HMS Status Page Question

[Whitney]

Completeness RULES!!!!!!!

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[Tra La La]

Completeness RULES!!!!!!!

Completeness representing!!!

Complete for life!

 

[VeggieGal]

so, i have been addicted to this thread even though i didn't even apply to HMS. i have to say, though, i agree that incomplete probably equals a acceptance or waitlist. my roommate's, who didn't get an interview there, status page says complete. my good friend who has awesome EC's (although MCAT a little low, but GPA high), a legacy at harvard, and is an URM, says incomplete. i think you guys may have cracked the code.

some nice person should call on monday so that everyone can stop all this anxious waiting. but congrats to the incompletes!

 

[Tra La La]

so, i have been addicted to this thread even though i didn't even apply to HMS. i have to say, though, i agree that incomplete probably equals a acceptance or waitlist. my roommate's, who didn't get an interview there, status page says complete. my good friend who has awesome EC's (although MCAT a little low, but GPA high), a legacy at harvard, and is an URM, says incomplete. i think you guys may have cracked the code.

some nice person should call on monday so that everyone can stop all this anxious waiting. but congrats to the incompletes!

Yup...the evidence is piling up against us completes.

First Duke, now Harvard. I guess I wasn't meant for the E. Coast.

 

[elicash]

In my opinion, the questions to ask, statistically, are: (I majored in economics)

1. does anyone have "incomplete" who did not interview?

if so, this one would blow a hole in the current theory...

2. has anyone's status changeed from "complete" to "incomplete" (indicating a somewhat unlikely switch from "rejected" to "accepted or waitlisted"?

3. Since harvard wants to notify people by mail, don't you think that it would be somewhat unlikely that they'd put up the decision status on the web page? It could be an administrative thing, since HMS never seemed that tech savvy (eg, scheduled interviews over e-mail, not online; also, sending out the brochure with the website to find the secondary weeks after most schools).

 

[elicash]

follow up:
going back and re-reading some posts---

people were switched from complete to incomplete

i think that they were making decisions all along, as opposed to the final two weeks of feb (which is what they said). to go through every decision in the final two weeks would be ridiculous-- a huge rush... besides what does the admissions committee have to do all year besides make some decisions (as they are going along).

then again i have a vested interest in this being a random thing in the system--

NP, complete, interviewed in october.

 

[Whitney]

OK, a new theory.....

The status page is tied into things like whether or not HMS has received your letters of rec.....now, if they've rejected you, they may need to purge your letters from the system in an ethical way....leading to an "incomplete" status. If you've been accepted, the medical school (and I've actually read this somewhere) is responsible for maintaining your letters for your career and so leads to a persistent "Complete" message....Go Completeness!!!

 

[Whitney]

OK, a new theory.....

The status page is tied into things like whether or not HMS has received your letters of rec.....now, if they've rejected you, they may need to purge your letters from the system in an ethical way....leading to an "incomplete" status. If you've been accepted, the medical school (and I've actually read this somewhere) is responsible for maintaining your letters for your career and so leads to a persistent "Complete" message....Go Completeness!!!

Though, I guess this doesn't explain why people who've benn rejected pre-interview still show "complete"....hmmmm

 

[sven]

2. has anyone's status changeed from "complete" to "incomplete" (indicating a somewhat unlikely switch from "rejected" to "accepted or waitlisted"?

Every one of us has been complete at some point -- merely meaning that all our required materials had arrived in the admissions office. The question on the table is whether remaining complete at this point in time indicates rejection or something else...

 

[Tra La La]

Though, I guess this doesn't explain why people who've benn rejected pre-interview still show "complete"....hmmmm

Too many variables here. My head's gonna explode

But I'm going to agree with the majority. Us hapless "completes" have no reason to wait next to the mailboxes this week.

to all!

