Do adcoms know where you are holding seats?

[biendesalud]

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I went to a conference at a med school last year and one of the admissions administrators told all of us that while they do not know to which schools we applied, they do know where we have been accepted and are holding seats. Can anybody else comment on this?

 

[edfig99]

that is correct. once a school accepts you they notify amcas and that information is available to admissions offices. well...i know it is true for AMCAS schools anyway. they just can't do anything about your acceptances until after the may deadline in which case you're not allowed to hold multiple acceptances.

 

[Law2Doc]

that is correct. once a school accepts you they notify amcas and that information is available to admissions offices. well...i know it is true for AMCAS schools anyway. they just can't do anything about your acceptances until after the may deadline in which case you're not allowed to hold multiple acceptances.

I know that AMCAS gets informed, but had thought the other schools don't get to find out from AMCAS until much later in the season as to where you have been accepted and are holding spots? Is it really an immediate sharing of info?

 

[brainyjock]

I know that AMCAS gets informed, but had thought the other schools don't get to find out from AMCAS until much later in the season as to where you have been accepted and are holding spots? Is it really an immediate sharing of info?

I spoke with someone who was an admissions director for many years, and she let me know that they do find out, but yes, it is much later in the season. I'm not sure exactly when, but I do know that it's not yet (not in January).

 

[superdevil]

I spoke with someone who was an admissions director for many years, and she let me know that they do find out, but yes, it is much later in the season. I'm not sure exactly when, but I do know that it's not yet (not in January).

just speculating, here, but i think the specifics are such that schools that have you waitlisted after may 15 can find out where you've been accepted before they offer you an acceptance (and then i think they have to notify the schools you were previously accepted at before offering you admission).

i'd check the AAMC website, but its different since the last time i was there and i can't find anything 😀

 

[tinkerbelle]

Med schools find out where you have been accepted... but not until May 15th (or at least this is what I've heard from others)

 

[Law2Doc]

Med schools find out where you have been accepted... but not until May 15th (or at least this is what I've heard from others)

Hmmm. By May 15 you can only be holding one acceptance, so I take it that this info is really only going to be of interest to schools on which you are on a waitlist?

 

[tinkerbelle]

Hmmm. By May 15 you can only be holding one acceptance, so I take it that this info is really only going to be of interest to schools on which you are on a waitlist?

That's my understanding of it. This info is also useful so schools can make sure that no one is holding onto more than one acceptance after May 15.

I searched the AAMC website, and I coulndn't find a specific date when schools tread info. However, the website seems to imply that schools know where you have been accepted by June 1st.... so i think May 15 is pretty accurate.

http://www.aamc.org/students/applying/policies/recommendations04.htm

 

[2tall]

AAMC policy on this matter

We also circulate the names of applicants accepted to each school to every other school after all deadlines have passed but before classes have begun. We do that upon authorization by each school, in order to facilitate an orderly process for schools to resolve cases of applicants with multiple acceptances.

 

[2tall]

Recommendations for Admissions Officers

See #s 6 and 8

After May 15 of the matriculation year (April 15 for schools whose first day of class is on or before July 30), each school implement school-specific procedures for accepted applicants who, without adequate explanation, continue to hold one or more places at other schools.

After June 1, any school that plans to make an acceptance offer to an applicant already known to have been accepted by another school for that entering class ensure that the other school is advised of this offer at the time that the offer is made.

 

[lightnk102]

Recommendations for Admissions Officers

See #s 6 and 8

After May 15 of the matriculation year (April 15 for schools whose first day of class is on or before July 30), each school implement school-specific procedures for accepted applicants who, without adequate explanation, continue to hold one or more places at other schools.

After June 1, any school that plans to make an acceptance offer to an applicant already known to have been accepted by another school for that entering class ensure that the other school is advised of this offer at the time that the offer is made.

check #2. Apparently, schools know before may 15th if you've gotten in somewhere.

