Advice for those on Waitlist

[Lolita22]

Hi,
Could some med students who got accepted of the waitlist advise a fellow waitlister?
Just wondering how much I should be annoying admissions, I want to seem eager but not pushy.
I interviewed 3/29, was waitlisted 5/11, and turned in a letter of intent on 5/15. (University of Toledo)
Still haven't heard anything and was wondering whether I should call/email/write another letter??
Not to seem desperate- but if I don't get in off this waitlist, I won't be going to medical school this year. And I'm super anxious!
Any help/insight would be GREAT!!
Thank youuuuu

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[chaim123]

Once you turn in a letter of intent, it is out of your hands. You can't rush the committee, or rush deferrals, drops, etc. Start making plans for next year, and you can be pleasantly surprised if it works out.

 

[Goro]

Hi,
Could some med students who got accepted of the waitlist advise a fellow waitlister?
Just wondering how much I should be annoying admissions, I want to seem eager but not pushy.
I interviewed 3/29, was waitlisted 5/11, and turned in a letter of intent on 5/15. (University of Toledo)
Still haven't heard anything and was wondering whether I should call/email/write another letter??
Not to seem desperate- but if I don't get in off this waitlist, I won't be going to medical school this year. And I'm super anxious!
Any help/insight would be GREAT!!
Thank youuuuu

All med school applicants should consider themselves rejected and work on Plan B until they get that accept email in thier Inbox.

How would you interpret a nonbinding promise from a desperate applicant?

Here’s one Adcom member’s thoughts on the matter:

“We only invite amazing students to interview. It is quite unlikely that further good deeds or achievements will have an effect since only the students who have already wowed us are interviewed.”

“From the wise Med Ed: [What med schools…] accept and desire are two different things. My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along, but only rarely do we consider it a worthwhile addition to the package.

And yes, some of us have gotten a little jaded about LOI's. I could fill a barrel with all the post-interview correspondence I have received that has not translated into a single matriculant. This has all gotten mighty complicated and burdensome for what is essentially a zero sum game.

It's generally not burdensome for an applicant to upload something to the portal, and once in a great while it does tip us off with some useful info. I can think of one individual who had a stellar application, like Harvard/Yale/Stanford-worthy, and a superb interview, who sent us several updates and a LOI. We were somewhat perplexed by this person's tenacious interest in our program. Turns out there were family/geographical reasons behind the whole thing, the applicant just never felt comfortable directly playing that card.

When it comes down to waitlist time I will scan through what folks have uploaded post-interview. The vast majority of times it has no impact. Occasionally I have seen it hurt people's chances. Come to think of it, in my experience this is probably more likely, than such correspondence having a positive impact.

See the following for classic examples of why most Admissions deans treat these as lies.

https://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/loi-and-interviews.1252832/#post-18849958

I told a school I'd go if accepted, now not so sure

And if you still don’t believe me, read these:

HomeSkool's Guide to Letters of Intent

Second letter of intent? Help!

 

[Lolita22]

All med school applicants should consider themselves rejected and work on Plan B until they get that accept email in thier Inbox.

How would you interpret a nonbinding promise from a desperate applicant?

Here’s one Adcom member’s thoughts on the matter:

“We only invite amazing students to interview. It is quite unlikely that further good deeds or achievements will have an effect since only the students who have already wowed us are interviewed.”

“From the wise Med Ed: [What med schools…] accept and desire are two different things. My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along, but only rarely do we consider it a worthwhile addition to the package.

And yes, some of us have gotten a little jaded about LOI's. I could fill a barrel with all the post-interview correspondence I have received that has not translated into a single matriculant. This has all gotten mighty complicated and burdensome for what is essentially a zero sum game.

It's generally not burdensome for an applicant to upload something to the portal, and once in a great while it does tip us off with some useful info. I can think of one individual who had a stellar application, like Harvard/Yale/Stanford-worthy, and a superb interview, who sent us several updates and a LOI. We were somewhat perplexed by this person's tenacious interest in our program. Turns out there were family/geographical reasons behind the whole thing, the applicant just never felt comfortable directly playing that card.

When it comes down to waitlist time I will scan through what folks have uploaded post-interview. The vast majority of times it has no impact. Occasionally I have seen it hurt people's chances. Come to think of it, in my experience this is probably more likely, than such correspondence having a positive impact.

