MDE Columbia University 2021

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Hey ! I know im super early to make this thread for the MDE program at Columbia for the 2021 start year ? but I was wondering if there are any future nurses out there as eager as me to get started !!

At least we know it’s in the next 2 days! 

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On 2/14/2021 at 10:01 PM, pedsNPtobe said:

Hii

For anyone still waiting or for anyone who was accepted in the first round, would you mind sharing your stats?

I am so nervous for what CU is looking for in the second round. 

How important do you think the timed writing and video "interview" are? 

Im still waiting but do not mind sharing my stats!

BA in Psychology

 Cum GPA 3.2 

A in Anatomy and Physiology 1 and 2

 B+ in Micro and Stats

A in Nutrition

B in Lifespan

Worked retail jobs up until college then started working in a Derm clinic for two years doing clerical work. Volunteered in the hospital for about six months then COVID-19 hit unfortunately. My stats aren't that great and I do not have substantial work and volunteer experience. Especially medical experience.  I do feel that I am not competitive enough compared to others with so much experience.  

I think the video essay is more important than the timed writing. It gives admissions an idea of who you are and what led you this moment in your life. It takes the place of an interview so we treat it as if we are speaking to them face to face. The timed writing is also important and it shows them how well we can put ideas together and structure them in a short amount of time. 

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15 hours ago, againstthegrain said:

Hi ForeverPsych:

Thank you for your thoughtful and helpful comments.

But what I am trying to figure out, with the help of folks on this thread, is whether CUSON is the only graduate nursing program to create a de facto "early decision-like" admissions process this year, which is a completely different approach to graduate school admissions than the run-of-the-mill "staggered" one that you refer to in your above post.

Going into this application process, CUSON was my first choice. But I wasn't admitted in the first round, didn't have to give a deposit on the 29th, and can now choose between other schools (including Yale's really terrific GEPN program), which wouldn't have been possible if I had made the commitment to CUSON on the 29th.  That is the dilemma that early decision admissions creates for applicants, and in the case of applicants to CUSON this year, we weren't told before applying that the admissions process would be organized into successive "rounds," with lucky and well-qualified applicants admitted in the first round, and the rest of left to wait anxiously for the decisions in the second round. Undergraduate colleges and universities have exploited the anxiety of applicants by offering them the  option of an "early decision" which then locks them into that school. But at least applicants who choose the "early decision" route to undergraduate schools know what they've committed to. In the case of CUSON applicants, none of us knew we were going to be sorted into two rounds and that the fortunate students accepted into the first round would have to secure their spot with a deposit before they heard back from other schools.

I hope CUSON's decision to organize admissions this way this year is a "one-off," and isn't a harbinger of the kind of "arms race" admissions process that plagues undergraduate applicants anxious to secure spots in highly competitive schools in the US. But every nursing school has had a dramatic increase in applicants, had had faculty and staff working overtime to teach, practice during COVID, etc., and as far as I can tell, CUSON is the only grad program to organize admissions into what is effectively an "early decision" admissions process without informing its  applicants in advance that this was the way CUSON was going to roll.

Clearly if the admissions process had proceeded as promised (in that early e-mail) and decisions had come out earlier, rather than later, than in previous years; and the process had been explained better, more transparently, so the applicants left waiting for the second round decisions weren't left to think (hopefully unjustifiably) they were being relegated to a second-class, "wait-list" status, in the CUSON admissions process; my speculations about a de facto early decision admissions practice would be baseless. But here we are, still waiting for word about our admissions status, with only breadcrumbs of information from people who reached out to admissions last week to feed our hopes (and anxieties).

CUSON is a school worth the wait. My concern is that the applicants this year weren't allowed to choose, before applying, whether they wanted to participate in this painful process which has left so many applicants in this second round limbo. My preference would have been that CUSON followed the admissions practices of other nursing grad programs and informed all applicants simultaneously of their admissions fate, or at the very least, informed applicants that CUSON's admissions decisions would be organized into what has practically turned into an "early decisions" admissions structure. That would have been better for us and for CUSON.

Best of luck to all!

That’s a lot to unpack LOL.

Columbia was the first school to release admissions decisions of the four that I applied to. Personally, having to submit the $500 non-refundable deposit to secure my spot was a no brainer. I never felt that it stopped me from having options in terms of the other programs. If I ultimately lost the deposit then it would have been worth it to me because I wasn’t going to let $500 cost me the chance to choose the school that was the best fit - especially considering all of the programs will require taking on an absurd amount of student debt. That said, now that I’ve heard back from Yale and Vanderbilt and received their financial aid packages - Columbia is still my pick.

Good luck to all of you awaiting second round decisions!

 

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Specializes in Phlebotomy | Patient Care Technician.

I hope today is the day !!

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Hii everyone!! 
 

UPDATE: I called and they said decisions will be sent out by the end of the month.

 

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1 minute ago, michellemirjani said:

Hii everyone!! 
 

UPDATE: I called and they said decisions will be sent out by the end of the month.

 

??????????

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4 minutes ago, michellemirjani said:

Hii everyone!! 
 

UPDATE: I called and they said decisions will be sent out by the end of the month.

 

Thanks for giving us this information. This whole thing is really a joke now. Pushing dates over and over, from early feb to early mid feb to end of this Wednesday to end of feb. They might as well send the letters next year. I've been waiting anxiously for columbia decision in order to decide whether to continue with my other applications. Now, the whole thing has just become a big ball of mess.

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michellemirjani -  Did you ask about the response you were given last week?: "I called them last week and whoever I spoke to said that the office is closed tomorrow, but honestly they may have it set be released tomorrow! I was told early next week... so LATEST Wednesday"

 

 

 

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Specializes in Phlebotomy | Patient Care Technician.

Apparently, Columbia is giving everyone different estimations. They supposedly aren’t done reviewing applications. At this point I don’t even have high hopes for this month. We’ll probably get decisions in 2022  with the rate they’re going ?

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5 minutes ago, againstthegrain said:

michellemirjani -  Did you ask about the response you were given last week?: "I called them last week and whoever I spoke to said that the office is closed tomorrow, but honestly they may have it set be released tomorrow! I was told early next week... so LATEST Wednesday"

 

 

 

I did and their response was that they are still reviewing! If you want to call again and see what they say! 

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Even if I do get into CU, there is a slim chance I'll be going because of all this. If they're still reviewing apps, then EMAIL EVERYONE in group 2 and keep them informed with the process. I already feel like a second thought because of the "rounds" but now it has been over a month since group 1 received their decisions and we haven't heard a peep from admissions

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I just called and the person I spoke with said decisions will be out by the end of the month, no specific date has been given ?

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