Anyone else getting that sinking feeling....

[serpiente]

that you're not getting into medical school this year? I'm starting to get really discouraged by being wait-listed at places. So far I've been waitlisted at three schools. I know, I know, it's not the same as being rejected, and I'm grateful for having the interviews I've had. But it would be so nice to just get one acceptance to any school. How are my fellow waitlistees taking this? Do you feel like you'll eventually get in or that it's hopeless? Are y'all writing letters and stuff? I'm out of school, working ft, so I'm not going to have much new info to send to schools to impress them with. Someone cheer me up, quick!

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[Jalby]

March 15 is when most schools fill all their spots for next year. So most schools have probably only filled 50% so far. And May 15 is when people holding multiple acceptances have to trim it to one. There is then HUGE movement over the next month. I'm willing to bet the lower teir schools pull 50 people off the waitlist at that time. I know countless people who have an MCW acceptance in hand who don't want to go there (5 off hand). So your chances are still extremely good.

That cheer you up? Be glad Caveman didn't answer this first. Might have gotten a warm mothely nipple.

 

[marleybfour]

My brother was accepted to medical school ( Dartmouth) at the end of July. There is always hope. Don't give up.

 

[A. Caveman]

actually that's not true. i have "that sinking feeling" too. I have two interviews coming up (mcp, temple) but i'm supposed to have more. i don't know how good i am at interviewing but i had three last year and obviously i'm reapplying now. i need more interviews to increase my freakin chances.
most of my stuff was complete mid november and i have very decent stats. what the HELL!?!

this somber, sinking feeling is quickly becoming a raging temper tantrum. fellow posters beware, i'm about to enter full 'enraged psychopath' mode..and it tends to make me cranky...any fruity posts will be met with hostility and condescension.

 

[StitchEM]

I don't plan to start wallowing in self-pity and doubt until march. Right now I'm just swimming in nervous anxiety...... <img src="graemlins/pissy.gif" border="0" alt="[Pissy]" />

 

[Dr. Kermit]

My friend was WL at Michigan, Michigan State, and Georgetown last year. She was accepted to the later two in early June and July, respectively. Don't fret just yet.

 

[Triangulation]

Sorry, I'm fretting now. I'm trying to figure out the way to approach next year if I don't get in (which I guess would be called a 'small if' vs. a big one since things are lookin' so g*d d@mn grim) I haven't really been beefin' up my cv since I applied this fall. I'm teaching at Kaplan now, but I don't think this impresses many ad coms. I think this just advertises that you smacked the MCAT around b/c you paid a lot of dough and are now working for 'em. Some serious soul searchin' to do which I know I'll put off.

 

[A. Caveman]

some people think we're entering the beginning of the middle. i don't believe it, but some do. that gives me hope. i just hope they don't reject me before i send my fall grades for grad school, or else i am seriously F'ed. i don't know if i'll have the patience for this crap(shoot) next year. i might be off to the carribbean...where if the mosquitos don't infect and kill you, the heat will.

 

[Medical123]

At least you are getting waitlisted. I have not even gotten one interview offer this year, though I did have one by this time last year, with even worse stats than what I have now. I did not blow the interview because I called the school to find out what the problem was when I was rejected and it was just the darned physical sciences section on the MCAT was too low for them though the interviews received "high scores". This whole process is really stressing me out. Caveman and others are right, it is a total crapshoot! I think we are starting to wind up the cycle myself. I called a couple of my schools and interviews end at the end of February/early March for one of them and at the end of March at the other. Neither would tell me where I stand if I have not been rejected yet. Doesn't look good for me.

 

[katiep]

Medical123, can I ask why you didn't take the MCAT again, if your physical score was so low?

 

[Medical123]

I did retake the MCAT and the physical sciences did come up by two points. I was hoping that with that improvement, I would at least get an interview at the school I was interviewed at last year. That's why I am so frustrated with the whole situation. I am hoping that they will take last year's interview into consideration this time around, but I don't know how they handle that.

 

[aldo16]

I totally agree with Caveman in that I really think we are winding down in the cycle (I hate admitting this and yes, I too keep wishing that we're only in the middle right now).

