Harvard Acceptances

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

go out on March 9th... good luck to all those waiting!

Wahina · Feb 15, 2006

Do you know when the decisions are actually made? Or what the decision making process is like? I interviewed in late October, and I'm just wondering if the decision on my file has essentially been made by now and I'm just waiting to hear. Do they meet all along to rank applicants and then just make their final list at the end?

kasha · Feb 15, 2006

Mateodaspy said:
go out on March 9th... good luck to all those waiting!

any regrets turning down better financial aid packages for HMS?

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

Anyone know if that is when they go out for HST as well? I vaguely remember it saying something about late February on the HST website. 😕

dajimmers · Feb 15, 2006

Thanks for the info Mateo! Hmmm, that's in the middle of my spring break. Guess I'll get a friend to check the mail or something...

humuhumu · Feb 15, 2006

kasha said:
any regrets turning down better financial aid packages for HMS?

I've wondered the same thing.

DrCarebear · Feb 15, 2006

Mateodaspy said:
go out on March 9th... good luck to all those waiting!

Thank you, Mateodaspy! It's quite evident that you know all too well how anxious we are to hear from HMS. Thank you again. Now to keep calm until March 9th . . .

huknows00 · Feb 15, 2006

If they decision go out on the 9th it probably won't get to us until the 13 or 14th? Damn it my spring break is ruined.

KevinZ · Feb 15, 2006

I have two questions:

1) Does Harvard have waitlist movement? I understand it wouldn't be significant even if they did.

2) Will we be told our spot on the waitlist if we asked?

Thanks!

Risa · Feb 15, 2006

Thanks for letting us know, Mateo, you're our hero! 😀

06applicant · Feb 15, 2006

Wahina said:
Do you know when the decisions are actually made? Or what the decision making process is like? I interviewed in late October, and I'm just wondering if the decision on my file has essentially been made by now and I'm just waiting to hear. Do they meet all along to rank applicants and then just make their final list at the end?

This is what I always wondered. Do they make tentative decisions all year long (e.g. ranking students), or does the main committee wait until all interviews are complete before looking through the applicants that were past on from the subcommittee? By the way, I know they gave out their last invites, but have they had the last interview yet?

Mateodaspy, can you answer these? And thanks for letting me know when I should start watching the mail.

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

KevinZ said:
I have two questions:

1) Does Harvard have waitlist movement? I understand it wouldn't be significant even if they did.

2) Will we be told our spot on the waitlist if we asked?

Thanks!

Yes, there is relatively little movement off of Harvard's waitlist. For this reason, the number of waitlists they give out is quite small (since even the few people that do get on the waitlist have little chance off getting off it). I think there was only 50 on the waitlist last year, compared to 160-200 accepted outright. This info is for NP, and came from my host that I stayed with.

No clue about item #2.

edit: for what it's worth though, my host was one of the few to get in off the waitlist, so it is possible.

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

kasha said:
any regrets turning down better financial aid packages for HMS?

Try searching some of his past posts. I believe there was discussion about this when he was going through the process last year.

humuhumu · Feb 15, 2006

Bluntman said:
Try searching some of his past posts. I believe there was discussion about this when he was going through the process last year.

I do remember him agonizing about the decision back then (who wouldn't agonize about it?), but I'd like to know what his feelings are now.

dopaminesurge · Feb 15, 2006

So, uh... What about Harvard rejections? All on the same day, I hope?

06applicant · Feb 15, 2006

dopaminesurge said:
So, uh... What about Harvard rejections? All on the same day, I hope?

they say everything is mailed at the same time.

humuhumu · Feb 15, 2006

06applicant said:
they say everything is mailed at the same time.

I wonder if the online application status will be updated on the 9th, too (or thereabouts)....

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

humuhumu said:
I wonder if the online application status will be updated on the 9th, too (or thereabouts)....

"Decision notification is done by mail only under no circumstances will decision information be released by telephone or electronic mail."

-HMS website

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

Wahina said:
Do you know when the decisions are actually made? Or what the decision making process is like? I interviewed in late October, and I'm just wondering if the decision on my file has essentially been made by now and I'm just waiting to hear. Do they meet all along to rank applicants and then just make their final list at the end?

Well, interviews are still going on, so not all decisions have been made... it is my understanding that all applications are presented during a couple meetings in late Feb./early March and all applicants are given an up/down vote on their application... about a week after decisions are made, all decision letters are printed and mailed off...

humuhumu · Feb 15, 2006

Bluntman said:
"Decision notification is done by mail only under no circumstances will decision information be released by telephone or electronic mail."

-HMS website

Telephone and e-mail aren't secure; the online application status web site is. But maybe "mail only" really means "mail only."

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

Mateodaspy said:
all applicants are given an up/down vote

LOL I can just picture them all there giving a big round of thumbs up/down. Hilarious. :laugh:

Bluntman · Feb 15, 2006

humuhumu said:
Telephone and e-mail aren't secure; the online application status web site is. But maybe "mail only" really means "mail only."

