Waitlisted/rejected following all top 20 interviews

[fds86]

In the last couple of weeks my luck has pretty much been non-existent. Although I'm currently sitting on a single acceptance from my state school, the rest of my results have been as follows:

1 R, 5 WL.

Feeling pretty crushed. I still have a shot (upcoming interview at another T20, although it's so late in the cycle I might as well chalk it up as a WL), but I feel pessimistic. I'm either a bad interviewer or there's some red flag on my written application, but it's hard to identify.

I completed a mock interview as part of the committee letter writing process and I've practiced with current T20 med students, and the only negative feedback was that I had a habit of fidgeting with my hands. I'm not Mr. Charisma - probably about average - but maybe I'm just not self-aware, and I perform worse on game day? Some supposedly have "real" waitlists as opposed to others which give it to everyone, so maybe I'm just mediocre rather than terrible?

5 years of research+2 publications+3 more during the cycle, and about 250 hours each of clinical/non-clinical volunteering, shadowing, other stuff. The main negatives I see are some early classroom struggles and low-side GPA and no major organizational leadership. But now it's got me wondering if there's a mediocre rec or some sort of other red flag. It's probably paranoia/anxiety, but if I was being mistakenly associated with an IA or fabricating an activity/award/hour amount, I would be notified, right?

This experience honestly has me reconsidering whether I should continue on the career path. I know the one acceptance I have is something to be happy about, and a huge number of matriculants only get one. I'm not "too good" for my potential classmates at the aforementioned state school, and don't think I'm better than them. It's just the fact that I've really had to sacrifice so much extra to build my app, which wouldn't have been necessary to end up at the same school. I know students at the state school, and they worked hard, but they weren't chasing those 99%ile scores, or pubs, or gap years, or hundreds of volunteer hours, and could enjoy balanced social/personal lives. After those early grade struggles the margin of error I could tolerate was basically zero, and my life since then has been joylessly cultivating my GPA and resume. I'm finishing out my second gap year at the moment and I've just been miserable for probably about the last 3-4 years, but I've been motivating myself with the idea that it'd be worth it in the end. It doesn't seem to be turning out that way though. I still love the day-to-day of the career itself, but I'm no longer sure if I'm cut out for it. If I'm going to have to put in above average effort for a mediocre outcome for the rest of my life (if I'm a bad interviewer that won't just go away), it just seems like a poor return on investment.

Is anyone else going through/has gone through something similar?

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[Kingsmen2018]

Did u not apply to non top 20s?

 

[catmullclark]

I think that when it comes to these top-20 interviews, you really can't count on them to turn into acceptances. From what it appears, the whole idea that three interviews will turn into an acceptance may not be so true with these schools. Hopefully, you get off the waitlist, and I suspect that it is nothing personal or had much to do with your interviewing skills. The process, especially at these schools, is too overwhelmingly competitive.

 

[ergo432]

Don't despair. I'm in a similar situation of having gotten many interviews to top 20 schools, but somehow ended up waitlisted/rejected at a ton of places. I have questioned my interview skills, but honestly, I have no idea how I would improve them or what went wrong. Feel free to join the Waitlist Support Group 2017-2018 I just started if you want some support. Hang in there.

 

[fds86]

I did apply to 6 non-T20 schools distributed through the rankings, but I unfortunately did not receive interviews. I should have applied to more, but I was starting to reach the point of secondary burn-out and my job at the time was requiring 70 hour weeks, so I didn't finish as many as I would have liked.

 

[mrlosangeles]

Are you ORM?

 

[cherrytaffyz]

@fds86 Exact same situation as you. Interviewed at a couple T20s, few T10s and got waitlisted by most of them, which have little/no waitlist movement. Accepted to 3 lower ranked schools where I'm above 90th percentiles for GPA/MCAT. It's a little frustrating given the time and effort you put into undergrad to be a gunner, but I also am trying to look at the positives: maybe it's better to be a top student at a middle tier and match into a competitive residency than to be just another fish in the sea

And i'm saying this as someone who attended an Ivy which has massive grade deflation, and I've seen a lot of students who were burnt out/weeded out from the competitive premed pool but I'm sure would've otherwise been stars in a different school/academic environment.

