steven Scherger) and talk about your options. Often, your major adviser (whom you get assigned once you declare your major) can help you make these decisions as well.</p>
<p>f) Difficult, but not impossible. The classes here are definitely hard, and it will be a learning adjustment, especially if you skated through high school. You’ll be expected to put in 3-4 hours a night (at least) studying; most students are up late or wake early to keep studying. But you’ll find here that the Case professors are very open to questions, we have great resources to go to if you’re struggling, and it is not impossible to graduate from here with a 4.0. You just have to put your mind to it!</p>
<p>Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions, or feel free to PM me with more specifics.</p>
<p>My school just had a visit from a rep from Case Western, Travis Culver (perhaps you know him). He did a great job telling us about Case, and now I’m considering Early Action.</p>
<p>1) Does Case Western put a large emphasis on engineering? I want to pursue biomedical research, and I don’t think I will fit well in a predominantly engineering school.</p>
<p>2) Mr. Culver mentioned a Pre-Professional Scholars Program for which I may apply. May you explain what it is (in case I missed anything), how competitive it is to be accepted (figures would be great), and how can I apply for it?</p>
<p>3) How strong are the pre-med programs? I know that there are lots of hands-on opportunities at/near Case because there’s nearby hospitals/research facilities, and so far I’ve been hearing great things about them.</p>
<p>I’m so glad you’re considering Early Action. I definitely recommend it - it’s so convenient to have an acceptance in your pocket before the other schools come in!</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Case Western is a predominately science school; however, not all of this science is engineering based. In my opinion, about half of the science/technology majors are engineers, and half are biology/chemistry/physics majors. The science majors account for about 60% of the school (again, this is my opinion, not a publicized fact). There are more engineers as freshmen, and most individuals choose to stray from this path in upper years. For example, my sophomore engineering classes have about 100 people in them, and are shrinking rapidly.</p></li>
<li><p>The PPSP program is a unique opportunity for students interested in pursuing further studies in medicine, law, and dentistry. Since you mentioned medical research, I’ll assume you would be considering PPSPMed. PPSP requires separate SAT IIs (math, science, and English, if I’m not mistaken) and requires a special interview as well, which is conducted after your general acceptance to the school. The program is not accelerated (for medicine), but provides acceptance to CWRU Medical School along with acceptance to the undergraduate school. Individuals are required to maintain a 3.5 GPA and to have regular meetings with their PPSP adviser, but may major in whatever they choose. After four years of undergrad, they can go straight into CWRUMed without taking the MCAT.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Applying to the PPSP program is simply a matter of filling out an additional supplement on your application to CWRU. It is a very competitive program. I don’t have exact stats per say, but I can definitely tell you that the students who are part of this program are incredibly gifted and talented students of CWRU.</p>
<ol>
<li>The pre-med programs here at Case are incredibly strong. There are several organizations on campus that are available to help students find research opportunities, work with professors, and get involved at Rainbow Babies (Children’s Hospital) and University Hospitals. We have three hospitals near to campus - the Veteran’s Association, Cleveland Clinic, and University Hospitals, all of which accept college students as interns in various departments. The responsibility often lies on the student to seek out these opportunities, but it’s very possible. One of the really cool things students are exposed to is a partnership between UH and CWRU that ensures that the hospital will look for research assistants from CWRU before searching out other students. I got started volunteering in the hospital my very first semester here at CWRU and now, by my second semester, know several individuals who have continued that. I preferred to do research with professors on campus, which is also a definite opportunity.</li>
</ol>
<p>for the pre-professional program for med school, do you have to apply early action or regular decision? or both? and is it binding?</p>
<p>How are the CS programs at CWRU? I’m really interested and I’d really like to gain some insight from a student at CWRU. Just staring at the cs website isn’t enough for me. xD</p>
<p>I know this is an older thread, but I have a different answer to this question:</p>
<p>1) Does Case Western put a large emphasis on engineering? I want to pursue biomedical research, and I don’t think I will fit well in a predominantly engineering school.</p>
<p>That is the beauty of Case…it is an Engineering school merged with a Liberal Arts school, so you get the best of both.</p>
