Should I reapply to my IS?

[shee-p]

Re-posted from WAMC thread, because I want more opinions!

I'm not sure if this goes here, but I need some serious advice and honesty. Would I be stupid to turn down an acceptance from an OOS school if I were to get called off a waitlist in hopes of getting into my in-state next cycle?

The reason I want to get into my in-state is due to cost and location. OOS tuition scares me to no end, and it's giving me second thoughts as to whether I am ready to take on an insane level of debt to follow my dream. A&M is only an hour away from home. My mother frequently gets sick and my sister has severe depression, so I would like to be as close as possible to them in case anything were to happen. I know there is no guarantee that I would get into my in-state. I honestly only applied to OOS schools, because I felt pressured by friends for not having a 'back-up." I feel very guilty being on these waitlists knowing that other people want it more than I do.

I won't be able to do an application review with A&M until May 10th, but I believe my interview is what killed my chances. It is my understanding that the bottom 20% of the interviewed pool gets rejected while all others are either accepted or waitlisted, but I could be wrong. I emailed the admission's office for clarity, so once I hear back from them I'll provide an update. I did very bad in my interview, but I feel like I could do better if I were to have a second chance. What do y'all think I should do? What would you do if you were me? Thank you for your time! Here are my stats if needed:

22 years old, female, Texas resident, first time applicant, first-generation, Hispanic

Applied: Texas A&M, North Carolina, Oregon, Wisconsin, UC Davis, Virginia, Oklahoma
Interview invites: A&M
Waitlisted: Oklahoma, Wisconsin (#92)
Rejected: UC-Davis, Virginia (interview waitlisted), Oregon, NCSU, A&M (post-interview)

Cumulative GPA: 3.67
Last 45 GPA: 3.87
Science GPA: 3.76 (VMCAS); 3.71 (TMDSAS)

GRE (Q/V/W): 156Q 156V 4.0A

Degree: B.S. in Animal Science at TAMU

Veterinary Experience
Veterinary assistant at small animal/exotic clinic (~300 at the time of app, but I kept working in case I didn’t get in. I have approx. 1,100 hours as of now. I will have around ~ 1,650 hours by the app deadline)
Shadowing at small animal emergency clinic (106 hours)
Shadowing at equine hospital (19 hours)

Animal Experience
Internship at wildlife rehabilitation center (119 hours)
Pet ownership (100 max hours allowed by A&M)
*** I've "dog-sat" my brother's dog in college for a summer while he was away at boot camp. I didn't include it in my original application, because I thought it didn't count since my brother is family. Should I include this if I decide to reapply?***

Extracurriculars
Pre-Vet Society throughout college
Band throughout college

Non-Animal Employment
5 semesters as a resident advisor during undergrad

Honors/Awards
11 academic scholarships
Distinguished Member in Pre-Vet Society
2 Reslife awards
Dean’s Honor Roll
Magna Cum Laude - college
Summa Cum Laude - high school
Over 15 awards from band throughout high school

Community Service
Football and softball concession stands (32 hours)
Big Event (8 hours)
Voices for Children (6 hours)
TAMU Vet School Open House Volunteer (7 hours)

Letters of Recommendation
Veterinarian from work
2 supervisors from working in reslife

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[WildZoo]

If it were me, I would take the acceptance that I got (if you end up getting pulled off the waitlist). I say this because...it is what I did. I was rejected by my IS and only accepted to an OOS school, so that is where I went. There are no guarantees and the applicant pool changes every year. If you get in this cycle you may never get in again. So that is a huge risk.

Another option is to accept the seat if you are offered one off the waitlist if you have to before you're able to do the file review with TAMU. At least you'll be making a more informed decision based on what they tell you in the file review.

If you absolutely can't stomach the idea of the debt, then sure, withdraw your app from the OOS schools and reapply to your IS. In that case it would make no sense to reapply anywhere that cost of attendance would be similar to or higher than Oklahoma or Wisconsin, so you could tailor your application list a bit more that way for next cycle, or even decide only to apply to TAMU. Start working on improving the things you can now. The fact that your vet hours are up over 1000 now should help. I don't know how much TAMU cares about varied experience, but you could look into bumping up your hours in other areas.