hold status vs. no reply

[echinoderm]

---

Members do not see this ad.

which is better... not having heard from the school yet, or being placed on hold? do some schools intentionally reject you as late as march, even though they know their decision after an initial skip through?

 

[LauraMac]

no idea, but personally i'd rather just not hear for a long time. that way i could just pretend like they hadn't really gotten around to looking at my application yet. if you're put on hold you know for sure that they think you are a so-so applicant.

 

[CanIMakeIt]

I think being placed on hold is better because that way at least you know that the school has considered you and might consider you further if the time/seat permits and this way you can cross one more school where u r complete........one less thing to worry about

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

if you're put on hold you know for sure that they think you are a so-so applicant.

Weeellll... sort of. Think of it this way. The school has already gotten its cash out of you. At that point, it can only cost them money - interviewing applicants takes valuable resources. So what they do is put a bunch of "average" applicants on hold, waiting for some of them to withdraw or decline an interview as they get other acceptances. This maximizes the chances of getting an applicant who's really excited about going to your school - time has effectively weeded out those who were using you as a backup. Thus, the school has a higher yield for resources consumed.

This can be to your advantage. All you have to do is outwait the other applicants. A lot of people will sacrifice the chance at getting into an awesome school just for the comfort of knowing where they'll end up at an earlier time. They withdraw the other applications once they receive an acceptance from ANY school that they deem "acceptable".

 

[sequoia]

A lot of people will sacrifice the chance at getting into an awesome school just for the comfort of knowing where they'll end up at an earlier time. They withdraw the other applications once they receive an acceptance from ANY school that they deem "acceptable".

I only partially agree. Chances of getting into an awsome school are all relative to the individual and his/her priorities. Awsome is also knowing you are in and not having to worry or stress any more. In the end, you will get a solid medical education as long as your med school is accreditted. Residency is really where you become a doctor!

Holding Acceptances Etiquette

One should rank the schools he/she has applied to, ALL of them in order of priority. If you don't get a secondary to one, it gets crossed off, if you get put on hold somewhere, star it but leave it on the list.

When you receive an acceptance, evaluate where the school is on your list and circle it. Then immediately withdraw your application to all schools that rank lower in priority on your list.

Now the school you've been accepted to should be at the bottom of your list. All the schools above it are still in consideration. As soon as you receive another acceptance for a school you have ranked higher on your priority list, circle the new school. Now immediately withdraw your acceptace / applications from all schools ranked lower on your list below the one you just circled.

How many schools are above your new school? Would you be happy or satisfied attending that med school?

If YES, notify that school of your intent to enroll ASAP and withdraw your application from all remaining schools on your list.

If NO, hold your acceptance to that school until you have an acceptance from a school ranked higher on your list. If and when you get that next acceptance, follow the same process outlined above.

Remember, at no time should you be holding more than ONE acceptance.

Getting into a medical school that you will be satisfied with is important but holding multiple acceptances is simply wrong. There are a lot of qualified applicants that don't get a chance at a school they'd really like to go to because someone else was inconsiderate and held an acceptance to that same school with no intention of ever enrolling.

BE CONSIDERATE and EVERYONE BENEFITS!

Good luck everyone! 👍

 

[An Yong]

Remember, at no time should you be holding more than ONE acceptance.

Getting into a medical school that you will be satisfied with is important but holding multiple acceptances is simply wrong. There are a lot of qualified applicants that don't get a chance at a school they'd really like to go to because someone else was inconsiderate and held an acceptance to that same school with no intention of ever enrolling.

BE CONSIDERATE and EVERYONE BENEFITS!

Good luck everyone! 👍

Forgetting about Financial Aid... which won't be offered until next year, so I can understand some people holding onto many acceptances until then.