Genetic Counseling Fall 2017 Applicants

[Gadgette]

52 minutes ago, slaybackc said:

I have a question that some of you might be able to answer:
As I mentioned earlier, I am interested in prenatal; however, I haven't volunteered at a pregnancy center in my area for various reasons. 1) most of the ones in my area are faith-based and 2) 90% of them are strictly pro-life and the few that talk about abortion, still talk of it in a negative light. There have not been any positions available at Planned Parenthood, which is why I haven't gone there.
I am not religious, but can easily work in a religious center. My issue is with the second point. While everyone can have their opinions (really not trying to start a debate here), I am very pro-choice and do not feel I could push my beliefs aside, even to get experience in an area that I would hopefully end up in. 

Has anyone had to put their own personal beliefs/morals aside for certain volunteer positions? And if so, how? 
I'm really torn between just telling myself to "man up", but also staying true to myself.

Honestly, I think that speaks volumes to your character. I don't think it's a big deal that you haven't specifically worked at a pregnancy center. Stick to your guns and be able to back up your reasons without becoming political, as you've done here, and I think you'll be fine.

[Gadgette]

16 hours ago, slaybackc said:

Well I know that Utah is currently reading my application because I received an email about one of my prerequisites, so that's nerve-wracking and exciting  
I also read somewhere on the Oklahoma site that interview invites are sent out 2-3 weeks after the application closes (Jan 15th), yesterday marked 2 weeks, so I'm anxiously waiting an email from them too. 

Seeing everyone else get invites (even from schools I didn't apply to) makes me both jealous of you and happy for you. 

Last night my to-do list for Stanislaus went away, but it still said "incomplete." This morning it switched to pending!  I think Irvine starts reviewing them this week. 

We're getting closer!

[minja134]

Just got an email from Indiana State for an interview on either 3/4 or 4/10, I requested 3/4. 

[kbash]

Hey everyone..I'm a little late to the party as well. Decided to post instead of just lurking here

I applied the last two application cycles as well, last year I interviewed with the University of Minnesota (was waitlisted) and University of Wisconsin (rejected) - so if anyone wants info on what to expect from those interviews, let me know!

This year I've applied to the University of Wisconsin, University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, University of Cincinnati, Case Western Reserve University, Sarah Lawrence College, and California State University-Stanislaus.

Thus far, I've heard back from Case Western (they emailed me last week Thursday) and will be interviewing there March 24! By this time last year, I had already heard from Minnesota, so I've been nervously watching my email hoping for an invite. 

[minja134]

33 minutes ago, kbash said:

Hey everyone..I'm a little late to the party as well. Decided to post instead of just lurking here

I applied the last two application cycles as well, last year I interviewed with the University of Minnesota (was waitlisted) and University of Wisconsin (rejected) - so if anyone wants info on what to expect from those interviews, let me know!

This year I've applied to the University of Wisconsin, University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, University of Cincinnati, Case Western Reserve University, Sarah Lawrence College, and California State University-Stanislaus.

Thus far, I've heard back from Case Western (they emailed me last week Thursday) and will be interviewing there March 24! By this time last year, I had already heard from Minnesota, so I've been nervously watching my email hoping for an invite. 

Welcome! I applied to Minnesota and WI and would love to hear about their intview process. Thanks!

[GCFaith92]

20 hours ago, hb_94 said:

Hey everyone! I am a little late to the party, but better late than never I suppose. I am currently an undergraduate senior at a small school in Rhode Island. I am majoring in both Applied Psychology and Biology, with a minor in Human Resource Management. My current GPA is 3.46 and my GRE scores are mediocre at best (152 V/151 Q/4.0). Not a fan of standardized testing. I have been a volunteer at a domestic violence shelter for a little over a year now where I work the hotline. I am also employed through a caregiving service for children with special needs. I have only been able to shadow one genetic counselor that was unfortunately a one day event. My extracurriculars are a little underwhelming, but I am a D1 athlete and most of my time has been consumed by that.

