Order of Admits

Question

Reading Kry's account of DAK made me think a little about my decision process and had me wondering - does the order that you get admitted into schools have a discernible effect on your chance of accepting the offer?

I can't help but notice the trend that many of us GMATclubbers (including myself) have gone with the first school they were admitted to. Is this because people typically apply to their dream schools in Round 1 and thus when they get in they go?

I always thought that Kellogg's rolling admit concept was genius - because many of the admits who get into Kellogg early get a full month + of Kellogg alone time before even the possibility of getting accepted to other schools, thus Kellogg can close an admit potentially before they even hear back from comparable schools.

Does admit order really have an effect? Or are is it fairly minor in the scheme of things, and the trend is just randomness trying to be explained?

dabots · Answer

i havent noticed much of a correlation. im assuming you ignore those who had only 1 admit, or were admitted to their top choice/highest ranked school first.

CerealsMBA · Answer

Well, I think there is such thing as "the very first school you get into" effect... When I got into the GSB, I did not care anymore about Kellogg and its ding... Kellogg was certainly a school I wanted to get into at the same level as the GSB during the application process, but the GSB outranked it when I got in...

So even if I did not get into Kellogg, I am pretty sure that I would have still taken the spot at the GSB... Had I gotten into Kellogg before the GSB deadline, the story would probably have been different...

kryzak · Answer

the "first admit" syndrome definitely has its power. I was very fond of Anderson when I got their admit first, even if it was slightly lower on my choices.

But with that said, i think the bigger issue is the deposit deadline dates. A lot of applicants who need to submit a deposit before they get a chance go to to the admit weekend of another school just give up the other school. I know that many students went to DAK II and will matriculate there because Days at Haas 2 is ONE day after the April 30th deposit deadline. They liked Kellogg enough that they didn't want to "complicate their decisions" more with going to DAH. I personally would never do that, but many people out there would based on what I've seen.

ncp · Answer

I think more than the first admit, its also about how far apart your admits are spread. Say, you get into 2 comparable schools in the same round, it will be a tougher choice than say when you get into 1 school in R1 and the other in R2. Obviously, the earlier you get in, the more opportunities for you to acculturate to that specific school through local happy hours, admitted student receptions, admit weekends etc.

Order of Admits

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards