FAQs
This section is currently under construction. However, if you are considering medicine as a career you may benefit from viewing a powerpoint slide presentation typically given to Freshman and Sophomores at Truman. This presentation may answer many of your questions but if you still have questions you may want to peruse through the FAQ (and answers below). If you would like to have your questions answers, please submit your questions. We will do our best to post common queries here.
Currently we are considering having the following (click on question to view answer):
1. Does major matter? Generally, no; medical schools are looking for good students and good people. That said, make sure that you are able to adequately address the common questions and content that are asked on the MCAT. Much of this content is based on biology, chemistry and physics. In addition, you should be sufficiently competent to be able to write a grammatically correct and engaging essay.
3. Are there Scholarships for medical school?
4. Is there a recommended sequential checklist of activities and curricular sequence at Truman?
5. When should I get involved in extracurricular activities? It is never too early to get involved, but be careful that you do not overextend your efforts. In some cases this will compromise your ability to continue obtaining good grades.
6. What type of extracurricular activities should I pursue? There are many that medical schools consider fruitful and beneficial. Many students engage in research to demonstrate to medical schools that they possess skills and characteristics necessary to conduct research (hard work, perseverance, organization, writing skills) and these are a reflection of the traits you will bring to the medical school.
7. What should I write in my Personal Statement?
8. Which preparation course is best for me (Kaplan or Princeton)? That depends on how motivated and self-staring you are. The best answer here is to ask several students who have taken the course and compare the benefits and drawbacks of each.
9. Should I pursue a structured review or study on my own? This gets back to the previous question. If you are disciplined and self-starting, you will do well in organizing a review and study session on your own. If you need a slight to moderate kick in the pants to get you going, a structured event, like a preparation course, may help you (or guilt you) into attending a review session and make studying more efficient.
10. How do I apply to medical school?
11. Who do I approach about letters of recommendation? One suggestion is to say something like, “Dear Dr. _______, I have (worked/volunteered/known you) for _____ years and I was wondering if you would be willing to write a good letter of recommendation for medical school.” Although there are many iterations of the current statement, the idea is to approach your letter writer at an appropriate time, being considerate of his/her time.
12. How should I prepare for the Interviews?
13. How much is medical school likely to cost? This will vary depending on your status. In-state residents attending their state school typically will pay much less than those students attending a private school or attending a school where they are not a resident. You may want to visit: http://www.aamc.org/students/considering/financial.htm for additional and specific information concerning costs.
14. How does Truman stack up against other schools in preparing me for medical school (acceptance rates and success rates)? Many students ask this question and as of 2009, the running 10 year average has been around 67% of those students that apply will be accepted into medical school. Some (approximately 10-15%) of these will only get accepted on their second attempt. This is very competitive considering the average acceptance rate for some medical schools is somewhere in the 20% range. That is, only 1 of every 5 applicants will be accepted into medical school. In some years and in some schools this value will go up to 50% so visiting the school of interest to you.
15. What are Joint degree programs? These programs allow you to obtain an additional degree while working toward your medical degree. For example, many large state schools have a M.D./Ph.D. program that allows the students to conduct research during a portion of their tenure at the school and then return them to finish their clinical rotations to complete their M.D. degree. Similar programs are present for MD/MPH (Master’s of public health) and other degree programs.
16. Who is my pre-med advisor? This depends on your major: Jose Herrera (biology), Jeremy Houser (Health), Roberta Donahue (Exercise Science), and Dana Delaware (Chemistry) serve as advisors for the most common departments housing students interested in medicine.