 

[calivianya]

Hate to say it, but that's life. Sometimes you get ahead, sometimes you fall behind, some times people way more incompetent than you without the proper qualifications get promoted over you, and you just have to suck it up and watch. I know I've watched that happen to me more than once. If you take that kind of stuff personally, you're never going to enjoy your life.

I was super competitive when I was younger, so I get where you're coming from. I figured out pretty quickly once I got into the workplace that all that attitude was going to do was make me miserable. If you spend your life comparing your success to other people's, you're always going to be unhappy because there are always people out there who are doing better and getting more out of life than you.

Also, keep in mind that there is no such thing as mediocre if you're going into medicine. Even primary care pays six figures. It's not like you'd have to settle for a $40k/year salary for the rest of your life even if you go into family med. You'll always be well above average in income and opportunities, when compared to the general population, as a physician... if that's not at least a little comforting, I don't know what to tell you.

 

[carrots28]

In the last couple of weeks my luck has pretty much been non-existent. Although I'm currently sitting on a single acceptance from my unranked southern state school, the rest of my results have been as follows:

Harvard=R
UChicago=WL
Vanderbilt=WL
NYU=WL
Cornell=WL
Mt. Sinai=hold (which should turn into WL any day now).

Feeling pretty crushed. I still have a shot (upcoming interview at UCLA, although it's so late in the cycle I might as well chalk it up as a WL), but I feel pessimistic. I'm either a bad interviewer or there's some red flag on my written application, but it's hard to identify.

I completed a mock interview as part of the committee letter writing process and I've practiced with current T20 med students, and the only negative feedback was that I had a habit of fidgeting with my hands. I'm not Mr. Charisma - probably about average - but maybe I'm just not self-aware, and I perform worse on game day? NYU/Cornell supposedly have "real" waitlists as opposed to Vanderbilt/Chi/Sinai which give it to everyone, so maybe I'm just mediocre rather than terrible?

Written app-wise, clocking in with a 3.7cGPA/3.8sGPA/522 from an undergrad ranked between 10-20. 5 years of research+2 publications+3 more during the cycle, and about 250 hours each of clinical/non-clinical volunteering, shadowing, other stuff. The main negatives I see are some early classroom struggles and low-side GPA (F on transcript, GPA<2.5 freshman year) and no major organizational leadership. But now it's got me wondering if there's a mediocre rec or some sort of other red flag. It's probably paranoia/anxiety, but if I was being mistakenly associated with an IA or fabricating an activity/award/hour amount, I would be notified, right?

This experience honestly has me reconsidering whether I should continue on the career path. I know the one acceptance I have is something to be happy about, and a huge number of matriculants only get one. I'm not "too good" for my potential classmates at the aforementioned state school, and don't think I'm better than them. It's just the fact that I've really had to sacrifice so much extra to build my app, which wouldn't have been necessary to end up at the same school. I know students at the state school, and they worked hard, but they weren't chasing those 99%ile scores, or pubs, or gap years, or hundreds of volunteer hours, and could enjoy balanced social/personal lives. After those early grade struggles the margin of error I could tolerate was basically zero, and my life since then has been joylessly cultivating my GPA and resume. I'm finishing out my second gap year at the moment and I've just been miserable for probably about the last 3-4 years, but I've been motivating myself with the idea that it'd be worth it in the end. It doesn't seem to be turning out that way though. I still love the day-to-day of the career itself, but I'm no longer sure if I'm cut out for it. If I'm going to have to put in above average effort for a mediocre outcome for the rest of my life (if I'm a bad interviewer that won't just go away), it just seems like a poor return on investment.

Is anyone else going through/has gone through something similar?

it’s important to stay positive. Take pride in your accomplishments. It’s awesome that you have been accepted. All your hard work has paid off. Understand that being a physician in training means that you won’t always be lauded or praised even if you have everything going for you. Often times, I just ride on the small moments when one person thanks me for my help.

I would consider what will be your priorities in life to find out if its a “poor return on investment”. Is it the prestige that drives you? Is it job stability? Is it working with people? Is it research? Medicine changes you inside and out as a person. For a lot of people it becomes your life and some people do not want that for their lives.

 

[Lawpy]

It's important to realize the competition at Top 20 schools is different from general med school competition. This is because these schools are more selective and the applicants competing for those seats are on average high quality with very compelling applications. So you would need to stand out from a highly competitive and highly qualified applicant pool to get accepted, which means you need stronger than average ECs and a very compelling, unique narrative.

Your application looks good but it's no different from the application of a typical Top 20 applicant. And so, the risk of getting waitlist is significantly higher (or in more extreme cases, getting rejected from ultra competitive schools like Harvard). I don't know whether interview prep is needed because people still interview well at those places and still get waitlisted or rejected.

Your best chance is to wait it out and hope that you get accepted off the waitlist after April 30. If you have any significant updates like publications or national awards, be sure to send an update.

 

[theonlytycrane]

Wishing you the best, but here's something to think about:

Say you get off a few of those waitlists and break into these dream schools ->

The process is now going to start over- are you going to crush yourself into a miserable person for many more years chasing that 99% board score (which is much different than 99% MCAT), ultra top residency, and not be happy with anything less? It's truly a personal journey for each of us to reach our potential and feel fulfilled while also maintaining a since of sanity / self-acceptance.

 

[DBC03]

This sounds awful!!! I’m waitlisted at only one top 20 and I still don’t know how they sent me an interview. I think the top 20 are very hit or miss. You can have an excellent application and really good interview skills and still get waitlisted. It’s just that everyone else who they interviewed also had excellent applications and really good interview skills. I think you’ll have luck coming off at least one waitlist after May 1. So I guess I just came here to say that your situation is a huge bummer and I hope you get into one of those schools!


Sent from my iPad using SDN mobile

 

[stickgirl390]

I completely agree with what @Lawper said. There’s probably nothing wrong with your app. You busted your butt to have a stellar application, but so did thousands of other applicants. It simply could be that other students were a better fit than you. There is absolutely an element of chance/luck in this process.

 

[TheVisionary]

Here to give support! Got Rs/WLs from several T-10/20s. Most since Feb. or last week, so I know it's tough to feel the pain so quickly.

I'm sitting with As to a couple mid/low-tier schools now. A good question to ask yourself is what is your big picture. I'm hoping to have a research-oriented career, so I was hoping to get into a top school. Understanding that I may not get off the WLs, I realized that I should not think by definition that I am significantly limited by the rank of the med school I go to. You can still get into (most) top residencies from any US MD.

You already know this, but you are a top applicant so you deservedly got those interviews. I know it sucks to have the WLs/Rs, but understand you are definitely ahead of the curve when it comes to test taking and that will carry you far. Med school is just 4 years, and your career will likely be ~60 years if you're recently out of college. Unlike other careers, there are many times you can get "redemption" after starting in med school. I'm not saying that you deserve the long road, but I think you can do it.

Hope you get off the WLs, but it'll be ok if you inevitably don't. When it comes to everything being "worth it," it's often what we do instead of where. Not everyone from HMS will have 50 lifetime publications or a Wikipedia page.

