Post-interview waitlist?

[Dr Gerrard]

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So I have heard back from 3 schools.

All 3 have been waitlists.

I had been over confident and not only thought I would have gotten in but was also hoping for some scholarships from these 3 schools.

I in no way portrayed this during my interview.

How do I improve my interviewing skills? I don't know what to do now.

 

[wanderer]

I had been over confident and not only thought I would have gotten in but was also hoping for some scholarships from these 3 schools.

I in no way portrayed this during my interview.

Are you sure of that?

Do a mock interview with someone you trust. They can point out flaws that may not be obvious to you. Also waitlists vary between schools from pseduo-rejections to pseudo-acceptances and everything in between. If you have a good shot of getting in at those schools I wouldn't worry.

 

[jyb5011]

Stop being so confident, it only leads to dissapointment. If you don't have expectations you can't be dissapointed. An interviewer is looking at what type of person you are, you can't change that quickly. All you can do is be genuine and show that you are passionate about medicine without being pompous. Just relax because there is nothing you can do but wait, but you had 3 interviews so don't seel yourself short. "Cause every little thing gonna be alright" - some hippy

 

[Dr Gerrard]

Are you sure of that?

Do a mock interview with someone you trust. They can point out flaws that may not be obvious to you. Also waitlists vary between schools from pseduo-rejections to pseudo-acceptances and everything in between. If you have a good shot of getting in at those schools I wouldn't worry.

100% sure. I mean I may have sounded really confident about the things I have done but I never without a doubt made it sound like I should be a shoe in.

I have done multiple mock interviews, all of which supposedly went really well.

And I know I shouldn't have been so confident. But my family and friends did not help with my unreasonable expectations either.

 

[4ksibe]

So I have heard back from 3 schools.

All 3 have been waitlists.

I had been over confident and not only thought I would have gotten in but was also hoping for some scholarships from these 3 schools.

I in no way portrayed this during my interview.

How do I improve my interviewing skills? I don't know what to do now.

Scary stuff for me who already had 3 interview and idk what the results are!!! I would really hate it if my interviewing skills sucked cuz i think i did ok to good... well like they said practice with someone and let them know. I think at one school i sounded super excited (which I was) but hopefully that did not look bad. Good luck on your other interviews but dont let the waitlist crush you. Look at it this way You have not been rejected from any which is a good sign...

 

[Catalystik]

Ask an employer or PI to give you a mock interview and comment on how you came across. Or see if your career center offers mock interviews, ideally with videotaping and post interview commentary.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

See I already did the career center interview and they clearly said that I did well. All of my friends say I am very personable and always come off as very genuine/nice, so that isn't the issue. Unless I sounded arrogant talking about some of my activities, but I am usually pretty modest (lol) so I don't think that is the case.

Usually when I interview we always have a good laugh or two, they comment on how successful I have been, I say thank you etc. I don't know what to do anymore.

And the ****ty thing is I have had a total of 6 interviews so far with only 1 left. I wish I had known I was doing something wrong for the last 3 🙁

 

[Raziela]

And I know I shouldn't have been so confident. But my family and friends did not help with my unreasonable expectations either.

This can definitely be hard--but I keep reminding my family (and myself) of how difficult it is to get an acceptance so that my expectations are not too high. Then, I haven't told most of my friends where I am applying, and only a very few know where I am interviewing. It will make any rejections/waitlists easier to handle down the road imho.

Good luck >.<

 

[jbz24]

How do you know it has anything to do with the interviews?
Judging by your past posts, seems like you applied to a lot of top tier programs. Getting acceptances at any of those places will be difficult. Maybe your stats were good enough to get an interview but not an acceptance. Or maybe your stats were superb enough for them to take a look at you but the rest of your application wasn't quite up to par. Or it could just be that in the group of applicants that you were interviewing with just outshined you. Who knows.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

i guess i just assumed it was my interviews. But my ECs are rather good to, in every interview someone comments on "how successful I have been in everything I have done" or something like that.

I don't know what the problem could be. Thats why it sucks so bad.

