Medical Using multiple acceptances to bargain for financial aid: fact or fiction?

[Question]

Hi there! Over the past few years as I've prepared to apply to med school, I've heard that if you end up with multiple acceptances, you have more leverage to ask for additional financial aid from programs where you might have otherwise not received a sizable award. Is there any truth to this?

I'm asking because I'm lucky enough to have already received three acceptances this cycle: school A, a T50 which really impressed me (I will very likely end up here unless I somehow receive a T10 acceptance, then I'll have to make a tough decision); school B, another T50 which I have a relatively neutral opinion of (I plan to give them a fair shot and look into them more before committing anywhere), and then there's school C.

School C really shot themselves in the foot at their mandatory virtual info session in my eyes. They're a somewhat reputable, newer MD school which I had a neutral opinion of going in. After their info session, I'm like 99% confident that I won't attend there no matter what. One of their admins said something that I found disrespectful, and this made them and their program come off as classist and toxic. I'm also not impressed by their curriculum, and their med students seemed tense, high-strung, and unhappy during their panel. I have several other grievances but those are my main points of contention.

I have a set timeframe in which need to tell school C to hold my spot, and that deadline is coming up. As of now, I'm strongly leaning towards withdrawing my application there and informing them that I'm opting not to hold a seat.

But here's the thing: my parents get by but we're not exceptionally well-off, and obviously I would prefer to maximize the need-based financial aid I'm able to receive. So, should I hold a seat at school C, and see if I can use them as a bargaining chip to get more aid from school A or a (fingers-crossed) future acceptance? I'm not sure if this is even a real tactic, so I don't know if I have anything to gain there. It also feels unethical to hoard acceptances knowing that many of my friends and classmates would be thrilled to hear back from school C.

Also - am I being too rash by immediately wanting to drop school C based on impressions from a handful of zoom calls? Part of me wishes I'd never even applied there in the first place, but hindsight is 2020 and I know I'm sitting in a privileged position at this point. I've met other students/applicants who have soft qualms with school C, which speak a bit louder to me now. I'm sure it's alright for some and an OK program overall, but I'm not sure I see myself there. Should I do my due diligence and research them more before making a final decision? Or is it reasonable for me to cross them off after getting such a bad impression?

— Experts please respond to this post —

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[gyngyn]

Hi there! Over the past few years as I've prepared to apply to med school, I've heard that if you end up with multiple acceptances, you have more leverage to ask for additional financial aid from programs where you might have otherwise not received a sizable award. Is there any truth to this?

I'm asking because I'm lucky enough to have already received three acceptances this cycle: school A, a T50 which really impressed me (I will very likely end up here unless I somehow receive a T10 acceptance, then I'll have to make a tough decision); school B, another T50 which I have a relatively neutral opinion of (I plan to give them a fair shot and look into them more before committing anywhere), and then there's school C.

School C really shot themselves in the foot at their mandatory virtual info session in my eyes. They're a somewhat reputable, newer MD school which I had a neutral opinion of going in. After their info session, I'm like 99% confident that I won't attend there no matter what. One of their admins said something that I found disrespectful, and this made them and their program come off as classist and toxic. I'm also not impressed by their curriculum, and their med students seemed tense, high-strung, and unhappy during their panel. I have several other grievances but those are my main points of contention.

I have a set timeframe in which need to tell school C to hold my spot, and that deadline is coming up. As of now, I'm strongly leaning towards withdrawing my application there and informing them that I'm opting not to hold a seat.

But here's the thing: my parents get by but we're not exceptionally well-off, and obviously I would prefer to maximize the need-based financial aid I'm able to receive. So, should I hold a seat at school C, and see if I can use them as a bargaining chip to get more aid from school A or a (fingers-crossed) future acceptance? I'm not sure if this is even a real tactic, so I don't know if I have anything to gain there. It also feels unethical to hoard acceptances knowing that many of my friends and classmates would be thrilled to hear back from school C.

Also - am I being too rash by immediately wanting to drop school C based on impressions from a handful of zoom calls? Part of me wishes I'd never even applied there in the first place, but hindsight is 2020 and I know I'm sitting in a privileged position at this point. I've met other students/applicants who have soft qualms with school C, which speak a bit louder to me now. I'm sure it's alright for some and an OK program overall, but I'm not sure I see myself there. Should I do my due diligence and research them more before making a final decision? Or is it reasonable for me to cross them off after getting such a bad impression?

— Experts please respond to this post —

School C must give you until CTE to hold your acceptance. They can ask for a deposit, but it will be refundable for quite some time.

You have no leverage at school A unless school C is a lot cheaper, a lot more "prestigious" or has offered you a significant recruitment scholarship.

 

[GoSpursGo]

There is no reason NOT to hold your spot at school C at least until you get financial aid packages. Yeah it may delay someone else getting an acceptance for a while, but CTE is still plenty early that someone else will be very happy about getting the call in May. And you earned these acceptances and the right to have options that comes with them, so you should not feel bad.

I also agree that if this is a new and unestablished school, any aid you receive is unlikely to give you leverage at T50 schools. But there is a way to politely ask, and the worst that can happen is that they say no.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Agree with the above. Hold spot at school C for sure.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

You don't have to do anything until the Choose Your Medical School window opens in February. Until then, read up on the Commit-to-Enroll policies at each of the schools where you already have an acceptance so you know what the timing should be when you have to select the one school for CTE.

If you are absolutely sure that you will never go to School C, you can help another person on the waitlist out by withdrawing before the CYMS timeline begins. If School C is giving you a significant scholarship and wants you to respond well before that timeline begins, that would be a different story, but you are under no obligation until CYMS opens.

You can try to negotiate your way into a better scholarship package, but the calculus for what you get follows some set procedures that each school sets up on their own. Budgets are pretty tight so you might not really get more than what they give you. Besides, you can imagine the number of people who that school accepted who have another standing offer in hand that negotiating for more scholarship money would be pretty much out of the question. In short, this isn't a job offer negotiation, and you aren't the only one who wants more scholarship money.