Yea, I've wondered that too, since it doesn't explicitly say "not on the website". Semantics are always a killer.

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

kasha said:
any regrets turning down better financial aid packages for HMS?

It's really hard to say if I have any regrets this early on in medical school... For me, the decision to go to school in Boston was primarily a personal one (my boyfriend was going to grad school in Boston as well and it was important for me to be nearby), though I must say that HMS really has grown on me since I started here... the incredibly supportive faculty, the p/mp/f (mp=p on the transcript) grading system, the interactive curriculum -- i would die having to sit through 7-8 hrs of lecture each day (the max 2.5 hrs/day that we have here is plenty)... though, that's not to say that the school is perfect -- there are definitely some issues that need to be worked out -- some lectures tend to be too research-oriented, Boston leaves a bit to be desired (weather, social scene, transportation system), some classmates tend to be a little intense (but i suppose that's not entirely unexpected)...

However, the $$$ factor can play a pretty significant role in the final decision -- generally the well-to-do don't mind because they can either pay the tuition outright or the package at HMS is comparable to what was offered to them by other schools; the middle-income students usually end up with packages around 5-10k projected need per year less than other schools; whereas the poorest students with maximal need usually end up with some pretty serious debt relative to offers from other institutions ($100k vs. ~$50k)... In the end, it's all a very personal and difficult decision....

Good luck to everyone in the coming weeks!

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

Bluntman said:
Anyone know if that is when they go out for HST as well? I vaguely remember it saying something about late February on the HST website. 😕

All decisions are sent out at the same time...

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

1) Does Harvard have waitlist movement? I understand it wouldn't be significant even if they did.

Minimal movement -- maybe 50-60 people come off the waitlist each year...

2) Will we be told our spot on the waitlist if we asked?

Nope, but if you're on the waitlist, you have a decent shot of getting in since so few are waitlisted.

Mateodaspy · Feb 15, 2006

humuhumu said:
I wonder if the online application status will be updated on the 9th, too (or thereabouts)....

No online status updates....

Last year, there was a glitch on the financial aid website that allowed people to find out their acceptance status about a week or two early... however, I think that site is shut down this year until after decisions are mailed out...

macadamianut · Feb 15, 2006

dopaminesurge said:
So, uh... What about Harvard rejections? All on the same day, I hope?

Hey dopamine:

Just curious: Why did you apply to so few schools?

dopaminesurge · Feb 15, 2006

macadamianut said:
Hey dopamine:

Just curious: Why did you apply to so few schools?

I'm out of the country (Israel) until the summer and I can't afford to fly across the Atlantic for interviews more than once, so this year is a bit of a shot in the dark, and if I don't get in then I'll apply in earnest to a longer list next year. There's a run-on for you.

macadamianut · Feb 15, 2006

dopaminesurge said:
I'm out of the country (Israel) until the summer and I can't afford to fly across the Atlantic for interviews more than once, so this year is a bit of a shot in the dark, and if I don't get in then I'll apply in earnest to a longer list next year. There's a run-on for you.

I just thought you were ballsy. Good luck.

dopaminesurge · Feb 16, 2006

macadamianut said:
I just thought you were ballsy. Good luck.

Thanks =). And I assure you, ballsy or not, my metaphorical ballsack is shaking with fear right now. Maybe I'll feel differently in a month when decisions are in, but right now it feels like I should have waited to do it all at once and save myself the limbo.

06applicant · Feb 16, 2006

Mateodaspy said:
No online status updates....

Last year, there was a glitch on the financial aid website that allowed people to find out their acceptance status about a week or two early... however, I think that site is shut down this year until after decisions are mailed out...

What size envelope did your acceptance come in?

Indryd · Feb 16, 2006

dopaminesurge said:
Thanks =). And I assure you, ballsy or not, my metaphorical ballsack is shaking with fear right now. Maybe I'll feel differently in a month when decisions are in, but right now it feels like I should have waited to do it all at once and save myself the limbo.

Hrm...I always thought you were a she.

humuhumu · Feb 16, 2006

Indryd said:
Hrm...I always thought you were a she.

I think she is... that's why her scrotum is "metaphorical"... 🙂

Mateodaspy · Feb 16, 2006

06applicant said:
What size envelope did your acceptance come in?

large manila envelope

humuhumu · Feb 16, 2006

Do people at Harvard use Outlook for e-mail? I'm addicted to Outlook. Wherever I end up for med school, I hope I'm not forced to migrate to another application because Outlook isn't supported.

Comrade · Feb 16, 2006

humuhumu said:
Do people at Harvard use Outlook for e-mail? I'm addicted to Outlook. Wherever I end up for med school, I hope I'm not forced to migrate to another application because Outlook isn't supported.

I feel your pain. I have also accepted the simple basic truth, that Microsoft always wins.

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