Waiting for waitlist movement while holding an acceptance

[viralhiker]

Just looking for some clarification, my apologies if this is common knowledge. I’m fortunate to be currently holding multiple acceptances, but also am on the waitlist for at least one school that I would rather attend in the fall. That school says they don’t pull applicants off the waitlist until at least May. How does that work with the April 30th deadline for choosing to accept or decline an admissions offer? Thanks!

 

[proudofmykids]

CORRECTED:
Come the CTE PTE April 30th date, you are allowed to continue to hold all Waitlists. Should you receive an Acceptamce from a WL, you typically have a week to negotiate fin aide, and to decide and drop one of the Acceptances.

 

[ampersandwich]

Come the CTE April 30th date, you are allowed to continue to hold all Waitlists.

This is NOT correct. From AMCAS:

Commit to Enroll: I am confirming my commitment to matriculate to the medical school selected above.

By selecting "Commit to Enroll," I am indicating that I have made my final selection and withdrawn all other applications, including waitlist positions.

You can only remain on WLs if you select PTE. If your school has an early CTE deadline, then they are forcing your hand to either commit to enroll or withdraw your application entirely.

 

[gonnif]

Come the CTE April 30th date, you are allowed to continue to hold all Waitlists. Should you receive an Acceptamce from a WL, you typically have a week to negotiate fin aide, and to decide and drop one of the Acceptances.

Lets clarify this as it isnt quite right
There are two phases of the Choose Your Medical School (CYMS)
PTE: plan to enroll
CTE: commit to enroll

The April 30 “deadline” is the historical date that AMCAS gave applicants to finalize their acceptance. AMCAS can no longer dictate that day so it up to each school what date. The vast majority of schools have April 30th as the PTE. Here you have a single acceptance but may remain on as many WL as you have.

However, schools have widely variable CTE where you are committing to attend. Here at most schools you must drop all WL. This date is typically either 21 or 30 days before that specific school begins classes. Each WL school can see that you have CTE (they cant see which school you have done that at). Now a few schools have 4/30 as CTE. So it is up to you to know these dates. Failure to follow them can have your acceptance rescinded without recourse

 

[gonnif]

Let me also add that schools are not required to provide any financial aid info prior to CTE. While most will, you may have to make a decision without knowing

 

[viralhiker]

Let me also add that schools are not required to provide any financial aid info prior to CTE. While most will, you may have to make a decision without knowing

Thank you for the (very) helpful information, but wow, this is a fact I did not know. Why do so many aspects of this application process seem so needlessly cold and manipulative?

 

[Moko]

Why do so many aspects of this application process seem so needlessly cold and manipulative?

This is unfortunately what happens when it's a sellers' market. Being on the other side now, I agree that the application process does not always reflect the values that are expected from applicants (e.g. collegiality, empathy, respect, communication, etc.). It is not unreasonable to expect financial aid information prior to a school's CTE deadline. For those like yourself who have earned multiple acceptances and/or are on waitlists, I recommend being transparent with your schools about your deadlines and priorities.

As an example, let's say minimizing debt is your priority and you have been accepted to two schools (your state school and a private school, with the former being cheaper due to in-state tuition and/or a generous scholarship, and the latter being your top choice). If your state school's CTE deadline is approaching and you have still not received financial aid information from your top choice, it would be prudent to email your top choice with your circumstances and explain how your decision to matriculate to their school will be contingent on receiving timely financial aid and/or scholarship information prior to your state school's CTE deadline. If your top choice wants you, they will make it happen provided sufficient notice is given.

Similarly, if you are accepted to school A and are waitlisted at school B (your top choice), but school A's CTE deadline is approaching, once again, it would be prudent to email your top choice letting them know about your predicament. If your top choice wants you, they will offer an acceptance prior to school A's CTE deadline.

tl;dr:
- Be transparent about your circumstances with schools you are waitlisted at and/or accepted to. If your top choice wants you, they will work with you to make things happen.
- The application process is unfair. Some schools just want to see the world burn.

 

[KnightDoc]

tl;dr:
- Be transparent about your circumstances with schools you are waitlisted at and/or accepted to. If your top choice wants you, they will work with you to make things happen.
- The application process is unfair. Some schools just want to see the world burn.

I'm not quite this cynical. I just think that they only care about their own interest, without regard to the ethics or how that impacts candidates or other schools.

The candidate analogue would be holding other WLs or As after selecting CTE at a school (if the other schools allow it, since the CTE school cannot see that) and then later breaking CTE commitments if it is in the candidate's interest to do so. Highly unethical, yet encouraged by the way the process is structured -- no uniformity in CTE dates or in how schools enforce the protocols.

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

This is unfortunately what happens when it's a sellers' market. Being on the other side now, I agree that the application process does not always reflect the values that are expected from applicants (e.g. collegiality, empathy, respect, communication, etc.). It is not unreasonable to expect financial aid information prior to a school's CTE deadline. For those like yourself who have earned multiple acceptances and/or are on waitlists, I recommend being transparent with your schools about your deadlines and priorities.

As an example, let's say minimizing debt is your priority and you have been accepted to two schools (your state school and a private school, with the former being cheaper due to in-state tuition and/or a generous scholarship, and the latter being your top choice). If your state school's CTE deadline is approaching and you have still not received financial aid information from your top choice, it would be prudent to email your top choice with your circumstances and explain how your decision to matriculate to their school will be contingent on receiving timely financial aid and/or scholarship information prior to your state school's CTE deadline. If your top choice wants you, they will make it happen provided sufficient notice is given.

Similarly, if you are accepted to school A and are waitlisted at school B (your top choice), but school A's CTE deadline is approaching, once again, it would be prudent to email your top choice letting them know about your predicament. If your top choice wants you, they will offer an acceptance prior to school A's CTE deadline.

tl;dr:
- Be transparent about your circumstances with schools you are waitlisted at and/or accepted to. If your top choice wants you, they will work with you to make things happen.
- The application process is unfair. Some schools just want to see the world burn.

either we can call it sellers market or power game and as underdogs applicants should play the game accordingly from the day one they decided to be premed.