How important is interviewing before December 1st?

[excite4]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Hello,

I am in the process of scheduling interviews and I am not sure what to do. I will have four interviews before December 1st (UCSF, UCLA, USC, BU). I am a California resident and I feel like I have a strong application - the only thing that can hurt me is my PAT score of 18 (but my academic average is 22). My question is that is interviewing after December 1st going to hurt my chances at other schools such as Tufts, Columbia, NYU, and UOP? How important is the December 1st notification date? I guess I am just trying to save some money and see if I can get into my state schools before flying across the country. I hope this makes sense! Any help will be really appreciated!

Thanks So Much.

 

[Biogirl361]

in my opinion interviewing before dec 1 is of extreme importance, as classes will start filling at that time and the number of potential spots that all applicants are competing for will be smaller. however if you are pretty certain that you will get into your state school, or if you think your grades are good enough to outcompete people for the smaller number of seats available once people start reserving their places, then go ahead and wait (i myself am going to try to postpone my last interview until i hear from my state school).

 

[JavadiCavity]

Warren at UOP told me that interviewing before Dec. 1 is strongly encouraged if you want a good shot at getting into the class.

 

[J2AZ]

OK...correct me if my reasoning is wrong. There will be about 10,000 apps according to AADSAS and there about 4,000 spots. Stats aside, we all have about a 40% chance of getting in somewhere. However, we must remember that of those 10,000 apps there are a few that are junk and will have no chance what so ever. Therefore, our real chances are more aroung 50%. Now, according to MitchSE-R his AADSAS app was just sent out to schools on Oct 15 and his number is around 3950. On top of that he and the 6000 other students still have to do a few secondaries. I would venture to say that of those 4000 only about 3000 have there apps complete. Thus, most schools have only received about 30% of the apps. and reviewed even less. Given that, I would not worry too much about interviewing before dec 1st. Yes it is ideal but not necessary. If you were not one of the first 30% to complete your application it is next to impossible to interview before Dec. 1st. No school is going to fill all their slots after only reviewing 30% of their applications. In fact I have spoken with a few admissions officers and they have expressed that AADSAS is moving very slow this year and that they are holding off on some interview invites until they have a more representative pool to choose from. I believe that waiting until mid december to complete your last interviews will not hurt your chances. By then you will know if you got into one of your 1st four and if the trip is justified. If you decide to go after dec. 1st you will still be interviewing with the first 40% of applicants.

 

[omaralt]

OK...correct me if my reasoning is wrong. There will be about 10,000 apps according to AADSAS and there about 4,000 spots. Stats aside, we all have about a 40% chance of getting in somewhere. However, we must remember that of those 10,000 apps there are a few that are junk and will have no chance what so ever. Therefore, our real chances are more aroung 50%. Now, according to MitchSE-R his AADSAS app was just sent out to schools on Oct 15 and his number is around 3950. On top of that he and the 6000 other students still have to do a few secondaries. I would venture to say that of those 4000 only about 3000 have there apps complete. Thus, most schools have only received about 30% of the apps. and reviewed even less. Given that, I would not worry too much about interviewing before dec 1st. Yes it is ideal but not necessary. If you were not one of the first 30% to complete your application it is next to impossible to interview before Dec. 1st. No school is going to fill all their slots after only reviewing 30% of their applications. In fact I have spoken with a few admissions officers and they have expressed that AADSAS is moving very slow this year and that they are holding off on some interview invites until they have a more representative pool to choose from. I believe that waiting until mid december to complete your last interviews will not hurt your chances. By then you will know if you got into one of your 1st four and if the trip is justified. If you decide to go after dec. 1st you will still be interviewing with the first 40% of applicants.

hold up a sec. mitch se-r's app went out right in oct and it was number 3950. but that means he sent out hsi app probably somewhere in early- mid august. according to this thread:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=157382
this guy submitted end of aug and is in the 4000's. if you submit today, i'm betting ur somewhere in the 8000's possibly a little less. so def try to interview asap.

omar

 

[Sprgrover]

in my opinion interviewing before dec 1 is of extreme importance, as classes will start filling at that time and the number of potential spots that all applicants are competing for will be smaller.

I agree with this statement, and it's this reason that I believe applying before December 1 is important.

 

[boogaking]

Set your schools on a priorty list... my suggestion would be to do your interviews at the CA schools sooner than later... pref before DEC 1st to increase your chances of getting in.... Schools like BU will have spots later into the app process... so no hurry there... seriously if you are getting request from those CALI schools now... you must have kick ass stats... live it up and don't hold up on that opportunity...

fyi... I submitted my app to ADSASS early Sept... finally had it processed and sent out... im well into the 5000's ....so looks like alot of competition this year.

 

[hockeydentist]

decides to send you an interview, but its not untill way after december. Is it likely that they are thinkin that you'll get into your state school, thus if by chance you didn't get an acceptance dec 1st, you would be able to interview later.

just wonderin this my self

hd

 

[Sprgrover]

decides to send you an interview, but its not untill way after december. Is it likely that they are thinkin that you'll get into your state school, thus if by chance you didn't get an acceptance dec 1st, you would be able to interview later.

just wonderin this my self

hd

My adivsor and other dental students that went to my school advised me to be prepared to cough up a deposit fee so as to hold a seat at a school if I don't hear from my top choice. Expensive? Yes - but doing so will cover your behind. Knowing that you have a spot with your name on it in dental school? - Priceless...

