Do admissions committees/interviewers know which other schools you have applied to?

[unitedgoal]

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If they ask where else have you applied and you leave out a school or two, will they know it? Any clues?

 

[invicta]

Along the lines of that question, what do you do if your interviewer asks you what your top choice is (and it's not the school you're interviewing at...)? Should you just go ahead and lie? It seems kinda obvious if you're interviewing at State Med School but you tell them you applied to say, Harvard, and you prefer State Med School over Harvard...

(note: this is not to knock state schools or anything...I'm just talking in terms of "prestige" and all that junk)

Oh and to answer your question, no, adcoms don't know which schools you've applied to unless you tell them, but they will know what schools you've been accepted at.

 

[ridirkulous]

If they ask where else have you applied and you leave out a school or two, will they know it? Any clues?

I don't think they know. I know that after they have given you an acceptance they can see other schools at which you are holding an acceptance. Other than that, I think it is up to you how much you want them to know.

Personally, i hated it when the interviewers asked me where else i applied. If the school at which i was interviewing wasn't ranked extremely high, I felt uncomfortable saying that I was also applying to Stanford, Wash U, Yale, etc. It is even worse when they start asking you where you have been accepted, where you have been waitlisted etc. Why are they asking? It always made me feel like they were using that info to decide what to do with me based on what others had done. I think the schools should never ask such questions and should base their decisions on your application and interview. Why should they care what other schools thought?

That being said, you should probably tell them the names to atleast a few schools just so that you don't step on their toes. But I think you can feel safe leaving some names out if you have reason to do so.

 

[nasdr]

Along the lines of that question, what do you do if your interviewer asks you what your top choice is (and it's not the school you're interviewing at...)? Should you just go ahead and lie? It seems kinda obvious if you're interviewing at State Med School but you tell them you applied to say, Harvard, and you prefer State Med School over Harvard...

(note: this is not to knock state schools or anything...I'm just talking in terms of "prestige" and all that junk)

Oh and to answer your question, no, adcoms don't know which schools you've applied to unless you tell them, but they will know what schools you've been accepted at.

I would go ahead and say that [state medical school] is one of my top choices, even if it really isn't. Then go into what you like about the school, which I'm guessing you'll have researched beforehand. If it's a smaller school, you might like the close knit community or something.

 

[ridirkulous]

I would go ahead and say that [state medical school] is one of my top choices, even if it really isn't. Then go into what you like about the school, which I'm guessing you'll have researched beforehand. If it's a smaller school, you might like the close knit community or something.

Unless you are a good liar, be careful what you say. You don't want to say that you love the city and the community around the school if you really hate the town. I think people can see through that kind of thing. And, the overall impression you leave with the interviewer is the most important thing. Lesson: only apply to schools that you would actually like to attend. Then you can honestly say that you love their school.

 

[kmnfive]

Take my words with a grain of salt, but reading past posts about this topic, I?ve gathered some few ideas?.

I imagine that they use it as a gauge to determine whether or not you are likely to attend. It?s a scary thought, but at the same time, it makes sense. Let?s say the applicant has a 3.6 and a 35; with these stats, and given the person has demonstrated a well rounded interest in medicine with activities and what not; he or she has a fairly good chance at their state school. On the contrary, say you?re interviewing at a less ?prestigious? school, and you have higher stats?let?s say 3.8 at a 37, they?d question whether or not it?s worth accepting you, especially if you?re not from the area or the state. They would feel like you are just applying to their school as a safely net.

The medical schools knowledge of what schools you?ve been accepted to in an essence lessens the pain for those on waitlists; as they can refuse admissions to those who already hold multiple acceptances.