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2013-2014 CASPA Cycle: Interviews ?


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Hey hgpadoc, thanks so much for the info. In terms of the essay portion, I assume since most of us are lacking in formal medical training, the scenarios are to gauge our general judgement and ethics rather than clinical knowledge, correct?

 

Also, are any of the interviews in a group setting with other applicants (there seems to be 8-10 applicants each interview day) or are the formal interviews all private?

 

Really appreciate any and all info!

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jfausey -

The first thing that really stands out to me, and was the reason I chose Yale over other schools I was accepted at, is the Anatomy lab. Each student is put in a group with 3 other students and given a full donor body that you will dissect as a group. The course instructors are awesome. It is an excellent opportunity to develop your fine motor skills with surgical instruments. Really, I can't say enough about the awesome anatomy lab.

Second, every year the program will pair incoming students with someone in the class ahead of you in a big sib/little sib program. Most of the people in my class found the advice and experience of their big sib to be invaluable. Big sibs end up being a source of advice, textbooks, study tips, someone to vent to, and someone to show you around New Haven, ect... I don't know if other programs do similar things, I imagine many do, but still, its a pretty great program to ease the stress of adjusting to life in PA school.

As far as the living situation goes it really depends on what you are looking for. Most of the people in my class that don't have significant others ended up living in one of the many apartment towers that are located in downtown NH and I haven't heard any complaints about their living situation other than lack of kitchen space. The other half of us that are either married, engaged, or in committed relationships live a bit outside of downtown, mostly in East Rock. This is tricky though because their are several neighborhoods in the area that you definitely don't want to live in.

 

Pbuonocore-

 

yes the essays are more general judgement and ethics and are not based in clinical knowledge at all. As I said in my earlier post, there was a 1 on 1 interview with the program director and a 3 on 1 interview with 3 members of the admissions committee. There were no group interviews. I do not know if the new program director has any plans on changing that however.

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So, from what I have heard the new program director is planning on completely overhauling the thesis part of the program so what you guys come into may be vastly different than what we have right now.

 

As for what we have right now we aren't actually writting a masters thesis. Rather, we are writing a research proposal that is medically/clinically relevant. So you are writing a proposal for potential research in an area of medicine that interests you, not actaully carrying out the research and writting a paper on it.

 

Hope that makes sense!!!

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I'm interviewing November 8, and would love some input on what to wear. I'm getting conflicting advice from the PAs I work with. The one who just finished PA school recommends pants and a sweater. The one who graduated 10 years ago recommended a conservative skirt suit. Last time I visited an Ivy League school, I found I was dressed all wrong. (I'm from the south, and I wore colors and lipstick to Brown - horrors!) 

 

Can anyone give advice on the right level of formality for Yale? 

Thanks! 

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Hey NCPA,

 

I'm a current Yale student. During my interviews I think most of the females were dressed in a suit (either with pants or with a skirt). That being said, you can definitely wear most any colors that you want. Also, I'll see you on the bar night that Thursday (definitely do not need to dress up at all for that)! Feel free to drop me a PM if you have more questions.

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Ah that seems a lot more feasible than writing a 40-50 page full researched thesis. Guess if its being overhauled that will be a question to ask at the interview. Thanks!

I'm a grad of the Yale PA program and currently working at YNHH. As it stands now, the master's thesis requirement is 30-50 pages in length and you get two full months off (not in a row) to dedicate towards writing it. You essentially come up with a study that has not been performed before relating to an area of clinical medicine interesting to you. The thesis includes a full description of that study, how you would recruit subjects, analyze the data, etc. as well as a full literature review on the topic. It's still pretty intense and time consuming even though you don't perform the actual research with a PI. Some students' studies have gone on to be carried out by their advisor post-graduation. I don't know what the new program director is going to do about the thesis requirement, though. Definitely something worth asking at the interview.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Everyone is extremely friendly, enthusiastic, and helpful--so don't stress yourself out. Take advantage of all of the opportunities to ask any and all questions you have, the students and faculty are more than willing to answer anything, and definitely go to the dinner the night before if you can. I believe there were 12 of us at my session and I'm pretty sure everyone was at the dinner. I hope this helps, and good luck to you and everyone else interviewing this month!

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Totally false. The old director, Mary Warner, left to start a new PA program at BU. There was an interim director for one year while a new search was conducted. Since opening in 1971, the program has a 99.8% pass rate, and the last five years the first time pass rate has been either 100% or 97%, while the overall pass rate has been 100% (those who did not pass the first time passed on the 2nd attempt)

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Hey Saal, 

 

There definitely still spots open. This year they are accepting some applicants immediately after the interview, but also some at the end of interviews once they have a better idea of the entire pool of candidates. (With the new program director they are doing things slightly different this year). 

 

Anyone who got in or is still waiting, feel free to PM me if you have any questions! 

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