Waitlists and LOIs

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fldoctorgirl

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I went on an interview at my undergrad's med school in the end of January (the school only interviews through February). Although obviously not a perfect source, based on looking at previous years' SDN threads, I knew that this interview would most likely either result in a waitlist or rejection given the time in the cycle. I was surprised to even receive the interview due to an MCAT below the school's median (although my GPA is above it). I do feel that I match their mission pretty well and like I said, I will be graduating from the same university this May.

I ended up getting waitlisted. As I understand it, most waitlist movement does not occur till May. I want to write a LOI to the school; I would drop everything and attend if they accepted me, even if it was during orientation, but realistically I have been accepted to other schools that require me to move and need to start looking for housing, etc. elsewhere. Additionally, my SO is moving with me and is picking a grad school based on my location-- he likes both schools he was accepted to in both locations equally, so no issue there. However, obviously he also needs to start putting down deposits at schools.

Basically, this waitlist situation is kind of messy for me. I know I may get flack for "complaining" on SDN, but I'm a person who likes to have all of their ducks in a row, so to speak. I am not sure whether I just received the II as a courtesy since I am graduating from the same university, or if I actually stand a chance of coming off of the waitlist. I am happy with my other acceptances and would be happy to attend my top choice out of them, so this uncertainty kind of just threw a wrench in everything. The most stressful issue is the uncertainty that is now surrounding my SO-- basically, he is willing to put down deposits at both schools, but we don't know if that is allowed (sometimes schools make you sign a form saying you have dropped other acceptances when you pay the deposit).

I guess the point of this post was to vent a little bit, but also to ask for some advice:
1) Is it too soon to send a LOI? I was placed on the waitlist last Friday. I do have a lot to say about how I think I'm a good fit for the school, but I also included a lot of this in my secondary and don't want to sound repetitive.
2) Is it worth it/wise to mention the situation with my SO? Part of the school's mission is to educate doctors who will stay in the area, so I would use that to demonstrate our desire to stay here and start our careers here. On the other hand, I don't want this to come off in a negative way somehow.

I hope this post doesn't come off as entitled. I am shocked that I even received an II at this school, and even surprised that I ended up on the waitlist rather than just getting rejected; it's why I am sometimes suspicious I only got the II because of my ties to the school. I guess I am just looking for some words of advice as to how to handle the uncertainty of the waitlist, especially considering the impact it has on someone else in my situation.

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Why would it be too early to tell a school they’re your top choice? If it’s your top it’s your top, send it in.
And unless you’re married or engaged I would tred lightly with the SO stuff, not an expert though
 
Why would it be too early to tell a school they’re your top choice? If it’s your top it’s your top, send it in.
And unless you’re married or engaged I would tred lightly with the SO stuff, not an expert though
I had a feeling you would respond to this thread haha :)

Thank you for your opinion!
 
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Why would it be too early to tell a school they’re your top choice? If it’s your top it’s your top, send it in.
And unless you’re married or engaged I would tred lightly with the SO stuff, not an expert though
Because med schools gets these love letters all the time, and they know people are lying.

How would you interpret a non binding contract from a desperate candidate????
 
Because med schools gets these love letters all the time, and they know people are lying.

How would you interpret a non binding contract from a desperate candidate????
I’m not debating their efficacy but if the OP is going to send one and it’s just a question of now or later is there a benefit to waiting?
 
The last md school I interviewed at, I sent the LOI
the next day. It was my last md interview so I thought why not.
 
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I think the whole SO thing is worth mentioning - I certainly mentioned mine in an update/interest letter... my husband really likes his job and he gets to keep it if I get into one particular school. It's out of state, but they have a terminal within one hour of the school so he can just transfer locations. He is really hoping that happens, and I am, too.

Mine is a spouse, though. Hard to say with a non-spouse/non-fiance if it's worthwhile.
 
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Because med schools gets these love letters all the time, and they know people are lying.

How would you interpret a non binding contract from a desperate candidate????

You say that, but admissions officers frequently mention them after my interviews. (etiquette when sending etc.)

Its like thank you letters. Shouldn't matter, but people still fuss over them.
 
