Have all applicants been reviewed by now?

[IntoTheNight]

Let say for schools like Duke, Vandy with 11/15 deadlines and others with Nov 1 deadlines. Have all applicants been considered for an II already, at least once?

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[LizzyM]

I would think so. For my school, the reading cycle pretty much follows the college football season starting in August and pretty much complete for most applicants and readers by the end of November with some not finished until New Year's weekend.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Just about. Especially when you keep in mind that many of these schools had probably given out the lion's share of their interviews well before that application deadline, so applications which came in towards the end of that process really may have only gotten a cursory review because there was almost no chance of getting an interview at that point unless it was a superstar who had applied very late for some reason.

Everyone who is not sitting on an A at this point needs to be considering their plans for a reapplication.

 

[LizzyM]

Everyone who is not sitting on an A at this point needs to be considering their plans for a reapplication.

I would say that everyone not having had an interview at this point seriously needs to consider their plans for a reapplication but I will here invoke my Mardi Gras rule that the time to worry about not having had an offer of Admission is after Mardi Gras which this year falls on February 21st. Many of the top schools hold their offers until February so not yet having any offers can happen to some very good applicants who are destined for some stellar schools.

 

[GoSpursGo]

I would say that everyone not having had an interview at this point seriously needs to consider their plans for a reapplication but I will here invoke my Mardi Gras rule that the time to worry about not having had an offer of Admission is after Mardi Gras which this year falls on February 21st. Many of the top schools hold their offers until February so not yet having any offers can happen to some very good applicants who are destined for some stellar schools.

Fair enough. The one thing I will say is that if someone waits until February to figure out their backup plan, it often is too late to meaningfully improve their application if their intent is to reapply immediately. If someone has a 3.9/520 and five interviews from T20s, ok that person is probably fine. But everyone else should have a backup plan ready just in case even if they hope they don't need it.

 

[LizzyM]

Fair enough. The one thing I will say is that if someone waits until February to figure out their backup plan, it often is too late to meaningfully improve their application if their intent is to reapply immediately. If someone has a 3.9/520 and five interviews from T20s, ok that person is probably fine. But everyone else should have a backup plan ready just in case even if they hope they don't need it.

@gonnif has long advocated for skipping a cycle to adequately improve before reapplying and I have to agree. Unless the problem was applying too late to too few schools, an adequate remediation usually takes a year.

 

[GoSpursGo]

@gonnif has long advocated for skipping a cycle to adequately improve before reapplying and I have to agree. Unless the problem was applying too late to too few schools, an adequate remediation usually takes a year.

Well... and that is why I recommend that people assume that they are rejected until they receive an acceptance. Much better to be constantly improving their application throughout the interview season so that the year is not wasted in the case of a rejection.

I ultimately think we are saying the same thing, that if someone finds themselves needing to reapply they need to be able to concretely state how they have improved their application. For many, the best course of action may indeed be to skip a cycle unless they have been doing something high-impact concurrent with their application season.

 

[lowintention172]

Does the mardi gras rule still apply if I have 3 schools that said I wouldn’t hear back from interviews until March?

 

[LindaAccepted]

Let say for schools like Duke, Vandy with 11/15 deadlines and others with Nov 1 deadlines. Have all applicants been considered for an II already, at least once?

I agree with all those who said that you have to be thinking of a plan if you are not accepted by now. However, i think should plan for rejection until you have an acceptance, and that planning should start shortly after you complete your secondaries, not now.

At the same time, I have interviewed many medical school admissions directors. Some are finished extending interview invitations by January, but many continue to interview into February and a few even into March. That information should not mean that you don't start thinking about what you're going to do if rejected, however it means this application cycle isn't history. Yet.

 

[HuskyMD Emeritus]

Late in the season, but I still received a couple for review this week (MD school).

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Pay attention to the generic timeline. It doesn't apply to everyone but screening is likely almost complete for most allo schools.

https://www.studentdoctor.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/timeline.webp

 

[LizzyM]

Does the mardi gras rule still apply if I have 3 schools that said I wouldn’t hear back from interviews until March?

Did you interview at any schools that make offers earlier in the cycle? If not, discard the Mardi Gras rule but in general, most people who will receive at least one offer will get at least one offer by Mardi Gras.