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

There's probably something in your interview that raises a red flag

 

[Suffer]

This experience honestly has me reconsidering whether I should continue on the career path. I know the one acceptance I have is something to be happy about, and a huge number of matriculants only get one. I'm not "too good" for my potential classmates at the aforementioned state school, and don't think I'm better than them. It's just the fact that I've really had to sacrifice so much extra to build my app, which wouldn't have been necessary to end up at the same school. I know students at the state school, and they worked hard, but they weren't chasing those 99%ile scores, or pubs, or gap years, or hundreds of volunteer hours, and could enjoy balanced social/personal lives. After those early grade struggles the margin of error I could tolerate was basically zero, and my life since then has been joylessly cultivating my GPA and resume. I'm finishing out my second gap year at the moment and I've just been miserable for probably about the last 3-4 years, but I've been motivating myself with the idea that it'd be worth it in the end. It doesn't seem to be turning out that way though. I still love the day-to-day of the career itself, but I'm no longer sure if I'm cut out for it. If I'm going to have to put in above average effort for a mediocre outcome for the rest of my life (if I'm a bad interviewer that won't just go away), it just seems like a poor return on investment.

Is anyone else going through/has gone through something similar?

Posting on an account of someone else I'm close to because they don't really use it and because I don't want to make my own account..

I had a similar experience especially with the wasted sacrifice so you're not alone

I had (and still kind of have) terrible study skills. In my freshman year, I had to decide between having a decent college experience or medical school (possibly t20 which I think "fits my talent"). I chose (t20) medical school and not only didn't have a great social life, I basically have no friends right now. I don't mind that too much but I doubled down to overcome **** study skills and made a gamble that was really only worth it if I made it to a t20. Turns out I didn't so it really makes the outcome worse

I interviewed at Harvard, Stanford, and the t20 associated with my undergrad. Got rejected to two and WLed by the third. I got into a school ranked between 20-30 but it's my state program which is largely considered a safety considering my stats and ugrad I went to so all in all I "underachieved"

There are definitely things that hurt my app: I suck at writing, am not an exceptional interviewer, and am not only boring in my interests (sports+video games) but didn't find a way to make myself interesting. It sucks that you got punished in your app for similar things (ie not being super charismatic) but unfortunately that's how it goes

Something I realized is that med school apps isn't like pro sports. Med schools especially t20s aren't selecting the people who will necessarily be the best doctors, rather those who will make the most diverse class. That's why the competitive residencies/top step scores aren't limited to the top schools. You got a 522 on your MCAT so you definitely have the talent to get into at least whatever specialty you want so you shouldn't give up/call yourself mediocre because you didn't get in a t20

Unless academic medicine/research is your dream not going to a prestigious med school won't kill you. Some of the best doctors in America went to pretty meh MD/residency programs

 

[aldol16]

It seems like you interviewed at a decent mix of top 20 schools and if you were competitive enough for Harvard, you're competitive enough for the vast majority of schools out there in terms of your scores and application. If they're giving you an interview already, I can't imagine them being caught up on that early F since your grades since them have been stellar, your GPA is stellar, and you crushed the MCAT. I would put in more time preparing for that UCLA interview you have. Don't going into it already resigned to whatever fate you have in mind. Interviewing isn't something you can magically change overnight but you can make incremental changes.

 

[kb1900]

I’m going to chime in here since I had a lot of friends last year who were in a similar position as you (myself included).

The WL movement is HUGE at these top20s. Obviously I don’t have experience with many schools but I will say that admits at this point in the cycle to top 20s are probably sitting on 1-5+ acceptances. Trust me - I got notifications from 2 “top schools” the day after traffic day. I even got one hell of a scholarship.

This was all after I pretty much was convinced I’d be going to my state school. So for Sinai, nyu Cornell - I would not give up hope as anecdotally I have friends at all these places who got in via wl movement after traffic day.

I had more or less identical stats to you - just with a mediocre freshman year and an final cGPA at 3.85. I was a trad student tho - no pubs.

————-

Having said all that, consider your mental health and future career. If you are really this miserable now, going to medical school won’t come even close to fixing that. If anything, even at Harvard, you’ll be even more miserable. Learn to get gratification from outside of medicine, or you’ll find yourself burned out before you even finish anatomy

 

[mellie0]

The way I see it, you have 5 waitlists and 1 upcoming interview. That’s 6 chances at an acceptance from one of those schools.

