Does contacting medical schools really help?

[anfleisch]

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So I am all applied and obviously playing the waiting game...
I have heard that you should contact schools once a month to show your interest, and someone even told me once a week.

Does this actually help or is it just obsessive and meaningless? Most of the schools have online status updates and/or information stating it takes 6-10 weeks or 1-3 months to receive an interview decision. Should we still be contacting these admissions people?

 

[vickpick]

i feel like its obsessive and meaningless, but I know for a fact that doing so has helped people.

 

[armybound]

If you have something MEANINGFUL to contact them about, it may help

Calling just to annoy them could get you on their bad side pretty fast.

 

[ksmi117]

What would you say all these times you contact them?

 

[Mattabet]

Especially at this stage in the game, it's obsessive and meaningless. If it comes down to you and three other equally-matched people for a spot that just opens up on May 20, that's when people get results by being communicative. Don't send anything now just for the sake of saying something - wait until you have something to say.

 

[BlueElmo]

What would you say all these times you contact them?

Sing them a lullaby?

 

[ksmi117]

Sing them a lullaby?

That'd get you an acceptance for sure.

 

[physicsnerd42]

So I am all applied and obviously playing the waiting game...
I have heard that you should contact schools once a month to show your interest, and someone even told me once a week.

Does this actually help or is it just obsessive and meaningless? Most of the schools have online status updates and/or information stating it takes 6-10 weeks or 1-3 months to receive an interview decision. Should we still be contacting these admissions people?

Once a month = annoying and excessive.

If you have a substantive change in your application, let them know. Write thank you letters post-interview. Maybe send them a letter post-interview telling them why their school is the one for you (and only if you mean it). Otherwise, try to remember that most schools have 5 or 6 thousand applicants and if each one called every month to show interest, the admissions staff wouldn't have time to...you know... read applications and interview people.

My $.02.