How do students who get offered multiple interview afford to fly to different schools across the US?

[TrillyBassily]

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I might be putting the cart before the horse here, but I've applied to 17 DO schools, many of which are all over the nation. I did so because I want to give myself the best possible odds at admission, but I worry about how I'll be able to go to all of these schools to interview if I'm lucky enough to receive numerous offers to interview.

I don't want to turn down any offers to interview, because it would obviously hurt my chances at getting accepted anywhere, but as a recent college grad, I'm clearly not made out of money here. What do people do?

 

[Endorphins98]

Check out some of the cards like Delta AMEX. I think if you spend $1000 in the first 3 months (groceries, gas, etc...) you get something like 30k sky miles through Delta which is a round trip flight! A lot of airlines probably have similar offers. I would check those out!

 

[Ho0v-man]

I drove. It sucks. But I'm poor. In two weeks I interviewed at ACOM, LECOM SH , cusom, KCOM, and dcom. With a gas efficient car you'll spend about as much on a trip like that in gas as you would on a one way plane ticket. It's painful, but so will looking at the cost of all of this at the end of the cycle.


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[Endorphins98]

I drove. It sucks. But I'm poor. In two weeks I interviewed at ACOM, LECOM SH , cusom, KCOM, and dcom. With a gas efficient car you'll spend about as much on a trip like that in gas as you would on a one way plane ticket. It's painful, but so will looking at the cost of all of this at the end of the cycle.


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Mad respect!!! I interviewed at 3 of those places too. I was fortunate enough to have a family member who travels internationally quite a bit who let me use some of her sky miles (thank goodness).

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Basically you space the interviews a month apart and go to them until you are admitted at one, which usually is one of the first 2 or 3 you interview. At this point you drop all other interviews unless you have a favorite school. This is why you should never apply to a school you wouldn't attend. I only attended 2 interviews and cut off the rest.

 

[TrillyBassily]

Basically you space the interviews a month apart and go to them until you are admitted at one, which usually is one of the first 2 or 3 you interview. At this point you drop all other interviews unless you have a favorite school. This is why you should never apply to a school you wouldn't attend. I only attended 2 interviews and cut off the rest.

Why is it advisable to space a month between one and the other? What benefits does that have?

 

[mehc012]

Why is it advisable to space a month between one and the other? What benefits does that have?

Gives you a chance to get admitted so you can decide to drop interviews if you get into a school you'd rather attend.

Add for affording it...credit card. This past cycle cost me like 7 grand all told, though not all on credit. Thank God for loans, I guess.

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

 

[cabinbuilder]

Check out some of the cards like Delta AMEX. I think if you spend $1000 in the first 3 months (groceries, gas, etc...) you get something like 30k sky miles through Delta which is a round trip flight! A lot of airlines probably have similar offers. I would check those out!

Alaska airlines visa card give you a free ticket with just signing up for the card. All flights and tickets you buy with the card are double/triple miles. Same with rental cars and airport food. I put all my monthly bills on my card so the free miles rack up quickly. Remember when you get a rental car to tell the agent to attached your frequent flyer number to the rental agreement and you will get automatic 1000 bonus miles. It takes 25,000 miles to get a free ticket.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Why is it advisable to space a month between one and the other? What benefits does that have?

Go to first interview, get acceptance then don't spend money on going to other interviews if they don't interest you.

 

[TrillyBassily]

Go to first interview, get acceptance then don't spend money on going to other interviews if they don't interest you.

True, but isn't it disadvanategous to postpone my second and third etc... interviews since other students my interview before I can and so by the time I interview there will be fewer seats available?

Instead, shouldn't I schedule all interviews as soon as possible so that I have the best chance at getting in to each school I apply to?

 

[TrillyBassily]

Gives you a chance to get admitted so you can decide to drop interviews if you get into a school you'd rather attend.

Add for affording it...credit card. This past cycle cost me like 7 grand all told, though not all on credit. Thank God for loans, I guess.

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

True, but isn't it disadvanategous to postpone my second and third etc... interviews since other students my interview before I can and so by the time I interview there will be fewer seats available?

Instead, shouldn't I schedule all interviews as soon as possible so that I have the best chance at getting in to each school I apply to?

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

True, but isn't it disadvanategous to postpone my second and third etc... interviews since other students my interview before I can and so by the time I interview there will be fewer seats available?

Instead, shouldn't I schedule all interviews as soon as possible so that I have the best chance at getting in to each school I apply to?

If you can afford it. Seats in DO world don't fill until February or March. This is all assuming early submission and early interview.

 

[Ho0v-man]

Competition for DO doesn't heat up until the beginning of October when all the MD only applicants start ****ing bricks when they have nothing but wait listings. I interviewed like I did because I applied late and because of work constraints.

Of course, it's easier to tell people to space it out when you're accepted/a med student and not a slave to your own non-accepted neuroses. I would have interviewed bi weekly until I had an acceptance if I had the choice last year.


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[ItsATrap!]