Of course, easy for me to say since I’m not the one in your shoes. But numbers-wise, I’m almost convinced something will pan out.

 

[getdown]

Do you want to be a doctor or do you want to be a doctor from a top20 school? Some patients may ask you where you went to medical school but ultimately no one cares as long as you're compassionate and have an ear for their problems. That's all they want. They want someone to care about them. A degree from a top 20 school doesn't give you that.

It's obvious a lot of posters have their egos hurt because they thought they were a shoo in for something and got a reality check. Good!! Now you can stay hungry and realize there's a lot of people out there who are better than you. Cause guess what? When you do start medical school you'll be competing against people who had the same if not better stats then you and even certified geniuses who don't study and can crush exams. Someone's gonna end up last in class in medical school. And do you think somehow the competition suddenly decreases when applying against these people for your coveted dermatology/neurosurgery/plastics residencies? These people may have that all important connection to get those spots and you don't. That's how the world works.

So, I'm sorry you're feeling bad but some of you have at least one acceptance. Don't focus on what you didn't get and focus on the blessing that you actually got an acceptance and have the chance to practice medicine. A lot of people right now can't say this. I bet you they'll trade spots with you in a heartbeat for that "safety" acceptance. So, take a deep breath, put things in perspective and celebrate your accomplishments. You'll see soon enough that there are more important things in life than a top 20 acceptance. Congrats future docs. I'll be seeing you in the wards.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

There's probably something in your interview that raises a red flag

Lol no. The Best Medical School often rejects even the most stellar of applicants.

 

[fds86]

Thanks all for the perspectives and advice, it helps. All that I can do is sit back and wait to see if the WL will move, and there's a reasonable chance that one will. I'm just wondering if the consistency of those negative decisions means I'm sitting way down on all of those lists.

Posting on an account of someone else I'm close to because they don't really use it and because I don't want to make my own account..

I had a similar experience especially with the wasted sacrifice so you're not alone

I had (and still kind of have) terrible study skills. In my freshman year, I had to decide between having a decent college experience or medical school (possibly t20 which I think "fits my talent"). I chose (t20) medical school and not only didn't have a great social life, I basically have no friends right now. I don't mind that too much but I doubled down to overcome **** study skills and made a gamble that was really only worth it if I made it to a t20. Turns out I didn't so it really makes the outcome worse

I interviewed at Harvard, Stanford, and the t20 associated with my undergrad. Got rejected to two and WLed by the third. I got into a school ranked between 20-30 but it's my state program which is largely considered a safety considering my stats and ugrad I went to so all in all I "underachieved"

There are definitely things that hurt my app: I suck at writing, am not an exceptional interviewer, and am not only boring in my interests (sports+video games) but didn't find a way to make myself interesting. It sucks that you got punished in your app for similar things (ie not being super charismatic) but unfortunately that's how it goes

Something I realized is that med school apps isn't like pro sports. Med schools especially t20s aren't selecting the people who will necessarily be the best doctors, rather those who will make the most diverse class. That's why the competitive residencies/top step scores aren't limited to the top schools. You got a 522 on your MCAT so you definitely have the talent to get into at least whatever specialty you want so you shouldn't give up/call yourself mediocre because you didn't get in a t20

Unless academic medicine/research is your dream not going to a prestigious med school won't kill you. Some of the best doctors in America went to pretty meh MD/residency programs

This captures how I feel pretty much exactly. To be honest, I wonder if I am more stubborn than smart. As much as society honors "never give up", sometimes it just means that you're unable to read the writing on the wall when you don't have "the stuff" to be naturally talented in a subject. Six bad decisions seems closer to an objective condemnation than an unlucky break, and for all I know, I barely scraped my way into my state school (maybe having an MCAT in the 90%ile of their class made them overlook all the other deficiencies). If I'm going to have to work like a dog to compensate for bad interviewing for the rest of my career is it worth continuing? Will I have to chase a crazy step score and AOA to just barely match? Will I even match if I decide I want to be a regular doc instead of a gunning? Unfortunately being a physician scientist/research/academia was my goal, so I'll have to reassess that too.

