Always Waitlisted, Not yet accepted

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notgettingin

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Anyone else really frustrated? I keep getting waitlisted. And I really don't think it has anything to do with my interview skills. At one of the schools, my interviewer emailed me and told me I did really well. That he could not make any promises, but that he would speak favorably for me.

My last interview, I was also told that I did really well at the end....

AHHH I am now waitlisted at 3 schools, waiting to hear back from 1, and have 1 interview upcoming. I am getting scared. Anyone else feel like the decision has kind of been made before you even show up? How much does an interview really help if 3 or 4 people on the admissions committee (who have never met you) are anti your application to begin with?
 
is there something on your app that makes you appear unappealing?
 
yes my low cum. 3.35, result of a very poor first degree (2.75), followed by a very high second degree in bio (3.94)

I KNOW it's hurting me. My question is why are they bothering to interview me if I am just going to get waitlisted. Everything else in my application is great across the board- EC's, LOR's, interview feedback. 🙁
 
notgettingin said:
Anyone else really frustrated? I keep getting waitlisted. And I really don't think it has anything to do with my interview skills. At one of the schools, my interviewer emailed me and told me I did really well. That he could not make any promises, but that he would speak favorably for me.

My last interview, I was also told that I did really well at the end....

AHHH I am now waitlisted at 3 schools, waiting to hear back from 1, and have 1 interview upcoming. I am getting scared. Anyone else feel like the decision has kind of been made before you even show up? How much does an interview really help if 3 or 4 people on the admissions committee (who have never met you) are anti your application to begin with?
Click to expand...
I don't think it's your first degree. You've definitely proved yourself. Once you make it to the interview, it's usually not solely an academic red flag (GPA, MCAT) that leads to multiple waitlists. This would defeat the entire purpose of the interview. Three possible reasons for this pattern are: 1) applying VERY late, 2) a luke-warm premedical committee letter (it happens!) 3) something you are doing/saying at the interview that rubs the interviewer the wrong way. The latter happens more often than applicants realize - especially when they are nervous. Take heart: you just need one offer of admission and, remember, waitlists do move. Good luck!
 
notgettingin,

i know how u feel as i am on 3 waitlists now...
 
Scottish Chap said:
I don't think it's your first degree. You've definitely proved yourself. Once you make it to the interview, it's usually not solely an academic red flag (GPA, MCAT) that leads to multiple waitlists. This would defeat the entire purpose of the interview. Three possible reasons for this pattern are: 1) applying VERY late, 2) a luke-warm premedical committee letter (it happens!) 3) something you are doing/saying at the interview that rubs the interviewer the wrong way. The latter happens more often than applicants realize - especially when they are nervous. Take heart: you just need one offer of admission and, remember, waitlists do move. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks 🙂 I did apply VERY late. I know he shouldn't do this, but my last interviewer actually read portions of my pre-med committee letter to me. It was really good, quoted 'best in class' etc. and basically told me that my LOR's were very strong. Also, 2 of my interviewers have told me that I had a very strong interview. So it's either applying very late, or that my interviewers were lying to me ?, or that my red flags are really causing it, which scares me.
 
What sort of range are these schools in as far as ranking, the ones you're waitlisted at? If they're low then maybe they don't think you'd actually come if admitted?
 
notgettingin said:
Thanks 🙂 I did apply VERY late. I know he shouldn't do this, but my last interviewer actually read portions of my pre-med committee letter to me. It was really good, quoted 'best in class' etc. and basically told me that my LOR's were very strong. Also, 2 of my interviewers have told me that I had a very strong interview. So it's either applying very late, or that my interviewers were lying to me ?, or that my red flags are really causing it, which scares me.
Click to expand...
Interviewers REALLY shouldn't say anything to applicants about their performance. It creates a mixture of false hope/concern, and if things do not go as an applicant wants....you see the issue we have. In the end, it's possible to have a genuinely strong interview but still be waitlisted or worse and it may be because an offer of admission really is a committee decision and you must impress them all - even those that did not meet you. The Director of Admissions at a private medical school I interviewed at a couple of years ago told me that one of my interviewers was sitting on the committee that year....and she said the committee consists of 24 people - physicians, school administrators, medical students, and preclinical faculty. I had a GREAT interview with this person and I was admitted; I like to think it was my good fortune that he was on that committee and so he could give a first-hand account that I was not an idiot. You can see why winning a place in ANY medical school is quite an achievement. Good luck; I hope you get some good news!
 
soco said:
What sort of range are these schools in as far as ranking, the ones you're waitlisted at? If they're low then maybe they don't think you'd actually come if admitted?
Click to expand...