<p>My questions are slightly different and may not be ones you can answer as easily, given your major. My daughter applied early action to Case. She discovered Case pretty late in her college search. They sent her a lot of emails and she started researching Case on the net and it met a lot of her requirements, really quite a bit more than some of the other schools she had been favoring. So she got REALLY interested in it-- loved the location within Cleveland, all the stuff in and around campus, size, etc. Anyway, we had already traveled and visited quite a few schools and couldn’t swing another college trip before she applied, which was unfortunate. So, my questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Some schools really emphasize the expressed interest of the applicant. She’s worried that she didn’t visit or interview. Did you show a lot of “love” before getting accepted? Have you heard anything about how important that is?</p></li>
<li><p>She is a “arty” kid in terms of her personality and extracurriculars. Her primary major will be a social science or maybe bio or statistics, and then secondary major will be music. Is there an “arty” presence on campus? She likes sports a lot too. Would she fit in?</p></li>
<li><p>How well does the school orient and integrate students? Was your dorm very active? Has it been easy to make friends? She really wants to develop a close groups of friends-- is looking at Rice in Houston in that regard. They have residential colleges that seem really cohesive and fun.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>1) I think they do take “interest” into account…can you do an alumni interview in your area?
<a href=“https://go.case.edu/register/alumniinterview[/url]”>https://go.case.edu/register/alumniinterview</a></p>
<p>Otherwise I would suggest trying to communicate with an admissions counselor and tell them of your story.</p>
<p>2) Case has the tech side, but the liberal arts side too! You are admitted to the entire school, so you can take classes in many areas. CWRU is in the middle of the cultural oasis, University Circle. The Cleveland Art museum is right next door!</p>
<p>Case is a Division 3 sports school…There are intramural, Club and varsity sports to play at whatever level you are interested. But primarily the students are sutdent Athlees, not athlete students.</p>
<p>3) it has been quite some time since i went to freshman orientation, but back in the day we had a a great freshman orientation. There were many activities where you could not help but make friends. Now they have freshman dorms so you will have even more chances to meet people. Dorms had many traditions such as parties, Dorm olympics, etc.</p>
<p>llbrenner- my D is a freshman at Case this year…so I’ll try to answer some of your questions…depending on your D’s stats- either really high or borderline for Case, then I think interest is very important…here’s why: for the current freshman class many high stat kids were waitlisted or rejected, as I believe Case saw these applicants as using Case as a safety and wanted to build a class of kids who really wanted to attend. My D was probably a bit more on the borderline end and after applying EA was deferred to RD. She had visited and interviewed previously and had attended the regional Case info session and the one at her high school. After deferral she submitted her first semester grades and a statement indicating her continued interest and a few more activities and accomplishments since the initial app. When she was accepted in RD she went to admitted students day and did the sleepover, attended class and met with head of the Psych dept.- her intended major. She fell absolutely in love with Case and knew she belonged there. So, in a long-winded answer, yes, I think interest is very important. </p>
<p>As far as “arty” is concerned I think Case is a perfect place for this type of student! My D is a studio art minor and there are many opportunities for her. The Case campus includes Severance Hall, home of the Cleveland Symphony, the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Cleveland Institute of Art, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Natural History Museum and the Cleveland Botanical Gardens…also, there are many sports teams and intermural teams- I am not too familiar with these but I know they exist…</p>
<p>So far, my daughter is extremely happy at Case- she loves her dorm mates and has made so many friends! I think Case does a great job of orienting and integrating kids. I was very impressed with their offerings of pre-orientation activities and orientation week itself. I was even more impressed with their communication and organization during the whole process. Nothing was left unanswered or unaddressed. Their president, Barbara Snyder is very inspiring and such a champion of the school. She was everywhere that week and very approachable.</p>
<p>I sound like such a cheerleader but Case was not really on my radar early on either and, at one point, I even tried to drop it from our list just to whittle down. My D’s high school counselor convinced us to leave it on and visit if possible- best decision ever! My D, who had not been away from home for more than two weeks at a time has been there since mid-August and will not be home until mid- December and she is happy as a clam!!</p>
<p>Sorry for the long response but I wanted to try to answer your questions and maybe persuade you to have your D attend an admitted student days, and if she happens to be deferred to RD, maybe visit and interview…I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Let me know if you have any other questions - pm me if you want…</p>
<p>an interesting article about a Case student who majored in Biomedical Engineering but now is doing music as his day job.</p>
<p>[Girl</a> Talk, Mashup Master | think](<a href=“http://www.case.edu/think/fallwinter2013/dialogue/girl-talk-gregg-gillis.html]Girl”>Girl Talk, Mashup Master | think)</p>
<p>Hello!
