1	Preprofessional Health Programs at CBU - Spring 2010 report Stan Eisen, Director Preprofessional Health Programs Presented to Biology Seminar, January 19, 2010
2	Objectives of this presentation To remind you of PHP programs To discuss the process of filing your evaluation request form so that evaluations and supplemental letters of recommendation will be ready when you need them;
3	The single most important lesson to write home about
4	I. Objectives of PHP Collect information Distribute information Assist students and alumni through application process Maintain records
5	Sources of Information Catalogs of health-related professional schools Subscription to HLTH listserv Subscription to The Advisor, journal of the American Association of Advisors for the Health Professions. Catalogs, bulletins, announcements received in mail
6	Information is distributed via Web pages pertaining to Health Careers, Interview FAQ’s, Web sites, Important test dates, all accessible via http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/ Caduceus Newsletter, which can be accessed via www.cbu.edu/~seisen/Caduceus.html Occasional e-mails Bookshelf with bulletins, catalogs, admission test packets, etc., in S201
7	Definition of a PHP student: Those who go through me for their composite evaluations Academic Year # of Students 2008-2009 23 2007-2008 30 2006-2007 27 2005-2006 36 2004-2005 (Sabbatical) 2003-2004 26 2002-2003 24 2001-2002 16 2000-2001 18
8	Our PHP program is very successful. For example, between 2002 and 2004: 12 of 16 students and alumni have been accepted to medical school (75%!) 6 of 9 students and alumni have been accepted to pharmacy school (67%!) We have had students accepted to Dental Hygiene, Dentistry, Physical Therapy, and Physician Assistant Programs as well.
9	II. Present protocol for the composite evaluation consists of: Student/alum submits an Evaluation Request Form; I send evaluation forms with a cover letter requesting that the evaluator fill out the form, write a supplemental letter of recommendation, return the form & recommendation to me ASAP; When I receive evaluations back, I transcribe comments onto one form; I send composite evaluation, original evaluations, and supplemental letters of recommendation as a pdf file, either to Admissions Depts. or to application services.
10	How many references should you ask for? Medicine: 2-3 science professors, 1 non-science professor, research mentor, 1 person who knows you outside academic setting; Some programs require a separate LOR from a practitioner Osteopathic medicine Pharmacy UT Dentistry Pharmacy: 3 letters of faculty recommendation Physical Therapy: 2-3 science professors, 1 non-science
11	Application services are now using online application forms or submissions Some application services want direct communication from references AADSAS (Dentistry) PharmCAS (Pharmacy, other than UTHSC) AMCAS (allopathic medicine) wants to know what type of LORs they will receive (individual, composite, LETTER PACKET.) Some universities now subscribe to a Web-based recommendation form; again, direct communication from reference. I would like to be informed of application status.
12	Early submission of your Evaluation Request form is crucial! Most programs have a rolling admissions policy. The sooner your file is complete, the sooner the Admissions Committee can evaluate you. Factoid: By the time the Spring semester has started, the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center has already filled 2/3 of its class. If an allopathic medical school is interested in your letter packet file, they will download it from AMCAS.
13	There are delays and bottlenecks that are beyond your control Verification of information on your application As of January 15, 2007, the AAMC is at least 2 months behind in verifying applicant files this year (for 2006-2007 applicant pool). Hence, invitations for interviews will come out later than usual, hence Acceptances will be issued later than usual. Turnaround times for BOTH on-campus and off-campus references is > 30 days!
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15	What do you have control over? When you submit your application; When you submit your Evaluation Request Form (Deadline has been September 15.)
16	The PHP cohort of 2005-2006 did NOT submit their evaluation request form in a timely manner (8 of 31 met the deadline)
17	Neither did the following year’s cohort (2006-2007 PHP cohort) (6 of 19 met deadline as of December 11, 2006)
18	III. For those of you planning on applying to medical school, the MCAT is now a computer-based test More test administrations per year Administered at Prometric test sites; The test day and exam itself will be shorter, by around 2 hours; More dates in April, May, July and August; Keyboarding for entry of writing sample. No spell check, but easy editing. No problems with hard-to-read handwriting; Short turn around for posting of scores, with a projected turn-around time of 2 weeks.
19	Protocol for getting evaluations/letters of recommendation: Ask faculty and other individuals, in advance, whether they are willing to write you a good recommendation. (It is both a courtesy to them and a practical move for you); Submit your evaluation request form to me NO LATER THAN February 15, 2010 to get the process started SOONER rather than later; You can always add more names later, e.g. professors of Spring 2010 semester, research mentor(s), etc. If you are applying to medical school, let me know ASAP when you receive secondary application forms; Keep in touch with me regarding the status of your applications.