So far the three that I am waitlisted at are all state schools (instate), and I came from an instate state school myself. I expressed multiple times that I was really interested in the state schools. This is so frustrating..maybe I am not interviewing as well as I thought? Then why would they say that I am?
 
notgettingin said:
yes my low cum. 3.35, result of a very poor first degree (2.75), followed by a very high second degree in bio (3.94)

I KNOW it's hurting me. My question is why are they bothering to interview me if I am just going to get waitlisted. Everything else in my application is great across the board- EC's, LOR's, interview feedback. 🙁
Click to expand...
Don't feel bad...I've got a better GPA and I still have 0 acceptances, 2 waitlists, and only 1 interview coming up.
 
Scottish Chap said:
Interviewers REALLY shouldn't say anything to applicants about their performance. It creates a mixture of false hope/concern, and if things do not go as an applicant wants....you see the issue we have. In the end, it's possible to have a genuinely strong interview but still be waitlisted or worse and it may be because an offer of admission really is a committee decision and you must impress them all - even those that did not meet you. The Director of Admissions at a private medical school I interviewed at a couple of years ago told me that one of my interviewers was sitting on the committee that year....and she said the committee consists of 24 people - physicians, school administrators, medical students, and preclinical faculty. I had a GREAT interview with this person and I was admitted; I like to think it was my good fortune that he was on that committee and so he could give a first-hand account that I was not an idiot. You can see why winning a place in ANY medical school is quite an achievement. Good luck; I hope you get some good news!
Click to expand...

Thanks. See this is what scares me that the rest of the committee is put off by my poor early GPA. I wish we could go up in front of the whole committee and have them fire questions at us. OK maybe not. That sounds terrifying 😀
 
Out of curiosity how does this whole "you did really well" thing play out with interviewers? I've never had an interviewer tell me that and I think I would be weirded out if at the end they shook my hand and were like "you did great!"

So when/how do they say it?
 
notgettingin said:
yes my low cum. 3.35, result of a very poor first degree (2.75), followed by a very high second degree in bio (3.94)

I KNOW it's hurting me. My question is why are they bothering to interview me if I am just going to get waitlisted. Everything else in my application is great across the board- EC's, LOR's, interview feedback. 🙁
Click to expand...

Hey, I definitely feel your pain. I do have an acceptance, but I'm pretty much waitlisted at 4/5 of the places I interviewed. I don't think I'm a social weirdo either and I thought most of my interviews went really well.

This can lead to the debate of whether the interview is all that matters once you get there. And I think for the most part the answer is no... If you're behind other applicants to begin with and you do well during your interview, you might still be behind if everyone else does well too.
 
similar story here....

hold and/or waitlist at 3/4 schools- one of those was today :-(
luckily i received my first acceptance last weekend


it's not my interviews- it's my undergrad gpa.
can't overcome it even with an almost phd.........

no need to discuss the phd stuff- i'm tired of thinking about it 😴
 
Same here....it is frusturating
 
Keep the faith man, it's not over yet. What are your stats like?
 
GPA =3.7
MCVAT= 31L (11-7-13)
EC- tutor, research, volunteer at children's hospital & nursing home, shadow, math masters coach, mentor program
 
notgettingin said:
So far the three that I am waitlisted at are all state schools (instate), and I came from an instate state school myself. I expressed multiple times that I was really interested in the state schools. This is so frustrating..maybe I am not interviewing as well as I thought? Then why would they say that I am?
Click to expand...
Hey I have one acceptance, but I know how you feel about being told "you're great" and then being waitlisted. It happened to me at this one school where the interview day went AMAZING and the interviewer kept praising me. It was very irritating to be waitlisted, even though I knew I couldn't take anything the interviewer said for granted.

Also, in terms of why I've received so many rejections or even a rejection post-interview, it seems that my AMCAS was kinda lame. The chronology of my clinical experiences was slightly unclear. I asked myself the same question. Why would you interview me if you are just going to reject me? Schools shouldn't be reviewing and then interviewing and then re-reviewing the same info with the interview. Because, even if you have a great interview, they might have known from the get-go that something from your app was weak. Weird...this whole process is s a crapshoot.
 
The "them" are the other interviewees. You are in the pool with superstars. Imagine your same application but with a 3.94 for that first degree. Those applicants are collecting offer letters right and left. When the dust settles they can only attend one medical school and they are going to release the seats they hold at other schools. That's when the school turns to you. You are acceptable but no adcom in its right mind would choose someone with your credentials over superstars who came off as sincere in the interview (they may have interviewed before receiving the offers and they were very sincere in their interest to attend).

Waitlist means that you made the team but for now you are going to sit on the bench.
 
