Is my optimism reasonable?

[Elylbrooke]

Hey guys!

I applied to 13 schools this cycle, got 4 interviews that resulted in 1 rejection (my IS, UF) and 3 waitlists (UMN, Kansas, and Auburn). My #1 choice has always been UMN and luckily, they are kind enough to tell us our waitlist rankings. I am currently #17 OOS. I looked back at the threads for UMN c/o 2027 and c/o 2026 and it seems like they frequently move far past that number once the national acceptance deadline hits. It looks like in 2027 they reached into the 40s and in 2026 the waitlist moved 77 spaces by the time classes started.

Is it unreasonable for me to be relatively confident that the list will move up at least 17 spaces this year? I'm currently in a financial situation where I will need to sell my home and move in the next 2-3 months regardless of acceptance status but the uncertainty is making it very difficult to plan and is wearing on my mental health. I think I'm just trying to determine if I'm being overly hopeful or if I'm being rational when (mostly) expecting to be pulled from the waitlist (or any waitlist at all!) in April.

* I know every year is different so I totally understand that nothing is promised at this point!

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[JaynaAli]

I have no affiliation with Minnesota, but think it’s probably likely that you’ll get pulled off the waitlist. However, I wouldn’t make drastic life changes like putting your home for sale and moving until the acceptance is in hand. There have been outlier years where waitlists hardly move or schools over accept (I think that happened at Illinois a few years back maybe?). So yes, I think it’s fine to be hopeful but also don’t count your chicken until they hatch.

 

[supershorty]

I have no affiliation with Minnesota, but think it’s probably likely that you’ll get pulled off the waitlist. However, I wouldn’t make drastic life changes like putting your home for sale and moving until the acceptance is in hand. There have been outlier years where waitlists hardly move or schools over accept (I think that happened at Illinois a few years back maybe?). So yes, I think it’s fine to be hopeful but also don’t count your chicken until they hatch.

I do have affiliation with Minnesota and second this advice.

 

[Elylbrooke]

Thank you both so much!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I'm currently in a financial situation where I will need to sell my home and move in the next 2-3 months regardless of acceptance status

Yikes... how sudden was this? Any contingencies?

 

[Elylbrooke]

Yikes... how sudden was this? Any contingencies?

Not really sudden and generally unrelated to my vet school application, although that expense hasn’t helped lol. I’ve owned the house for almost 3 years but property taxes and other costs of living have spiked in the meantime while my tech pay has stayed the same. Ive also had to make many unplanned but necessary renovations to my home to keep it livable and over time my debt to income has gotten so out of whack that I just put most expenses on credit cards. Overall it’s just coming to a head as my credit cards are now all maxed out and I need to get out of my current situation. I have equity in the home so I plan on resetting and moving to a different area/state with overall lower cost of living and renting a cheaper place for a while.