Does Vanderbilt have a good premed record and program?

<p>First of, sorry if this is in the wrong thread but I was unsure were to post it.</p>

<p>Does anyone have any experience with Vanderbilt Universities premed program and its track record for medical school acceptence?</p>

<p>I heard that even though it is a top 20 school, alot of the other top 20s basically look down on it for beeing a "southern, southern" school.</p>

<p>From what ive read about it as a school and its environment it seems like a perfect fit for me, (yea im kind of preppy) but I want to make sure that it still has a quality premed program with a good track record.</p>

<p>Thanks for your help</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=202936%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=202936&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Bluedevil, most of what you post on this site is really good stuff, and is very helpful.</p>

<p>Thats why im suprised that you would post that automated response BS up there. Don't try to pass me off as some lazy punk that didn't want to de research and just wanted to get a quick answer, I have been looking around this site for a while before I made this thread, and I even have looked in the thread that you posted, it doesn't answer the question, leading me to believe that you haven't even read that post that you linked, and if you have, why would you link it here knowing full well it doesn't answer the question..?</p>

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look for a place where you believe you'll excel - not just as a student (although of course that too) but as a person. Where can you find room to grow? To learn to nurture others, to demand the most out of yourself? To understand how to work and inspire confidence and professionalism - all these things are less tangible aspects that I think you can feel when you walk onto a campus.

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BDM, I guess you're saying that there's no definite, eh?

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Pick schools that are a good fit for you, just like everyone else applying to college. ... Consider this- you may change your mind about becoming a physician, or not get into a medical school. Plan on the major and school that you want to spend your time in, your choice will affect how well you do in college. Top priority now is a place you can imagine living for four years.

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Choose the college you feel most comfortable at.

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In comparing schools, consider not only their overall size, but also the quality of the learning environment, as well as the social climate. Try to determine which school feels the most comfortable, and which one offers the kinds of opportunities that suit your interests and needs.

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<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=202936%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=202936&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Like I said, utterly useless, and didn't answer the question at all, I have read that info several times, but I am looking for specific details about a school, not that general info that while it is usefull, alot more research into the school must be done, this whole "choose a school were you'll fit into the community and flurish" is not what i was asking about, I am looking for info about their premed program, if all you want to do is give me unrelated info and like an elitist think that you know best and that the information I seek is not acually what I want, than please don't comment about it to me at all.</p>

<p>I am going on a visit to Vanderbilt soon and would like opinions on it's premed record as well.</p>

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I heard that even though it is a top 20 school, alot of the other top 20s basically look down on it for beeing a "southern, southern" school.

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<p>lol</p>

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From what ive read about it as a school and its environment it seems like a perfect fit for me, (yea im kind of preppy) but I want to make sure that it still has a quality premed program with a good track record.

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<p>**


**</p>

<p>Good fit + top program = no brainer.</p>

<p>Some issues must be pointed out, though:
1) You don't hear about programs. You read up from credible sources.
2) You don't get the feel of a campus by text. Go visit Vanderbilt.
3) This doesn't seem like an honest thread with an honest question.
4) Grammar... issues.</p>

<p>If you want school specific info, go the that school's forum. That's what it's for. None of us went to vanderbilt.</p>

<p>Although I have little independent knowledge of Vandy's program, a quick look shows it to be as impressive as one would expect of a school with it's rep. If what you want OP is someone to rank it's pre-med program or state that it is better than someplace else, well.....you really need to read some more. And if you are looking for info on what percentage get into to med school, please, please read before you post. You'll see that there is no more manipulatable numbe in education and that the number itself without context means nothing. That's all we are trying to say. If Vandy is the school for you, it will serve you well if you continue to desire to be a doc. Opportunities look endless and I was only at their site for 10 minutes. Volunteer, shadowing, info about apps and interviews? All there. Walk-in advising? Great idea. Resources out the wazoo. Looks good. Good luck. <a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/General%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/General&lt;/a> Information
Announcements
Walk-in hours will resume on the 7th of September.</p>