 

[ItsGavinC]

OK...correct me if my reasoning is wrong. There will be about 10,000 apps according to AADSAS and there about 4,000 spots. Stats aside, we all have about a 40% chance of getting in somewhere. However, we must remember that of those 10,000 apps there are a few that are junk and will have no chance what so ever. Therefore, our real chances are more aroung 50%.

ONLY if you and everybody else applies to ALL the schools. Obviously nobody does, so the numbers (be it 50% or 40%) don't mean anything. Further, how do you know that your app isn't one of those "junk" ones, meaning you have no chance whatsoever?

No school is going to fill all their slots after only reviewing 30% of their applications

Why not? If you get top-notch applicants that you want, then what would hinder you from giving them acceptances? It's important to remember that the adcoms are playing the game also. It's nearly mathematically improbable that ALL students who receive acceptances from school X on Dec. 1 will matriculate to school X, but that doesn't mean that a huge chunk of the seats won't be taken by those who heard back on Dec. 1.

If you decide to go after dec. 1st you will still be interviewing with the first 40% of applicants.

I don't think that is mathematically possible, for the majority of schools. This is probably too much of a blanket statement, but schools DO stop interviewing in the spring, with many of them stopping in March or so (unless they can't fill their classes for some reason).

 

[ItsGavinC]

in my opinion interviewing before dec 1 is of extreme importance, as classes will start filling at that time and the number of potential spots that all applicants are competing for will be smaller.

Bingo. Being after Dec. 1 doesn't mean you won't get in, but this game is all about maximizing your odds. I mean, how many of us thought "well, a B- is chem is better than a C, so I'll shoot for a B-"?

Less spots available mean stiffer competition from a sheer numbers perspective.

 

[J2AZ]

A junk application is one sent out by a student who really has not done the research on a given school. I will be the first to admit that I sent out a junk application to a few schools. I never took micro so what was I thinking when I applied to Washington. I also only took one semester of anatomy so Indiana was out. Many students make mistakes like this. I've heard of students applying with to Canadian schools that require the Canadian DAT yet they never took it. I also know of students that banked on higher DAT scores yet received well below the average. Students often apply to out of state schools that only accept 1 out of state student. It's not a junk application if you are that lucky 1 but what are the odds of that. Students try to get in with GPA's below the minimum and having not taken all the prereqs. If you have decent DAT scores (normal not NOT SDN avg) and GPA and also have a few EC's then you are not in the junk app category.
You maximize your chances of getting in by sending out about 10 apps. Because of the very fact that not all 10,000 apply to all schools you don't need to apply to all 52 to still have about a 40% chance. (I'm not a statistician but this seems logical)
Finally, based on MitchSE-R's number (10/15) only 40% of the apps have been sent out by AADSAS yet interviews are already sch. into Dec. Thus only those students who make up the 1st 30% or 40% to send in there apps will have interviews sch in or before Dec. Therefore, if you interview in Dec you are interviewing with that group.
It is always advantageous to apply early. However, if like the OP, you will have 4 interviews complete before Dec 1st I fail to see how you will hurt yourself if you sch your last 3 for after Dec. 1st. I say save yourself the cost of the trip b/c most likely if you do not receive a rejection in Nov. you will receive a min of one acceptance on Dec. 1st.

 

[excite4]

Thanks for your help everybody! Why does applying to dental school have to be so hard??!!!

 

[Dr. Steve Brule]

well it's nice to see people r talking about me! u really do care about what i have to say 😀..anyway yeah i applied aug 9 and according to infosource my apps were mailed out on sept 29..but i only started receiving notices that schools had received it in mid october..and my # is 3959..im still waiting to hear about interviews though..also this question has probably been answered elsewhere but does anybody have a listing of all the schools that require secondaries? so far the only one i've gotten is from nova, but i've also applied to nyu, columbia, bu, tufts, temple, and pitt..does anyone know if any of these schools require a secondary? and if so shouldn't i have gotten it by now? thanks!

 

[rocknightmare]

i pretty sure pitt doesn't have one... i would go to each schools web page and try to find the application procedure..

 

[BeachLuvr]

So many percentages...eek. I'd break it down like this...if your tail applied way early...say, June, July...even May, and you haven't heard anything by the end of December...prolly needa be a bit concerned. However, if you're later then that...more like September, November-ish...then yeah, by the time the adcomm reviews your goods, many interview spots could be full with people who applied earlier.
Kinda like the kid who gets picked last for kickball...he still gets to play, but only if there's no one left to pick from...

