tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39944854475756497562012-02-01T14:25:58.265-05:00Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.comBlogger401100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-40859280923882790002010-06-18T12:10:00.006-04:002010-06-18T12:20:05.924-04:00

A recent alum who is attending medical school this fall after working in business for the last couple years was kind enough to pass along some advice about interviewing. We've spoken to many students and alums who are concerned that a background in business will sink their applications. This is of course not true but it is important, as is always the case, to articulate why it is that you are

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-55346933529256342162010-02-05T14:07:00.003-05:002010-02-05T14:10:07.183-05:00

Lee Ann and I attended a pre-health advisor meeting for Boston area colleges a couple weeks ago. The topic of conversation was community health centers. Community Health Centers (CHCs) serve primarily underserved communities and patients with limited financial resource. Senator Ted Kennedy was a major proponent of CHCs.Representatives from the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-5047153777565741542009-10-16T16:29:00.010-04:002009-12-08T14:01:08.517-05:00

I was browsing through the OCS Peer2Peer Network the other week and came across an interesting way that a student chose to spend her summer. A couple summers ago, Meaghan Lyons '11 was a Personal Care Assistant at North Shore Association for Retarded Citizens in Danvers, MA. Since many premed students are looking for "clinical" positions where they are able to provide direct service, I asked

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-38911653652101517832009-10-14T16:58:00.002-04:002009-10-14T17:12:19.563-04:00

The NY Times did an interesting (video) piece on med students' dilemmas about which type of medicine to pursue in residency. They feature the opinions of several University of Washington students. There are a lot of considerations here--lifestyle, money, values, etc.--all in the context of the changing landscape of healthcare. Hopefully some of these issues will be discussed tomorrow afternoon

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-20511852638846834122009-09-29T10:33:00.000-04:002009-09-29T10:33:00.474-04:00

This is a somewhat mundane technical detail about MCATs and the AMCAS application but we've gotten quite a few questions about this this year.A number of applicants each year decide to retake the MCATs. Assuming this happens in the summer after the AMCAS application has come out (early June), the question is how to notify medical schools of their upcoming test date and new scores.The main thing

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-11006870361537146262009-09-23T11:40:00.007-04:002009-09-24T15:50:05.671-04:00

Following up on last week's post about financial assistance from the AAMC, here's some advice from a Harvard student currently applying to medical school:I didn't think that I would be eligible for FAP because my family hasn't generally been eligible for fee assistance programs like this in the past---but they actually have rather generous criteria, and I discovered that I would have been

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-32286820765242462292009-09-17T11:54:00.003-04:002009-09-17T13:38:23.938-04:00

How important are the MCATs?A medical school admissions dean answered in this way: "... the MCAT is important -- in context, though... It does not project who will be a good physician and so, we try to balance the whole picture: academic performance (which includes # of credits per semester and type of courses taken), MCAT scores, family background (educational and economic -- need to work while

Lee Ann Michelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310564853828909226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-70507549154036829832009-09-16T14:31:00.008-04:002009-09-16T14:39:56.715-04:00

The following is a message from the AAMC about their new program to support financially needy students who will be applying for accommodations for the MCAT. Please note that the AAMC's Fee Assistance Program (FAP) is a separate program. Students must first receive approval for FAP before they are eligible to apply for this accommodations financial assistance program.The AAMC has developed a new

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-31232622406656844202009-09-04T16:43:00.002-04:002009-09-04T16:46:40.419-04:00

Most medical schools do not require math; of those that do, some require only one semester, some accept APs, some require calculus specifically, and some accept statistics (see list). Depending on your background, you may need to take math to a certain level in order to be fully prepared for your concentration or for future coursework. Therefore, freshmen should not feel compelled to take a

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-72922326711072939662009-08-31T13:12:00.004-04:002009-08-31T13:16:51.637-04:00

We wanted to clarify something about course requirements for med schools. For the majority of medical schools, their premedical requirements are matriculation requirements meaning that the applicant must complete these prior to enrolling at the med school. In general, we recommend completing all basic science requirements (e.g. bio, chem, physics) prior to admission in order to be a competitive

