Waitlist

[tghks88]

I just got waitlisted at my top choice school (not "oh I didn't get an interview at any better schools, so now this is my top choice" but actually the place I would go if I had my choice of anywhere!)
I sent an update letter before the decision, and a letter of intent - saying how much i wanted to go there - when the waitlist letter said "please share with us your continued interest"
And recomendations about what else can I do? I don't want to look back and think if only I had done xyz...

Also I just wanted to ask for general opinions on how people feel about the waitlists?
I guess what they're saying is "you're good enough to go to our school, we just like these other people more"
well that's nice and all, but it makes me a little more hesitant about attneding, when I could go to a school that wanted me right off the bat, but that I didn't love as much
not to mention that the agony of waiting is still not over!
i kind of think that if they had just straight up rejected me, then I would have been really upset at first, but been able to move on with my life and start getting excited about my other schools, with this lingering hope it's hard to be excited about the other places I've been accepted

so while i'm waiting to hear I don't want to look for roommates and appartments elsewhere... but when is it time to give up and make a deposit on an appartment in another city? middle of june? middle of july?

any words of wisdom would be much appreciated

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[WESTSIDE LOC]

Waitlists are tough to be on-I'm waitlisted at my top choice as well. I'm planning on committing to paying rent at my current acceptance starting Aug 1. If I get off the waitlist before that I'm going. While losing the deposit will be painful, it's a drop in the bucket in the long run. Also feeling good about where I'll be for the next 4 years outweighs the inconvenience of moving at the last minute (for me).

 

[OrangeandMaroon]

I sent an update letter before the decision, and a letter of intent - saying how much i wanted to go there - when the waitlist letter said "please share with us your continued interest"
And recomendations about what else can I do? I don't want to look back and think if only I had done xyz...

Looks like you've done just about everything you can do. Continue to update them as time goes on if you have significant things to add.

Also I just wanted to ask for general opinions on how people feel about the waitlists?
I guess what they're saying is "you're good enough to go to our school, we just like these other people more"
well that's nice and all, but it makes me a little more hesitant about attneding, when I could go to a school that wanted me right off the bat, but that I didn't love as much

Get over yourself. It's not like a school that outright accepts you is going to have a welcome parade for you when you come to town. Although, I have heard students accepted off the waitlist have "WAITLISTER" printed on their ID badge and have to sit in the corner during class for the whole first year.

so while i'm waiting to hear I don't want to look for roommates and appartments elsewhere... but when is it time to give up and make a deposit on an appartment in another city? middle of june? middle of july?

I wouldn't wait to the last minute if it's a decently populated area.

Check out the school specific discussion for the current and year past to get an idea of how the waitlist works for that school. In general most waitlist movement is after May 15th. Best of luck, I hope it all works out.

 

[startswithb]

You should probably stop overanalyzing this. Waitlists sting, yes, especially when you thought your interview was great. However, I think the fact that they asked for your expression of continued interest is a good sign, because it means that they are open to interest letters and your reasons for wanting to attend. Some schools have rigidly ranked waitlists. So, IMO, I would start crafting a good list of reasons why you think they should accept you because of what you can bring to the table as a student there. Good luck!

 

[Ignatius M.D.]

Looks like you've done just about everything you can do. Continue to update them as time goes on if you have significant things to add.

The bold word is important. If you got waitlisted this means that they did like you, but haven't made their final decision (they will have no problem rejecting you if they don't think you'd fit well at their school). I talked to a couple ADCOMs from Vanderbilt yesterday, and they said that an LOI and update will help, but that too many updates will not help, and possibly could hurt. So, I think you've done what you can do
(so don't send unnecessary updates), and you should be happy you still have a good chance at your very top choice. That is a relatively rare thing.

 

[ktmac88]

i've heard of other people writing to their interviewers again (after a post-interview thank you note)... don't know if that is common or not, any thoughts?

 

[Generici]

i've heard of other people writing to their interviewers again (after a post-interview thank you note)... don't know if that is common or not, any thoughts?

I'm waitlisted at my top choice school as well. Unfortunately, mine does not rank its waitlist, does not accept updates, and does not accept letters of intent. I haven't asked about flowers, chocolate, and love poems.
I went ahead and wrote a short thank you (again) to my interviewer which included info on how much I wanted to attend the school, why, what I've done lately, and what I'm planning for the short term, as well as thanking them for their time and expressing how happy I am to at least make the wait list (which make me quite happy, actually, considering my route to med school).
Granted, this is the first year I've applied and I just sent the note the other day, so it could seem horribly impolitic on my part and send me straight to the bottom of the list, but I doubt it. Just thank them again for their time and effort on your behalf and don't be terribly long winded, imho.

Good luck! Go waitlisters!