35 days of silence

[medstudent257]

Is it normal to have 2 IIs in the beginning of august, and then have 35 days of consecutive silence? I was complete at most schools by late July and early August. Is it safe to say that the other schools have past over me?

 

[onyxbell]

Think about it. You dodged those rejection letters like a champ

 

[bananafish94]

You have TWO INTERVIEWS!
You're going to be just fine.

 

[medstudent257]

You have TWO INTERVIEWS!
You're going to be just fine.

I know everyone says that, but I just don't believe so. I could easily get waitlisted at both of the schools...

 

[medstudent257]

Think about it. You dodged those rejection letters like a champ

I'm worried if I got silently rejected lol.

 

[ChymeofPassion]

Goro isn't here, so I'll say it.

"Applications are not necessarily reviewed in chronological order or invited for interview at time of review. Superstars, linked programs, associated UG institutions, family of alumni, grads of feeder schools, URMs people who meet the school’s mission, in-state residents for state schools, linked post-bac programs like SMPs, and other factors may push an app forward in the process."

 

[LizzyM]

You are good enough to get two interviews early in the season. Here's what could be happening at some of the other schools:

You have been reviewed and the school has you in the queue to send you a rejection letter but won't do it until after new year to avoid spoiling your holidays -- or because they enjoy stringing you along.

The school likes your application but thinks there might be better applicants in the pool so they are holding off making an invite until they know there are no better applicants out there.

The school likes your application but has filled every interview slot from now until Thanksgiving. Given that people who book interviews 2 months in advance might have a change of plans and then cancel after early offers come out - thus making more work for the school, the school will wait and send you an interview invite in mid November.

The school has assigned your application to the faculty member who is not keeping up with the workload for whatever reason. Your application will languish in their "IN Box" until the Dean gets back from the AAMC meeting in November at which point the Dean will come to the realization that Professor X is a tremendous disappointment and your application and 48 others will be distributed to another hard working adcom member who always completes their assignments on time (no rest for the weary). Then you'll get queued for an interview but not invited until after New Year.

 

[medstudent257]

You are good enough to get two interviews early in the season. Here's what could be happening at some of the other schools:

You have been reviewed and the school has you in the queue to send you a rejection letter but won't do it until after new year to avoid spoiling your holidays -- or because they enjoy stringing you along.

The school likes your application but thinks there might be better applicants in the pool so they are holding off making an invite until they know there are no better applicants out there.

The school likes your application but has filled every interview slot from now until Thanksgiving. Given that people who book interviews 2 months in advance might have a change of plans and then cancel after early offers come out - thus making more work for the school, the school will wait and send you an interview invite in mid November.

The school has assigned your application to the faculty member who is not keeping up with the workload for whatever reason. Your application will languish in their "IN Box" until the Dean gets back from the AAMC meeting in November at which point the Dean will come to the realization that Professor X is a tremendous disappointment and your application and 48 others will be distributed to another hard working adcom member who always completes their assignments on time (no rest for the weary). Then you'll get queued for an interview but not invited until after New Year.

I see. Always appreciate your input, LizzyM. I must of really hit the missions of the other two schools I guess. So I guess it's not unheard of to apply to schools in July and not here back from them until Nov-Dec-Jan. Do you think it would be a safe bet to add a few DO schools to the mix? I applied to 27 MD schools total.

 

[CloverBale]

You have been reviewed and the school has you in the queue to send you a rejection letter but won't do it until after new year to avoid spoiling your holidays -- or because they enjoy stringing you along.

What med schools seriously do that ?

 

[Lawper]

You are good enough to get two interviews early in the season. Here's what could be happening at some of the other schools:

You have been reviewed and the school has you in the queue to send you a rejection letter but won't do it until after new year to avoid spoiling your holidays -- or because they enjoy stringing you along.

The school likes your application but thinks there might be better applicants in the pool so they are holding off making an invite until they know there are no better applicants out there.

The school likes your application but has filled every interview slot from now until Thanksgiving. Given that people who book interviews 2 months in advance might have a change of plans and then cancel after early offers come out - thus making more work for the school, the school will wait and send you an interview invite in mid November.

