Cornell vs. BU+$+SO+brother

[BardoRoberts]

Hello,

I did poorly (in my opinion) on my Boston University interview, so I was very surprised to have been accepted and given a scholarship today. My girlfriend will be living in Boston and my brother will be nearby.

Before today, because I did poorly on BU's interview and almost all my other schools had rejected me, I decided to write a letter of intent to Cornell and hopefully up my chances of getting in. I have not received any decision from Cornell, and it seems like they may not send those out until after March 12.

I know that makes my comparison pre-emptive, but my pre-med advisor recommended that I be honest with Cornell and tell them, "I submitted this letter of intent when I had no acceptances from other schools. I would like to be transparent and let you know that I do have one other acceptance with a scholarship now." She said they could decide what to do with that information... (Is that a sketchy thing to email?) I really want to understand the differences between Cornell and BU very well before I do anything. If I do end up liking BU more, I would want to send that email before Cornell makes their decision since that seems more honorable to me then backing out of a letter of intent.

Based on the interview days alone, Cornell stood out more to me. I also had the merit of meeting some great M4 students through Cornell's interview day, though. The BU students I interacted with were subpar, but the information session was very appealing.
EDIT: I meant that my interactions with the very few I met were subpar because we just didn't connect. I shouldn't have worded that in a way that judged the students themselves.

I am interested in the arts, philosophy, and pedagogy (hoping to become a clinician-educator), so I want a school that has opportunities for me to pursue those fields too.

Thoughts?

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[Banco]

What's done is done, be happy you have the BU acceptance - it's a great school and has opportunities aligned with your goals. I wouldn't send anything to Cornell at this point as you're not accepted yet, LOI's hardly make a difference, and they will have no problem taking someone off their waitlist if you reject them ultimately. Don't worry about it too much, just let it be. Who knows, maybe you will get better financial aid from Cornell that will sway you towards there ultimately.


Also, don't describe medical students at places you interview at as "sub-par." You're the one out here sending pre-emptive letters of intent out of desperation...

 

[BardoRoberts]

What's done is done, be happy you have the BU acceptance - it's a great school and has opportunities aligned with your goals. I wouldn't send anything to Cornell at this point as you're not accepted yet, LOI's hardly make a difference, and they will have no problem taking someone off their waitlist if you reject them ultimately. Don't worry about it too much, just let it be. Who knows, maybe you will get better financial aid from Cornell that will sway you towards there ultimately.


Also, don't describe medical students at places you interview at as "sub-par." You're the one out here sending pre-emptive letters of intent out of desperation...

You're totally write about the sub-par comment. That was my shorthand way of saying that I didn't get anything from my interaction with them, but I shouldn't have phrased it as an attack on them personally. I've had plenty of admissions-type events at my undergrad institution where I was tired and not doing well at conversing with applicants.
What I meant by it was that I didn't connect with the particular students I interacted with, so I wanted to hear more instead of letting that interaction bias me.

 

[Banco]

You're totally write about the sub-par comment. That was my shorthand way of saying that I didn't get anything from my interaction with them, but I shouldn't have phrased it as an attack on them personally. I've had plenty of admissions-type events at my undergrad institution where I was tired and not doing well at conversing with applicants.
What I meant by it was that I didn't connect with the particular students I interacted with, so I wanted to hear more instead of letting that interaction bias me.

I get you, no worries. I think you're in a good position overall, congrats on the BU acceptance.