 

[DrDarwin]

It's implausible that it’s either coincidence or random that on the last weekday before the day that the decisions are mailed, HMS changes the status pages. I agree with the incomplete=accepted or waitlist theory because: (1) HMS needs nothing more from rejected applicants but accepted applicants need to send in a form accepting the acceptance and WL applicants need to send in a form agreeing to remain on the WL. (2) It makes more sense that HMS would change the approximately 300 status pages of accepted/WL applicants than that of the over 5000 rejected applicants. (3) Pre-interview rejected students (Bunnyhop’s friend) still show that they are complete. (4) Several “superstars” (palmiscious, Mateo, Carlene) are incomplete. (5) More than half of interviewees will probably be rejected and so far, the count on SDN is 18 complete (60%) and 12 incomplete (40%) – last year HMS interviewed 665 and accepted about 250 and, if WL were (guessing) approximately 50, then about 45% of interviewees were accepted/WL last year.

I guess I would prefer not to believe it, but the above post sounds like it could be pretty accurate, although I am not sure the "superstars" are any more outstanding than some of the complete folk. Even so, I wish twiceten were complete . I also agree that it is highly unlikely that statuses would change so suddenly. If statuses have in fact changed for a reason, there could conceivably be some status changes in the next few days if the 3-5 business day delay is still in effect.

 

[neuropower]

i read this whole thread without checking my status, thinking its silly, it means nothing, i'll just wait and see what comes in the mail...but then i got curious and checked:
COMPLETE
and the fact that i'm disappointed means that i must have fallen into believing your crazy theories!
anyway, i wasn't expecting anything, especially since i just got waitlisted at columbia, but seriously, i am expecting a waitlist, not an outright rejection! jeez!

 

[macktong]

all these INCOMPLETE information and clues led many of us COMPLETELY insane.

 

[Tra La La]

all these INCOMPLETE information and clues led many of us COMPLETELY insane.

Right on.

 

[davidus]

Right on.

TraLaLa and Graat, wanna join my "flew all the way to below-zero boston and all I got was this lousy bic pen" club? Only COMPLETES allowed.

 

[DK3]

So far I think only one person who had both the NP and HST interviews got the "incomplete." A disproportionate number of NP/HST people all have "complete"s. You would think that more people would be incomplete, if that were true.

 

[Tra La La]

TraLaLa and Graat, wanna join my "flew all the way to below-zero boston and all I got was this lousy bic pen" club? Only COMPLETES allowed.

WooHoo! Thanks for the invite!

Who wants to live in the cold east anyways?

Sunny Caleefornia all the way.

 

[Tra La La]

So far I think only one person who had both the NP and HST interviews got the "incomplete." A disproportionate number of NP/HST people all have "complete"s. You would think that more people would be incomplete, if that were true.

I'm a NP & HST person who is "complete."

But I don't care. I'm now part of Davidus' club.

 

[Whitney]

So far I think only one person who had both the NP and HST interviews got the "incomplete." A disproportionate number of NP/HST people all have "complete"s. You would think that more people would be incomplete, if that were true.

You go DK3!!!!

 

[davidus]

I'm a NP & HST person who is "complete."

But I don't care. I'm now part of Davidus' club.

All completes are invited, btw. Just doesn't work as well if you live in Framingham or something.

 

[Tra La La]

All completes are invited, btw. Just doesn't work as well if you live in Framingham or something.

 

[Whitney]

Well, I don't think I have much more to add to this thread....For me, it was truly an honor to interview at one of the best medical schools in the world. And I'm sure that you'll all be terrific doctors wherever you end up...complete, incomplete, or otherwise. Best wishes...

 

[Tra La La]

Well, I don't think I have much more to add to this thread....For me, it was truly an honor to interview at one of the best medical schools in the world. And I'm sure that you'll all be terrific doctors wherever you end up...complete, incomplete, or otherwise. Best wishes...

I second that.

For students who have interviewed at Harvard, it's usually not an issue of if they'll be going to medical school, but where.

G'luck to all!

 

[Sparky Man]

Well, I don't think I have much more to add to this thread....For me, it was truly an honor to interview at one of the best medical schools in the world. And I'm sure that you'll all be terrific doctors wherever you end up...complete, incomplete, or otherwise. Best wishes...

Hey, don't give up! No one knows what complete/incomplete really means!!! It's all speculation at this point!