The school has assigned your application to the faculty member who is not keeping up with the workload for whatever reason. Your application will languish in their "IN Box" until the Dean gets back from the AAMC meeting in November at which point the Dean will come to the realization that Professor X is a tremendous disappointment and your application and 48 others will be distributed to another hard working adcom member who always completes their assignments on time (no rest for the weary). Then you'll get queued for an interview but not invited until after New Year.

I believe these reasons illustrate how arbitrary and unpredictable the admissions process is. Maybe even... wait for it... random

 

[LizzyM]

I believe these reasons illustrate how arbitrary and unpredictable the admissions process is. Maybe even... wait for it... random

Yes, who is assigned your application can be random and that luck of the draw can mean you get an early interview or a later one but the decision to admit you, in the end, will not be random but very rational.

Does it bring your application back to their attention to send updates or letters of interest? Meaning, if your application is on hold, will they look at it again more closely right after you send updates/LOIs?

Nope. Not at my school. Someone in the back office will upload the document into your file but we'd never finish our work if we had to go back and review again every time an "update" came in.

You have been reviewed and the school has you in the queue to send you a rejection letter but won't do it until after new year to avoid spoiling your holidays -- or because they enjoy stringing you along.

What med schools seriously do that ?

Half joking... some schools will postpone the inevitable because the focus is on filling the class and not sending the bad news, and receiving the subsequent requests for feedback, reconsideration, etc, until late in the season. That also prevents the rejection of someone who is going to end up needing a "courtesy interview" when it comes to light that the applicant has a VIP willing to pull some strings for 'em.

I see. Always appreciate your input, LizzyM. I must of really hit the missions of the other two schools I guess. So I guess it's not unheard of to apply to schools in July and not here back from them until Nov-Dec-Jan. Do you think it would be a safe bet to add a few DO schools to the mix? I applied to 27 MD schools total.

If you applied to well targeted schools and have 2 interview already, I'd sit tight. It is likely that you'll have at least one more before the cycle is over and unless you are toxic in person or a very marginal candidate that is only fit for the waitlist, it is likely you'll get at least one offer by next May.

 

[gonnif]

Goro isn't here, so I'll say it.

"Applications are not necessarily reviewed in chronological order or invited for interview at time of review. Superstars, linked programs, associated UG institutions, family of alumni, grads of feeder schools, URMs people who meet the school’s mission, in-state residents for state schools, linked post-bac programs like SMPs, and other factors may push an app forward in the process."

He stole that from me, that thief. And I thought I was the gonnif around here

 

[Lawper]

Yes, who is assigned your application can be random and that luck of the draw can mean you get an early interview or a later one but the decision to admit you, in the end, will not be random but very rational.

If the randomness contributes to early vs late interview, this would also indirectly affect the final decision on acceptances in the case of rolling schools, right? If I applied to a rolling school early and my application got stuck in an unavailable reviewer's inbox for months, by the reviewer reads/approves my application and sends me an interview invite, the school may have given out dozens of acceptances and is essentially booked. So I would be essentially interviewing for a waitlist purely due to external circumstances and random factors.

 

[PreMedMissteps]

Is it normal to have 2 IIs in the beginning of august, and then have 35 days of consecutive silence? I was complete at most schools by late July and early August. Is it safe to say that the other schools have past over me?

Yes. Normal.

Many schools have had their focus on ED students, so many haven't issued many (or any) II's for RD students.

 

[CCresearcher]

Is it normal to have 2 IIs in the beginning of august, and then have 35 days of consecutive silence? I was complete at most schools by late July and early August. Is it safe to say that the other schools have past over me?

My application cycle started off very similarly to yours. I got three interview invitations very early on (and two were for different tracks in the same school), then heard nothing for over a month. Like you, I started to get really nervous and questioned all my choices, and started to assume I wouldn't get in anywhere. And then I got six more interview invitations. I now attend my dream school.

There are two very important lessons for any premed in this. One is to not compare yourself to other applicants or whatever schedule you think you "should" hear back by (that you've made up). The application cycle is different for everyone and there really isn't a standard path. And lesson two is to not read into silence from schools. As shown by the wise LizzyM's post, there are any number of reasons you might not have heard anything, and you have no way of knowing which one it is. It can be really difficult as an applicant, but frankly it's out of your hands at this point, so it's best not to spend too much time focusing on it.

