Waitlist decision making

[teambert]

Hi SDN,

Like many here, I'm on multiple (5+) waitlists. The last date to declare one school, hold one admission, is April 30th. Waitlist movement begins in earnest afterward, and if offered an admission, it comes with a timeline to accept running from days to weeks.

Here's my question: If I'm granted an acceptance from X university, and I obliged by accepting it to withdraw myself from other schools waitlists? Or, can I leapfrog admissions, say, moving from X, to Y, to Z, so long as I'm willing to cough up the money for deposits (and lucky enough to get off each school's waitlist).

If the first scenario is correct, and I can be compelled to withdraw other pending waitlists, what's the strategy for choosing an admission? Is it worth accepting a school I'm less interested in because it's a sure thing, or do I roll the dice and decline, choosing to stay on other schools' waitlists?

I ask because one school made it sound like any offer from the waitlist (and we were told there aren't many, who knows how true this is) would be for us to attend their school and not hold other waitlists open. Thanks.

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[tiedyeddog]

Yes, as long as you are willing to lose the deposits you can decline a place you previously decided to attend.

 

[ConfusedFulbrightScholar]

I'm not sure about this, but I doubt admissions would be binding. How do people do it regularly? I know students who pay deposits after they've been accepted to their first school, and then politely bow out if accepted to another school they like more.

But 5 waitlists? That's a tough pill to swallow!

 

[breakintheroof]

Here's my question: If I'm granted an acceptance from X university, and I obliged by accepting it to withdraw myself from other schools waitlists?

As I understand it, this is the scenario: You are holding an acceptance at School 1, and you are on waitlists at Schools 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. You are asking if accepting a potential spot off the waitlist at School 2 would mean that, in addition to withdrawing from School 1, you would have to withdraw from the waitlists at Schools 3-6?

I ask because one school made it sound like any offer from the waitlist (and we were told there aren't many, who knows how true this is) would be for us to attend their school and not hold other waitlists open. Thanks.

This would be the first I have heard of this policy. Could you tell us exactly what the school said about this?

To me, it looks like it may contradict part 6c of the AAMC traffic rules for admissions officers (emphasis mine):

6. After April 30, implement school-specific procedures for accepted applicants who, without adequate explanation, continue to hold one or more places at other schools or programs.
...
c. Permit applicants who have been accepted or who have been granted a deferral, to remain on other schools' or programs' wait lists. Also, permit these applicants to withdraw if they later receive an acceptance offer from a preferred school or program.

 

[teambert]

@breakintheroof thank you, I wasn't aware it was explicitly in the traffic rules, rad.

School in question (top 25ish, I think) said they accept most of their students directly, that the waitlist isn't used much. Assistant dean said they called candidates potentially to be pulled from the waitlist to verify that if accepted they would withdraw themselves from all other waitlists. While not explicitly said, it was intimated that not agreeing to those conditions meant you wouldn't be pulled. Wasn't sure if this was binding, but apparently not. That said, I'd still feel uncomfortable being put on the spot like that, with the expectation that for a pull from the list either you agree with some phone version of a letter of intent, or you lie. All that said, the school in question is a top pick. No other school has said anything similar to this, I wasn't sure if it was a MD-wide thing, but thankfully, apparently it's not, and if it is, it's not enforceable.

Thanks again!

@ConfusedFulbrightScholar

Thanks. The waitlists have been my fault. Some red flags on my app.

@tiedyeddog

This puts me at ease. I'm fine with just losing some deposit money if that's what it comes down to. Better than the costs of reapplying.

 

[NickNaylor]

@breakintheroof

No, you don't have to withdraw from other schools at which you are waitlisted if you're accepted off the waitlist at another school. The important thing is that you only have one acceptance "on deck" after the AAMC deadline. You can continue to wait for acceptances off additional waitlists if you want.

Edit: Ah, I see you were disagreeing with that point - then I agree with you.

 

[breakintheroof]

@breakintheroof thank you, I wasn't aware it was explicitly in the traffic rules, rad.

School in question (top 25ish, I think) said they accept most of their students directly, that the waitlist isn't used much. Assistant dean said they called candidates potentially to be pulled from the waitlist to verify that if accepted they would withdraw themselves from all other waitlists. While not explicitly said, it was intimated that not agreeing to those conditions meant you wouldn't be pulled.

Hey @teambert, I hope this helps, and while I am not an admissions person, @NickNaylor is, and he confirms. I would still caution you that the admission office in question is the one you should listen to. The traffic rules may be bent or ignored, so don't count on them against the messages you're getting.

As an aside, I wouldn't suggest reaching out to the AAMC to clarify. I wrote to them while back to ask about another rule for admissions officers, and they just sent me a link to the traffic rules for applicants. Which I took to mean, "Don't ask me about my business!"

Anyway, it seems like the rule is fairly clear. But if you feel uncomfortable with this situation, the most authoritative opinion on SDN would likely belong to @gyngyn, perhaps we can bat-signal him here.

 

[gyngyn]

Hey @teambert, I hope this helps, and while I am not an admissions person, @NickNaylor is, and he confirms. I would still caution you that the admission office in question is the one you should listen to. The traffic rules may be bent or ignored, so don't count on them against the messages you're getting.

As an aside, I wouldn't suggest reaching out to the AAMC to clarify. I wrote to them while back to ask about another rule for admissions officers, and they just sent me a link to the traffic rules for applicants. Which I took to mean, "Don't ask me about my business!"

Anyway, it seems like the rule is fairly clear. But if you feel uncomfortable with this situation, the most authoritative opinion on SDN would likely belong to @gyngyn, perhaps we can bat-signal him here.

It would be entirely against traffic rules to predicate an acceptance on the condition that you withdraw from other waitlists.

 

[Tintinnabula]

It would be entirely against traffic rules to predicate an acceptance on the condition that you withdraw from other waitlists.

To be clear, this is also the case after April 30/May 15?

 

[gyngyn]

To be clear, this is also the case after April 30/May 15?

Yes. And remember, we can never see where you are holding a position on a waitlist.
I recommend anonymously sending information regarding this practice to the AAMC.

 

[SPionic]

In addition, after April 30th:
a. Each school or program should permit applicants:

1. A minimum of 5 business days to respond to an acceptance offer. This may be reduced to a minimum of 2 business days within 30 days of the start of orientation.

Since so much waitlist movement happens in that first week, you should be able to defer paying your deposit for a few days, if you are hoping for a call from another school.