 

[Windy]

Of the SDN posters, there are 10 who are HST (6 of whom are both NP and HST) and "complete" and only 3 who are HST-only and "incomplete." This is a suspicious imbalance that is not necessarily explained by the fact that HST has a low acceptance rate. Many of those rejected by HST will be accepted or WL at NP, especially since anyone invited to interview at both NP and HST is likely to be very impressive. One of the SDN posters who listed HST-only and "incomplete" is also MSTP and another one is also NP. Therefore, except for the possible exception of Elia08, it's plausible that the status pages have not yet been updated for applicants accepted only to HST. In my opinion, it doesn't necessarily follow that if "incomplete" means accepted/WL that "complete" means rejected.

 

[CarleneM]

In my opinion, it doesn't necessarily follow that if "incomplete" means accepted/WL that "complete" means rejected.

yeah i agree with that as perhaps haven't gotten to updating everyone's stuff (both NP and HST could be not finished) so its silly for people to just be giving up.This whole thing is crazy. sigh. I bet i'll get outright rejected after all this silliness....

oh and what i'm really curious if there is anyone out there who got pre-interview rejected who is now mysteriously incomplete as well so if you have any friends who got rejected pre-interview rejected ask them to check.

 

[Windy]

A correction to the beginning of my last post: There are only 3 SDN posters who are HST, only one of whom may be HST-only. Therefore, it's possible, if not probable, that all or most of the HST accepts/WL have not yet had their status pages updated even if the "incomplete=accepted/WL" theory is true for NP.

 

[Whitney]

Hey, don't give up! No one knows what complete/incomplete really means!!! It's all speculation at this point!

Thanks Sparky....I agree with you....I wasn't actually giving up as much as trying to provide some perspective (for myself and possibly others)...It's an amazing place, but sometimes (for me) the idea of going to Harvard can obscure the importance of what we all (I'm guessing most of us) are trying to do, add something meaningful to the field...and, though the big H would be a great place to do this, there are others. Thanks again and good luck!!

 

[Graat]

TraLaLa and Graat, wanna join my "flew all the way to below-zero boston and all I got was this lousy bic pen" club? Only COMPLETES allowed.

Nice. We'll get COMPLETE logo hats, shirts, and flame throwers (the kids will love that one).

 

[GiantGiantsFan]

i have an idea for a scheme:...

Complete: Crazy, neurotic premeds
Incomplete: Psychotic, obsessive/compulsive premeds

I mean seriously, cmon guys, havent thelessons of Pitt and Columbia shown us that there is no use trying to decipher these little red herrings? besides, you could be maximizing your heartbreak (or euphoria, i guess) by convincing yourself that an incorrect scheme is true and predicting your own status which will probably turn out to be wrong. decisions wont be mailed out until next week...until then, try to relax and enjoy, and stop tallying up completes and incompmletes!

 

[Tra La La]

Nice. We'll get COMPLETE logo hats, shirts, and flame throwers (the kids will love that one).

Kudos to that!

Sign me up for one (1) hat, one (1) shirt, and four (4) flame throwers.

 

[Tra La La]

i have an idea for a scheme:...

Complete: Crazy, neurotic premeds
Incomplete: Psychotic, obsessive/compulsive premeds

I mean seriously, cmon guys, havent thelessons of Pitt and Columbia shown us that there is no use trying to decipher these little red herrings? besides, you could be maximizing your heartbreak (or euphoria, i guess) by convincing yourself that an incorrect scheme is true and predicting your own status which will probably turn out to be wrong. decisions wont be mailed out until next week...until then, try to relax and enjoy, and stop tallying up completes and incompmletes!

Obviously, we have proven beyond all reasonable doubt that complete = rejection, and incomplete = acceptance or waitlist.

P<0.01

Sorry. But all completes are welcome to join me, Graat, and Davidus!

 

[Sparky Man]

Thanks Sparky....I agree with you....I wasn't actually giving up as much as trying to provide some perspective (for myself and possibly others)...It's an amazing place, but sometimes (for me) the idea of going to Harvard can obscure the importance of what we all (I'm guessing most of us) are trying to do, add something meaningful to the field...and, though the big H would be a great place to do this, there are others. Thanks again and good luck!!

Oh man, I feel like a total jerk lately! It's like I forgot what I'm doing this for, just like you said. Honestly, all I think about is getting into a top ten school. I was so bummed when I got waitlisted at Columbia, and how Harvard's coming this week. What a crummy existence...only thinking of my own ass! When I first applied, I thought, what the heck, give it a shot & hope to get in somewhere. Now that I've interviewed at these great places, I have become insane!!! The competitiveness is just feels over the top at this point.