 

[BrainBuff]

i guess i just assumed it was my interviews. But my ECs are rather good to, in every interview someone comments on "how successful I have been in everything I have done" or something like that.

I don't know what the problem could be. Thats why it sucks so bad.

I have heard this from a lot of people. Interviews are very subjective and there is a definite "likeability" factor. By the time you are interviewing, the schools are pretty much looking to make sure you would be a good fit.

At the time of the interview, they rate your GENERAL appearance, character, honesty, energy level; your KNOWLEDGE about medicine, the particular school;your INTELLECT and mental ability, judgement, communication skills; your EMOTIONS and attitude, motivation, sense of humor, stability, outside interests and self confidence. Lastly, they rate your RECORD including grades, undergrad school, clinical experience, reference letters, etc.

If you notice, the academic RECORD is only a 1/5 of the final rating. That is what got you the interview in the first place. Then, it is the time to make yourself shine with the rest of the stuff.

I have gotten a very good feeling from all my interviews so far. But because I really do not have any idea how they honestly feel about me, I have tried to forget about those schools and I am focusing on the rest. Just in case.

 

[mccarty7]

And the ****ty thing is I have had a total of 6 interviews so far with only 1 left. I wish I had known I was doing something wrong for the last 3 🙁

🙁 Don't be so hard on yourself. You didn't get rejected! They see something in you that makes them refuse to let you go. Hang in there. They are probably just waiting to see what the rest of the applicant pool looks like.

P.S.
I'm rooting for you at Vandy.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

thanks mccarty

i guess i just didn't know if i needed to worry about something because of this. i actually think i do, but there seems to be no way of me figuring out what the problem is lol

is my answer for why medicine bad?
i talk about how from my shadowing experiences, i knew i would find the clinical side of medicine to be a very interesting and fulfilling career choice. i had considered teaching or some graduate degree in philosophy (my interest in bioethics) but when i realized that i could teach and be involved with bioethics as a physician, that is what sold the deal for me.

 

[slowbutsteady]

No reason to doubt your interview skills based on that data.

I had 10 interviews yielding 5 acceptances and 5 waitlists. I was accepted off one of those waitlists. (I bet that is a typical WL/acceptance yield.)

I think my interviews were good at all 10 schools, but many schools use the interview as just one factor in the decision. They still look back at the rest of your app to make their decision.

The popular SDN theory that once you get an interview they don't care about the rest of your app is a big fat MYTH.

Stay confident in your interview skills and keep going.

 

[skyhyp2009]

No reason to doubt your interview skills based on that data.

I had 10 interviews yielding 5 acceptances and 5 waitlists. I was accepted off one of those waitlists. (I bet that is a typical WL/acceptance yield.)

I think my interviews were good at all 10 schools, but many schools use the interview as just one factor in the decision. They still look back at the rest of your app to make their decision.

The popular SDN theory that once you get an interview they don't care about the rest of your app is a big fat MYTH.

Stay confident in your interview skills and keep going.

Yup, it's definitely a myth...I'm sitting on 0/6 (all holds/defers) and have done 13 interviews so far with a few more to go. My friends and I (there are about 7 of us) have all applied to the same places. Relatively, I would say I have the "strongest" letters/activities (seriously, we all looked over our PS/AMCAS application together none of them got to know their professors or did anything else besides book work/research). And we all had mock interviews and got the same "okay you'll do fine" from our advisors at our school.

But at the same time, I am EASILY the weakest academically with a ~3.75 and a 36R. We all got interviews and only ppl with 38+ and 3.9+ got in. But then again, we're talking about places like Umich and Chicago and this early in the stage.

Interviews, while important, do not mask grades at all. While at every school, it IS different, they seem to be checking grades post-interview.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

my stats are really good though, so i know it isn't numbers keeping me out. whatever, it is still really early though. i just can't help to feel worried though since my expectations were way off

 

[skyhyp2009]

Just try to stay humble about the process. Things like that might inadvertently show up in your mannerisms during the interview. It's a fine line between confidence and arrogance.

