April 15 deadline applicable for international students ?

[vsgajd]

Hi guys, 

I had a school get back to me saying that they will look at the international student pool only after their domestic quota is full, and that I should expect interview calls only in April. Is this the norm with most PhD programs ? Does the April 15 deadline apply to international student ? I had seen domestic students get acceptances in March and had completely given up hope.  Does international admissions follow the same timeline as domestic ? Or do I still have some hope left ? 

 

[TakeruK]

Hello!

Unfortunately, every place does things completely differently (e.g. my PhD school considered domestic and international students together), it's hard for anyone here to know the answer to your specific question. 

In regards to your April 15 question though, if the school/program agrees to follow the April 15 convention (they don't have to), then if they make an offer to an international student before April 15, then they have to give the international student at least until April 15 to decide. The April 15 convention does not distinguish between domestic and international students.

However, in your case, it may be the case that the school won't know how many domestic students will be taking spots until April 15 (or close to that) since if the school follows the April 15 convention, they need to give those students until April 15 to decide. 

Finally, just to be clear, the April 15 deadline is not the deadline for the school to tell you their decision. Instead, it's the deadline for an accepted student to tell the school whether they will attend or not.