When do you have to decide?

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help2

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I plan on applying to DO schools for admission in 2012. My boyfriend is currently looking for jobs in the same cities. My question is- when does the decision about where to go need to be made? If you are accepted on the early side do you need to decide sooner? Or does everybody generally have one date set? This is important since I want to ideally wait to decide until we figure out where my boyfriend gets a job.
Same question applies to MD's as I plan on applying to both.
 
help2 said:
I plan on applying to DO schools for admission in 2012. My boyfriend is currently looking for jobs in the same cities. My question is- when does the decision about where to go need to be made? If you are accepted on the early side do you need to decide sooner? Or does everybody generally have one date set? This is important since I want to ideally wait to decide until we figure out where my boyfriend gets a job.
Same question applies to MD's as I plan on applying to both.
Click to expand...

I don't know about MDs but for DOs it depends on the school and it will tell you in the CIB booklet. For most if you're accepted before 11/15 (I believe) you have until 12/15 to put down a deposit. But for some it different like LECOM is 1 month after letter sent and Touro is two weeks.
 
Different schools have different policies as mentioned before.

However, they generally relate to the decision to put down a deposit. LECOM is a month, and then that timeframe shortens as you progress through interview season (I.E. Accepted in March, they may ask for a deposit immediately). If you don't mind having a handful of non-refundable deposits out there, then you can take your time deciding. Each school has its own policy, but there's no unified AACOM rules on it. Some schools have multiple deposit dates as well.

I believe it's different on the AAMC side, where you have to have only 1 deposit by May 15. You can have 10 deposits down at 10 schools prior to that, but they're all refundable before May 15. (Right?? Someone confirm this for me please.)

There's also the much-debated ethical question of holding onto seats at a bunch of places, as it delays the ability of a waitlisted student to take that spot. Regarding this, don't waste your time, but don't rush your decision. When your SO gets a job and you're happy with the school, you should have your decision ready. Remember there are hundreds of other people anxiously waiting for your spot to open up when you decide to drop out of contention, and realize that you were very lucky to have multiple acceptances and even be in this position to begin with.
 
I think DO schools generally require you to put down a (usually hefty) deposit sooner than MD schools. And DO schools' timing can vary widely. For example, the Touros require a $2000 deposit within two weeks of being accepted (crazy, right?!). And others, such as Midwestern/AZCOM want a deposit by December 15th for the first half of acceptees. For schools that give a short window to pay after receiving an acceptance -- the sooner you interview, the sooner you may be accepted, and therefore the sooner you may have to make your decision. But don't let that keep you from applying early, as applying early may lead to more acceptances and hence give you more options.

I can't really comment on the MD process as I didn't get accepted to any MD schools. lol (btw I love the DO school I will be attending). But I think they tend to give you more time to make a decision and the deposits are smaller. GL and I hope you guys get to stay near each other!
 
Thanks for the help! It's kinda lame that they make you put down a deposit right away 🙁 Hopefully the timing will work out ok.
 
painmd87 said:
Different schools have different policies as mentioned before.

I believe it's different on the AAMC side, where you have to have only 1 deposit by May 15. You can have 10 deposits down at 10 schools prior to that, but they're all refundable before May 15. (Right?? Someone confirm this for me please.)
Click to expand...

I don't think any of the deposits are refundable so you need to think as you put down the deposits.
 
painmd87 said:
I believe it's different on the AAMC side, where you have to have only 1 deposit by May 15. You can have 10 deposits down at 10 schools prior to that, but they're all refundable before May 15. (Right?? Someone confirm this for me please.)
Click to expand...

For the most part, you're right, except for the "all are refundable" part.

MOST MD schools have one refundable deposit. However, some schools (ex Wayne state) the deposit is not refundable, and some schools (ex the University of Californias) have no deposit at all. The MSAR lists them all though, and every single person applying MD should buy that book. It saves you tons of money with the info it provides.

No MD school does the progressive deposit thing that DO schools do. (that I know of...)
 
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