 

[dandelion]

I'm complete, NP only, interviewed in Dec.

Reading through this thread has convinced me of the theory that "incomplete" = waitlist/acceptance as well, though I too thought my interviews went well, and I'd get a waitlist at least. True, these little red herrings may not mean anything at all; if only we didn't have the infamous example of Northwestern's status page! That HMS is tech-unsavvy makes it seem more likely to me that they would accidentally "leak out" information on their status page the eve before decision letters are about to go out.

I agree with DrDarwin(?), who said that there are terrific applicants in both camps, and let's not forget that many of us already have some great options. And to the person who says he doesn't have other options at this point, I sincerely hope you get in, if not to HMS, then off the waitlist of one of your other top choices.

 

[dandelion]

Oh man, I feel like a total jerk lately! It's like I forgot what I'm doing this for, just like you said. Honestly, all I think about is getting into a top ten school. I was so bummed when I got waitlisted at Columbia, and how Harvard's coming this week. What a crummy existence...only thinking of my own ass! When I first applied, I thought, what the heck, give it a shot & hope to get in somewhere. Now that I've interviewed at these great places, I have become insane!!! The competitiveness is just feels over the top at this point.

Right on, man. At the very beginning of this process, I was just hoping for my state school. . . . . SDN has an apocalyptic feel to it these days, probably reflective of how crazy we've all become.

 

[Whitney]

Oh man, I feel like a total jerk lately! It's like I forgot what I'm doing this for, just like you said. Honestly, all I think about is getting into a top ten school. I was so bummed when I got waitlisted at Columbia, and how Harvard's coming this week. What a crummy existence...only thinking of my own ass! When I first applied, I thought, what the heck, give it a shot & hope to get in somewhere. Now that I've interviewed at these great places, I have become insane!!! The competitiveness is just feels over the top at this point.

Personally, medicine is interesting to me because it calls on you to combine what can sometimes seem like opposing attributes: ultra competitiveness with ultra respect for colleagues and patients, confidence and humility, very successful people who fail over and over again....Anyway, it's just my two cents....but I think it can be difficult to balance these things 100% of the time...So (not that you need a pep talk from me), though you may feel like a jerk, you definitely don't sound like one....Did that make any sense???

 

[Sparky Man]

Did that make any sense???

Yep.

 

[ellia08]

Of the SDN posters, there are 10 who are HST (6 of whom are both NP and HST) and "complete" and only 3 who are HST-only and "incomplete." This is a suspicious imbalance that is not necessarily explained by the fact that HST has a low acceptance rate. Many of those rejected by HST will be accepted or WL at NP, especially since anyone invited to interview at both NP and HST is likely to be very impressive. One of the SDN posters who listed HST-only and "incomplete" is also MSTP and another one is also NP. Therefore, except for the possible exception of Elia08, it's plausible that the status pages have not yet been updated for applicants accepted only to HST. In my opinion, it doesn't necessarily follow that if "incomplete" means accepted/WL that "complete" means rejected.

Wait, am I really the only person posting on SDN who is only HST? weird.

[edit] sorry I misunderstood (HST-only and incomplete, right). It didnt seem like the other could be possible. Sometimes Im dense.

 

[Tra La La]

I'M FREAKING OUT!

Nah. Just kidding.

I want to wish everyone the best of luck as they wait for word from Harvard.

Certianly, waiting is one of the toughest parts of this process, but I agree with the posters above--never lose sight of the forest for the trees. I am confident that everyone who interviewed at Harvard will have some excellent schools to choose from whether or not Harvard actually accepts you, too.

This means that you will be becoming doctors. And regardless of where you end up, you can be the best and most empathetic physician possible whether or not Harvard accepts you.

to everyone and wishes for a happy next week!

 

[DrDarwin]

I'm complete, NP only, interviewed in Dec.

Reading through this thread has convinced me of the theory that "incomplete" = waitlist/acceptance as well, though I too thought my interviews went well, and I'd get a waitlist at least. True, these little red herrings may not mean anything at all; if only we didn't have the infamous example of Northwestern's status page! That HMS is tech-unsavvy makes it seem more likely to me that they would accidentally "leak out" information on their status page the eve before decision letters are about to go out.