Non GC related hobbies: sports (Go Pats), cuddling with my dog, and I'm currently on a Gilmore Girls kick

I've applied to: BU, Brandeis, Michigan, UPitt, Rutgers, CSU-Stanislaus, UC Irvine, University of Colorado-Denver, Case Western (impatiently waiting to hear back from all)

My GRE scores are even more mediocre with a 144V/147Q/5 So don't be too hard on yourself haha. I am thinking if I do not get any interviews or acceptances this year I will certainly need to retake them. Best of luck to you!!!

[GCFaith92]

44 minutes ago, kbash said:

Hey everyone..I'm a little late to the party as well. Decided to post instead of just lurking here

I applied the last two application cycles as well, last year I interviewed with the University of Minnesota (was waitlisted) and University of Wisconsin (rejected) - so if anyone wants info on what to expect from those interviews, let me know!

This year I've applied to the University of Wisconsin, University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, University of Cincinnati, Case Western Reserve University, Sarah Lawrence College, and California State University-Stanislaus.

Thus far, I've heard back from Case Western (they emailed me last week Thursday) and will be interviewing there March 24! By this time last year, I had already heard from Minnesota, so I've been nervously watching my email hoping for an invite. 

Since you applied the last 2 years, did you receive feedback from any programs on why you weren't accepted? I am awaiting feedback from UNCG since I was rejected from them this year. I am nervous my GRE scores may keep me out of all programs but time will tell!

[csm]

Hey guys! I have been stalking this thread, but I figured I could speak up. 

So far I have received offers to interview at Augustana, Indiana State, and Wayne State, but am still waiting to hear back on more. This is my first time applying, and I wish there was more idea of when we'd hear back from other schools. 

Best of luck to everyone! Has anyone found really useful interview prep questions? I guess this is more for people who have interviewed in the past or have starting prepping. 

[Ellaie]

Hi everyone!

Been lurking on here and figured I might as well post.  I applied to programs last year and didn't get in, so this is my second year applying.  I have a really low cumulative GPA (2.87), but my GPA my last couple years was 3.6.  There were some circumstances for the low GPA that I've explained in my essay.  My GRE was decent (159/159/4).  In order to counter the low GPA, I've tried to get a lot of shadowing and volunteer experience. 

Last year I applied to UC Irvine, CSU Stanislaus, University of Alabama, University of Utah, Indiana University, University of Michigan, and UC Denver.  The only school I received an interview at was UC Irvine, so if anyone has any questions about their interview process feel free to reach out.  After I didn't get in, I reached out to schools to see how I could improve my application.  Most schools request that you don't contact them about this until summer when things are a little slower for them.  A few schools (CSU, Alabama, Utah, and UC Denver) seemed to put a lot of weight into GPA based on the conversations I had, so I decided not to apply to those again. 

This year I'm applying to Ohio State University, Indiana University, Northwestern, Emory, University of Michigan, UC Irvine, Sarah Lawrence, University of South Carolina, University of South Florida, and University of Arkansas.  I probably applied to way more than I should have, but I really didn't want to have to go through the application process for a third year.  I've received interviews at Emory and Arkansas so far.  Haven't heard anything from any of the other schools.  I saw on this thread that Michigan has already been contacting people, so I'm a little nervous about that.  

Edited January 31, 2017 by Ellaie

[kbash]

53 minutes ago, minja134 said:

Welcome! I applied to Minnesota and WI and would love to hear about their intview process. Thanks!

 

32 minutes ago, Finley764 said:

 

I also applied to MN and WI and would like to hear more about their interview processes!! Thank you!

For Minnesota, I heard from them last year late Jan and interviewed in early Feb. The day started early, I think it was like 7:30 or 8am (I'm not a morning person, lol) - starting out with sitting down with the program director and associate director to talk in general about the program. They gave out packets to follow along with, describing clinical rotations, research projects, etc. Everyone had 3 total interviews, 1 either with the program director or the associate director then 2 others with different staff. Mine were with a psychology faculty member who sometimes works with students on their research projects and the other was a genetic counseling instructor who taught a lab for the program. Each interview was scheduled to last an hour maximum. Between interviews, we got coffee and hung out with the first year students, observed part of a class, and had lunch with two of the second year students. I think my day wrapped up around like 3:00 or so - so it was definitely a long day! The overall experience was a bit more laid back, less intimidating than I expected.