 

[boogiecousins94]

I applied to 30 schools complete between 7/25 and 8/7. Rejected from 2 and complete silence at the other 28. Based on the individual school forums here, some of the schools I've been compete at since July have had no problems rejecting or interviewing people before and after my completion date. I know they must stratify apps but its still strange. Maybe schools hold you off as LizzyM says until they send II to the best and send the "second tier" II at some later timepoint so maybe silence is actually good especially if people are currently being rejected? Idk haha

 

[LizzyM]

If the randomness contributes to early vs late interview, this would also indirectly affect the final decision on acceptances in the case of rolling schools, right? If I applied to a rolling school early and my application got stuck in an unavailable reviewer's inbox for months, by the reviewer reads/approves my application and sends me an interview invite, the school may have given out dozens of acceptances and is essentially booked. So I would be essentially interviewing for a waitlist purely due to external circumstances and random factors.

Nope. Not at my school anyway. Let's say we plan to interview 900 candidates to make offers to 300. (These numbers are totally fiction and just for illustration.) We'll interview 300 and make offers to 75. We'll do that twice more. So, at that point, we've made 225 offers and have 675 applicants to whom we haven't made offers. We'll take the top 75 of that group of 675 and we have our 300. A subset of the 600 left over will be waitlisted and the rest will be declined admission. The applicants interviewed on the last day have as much chance of being admitted as the applicants interviewed on day #1.

 

[LizzyM]

Hmmm so what is the point of sending in a LOI if they may not make it back around to your app again?

I've often said that there is little point of a LOI unless the school tells you that they want to see a LOI.

 

[Nucleophile1]

Relax. I had months of silence and I was accepted on my first application cycle.

 

[Lawper]

Nope. Not at my school anyway. Let's say we plan to interview 900 candidates to make offers to 300. (These numbers are totally fiction and just for illustration.) We'll interview 300 and make offers to 75. We'll do that twice more. So, at that point, we've made 225 offers and have 675 applicants to whom we haven't made offers. We'll take the top 75 of that group of 675 and we have our 300. A subset of the 600 left over will be waitlisted and the rest will be declined admission. The applicants interviewed on the last day have as much chance of being admitted as the applicants interviewed on day #1.

That's actually an efficient method that minimizes these biases. I guess your school's admissions process approaches things rationally and systematically

 

[onyxbell]

If I sound preachy, I'm really sorry. I don't really know how to phrase it properly.

I'm a die-hard fan of ice cream and in grade school I dreamt of being able to binge on a tub to replace a meal. Heck even my undergrad college dining hall's all-you-can-eat softserve influenced me somewhat a few years back in another decision making juncture. However, I'm sure majority of the parents will just tell you to shut up and eat your broccoli or peas or whatever if you even think about the ice cream meal replacement plan, or at least mine did. Back then they didn't explain why, and I doubt I would internalize their rationale anyway. I was not in the right state of mind.

It's similar here. The Dead Silence Squad is a miserable place, and I'm in it with you still. So in our cognitive dissonance we forgo the advice from those who survived this ordeal or those who are in a position-of-control. But ultimately, that ice cream advice worked out in the end, albeit that required us to "trust" (or more like acquiesce to) our parents. Here it is okay if in your mind those advice "doesn't really apply in your case with your stats and your EC blah blah blah". It is okay if you dwell in episodes of neurotic panic. Yet, even if all external factors disappear, you need to "trust" in yourselves: your past self for laboring through MCAT prep, your current self for applying to your individual target schools, and your future self that will thank you for pulling it through once more.

My sugar-high tend to run wild occasionally, and my local supermarket had a sale of $7 for 2 pints B&J, and I finished them all for dinner

 

[gonnif]

Hmmm so what is the point of sending in a LOI if they may not make it back around to your app again?

Yes why indeed!

 

[seedbrage]

I applied to 34 schools with > 50 days of silence at this point. You should be happy you have two already.

 

[gonnif]

And now the bad news, for some of you, the cycle will drag on until late July or early August with the late WL acceptance.