At what point are we interviewing for spots on the waitlist?

[MedPR]

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Not freaking out or anything, but I'm curious. I realize it's still very early for interviews.

 

[jesse120]

I remember last year that virtually everyone who interviewed after Jan 1 at Einstein were put on either one of their waitlists or rejected

 

[music2doc]

I remember last year that virtually everyone who interviewed after Jan 1 at Einstein were put on either one of their waitlists or rejected

This seems about right. I voted in Feb to be a bit more conservative in my estimate but I personally found that basically all pre-Jan 1 interviews resulted in acceptances and all post Jan 1 interviews resulted in wait lists. It's also noteworthy that wait lists last yr basically didn't move at all. If that recurs this year, the interview process will basically be over by the end of Dec -- makes it all the more crucial that you interview EARLY this cycle!

 

[MedPR]

Obviously earlier is better, but is Oct/Nov considered early still? I got 4 DO ii before my first MD and therefore scheduled all 4 DO in September and having 10/3 as my earliest MD date.

 

[TheShaker]

This makes my verification wait much worse. 🙁

 

[Richard Dawkins]

.

 

[1289]

schools will probably tell you if the interview is wait-list only. at least MCW does. i think alot of schools strive to give every interviewee a shot at direct acceptance, though of course interviewing earlier is better

 

[jesse120]

It obviously depends on the school. I offered one example of a school that started waitlisting early, but many schools make admission offers throughout their interview season.

On the other extreme, Pitt waitlists probably >75% of applicants, so there's really no disadvantage to interviewing late.

a useful oversimplification would be:
rolling admissions = the earlier, the better
non-rolling admissions = little to no difference when you interview

 

[Richard Dawkins]

.

 

[jesse120]

indeed.
i guess my real question is: "do non-rolling admissions schools decide on acceptances throughout the interview season and then release those decisions in march or do they interview all applicants first, then sit down and pick who to accept?"

That's a good question that really none of us can answer without having been a part of those admissions committees. My guess would be the latter

 

[kpcrew]

indeed.
i guess my real question is: "do non-rolling admissions schools decide on acceptances throughout the interview season and then release those decisions in march or do they interview all applicants first, then sit down and pick who to accept?"

I'm guessing that they rank all the people they interviewed as the season moves along and offer spots to the best candidates but I don't really know.

 

[music2doc]

I'm guessing that they rank all the people they interviewed as the season moves along and offer spots to the best candidates but I don't really know.

This sounds most likely. I do know that schools such as OHSU, CU, and MCV all give each applicant a score. That score is ultimately used to pick the top X number of students for each acceptance date. I would suspect these schools are similar. Keep in mind, too, that it is about more than simply being the top 200 acceptable interviewees interviewed early enough. It also has to do with forming a good, diverse class. Schools often try to balance for a variety of factors (e.g., race/ethnicity, sex, major, geographical origin, UG, IS/OOS ratio, majors, etc.)

 

[Rumalum]

i interviewed at U of I at the end of Feb. and was accepted a month later so I'd say it really varies school by school and how they run things

 

[Guero]

i interviewed at U of I at the end of Feb. and was accepted a month later so I'd say it really varies school by school and how they run things

Agreed. I interviewed September through January and was accepted all the way through. I'm still waiting to hear from one more school (UAB) for an II and would say that March is probably the most popular point at which you'd be interviewing for a WL spot. That said, each school is different, negating any generalization we try to make. GL everyone.

 

[itsmcv2015]

From what I recall applying, it seemed like anything later than Jan or Feb was a high chance of the waitlist, but most schools will tell you if you are literally interviewing for a wait list spot. I wouldn't really say your chances of a direct acceptance are super low until March, though. Schools are "supposed" to have filled their classes by the end of March and most have done it by mid-March as I recall, so anything after February would be pretty dubious.