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Here's my question though: Why did you even apply to Ottawa this year?

 

a guess - probably because if he didn't get Toronto he would have Ottawa? It is the fact he still has a shot at TO that is bugging him?

 

I mean don't get me wrong - it is a crazy type of nuts but there you go!

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Toronto was my #1 from day 1. For next year, I'm going to take prereqs and apply OOP and States in addition to Toronto. It was a tough decision to make.

 

Next year you don't get an interview if you don't get off the wait list. It seems like a lot of uncertainty and a big gamble on a medical career that not many people would do. Hope you've really thought this through.

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a guess - probably because if he didn't get Toronto he would have Ottawa? It is the fact he still has a shot at TO that is bugging him?

 

I mean don't get me wrong - it is a crazy type of nuts but there you go!

 

I guess you're right... that's probably the rationale on this one. I still strongly disagree with it though. I think it's WAY beyond being crazy.

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This system causes people to have to decide if they want to gamble. A normal transparent system would allow applicants to stay on waitlists after accepting an offer or at least let people know their position on the waitlist.

 

I don't like that idea, since it would slow down the process tremendously. If we want them to actually be transparent, they should tell us where we are on the list.

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I guess you're right... that's probably the rationale on this one. I still strongly disagree with it though. I think it's WAY beyond being crazy.

 

I applied to Ottawa in case I decided to go... keeping options open has always been a good idea for me. You might be crazy if YOU did this, but beware of assigning such epithets to people who might have different goals and priorities than you. ;)

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I remember a few years back someone on the forum declined an offer (UofT?) to stay in Western's good waitlist, and eventually got off the waitlist. But you are even more gutsy than that person...at least that person had a really good chance of getting off the good waitlist, whereas UofT's waitlist is unpredictable...Good luck to you!

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I remember a few years back someone on the forum declined an offer (UofT?) to stay in Western's good waitlist, and eventually got off the waitlist. But you are even more gutsy than that person...at least that person had a really good chance of getting off the good waitlist, whereas UofT's waitlist is unpredictable...Good luck to you!

 

that was the high waitlist at western if I recall (?) - which is almost the same thing as getting an invite :)

 

This is bold, very bold.

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A very naive question: so I can't stay on Toronto's waitlist after I accept offer from another Ontario med school?

 

I know this is definitely not the case in Quebec.

 

You're correct. Once an offer is accepted in SAM you are removed from any other Ontario school's waitlist. Kind of an unfortunate system, really.

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You're correct. Once an offer is accepted in SAM you are removed from any other Ontario school's waitlist. Kind of an unfortunate system, really.

 

There are benefits to such a system though. It helps to shorten waitlists and allow people to finalize their plans earlier.

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You're correct. Once an offer is accepted in SAM you are removed from any other Ontario school's waitlist. Kind of an unfortunate system, really.

 

It sucks I just found out now. I can't believe this is how the system works though!

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There are benefits to such a system though. It helps to shorten waitlists and allow people to finalize their plans earlier.

 

Sure it shortens waitlists but I don't see how that's a benefit. The prime benefit is getting things finalized sooner, which is arguably good for applicants but definitely better for admissions staff. I think pretty much all applicants would rather be able to stay on a waitlist. The same number of students will matriculate regardless, it would just be more complicated and would take longer for admissions staff.

 

I've seen/heard it discussed before, I think, but OMSAS should probably move to a ROL system like CaRMS does. There'd still be movement due to people accepting OOP but it'd probably lead to way more people getting matched to their top choice.

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I applied to Ottawa in case I decided to go... keeping options open has always been a good idea for me. You might be crazy if YOU did this, but beware of assigning such epithets to people who might have different goals and priorities than you. ;)

 

Perhaps, but I stand by what I said. It's crazy because there's no guarantee that UofT will give you an offer from their waitlist. Even if they do, it might be MAM regardless that you seem to want St. George. Furthermore, you might never get another acceptance ever again.

 

I urge you to consider this before declining your offer from uOttawa.

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Sure it shortens waitlists but I don't see how that's a benefit. The prime benefit is getting things finalized sooner, which is arguably good for applicants but definitely better for admissions staff. I think pretty much all applicants would rather be able to stay on a waitlist. The same number of students will matriculate regardless, it would just be more complicated and would take longer for admissions staff.

 

I've seen/heard it discussed before, I think, but OMSAS should probably move to a ROL system like CaRMS does. There'd still be movement due to people accepting OOP but it'd probably lead to way more people getting matched to their top choice.

 

The CaRMS system would be good but it would be tough for applicants who make their decisions based on financial aid packages/bursaries/scholarships that are given out by schools alongside their offers.

 

Overall I definitely agree with you--on a Queen's subforum thread, I argued that the current system where applicants are forced to take themselves off of waitlists makes no sense.

 

I just think that it's important for any new system to be considerate of scholarship/bursary/financial aid applicants as well.

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Perhaps, but I stand by what I said. It's crazy because there's no guarantee that UofT will give you an offer from their waitlist. Even if they do, it might be MAM regardless that you seem to want St. George. Furthermore, you might never get another acceptance ever again.

 

I urge you to consider this before declining your offer from uOttawa.

 

Yeah I know a guy that this happened to. He got accepted at Mac but then declined thinking he would travel for a year and then reapply. He never got another invitation after that and went to do a PhD instead. This med admission stuff in Canada is not to be taken lightly, and every year it seems to get more and more competitive. There's also the added risk of potentially having to do the 2015 MCAT if you don't get in next year.

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Yeah I know a guy that this happened to. He got accepted at Mac but then declined thinking he would travel for a year and then reapply. He never got another invitation after that and went to do a PhD instead.

 

 

I know 2 people who turned down offers last year because they wanted to go to UofT and they both ended up getting in off of UofT's waitlist. So for some it works out, and for others it doesn't. If someone really doesn't want to go to a certain school or live in a certain city, I think we should respect their opinions.

 

Btw, wonka_vision, I like your pic :)

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I've seen/heard it discussed before, I think, but OMSAS should probably move to a ROL system like CaRMS does. There'd still be movement due to people accepting OOP but it'd probably lead to way more people getting matched to their top choice.

 

This is currently being discussed. I'm not sure how far along things have come (the idea was proposed to us last semester) but there are people who are assessing whether it is practical and reasonable to implement a CaRMS style selection process.

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I know 2 people who turned down offers last year because they wanted to go to UofT and they both ended up getting in off of UofT's waitlist. So for some it works out, and for others it doesn't. If someone really doesn't want to go to a certain school or live in a certain city, I think we should respect their opinions.

 

Btw, wonka_vision, I like your pic :)

 

Oh for sure. I'm just saying that anything can happen, and it's important to be mindful of the worst possible scenario (which I have observed).

 

Thanks :0

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