See the following for classic examples of why most Admissions deans treat these as lies.

https://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/loi-and-interviews.1252832/#post-18849958

I told a school I'd go if accepted, now not so sure

And if you still don’t believe me, read these:

HomeSkool's Guide to Letters of Intent

Second letter of intent? Help!

Thank you so much- I totally would've sent another letter of intent. I just hope the first one I turned in doesn't sound too desperate, and doesn't hurt my chances.

 

[phillipsmurfy]

Just to add to this, I find most "waitees" cant write a decent letter in the proper professional tone; they sound desperate and whiny. Someone will read and may make a comment on your summary / cover / evaluation sheet that typically is on top of the file. What more, the letter will wind up in your file and in fact may be on top as the thing in there. So if you reapply next year and they pull your old file, which they will, and see the last comment is something negative about you and then read the LOI, that may color their judgement.

Having said all that it is only May 21, this is still he first wave of waitlist acceptances which will cascade thru June in smaller and smaller waves but there will be a constant trickle up to the beginning of actual classes. I would guestimate that every school has 1 or 2 last minute drops due to health, family, loans not approved, etc. Every cycle there are people who get a call on a Friday in early August to start on Monday.

So as the old saying goes, nothing is finalized before the rotund woman vocalizes in soprano or something to that effect

How does this work? I thought people had to decide on a school by May 1st. I am waitlisted at Wake right now and they are saying their class is full. I guess I just really understand how there could possibly be any more WL movement.

 

[Pylorii]

How does this work? I thought people had to decide on a school by May 1st. I am waitlisted at Wake right now and they are saying their class is full. I guess I just really understand how there could possibly be any more WL movement.

You know those acceptances that were given to waitlist people after traffic day? What if they already had an acceptance at another school? Well they can only pick one and have to withdraw from the others, which allows more people to be accepted off waitlists. This 'cascade' continues throughout June. We are in the period where these people are forced to pick one. Here is a very general timeline I saw on a different thread:

1) mid to late April, acceptees start putting in final acceptance some WL movement
2) April 30: Final acceptances for all
3) May 1-15. Schools adjust their acceptance list, start sending out WL in earnest
4) May 7-30 (yes overlap). WL students respond
5) June 1-15 consider the second wave of WL so to speak, less than first but the cascade continues.
6) June 7-30. WL students respond. Most WL is over but not all

 

[phillipsmurfy]

You know those acceptances that were given to waitlist people after traffic day? What if they already had an acceptance at another school? Well they can only pick one and have to withdraw from the others, which allows more people to be accepted off waitlists. This 'cascade' continues throughout June. We are in the period where these people are forced to pick one. Here is a very general timeline I saw on a different thread:

Thanks that makes sense

 

[Lolita22]

Do you think it would look bad to email admissions and say something along the lines of:
"I'm on the waitlist and was just wondering when there would be a decision made for those of us waiting/how many spots are left, I'm still very interested etc etc"
Just like a little check in so you don't become a name on a list but an actual person with hopes and dreams that they could crush in an instant LOL help.

 

[chaim123]

Do you think it would look bad to email admissions and say something along the lines of:
"I'm on the waitlist and was just wondering when there would be a decision made for those of us waiting/how many spots are left, I'm still very interested etc etc"
Just like a little check in so you don't become a name on a list but an actual person with hopes and dreams that they could crush in an instant LOL help.

At best it's annoying. At worst they tell the committee you're desperate. You're on the waitlist and haven't withdrawn, they know what you want.

 

[MareNostrummm]

At best it's annoying. At worst they tell the committee you're desperate. You're on the waitlist and haven't withdrawn, they know what you want.

Call them if it's a ranked waitlist and they don't tell you your exact rank. I just called and they told me I was so far down the bottom that I had no chance. They were actually sympathetic.

 

[phillipsmurfy]

Call them if it's a ranked waitlist and they don't tell you your exact rank. I just called and they told me I was so far down the bottom that I had no chance. They were actually sympathetic.

You called wake and they told you this?

 

[MareNostrummm]

You called wake and they told you this?

I'm not on wake's waitlist.

 

[phillipsmurfy]

I'm not on wake's waitlist.

I’m an idiot. I apologize