Whether that is true or not. It contradicts your prior statement.
Not necessarily, they could enjoy seeing people grovel to feed the ego, but the letters could not have any influence in getting off said waitlist
 
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I went on an interview at my undergrad's med school in the end of January (the school only interviews through February). Although obviously not a perfect source, based on looking at previous years' SDN threads, I knew that this interview would most likely either result in a waitlist or rejection given the time in the cycle. I was surprised to even receive the interview due to an MCAT below the school's median (although my GPA is above it). I do feel that I match their mission pretty well and like I said, I will be graduating from the same university this May.

I ended up getting waitlisted. As I understand it, most waitlist movement does not occur till May. I want to write a LOI to the school; I would drop everything and attend if they accepted me, even if it was during orientation, but realistically I have been accepted to other schools that require me to move and need to start looking for housing, etc. elsewhere. Additionally, my SO is moving with me and is picking a grad school based on my location-- he likes both schools he was accepted to in both locations equally, so no issue there. However, obviously he also needs to start putting down deposits at schools.

Basically, this waitlist situation is kind of messy for me. I know I may get flack for "complaining" on SDN, but I'm a person who likes to have all of their ducks in a row, so to speak. I am not sure whether I just received the II as a courtesy since I am graduating from the same university, or if I actually stand a chance of coming off of the waitlist. I am happy with my other acceptances and would be happy to attend my top choice out of them, so this uncertainty kind of just threw a wrench in everything. The most stressful issue is the uncertainty that is now surrounding my SO-- basically, he is willing to put down deposits at both schools, but we don't know if that is allowed (sometimes schools make you sign a form saying you have dropped other acceptances when you pay the deposit).

I guess the point of this post was to vent a little bit, but also to ask for some advice:
1) Is it too soon to send a LOI? I was placed on the waitlist last Friday. I do have a lot to say about how I think I'm a good fit for the school, but I also included a lot of this in my secondary and don't want to sound repetitive.
2) Is it worth it/wise to mention the situation with my SO? Part of the school's mission is to educate doctors who will stay in the area, so I would use that to demonstrate our desire to stay here and start our careers here. On the other hand, I don't want this to come off in a negative way somehow.

I hope this post doesn't come off as entitled. I am shocked that I even received an II at this school, and even surprised that I ended up on the waitlist rather than just getting rejected; it's why I am sometimes suspicious I only got the II because of my ties to the school. I guess I am just looking for some words of advice as to how to handle the uncertainty of the waitlist, especially considering the impact it has on someone else in my situation.

I can't give advice on the SO question, because I really have no idea. With regard to the LOI, though, I would send one ASAP if that's what you feel you want to do. As someone else alluded to above, is there a point in waiting? I know the SDN community has mixed opinions on LOIs but I couldn't imagine it could hurt you, while just maybe, it could help you. If I were you, I'd send it soon!

Good Luck!!
 
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Not necessarily, they could enjoy seeing people grovel to feed the ego, but the letters could not have any influence in getting off said waitlist

Not sure why adcoms would willfully waste their own time if they internally have no interest in the letters themselves./

I have had schools tell me not to send Thank Yous, but did encourage post II communication.
 
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Not necessarily, they could enjoy seeing people grovel to feed the ego, but the letters could not have any influence in getting off said waitlist
This.

EDIT:
Take a look at these threads to see why LOI are routinely ignored by Admissions Deans:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/i-told-a-school-id-go-if-accepted-now-not-so-sure.1187022/#post-17497608

https://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/loi-and-interviews.1252832/#post-18849958


From the wise Med Ed: [What med schools…] accept and desire are two different things. My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along, but only rarely do we consider it a worthwhile addition to the package.

And yes, some of us have gotten a little jaded about LOI's. I could fill a barrel with all the post-interview correspondence I have received that has not translated into a single matriculant. This has all gotten mighty complicated and burdensome for what is essentially a zero sum game.


It's generally not burdensome for an applicant to upload something to the portal, and once in a great while it does tip us off with some useful info. I can think of one individual who had a stellar application, like Harvard/Yale/Stanford-worthy, and a superb interview, who sent us several updates and a LOI. We were somewhat perplexed by this person's tenacious interest in our program. Turns out there were family/geographical reasons behind the whole thing, the applicant just never felt comfortable directly playing that card.

When it comes down to waitlist time I will scan through what folks have uploaded post-interview. The vast majority of times it has no impact. Occasionally I have seen it hurt people's chances. Come to think of it, in my experience this is probably more likely, than such correspondence having a positive impact.
 