Would you happen to know anybody majoring in systems biology, or have any experience with it? I’m really interested in the major, but haven’t been able to find any information besides a general overview. </p>
<p>Also, how accurate was the Net Price Calculator for you?</p>
<p>Thanks for the good info! She went ahead and requested an alumni interview as suggested above and also just sent a note to her admissions counselor about an updated standardized test score being sent-- and reaffirmed there how interested she is. I’m sure they get too many emails this time of year, but it couldn’t hurt!</p>
<p>Part of what swayed her-- although hopefully not too much-- was that she knew of a girl from her high school who is a freshman there now. She got in touch on FB and got back this long, detailed glowing response about the school. Then the girl put her roommate on (roommate had different major and interests) and she also took a lot of time to write a happy, detailed letter. My D knows that there are happy people at any school but at the same time it is really helpful to hear first person accounts. </p>
<p>On the flip side, staff have been quick, warm and very responsive to questions but the only professor she contacted (music studio adjunct) has not replied to two emails. We’ll visit if she is admitted and hopefully connect with the guy that way.</p>
<p>Anyway, thanks for all the good info!</p>
<p>My D applied to the undergraduate nursing program. She just got a letter of acceptance into Case class 2018 but no mention of the nursing program. Does this mean she was not accepted into the program?</p>
<p>Murphey1008,</p>
<p>Case offers general admission to the undergraduate school. This means once admitted, any student can pursue any program (I think music is the only exception). So yes your daughter was accepted to the nursing program at Case. Once she commits there will be communication from Case regarding the program as there are special requirements and a very strict curriculum. However, I’d still encourage your daughter to send an email to admissions to ensure they know she is interested in nursing so none of this info is missed later on.</p>
<p>Murphy1008… D was also accepted to class of 2018. She too applied to Nursing…I wondered the same thing, but the scholarship received was the Bolton… which is for Nursing. I did see on their web page that you are accepted as a student and accepted to all schools within Case. I’m sure if you wanted to switch majors that its not automatic but if you D applied for nursing and got accepted then she is in nursing. You can always check with admissions. Congrats on your D accomplishment…I know my D has been on cloud nine since noon on Saturday. Now just have to figure out how to pay for this!</p>
<p>Thank you all for your responses. Jkm05478, congratulations to your daughter too! My daughter is so happy to be accepted into Case Western, she is still in disbelief! Frenchhornaddict, great advice about sending an email to admissions!</p>
<p>How’s the merit scholarship there? What would I get if I had a 3.4 uw gpa and 31 ACT (33 superscored) and a lot of EC’s?
Thanks</p>
<p>Wumanizer:
It’s impossible to say exactly how much you would get, but Case is very generous with merit scholarships. For reference, I had like a 4.4 weighted GPA (unweighted I’m not sure what it was), a 33 ACT (34 super scored), and decent but not great ECs, and I got in with $28,000/year. That was two years ago, so their standards might have changed, but from what I see from the decisions board almost everyone who is accepted has gotten between $15,000 and $30,000/year.
If you ask people why they chose Case, a lot of us say that the merit scholarships were a huge factor. It will be very nice to graduate debt free, so that I can go onto medical school and accumulate a ton of debt there haha.</p>