What causes waitlist movement to finally end?

[PNWMed2020]

I was thinking about this the other day. If it's past traffic day (April 30) and students are all holding only one acceptance to medical school, if one gets accepted off the wailtlist and decides to go, a spot is opened up at another school allowing another waitlisted student to be accepted and so on. How does this snowball effect finally end?

I'm thinking it finally ends by students getting accepted off the waitlist with no acceptances at another school, or students getting accepted into allopathic from osteopathic (vice versa). Makes sense how as med school gets more and more competitive, waitlist movement slows every year.

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[gyngyn]

Some schools truncate the poaching season by starting orientation very early.
FSU starts orientation on 5/31 this year!
We can't poach after orientation starts.

 

[mcatjelly]

Well, a student accepted off a waitlist with no other acceptances could still get another acceptance weeks later.

Waitlist movement ends after the first day of orientation and/or when the class is full. Pretty simple. 😛

 

[IlDestriero]

Some people also never start and quit before the first day of classes, that leaves a late opening.


--
Il Destriero

 

[Cookiess]

I believe waitlist movement stops when orientation starts or when a class gets filled and all of the students in the class have withdrawn from all other schools. The latter case might happen relatively earlier after the April 30th deadline at a few schools (I'm guessing at top tier schools and schools with traditionally high yield/little waitlist movement like Harvard and UCSD). But it might not happen for all schools until pretty late in the cycle or orientation because of the potential cascade effect.

It also depends on how many waitlists a student is on. I'd imagine applicants that get into their top choice after April 30th would probably withdraw from all other schools they are waitlisted at and would lock in their spot at that school, although they would not be obligated to withdraw from the other waitlisted schools. Students can also choose to withdraw from all schools for the sake of deciding to move on and getting situated with their current acceptance at any point in the cycle. As it gets later into the cycle, waitlist movement gets drastically slower as students get off wailists and withdraw from their current acceptance as well as other waitlisted schools. Just my speculation.

 

[Catalystik]

I have know of students who have gotten offers the day before orientation of a school starts.

I know students who got an offer the day after a waitlist school's orientation began.

I have also heard of an student who left an osteopathic school's orientation after getting off the waitlist at an allopathic school.

 

[Catalystik]

Anecdotal stories about Texas were circulating on SDN ten years ago about two waitlisted students with no other acceptances hanging around their respective med school admissions offices, in case a first-year orientee failed to show up. When it happened, they successfully offered to take the open spots and start immediately.

I haven't read of this happening since.

 

[tantacles]

Anecdotal stories about Texas were circulating on SDN ten years ago about two waitlisted students with no other acceptances hanging around their respective med school admissions offices, in case a first-year orientee failed to show up. When it happened, they successfully offered to take the open spots and start immediately.

I haven't read of this happening since.

I TOTALLY should have done this my first cycle. I mean, not in Texas. But I love the story.

 

[Catalystik]

would that be considered a med school groupie or a med school stalker?

?The Ultimate Gunner?

 

[Best Sejuani NA]

1) In the days before cell phones:

2) Also in the days before cell phones:

I think that I was born in the wrong generation!

Anecdotal stories about Texas were circulating on SDN ten years ago about two waitlisted students with no other acceptances hanging around their respective med school admissions offices, in case a first-year orientee failed to show up. When it happened, they successfully offered to take the open spots and start immediately.

I haven't read of this happening since.

I haven't "coincidentally run into someone" since chasing crushes back in high school, but now that you mention it, a road trip to my waitlisted schools wouldn't be too bad in the summertime!

 

[Catalystik]

a road trip to my waitlisted schools wouldn't be too bad in the summertime!

I would love to hear an updated version of this most excellent "urban legend".