Kinda feels like if you did work in the gym and you show up to the NFL combine at 6'5", 275lbs, with a 4.5 40 and 42" vert. On paper you're the first DE off the board - but it turns out that you're a gentle pacifist who doesn't like to tackle people and isn't "mean". Sure, your upside balances your deficiencies so that with what you have you can still probably make a practice squad, or even be a rotational player - but maybe you should just try out for basketball. I know those thoughts are overly negative and biased though so just trying to move forward.

It seems like you interviewed at a decent mix of top 20 schools and if you were competitive enough for Harvard, you're competitive enough for the vast majority of schools out there in terms of your scores and application. If they're giving you an interview already, I can't imagine them being caught up on that early F since your grades since them have been stellar, your GPA is stellar, and you crushed the MCAT. I would put in more time preparing for that UCLA interview you have. Don't going into it already resigned to whatever fate you have in mind. Interviewing isn't something you can magically change overnight but you can make incremental changes.

Probably right. I don't think that written stuff sunk me or I wouldn't have gotten IIs, but maybe I was invited as a marginal candidate on the bubble. I'll try to do some good prep for the upcoming interview - I just wish I had some more honest feedback on where I'm weak.

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

Lol no. The Best Medical School often rejects even the most stellar of applicants.

Regardless. So many II’s and no acceptances.... something doesn’t add up. And your grammar is wrong.

 

[Mooseforkicks]

The fact that you received several interviews from such competitive schools indicates to me that you don’t have any red flags.

I think it’s just a matter of competition— there are a lot of students with excellent GPAs and MCAT scores interviewing at those schools. And your ECs are very good, but not necessarily superior to the kind of applicants who are also competitive for those schools. Some may have thousands of hours of research or volunteer work or clinical experience. Even if your interviews went well, it might not have been enough to make you initially stand out for an acceptance.

The upside is, the kind of students who get acceptances at the places you are waitlisted at are so competitive that many probably have multiple offers. They have to choose only one, so I would guess that eventually there is a lot of waitlist movement.

 

[Disciple of Sattar]

To quote @bananafish94, if you don't get off one of six waitlists "I will eat my hat, a hat of your choosing, and a special bonus hat that can be yours for only $19.99 if you call in the next 30 minutes."

 

[Dino Ciccarelli]

Wowza. OP, Think of the applicant who has A-grades, worked his/her butt of to make a 510 on the MCAT while working full-time, and didn’t even get an interview. It happens. Be happy with your acceptance(s) and go become a great doc.

Don’t think that the school you attend defines your future in medicine. At this point I know that is difficult. However, I know DO neurosurgeons that kicked butt in medical school and beat out top applicants for an MD neurosurgery residency. I know someone who went top 20 and matched into FM. There are IMG’s in orthopedic surgery residencies in New York. There are Harvard grads who no longer practice medicine. I know awful awful people who just were accepted top 20. People with great stats and no compassion for other human beings. They will not enjoy careers as physicians. Life just isn’t fair sometimes, but you have the opportunity to become a doctor, so look on the bright side, and go do it!

 

[bananafish94]

To quote @bananafish94, if you don't get off one of six waitlists "I will eat my hat, a hat of your choosing, and a special bonus hat that can be yours for only $19.99 if you call in the next 30 minutes."

I'm not eating any hats for this person - they already have an acceptance!

 

[aldol16]

No it doesnt. This is an olympic class event where there may be 20 finalists but only the first 3 get medals.