If your stats are as really great as you say they are, then staying humble might be hard, but just remember that there are thousands and thousands of people qualified to be an MD across the nation...and just how qualified they are might just shock you...I know I was blown away by some of the things people have done.

And I tell this to myself all the time now...it's only the 19th!!! 2nd/3rd day after the 1st acceptance day....I'll start panicking in March hahaha =)

 

[NickNaylor]

Good Lord man, keep it together!

 

[CougarMD]

At one of my interviews, a medical student at the school said something to me that I really appreciated because I know it is true. She said that she wished someone had told her not to take it all so seriously, and that it was not all about her. A med school is trying to create a balanced and fit class. That means they can't have a class of 100 gunners, but they also can't have a class of 100 social butterflies.

I know that this is true because if you ask a school why they don't have a ranked waitlist, they will give you this as one of the reasons; when they fill a "spot" that is vacated, they want to fill it with a similar student. And this is not just about stats, it can be about gender, race, and personality.

I think it is important to remember that these waitlists may or may not be about your stats, your ECs, your gender, or your interview. If you felt like they went well, then they probably did, and freaking yourself out by second guessing when mock interviews and such have all gone well is only going to drive you crazy.

It is October; this game is not over until at LEAST March, and with the way waitlists work, I would be more inclined to say that it is not over until June. I think that being on a waitlist this early can be an ok place to be, and it is CERTAINLY better than a rejection.

Stay strong dude, this is a horrific marathon but you have 6 interviews so chin up and good luck!

 

[anfleisch]

Take the DR out of your SDN handle and you will get n acceptance right away, it is a curse.

 

[BrainBuff]

at one of my interviews, a medical student at the school said something to me that i really appreciated because i know it is true. She said that she wished someone had told her not to take it all so seriously, and that it was not all about her. A med school is trying to create a balanced and fit class. That means they can't have a class of 100 gunners, but they also can't have a class of 100 social butterflies.

I know that this is true because if you ask a school why they don't have a ranked waitlist, they will give you this as one of the reasons; when they fill a "spot" that is vacated, they want to fill it with a similar student. And this is not just about stats, it can be about gender, race, and personality.

I think it is important to remember that these waitlists may or may not be about your stats, your ecs, your gender, or your interview. If you felt like they went well, then they probably did, and freaking yourself out by second guessing when mock interviews and such have all gone well is only going to drive you crazy.

It is october; this game is not over for until at least march, and i with the way waitlists work, i would be more inclined to say that it is not over until june. I think that being on a waitlist this early can be an ok place to be, and it is certainly better than a rejection.

Stay strong dude, this is a horrific marathon but you have 6 interviews so chin up and good luck!

+1

 

[BrainBuff]

The popular SDN theory that once you get an interview they don't care about the rest of your app is a big fat MYTH.

Not quiet a big fat MYTH. It probably varies from school to school. At one point I had the freakish opportunity of looking at a Post Interview Rating Form from an Ivy Med School and the academic record only counted for 20% at that point.

What ever they do after that, anyone could only speculate.

 

[Musclemass]

OP, because of the randomness of it all, it could be that all your bad news came first and you'll only see acceptances from here on out. Though I'm not without concern - if you think you were overconfident, that had to have been perceived in your interviews. Being cocky is not a trait that plays well.

It's likely a combination of factors at work, you'll find out. In the meantime, hopefully your experience so far will give you some humility.

 

[Dr Gerrard]

In my interviews I was just talking about my experiences and how much they impacted me on my goals. I always talked about a doctor who I shadowed went to an african country to teach a local GP how to do neurosurgeries and i do talk about him in an incredible way. then i just mention i was given the opportunity to go to this same country for a research project.

i know i never made it seem like i was better than other people. i just loved talking about my own experiences

 

[Dr Gerrard]

im sorry about this btw
i know it seems like i am being an incredible baby and just need to relax. its true.

i just need to vent a bit. in real life im expected to get a full ride to harvard from my friends and family and its nice to talk about this here where people are much more reasonable

 

[jbz24]

im sorry about this btw
i know it seems like i am being an incredible baby and just need to relax. its true.