Then for Wisconsin, it was a two-day process. The first day, in the late afternoon/early evening we met with the program director to discuss general info about the program (again, clinical rotations, research, whatever else came up). This wasn't very formal, it just gave us an introduction to the program and made it so it wasn't quite such a long day during interviews. This was nice because then I could come up with additional questions to ask on the second day during interviews. After that we had a dinner with a few students, I think it was a mix of first and second year students, to get their perspective. Then the next day we had the actual interviews, there were 4 total that I think were only 20-30 minutes each. At the very end of the day, we were split into smaller groups and a first year student took us to see where the clinics were on campus.

Let me know if you want any more specific info! I definitely liked both programs quite a bit, so hopefully I'll get a second chance to interview. And maybe meet some of you along the way  

[AspiringGC]

10 minutes ago, Ellaie said:

Hi everyone!

Been lurking on here and figured I might as well post.  I applied to programs last year and didn't get in, so this is my second year applying.  I have a really low cumulative GPA (2.87), but my GPA my last couple years was 3.6.  There were some circumstances for the low GPA that I've explained in my essay.  My GRE was decent (159/159/4).  In order to counter the low GPA I've tried to get a lot of shadowing and volunteer experience. 

Last year I applied to UC Irvine, CSU Stanislaus, University of Alabama, University of Utah, Indiana University, University of Michigan, and UC Denver.  The only school I received an interview at was UC Irvine, so if anyone has any questions about their interview process feel free to reach out.  After I didn't get in, I reached out to schools to see how I could improve my application.  Most schools request that you don't contact them about this until summer when things are a little slower for them.  A few schools (CSU, Alabama, Utah, and UC Denver) seemed to put a lot of weight into GPA based on the conversations I had, so I decided not to apply to those again. 

This year I'm applying to Ohio State University, Indiana University, Northwestern, Emory, University of Michigan, UC Irvine, Sarah Lawrence, University of South Carolina, University of South Florida, and University of Arkansas.  I probably applied to way more than I should have, but I really didn't want to have to go through the application process for a third year.  I've received interviews at Emory and Arkansas so far.  Haven't heard anything from any of the other schools.  I saw on this thread that Michigan has already been contacting people, so I'm a little nervous about that.  

I'd love to hear about the Irvine process! And it seems like you've put in work to improve your application this year so hopefully it works out ?

[kbash]

1 hour ago, GCFaith92 said:

Since you applied the last 2 years, did you receive feedback from any programs on why you weren't accepted? I am awaiting feedback from UNCG since I was rejected from them this year. I am nervous my GRE scores may keep me out of all programs but time will tell!

I did, I reached out to the programs I interviewed with a few weeks after hearing back, I even contacted programs I didn't interview with to see how I could improve to hopefully get an interview should I apply again. (Side note to anyone else interested: I highly recommend doing this!! It gets your name out there and worse case scenario, they don't reply to your email)

The programs I interviewed with suggested taking additional courses or just reading relevant literature/watching lectures on my own to stay up to date with the field,  or reaching out to GC's in my area to shadow or attend weekly case conferences. One program also noted I should practice my interviewing skills - I pretty much bombed one of my interviews so that wasn't too surprising for me. Other than that, the general consensus with programs I've reached out to have been concerned by my science GPA - I was a psych major, bio minor. I seriously struggled with chemistry courses during my undergrad, so I've taken a few extra science courses to boost that.

My GRE scores aren't stellar either, especially considering how competitive it is to get in. I retook them and got them above 60th percentile and decided that was good enough for me. Programs are all so different, but most of the programs I've talked to haven't stressed that too much even before I retook it (prior to I think I had a 54th percentile and 48th percentile).

[Ellaie]

20 minutes ago, slaybackc said:

I'd love to hear about the Irvine process! And it seems like you've put in work to improve your application this year so hopefully it works out ?

I just went back through my emails from last year and it looks like UC Irvine contacted me 2/22 last year to invite me for an interview.  I remember being really surprised they got back to me so quickly since their application deadline is 2/1.  They gave me a list of 7 different interview dates and had me choose the one that worked best for me.

