High Stats Applicants: is there a point in applying to low tier schools?

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If you are a high stats applicant, with a GPA/MCAT above a schools 90th percentile, does it make sense to apply? In the past, I have read on SDN that low tier schools reject people with high stats as they believe the students will not go there, is there any truth to this?

For high stats applicant, what has your experience been in terms of gaining II and acceptance at low tier schools?

Feel free to answer any or all parts of the question above. Thanks in advance!
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Sounds like bs, schools want to grab the best candidates. If you submit a genuine app that shows you have interest in their program, they shouldn't reject you because you're too good for them.
 
I'll let you know in a few months, I basically applied to 26 of the top schools. So far, I would describe my progress as very lukewarm.
 
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You need to be convincing that you are interested in their program. @gyngyn has confirmed that yield protection is practiced to a degree, though he likes to call it "managing resources" - eg not wasting interview slots on candidates historically extremely unlikely to matriculate without a clear reason like ties to the area.

There should be a sweet spot along the spectrum of schools though, where you are on the stronger end of students they successfully attract
 
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Schools that have a ton of applicants will sometimes assume high stat applicants will go elsewhere. If you are truly interested in the program, you need to prove it somehow, whether it's through letters or a connection to the area somehow. Schools can only offer so many interview spots and they try to extend them to people they feel like are most likely to come.
 
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Yes it's a thing both gyngyn and gonnif have mentioned in the past that those above the 90th percentile in many cases aren't tool likely to get an interview. This is all variable and hardly absolute but yes it is something to be careful about for your 3.9/38 applicant

It's no different than what gyngyn always talks about how many schools never even consider TX applicants anymore because they know they'll never leave the state for med school. I use to think this was a move of arrogance and pettiness by the schools but this misses the point that why would you ever want to spend a day interviewing someone touring them around your school and further evaluating them when you know there is little chance of not coming no matter what you do? It's just not a good use of time unless you can really express your specific interest in that school and give them a reason to think you'll attend
 
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One of my friends had MCAT 40+ and GPA 3.8+, and she got interviews from some, but not all of the schools with lower stat medians on her list. So I doubt they have any automatic screening for it.
 
I think it is all about fit and the interest you show in the program. I have gotten interviews at places where I am above the 90th percentile because a) I am an in-state resident, and b) I talked sincerely about my interest in the program. I also have seemingly been passed over for interviews at schools where I am at the upper end of the stat spectrum because I guess I failed to show I was a good fit.
 
If you have like a 38MCAT and 3.9 I'd only apply to 10-20 schools that interest you. I know a few people with stats like that that applied top tier and ended up getting into like 25% of the schools they applied to. As long as you are OK with that, aren't terribly geographically picky, and prestige of institution is important to you then I don't think applying bottom tier is worth it. Plenty of people with top tier stats do apply, get accepted, and matriculate into low-mid tier schools every year for whatever reason.
 
Several adcoms attributed my early G'town rejection to yield protection.


But G'town gets so many apps they probably don't care anyways.
 
Imagine you were a school that only matriculates 2% of all the "high stat" applicants they interview.
As long as you accept OOS candidates you will get at least 2000 such applications.
Most schools have resources for 500 to <1000 interviews.
Even if you eliminate half of the "high stats" applicants (for the usual holistic reasons) and interview the other 1000, you have only filled 20 seats.

Unless there is a reason to believe that a very competitive applicant will attend your school (geography, price, affiliation...), there is no reason to squander resources.

If there were a limit on the number of applications, this math would change considerably.
 
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I know of a few folks who applied like to schools with lower stats that they genuinely liked. One wanted to work with a well-known surgeon at the school; another wanted to do research at that school, which had a strong program in that specific area but not much other research. Both were accepted with scholarships.

MD/PhD was different, as everyone has high stats compared to the MD averages for the school, but I mostly applied to schools in the South that had my area of research as an option--I didn't want to deal with a huge city and long winters. I had interviews from other schools with better stats, but it was more important to be near home and in an area I liked than go to Top 10 school...

So, if there are compelling reasons for someone to go to a school that has much lower stats, it's not unlikely that someone will get an interview. If someone doesn't show interest, I'd doubt many schools would waste a spot. If they still have an early decision option on AMCAS, that would be a good way to show a lower-tier school you love that you want to go there even though you have higher stats.
 
Your state schools are exceptions though. Apply even if you are in 90%ile+.
 
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Why is that? Because they can assume you'd be interested in the cheap tuition?
 
A pretty common thing amongst a number of people is loving the idea of moving away from their state and the appeal of "starting a new life" and "expanding your horizons' but then when push comes to shove and it actually comes to having to make a decision to move and pay 20+k a year in the process that whole "expanding your horizons" theme gets pushed aside in favor of "saving over 80k"
 
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GrapesofRath said:
A pretty common thing amongst a number of people is loving the idea of moving away from their state and the appeal of "starting a new life" and "expanding your horizons' but then when push comes to shove and it actually comes to having to make a decision to move and pay 20+k a year in the process that whole "expanding your horizons" theme gets pushed aside in favor of "saving over 80k"
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Cheap tuition is clearly one of the attractions of home!
 
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efle said:
Maybe for us, but that's got to be a negative feature for the northeast!
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Are you serious? Do you know how many applicants would love to be in the Northeast?
 
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efle said:
Maybe for us, but that's got to be a negative feature for the northeast!
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Are you kidding? I love the northeast and would choose boston over sunny california any day! And I mean weather. I love the fall winter and spring there. Maybe I'm biased, having lived there 7 years.
 
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I've lived in new york and I did absolutely love the autumn and at times the winter. St Louis gets some variety too.

The summer though, hell no. I'll take my 75-80 degree high temps in summer any day over the humidity and heat basically everywhere else.
 
lol but its actually more like 8/12 months of the year
 
At least Rochester, NY (and Rochester, MN) will still be attached to the mainland in 50 years, lol [and much warmer by then too btw].
 
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Our Governor could beat up your Governor...wait.... nevermind
 
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shake it off? I thought that was talking about the snow
 
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efle said:
TIL, cool phrase

I dunno Gyngyn, Tswift tells me to just be myself and haters gonna hate, you know? It's like, not my fault
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Not so sure she's all that in terms of letting go. Just sayin'...

-- Katy
 
Who's Katy?
image.jpg
 
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