Waitlisted Twice at the Same School, Then Rejected Pre-II on the 3rd Try

[banano]

The last 2 app cycles, I was interviewed and waitlisted by only 1 school, the same UC school both times (CA resident, so IS). This cycle, they rejected me pre-interview. How common is this? Maybe there's a rule about the number of times they will interview a candidate before automatically rejecting them? Just trying to figure this out, feel kinda blindsided.

I know my app improved, because this year, I was accepted to a different med school that I had applied to 2 times before, but never received the II until this year.

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[BeanBoon]

Hey, congrats on the acceptance! I think some schools have a rule that limit the amount a person can reapply. I think it depends on the school though and usually it's in their "faq" section.

 

[Goro]

The last 2 app cycles, I was interviewed and waitlisted by only 1 school, the same UC school both times (CA resident, so IS). This cycle, they rejected me pre-interview. How common is this? Maybe there's a rule about the number of times they will interview a candidate before automatically rejecting them? Just trying to figure this out, feel kinda blindsided.

I know my app improved, because this year, I was accepted to a different med school that I had applied to 2 times before, but never received the II until this year.

Impossible to answer without knowing your stats and ECs.

These may have been courtesy interviews, or you were indeed a viable candidate but your interview skills were lacking, no matter how much the skills really wanted to give you a chance.

BUT, you're still going to be a doctor! So, congrats on your acceptance!

Now go read this:
Goro's Guide to Success in Medical School (2019 edition)

 

[chzsux]

The last 2 app cycles, I was interviewed and waitlisted by only 1 school, the same UC school both times (CA resident, so IS). This cycle, they rejected me pre-interview. How common is this? Maybe there's a rule about the number of times they will interview a candidate before automatically rejecting them? Just trying to figure this out, feel kinda blindsided.

I know my app improved, because this year, I was accepted to a different med school that I had applied to 2 times before, but never received the II until this year.

I personally got rejected pre-II in September by a school I interviewed with last cycle (and was WL) but got interviews from 4-5 schools this year that rejected me pre-II last cycle. It's just kind of the nature of the application process - even if you've improved your application, a lot of times it comes down to luck and chance.

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

I’m guessing schools keep files of people who applied before with interview notes and sudh. Maybe they just figured it wasn’t a great match.

Congrats on your acceptance!

 

[Rachapkis]

Acceptance=MD. Take the win!

 

[banano]

I personally got rejected pre-II in September by a school I interviewed with last cycle (and was WL) but got interviews from 4-5 schools this year that rejected me pre-II last cycle. It's just kind of the nature of the application process - even if you've improved your application, a lot of times it comes down to luck and chance.

Yeah, this similarly happened to me, but just 2 schools, not as many as you! In either case, I'm happy I have 2 acceptances. Just sucks that I felt led on for quite a long time, and that even though I practiced for the interview the 2nd time, maybe more practice would have been an acceptance. Who knows ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

 

[banano]

Many schools have an official policy of no more than two applications. Others just do so either from informal policy or the fact that you didnt get accepted twice before. Simply because you are on the WL does not mean you were particularly high on the list. Some schools have formal WL with 2x as many seats as they have, rarely going past the top 25% of the list to fill vacancies

Yep, the med school that WLed me has a *very* long waitlist, and they take some, but not that many off of it (maybe 10%?). Still kind of looking with hindsight at how I could've interviewed better.

 

[LizzyM]

Keep the staircase analogy in mind. You may have been high enough on the staircase the two previous times to get in for interview but not high enough to be admitted. This time, perhaps due to the number of applicants and their strength relative to yours, you did not even make it high enough on the staircase to get an interview. But, you had some luck elsewhere so Congratulations!!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Take the acceptance and don't look back or think about it.

An admissions committee roster routinely can turn over every 3-4 years, so perhaps enough people who supported your application before may have rotated off. Maybe there were clearly better applicants ahead of you this time. Maybe it's what everyone else said. You can't know and you can't speculate; that's why I say that every cycle is different and what you did in the past may not be predictable of how well you do in a subsequent cycle. (It's also why we tell people NEVER turn down an acceptance without a very good reason.)

 

[Ganon]

An uncomfortable truth I was discussing with faculty this week that nobody else has mentioned is also the sad fact that there is a component of randomness to this entire process.

Sometimes people win (or lose) and it's not because of stats or logic or any good reason, just pure entropy in action. It's rough to cope with given how we wish everything were meritocratic, but that's reality.

 

[banano]

Keep the staircase analogy in mind. You may have been high enough on the staircase the two previous times to get in for interview but not high enough to be admitted. This time, perhaps due to the number of applicants and their strength relative to yours, you did not even make it high enough on the staircase to get an interview. But, you had some luck elsewhere so Congratulations!!

Holy s***, THE LizzyM responded! Thank you for the advice and for the congratulations!