Definitely a supply-demand balance issue but the point is, no matter if OP is #4 or #20, the effect is the same - he/she is not where he/she wants to be. So no matter what, I don't think OP should just chalk it up to high competition. You can always keep improving - it doesn't matter if your're #20 or #4 - you need to keep improving to make it to the top 3. #20 will require more work than #4 but both should work for it and not just give up and let fate decide here.

 

[Lucca]

I'm much more concerned about your assessment that the last 4 years of your life have been a joyless slog and the fact that you're questioning going to medical school at all just because you might not be in the same echelon you thought you were.

I totally understand why you feel the way you do and it's perfectly legitimate to be disappointed, but this seems like the more important thing to think about working out in the future rather than handwringing about waitlists you have no control over.

 

[shortcoatdream15]

Get your head in the game and crush that UCLA interview

 

[Gibbward]

Hey dude/tte, I get that you're disappointed. You worked really hard and sacrificed a lot to get to that point. It really sucks to think that your dream schools were right at your fingertips, but you just couldn't grab on to those opportunities.

Let me pose another hypothetical for you: if you didn't get ANY interviews in those top schools, and only got an interview and acceptance to your state school, how would you feel? Would you still feel like your sacrifice was worth it? Was your BIG PICTURE goal at the beginning of the cycle to get into a top tier school or to get into any school and become a doctor?

If the goal was to have a big name printed on your MD diploma, then maybe it is time to move on. But if it's to get into medicine, maybe shift your mindset and goals, and be happy that you still have a path to become on a doctor.

And also, you have 3+ years before you have to interview for residencies. There's so much time to improve your interviewing skills and find mentors/resources to help you through the interview/application process down the road.

At the end of the day, I think you should really step back and reflect on what you want to do. I understand your disappointment. I was there too last year. I interviewed at a few t10-20s, and was waitlisted in all of them. But I still had acceptances tho, and now I'm am very happy M1. I'm super happy with how things turned out and I can't even imagine how those top tier schools could beat my current med school experience. Focus on the big picture and go from there. Good luck!

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Regardless. So many II’s and no acceptances.... something doesn’t add up. And your grammar is wrong.

No it doesn't, and no it's not.

 

[radiculating spines]

The post-II acceptance rate at top schools is often <30%. Yet most of the time these same schools have very, very chill interviews. So chill that honestly, having conversed with quite a few fellow candidates at these interview days, it's very hard for me to believe they wouldn't all do pretty well (at the very least). Conclusion: your interview performance doesn't matter that much. It matters, but not to the degree people think, at least when the interview is so relaxed and the post-II acceptance so low. There is no way people could really distinguish themselves that much above their similarly accomplished and personable competitors with such "easy" interviews for it to be the difference maker.

 

[scienceguy95]

I'm very sorry about your experience. I know some others are saying you should just be happy with your acceptance, but I totally understand the disappointment. There's nothing wrong with shooting high and being disappointed you didn't make it. These schools are sought after for a reason beyond superficial name recognition--they offer tangible resources and opportunities that give its students an edge.

I do hope you get in off the waitlist to at least one of the top schools. You worked hard and you deserve it.

 

[ephemeralsunshine]

I'm in the same boat OP. Got into a state school and am on 6 T20 waitlists. I don't have much advice other than to be happy and continue working hard for a phenomenal residency. I know how you feel.

 

[TitleCONTEnders]

I'm in somewhat of a similar position as well right now. Got 5 II and 5 WL, with 3 WL at T10 schools. I really feel for everyone in this position! It’s so hard to deal with the waiting and uncertainty!

For those of you with acceptances, congrats to you all! The opportunity to enter the realm of medicine and train as a physician is so amazing and getting to that point merits so much recognition! Having an acceptance to a medical school is a testament to how great of an applicant and person you are!

I really hope we all have huge amounts of luck with the Waitlist movement this year! Good luck to everyone

 

[Alejandro]

I agree with @getdown . One is better than none. And a top20 school doesn't guarantee a top 3 match either.

