2017-2018 Harvard Medical School

[lahey18]

A friend of mine at Harvard said he heard from MS1s that it’s towards the end of this week. He told me not to quote him but oh well.

Don’t worry, we won’t tell

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[EnterMemberNameHere]

A friend of mine at Harvard said he heard from MS1s that it’s towards the end of this week. He told me not to quote him but oh well.

Don’t worry we definitely won’t quote you not quoting him.

Wait. ****.

 

[JH1120]

Today or Tomorrow??

 

[lol_new_user]

With all intentions of adding to the neuroticism, last year the day they released decisions, it was right about now. So since no one has heard, i'm banking on it being tomorrow.

 

[Danny L]

There's a second phase to the application process where a lot of people will be waitlisted and then accepted off the waitlist based on their written interest in Harvard and their background/experiences.

I thought Harvard had like zero waitlist movement

 

[JH1120]

I thought Harvard had like zero waitlist movement

They do have quite a movement thanks to financial issue. Most of accepted applicants have either a full ride or decent scholarship to other top schools.

 

[878956]

They do have quite a movement thanks to financial issue. Most of accepted applicants have either a full ride or decent scholarship to other top schools.

From an anecdotal standpoint, I have a friend that applied to Harvard, got in and choose to go elsewhere. For him, the medical school application cycle was a game, and getting the Harvard acceptance was a trophy he could hang on his wall. He choose to go to another top 10 that gave him a much better financial package.

Sadly, I don't think he is the only one that views acceptances as game that needs to be hunted.

 

[lol_new_user]

But i thought most all top 10s gave aid where needed. like I can't imagine JHU giving a full non-merit ride to someone, and then Harvard not doing so. Like i thought most if not all aid was need based.

 

[lol_new_user]

That's what they want you to think

Watch them completely troll us and send us emails at some odd time.

 

[878956]

But i thought most all top 10s gave aid where needed. like I can't imagine JHU giving a full non-merit ride to someone, and then Harvard not doing so. Like i thought most if not all aid was need based.

I think it depends on merit vs need-based in conjunction with how bad a school wants you.

For example, Upenn makes it know that they will match whatever offers given to a candidate by another similarly ranked school. While Harvard has been known to leave others in the dust by leaving them to foot the entire cost of education.

Hence the point I am making is that financial decisions are school-specific.

 

[scaredadvocate]

Penn, Yale and Columbia will give money to the students they want most.

Harvard, Hopkins and Stanford pretty much only give need-based aid. They even wrote an article about it basically shading Penn for using money to steal their students lol.

So yeah, I met a number of students who turned down HMS bc of money

 

[bae2017]

But i thought most all top 10s gave aid where needed. like I can't imagine JHU giving a full non-merit ride to someone, and then Harvard not doing so. Like i thought most if not all aid was need based.

This isn't true. Of the Top 10, Harvard, Stanford, Hopkins, UCSF, and Yale have strict no merit-based aid policies. Penn, Columbia, WashU, Duke, and Michigan all offer merit aid. So as you can see it's about half and half.

 

[878956]

Penn, Yale and Columbia will give money to the students they want most.

Harvard, Hopkins and Stanford pretty much only give need-based aid. They even wrote an article about it basically shading Penn for using money to steal their students lol.

So yeah, I met a number of students who turned down HMS bc of money

do you have a link to this article. Would be an entertaining read.

 

[premeddreamer07]

This isn't true. Of the Top 10, Harvard, Stanford, Hopkins, UCSF, and Yale have strict no merit-based aid policies. Penn, Columbia, WashU, Duke, and Michigan all offer merit aid. So as you can see it's about half and half.

Don't forget UCLA #GeffenMoney

 

[MrEe]

do you have a link to this article. Would be an entertaining read

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1713146?query=featured_home&

^ I'm having trouble getting this link to work now but google medical school merit aid NEJM and it'll come up

 

[freesiaparesthesia]

Not going to call out specific schools for it, but a lot seem to care solely about MCAT scores. When you see that a lot of schools have <3.5 lower quartile GPA but have a median >95% MCAT I think it says a lot about what they're looking for in applicants (a one day test vs sustained 4 years of academic performance). Not to say that applicants with lower GPAs by any means aren't fit for medicine or don't have compelling stories or other credentials that make them good candidates. Harvard could easily have a much higher median MCAT, but it seems like they truly value your background and what you'll contribute to the school outside of your numbers, or at least that's the impression I had from my interview.

Don't get me wrong--I loved my interview here and think HMS is an incredible place. But their median MCAT is 518, which is right in line with other Top 10/20 institutions, including Stanford and Penn. Going by MSAR data I don't think there is any school in the country that has 25th percentile GPA under 3.5 and >95th percentile MCAT median. This isn't an either/or thing--Harvard likes stats about as much as their peers (just not Vandy level) and they want amazing ECs.

This is pretty spot on. At least when I talk to admissions committee members, they seem to really care about crafting a friendly class with diverse experiences, who can all add to medicine in some way. There's a fair number of students who do not come from ivy league schools and do not have the archetypal premedical experience.

There's a second phase to the application process where a lot of people will be waitlisted and then accepted off the waitlist based on their written interest in Harvard and their background/experiences.

I have no doubt this is true, and it was my impression from interview day but, again, it is equally true of peer institutions, and, really, of all medical schools. If you want a school that doesn't value a class with diverse experiences you'll have to pack your sunscreen. HMS is amazing but not because of something so generic as "we diversity."

 

[kellbell1995]

Does anyone know how many applicants get waitlisted as well as how many are accepted from the waitlist?

 

[LA_Doc]

Every notification from this thread is stress inducing haha

 

[FlyingEagles123]

Waitlist movement is strong. They only waitlist about ~50 for Pathways and admit about 20 historically.