I had two interviews in the same week, then one across country. Took Greyhound to one, rented a car through USAA to get from the greyhound station. I then used Southwest to fly across the country. It was still expensive for the interviews, but once you get that first acceptance, you can be much pickier about where you go.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

I plan on renting a car and driving. I have no money to pay back the credit cards even if I do use it. I've saved some money over the years and hopefully that will be enough. Besides, I looking at it as it's my mini road trip to see America haha.

 

[mehc012]

I plan on renting a car and driving. I have no money to pay back the credit cards even if I do use it. I've saved some money over the years and hopefully that will be enough. Besides, I looking at it as it's my mini road trip to see America haha.

Driving often isn't much cheaper than flying, especially if you find a good deal. Plus, you have to factor in the time you missed from work with a road trip. For me, more interviews at a couple hundred a pop was a worthwhile gamble, even though it would have been difficult had I not been accepted, in order to raise the odds of me being accepted, at which point those interview costs are a drop in the bucket of your student loans. I'm not paying the credit card back so much as decreasing the interest rate. 😉

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

Driving often isn't much cheaper than flying, especially if you find a good deal. Plus, you have to factor in the time you missed from work with a road trip. For me, more interviews at a couple hundred a pop was a worthwhile gamble, even though it would have been difficult had I not been accepted, in order to raise the odds of me being accepted, at which point those interview costs are a drop in the bucket of your student loans. I'm not paying the credit card back so much as decreasing the interest rate. 😉

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

You got a point. It would definitely be difficult if I worked 5 days a week like normal folks, but I'm lucky enough to have a job where I work two 16 hrs shift and get paid for 40hrs/week lol.

 

[miakip]

I have no choice but to fly.

I asked my doctor-mentor-frind how he did it and he said: credit cards.

Another doctor stated that you will only get a few interviews because medschool give them out by chance... haha I don't know about that.

 

[drkube]

+1 on the credit cards. I also drove for the close ones (8 hours or less)

 

[mehc012]

You got a point. It would definitely be difficult if I worked 5 days a week like normal folks, but I'm lucky enough to have a job where I work two 16 hrs shift and get paid for 40hrs/week lol.

I was thinking mainly of gas/hotel costs, but yeah that work schedule helps. You can get a student host for the night before your interview, but if you're driving for more than one day, and you don't want to sleep in your car before an important event, there may be hotels along the route.

If you're applying mostly near where you live it's one thing, but for example I lived in CA and had interviews in CA, MI, OH, VA, VT, NH, and GA. Driving wasn't really viable (not even taking into consideration that I moved to Guatemala for late interview season, lol!) I didn't get in until Traffic Day, so I attended every one. I had almost enough savings for app fees and Guatemala, but not for as many interviews as I wound up getting. Worth every penny of the cc debt.

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

 

[medstar11]

Seriously my saving grace was signing up for the frontier den deals. I went to SOMA,KCOM, WVSOM, BCOM, and TUCOM in a three week period and I think I only spent ~800. I drove to BCOM since it was like an 8 hour drive, my mom came with me to WVSOM and my fiancé came to SOMA and I paid for both their tickets in that too. Frontier can have some wicked deals. I went to TUCOM for $40 round trip.


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[AsianPersuasion]

I was thinking mainly of gas/hotel costs, but yeah that work schedule helps. You can get a student host for the night before your interview, but if you're driving for more than one day, and you don't want to sleep in your car before an important event, there may be hotels along the route.

If you're applying mostly near where you live it's one thing, but for example I lived in CA and had interviews in CA, MI, OH, VA, VT, NH, and GA. Driving wasn't really viable (not even taking into consideration that I moved to Guatemala for late interview season, lol!) I didn't get in until Traffic Day, so I attended every one. I had almost enough savings for app fees and Guatemala, but not for as many interviews as I wound up getting. Worth every penny of the cc debt.

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

Oh no, I have to sleep at a real place with atleast a couch or on a bed. I have enough money saved where I can afford at least a motel. I can't imagine trying to get ready for an interview and look clean with no sleep or shower lmao.

 

[mehc012]

Oh no, I have to sleep at a real place with atleast a couch or on a bed. I have enough money saved where I can afford at least a motel. I can't imagine trying to get ready for an interview and look clean with no sleep or shower lmao.

Right, student hosts are great for that (and it's nice talking to them)...I meant if, for example, you had more than one day's driving to do, so the night BEFORE the night before your interview!

Sent from my phone, I apologize for any typos or brevity.

 

[abn632]

Getting a credit card is the best thing to do. Do your research and get one that offers a lot of benefits, points, miles, etc. Be smart with it and don't make a bunch of foolish purchases and you'll be fine.

If you have to drive, you can always go on Craigslist and do a rideshare. Look for people going to the same city and split the cost of gas and driving. This, of course, has the potential downside of you ending up with a serial killer who wants you to put lotion on its skin, but if you make it out alive, you'll have a great story about overcoming adversity for your interview!