<p>Federal Work Study positions: CASTLES program. </p>

<p>Specialized Volunteer/Clinical Opportunity
Shade Tree Clinic, a free medical clinic run by Vanderbilt medical students, in East Nashville (<a href="http://www.shadetreeclinic.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.shadetreeclinic.org&lt;/a&gt;) is seeking volunteer interpreters proficient in Spanish to work with physicians and medical students while they interview and examine patients. Those interested in interpreting will need to attend a brief training and orientation session at the clinic prior to their first time volunteering. Clinic sessions run from 6-9 pm on Tuesdays and 12-4 pm on Saturdays throughout the year, and interested Vanderbilt undergraduate students should contact Sara Tedeschi. Undergraduate volunteers generally meet by Light Hall to carpool. </p>

<p>To All Students Applying to Medical School in 2007:
The Advisor's Student Applicat Portfolio (ASAP) is a document helpful to the Health Professions Advisor in creating meaningful recommendations highlighting information important to the students. Completing the ASAP by March 15, 2007 is required if you wish to receive a composite letter. Students are also advised to start thinking about which faculty members to approach for letters of recommendation.</p>

<p>Starting in 2007 the MCAT will be administered by computer. It is clear that there will be fewer seats per testing date and site, but there will be more testing dates. It is not clear how many seats will actually be available at each testing site. In order to help insure that you get your desired site and date you will need to sign up as soon as registration opens. See the MCAT information in the Testing Services section of the Applications page.</p>

<p>US Medical school Contact Points
Caribbean Medical School Contact Points
HPAO Documents
The Decision to Pursue a Career in Medicine
You and Your Health Professions Advisor: An Important Partnership<br>
The Premedical Advising Program at Vanderbilt
The Premedical Program of Study at Vanderbilt
Print Advisor's Student Applicant Portfolio (A.S.A.P.)<br>
The AMCAS Personal Statement
A Good AMCAS Essay, by Dr. Agnes Fogo, VUSM Admissions Committee Member
Writing the AMCAS Esssay, by Dr. Tom Oeltmann, former Pre-health Professions Advisor
The Application Process , by Dr. David Charles, M.D., Associate Professor & Vice-Chairman of Neurology for Education & Development
Critical Elements of an AMCAS Personal Statement - by Dr. Jayant Shenai, VUSM Admissions Committee Member
Senior Medical School Interview Survey<br>
Logistics Page
Suggested Reading for Premedical Students
Medical School Admission Requirements. By the AAMC
-A must have! Tells you exactly what courses are required for each medical school</p>

<p>AND </p>

<p><a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/index_premed_advising.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/index_premed_advising.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The Premedical Advising Program at Vanderbilt University
Premedicine is not a degree at Vanderbilt, but a pre-professional intention. The Health Professions Advising Office will assist in a number of ways in planning for admission to medical school. Liaison is maintained with a number of people and programs concerned with medical school admissions, including the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) administrators, the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS), and close contact is maintained with the chairman of the admissions committee or admissions director of several medical schools. This allows for the timely dissemination of information regarding changing policies or requirements for admission. Various registration and application forms are available from this office and assistance is available in preparation of documents required in support of application, including a composite evaluation. All serious premedical students are urged to become familiar with the services available and to make full use of this </p>

<p>AND </p>

<p><a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/index_premed.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.vanderbilt.edu/hpao/index_premed.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The Premedical Program of Study at Vanderbilt University
When planning a program of study, students should keep in mind that they must usually meet three different sets of requirements. First are the requirements of the medical school which must be completed before an applicant matriculates. Second are the general degree requirements which are set by the faculty of the college for a particular degree. Third are the requirements set by the departmental faculty for the specific major. Planning must also include completion of the subject matter which will be tested on the MCAT before taking the test. Each of these specific requirements will be discussed below.</p>

<p>Premedical Requirements
There are some variations between schools, but almost all of the U.S. medical schools will accept as minimum preparation in science one year each of general chemistry, organic chemistry, general physics, and general biology and/or zoology, all with the appropriate laboratory. Most also accept a semester of biochemistry in lieu of a third semester of organic. Requirements for specific medical schools are found in Chapter 12 of the AAMC publication, MEDICAL SCHOOL ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS, or MSAR. This booklet is an invaluable source of information and should be consulted before completion of the application so that you are assured of having all requirements for each school to which you apply. Courses usually taken by our students to complete these requirements are charted here.</p>