 

[lol_new_user]

Wow, they accept so few and waitlist few. but yes, in past years they take a high percentage of people off of the waitlist.

 

[d_i]

May the odds be ever in our favor tomorrow haha. Good luck everyone (if tomorrow is actually the day)!

 

[lol_new_user]

You never know the trolls can email us at midnight tonight.

 

[Hemie]

The HMS financial aid application portal is slated for release on Monday 3/5 (nlbsp.med.harvard.edu/FinAidApp). It might be unrelated, but my guess is that admissions decisions would come out around then too.

 

[hopefulkid6]

i'm hoping for tomorrow---I want the band aid off ASAP.

 

[extramilemed]

The HMS financial aid application portal is slated for release on Monday 3/5 (nlbsp.med.harvard.edu/FinAidApp). It might be unrelated, but my guess is that admissions decisions would come out around then too.

this is excellent detective work, you should get in just for that!

 

[zeni]

The HMS financial aid application portal is slated for release on Monday 3/5 (nlbsp.med.harvard.edu/FinAidApp). It might be unrelated, but my guess is that admissions decisions would come out around then too.

At the end of my HST interview, the administrator was telling everyone about the interview process and mentioned that they release decisions at the beginning of March, usually on a Thursday or Friday, and they send out decisions in batches to make they they don't send the wrong emails, so it takes about an hour or two to have all the emails sent out once they start

I'm also just so hoping decisions come out tomorrow, so maybe being too optimistic. I just don't like not knowing

 

[cloudcomputingunicorn]

Do HST and Pathways decisions come out the same day?

 

[Appellatelove]

Do HST and Pathways decisions come out the same day?

I believe so.

 

[oyyvey]

West coaster here.. Praying I don't have to *wake up* to a decision email.

 

[SCN1a]

West coaster here.. Praying I don't have to *wake up* to a decision email.

What’s better than sleeping and waking up to what you’ve been waiting for?

 

[LA_Doc]

What’s better than sleeping and waking up to what you’ve been waiting for?

I think it's kind of nice to be alert and really be able to process things. I woke up to a decision email once this cycle, and I was so sleepy/groggy that I didn't really have a reaction or process it first. Regardless of whether it's a rejection or acceptance, hoping to be able to brace myself and be prepared for that email showing up in my mailbox.

 

[oyyvey]

What’s better than sleeping and waking up to what you’ve been waiting for?

I think it's kind of nice to be alert and really be able to process things. I woke up to a decision email once this cycle, and I was so sleepy/groggy that I didn't really have a reaction or process it first. Regardless of whether it's a rejection or acceptance, hoping to be able to brace myself and be prepared for that email showing up in my mailbox.

Yup nailed it!! I can't just wake up to my doom. I need preparation.

 

[extramilemed]

You won't wake up to a decision email if you stay awake all night refreshing your inbox

Sums up this application cycle so elegantly

 

[mellie0]

The suspense is killing me.

 

[Jsmith1995]

Morning? Afternoon? Night?

 

[scaredadvocate]

Morning? Afternoon? Night?

Morning! Maybe 2-3 more hours

 

[Jsmith1995]

Morning! Maybe 2-3 more hours

Cool, how do you know?

 

[scaredadvocate]

Cool, how do you know?

Oh...just based on previous years lol we could definitely get surprised though

 

[Jsmith1995]

Oh...just based on previous years lol we could definitely get surprised though

Do you know if they do acceptances first and wl/r afterwards?

 

[lol_new_user]

Based on previous years it's hard to determine that because people don't post whether it's central time, west coast time, or eastern time. So you see some rejects and acceptances between 10 and 11 AM. But my hunch is that 10 AM ish EST are acceptances and everyone else after that.

 

[EnterMemberNameHere]

wild speculation abounds!

 

[mellie0]

At the end of my HST interview, the administrator was telling everyone about the interview process and mentioned that they release decisions at the beginning of March, usually on a Thursday or Friday, and they send out decisions in batches to make they they don't send the wrong emails, so it takes about an hour or two to have all the emails sent out once they start

I'm also just so hoping decisions come out tomorrow, so maybe being too optimistic. I just don't like not knowing

Batches as in, all acceptances, all WL, all rejections? Or do you think it could be half of the acceptances, then the other half, etc?

Pardon my neuroticism.

 

[lol_new_user]

Batches as in, all acceptances, all WL, all rejections? Or do you think it could be half of the acceptances, then the other half, etc?

According to last year it was acceptances first and then everyone else. But it's hard to tell without accurate time-stamps.

 

[XALT]

(Totally include myself in this)

 

[cloudcomputingunicorn]

Batches as in, all acceptances, all WL, all rejections? Or do you think it could be half of the acceptances, then the other half, etc?

Pardon my neuroticism.

Take a deep breath. All decisions are released the same day, whether that's today or sometime next week. Being glued to your computer, refreshing your email every few minutes isn't healthy anyway. Today is plenty busy so if I find an email from HMS in my inbox when I finish work, it'll be a pleasant surprise. Good luck!

 

[lol_new_user]

As an escape for my own anxiety and neuroticism, I hope and pray for everyone here. I think of all the med school threads, this one has been quite honestly, the most friendly. I appreciate this a lot, and I hope that no matter what medical school we go to, we are all proud of ourselves.

 

[lol_new_user]

Accepted to the MSTP just now!!!! omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CONGRATS!!!

 

[scaredadvocate]

Lol....anyone else?

 

[bae2017]

Decisions come out in batches by program. Should be MSTP, HST, then NP. Then waitlists, then rejections. Good luck over the next few hours, everyone!!

 

[EnterMemberNameHere]

Accepted to the MSTP just now!!!! omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*REFRESHING INTENSIFIES*