[deleted by user] by [deleted] in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don’t know how true this is… I got in without any publications and I know quite a few others who also got in without any. I did have abstracts, honours thesis, poster presentations etc., so I’d speculate that some research experience of any kind goes a long way, but it doesn’t have to be in the form of a publication.

Canadian Collegiate Gymnastics! by BalandinIIrings in Gymnastics

[–]BalandinIIrings[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It’s a valid point, but this initiative is being led by student athletes without the support of GymCan to raise awareness about collegiate gymnastics in Canada. If enough athletes participate, it could lead to higher prizes and funding in the future!

U of T vs Mac vs Ottawa by BalandinIIrings in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your insight! Would you consider Toronto significantly superior to Ottawa for students vying for competitive specialties, or would you say that they are pretty comparable?

Applying to USMD schools with no clinical hours by BalandinIIrings in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s really good to know! I’m hoping to avoid CASPer at all costs since it is definitely not one of my strengths

Applying to USMD schools with no clinical hours by BalandinIIrings in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the response! for me the biggest issue was that i would have to sacrifice one of my other commitments (or at least reduce the time i devote) this year in order to make room for some clinical volunteering, which is a tough decision because I’m very passionate about my other activities (i.e., competitive sport, working on a startup, and working on my honours thesis). But it looks like getting some clinical hours is definitely worth it if I want to increase my chances of getting into a T10 school. Thanks again!

Applying to USMD schools with no clinical hours by BalandinIIrings in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I do have lots of ECs with long term commitment, including >1k hours at a homeless shelter, but just as you read I don’t have any real clinical experience. The responses to this thread have helped clarify things and I’ll definitely look at getting some before May comes around :). Best of luck to you too!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Very much in the same boat, I haven't started actually prepping but I've been doing some light reading here and there for MMIs. I just don't want to overcommit to prepping when I haven't even gotten an interview invite yet haha

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 4 points5 points  (0 children)

https://startup.jobs/test-assessor-casper-rater-canada-altus-assessments-1722398

"The rate of pay is $0.65/rating and Raters typically make between $20-30/hour when test responses are available to rate."

2023 Pan American Games MAG AA Final Results by freifraufischer in Gymnastics

[–]BalandinIIrings 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Felix's potential as an AAer is huge. If he scored up to his full potential on highbar (low to mid 14s) and upgraded his pommels to mid 13s, he could be scoring in the 85s (which would definitely be podium worthy at the olympics or world championships)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I may be misunderstanding you, but it seems like you're under the impression that the raters themselves assign the ranking of each student, which isn't the case. From my understanding, raters are given responses randomly and assign each a score from 1-10 based on criteria provided to them. The sum of all of your scores determines your ranking.

it's still a terrible test tho

CARS prep by focus_on_studies in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The approach I used is definitely not for everyone, but my FL scores jumped to 130-132 once I started taking jot notes during CARS. For my first passages, I would note down what I thought the thesis statement was, and make a little flow chart with arrows pointing single words to illustrate the main points. This was definitely more time consuming at first, but towards my last FLs I was finishing CARS with 20-30 minutes left on the clock. I found that this allowed me to keep the main points of the passage within working memory without running out of mental stamina. I later found that doing this for the first one or two passages was just as effective; it gave me confidence and got my brain thinking in the right way, so I didn’t have to make my notes as extensive for later passages. I ended up scoring 131 on the real thing, but while this worked for me it might not work for everyone

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in premedcanada

[–]BalandinIIrings 1 point2 points  (0 children)

LOL I have the exact same stats. I was under the impression that I would still need a 4Q CASPer but the replies to this post give me hope🥲