David Altshuler, M.S.
(305) 978-8917 | [email protected]

Category: College Admissions

Study

One of my old students is preparing for an exam. Apparently the results will determine where she gets to practice medicine or what kind of medicine she gets to practice or something else of consequence. It’s not clear to me. Honestly, I no longer understand a word this woman says.

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No Agenda

“Do people have a tendency to dump on you?” asked Paul Simon in 1966. I would answer in the affirmative in that just this morning I was subjected to a lengthy insight into a neighbor’s digestive health. Did I begin the conversation by inquiring about his recent medical procedure? I

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“I vote ‘no,’ Mr. President.”

President Lincoln: How do you vote Mr. Seward? William Seward: The Secretary of State of the United States votes “no.” President Lincoln: Thank you, Mr. Seward. Mr. Cameron, how do you vote? Simon Cameron: The Secretary of War of the United States of America votes “no.” President Lincoln: Thank you,

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Vocab

After Hurricane Andrew knocked my South Florida community back to the Pleistocene, my commute became surreal. It could have been worse. Hundreds of people lost their homes. I lost only my patience as my drive home was measured in geological time. At least I had a roof–even if that roof

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Man Bites Dog!

Planes that don’t crash are not headlines. “Sun Sets in West” will not appear in 72-point type above the fold. “Man bites dog,” instructs that uncommon stories are the ones reported. But what is to be said of an adolescent biting his father? Admittedly, the young man also allegedly punched

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Reject

Jim Lovell’s rejection was based on a medical condition which, as it turned out, he didn’t even have. Nonetheless, rejected he was. The Mercury Seven astronauts were seven somebody elses. John Glenn, Alan Shepard, and Gus Grissom made the cut. Jim Lovell did not. Lovell had experience with rejection. He

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The Lottery

It’s all so simple in retrospect. Maybe I shouldn’t give away the secret. But I feel an obligation. Why should I be the only one to win? Everyone can win! It’s so straight forward. Here is exactly what I did. If you do the same thing, your results will be

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Two Questions

One of my son’s friends consistently sets the curve in their medical school class. Ellen scored in the 99th percentile on STEP 1. Ellen scored in the 100th percentile on USMLE. (On the United States Medical Licensing Exam scores above 99.5 are rounded up.) Arguably the hardest and most competitive

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The Scarlett Pumpernickel

That the Scarlett Pumpernickel was voted the 31st best cartoon of all time by members of the animation field is no surprise. Every frame is beyond brilliant. Daffy Duck portrays the title character, a swashbuckler replete with bandana. Sylvester the Cat plays the stuttering malefactor. Note the plume on the

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O Bitter Victory

Robert was, by his own admission, in trouble. His trigonometry final was eight days out. The exam covered logarithms and conic sections as well. With the ink still wet on my undergraduate math degree, I considered myself something of a F-15 pilot: I can communicate anything to anybody in any

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Copyright © David Altshuler 1980 – 2022    |    Miami, FL • Charlotte, NC     |    (305) 978-8917    |    [email protected]