Coping with Silence

[DoctorWhoo]

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Hey everyone,

So I submitted early June, was verified by mid-late July, and finished submitting all of my secondaries by early September... since then it has mostly been silence. I have received 3 interview invites (1 top 10, 2 local good schools) and 1 rejection (UCSF... surprise :'-[ )... but my other 9 schools (high ranks) have yet to send any update. Not to sound conceited, but my stats and EC's are above average for these schools... so I was expecting at least a little more action during this time.

Should I be worried at all now that I am coming up on 3 months since I've had communication with most of my schools? Should I call and do check-is/send letters of interest to these schools? Or should I just patiently wait and be grateful that I have only been put on the cutting block by one school thus far...

I guess my real questions are "Is this normal?" and more importantly "How do you cope with the silence?" because I've definitely been having anxiety attacks from all the pressure the ever-present question "Any updates?!?!" has been putting on me.

Thanks in advance! Sorry if I'm over reacting to nothing... but some affirmation in either direction (that I will be fine or that I should be contacting schools to see what's up) would be really nice.

PS: It is only fitting that I chose a Doctor Who SDNname and the rival that has been giving my application season the hardest time is "The Silence"

 

[kekes]

If you have new relevant info - something EC related, won an award, got a publication, new job, etc - then definitely send an update. Otherwise, prep for those interviews if they haven't happened already and be sure to send thank you notes to your interviewers afterwards. The wait is definitely nerve wracking and would be even more so if you didn't have any interviews. Since you've got a foot in the door somewhere, I'd suggest you take solace in that fact & take up a new hobby or book or anything healthy to curb those anxiety attacks.

As a point of reference, last year I interviewed at one school early November and received no word until mid January at one school; at another I interviewed late October and heard nothing til late Feb. I also have a friend who filled every secondary out late, interviewed at one school in April and heard nothing til June.

 

[BillrothI]

DoctorWhoo - FWIW, I'm in the exact same position (almost to the letter, including the UCSF rejection!). Unfortunately, I can't tell you if this is normal or not, but hopefully you'll take some solace in knowing that you're not alone. Your numbers and ECs are incredibly impressive and I think it's fairly likely you'll be accepted to one of the top tier schools you applied to.

Best of luck to you.

-Bill

 

[DoctorWhoo]

Thanks to both of you... guess I'll just keep my fingers crossed 🙂