I agree with DrDarwin(?), who said that there are terrific applicants in both camps, and let's not forget that many of us already have some great options. And to the person who says he doesn't have other options at this point, I sincerely hope you get in, if not to HMS, then off the waitlist of one of your other top choices.

I actually have yet to be accepted anywhere as well. 3.98/35, plus leadership, volunteer, tutoring, 1 pub, etc. and a Fulbright grant. I applied to 11 schools (mostly top 10 plus NW and my state school), which resulted in 5 rejections, 6 interviews, 1 WL (P&S--I thought they preferred attractive applicants ), and 0 acceptances (thus far). I was complete late because of a late international LOR, but I thought things would go more smoothly than this. I was hoping that my belief in my own competitiveness would be vindicated with an HMS acceptance, but that appears to be a slim possibility at this point. I wish I could attribute my presumptive rejection to a bad interview, but they both went well. One of my interviewers actually said he strongly agreed with my motivation for wanting to enter medicine and said that my motivation, as expressed in my PS, was "beautifully articulated," although that appears to mean absolutely nothing. Hopefully I can parlay my sob story into an acceptance off of one WL or another. For now, I am going to drown my frustrations in a beer or two or three (definitely no Sam Adams, though )...

 

[GiantGiantsFan]

ok, i give in....does anyone have the url for the hms status page? thanks

 

[ellia08]

ok, i give in....does anyone have the url for the hms status page? thanks

Yup, here it is...

Harvard Status Page

 

[brothersboff]

Alright. This thread has officially become a tribute to all of our obsessiveness. In a mere 24 hours, we've generated almost 150 posts and the thread's been viewed over 4,500 times. Makes it scary to think that a whole crew of us will be in a concentrated place together for the next 4 years.

Oh well... for now I'm off to check my status page again in case it's changed in the past 5 minutes.

 

[dandelion]

DrDarwin, you sound like an amazing applicant, and I am happy to be in the same camp as you. I know just what you mean when you say you were hoping that an acceptance from HMS would vindicate your competitiveness in spite of the setbacks in this process. Even if we are both outright rejected by Harvard, and it turns out you have to play the waitlist game, I'm certain that you will get in somewhere you really want to go, as long as you are persistant. And that is the important thing. It IS difficult to get into a top 10, no matter what your numbers are. In addition to the legacies and the people with connections, there are some truly, truly spectacular applicants out there. Even Wash U, the "numbers *****," reject far more people with a 37 MCAT (their average) than they accept. I, for one, am glad that there are so many talented people who want to enter the profession of medicine.

 

[Tra La La]

Alright. This thread has officially become a tribute to all of our obsessiveness. In a mere 24 hours, we've generated almost 150 posts and the thread's been viewed over 4,500 times. Makes it scary to think that a whole crew of us will be in a concentrated place together for the next 4 years.

 

[ellia08]

Alright. This thread has officially become a tribute to all of our obsessiveness. In a mere 24 hours, we've generated almost 150 posts and the thread's been viewed over 4,500 times. Makes it scary to think that a whole crew of us will be in a concentrated place together for the next 4 years.

Oh well... for now I'm off to check my status page again in case it's changed in the past 5 minutes.

 

[elicash]

I actually have yet to be accepted anywhere as well. 3.98/35, plus leadership, volunteer, tutoring, 1 pub, etc. and a Fulbright grant. I applied to 11 schools (mostly top 10 plus NW and my state school), which resulted in 5 rejections, 6 interviews, 1 WL (P&S--I thought they preferred attractive applicants ), and 0 acceptances (thus far). I was complete late because of a late international LOR, but I thought things would go more smoothly than this. I was hoping that my belief in my own competitiveness would be vindicated with an HMS acceptance, but that appears to be a slim possibility at this point. I wish I could attribute my presumptive rejection to a bad interview, but they both went well. One of my interviewers actually said he strongly agreed with my motivation for wanting to enter medicine and said that my motivation, as expressed in my PS, was "beautifully articulated," although that appears to mean absolutely nothing. Hopefully I can parlay my sob story into an acceptance off of one WL or another. For now, I am going to drown my frustrations in a beer or two or three (definitely no Sam Adams, though )...