I know people in this generation get labeled with entitlement, and its a buzzword with negative connotation, but I am not sure what better word there is. Just because someone has xyz grades doesn't MEAN necessarily that they are 1) more deserving to be a doctor 2) will be a better doctor. Same goes with extracurriculars. More often than not, the grades can land you some interviews, but overall, getting interviews and succeeding in them are all a crapshoot. Thats why you apply to many many places so you can diversify your chances. Granted, you have an acceptance already and I don't imagine you reapplying (please don't), but the world is not over. And just remember that no matter how good of a 'fit' or how you deserve xyz, it may not pan out that way. Thats just part of life. And thats why you diversify.

I mean, thats what stocks101 teaches you, right?

I don't mean to talk down assuming I never felt that way either. I had a similar experience in my past when I applied, and realized I was just being a brat. Be excited for the future! More work is to be done, and its not how you start, but how you finish. I hope you haven't 'finished' just because you got into med school.

I also reread your initial post, OP, and another thing to keep in mind-some of the stuff you did in the past, a fair amount of that can be included in your residency app too. People may ask about your life before med school during interviews. AND, a lot of that may be helpful even as a med school with stats, research, getting involved, etc. You just have to apply it.

I think the bigger question is, do you even want to be a doctor?

 

[seeinghowitgoes]

I agree with @getdown . One is better than none. And a top20 school doesn't guarantee a top 3 match either.

I know people in this generation get labeled with entitlement, and its a buzzword with negative connotation, but I am not sure what better word there is. Just because someone has xyz grades doesn't MEAN necessarily that they are 1) more deserving to be a doctor 2) will be a better doctor. Same goes with extracurriculars.

Couldn't agree more. Much of the time, it's just a matter of there being a lot of talented people.

I'll also be honest, sometimes doing more opens you up to criticism IF you don't do that stuff well. I know, for example, an applicant with publications is going to get asks questions to figure out what they did, and a student selling themselves as a researcher who doesn't understand their work is far worse than somebody who just didn't do research.

Always best to care about what you do, and do what you care about - don't only think of it as a game to win.

 

[Alejandro]

Always best to care about what you do, and do what you care about - don't only think of it as a game to win.

Absolutely. Not as a means to an end, but an end in itself. #deep

 

[ThoracicGuy]

Posting on an account of someone else I'm close to because they don't really use it and because I don't want to make my own account..

I had a similar experience especially with the wasted sacrifice so you're not alone

I had (and still kind of have) terrible study skills. In my freshman year, I had to decide between having a decent college experience or medical school (possibly t20 which I think "fits my talent"). I chose (t20) medical school and not only didn't have a great social life, I basically have no friends right now. I don't mind that too much but I doubled down to overcome **** study skills and made a gamble that was really only worth it if I made it to a t20. Turns out I didn't so it really makes the outcome worse

I interviewed at Harvard, Stanford, and the t20 associated with my undergrad. Got rejected to two and WLed by the third. I got into a school ranked between 20-30 but it's my state program which is largely considered a safety considering my stats and ugrad I went to so all in all I "underachieved"

There are definitely things that hurt my app: I suck at writing, am not an exceptional interviewer, and am not only boring in my interests (sports+video games) but didn't find a way to make myself interesting. It sucks that you got punished in your app for similar things (ie not being super charismatic) but unfortunately that's how it goes

Something I realized is that med school apps isn't like pro sports. Med schools especially t20s aren't selecting the people who will necessarily be the best doctors, rather those who will make the most diverse class. That's why the competitive residencies/top step scores aren't limited to the top schools. You got a 522 on your MCAT so you definitely have the talent to get into at least whatever specialty you want so you shouldn't give up/call yourself mediocre because you didn't get in a t20

Unless academic medicine/research is your dream not going to a prestigious med school won't kill you. Some of the best doctors in America went to pretty meh MD/residency programs

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