Hey everyone- I was waitlisted, Tier 1. Congrats to all those who were accepted! Now for a bit of a long post (sorry that it's so long!):
After looking at last year's thread, it seems like there was a lot of uncertainty about the tiered waitlists. It looks that Tier 1 can be broken down into at least two groups: those who are invited to Penn Preview (I'm unclear as to whether this invitation is included in the admissions decision or not) and those who aren't. If you got the invitation to attend Penn Preview, there's a good (surefire?) chance that you'll get accepted eventually. I gather that the "400" number given on the waitlist Q&A corresponds to solely Tier 1, but this could be wrong (and I hope it is given that even 50 out of 400 is a very low percentage, not to mention 12/400).
Last year, there was a lot of debate about what was said in the letters of those who were waitlisted. Some people may have been invited to second look in that letter (again, unclear) and some people might have been told that they were "very highly regarded." Because I hate uncertainty and love Penn and want to know whether I should realistically keep dreaming, I'd like to post the wording of my letter. If anyone else on Tier 1 got something different, please copy and paste your letter's wording. The rest of us would surely appreciate it.
🙂
My letter:
."The Committee on Admissions has completed its review of your application for admission. We enjoyed meeting you during our interview program and found you to be a highly qualified applicant..
."The limitation on the number of places available in the class does not allow us to offer you an acceptance at this time. However, because the Committee thought highly of your qualifications we are placing your name on a waitlist for admission. Decisions on acceptances from the waitlist may be made at any time, but generally take place no earlier than April 15 and no later than August 8. While there is no individual rank on the waitlist, the Committee has divided the waitlist into two tiers..
."You are on the first tier waitlist, along with other very competitive applicants. We encourage you to visit the waitlist website at
http://www.med.upenn.edu/apps/my/pennmed_application where there is additional information for waitlist candidates (i.e. Waitlist Questions and Answers, information about Penn and Philadelphia). Please know that there is no way to estimate your chances for admission from the waitlist..
."We hope that you will confirm your interest in Penn by completing the Waitlist Response Form on the web so that we may continue to consider your application for admission. If you know that you are committed to attending another medical school and do not wish us to consider your application further, please withdraw your application on the web. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid (215-898-8001).".
...or not??
). Do you need to mail them a letter/form back asap or can you email your response? Do they give you a week at least? Any insight on the issue would be greatly appreciated. 
