biehniac wrote:
I went under review on 10/20 and still haven't heard anything. Do you really think they finish the application reviews that quickly? I assumed with the level of scrutiny of such a highly ranked school, it would take them awhile to get back to most applicants.
My take on the process is that your essays need to go through two or three readers before the final decision is made. Once the essays are read by the first reader, they have the option to send out an invitation to interview if they feel that your essays are strong enough. If they are unsure of your whole story, they pass your essays on to the second reader for further evaluation. The second reader then reads your essays and decides if you are worthy of an interview invite. If the reviews are mixed, they pass your essays to a third reader to "break the tie." The way I see it, there are four scenarios.
Case 1
- Reader 1 likes your essays and decides to invite you.
- Reader 2 likes your essays and approves of your essays.
- You are accepted/waitlisted depending on the strength of the other aspects of your profile.
Case 2
- Reader 1 likes your essays and decides to invite you.
- Reader 2 does not feel that you are a strong candidate based on your essays.
- Reader 3 evaluates your essays and breaks the tie.
- You are accepted/waitlisted if Reader 3 likes your essays. You are rejected if Reader 3 agrees with Reader 2.
Case 3
- Reader 1 does not feel that you are a strong candidate based on your essays.
- Reader 2 likes your essays and decides to invite you.
- Reader 3 evaluates your essays and breaks the tie.
- You are accepted/waitlisted if Reader 3 likes your essays. You are rejected if Reader 3 agrees with Reader 1.
Case 4
- Reader 1 does not feel that you are a strong candidate based on your essays.
- Reader 2 does not feel that you are a strong candidate based on your essays.
- You are rejected.
Therefore, I think that those who were invited within a week of their applications going under review are the ones whose essays compelled their respective Reader 1's to invite them. Those who are still waiting are the ones who fall under Case 3/4.