Recently, on an undisclosed date, The Eventual Doc ventured to Boston for his very first interview, at Boston University. If you recall, this was not only his first interview of the application cycle, it was, in fact, his first interview out of three cycles. So this is what you might call a Very Big Deal to him. The drive was fairly pleasant, actually. Driving through Vermont and New Hampshire, the leaves were a fiery, golden blanket across the landscape, and with a few This American Life podcasts saved to his iPod, little in the way of traffic, and nearly ideal driving weather, The Eventual Doc made excellent time.
Just as he reached the outskirts of Boston, however, his Palm Prē buzzed to indicate an incoming email. A glance at the email subject, which was all The Eventual Doc could read (as he is a Very Safe Driver, and doesn’t text or email on the road) indicated that the Dartmouth Medical School admissions office had reached a decision on his application. With the GPS device indicating at least another 10 minutes before he reached the hotel, The Eventual Doc excitedly imagined parking at the hotel, flipping open the phone, and reading the email in which Dartmouth would exclaim that they’d never seen as impressive a student as he, won’t he please come on down at his earliest convenience to interview.
This, of course, was decidedly not what the email said.
The Eventual Doc was assured that his application was considered with care, but that wherever he went to medical school, it wouldn’t be there. One more down.
The interview at Boston University was great. Having been a GMS student, it wasn’t necessary for him to attend a full interview day, sparing him the student-led tour, lunch, etc. Actually, he was pretty bummed about not getting a free lunch. But otherwise, the prospect of a one-and-done interview day was a pleasant surprise, and that would mean he could return home to Snowville, NY much earlier than he’d feared. Then he got the Red Folder.
Ah, the Red Folder. Countless times, The Eventual Doc had seen herds of somberly-clad interviewees on the medical campus at BU, clutching their Red Folders nervously. He had never seen the inside of one, but imagined it had to contain untold treasures, and that the mere fact of holding one admitted a person to an elite, secret club, like the Masons, or Scientologists. Turns out, it just contained some facts and figures about the school, some financial aid information, and the like. Nothing too spectacular, and no magic membership to the BUSM Cabal. Still, he found himself unconsciously holding it so that the embossed “Boston University School of Medicine” was conspicuously visible wherever he went.
Secretly, he imagined mothers leaning over their children and whispering, “See? That man there is Going Places. He’s On His Way to doing Great Things.” Old men would look on admiringly as The Eventual Doc passed, nodding in approval. Of course, in reality, he appeared, more than anything, just like those herds of self-conscious interviewees he had jealously despised the year before. But damn it, he finally had his Red Folder.
He learned that his interviewer would be none other than Dr. Wonderful, whom he knew by reputation and occasional interactions to be very nice and easy to speak to. The interview was extremely conversational, not in the least stressful, and left him with a cautious optimism for his chances at gaining acceptance there. That said, Dr. Wonderful candidly warned The Eventual Doc that nothing was certain, and that she could offer no guarantees or even any indication of which direction the decision may go. This will be a long winter.
Before he left, he remembered that he had a logo blanket he’d been awarded by his employer, DrugCorp. He left it beside a pile of blankets in the shape of a sleeping homeless person; it was getting cold, and surely others needed it more than The Eventual Doc. He didn’t want to wake the pile of blankets, so he just left it there. Would it be appreciated? He didn’t know.
Upon arriving in Snowville, The Eventual Doc settled down to his computer to check his email, and then status pages for his medical school applications. UVM had apparently taken advantage of his trip to Boston to update his status; rejected.
So here’s how things stand for The Eventual Doc:
- Warren Alpert (Brown)
- Tufts
- Boston University [Hooray!!!]
- Yale
- University of Michigan
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Dartmouth
- Medical University of South Carolina
- University of North Carolina
- Mayo
- University of Vermont
- University of Rochester
- Georgetown
- Baylor
- SUNY Stony Brook
- Duke
Things are certainly not looking good. Before the cycle began, The Eventual Doc had imagined the doors to highly-ranked medical schools swinging open to welcome him. Now, he’s hoping to get an invite to at least one more.
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