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-33015795060909636812009-03-12T14:48:00.008-04:002009-03-12T15:31:05.846-04:00

Dr. Barbara Beckman, Associate Dean of Admissions at Tulane School of Medicine, spoke yesterday about Tulane and their admissions process. Dr. Beckman mentioned that many students are drawn to New Orleans because of the city's culture as well as its particular challenges post-Katrina. Applicants who have been abroad, doing service work in places with broken infrastructures, are often good fits

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-66753177438364502732009-02-27T14:39:00.007-05:002009-02-27T15:34:39.906-05:00

The Harvard Premedical Society put on a terrific program last night featuring MD/PhD directors from four different programs: Cornell/Rockefeller/Sloan-Kettering, Washington University at St. Louis, Baylor College of Medicine, and Harvard-MIT. Here are some things that I took away based on the directors' opinions:BasicsTypes of research possible: (a) basic research, (b) disease-oriented

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-90750205491649145822009-02-27T12:41:00.002-05:002009-03-04T10:38:16.161-05:00

US News and World Report?Joni Krapec, Director of Admissions and Outreach at the University of Chicago Medical School recently spoke to students about how to choose medical schools. I was happy to hear her start the discussion with a critique of the U.S. World and News Report on "Best Medical Schools". So many times students come into our office with a list of the "top ten" medical schools taken

Lee Ann Michelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310564853828909226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-80948429960028639392009-02-12T15:54:00.008-05:002009-02-13T09:49:28.863-05:00

A couple nights ago, Bob Coughlin, Director of Financial Aid at Harvard Medical School, spoke about the ins and outs of financing a medical education.He covered a lot of ground, e.g. explaining the differences between subsidized (does not accrue interest while still in school) and unsubsidized loans, how financial aid works for international students, and how family and/or spouse circumstances

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-6915237052931617202008-10-30T16:44:00.004-04:002008-10-30T17:01:44.355-04:00

This NY Times article is written by Pauline W. Chen, MD, Harvard College grad and author of Final Exam: A Surgeon's Reflections on Mortality. It's a stark reminder perhaps to think hard and weigh your options before embarking on the medical path. But even if you pursue medicine for all the right reasons and with enthusiasm, medical school is just a very, very challenging experience for most

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-9446643669496234402008-10-27T13:48:00.002-04:002008-10-27T13:56:14.669-04:00

With all the budget problems for the federal and state governments (mostly notably California), it may not be a surprise that there are anticipated deep funding cuts coming for the Cambridge Health Alliance. This healthcare network runs many of Boston's community health clinics in underserved communities.

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-72921774869819179772008-09-30T10:48:00.004-04:002008-09-30T10:59:23.598-04:00

Newsweek has a quick Q&A session with a Harvard health policy professor about the healthcare plans proposed by Obama and McCain, drawing some lessons from Massachusetts.  Might be a good primer for those headed out on medical school interviews.Got Insurance?Why the candidates' plans might not deliver on universal health coverageMary CarmichaelNEWSWEEKFrom the magazine issue dated Oct 6,

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-90002237503212435082008-04-10T12:15:00.006-04:002008-04-16T13:51:20.434-04:00

I've met with quite a few students recently considering the timing of their med school applications. For those who know they want to take some time off, the question is whether to apply now and plan to defer enrollment or apply later and plan to enter med school for that application year.Quite a few advisors and admissions deans have been weighing in on the topic. I thought I'd share one

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-20771760005968763962008-04-08T08:51:00.002-04:002008-04-16T13:44:00.668-04:00

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-84755068663073147122008-02-28T17:52:00.006-05:002009-04-22T09:22:44.770-04:00

In thinking about global health, students don't often consider the various avenues outside of becoming a medical doctor. Dentistry is one of those options. Here's what a graduate from the Harvard School of Dental Medicine said when I asked, "What have you found to be the best resources for exploring public and global health options in dentistry?"As for different avenues for public health

