Late application

[addis4ever1]

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When do u consider someone a late applicant? I've heard two sides of the story: some ppl say apply late and it'll be less likely for an applicant to get accepted (but i've seen ppl get in when they applied in Oct). While others say apply early so u can get in. Is there a rule to go by? Ur inputs would help. Thanx.

 

[jmh018]

It is a rolling admission so applicants are accepted throughout the cycle. If you apply early there are more open spots to compete for. If you're late, you are competing for fewer spots. Also applying in October could mean a late interview and maybe not getting a December 1 acceptance.

 

[emorypredent]

Last cycle, I applied late (mid-October). Got a bunch of interviews that all led to wait list spots. 0 acceptances. I'm in the process of reapplying.

 

[addis4ever1]

Thanx guys. The reason I asked is because I'll be taking my DAT in late Aug and I heard that even though I submit my app early, they won't consider my app complete until they receive my DAT scores. Also true?

 

[Ionz]

Thanx guys. The reason I asked is because I'll be taking my DAT in late Aug and I heard that even though I submit my app early, they won't consider my app complete until they receive my DAT scores. Also true?

Yes, that's true. Most schools will require a complete application for consideration.

 

[gn4]

Thanx guys. The reason I asked is because I'll be taking my DAT in late Aug and I heard that even though I submit my app early, they won't consider my app complete until they receive my DAT scores. Also true?

some schools will let you fax in your unofficial scores and they can begin to review your application

 

[jmh018]

some schools will let you fax in your unofficial scores and they can begin to review your application

I did that and got an interview the day my official scores got to the school. They finished my app based on the unofficial scores.

 

[jmh018]

Thanx guys. The reason I asked is because I'll be taking my DAT in late Aug and I heard that even though I submit my app early, they won't consider my app complete until they receive my DAT scores. Also true?

Late August is just the beginning of being late. That would be the latest I would go but people obviously get accepted after that. I took my DAT on August 8 last year and interviewed at the end of September.

 

[addis4ever1]

Late August is just the beginning of being late. That would be the latest I would go but people obviously get accepted after that. I took my DAT on August 8 last year and interviewed at the end of September.

Did u get accepted?

 

[mid]

I applied at the end of October (when my application was "mailed"), and had 4 interviews in November and a few more in January (I got in and withdrew applications but want to say I got like 3-4 more invites for January).

My numbers are not spectacular but also not terrible.

There is a lot of Voodoo in this game but if I were still a pre-dent I'd try to have my application mailed by mid-to-late August. (and I don't think being earlier than that gives much if any advantage and might even give a slight disadvantage, after all you don't want them looking at your application next to Glimmer's!)

 

[addis4ever1]

I applied at the end of October (when my application was "mailed"), and had 4 interviews in November and a few more in January (I got in and withdrew applications but want to say I got like 3-4 more invites for January).

My numbers are not spectacular but also not terrible.

There is a lot of Voodoo in this game but if I were still a pre-dent I'd try to have my application mailed by mid-to-late August. (and I don't think being earlier than that gives much if any advantage and might even give a slight disadvantage, after all you don't want them looking at your application next to Glimmer's!)

Thanx a lot!

 

[jmh018]

Did u get accepted?

I did get accepted.

 

[dans105]

Anyone have stats on how applying early vs. late affects your chances? It's one of those things that gets perpetuated all over SDN but I've never seen any real data on it. I'm not saying it's better to apply late, but I don't think it matters as much as some people are lead to believe. I think people stress way too much over getting their app in early.

 

[emorypredent]

Anyone have stats on how applying early vs. late affects your chances? It's one of those things that gets perpetuated all over SDN but I've never seen any real data on it. I'm not saying it's better to apply late, but I don't think it matters as much as some people are lead to believe. I think people stress way too much over getting their app in early.

Several adcom members told me applying late hurts because the interview spots are already given out. Some, if not most, schools have a pre-sit limit or interview capacity. Yes, interview spots may open up but then you will be competing for those very limited spots with MANY applicants.

Also, late applications can result in post-dec interviews. These interviews often occur after the class has already been filled in December or if there are a handful of spots left.

Basically, the way I understand it is the schools are focused on filling their class. They are more likely to become more picky in the "home stretch" when they are filling their class one seat at a time.

 

[CalPolyDentist]

Here's my experience: Finished my app early August for the 2012-2013 cycle

California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo
Stats: 3.90 GPA Overall
DAT: 23AA/22TS/26ochem/24gchem/19bio/21PAT/22QR/22RC
4 Good Letters of Rec (three professors I'm close to - Research, personally, and TA'ing - and my VERY OPTIMISTIC dentist)
Tons of EC - including working 4 jobs simultaneously and research for ~2 years.

But I only applied to four schools: Minnesota (In-State), UNC, UoP, and Texas San Antonio.

I heard back Early September from Minnesota, interviewed October 26th, and was blessed with a December acceptance. However, I didn't even hear back from those other schools until March-April... Bummer considering Minnesota was my fourth choice hah.

Don't let this scare you, but I would my two MAIN mistakes were these:
1. I applied to only four schools, two of which (UNC and Texas-San Antonio) accept "mostly" in-state students. I should have varied it up, applied to some Ivy's, some other private schools, but cost of attendance scared me away (Even though I ended up getting the Air Force HPSP - blehhhh silly me haha).

2. I applied in Early August, which in my opinion is the "beginning of the 'late' applications." I have heard it's best to apply in June, mostly because schools have a lot of interview spots to throw around, saying, "Hey, why not invite this guy/gal for an interview, they have decent stats and were on top of it enough to apply early!" At the beginning of the cycle, they have 100% open seats, 100% open interview slots, it just makes sense that they would be less selective (not to mention, not everyone applies in June)

The month of July is what I call the "End of the 'early' applications" from my experience. This is mainly because there was hearsay about the majority of applications being sent in during the Late July-August period (not sure if this is true, but it's what I heard). So applying before the large influx of others is to your advantage, logic stated in the previous paragraph - more seats/interviews open, better chances to fill a slot, even if your stats are lower).

Now, I didn't follow my own advice, but I still got in (Lucky for me!). I'm posting on July 10th, so you still have time to be in the "Early application" period by my insight. Also, I heard of people with a lot lower stats than I getting more interviews/acceptances than I did. So it's a lot about the pool of schools that are on your list as well. 🙂

My advice for this stage of life: Don't worry, because you're exactly where you need to be in order to get where you're going.

Best Wishes!

 

[yoong]

To the Thread Starter:

I think you are fine for majority of schools provided that you submit everything by July. Some schools like Case Western, however, seem to start reviewing applications right around now. So you might be at a slight disadvantage for these schools. But it's nothing a solid GPA/DAT/PS can't overcome

Just my 2 cents

 

[addis4ever1]

Thanx a lot for ur inputs. I also heard, better be late (but not too late) with solid stats than just apply with avg stats. I understand it's best to apply early but I'm really not ready to take the DAT yet. Thanx to your advices, I guess it'll be better for me to submit my app asap then fax or mail my current DAT scores. So my next question is, lol, how/where do I state in my app that i'll be taking the DAT soon? so the adcoms could look for it.