School list is looking bloated. Does it need to be?

[xNinjaBurrito1]

Please don't quote this post, I will definitely need to delete it later


So my IS school interviews about half of all IS applicants, and a quarter of all applicants matriculate. My GPA matches their median and my MCAT is above their 90th percentile. I have a LoR from retired faculty, connections to an M4 on the adcom, PI LoR from the same institution, am currently an employee on their campus, and as far as I can tell, I am a slam-dunk fit to their mission.

All of this makes it really difficult to stomach spending $2000 and many, many hours writing secondaries for schools I wouldn't go to if I got in to my state school. What's more, I'm going to assume adcoms from these schools look at applicants from my state the same way they look at Texas applicants: that they can't beat in-state tuition, and will yield-protect.

Don't get me wrong, I'll apply to 20 more schools if it lets me avoid becoming a reapplicant, but at some point I feel like due-diligence becomes neurotic pessimism. It seems like my only worry would be getting yield-protected by state school, but other threads on here suggest that doesn't happen. Is such a large safety net necessary?

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[Mr.Smile12]

Speaking in generalities.

State schools should not be yield protecting in-state applicants, but you could get screened out if you do not match the mission. You say that is unlikely. I agree one should never take an offer for granted, but I would still do the homework to craft a good list. Maybe not 30, but a very good, selective 15-18 of you can.

 

[Goro]

Please don't quote this post, I will definitely need to delete it later

You can't bank on getting into a single school. Suppose you bomb your interview?

This of the money you spend on applications as insurance.

You'll make it back as an attending.

Your school list needs to be a list of schools you're willing to attend in case you don't get into your state school.

 

[chilly_md]

You can always meet early with the school to see how receptive they would be to you applying early decision if you truly don't see yourself attending school elsewhere given a choice.

 

[LizzyM]

You assume that your state school is the best deal but if your MCAT is really good, you might just get offered a sweet deal to attend a private school that wants to boost its standing in the USNews rankings. Would you choose a school other than your state school if the price were the same? If the price were $10K less? That is not outside the possibilities here.

 

[infiniteregress2020]

Please don't quote this post, I will definitely need to delete it later


So my IS school interviews about half of all IS applicants, and a quarter of all applicants matriculate. My GPA matches their median and my MCAT is above their 90th percentile. I have a LoR from retired faculty, connections to an M4 on the adcom, PI LoR from the same institution, am currently an employee on their campus, and as far as I can tell, I am a slam-dunk fit to their mission.

All of this makes it really difficult to stomach spending $2000 and many, many hours writing secondaries for schools I wouldn't go to if I got in to my state school. What's more, I'm going to assume adcoms from these schools look at applicants from my state the same way they look at Texas applicants: that they can't beat in-state tuition, and will yield-protect.

Don't get me wrong, I'll apply to 20 more schools if it lets me avoid becoming a reapplicant, but at some point I feel like due-diligence becomes neurotic pessimism. It seems like my only worry would be getting yield-protected by state school, but other threads on here suggest that doesn't happen. Is such a large safety net necessary?

I don't think applying to a large list of schools is ever a wrong way to go about things to ensure your success with acceptance as a first time applicant. If you go with that path of applying to many schools, make sure you craft a strategic list of schools whose median scores line up with your stats and don't waste your efforts on schools whose stats or mission statement doesn't line up with your goals in medicine. I made the mistake of applying to a few too many reach schools when I applied to 59 medical schools my first app cycle and I should have put some more time into a few more low-tier schools that lined up with my stats. Preparing and pre-writing secondaries is a lot of work, even if you are able to recycle your secondaries, cuz each school can put a twist on common secondary questions. Though it's a lot of secondary work, applying to a broad number of schools and being strategic about which schools those will be, will be a safer option than applying ED as a first-time applicant.

But if you go the Early Decision route for a Texas school (I assume you're in TX and you're planning to be a TMDSAS applicant?), if you go that route I'd strongly advise having a conversation with the admissions office of the school you're interested in applying ED to to see if you have a strong and competitive chance at landing an acceptance Early Decision. I also recommend reflecting on how strongly you feel about applying to that state school's program for ED, like can you only see yourself being at that school for your 4 years of med school or would you be open to relocating to another program that may have more opportunities to help you grow as a future physician? That being said, I definitely understand the financial benefits and lower app work load benefits of going to a Texas school for the low tuition, and there's several Texas schools that are low tuition and are awesome programs too! I reapplied as an ED applicant to my home state school so I get what you're feeling.