INTERVIEW #1

Ok, it has been a while.  I have filled out lots of applications, worried a lot about not hearing anything and wondering if I ever will.  Then I filled out more applications, and more supplementary applications.  I say, even if it is late in the process, definitely apply somewhere you are interested in.

It is definitely better to get all of your letters of recommendation done early, but if you don't know any DOs (Doctor of Osteopathy), but know you will eventually meet one in your job, or elsewhere it is better to wait.  I had been told just to call up random DOs and ask them to write me a letter of recommendation even though they did not know who I was.  It is required by some osteopathic schools that you have a letter from a DO.  They require this so that they know you have some knowledge of what osteopathy is.  I, personally, think there are better ways to get a potential student to learn about the osteopathic profession; however, this is what they require.  I was lucky enough to meet several DOs over the past few months while working at WakeMed in the Emergency Department.  I decided that I would wait until they got to know me, and then ask one of them to write a letter of recommendation for me.  Apparently this was a wonderful plan.

Not one week after I submitted my completed application, letter of recommendation and all, to Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, MO, did I receive an invitation to interview at their school.  This is my first interview invitation and I was soooooo very excited when I received it.

The interview is not until March 6 or March 9, I get to choose the date.  I am waiting to decide based on if my mother is going to be able to fly out with me.  There is a slight problem, however. 

Apparently, you cannot get from Raleigh, NC to Kirksville, MO.  It is virtually impossible.  It seems that no airlines fly into the airport in Kirksville.  The next closest airport is Columbia, MO.  That is two hours away.  In order to get to Columbia, MO from Raleigh, NC one must fly to Philadelphia to Memphis or JFK to Mississippi, or any other combination of random, out of the way places, taking about 14 hours.  It is only a 18 hour drive in comparison.    This is of course making choosing a flight difficult.  Of course, I could try to fly into a different airport that is 3+ hours away.  Kansas City, MO, Iowa City, Iowa, etc. and all of these possibilities will be researched.  I just have never gone to a town that is "inaccessible" before.  

I am quite interested to see what it is like.

Anyway, hopefully more interview invitations are soon to arrive.

Praise God for his perfect timing and planning.  

~Rachel

I have received 2 denials and 1 interview invitation ... that leaves about 8 schools left to hear back from :-D