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-46714011443158877962008-02-25T16:37:00.003-05:002008-02-25T16:45:54.529-05:00

Lee Ann and I have been getting a number of questions from concerned students who have been accepted to med school this year. Upon acceptance, med schools ask students to respond to their acceptance offer, typically within two weeks of acceptance. It's important to realize that accepting this offer means holding a spot at that school and does not mean a binding commitment to attend.Per the

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-56754486903131928712008-02-21T14:56:00.001-05:002008-02-21T17:57:27.243-05:00

Recently, I was at a meeting for Boston-area health professions advisors, and a couple folks from the AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) were discussing med school applicant data. I don't think any of this should necessarily inform an individual student's decision-making around medicine but it is interesting nonetheless.What pleasantly surprised me is the data on re-applicants (

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-78887014243297423612008-02-15T17:10:00.008-05:002008-02-15T17:46:43.222-05:00

The panelists at both the undergrad and "gap year" discussions during the Global Health Expo last week had a lot of good advice and resources to share. These programs affirmed to me the value of the Harvard community, the wealth of expertise and wisdom that exists among you all.The panelists at the gap year discussion recommended several good web resources, including globalhealth.org, the

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-81080317696587284502008-02-12T17:56:00.002-05:002008-02-14T12:20:16.442-05:00

So much that I'd like to write about after the Global Health Expo last Thursday and Friday. (There have been some great freshman programs recently too but those'll have to wait.) Since what's most pressing for students right now is the fellowships process, I wanted to share information about several specific funds that would apply to global health work.Here are the particular ones mentioned at

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-86185534263753529912008-01-17T16:00:00.000-05:002008-01-25T17:15:16.519-05:00

Many students are in the process of applying or thinking about applying for funding for their summer opportunities. I wanted to share some of my quick thoughts."Fellowship": There's nothing special about the word. All it means is a type of grant--financial support provided to an individual for some specific experience. I'll admit that I didn't understand the concept of a fellowship until after

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-51544913551940764312008-01-08T09:29:00.000-05:002008-01-08T09:46:16.487-05:00

Really interesting article in the NY Times about medicine and law, the two "most elite of the traditional professions." Lots of evidence of burnout and dissatisfaction in both perhaps due to a culture shift in how we think about work, more demanding hours and work conditions, and the allure and perception of competing options like investment banking. The article puts notions of prestige and

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-76864188856693795942007-11-30T16:32:00.000-05:002007-11-30T17:48:21.368-05:00

We've heard it's a particularly busy time among concentration advisors meeting with students regarding their concentration elections. Keep in mind that being "premed" should not be your primary reason for pursuing a particular concentration (in or among the sciences). With some planning, students are able to declare a concentration in any area they are most passionate about and still prepare

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-13839854830884545332007-11-29T11:04:00.000-05:002007-11-30T16:32:03.623-05:00

A recent Harvard alum was generous enough to share with us her thoughts about medical research and what she hopes would be useful for current students to consider. Lee Ann and I think it's a wonderful piece. Here it is in its entirety. Many thanks to this very helpful alum!Dear current, past, and future pre-meds,There are many advantages to attending the world’s pre-eminent research university,

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-72097202089389769862007-11-20T16:26:00.000-05:002007-11-30T16:32:24.156-05:00

We've gotten several good questions about time off. For example:Is it possible to take a year or two off after getting into medical school? As in, is it possible to apply to medical schools during junior/senior year, and possibly get into one or two, and then ask to defer years, once in? Or if you take time off, do you have to apply during that time off?Good question. It may seem that it is

Lee Ann Michelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310564853828909226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-2798426431166264462007-11-18T21:32:00.000-05:002007-11-19T14:14:10.207-05:00

One of the most challenging things about being premed at Harvard is that there's lots of advice available -- but it is often contradictory and confusing. I met recently with a student who said she was feeling overwhelmed by all the advice she was getting from her family, her premed tutor, her lab supervisor, her roommate, and her concentration advisor. Each one told her something different about