But...the fact that people who are getting interview requests right now, are getting them for mid-March???? That's not a good sign.

Just out of curiousity, are any of you guys "on hold" at GW, Temple, or MCP?? I really don't understand how this hold thing works. The way I see it, they're basically saying that there's enough in my application to not auto-reject me, but they want to see how their class takes shape before they possibly offer me an interview.

What I don't get though is that considering the fact that all "first-round draft picks" get offers by March 15th, and then those people then have 2 months to get back to the school, where does that leave people on hold??? Basically the way I see it is that the school won't know how the class is shaping up until closer to May 15th....BUT interview season ends around April 1!!

So basically what I'm wondering is that if I'm on hold until this point (Jan 19) that pretty much means my "window" for interviewing is narrowing pretty quickly (again given that we know MCP is right now offering 1st week of March interviews).
Cause if we don't get in their to see them by April 1, then regardless of however their class takes form, it's a moot point for us.

any thoughts??

 

[katiep]

Medical123, did you send a specific letter to the school which interviewed you telling them that you raised your physical by two points, also pointing out that they said that although you did well on your interview your physical was weak? And, since you made a strong attempt to rectify what it was that made them not accept you, could they kindly reconsider extending you an interview?

A two-point increase is great, by the way. Unless, of course, you went from a 3 to a 5!

Also, apparently the competition is stronger this year, so that may have something to do with it. I interviewed at a place last year which has yet to interview me this year.

 

[Medical123]

Katiep,

I did write the director of admissions a letter when I sent in my fall grades a couple of weeks ago. I pointed out that I had interviewed at their school last year and I was very impressed with their facilities. I also explained what I had been doing within the past semester and what I was planning to do this Spring. I also told them that I was still very interested in their school and I hoped that I would be able to attend someday.

However, I did not point out that I had raised my Physical Sciences by 2 points. Maybe I should have. Though the score was low last time, it was better than a 3! Maybe I will get good news soon. If not, I will be back again and again!

 

[otter]

I am starting to worry big-time, too, just like the Caveman. I'm a reapplicant with 3.6gpa, 30MCAT and tons of clinical experience. I applied to 14 schools, interviewed at 2, and am currently without an acceptance. I feel that things are winding down at more than half the schools (e.g., Columbia, Northwestern, MCP). But I still believe that a few schools do have a great deal of spots left. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed, as I'm still optimistic that I'll get one or two more interviews. However, they may be for like March or April, and so I still believe my best chances are at the 2 schools that I've already interviewed at.

 

[katiep]

Well, Medical123, you did your best to let them know. I myself dropped such a letter off on Monday (1/14), and just got a postcard that they processed it, I hope, on 1/17. Still haven't gotten the invite (I check my email at least 30 times a day!). Good luck to us both. I hope we hear from them.

 

[serpiente]

Thanks for the responses guys. I'm getting really tired of hearing, "Of course you'll get in!" from friends and family who know nothing about the admissions process. It's good to hear from others in the same boat. I have more interviews coming up, but it's hard to stay focused and motivated. My friends are dragging me out today (away from the mailbox) and I'm happy about that. Sometimes it's good to take a step back from the process. I wish y'all luck. Medical 123, I hope the interviews start coming (and most schools aren't at the end of the interviewing season just yet). Hopefully those WL's will turn into acceptances someday.

 

[ussdfiant]

I wish all of you guys the best of luck and I have a question for reapplicants. Have you also applied to osteopathic schools this time? Cave mentioned that the caribbean may be calling him if he doesn't get in this time and I was wondering if he felt that was a more viable option than being a homegrown DO.

