Mentioning other acceptance at interview?

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
yogidoc19

yogidoc19

Full Member
5+ Year Member
Joined
Apr 7, 2018
Messages
173
Reaction score
132
So I have been searching trying to find a similar thread but haven't been able to get a clear answer on this.

I was fortunate to get a couple interviews and acceptances very early in the cycle. Afterwards I withdrew from the ones I didn't plan to attend and kept my acceptance at my favorite of those schools. I planned to attend that school until receiving an interview to a school that is local. Overall, it is a better school and one of my top choices but I was not holding my breath since there had been silence since being complete in the summer. This interview came out of nowhere and while I'm excited, I'm a little unsure of how to approach the topic of having another acceptance.

Is there a polite way I can mention that while I have another acceptance, I would 100% go to this other school if accepted, however... my time is running out as my other accept would require me to move both my life and that of my SO far away once our lease is up. Don't get me wrong- I still love the school I'm accepted to but I want to know if it is possible to convey my situation respectfully to the other school. I don't want to sound greedy or like I am rushing the adcom but also feel I should be honest if this comes up. Thanks in advance!
Members don't see this ad.
 
Last edited:
This is a tough one which I somewhat equate to gambling. You can certainly tip your hand and drop the information, but be aware that your bluff may be called.

Unless this school is REALLY trying to recruit you for some reason, the information of another acceptance will probably work against you. I'd be quiet about it if it were me.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
yogidoc19 said:
Is there a polite way I can mention that while I have another acceptance, I would 100% go to this other school if accepted, however... my time is running out as my other accept would require me to move both my life and that of my SO far away once our lease is up.
Click to expand...

I disagree that it would work against you. You have an acceptance. You are not just another desperate applicant wanting to get in. You’re going somewhere and are going to be a doctor. That you want to turn down another school for them looks very good. Unless this school is one of the very top schools that everyone wants to go to, it will only help you.

I was in this same situation (except my move was actually shorter for the school I was already accepted to).

So first of all, everyone has to move if they’re going to a school that isn’t close. That’s not really unique or a reason for them to make a decision sooner. I have a wife and kids that I need to move, but I didn’t mention that to try to get them to hurry up. That’s not a great idea, I think.

However, I did flat out tell them I had another acceptance but want to be very clear that I would absolutely go to this school over the one I was already accepted to. I gave them three reasons why. After the interview, I wrote a letter of intent reiterating those reasons. I got accepted 3 weeks later (this school only boards once a month).

You don’t need to worry too much about how to say it. Just pick a couple things about the school that makes them your choice over your current acceptance and say those things.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
Members don't see this ad :)
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
I disagree that it would work against you. You have an acceptance. You are not just another desperate applicant wanting to get in. You’re going somewhere and are going to be a doctor. That you want to turn down another school for them looks very good. Unless this school is one of the very top schools that everyone wants to go to, it will only help you.

I was in this same situation (except my move was actually shorter for the school I was already accepted to).

So first of all, everyone has to move if they’re going to a school that isn’t close. That’s not really unique or a reason for them to make a decision sooner. I have a wife and kids that I need to move, but I didn’t mention that to try to get them to hurry up. That’s not a great idea, I think.

However, I did flat out tell them I had another acceptance but want to be very clear that I would absolutely go to this school over the one I was already accepted to. I gave them three reasons why. After the interview, I wrote a letter of intent reiterating those reasons. I got accepted 3 weeks later (this school only boards once a month).

You don’t need to worry too much about how to say it. Just pick a couple things about the school that makes them your choice over your current acceptance and say those things.
Click to expand...

Thanks this is very helpful and I totally planned to outline the reasons why I prefer this school/ it's the best fit. I did figure that this late in the cycle probably half the people at the interview are in the same boat as me. I will definitely be sad if the school accepts me super late, I love the school but won't be moving back after I've moved 2,000 miles away!
 
Old Medic said:
This is a tough one which I somewhat equate to gambling. You can certainly tip your hand and drop the information, but be aware that your bluff may be called.

