What should I do

Applying to College
1

Two weeks ago I was admitted to a relatively selective university. I noted on my app that I had been conducting research and co-authored a paper that was submitted and being reviewed for publication. Well it turns out we had to put a hold on the paper recently because of some undiscovered issues with the data.

I never submitted anything in support of my research (supplement, recommendation), although I suppose I could provide that information on demand. Surely I was ‘trustworthy’ enough that they deemed me good enough for admission, so I guess my real questions are:

  1. What are the chances that colleges might call and check up on this, or go back and re-verify ECs post-admission?
  2. Should I proactively contact them and inform them of this, or is it way too minor/probably just asking for trouble.
2

I would proactively contact them, and I’m 99% sure it won’t affect your admission status. It’s a matter beyond your control, and your app isn’t deliberately misleading or exaggerating.

3

I’m not sure what the issue is. You didn’t report anything untrue at the time, right? A submission is not a guarantee of publication. What is there to check on? And if something is checked, what is untrue to discover? Anything or no?

4

You’re being paranoid. There’s nothing to worry about. They want you and your four years of tuition payments.

5

Thanks for responses.

Technically you guys are right I didn’t say anything untrue. Perhaps my question could’ve been phrased as, how likely is it that they re-verify my application post-admission and look into something like this? If chances are high, I’d rather proactively contact them and resolve it on my terms. If not, then I would probably just drop it and not go through the trouble.

Though perhaps I am just being paranoid, maybe I just need to relax >_>

6

Congratulations on you admission. I think you need to relax and move on.

7

I highly highly doubt the admissions office retroactively checks admitted students’ applications for accuracy. They do enough of their due diligence before admitting you so why would they waste their time going back through?

8

You’re fine. They should know (especially if this is a research university) that submission of a research paper is just the first step in the publication process. Papers are often rejected, sent back for rewrites, or, as happened in your case, have issues found by the reviewer.