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This.

EDIT:
Take a look at these threads to see why LOI are routinely ignored by Admissions Deans:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/i-told-a-school-id-go-if-accepted-now-not-so-sure.1187022/#post-17497608

https://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/loi-and-interviews.1252832/#post-18849958


From the wise Med Ed: [What med schools…] accept and desire are two different things. My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along, but only rarely do we consider it a worthwhile addition to the package.

And yes, some of us have gotten a little jaded about LOI's. I could fill a barrel with all the post-interview correspondence I have received that has not translated into a single matriculant. This has all gotten mighty complicated and burdensome for what is essentially a zero sum game.


It's generally not burdensome for an applicant to upload something to the portal, and once in a great while it does tip us off with some useful info. I can think of one individual who had a stellar application, like Harvard/Yale/Stanford-worthy, and a superb interview, who sent us several updates and a LOI. We were somewhat perplexed by this person's tenacious interest in our program. Turns out there were family/geographical reasons behind the whole thing, the applicant just never felt comfortable directly playing that card.

When it comes down to waitlist time I will scan through what folks have uploaded post-interview. The vast majority of times it has no impact. Occasionally I have seen it hurt people's chances. Come to think of it, in my experience this is probably more likely, than such correspondence having a positive impact.


That is proof that *some* admissions deans ignore it. The problem I have is that many admissions committees have significantly varying processes. For instance, Med Ed states that "My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along", whereas UNC, a place I interviewed this year, explicitly states to never send post-II communication.

The point is that blanket statements about all allopathic programs in the US seem to rarely be correct facially.
 
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That is proof that *some* admissions deans ignore it. The problem I have is that many admissions committees have significantly varying processes. For instance, Med Ed states that "My institution, for instance, will accept practically anything a given applicant wants to forward along", whereas UNC, a place I interviewed this year, explicitly states to never send post-II communication.

The point is that blanket statements about all allopathic programs in the US seem to rarely be correct facially.
Stop with the pedantry already. A few schools like them, but my take is that in the aggregate, LOIs do little, if anything for an applicant. And there are schools that refuse to take any sort of update or LOI, like Wake.

I'm not going to add qualifiers for every post of mine just because of a few exceptions.
 
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Thanks for the feedback everyone!

As far as sending a LOI in the first place, that wasn't really the question I was asking (although I appreciate the advice and brutal honesty as always, @Goro ) as the school specifically told us on interview day that we should communicate with them if we end up on the waitlist. They have large waitlist movement, and admit that a lot of their class comes from the waitlist, so I don't know if that has something to do with it.

For me, the issue is more the situation regarding my SO having to choose a school and me now being in limbo until I either get off the waitlist or don't. I realize that the adcom probably doesn't care about this issue, but it's quite stressful for me, on top of the fact that I am unsure whether I actually stand a chance of getting off of the waitlist or if my II was just a courtesy one (I realize that no one can answer this question for me, though).

Edit: If they were both MD schools, I would be glad to just drop the waitlist and go to the one I have an acceptance at. But, I'm waitlisted at an MD and my other acceptances are DO, so that kind of complicates things too.
 
Thanks for the feedback everyone!

As far as sending a LOI in the first place, that wasn't really the question I was asking (although I appreciate the advice and brutal honesty as always, @Goro ) as the school specifically told us on interview day that we should communicate with them if we end up on the waitlist. They have large waitlist movement, and admit that a lot of their class comes from the waitlist, so I don't know if that has something to do with it.

For me, the issue is more the situation regarding my SO having to choose a school and me now being in limbo until I either get off the waitlist or don't. I realize that the adcom probably doesn't care about this issue, but it's quite stressful for me, on top of the fact that I am unsure whether I actually stand a chance of getting off of the waitlist or if my II was just a courtesy one (I realize that no one can answer this question for me, though).
A) have a little more faith in yourself
B) For the last time, there are no such things as courtesy interviews. Do you really think schools are going to waste their time and yours?
 
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Thanks for the feedback everyone!

As far as sending a LOI in the first place, that wasn't really the question I was asking (although I appreciate the advice and brutal honesty as always, @Goro ) as the school specifically told us on interview day that we should communicate with them if we end up on the waitlist. They have large waitlist movement, and admit that a lot of their class comes from the waitlist, so I don't know if that has something to do with it.

