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How many schools should a applicant apply to?


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I think 12 to 15 is a good range if you’re looking to apply broadly. Especially if programs are selected thoughtfully. In certain cases with a less competitive application, more programs may be warranted (very low GPAs, little to no PCE, etc.). 

Depending on your stats, 5 to 10 may be fine. I applied to 6 personally.

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I applied to five after narrowing it down from about a dozen I looked into seriously.  Mind you, this was in 2009, so there were only about half as many programs then.  I interviewed 5/5, 1 accept, 2 waitlists, and 2 rejects, but the program I was outright accepted to, Pacific, was hands down the best fit for my personality.  Each of those five interviews cost money--travel, time, rental car, hotel.  I learned from each interview, what I liked and what I did not, how responses helped and did not.  Frankly, it's based on my experiences that I strongly recommend mock interviewing until you CAN'T screw up.

I think 10 is too many and most likely pointless.  Some people will get in anywhere they apply, some will get in nowhere ever, and there are those of us who will get in based on school/applicant match and/or whether you had a good interview.  If your GPA is 2.6, you should apply to ZERO PA schools until you fix that, and no, applying to more schools doesn't really raise your absolute chance of getting in, even if it does raise your relative chance of matriculation.

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