Being waitlisted at college that you applied to can be disappointing, but it does suggest that there is still a chance to get in. In addition, a student applicant being placed on a school’s waitlist doesn’t have any guarantees that he or she will get into that school, since it is difficult to predict the number of students who get off a school’s waitlist in any given year.
Chances of getting off a college or university waitlist:
According to an annual survey conducted by US News and World Report on the admission class of Fall 2015, the average number of students accepted off a school’s waitlist was 20%. Only 14 ranked National Universities reported that they did not accept anyone off their waitlist for the school year 2015-2016, which they included Stanford University, University of Delaware, Lehigh University, and Suffolk University. This survey also revealed that out of the 132 ranked National Universities that submitted waitlist information to U.S. News reported that they do have a waitlist policy, while 161 indicated that they do not.
National Universities Where Wait-Listed Applicants Get In
Note: This article contains information about the annual survey conducted by US News and World Report about college waitlists.
What you should do if you are waitlisted:
Many experts recommend that students should do the following if they have been waitlisted at their school:
1) Accept the spot on a Waitlist- Students who have been notified online or by mail from their school that they are on the waitlist, usually have the option to accept or reject being placed on their school’s waitlist. If a student accepts being placed on a school’s waitlist, the student must pay a deposit to be added to that school’s waitlist. In addition, paying a deposit does not guarantee that you will get off the waitlist for that school. However, I recommend that before you pay a deposit to be placed on a school’s waitlist that you check that school’s specific waitlist policy and procedures. I also recommend that before you pay the deposit for a school’s waitlist that you check into the number of students who were admitted off the waitlist for that school last year or in previous years.
2) Express Continued Interest and provide updates to Waitlisted school- You should write a Letter of Continued Interest to a school that you have been placed on a waitlist. In addition, you should focus on things that the college did not see in your profile when you first applied. Do you have any new activities to share? Or perhaps new accomplishments coming from your existing activities? It is also important that you do not repeat any information already mentioned from your waitlisted college’s application and essays that you submitted before. Keep in mind that you should not wait a week before your waitlist deadline to submit your waitlist letters, since this could seem that you are not interested in their waitlist offer. However, you should also check a school’s waitlist policy before you start writing your Letter of Continued Interest, since some schools will not allow you to submit additional materials after you have submitted your application such as the University of Washington. Some schools also have their own waitlist essay prompts in which they can be accessed through the student applicant portal after they have applied and/ or paid a deposit for a place on their school’s waitlist such as UC Berkeley, UCLA, or UC Davis.
3) Submit SIR and Deposit to Another School – You should submit your Statement of Intent to Register and deposit to another school before May 1st, if you have been placed on a waitlist. In addition, this will ensure that you have a school to attend in the Fall, if you do not get off the waitlist.
If you are given a spot off the waitlist, you can cancel your Statement of Intent to Register (SIR) and deposit at that other school. Once you have canceled your SIR and deposit at your previously chosen school, you can enroll in your new school after you have accepted that waitlisted school’s offer and paid the deposit to register for the Fall.
4) Maintaining grades- Make sure to maintain your course grades during this time, since college admission officers like to see you improve your grades.
5) Patience- You should wait to hear back from your waitlisted schools, since the time it takes for you to hear back can range from May to July. In addition, the news about your waitlist status can vary from college to college.
What you should not do if you are waitlisted:
- Do not have your parents contact the admissions office and pretend to be you or contact them on your behalf.
- Do not call the admission office to check-in when you will get off the waitlist or visit them to ask why you were waitlisted. Pestering an admissions office typically won’t help and can potentially even hurt your chances.
- Do not tell them of things that you have already reported in your college application and essays to them.
- Do not sit on an offer to remain on the waitlist. If you want to be placed on the waitlist, then you should reply back right away.
- Do not neglect putting in enough time or effort into your Letter of Continued Interest.