i just need to vent a bit. in real life im expected to get a full ride to harvard from my friends and family and its nice to talk about this here where people are much more reasonable

Applying to med school, doing well in med school, matching into a top notch residency - it's all a very humbling experience and it gets harder the further you go in your education and training. You may have been the valedictorian at your high school and so your friends and family expect you to always be #1. But the fact of the matter is that it's incredibly difficult to remain at the top. You'll see this more when you enter med school. People who are used to always being the best may find it difficult to be above the class average. It's all very humbling and something most of us go through. Don't let your friends and family set your expectations for you. Realize you've done all that you can to this point and the rest is out of your control. And if the outcome is not quite what you expected, you'll be upset but you'll get over it and continue on to the next step.

 

[MCAT guy]

Good Lord man, keep it together!

Cole is the master of the short entertaining post!

 

[Geekchick921]

At one of my interviews, a medical student at the school said something to me that I really appreciated because I know it is true. She said that she wished someone had told her not to take it all so seriously, and that it was not all about her. A med school is trying to create a balanced and fit class. That means they can't have a class of 100 gunners, but they also can't have a class of 100 social butterflies.

I know that this is true because if you ask a school why they don't have a ranked waitlist, they will give you this as one of the reasons; when they fill a "spot" that is vacated, they want to fill it with a similar student. And this is not just about stats, it can be about gender, race, and personality.

I think it is important to remember that these waitlists may or may not be about your stats, your ECs, your gender, or your interview. If you felt like they went well, then they probably did, and freaking yourself out by second guessing when mock interviews and such have all gone well is only going to drive you crazy.

It is October; this game is not over until at LEAST March, and with the way waitlists work, I would be more inclined to say that it is not over until June. I think that being on a waitlist this early can be an ok place to be, and it is CERTAINLY better than a rejection.

Stay strong dude, this is a horrific marathon but you have 6 interviews so chin up and good luck!

This is why you are awesome, Cougs.

 

[MCAT guy]

At one of my interviews, a medical student at the school said something to me that I really appreciated because I know it is true. She said that she wished someone had told her not to take it all so seriously, and that it was not all about her. A med school is trying to create a balanced and fit class. That means they can't have a class of 100 gunners, but they also can't have a class of 100 social butterflies.

I know that this is true because if you ask a school why they don't have a ranked waitlist, they will give you this as one of the reasons; when they fill a "spot" that is vacated, they want to fill it with a similar student. And this is not just about stats, it can be about gender, race, and personality.

I think it is important to remember that these waitlists may or may not be about your stats, your ECs, your gender, or your interview. If you felt like they went well, then they probably did, and freaking yourself out by second guessing when mock interviews and such have all gone well is only going to drive you crazy.

It is October; this game is not over until at LEAST March, and with the way waitlists work, I would be more inclined to say that it is not over until June. I think that being on a waitlist this early can be an ok place to be, and it is CERTAINLY better than a rejection.

Stay strong dude, this is a horrific marathon but you have 6 interviews so chin up and good luck!

I think I understand yo. If they reject a lyrical inclined gangsta rapper then they must fill the spot with one whose flow is so tight and beats are so sick.

 

[CougarMD]

I think I understand yo. If they reject a lyrical inclined gangsta rapper then they must fill the spot with one whose flow is so tight and beats are so sick.

True dat.

 

[Calipers]

I understand your need to vent. In regards to your waitlists, I would consider sending letters of intent, as maybe the schools were worried that you were not seriously considering enrolling there.

 

[jaxasp]

I understand your need to vent. In regards to your waitlists, I would consider sending letters of intent, as maybe the schools were worried that you were not seriously considering enrolling there.

1) I feel your pain in every facet
2) Obviously don't send multiple letters of intent

 

[anbuitachi]

My first interview ended in a big fat rejection. I was in state and the school isn't even ranked high. My stats were in the 90% percentile. And i got REJECTED!, made me feel like i suck at interviews (prob true) and not sure what to do for the rest of them since i'll have like 6 more interviews before the next result comes out... =(