Dr Darwin, I have to say, you do sound like quite a great applicant.... And I sympathize with your frustration. I applied to only a few schools but in the past 24 hours, especially with this HMS post, have started to realize that I overestimated my own competitiveness--- no fullbright, but work experience at a top management consulting firm, high MCAT, phi beta kappa, volunteer, leadership, publications, good interviewing skills, etc.....

And I used that confidence to justify getting rejected from certain places (as I would bet you did), because I thought, well, they must figure that I will get into someplace better, and so are just not wasting my or their time.

This crazy HMS thread, even though it is based in mere speculation and has a stock market-panic-like feel, has made me somewhat self-doubting in the last day.... Frankly, I have begun thinking, Was I playing my hand wrong the whole time? Did I have the wrong perspective?..... Not a good feeling.

However, I did get into one place recently, a good school.... And I hope you get in someplace as well. In fact, if I were you, and ended up with zero outright acceptances, I would think about writing to the waitlisted schools and sharing your predicament-- I thought I was very competitive, I feel like I will be an excellent med student, but I have yet to get in someplace, so please consider accepting me or inviting me for another interview. At the least, I would guess that would draw their attention and make them think hard about the final decision on you. GOOD LUCK.

 

[DrDarwin]

Dr Darwin, I have to say, you do sound like quite a great applicant.... And I sympathize with your frustration. I applied to only a few schools but in the past 24 hours, especially with this HMS post, have started to realize that I overestimated my own competitiveness--- no fullbright, but work experience at a top management consulting firm, high MCAT, phi beta kappa, volunteer, leadership, publications, good interviewing skills, etc.....

And I used that confidence to justify getting rejected from certain places (as I would bet you did), because I thought, well, they must figure that I will get into someplace better, and so are just not wasting my or their time.

This crazy HMS thread, even though it is based in mere speculation and has a stock market-panic-like feel, has made me somewhat self-doubting in the last day.... Frankly, I have begun thinking, Was I playing my hand wrong the whole time? Did I have the wrong perspective?..... Not a good feeling.

However, I did get into one place recently, a good school.... And I hope you get in someplace as well. In fact, if I were you, and ended up with zero outright acceptances, I would think about writing to the waitlisted schools and sharing your predicament-- I thought I was very competitive, I feel like I will be an excellent med student, but I have yet to get in someplace, so please consider accepting me or inviting me for another interview. At the least, I would guess that would draw their attention and make them think hard about the final decision on you. GOOD LUCK.

Yeah, I have always assumed that I am competitive, but I never really figured schools thought I was too competitive simply because my numbers are not ridiculous. I also have been asking myself some of the same wrong play/perspective questions, and it does suck. I just wish I had an outright acceptance now, which I am hoping my state school will provide me with (no news post-interview yet). I guess my frustration has been amplified during the last few days with a Columbia WL, no word from Duke or Cornell, and the HMS status page situation. It's difficult to bear so many disappointments in such a short amount of time, but such is life. I am sure everything will work out in the end. Good luck to you as well!

P.S. Thanks also, dandelion. Good luck to you!

 

[Electrophys]

I can't believe I read through all EIGHT pages of this thread...

Interviewed in October: Complete

*sigh*

 

[Dr.LeoSpaceman]

Yeah, just read this thread as well. Interviewed Dec. and I am complete. I know the consensus seems to be that complete=reject. I seem to have a disagreement with this, however. Perhaps I am being arrogant, but I find it hard to beleive that I would be outright rejected. WL, yes, but not outright rejection. With a 3.95/42, 3 years of research, good EC, volunteering, lots of shadowing, and the fact that I have been told on more than a few interviews that my LOR are incredible. Also, I feel my interviews went very well, and I have been accepted other places like NYU, Case, CCLCM, Northwestern, and a couple others. I know none of those are top 10, but I feel like it says that I can interview relatively well, and should have a good shot at at least the wait list.

Sorry if I sound bitter and self absorbed, but I just don't know what I could have done to at least get a waitlist. DrDarwin, I feel your pain, as I have also began to second guess my competitiveness at schools like HMS, and it is draining. I just find this entire tread ridiculous and unnecessarily stressful.