[eunhae]

I received this letter about a nomination by one of my counselors to attend a Youth National Leadership Forum for Medicine

but, I don't know anything about it
the letter states that it's an experience with medical professionals
and it will highlight your application to top colleges

but other than that,

i have no idea what it is. -___-^
does anyone know??


AND


how are gpa's calculated?

*by semester grades?
*how much for honors?
*do honors and AP count the same?
* are they weighted/unweighted?

so correct me if im wrong:
A/A+ - 5
B/B+ - 4
C/C+ - 3
D/D+ - 2
(all for honors/ap classes?)
??

[fefifoe2001]

yea, i was nominated for the forum for the past 2 years, but have never gone. my friends went last year and they said it was pretty pointless. you don't really learn anything; you just walk around hospitals and tour places. it's more like a social thing than actually something that will go on your transcript. my friend said that it changed his mind about being a doctor because he could never be able to deal with all that blood and gore. i personally don't think it's worth $2000 for 10 days.

different schools have different ways of calculating gpa. i think you should ask a high school teacher or your college guidance counselor about it. they'll probably be more informative than me.

[eunhae]

GAHHH
So it doesnt help you on your college apps?
what do you do?
attend seminars//walk around hospitals? T_T
but wouldnt it benefit you in some way if one of the hospitals it works with is John Hopkins, and you want to go to
John Hopkins?

[l jennzie xOxO l]

Even if you do a summer program AT the colleges themselves that are associated with them, they still say that just because you do it won't necessarily help you at all in terms of admissions. These programs are money based...they need to make money? My friend did a two month engineering program at Stanford that was associated with the university itself, but she was straight out rejected Early Action this year. So..I wouldn't count on it to do much. Plus these programs are so common...and they're not very exclusive? All it would show them is that you have money to spend to pursue an interest. They will probably only see it as an extension of your interest, which might ultimately help you. =] I think if you have the money and are willing to spend it then go ahead? It's probably not going to be that GREAT of a program, like someone else mentioned my friend went too and it was a lot of looking..watching...listening.. hehe If you want to anything else, I could ask my friend for you.

Oh! one last thing, she did mention it was really fun in terms of socially. haha There's a lot of people there your own age and she met a lot of great people, but remember it does come at a price! Good luck in deciding!

[flyaway]

i heard it's a ripoff they just want your money =x
if you want to do a really good program, try ones from actually colleges

[eunhae]

well, it doesnt hurt you when applying to colleges right?


i derno, $2000 sounds like a LOT of money T_T!!!!
and only 10 days? ...ehhh

[revontulet]

I got a nomination too, and I plan on going on it, IF I get a scholarship I applied for, which I highly doubt :/. My upperclassman friend said that it was good and that she enjoyed it. She went to the one in Washington D.C. (the one I'm planning on going) and she got to see an open heart surgery (WOWOW<3) AND that after going to it, she set her heart on becoming a doctor even more. So all I got was good reactions from my friend, maybe it was just a difference of opinions?

Also to the people who said it was just LOOKING, LISTENING, and WATCHING, the people you will probably encounter in the hospitals are patients, and obviously, since we are not certified doctors/interns, what else would we do? oh and also, I REALLY HOPE that this isn't a ripoff lolol

[sgwannabe]

I actually went. If you're an Asian, be prepared for a white people invasion. hahah But, overall...I think it was kind of a dragged out program. Alot of the time, the speakers said the same thing over and over again and the meetings were kind of long. BUT, the cool thing was that you got to go into universities and look at cadavers and some even got to see real live surgeries.

[eunhae]

its good to hear some positive feedback
my hopes were being shot down T_T
im going to the one in washington d.c too!
:]

white people invasion 0_0
like, how. lol

[joonage]

I got nominated too ... I wanted to go, but two grand for ten days was way too much ...

And plus they don't cover airfare ... I even emailed the main dude saying that it should come to UW Medical Center ... since I don't want to pay for airfare out of Seattle + Program fees ...

I'd love to see a surgery though ... that'd be so cool ...

[z00ey]

HAHAH. i went to NYLF for Medicine.. i went to Villanova, PA the summer of `05

i pretty much had fun.. i went to the forum to test out if the medical field was for me...
[coming from a family of doctors/nurses =__=;; haha i didn't want to be pre-destined for medicine]

basically you attend lectures, do medical-assignment drills,
are assigned a group, go on trips.. i was lucky enough to have
been in the group chosen to go to upenn med school. [the other groups in the forum went to
other neighboring med schools.]

i got to see a cadaver and hold a real brain O_O, and watch a pacemaker operation.
you learn alot about the medical school process too [which was pointless to me, since at that time i wanted
to be a biomed engineer... and would still be pointless, just because i knew for a fact i would change
my career choice come college time] made alot of friends too! coincidentally all boys...o_O HAHA i didn't
think of it as a 'white invasion' there were alot of indian kids o_o; very little asian kids. it's funny though,
when you see kids at the forum who live like a town away from you or go to a neighboring school.

basically i had alot of fun.. did i get ALOT out of it? Eh, not really.. honestly.. i just made alot of friendships..

i always get these leadership things in the mail.. my mom tells me if i went to a million of them, colleges would
think more along the lines of, "she's got money" vs. "she's a 'real' leader"

[tuttyfruit]

i got nominated by my chemistry teacher. actually he asked our class if anyone was interested in going. im going but im not going because im hoping it will help me later on in my transcript.... im just going to see if i really want to become a doctor and just to experience how it is like to be part of such environment.

i really do want to go to med school and become a doctor. i want to become a neurosurgeon or a cardiothoracic surgeon one day...

[iced*chai.latte]

Yeah, I got one too. I have no clue who nominated me though, I put that I was considering pre med on my PSAT but I haven't exactly been spewing interest in the medical field.

I don't know, it seems sort of interesting and there's one in LA so I wouldn't need to cover airfare or anything. But I sort of want to go to the program in another city.

[heartdrops]

I got one too. I was actually considering to go to it with my friend since it's available where I live but.. iono, still undecided.

[becky]

I got one too, but I don't think I'm going... at least not this summer.
Maybe next?
It seems interesting though.

[philophobia.]

i got one too.
basically eu get it if eu put medicine or anything medicine related on ur psat.
i asked all my friends who took kthe psat they got them :]
well anywaiis
im thinking of going to the l.a. one./
sigh i was so sure but now everything is making me doubt

[GL0W*]

This was a nomination?!

I really want to go but it interferes with my intended schedule for summer (no, I'm not taking a vacation or partying or shopping I have SAT prep school, which starts early) and the earliest session starts before my last day of school.

And two grands for ten days?

I really hope they'll send me another nomination next year, when I'm done with the SATs and stuff. Blah.

[alicimoo]

^They're not always nominations. Sometimes they just get your information from college surveys and other stuff.

My parents wanted me to go but I decided not to because someone in the other thread made a very good point that colleges only truly care about programs that WANT you and won't make you pay/pay a lot.