Unless this school is REALLY trying to recruit you for some reason, the information of another acceptance will probably work against you. I'd be quiet about it if it were me.
Click to expand...

I worry that without the knowledge of another accept they may just put me on the waitlist thinking i'll wait it out since I have no other options. Not sure if that is a legit concern or not but the general advice I got from my advisors etc. was to be clear why I would choose this one over the other accept I have...
 
gonnif said:
Or they will pass you over completely knowing you have an acceptance elsewhere .
Click to expand...

Bingo. That would be my concern. It's hard to apply pressure to an ADCOM who has a line of other qualified applicants waiting in the wings.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
gonnif said:
Or they will pass you over completely knowing you have an acceptance elsewhere .
Click to expand...

Eh. I doubt it. It’s all in signaling. Everyone always wants to play the game with perfect information. Op has an acceptance, so his payoff is high either way. The school wants to minimize offering acceptances to people who won’t go while only admitting people they want and that are good candidates (and another acceptance signals the latter). If they decide they want op, they have no reason to pass him over if he has genuinely expressed his intention to attend over another school.

It would not be rational for them to pass on a good candidate they want who has told them straight up they will attend if accepted.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
yogidoc19 said:
Totally a good point so now i'm not sure what i'll do!
Click to expand...

Just looking at it from a game theoretic perspective, it makes zero sense for them to deny you if you tell them you have an acceptance but prefer their school because of [legitimate well thought out reasons].

If they don’t know that info, they will proceed as if they have imperfect info and will determine what to do with you that way. That seems too risky to me, which is why I chose to give my school perfect info. Worked out for me and everyone I know who did that (anecdotal, but everything will be anecdotal).
 
yogidoc19 said:
Totally a good point so now i'm not sure what i'll do!
Click to expand...

There are two variables here: 1) how the school feels about you (independent of your other acceptance), and 2) how you deliver the news of your other acceptance, assuming you choose to disclose. Obviously only one of them is under your control.

If the school loves you, then saying you will go there over another acceptance will cement that. Then again, if the school loves you then disclosing your other acceptance probably won't change the outcome.

If the school is on the fence about you, the disclosure could work in your favor or it could backfire, and there's no way to tell beforehand. I will note that every school interviews tons of people with prior acceptances, and they only come up rarely on interview days. Most people presume (correctly) that talking about other acceptances in an interview setting is tacky at best.

Perhaps the safest course of action is to attend the interview, say nothing, and then send the dean of admissions an email afterwards explaining your situation. Just say you have anther acceptance but would attend his/her school if admitted. You don't need to go into great detail, we know how this works.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
Just looking at it from a game theoretic perspective, it makes zero sense for them to deny you if you tell them you have an acceptance but prefer their school because of [legitimate well thought out reasons].

If they don’t know that info, they will proceed as if they have imperfect info and will determine what to do with you that way. That seems too risky to me, which is why I chose to give my school perfect info. Worked out for me and everyone I know who did that (anecdotal, but everything will be anecdotal).
Click to expand...
Just curious but did you major in economics??
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
I majored in math did my senior thesis on game theory.
Click to expand...
That makes sense. We applied game theory to microeconomics but I never got down to the nitty-gritty theoretical aspects of it. I wholeheartedly agree that you can apply it to this entire med school admissions process because there is imperfect information on both sides as you point out lol.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Members don't see this ad :)
Med Ed said:
Perhaps the safest course of action is to attend the interview, say nothing, and then send the dean of admissions an email afterwards explaining your situation. Just say you have anther acceptance but would attend his/her school if admitted. You don't need to go into great detail, we know how this works.
Click to expand...

Thanks! This is probably what I will do- my friend just did this and got accepted to his first choice 2 days later (similar situation to mine although he was asked directly if he had other acceptances during his interview).

What do you think- assuming I have not heard my decision already- is the best time to send that email? Right after the interview assuming it goes well or wait awhile?
 