"#2

Each school:
1.
Between August 1 and March 15 notify the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services of all admission actions within four weeks of those actions being taken.
2.
Between March 16 and the first day of class, notify the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services of all admission actions within seven days of those actions being taken."

 

[i77ac]

check #2. Apparently, schools know before may 15th if you've gotten in somewhere.

"#2

Each school:
1.
Between August 1 and March 15 notify the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services of all admission actions within four weeks of those actions being taken.
2.
Between March 16 and the first day of class, notify the AAMC Section for Medical School Application Services of all admission actions within seven days of those actions being taken."

ya, the AAMC knows, but the question is do the MED SCHOOLS know? as mentioned above, people are thinking schools don't find out til may 15th.

 

[ramblinwreckie]

i have a stupid and neurotic question. for those of you who post their info on mdapplicants.com, wouldn't schools (if they wanted to) be able to backtrack and find out based on your info? is that a concern?

yeah, i know i'm paranoid. i wish i wouldn't have found this forum. it only adds to my paranoia. hehe. 😉

 

[boardchic]

I was told by one dean of admissions, "When we make our final decisions in March, we get a joint accept list for every student that we admit that says where else that student has been admitted." So maybe schools can see where else you've been accepted, but only after they've decided to accept you...

 

[2tall]

Now that we've uncovered the facts...what does it matter that they know. Doesn't affect us one bit.

Or maybe...if we have an acceptance...it makes us more desirable to adcoms. They want what they can't have.

The rich get richer...C'est la vie. Someone accept me!

 

[Law2Doc]

Now that we've uncovered the facts...what does it matter that they know. Doesn't affect us one bit.

Or maybe...if we have an acceptance...it makes us more desirable to adcoms. They want what they can't have.

The rich get richer...C'est la vie. Someone accept me!

I guess I'd wonder whether schools that know you already have an acceptance in hand that they might think you'd be more likely to attend, are more apt to not bother giving you their own acceptance. Wouldn't matter if they don't know till May, but I guess it might if they know by March.

 

[tinkerbelle]

i have a stupid and neurotic question. for those of you who post their info on mdapplicants.com, wouldn't schools (if they wanted to) be able to backtrack and find out based on your info? is that a concern?

yeah, i know i'm paranoid. i wish i wouldn't have found this forum. it only adds to my paranoia. hehe. 😉

Hmm. I thought about that. But would it really matter? I mean, all they will find out is where else I have been accepted. If you're really worried, you could try to make your profile as generic as possible. There are probably tons of people from your school applying, so it having generic activites and not giving too many details about yourself will protect you a little bit. And then once you're done with the process, you can go back and add all the nitty-gritty details that make you special. Personally, I think you're worrying too much 😀

 

[ramblinwreckie]

Hmm. I thought about that. But would it really matter? I mean, all they will find out is where else I have been accepted. If you're really worried, you could try to make your profile as generic as possible. There are probably tons of people from your school applying, so it having generic activites and not giving too many details about yourself will protect you a little bit. And then once you're done with the process, you can go back and add all the nitty-gritty details that make you special. Personally, I think you're worrying too much 😀

Yeah, I made everything as vague as possible. But, I'm probably one of very few (less than 10 total, prolly, and definitely the only one in my major) from my school applying to these programs. I go to a decent-sized public school which has really bad grade deflation (hehe) and does not send too many kids to the top schools. So, I kinda 'altered' my state info, major, MCAT, and grades. I should delete the whole thing then, but I kinda liked looking at everything so neatly on one screen. 😛

 

[biendesalud]

Thanks for the feedback. The AMCAS links are helpful. I'm not too concerned whether they know or not, I was more curious as if it affects their decision making process. From what I can tell in these posts it looks like they do not get the information until either they have made their decision or the deadlines pass, neither of which could be of any consequence in regards to offering you a seat.

Regarding the backtracking: obviously never post anything on the web you don't want someone else to read, including adcoms. However, I doubt that the adcoms have the time, inclination, or confidence that they would even have the right person to do a search. I think (hope) that their decision is based more on whether or not you fit their school - they'll let you figure out where you want to go.