Prior to the interview, I was invited to go out to dinner the night before by some of the current students.  It was a very laid back setting, and it was really nice because the students were really open to us asking questions about the process.  Because this was my first and only interview I was extremely nervous about it, but talking to the students really helped calm my nerves. They insisted that the process was very relaxed and informal.  They were right.  Pamela Flodman the director is extremely personal and friendly.

The day of the interview we sat in on the weekly clinical conference where students and faculty discussed various cases from the week before.  I thought it was super interesting, especially since I had been out of school for a year.  This also gave us a good opportunity to become familiar with some of the faculty who would be interviewing us.  Some applicants got pulled out of the conference to do interviews, but I didn't.  Every applicant was given a schedule that had 3-4 interviews on it.  They were all with different faculty members.  I'm pretty sure they tried to pair the applicants with faculty who shared some common interest.  For example, I have experience working with children with Down syndrome and one of my interviews was with a counselor who had done extensive research on Down syndrome.  Every applicant had to meet with Pam, the director.

It was a long process.  I think we were there from 8AM until around 4PM.  The school provided lunch, and at the end there was an optional campus tour.  Traffic is bad in California, so they wanted to allow people to leave early if they needed to in order to beat the traffic.

Overall, I really like the program.  The faculty were all very friendly and seemed to really care about each student.  I called about a month ago to ask a question about my application this year and Pamela still remembered who I was from interviewing last year.  Southern California is also beautiful and I really wouldn't mind living there.  

[Gadgette]

I got an interview offer from UAMS! They had 2/23, 3/13, or 3/31, so I asked for 3/31. I'm excited to check out Arkansas!

[KeepSwimming2017]

On 1/27/2017 at 8:18 PM, GCFaith92 said:

I applied to Rutgers and USF! SOPHAS was the death of me! I still didn't get confirmation from the school despite me having everything in. It was so expensive too!!! I'm just hoping I get an interview somewhere, even if I don't get in this year, an interview will give me good practice and some confidence. I no they give feedback if you get rejected so that's always nice. I am nervous my GRE scores will keep me out of every program this year despite my experience and GPA but time will tell!! Best of luck with SOPHAS, I submitted my transcripts on the 4th and it was just received on the 25th. They said from the day they receive the transcript, they have 12 business days to process it :-( hence why it took them so long.

I just got denied from Emory =( I think it was my GRE scores but I'm going to email and ask for feedback. My original scores from back in August were 150 Verbal, 139 Quan, and 4.0 for Writing. But I recently retook the GRE 10 days ago, and my new scores were 155 Verbal, 154 Quan, and 4.5 for Writing. However, Emory wouldn't accept any scores any Jan 6th so I was out of luck for that. And for SOPHAS, my transcript evaluation still hasn't been completed so I don't think they will review my application. I feel like crying, I already paid the application fee and everything! That's literally the only thing that's missing. But I still have hope for some reason, lol. The only other schools I have left are Sarah Lawrence, Rutgers, and Brandeis.

[Gadgette]

36 minutes ago, KeepSwimming2017 said:

I just got denied from Emory =( I think it was my GRE scores but I'm going to email and ask for feedback. My original scores from back in August were 150 Verbal, 139 Quan, and 4.0 for Writing. But I recently retook the GRE 10 days ago, and my new scores were 155 Verbal, 154 Quan, and 4.5 for Writing. However, Emory wouldn't accept any scores any Jan 6th so I was out of luck for that. And for SOPHAS, my transcript evaluation still hasn't been completed so I don't think they will review my application. I feel like crying, I already paid the application fee and everything! That's literally the only thing that's missing. But I still have hope for some reason, lol. The only other schools I have left are Sarah Lawrence, Rutgers, and Brandeis.

I'm sorry to hear that. Will the other schools look at your new GREs?  Hopefully you get constructive feedback on your application and then get accepted elsewhere!