Lee Ann Michelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06310564853828909226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-76812151335431243282007-11-16T14:42:00.001-05:002009-09-17T14:15:59.640-04:00

The majority of Harvard applicants to medical school last year were alumni rather than seniors. This means that a lot of premeds are opting to take one or more 'gap years' before entering med school. There are rarely bad reasons for taking time off particularly if you're not sure medicine is the right thing.So how to explore the issues and options around time off? I highly recommend perusing

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-41217023742093683092007-11-08T16:46:00.000-05:002007-11-15T16:03:15.496-05:00

It's the strangest thing. For a couple weeks now, things have been extremely quite on the 3rd floor of OCS. Lee Ann and I find ourselves wondering where all the premeds have gone (let's just say, we don't often wonder this). We suspect everyone is plugging away at midterms and p-sets. But if there are questions or concerns simmering beneath the surface, please feel free to email us or post it

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-24042214472037771812007-11-02T15:24:00.000-04:002007-11-02T16:09:46.048-04:00

I've gotten quite a few questions recently about how interests and experiences in business are viewed by medical schools. More specifically, students are wondering whether a summer internship or full-time job after college may harm, even doom, one's chances to pursue medicine later.I do think this is a bit tricky. That is, there may exist a bit of an industry stimga in medicine against business

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-53223334536917120832007-10-26T14:07:00.000-04:002007-10-26T15:45:26.588-04:00

I've met quite a few nervous up-and-coming med school applicants this past week. These would be Harvard juniors planning to go straight through to med school and seniors who will be entering after a gap year. The big questions are, "What do I need to be doing right now?" and "Am I behind?"This anxiety is understandable (as is the anxiety experienced during every step of this med school process)

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-45878490461915670542007-10-24T18:09:00.000-04:002007-10-24T18:47:18.339-04:00

This was a note I sent along to the listserv with a recent research assistant job announcement. Thought I'd put it here as well. Good luck!For seniors job hunting for next year, please keep in mind that many full-time research assistant positions become available later on, usually in the late winter or spring. With structured interviewing processes via on-campus recruiting going on right

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-1230408850287077382007-10-19T15:19:00.000-04:002007-10-19T16:09:04.039-04:00

Dr. Brenda Armstrong, Dean of Medical School Admissions at Duke, spoke here at Harvard on Monday. I personally found her to be very thoughtful and entirely inspiring. She had a nice way of putting things.Some of my quick highlights:As primary gatekeepers for patients, med schools look for "well-developed humanism" in their applicants.In how they approach what they do in school and out, the best

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-52659384550387168112007-10-19T09:56:00.001-04:002007-10-24T12:17:06.161-04:00

Lee Ann and I would like to give the whole blog thing a try. We think this has the potential to become a useful resource for Harvard students and alumni interested in the health professions.Informal feedback and impressions are good. We hope this blog will provide a way to capture our thoughts on what we’re seeing and hearing--from admissions deans, from other advisors within and outside of

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-7571993352080725992007-10-18T11:55:00.001-04:002007-10-18T14:48:06.880-04:00

Jeff is the Assistant Director of Premedical and Health Career Advising at OCS. He grew up on the island of Oahu in Hawaii and went to college in California (think palm trees and Google). He graduated in 2003 with degrees in English and Human Biology (neuroscience) and is currently enrolled part-time in the Mind, Brain & Education program at the Harvard Ed School. Before coming to Harvard, he

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-84844837103620468792007-10-18T11:51:00.000-04:002007-10-18T18:00:56.543-04:00

Lee Ann is the Director of Premedical and Health Career Advising at OCS. She was a member of the Harvard College Class of 1977 and, though not as financially successful as her classmate Bill Gates, did manage to graduate. Lee Ann has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and was Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She has two children:

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3994485447575649756.post-46904380994030685802007-10-18T09:05:00.000-04:002007-10-19T09:53:37.228-04:00

This is Sophie. She's ridiculously cute and therefore deserves to be here.

Jeff Glennhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11420979030305478480noreply@blogger.com0