Letters of Intent/Update Letters
After submitting your supplemental applications, it is normal to experience a lull before you receive your first interview offer. Most applicants find this waiting period unsettling, especially if they are participating in a rolling admissions process and had to hold themselves to early timelines for submitting their application materials. Rest assured that your early application timing is putting you in the best possible position for the current application cycle. Early applicants can have their applications reviewed many times over during the application season, and each review gives you an opportunity for an interview.
For instance, among medical school applicants who submit their common application in June and complete the last of their supplemental applications by the end of July, it is completely normal to receive a handful of rejections at first and to receive your first interview offer in November or December. If, by the end of January, you still don't have an interview offer, it is time to start planning ahead for the next application cycle (if this happens to you, hang in there and schedule an individual advising appointment to talk strategy) . . . but do your best to find your peace with the wait until then.
Many applicants ask us about sending additional correspondence to schools during the application season. Read on for guidance on this topic:
Thanks to Kate Fukawa-Connell, Pre-Health Advisor at Princeton University, for her contributions to this article!