[GCFaith92]

48 minutes ago, KeepSwimming2017 said:

I just got denied from Emory =( I think it was my GRE scores but I'm going to email and ask for feedback. My original scores from back in August were 150 Verbal, 139 Quan, and 4.0 for Writing. But I recently retook the GRE 10 days ago, and my new scores were 155 Verbal, 154 Quan, and 4.5 for Writing. However, Emory wouldn't accept any scores any Jan 6th so I was out of luck for that. And for SOPHAS, my transcript evaluation still hasn't been completed so I don't think they will review my application. I feel like crying, I already paid the application fee and everything! That's literally the only thing that's missing. But I still have hope for some reason, lol. The only other schools I have left are Sarah Lawrence, Rutgers, and Brandeis.

Did you study differently for the GRE? I am nervous that if I retake it I wont do much better; I am not a good standardized test taker. As for SOPHAS I would say contact the director of the GC program for assistance. If they cannot work with you, I know that you can call SOPHAS and ask for a refund and you fill out an application stating why you need a refund. I only know this because I had feared my transcripts would not be received in time either so I asked SOPHAS if they were not received if I could try to get a refund. Best of Luck. I also applied to Rutgers, so fingers crossed for us both there!

[AspiringGC]

2 hours ago, Ellaie said:

I just went back through my emails from last year and it looks like UC Irvine contacted me 2/22 last year to invite me for an interview.  I remember being really surprised they got back to me so quickly since their application deadline is 2/1.  They gave me a list of 7 different interview dates and had me choose the one that worked best for me.

Prior to the interview, I was invited to go out to dinner the night before by some of the current students.  It was a very laid back setting, and it was really nice because the students were really open to us asking questions about the process.  Because this was my first and only interview I was extremely nervous about it, but talking to the students really helped calm my nerves. They insisted that the process was very relaxed and informal.  They were right.  Pamela Flodman the director is extremely personal and friendly.

The day of the interview we sat in on the weekly clinical conference where students and faculty discussed various cases from the week before.  I thought it was super interesting, especially since I had been out of school for a year.  This also gave us a good opportunity to become familiar with some of the faculty who would be interviewing us.  Some applicants got pulled out of the conference to do interviews, but I didn't.  Every applicant was given a schedule that had 3-4 interviews on it.  They were all with different faculty members.  I'm pretty sure they tried to pair the applicants with faculty who shared some common interest.  For example, I have experience working with children with Down syndrome and one of my interviews was with a counselor who had done extensive research on Down syndrome.  Every applicant had to meet with Pam, the director.

It was a long process.  I think we were there from 8AM until around 4PM.  The school provided lunch, and at the end there was an optional campus tour.  Traffic is bad in California, so they wanted to allow people to leave early if they needed to in order to beat the traffic.

Overall, I really like the program.  The faculty were all very friendly and seemed to really care about each student.  I called about a month ago to ask a question about my application this year and Pamela still remembered who I was from interviewing last year.  Southern California is also beautiful and I really wouldn't mind living there.  

Wow that is a long day!
But thank you so much for this. Will definitely refer back to it if I get an interview there this year

[KeepSwimming2017]

3 hours ago, GCFaith92 said:

Did you study differently for the GRE? I am nervous that if I retake it I wont do much better; I am not a good standardized test taker. As for SOPHAS I would say contact the director of the GC program for assistance. If they cannot work with you, I know that you can call SOPHAS and ask for a refund and you fill out an application stating why you need a refund. I only know this because I had feared my transcripts would not be received in time either so I asked SOPHAS if they were not received if I could try to get a refund. Best of Luck. I also applied to Rutgers, so fingers crossed for us both there!

I know Rutgers and Brandeis are aware of my new GRE scores and said they would wait for my new scores to arrive, the reports are pending right now so hopefully those will arrive any day now. Honestly, I didn't really study much for the GRE, lol. Between working full time and taking Biochemistry this past semester I didn't really have much time to study, so for about 2-3 weeks before the test I just watched some of the Khan Academy videos on the math topics and went through the GRE Math Review that they have on their website. I had an app on my phone that had flashcards for vocabulary words but I didn't really use that much until the week before the exam. I'm usually really good at math though so I think getting a 39th percentile my first time around kind of shocked me into actually trying to revise some stuff lol, which is probably how I got a 54 this time around. I just hate that I haven't used that type of math in years - my brain is really out of practice! and thank you SO MUCH for letting me know about the refund from SOPHAS! I was actually going to email the director of the GC program at USF tomorow (since today was the deadline) and ask if there's even a possibility of them considering my application. If not, I'll definitely contact SOPHAS for that refund!