P.S. I am NOT asking "which is better Island MD or DO". I KNOW that DO is better <img src="graemlins/lovey.gif" border="0" alt="[Lovey]" />

 

[sandflea]

everyone, it's true that the interview process has been in full swing for quite some time, but it's still too early to throw in the towel. i know of *plenty* of med students who didn't get interview invites at certain schools until march or april and were later accepted. the timeline for available interview dates varies very widely by school; while it's true that at some schools, receiving an interview invite NOW leaves you with available interview dates only in april or so (i.e. pretty late), i just got an invite at one school and managed to schedule an interview for two weeks from now. so it varies. plus, as others have mentioned, don't forget waitlist movement starting in june--many, many people don't have an acceptance in hand until the summer. the march 15 deadline *only means* that a school has to offer AT LEAST enough acceptances to fill its class (NOT that they can't keep handing them out), and since many people hold on to multiple acceptances for a long time, that leaves PLENTY of open spots for people with no acceptances.

being on hold isn't the desperate situation that people seem to think. it basically just means that the adcom didn't want to interview you right away, but that you were too competitive to reject outright. this is NOT a bad thing! it's never over until you have a rejection letter in hand, so until then, consider yourself very much still in the game.

what if you don't get in this year? well, you decide what you need to fix in your application, you fix it, and then you apply again. remember that 2/3 or so of all applicants don't get in *anywhere*, so not getting into med school is way more common than being accepted and you shouldn't consider yourself inadequate if you don't manage to get in this year. don't let the process defeat you. i've said this on this board many times: persistence is what matters most in getting into med school. i know it's hard to see the big picture when you're worried about how you as an individual will fare in the application process, but if you want it enough, you'll get there.

good luck to all of you, and keep your chin up!!

sandflea, who's been there

 

[otter]

To USSDefiant: I'm a reapplicant, but I have never considered applying to DO schools. I know that DO's will,in reality, be just as capable as MD's. I also know that many DO schools tend to have a healthy mix of older students with more varied life experiences, which is a good thing. However, from talking to my doctor and my medical school friends, there seems to be a lingering bias against DOs in the medical circles. It's tough enough being an MD primary care physician on the West coast (where I live), where a lot of them are filing for bankruptcy. Having the DO title certainly won't help. Maybe someone else can shed more light on this, though...

 

[THE instiGATOR]

Good luck, everyone! I know how you're feeling. By this time last year, I had 0 interview invites. My only invitation came in February!

If you do have to take a year off, realize that it is a long time to make improvements. Use it wisely.

My advice to those with around a 3.6 and a 30 and few interviews is to have an unbiased person read your personal statement. I get the feeling that this is probably where you are lacking.

Don't lose hope, people!

 

[A. Caveman]

ussdfiant, this is my second time applying and it will be my last (unless you consider applying to carribbean schools--which is like a sure thing).

i did not apply to DO schools, although i'm beginning to think i should have. many of my friends from my graduate program are going to Novasoutheastern som and i wish i would have at least applied there. but DO's don't get enough respect and it's tougher to get a good residency like surgery or cardiology or dermatology with a DO. i think it's easier with an island MD because it's still an MD degree. besides St. George's is a very good school. some come out of there knowing more than many from schools here.

If a student goes out there and does very well, plus scores high on the boards, there is a very good chance that he'll get a competitive residency here. it's about what you know, not where you graduated from. i know what you're thinking...that doing just as well at a DO school will get you a better residency than the same performance at an island MD school, and you may be right. but it seems like at the end of the day people will be more interested in knowing what degree you hold rather than where you got it. i'm especially saying this only in regards to St. George's because they're so much better than the other schools. doing well in ross doesn't compare to doing well at st. george's. so for st. george's i think that what i've said above rings true.

 

[ussdfiant]

Cave,

I can understand your feelings about DOs (although I obviously don't share them) and how they may fare as far as competitive residencies go. I (for the moment) am interested in Radiology and spent some time with a Radiologist that is a DO and the section chief of the department. One of the appealing things for me as a future DO student is the osteopathic match (I know it doesn't coincide with THE match) which offers an additional opportunity for me to achieve my goal to become a radiologist (subject to change, of course). I guess at my age I wanted to maximize the chances of getting what I want. Realistically for me being a DO is the best way of doing that (In fact I am a die hard DO applicant and only applied to DO schools) On a side note, UMDNJSOM offers the only osteopathic radiology residency in my area which was a factor for me as well. In the end I'm sure we will both be doctors, and I hope that both of us can do so in the good ole US of A.