Has anyone reapplied, even though they got in somewhere?

[KarateGirl]

I haven't gotten in anywhere yet, but I'm waiting on one school's decision, and I have a May interview at another (which probably means waitlist). It sounds stupid, I know. I should be thrilled to get in anywhere. But I wonder if it would be a dumb thing to do to reapply, even if I get accepted. I just don't want to spend 4 years somewhere where I'm not happy, and when I interviewed it just didn't feel like the right place for me. If I get in I'll go to second look weekend, but how bad would it be to decline or defer and then reapply anyway?

Edited to add: This is, of course, provided that I greatly strengthen my application in the interim.

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[Yosh]

I think reapplying might be a much better move in your case. I really can't see going to a school that you already don't seem happy with.
As much as waiting another year sucks..4 years being where you don't want to be SUCKS EVEN MORE....

Something to think about...

 

[jjmack]

I am in the same boat. I am an MSTP applicant and am in at one school, but really hated it. I am also currently waitlisted at a few schools and need to wait and hear from others. If you think it's hard to spend 4 years in a place you don't want to be imagine spending 7+.

 

[DrSmiles]

But how do you know the following year will be any better? I know some schools will not consider reapplicants, some only if there is significant improvement to the application, and some schools make you wait a few years before you reapply. If you are set on a certain school, you better check on their policies for reapplying. I know that some students will go to the school they were accepted to, and reapply to other schools while they are in the first year of medical school. This seems like an expensive alternative, and you would have to come up with a really good excuse as to why you were reapplying, but I have seen it done, and they seem to be happy with these choices.

 

[KarateGirl]

Originally posted by DrSmiles
But how do you know the following year will be any better?

You don't, of course--that's what makes it such a dilemma. Is a bird in the hand that you don't want better than two in the sky that you do?

One of the reasons I am pretty sure I can strengthen my application is that I've been teaching MCAT prep for Kaplan for the past six months, and even though I did fairly well on the test to begin with, I am confident I could score a lot higher if I took it again. And I could take more upper level science classes, and do more volunteer work in the interim. I was even thinking of taking an EMT class in the fall. Waiting another year would be a little disappointing, but not as disappointing as hating school for 4 years.

I talked to one of my fellow MCAT teachers, who did a year of med school in the midwest and hated it, so much that she refuses to go back. She's trying to transfer to one of the local schools, but she might have to end up starting over. I wouldn't even mind that except that it is so expensive. She couldn't give me any definitive advice either way, except to say to follow my gut.

Argh.

 

[vrazz]

I'm also struggling with this right now...I havn't gotten an acceptance letter yet, but am almost afraid that I will. It seems like a good school, I just wasn't very excited about being there. I tried to be objective, esp since all the docs I work with say, "if you really want to be a doctor, you'll go anywhere". I see their point, but still...this school is in the middle of nowhere, very difficult to get to, and there wasn't anything there that made me say, "I have to go here!"

Has anyone done this? Turned down an acceptance and reapplied? (I'm talking DO schools). I really do want to go to med school, I just don't want to move somewhere that I'll be unhappy with for some of the most important years of my life.

 

[Wednesday]

Have you thought about withdrawing from consideration before they send their decision? If you are sure that you will not attend a school, that might be better. AMCAS asks if you've ever been accepted before (I think) so you wouldn't have to worry about that question. And it wouldn't be on the record anywhere that you were ever accepted. There have been people on this site who have played this "game" and won, but I think it's tricky. Mostly because you may have to explain yourself next time around and they might not think your reason is good enough (and therefore that you don't really want medical school).

This is a pretty important decision. You should make sure that you're making the decision for the right reasons. It's true that you could get accepted this year and then never again. And it may be that you end up being perfectly happy at the school. (Your fellow MCAT instructor might just not like med school in general). Going with your gut is usually a good policy. Just make sure you have explored your feelings throughly before you do. Good luck.

 

[Tritonslo]

I was in the same boat as you guys last year. I applied fairly late and with a not so hot MCAT score(mid twenties). I ended up getting no interviews except for one in the midwest which was most likely because my dad was an alum and a relative sat on the board of directors for the school. Anyways, I had to think long and hard about what I should do. In the end I decided to withdraw from the school and apply the next year for two reasons. The first was that I wanted to get into medical school based on my achievements and not on an "in" I had. The second was that I felt I could really strengthen my application. So I did three things. The first was to study my arse off for the August MCAT. I went up 8 points so that was good. The second was to get two more letters of recommendation and the third was to really work on my personal statement and have it read by several people before submission.
I feel I made the right decision as I have received 10 interviews this time around and been accepted to schools in California(where I'm from). The moral of the story is, if you feel like you can improve your application significantly next time around, definitely hold off for a year.

 

[Dr.Wolkower]

how are you going to to explain to the admission committee that you got in somewhere but you didnt like the school so you reapplied??

most people would kiss the feet of any school to get in--

 

[Optimist]

Originally posted by Wednesday
Have you thought about withdrawing from consideration before they send their decision? If you are sure that you will not attend a school, that might be better. AMCAS asks if you've ever been accepted before (I think) so you wouldn't have to worry about that question. And it wouldn't be on the record anywhere that you were ever accepted. There have been people on this site who have played this "game" and won, but I think it's tricky. Mostly because you may have to explain yourself next time around and they might not think your reason is good enough (and therefore that you don't really want medical school).

If you REALLY don't care for the school, then this is probably a sound strategy. If I was an adcom member, I would think twice about an applicant's desire to become a doctor if the person was accepted, then declined, only to reapply.

Withdrawing would simply imply that you believed you wouldn't get in, and decided to make other plans for that year, and followed through with them.

 

[English Chick]

I've done this! I was accepted to four schools (!!) two years ago, but didn't end up attending any of them for personal reasons. I reapplied this year, and was just admitted to my _dream_ school ... so it can be done. However, I do think some schools aren't so keen on reapplicants. The first time I applied, UCSF waitlisted me (top half of the list, for whatever that's worth [in my case, a whole lot of nothing]). The second time around, UCSF rejected me pre-secondary. I appealed and they rejected me again, despite a much stronger application (multiple publications and a better sense of myself and my goals) than during my first application cycle. I have to wonder if my reapplicant status didn't have something to do with that decision.

 

[vrazz]

These schools that don't favor reapplicants? Are they MD or DO? Because I keep hearing you guys list MD schools, but I'm more interested in osteopathic schools. It's too late to withdraw...they told me they would have a decision in two days so it's already in the mail. I guess if I'm accepted I can suck it up and go, but the alternative of waiting a year and getting more clinical experience and saving up money is slightly more attractive than going to this school...