If asked i would say yes. Dont specify schools
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
gonnif said:
The mission of a medical school is to produce physicians at the most efficient capacity. That means filling every seat. Especially in this year, where the effect of the new traffic rules and poaching are unknown. Having someone who already has an acceptance (or at least claims to have one) and implies that he/she wants this school over that is a gamble for admissions in terms of having to offer acceptance, then possibly the extra work of going down list of alternates, all of whom have been deemed worthy by the committee to attend. And there are always a few applicants claiming other acceptances at interviews that obviously do not have one. And of course the school cant verify the other acceptance. Very few candidates are superstars that excite a school so much that they will bend over backwards to get you. Nope, claiming you have an acceptance elsewhere can just as easily backfire, making you look pompous and arrogant. It is a risky strategy
Click to expand...
I personally wouldn't bring up this other acceptance - I would stick to why I am a good fit for the school. But my question is don't the ADCOMS on SDN seem to say that the only reason to write a letter of intent is if you are accepted to a better ranked school and you really want to go to whatever lower ranked school? OP isn't in that situation yet, but this seems to be sort of the same idea. OP wants to bring up that other school and about how they really want to go to this other school instead. If you are saying on this thread that 'claiming you have an acceptance elsewhere can just as easily backfire', then why on other threads do y'all say that bringing up the names of other schools is the only way to make a LOI the slightest bit effective
 
lalalallala said:
I personally wouldn't bring up this other acceptance - I would stick to why I am a good fit for the school. But my question is don't the ADCOMS on SDN seem to say that the only reason to write a letter of intent is if you are accepted to a better ranked school and you really want to go to whatever lower ranked school? OP isn't in that situation yet, but this seems to be sort of the same idea. OP wants to bring up that other school and about how they really want to go to this other school instead. If you are saying on this thread that 'claiming you have an acceptance elsewhere can just as easily backfire', then why on other threads do y'all say that bringing up the names of other schools is the only way to make a LOI the slightest bit effective
Click to expand...
The rules of engagement changed this year.
We never knew where applicants were accepted until after a decision was rendered. We could, however, estimate who would come based on the information made available to us after the decision.
This year, we won't know at all unless the student chooses to tell us.
The effect of an LOI in this circumstance is unknown but probably greater than before.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
gonnif said:
To add to @gyngyn

An applicant at an interview talking about other acceptances can easily come off arrogant and entitled or, worse, begging and whining.
Click to expand...

How is begging worse than arrogance? I'm sure arrogant doctors have killed more patients than whiny doctors.
 
Just be honest about your acceptance. I disagree that it will backfire. Med schools that are at least fairly desired will have plenty of candidates with multiple acceptances. Do try and squeeze in that you’d go to that school over others, and come up with concrete reasons. Maybe even directly compare facets of two schools and show that your top choice beats the other one out in said facets.

Also if you’re a very good contender, you care a lot about the school, and they still WL you due to yield concerns, then send an LOI. But frankly, it’s late in the cycle, and I’d consider a candidate without other acceptances as a yellow flag.

Hmm also I’m suddenly seeing SDN start to turn much more pro-LOI than in the past. I really do feel like the MAR being gone is greatly increasing waitlisting.
 
gyngyn said:
The most desirable candidate is a really strong one with no other acceptances!
Click to expand...
This candidate, you mean?
Image-1-19.png
 
gyngyn said:
The most desirable candidate is a really strong one with no other acceptances!
Click to expand...
Theoretically yes. But couldn’t a lack of acceptances cause a school to look into one’s app with much greater scrutiny? Any perceived flaws on the app could be unjustifiably inflated in the eyes of adcoms
 
scrapy said:
Theoretically yes. But couldn’t a lack of acceptances cause a school to look into one’s app with much greater scrutiny? Any perceived flaws on the app could be unjustifiably inflated in the eyes of adcoms
Click to expand...
Nope! We've already accepted them.
A strong waitlisted candidate is also more desirable. No waiting for Financial aid comparisons, talking to the family, negotiating with the SO...
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Sometime knowing that someone has another offer makes them easier to pass over in the selection process. You don't feel as bad leaving them on the waitlist because you know that they have somewhere to go when this is all over. Not saying that it is a deliberate strategey but it can make one feel less bad about hard decisions.
 