 

[ranark]

well it's nice to see people r talking about me! u really do care about what i have to say 😀..anyway yeah i applied aug 9 and according to infosource my apps were mailed out on sept 29..but i only started receiving notices that schools had received it in mid october..and my # is 3959..im still waiting to hear about interviews though..also this question has probably been answered elsewhere but does anybody have a listing of all the schools that require secondaries? so far the only one i've gotten is from nova, but i've also applied to nyu, columbia, bu, tufts, temple, and pitt..does anyone know if any of these schools require a secondary? and if so shouldn't i have gotten it by now? thanks!

Temple has a short one page secondary. Columbia doesnt, NYU doesnt, boston doesnt but i think one of those three require a picture..

 

[Dr. Steve Brule]

Temple has a short one page secondary. Columbia doesnt, NYU doesnt, boston doesnt but i think one of those three require a picture..

thanks! yeah im pretty sure i've sent pictures to all the schools that require them..should i receive this secondary from temple in the mail? i browsed their website a bit but couldn't find it there..i think my best bet is to call all of the schools and see if my app is missing anything

 

[highfly413]

you get temple's secondary when they grant you an interview. it will come in an email atttachment, with info about the interview.

 

[ecdoesit]

hi, excite4,
Please pardon that didactic learning is taking much of my time at ucla that i probably dont have time to read thru/respond to every single person here.
imho, at UCLA, it really doesnt matter when you get the interview like when. As long as you get one, you are in very good shape. UOP, however, has an entirely different system. The sooner you interivew, the higher chance u get accepted. UCSF maybe a little faster, but I got all my interview around Jan or Feb, and accepted soon after and u have the same DAT score as me. Just be patience.

USC probably wont send large grp of interview till jan-march anyhow.

In general, application process is tough in a sense there is so much uncertainy, but later on at dental sch (didactic format anyway), we have to go through another kinds of hardship. So, i think it depends on how u view it. u could either whine about it, or just face it and deal with it.

 

[favabean]

well it's nice to see people r talking about me! u really do care about what i have to say 😀..anyway yeah i applied aug 9 and according to infosource my apps were mailed out on sept 29..but i only started receiving notices that schools had received it in mid october..and my # is 3959..im still waiting to hear about interviews though..also this question has probably been answered elsewhere but does anybody have a listing of all the schools that require secondaries? so far the only one i've gotten is from nova, but i've also applied to nyu, columbia, bu, tufts, temple, and pitt..does anyone know if any of these schools require a secondary? and if so shouldn't i have gotten it by now? thanks!

Hey! I sent in my app on Aug 15th and my AADSAS #is less than yours! #38XX. How is that possible if you applied on the 9th? You should be ahead of me! AADSAS is strange...

 

[demonicr]

i noticed that also, there are people who applied later than me but their number is smaller than mines.

 

[excite4]

In general, application process is tough in a sense there is so much uncertainy, but later on at dental sch (didactic format anyway), we have to go through another kinds of hardship. So, i think it depends on how u view it. u could either whine about it, or just face it and deal with it.[/QUOTE]


Well of course I am going to deal with it, but I dont have to like it! You are right its the uncertainty that I dont like. Anyway, you said that for UOP the earlier you interview the better. They are the only school I havent heard from, should I be worried? My GPA is much higher than their average but my PAT score is 18 and their average is 19. Do you think that is the reason? My file wasnt complete there until 9/13.

Thanks

 

[ecdoesit]

All we need is one acceptance, u know.
3 or 4 yrs later, we will be dentist.
Dont need to stress too much cos ur stats is hard solid.

Each sch has its own philosophy.
UOP doesnt like to spend too much time interviewing but concentrate on educating future dentists. The other sch that i know which are like that UNLV and Case. I didnt complete their app till Nov, so i never got interview at uop... But who cares, I got accepted to my first 3 choice schools. Just do your best on each interviews. Later on, u will have headache about deposits, housing, financial aid, besides all these school stuff. So, just try to maintain a positive attitude and work through it, alright?

 

[toony]

i noticed that also, there are people who applied later than me but their number is smaller than mines.

i noticed that too. i think it depends on how you pay your application fee. you know how it takes longer for them to process if you pay it by check, ie. just a thought.

 

[demonicr]

i noticed that too. i think it depends on how you pay your application fee. you know how it takes longer for them to process if you pay it by check, ie. just a thought.

thats is a possibilty, but i paid with credit card. oh wells......

 

[Woodsy]

U shouldn't have a prob with columbia....I submitted around the same time, had my interview in Feb and got in the next week. The bulk of Columbia's interviews and acceptances are after dec 1. U should be ok.

 

[kalix]

My adivsor and other dental students that went to my school advised me to be prepared to cough up a deposit fee so as to hold a seat at a school if I don't hear from my top choice. Expensive? Yes - but doing so will cover your behind. Knowing that you have a spot with your name on it in dental school? - Priceless...

I'm sorry, but I can't help but to laugh at that avatar of yours LOL

What a scholar, what a scholar

 

[Sprgrover]

I'm sorry, but I can't help but to laugh at that avatar of yours LOL

What a scholar, what a scholar

Mine? - Glad to know you like it...It's really hard to find a decent image of Grover as his alter ego. The image is an engraving of Medusa.