Hi notgettingin. The application cycle is an emotional roller coaster and you need to keep your hopes up. Maybe you should change your name to something like hopingtogetin...? As LizzyM said, once people with multiple acceptances decide where they're going, there should be some waitlist movement. Also, have you sent any update letters or letters of interest to your schools?
 
Dang I like that analogy. It's like being last pick in gym class, atleast you still get to play dodgeball.
 
hey notgettingin (you should be more of an optimist really). Did you talk about your first degree at your interviews? At interviews I thought were going very well, and the person was saying that I was a great applicant, etc... I would tell them, "well the weak point in my application is... and to explain it to the committee...." and they loved it, and I got in... I too have a low GPA for my first degree - 3.1 (2.7 BCPM). And so far, I have 5 acceptances, all ranked in the top 40... I know some people avoid talking about their weaknesses, but I know the interviewer is going back to committee and she/he, not me has to defend my app... so I like to prepare them.
 
PeripateticMD said:
hey notgettingin (you should be more of an optimist really). Did you talk about your first degree at your interviews? At interviews I thought were going very well, and the person was saying that I was a great applicant, etc... I would tell them, "well the weak point in my application is... and to explain it to the committee...." and they loved it, and I got in... I too have a low GPA for my first degree - 3.1 (2.7 BCPM). And so far, I have 5 acceptances, all ranked in the top 40... I know some people avoid talking about their weaknesses, but I know the interviewer is going back to committee and she/he, not me has to defend my app... so I like to prepare them.
Click to expand...

I cycle between being really optimistic, and then back to feeling like I am never going to get in. Nature of the beast I suppose. Congrats on the acceptances 😀 As for my interviews, I make sure to mention my past weakness, explain what happened, and then I move on to why things are different now. So I am not avoiding the topic. Oh well, guess I just have to wait it out.....
 
I share your pain. Bunch of WL's here and no acceptances.
 
Yeah, I like LizzyM's analogy too. But I would like to point out that you have interviewed at five schools, so there is definitely something there on the paper that the adcoms like. The chances are pretty good one of them will pull you off the proverbial bench once all the academic hot-shots have to choose. (I should know, I played soccer in high school, and was the third string left midfielder . . . but I still got to play!) But yeah, I hope that gives you some solace. The fact is, this game is all about hurry up and wait, except now with the interviews over, this is the last time you're gonna have to do it. Keep your chin up, and keep in mind that all it takes is one.
 
LizzyM said:
The "them" are the other interviewees. You are in the pool with superstars. Imagine your same application but with a 3.94 for that first degree. Those applicants are collecting offer letters right and left. When the dust settles they can only attend one medical school and they are going to release the seats they hold at other schools. That's when the school turns to you. You are acceptable but no adcom in its right mind would choose someone with your credentials over superstars who came off as sincere in the interview (they may have interviewed before receiving the offers and they were very sincere in their interest to attend).

Waitlist means that you made the team but for now you are going to sit on the bench.
Click to expand...

I hate riding the pine.
 
I got waitlisted on my first 4 interviews and finally accepted on the 5th so stay positive. All the interviews went about the same so I wouldn't get down on yourself about the interviews. If you were a bad interviewee you would have been rejected post-interview.

If you have research experience then find someone at the school where you have your last interview that works in that area and mention that you would like to work with them in the future. I did this at my 5th interview and got to actually meet the person. I think that really helped me get in.
 
Last edited:
I totally feel ya..especially about the emotion cycling thing. I wish you the best of luck! Hang in there. Is it possible for you to take a vacation just for a weekend, somewhere that can get your mind off all this?

The worst for me has been when the interviewer tells you they really like you, and even tells you the day the ADCOM is meeting, and that you they expect you should get a phone call shortly thereafter--and then you hear nothing. Bleh.
 
I especially feel you because I am on 5 waitlists.
 
LizzyM said:
Waitlist means that you made the team but for now you are going to sit on the bench.
Click to expand...

Excellent analogy - I have to use that one!

3 waitlists and 2 waiting to find out . . . waiting is truly painful!
 
Lvoen Bgilisis said:
notgettingin,

i know how u feel as i am on 3 waitlists now...
Click to expand...


Im on 2 waitlists, and other 1 school will tell me their decision in about 2 weeks. I know how you guys feel. Im going nuts. I had a former Dean of a good medical school tell me at the beginning of the season "Dont worry, youll get in, no problem." Yeah, no problem, right.

Does anyone know the earliest that waitlists start moving? I heard a couple of schools handed out some acceptances on 4/4 last year. Lets all cross our fingers for early movement. Good luck everyone!
 
Well being waitlisted beats being rejected, especially if a school's waitlist moves fast.
 
A waitlist isn't the end of the world. Especially if you're on several of them. 🙂 :luck: to you all.
 
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