[HC929]

7 hours ago, csm said:

Hey guys! I have been stalking this thread, but I figured I could speak up. 

So far I have received offers to interview at Augustana, Indiana State, and Wayne State, but am still waiting to hear back on more. This is my first time applying, and I wish there was more idea of when we'd hear back from other schools. 

Best of luck to everyone! Has anyone found really useful interview prep questions? I guess this is more for people who have interviewed in the past or have starting prepping. 

Congrats on all your offers!! I also received one to Wayne and am interviewing on March 10! Have you picked a day yet?

[Lakers1960]

Have been lurking here for a couple of days and decided to post! 

I only applied to 4 schools: Wayne State University, Indiana University, University of South Carolina, and University of Toronto. 

So far I've only heard from Wayne and I got an interview! Not sure if it's good or bad that I haven't heard from anywhere else yet. 

[AspiringGC]

31 minutes ago, Lakers1960 said:

Have been lurking here for a couple of days and decided to post! 

I only applied to 4 schools: Wayne State University, Indiana University, University of South Carolina, and University of Toronto. 

So far I've only heard from Wayne and I got an interview! Not sure if it's good or bad that I haven't heard from anywhere else yet. 

You're definitely still okay for the other schools. Most don't send offers until mid February so there's still plenty of time ?

Congrats on your interview so far!

[Ellaie]

I just got an email that I received an interview at Sarah Lawrence College.  I applied there because last year I applied to 7 schools and only received 1 interview.  SLC has the largest class size, so I thought if I applied there it would give me a better shot at an interview.  This year I applied to 10 schools because I was terrified of not getting in again.  So far I've heard back from Emory, Arkansas, and SLC.  I received interviews at all of them.  I'm already going to have a hard time getting off work enough to get to the interviews.  I'm living in Chicago, and I would have to fly to New York to interview at SLC.  I'm thinking about rejecting the interview, but I'm very nervous to do so and give up my chance at being accepted there.

[AspiringGC]

43 minutes ago, Lakers1960 said:

Have been lurking here for a couple of days and decided to post! 

I only applied to 4 schools: Wayne State University, Indiana University, University of South Carolina, and University of Toronto. 

So far I've only heard from Wayne and I got an interview! Not sure if it's good or bad that I haven't heard from anywhere else yet. 

Most schools don't start sending out interviews until mid-February, so you have some time still! 
Congrats on the interview you have so far!

9 minutes ago, Ellaie said:

I just got an email that I received an interview at Sarah Lawrence College.  I applied there because last year I applied to 7 schools and only received 1 interview.  SLC has the largest class size, so I thought if I applied there it would give me a better shot at an interview.  This year I applied to 10 schools because I was terrified of not getting in again.  So far I've heard back from Emory, Arkansas, and SLC.  I received interviews at all of them.  I'm already going to have a hard time getting off work enough to get to the interviews.  I'm living in Chicago, and I would have to fly to New York to interview at SLC.  I'm thinking about rejecting the interview, but I'm very nervous to do so and give up my chance at being accepted there.

How long do you have to decide? Could you accept and then later decline if you receive interviews from more schools you'd rather go to?
It doesn't seem you'd be thrilled to attend, so it might be better just to decline, as you already have 2 offers with 7 more schools still left, so it looks like you still have some decent chances of getting more offers in the future. 

[Ellaie]

4 minutes ago, slaybackc said:

How long do you have to decide? Could you accept and then later decline if you receive interviews from more schools you'd rather go to?
It doesn't seem you'd be thrilled to attend, so it might be better just to decline, as you already have 2 offers with 7 more schools still left, so it looks like you still have some decent chances of getting more offers in the future. 

They didn't give a timeline on when to decide, but said that interview slots fill up fast and they're first come first serve.  I guess I could accept and then later decline, but I would feel a little shady doing that.  As of right now it's not one of my top choices.  That's all just from reading things online and thinking about living in New York though. Maybe if I visited the program my opinion would change?  It'd be nice if all the schools notified of interviews at the same time so I already knew what my other options are.