For me, the issue is more the situation regarding my SO having to choose a school and me now being in limbo until I either get off the waitlist or don't. I realize that the adcom probably doesn't care about this issue, but it's quite stressful for me, on top of the fact that I am unsure whether I actually stand a chance of getting off of the waitlist or if my II was just a courtesy one (I realize that no one can answer this question for me, though).

Edit: If they were both MD schools, I would be glad to just drop the waitlist and go to the one I have an acceptance at. But, I'm waitlisted at an MD and my other acceptances are DO, so that kind of complicates things too.

I definitely understand what you're going through, I have a DO acceptance and I'm waitlisted for an MD and interviewed recently for an MD that I really really like. I'm of course extremely grateful to know that no matter what I'm attending school in August but it does make me a little anxious paying the 2nd deposit for the DO school and planning a move while praying I get pulled off the waitlist. A good problem to have but still not ideal. We'll end up where we're supposed to through, short term hassle and mayhem for long term reward. Wishing you the best!
 
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I think the OP is asking the entirely wrong question and is causing their own unneeded anxiety: what date have you and your SO decided is for your final decision on where to move to? "Well, how can I possibly answer that when I dont have a waitlist answer from this top choice school?" Are you going to remain on the waitlist until you start at one of your other acceptances? What happens if your top choice accepts you July 31st? Or offers you a spot on Friday for a Monday orientation? What about July 15th? Or July 1st? Or.....well you get the drift; what date have you are your SO decided is the the "drop dead" date? Whatever the waitlist school decides is wholly irrelevant to this decision. Either you will be accepted by the date or not. Since you have to consider your SO's needs as in grad school, getting housing, etc, and presumably your relationship is more important to you than which medical school you attend, you will jointly discuss and decide and then STICK TO THE DECISION AND DONT LOOK BACK. You immediately withdraw from the waitlist school and move forward. Because if you start hesitating with "well maybe I will wait another week" and then again, and then after you sign a lease, your SO gets excited about their new grad school, and then you suddenly have the new waitlist acceptance, I am sure it will cause consternation at the very least.

1) You need to decide
A) a drop dead date where you will withdraw from waitlist
OR
B) that you and SO will deal with a possibly very late acceptance with possibly having to move on a few days notice and all the complications that entails

2) You also have to decide/prioritize the importance of
A) relationship with SO
OR
B) which med school you attend
This is actually really good advice that probably seems like it should've been obvious. Thank you!
 
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fldoctorgirl said:
1) Is it too soon to send a LOI? I was placed on the waitlist last Friday. I do have a lot to say about how I think I'm a good fit for the school, but I also included a lot of this in my secondary and don't want to sound repetitive.

IMO yes. Unless things have changed I believe that no schools will know your acceptance status until May. Most waitlists are set and won't be revisited until the end of the interview season and sending in an LOI now will just get lost in the shuffle. Don't worry about being repetitive because it can show that you really do care about the school. If you wait until the due date and send in the LOI then it will hold weight since the school is thinking "Hey, she's desirable and even with an acceptance wants to come with us and practice in the area, let's review her application". Of course they could just not care either way, but I think waiting will be your best bet.


fldoctorgirl said:
2) Is it worth it/wise to mention the situation with my SO? Part of the school's mission is to educate doctors who will stay in the area, so I would use that to demonstrate our desire to stay here and start our careers here. On the other hand, I don't want this to come off in a negative way somehow.

You seem pretty serious about this guy as he is willing to move with you so I would just say he is your fiance since you two are probably headed down that road anyway and it will be considered a more serious relationship. I think it can definitely be worthwhile if you mention how he is accepted to the school, you have roots there etc, etc. Obviously don't mention other acceptances and don't really focus on it. Just a sentence or 2 to get the point across, but really focus it on yourself and how you want to stay there, why you feel you fit the mission well and how the school will help you achieve your goals.

Also look into the acceptances of your BF. If there is no clause about holding 2 spots then just put deposits for both. Consider the loss an investment in your future. Good luck!
 
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If you wait until the due date and send in the LOI then it will hold weight since the school is thinking "Hey, she's desirable and even with an acceptance wants to come with us and practice in the area, let's review her application"
As far as I know, they can only see MD acceptances. All of my acceptances are DO, so I'm not sure if this would make a difference anyways.

Thank you for your advice and kind words :)
 
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