How much time are you given to respond to an acceptance?

[EricMont]

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For those who hope to get into multiple medical schools (all of us), does anyone know how long we have to decide where we are going? I would hate to get into a safety school early and have to put down a deposit because it is my only interview for a while, but then get into my top choice a few months later....
I was hoping there is a deadline where you have to let them know by, like may 1st? Can you tell them you want to decide at a later date?

 

[Dude Man Bro Man]

Until May 15, you can hold as many acceptances as you'd like. Many, if not most, schools will ask that you respond within 2-4 weeks of their accepting you to tell them if you'd like to keep your spot or decline the acceptance. Also, most schools require a deposit (usually only $100 or so) to hold your spot. But if you withdraw an acceptance before May 15 your deposit is usually refunded. By May 15 you must be holding only one spot, hopefully at the place you want to go anyway. So, long story short, many people hold multiple acceptances up until May 15th.

After May 15, you can still be on multiple waitlists while holding your one acceptance. At this point, you usually only have 1-2 weeks to decide to take an offer if accepted off of a waitlist because it's kind of the scramble time for schools to fill their class from the waitlist. I'd say only a minority of people have to worry about this, most people know for sure where they're going on or before May 15, but if you're on the waitlist for places that you'd rather go over where you've already been accepted, or if you are only on waitlists and have no definite acceptances, it can be stressful.

Hopefully this makes sense, good luck!

 

[phltz]

DMBM's description is exactly right for MD schools. DO schools have substantially fewer restrictions, and many of them will demand a decision and substantial (as in several thousand dollars) deposit within weeks of an acceptance. If you're still waiting to hear from other schools, this can put you in a difficult spot.