LizzyM said:
Sometime knowing that someone has another offer makes them easier to pass over in the selection process. You don't feel as bad leaving them on the waitlist because you know that they have somewhere to go when this is all over. Not saying that it is a deliberate strategey but it can make one feel less bad about hard decisions.
Click to expand...

Honestly I could’ve sworn that you all had a consensus in the past that there were no such thing as pity acceptances. Don’t your schools stop interviewing in Jan/Feb anyway? I think schools with March interviews expect their good candidates to have at least 1 acceptance elsewhere. @gyngyn @LizzyM
 
gyngyn said:
Nope! We've already accepted them.
A strong waitlisted candidate is also more desirable. No waiting for Financial aid comparisons, talking to the family, negotiating with the SO...
Click to expand...

I’m referring to before you decide yes or no
 
scrapy said:
Honestly I could’ve sworn that you all had a consensus in the past that there were no such thing as pity acceptances. Don’t your schools stop interviewing in Jan/Feb anyway? I think schools with March interviews expect their good candidates to have at least 1 acceptance elsewhere. @gyngyn @LizzyM
Click to expand...

I'm talking about the converse of a pity acceptance. I'm talking about putting someone on the waitlist or leaving them there in favor of someone else. It is easier on the conscious if one can say, "oh, but he got into State U Med School so he's going to be a doctor".

And it is the people who don't have any acceptances in March that will happily pay any price to travel to a March interview. 60% of applicants do not have any seat when the music stops so there are tons of people you can interview in the spring who do not yet have an offer.
 
On second thought, after reading the ADCOMs reply, dont even mention acceptance even if asked.
 
gyngyn said:
We wouldn't know anything until a decision was rendered (now we see nothing).
Click to expand...

But in this instance, your interviewer asks about other acceptances? Do you simply lie to them?
 
scrapy said:
But in this instance, your interviewer asks about other acceptances? Do you simply lie to them?
Click to expand...
yes. This is a battle. Don't reveal your hand
 
Last edited:
At my first interview, I remember being asked where else I had interviewed/been accepted, "off the record" he said. This was early October, but he was saying there must be something off with my app since this was my first. Definitely a weird experience and it taught me to follow the above advice.
 
gyngyn said:
They have no business asking at the interview, but if they do, you could just say "I'm hopeful."
Click to expand...
People have asked me before in interviews. It's uncomfortable but I have just been telling the truth... oops hope they don't hold it against me.
 
lalalallala said:
People have asked me before in interviews. It's uncomfortable but I have just been telling the truth... oops hope they don't hold it against me.
Click to expand...
why are you showing your cards in poker?
 
Just to add my 2 cents, I was asked at an interview how many other interviews I had (nothing about acceptances). Ended up being waitlisted. I think that as long as you say things that will not make them doubt that you would matriculate, you will be good - just be specific, upbeat, and assertive. I was too polite in my first interviews and shy to express to my #1 school that there was literally no other place for me - I advice against that lol
 
MDhopeful74 said:
And if they ask specifically where? I've said "2 other schools" and got asked specifically what schools.
Click to expand...

If you care a lot about that interview and have good rapport with your interviewer, then I think it’s ok to disclose. It’s bad the interview asks that, but what are you gonna do lol. And you’ve just applied. Doesnt mean you’ll get in. I think showing or pretending to show a lack of prudence with regard to applying could be construed as bad
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

M
Mentioning acceptances in Letter of Interest - ANSWERED
Replies
8
Views
1K
lacrossegirl420
L
J
  • Locked
Mentioning family member illness in LOI
Replies
4
Views
458
jen.m.24
J
triedtowalk
Other Impactful Experiences?
Replies
1
Views
281
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
C
Mentioning union leadership on an application?
Replies
2
Views
351
LindaAccepted
LindaAccepted
D
Other Impactful Experiences Question
Replies
1
Views
107
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Top