<p>Course Selection
When selecting courses, pick those that will fulfill your distribution requirements for Vanderbilt University, count toward your major or minor, and/or satisfy the admission requirements of medical or dental schools. These requirements show that at least one year of biology, two years of chemistry, one year of physics, one year of English, and one year of mathematics are necessary for admission to almost all medical schools. Check the MSAR early (or better still, the catalogues of the specific medical schools) to make sure that you select the necessary courses to fulfill the requirements for admission to all the medical schools in your home state. </p>

<p>In selecting electives, a student should consider the following advice from the Catalog of Albany Medical College: "Students are advised not to select courses, such as physiology and histology, which are subjects in the medical school curriculum, to the exclusion of other subjects, such as embryology, which are not." On the other hand, note that biochemistry, one of the most frequently recommended courses, is a part of the usual medical school first year curriculum.</p>

<p>The table given in the link above summarizes the course requirements for admission to U.S. Medical schools indicated in the AAMC "Medical School Admissions Requirements." In all cases, a one year course is recommended if not required, including the laboratory where applicable. The courses taken should be those regularly given for science majors, not courses designed especially for premedical students, survey courses, or courses for non-science majors.</p>

<p>Vanderbilt University | HPAO Home | Website Feedback</p>

<p>310 25th Avenue South, Student Life Center, Nashville, TN 37240</p>

<p>ok, maybe you're right. This is the wrong place to post this topic if you're looking for specifics about Vanderbilt's program. Obviously no one on this forum went to Vanderbilt, so really the only thing they can pull from are published statistics, which we all know aren't the most reliable (i.e. MIT might have a 90+% rate of admission to med school, but that's more reflective of the caliber of students at MIT than of MIT's pre-med program itself). Anything more than these statistics would be other information online, which I'm sure you could find yourself. If you're more curious about the quality of the Pre-med program (advisors, courses, screening process, etc.) then post this question on the Vanderbilt forum.</p>

<p>I went to Vanderbilt (graduated this last May), and I'm posting here because I wish someone had told me this before.</p>

<p>Yes, every experience is what you make it and you get out what you put in. Having said that, when you go to college you ARE paying good money to be taught and helped out. You should not have to navigate medical school admission by yourself. While the HPAO office is extremely helpful, the grade deflation here is ridiculous, and many professors here simply just do not know how to (or want to) teach. They're good people, but they're only teaching because they have to teach to get funding for their research. I went to office hours several times with science professors and came away having learned nothing but a general sense of my own inadequacy. By the beginning of junior year, I was so demoralized I stopped going to office hours altogether and started relying solely on my textbooks and other students. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didnt. </p>

<p>On the upside, there are opportunities to do research here that arent available elsewhere. VUMC is right there, and other hospitals are close by if you need a place to volunteer.</p>

<p>They're not all bad; there ARE great professors here, but they have to be sought out. And thats my primary problem with Vanderbilt. </p>

<p>Obviously if you want to be a doctor badly enough, you'll get into medical school no matter where you go to college. Obviously, the harder you work, the better you'll do. Thats always going to be true. </p>

<p>BUT given that youre trying to make the best use of your tuition money, you should choose a college that will facilitate learning as much as possible. Off the top of my head I can think of at least three very bright, very hardworking friends of mine who started out premed and eventually quit simply because they were frustrated by the environment here.</p>

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Like I said, utterly useless, and didn't answer the question at all, I have read that info several times, but I am looking for specific details about a school, not that general info that while it is usefull, alot more research into the school must be done, this whole "choose a school were you'll fit into the community and flurish" is not what i was asking about, I am looking for info about their premed program, if all you want to do is give me unrelated info and like an elitist think that you know best and that the information I seek is not acually what I want, than please don't comment about it to me at all.

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You should stop getting so worked up over what anonymous people on the internet say. Take (their) advice for what it's worth, and if you don't like it, look for advice elsewhere (analogous to getting a second opinion).</p>