Badger414 Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Hey there everybody! So I have been debating and trying to arrange the schools I applied to in order of which I would most like to attend. My question is what to do if you get an interview and acceptance offer at one of the lower schools on your list before you hear back from one of the more preferential schools. From what I understand, it is typical to have 10 calendar days to accept the offer and put the 1000ish dollars down to reserve your spot. I don't want to take the offer when I could get into one of the better schools. But I also don't want to pass on the offer only to find out I haven't made it into any of the other schools. If I find myself in this situation, what is the best way to handle it? (Also, I am unsure how strong my application is. I feel like it is fairly average from what I have seen of class profiles from matriculating classes. So I have no idea how likely it would be that I can get into the upper tier schools.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gere7404 Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 what a problem to have! I guess I'd wait until towards the end of the time I'd have to accept an offer before accepting if I was holding out for my preferred school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger414 Posted July 21, 2015 Author Share Posted July 21, 2015 Well this is completely hypothetical! I am just trying to be ready for any situation I come across. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disciple3 Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Put the money down. You may end up losing 500-1000 dollars but if you wait another year to attend school you will lose an entire year of PA salary. In the end a PA-C is a PA-C its the work you put in 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UGoLong Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 This is a typical problem. I put down two deposits to hold a slot in the first school I was accepted to, which had its interviews on a rolling schedule and thus were quite a bit earlier than the other schools I had applied to. I considered it money well-spent because I knew a couple of months early that I was going somewhere and could plan accordingly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fakingpatience Posted July 30, 2015 Share Posted July 30, 2015 I put down a deposit on the first school that accepted me, and later backed out. It's worth the money even just for the piece of mind that you will be attending PA school somewhere. But don't have a hard and fast arrangement of your preference of PA schools yet, for me a lot changed during the interviews on which schools I preferred. There are some things you can't get the feeling for just reading their websites Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyNameWasUsed Posted July 30, 2015 Share Posted July 30, 2015 I would put down the deposit if you are sure you will attend the program even though it's not your first choice. Just cause you apply to a program doesnt mean you will want to attend it. Things change. You may end up disliking the program or city after the interview. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious_Ignoramus Posted August 4, 2015 Share Posted August 4, 2015 School is school; presumably, you're applying to accredited schools, they all have PANCE pass rates which are acceptable to you, and they are schools which you want to attend. Therefore, why not just take the first acceptance you get and withdraw all the others? What is most important to you in choosing between two schools? Here is my strategy: I am not a stellar applicant, I have average grades and decent HCE. There are certainly more compelling candidates out there. I am applying to schools at which I have a competitive application, of which most are over 1000 miles away on the east coast. One school is only half the distance away here in the Midwest. I will take the first acceptance I get (if I am that lucky!), and withdraw my application to all other schools except the closer school. If I am accepted at the closer school then I will give up my other deposit and go to the closer school. I've got a family to feed, I'm trying to keep my credit card as low as possible throughout this process and I don't want to burn up most of my paid leave at work on interviews. Best of luck to you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaurenMcGee Posted September 18, 2019 Share Posted September 18, 2019 I have really been struggling with this! thank you for starting this post!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PA-Candidate Posted October 18, 2019 Share Posted October 18, 2019 (edited) Just to add cause I'm in your exact situation. I had two acceptances come in 3 days apart yet I still have interviews coming up. Here is what I doing... 1 - Decide from what you have in your hand. If you only have 1 put the money down. 2 - Rank the other schools to see if they are higher or lower than the accepted school TO YOU (this includes distance, costs, location, and other attributes you want from PA school). 3 - If you know the school falls below the accepted school, you can either decline the interview or if already interviewed, decline any offered 4 - Continue going to the other schools as long as you have time for a decision I have a Jan acceptance...One of my interviews is mid Nov and I'm debating on if I should even go. Its a higher ranked choice, however I may not hear back until its too late and I've already started at the other school. So have a drop dead date on acceptances, offers and interviews. Good Luck! Edited October 18, 2019 by PA-Candidate 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctpa20 Posted October 18, 2019 Share Posted October 18, 2019 I had a number of acceptances and ended up paying the initial deposit at my top two. The second deposit isn't due for both until 4/1 and at that time I'll make a final decision. It gives me more time to get a feel for both programs and an additional $500 is worth it to me in the grand scheme of where I'll be the happiest for the next two years. I like having each school as a Plan B in case something develops over the next 5 months with either program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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