So your child has been deferred. It’s definitely disappointing, but again: if your child’s college list was designed properly, it will happen. Deferrals and denials are a natural part of this process. But what do you do now? Do you email your school counselor, the admissions office, the admissions rep for your region? What do you say? What else do the colleges need in order to move your application over to the regular admission round? Let’s go over the steps that you should take.
Step 1: Follow Directions
It seems like a no brainer, but if you’re stressed out by your deferrals or merely confused about how to proceed, it can be easy to overlook this basic maxim: “read the directions!”
Some colleges won’t ask you for anything. Others will ask you to check a box in your application portal, others will provide a document upload, or a text-box (like in the Common App for supplemental essays). It’s important that we do what each college asks of us, and no more. Some colleges are equity-focused and will not consider additional documentation because it advantages families who get expert advice or have extra resources to put into collecting and distributing that information. Other colleges don’t have the bandwidth to manage the extra documents. Either way, a college will not thank you if you give them additional work outside of what they asked for. So be respectful of the schools and their admissions officers: read their directions carefully and give them only what they ask for or allow.
Step 2: Mid-Year Report
The most likely documentation that a college will want is a mid-year update from your school. This will put your application on par (information-wise) with the other RD applicants. Instead of having your first quarter grades (or no grades at all for senior year!), the college will at least know how you did your first semester. For students who apply in mid-to-late January, or early February, with the RD round, those grades are part of their application as a matter of course. So getting those sent to your deferred school will be your first step.
High school counselors are aware of this requirement and will often send mid-year reports to all the colleges you apply to as a standard practice, so you may not need to do anything extra to get your school transcripts sent. Some high schools ask that students request transcripts via a website like parchment, or through their school platform (Naviance, Scior, etc.). If you had to do that, then please make sure you follow your school’s procedures to request the mid-year updated transcripts. And especially if you have transcripts from other sources: UC Scout, BYU Online, your local community college, or other online educational providers, and you had to get transcripts from them separately when you applied EA/ED, you may need to seek out updated transcripts from those institutions as well if you took a class during the fall semester of your senior year.
Step 3: Updated Test Scores
Did your student sit for the SAT or ACT in November or December? While those scores may have been too late for the early application rounds, you can request to add test scores to your child’s application, or update the scores you sent previously, at this juncture. You will likely need at least an unofficial PDF copy of the score, or you may need to order an official score report to be sent to the college. Make sure official scores arrive by the LOCI or Document Deadline for them to be considered. And again, referring to Step 1—if it’s not clear that you can add/update scores, ask for permission before you send any! You can email your regional admissions representative, the general admissions office email, or call the admissions office directly for clarification (your student should be doing the emailing and calling, remember!).
Step 4: The Letter of Continued Interest (or ECI)
Lastly, there’s the Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI). This is the part that’s most fraught because not every college makes it clear whether or not they accept LOCI at all.
But what is a LOCI?
This is a short, 0.5-1 page document (200-400 words) in which you express your continued interest in attending a college that has deferred you. This is an opportunity for you to update the college on your classes, extracurriculars, and any notable achievements or accomplishments since you applied. Again, this is about getting your application up-to-par with other RD applicants—those RD applicants had 3 extra months to do more things that could bolster their activity list, so this is where you get to describe what you’ve been doing the past 3 months.
It is also a chance for you to reaffirm your fit with the mission, values, and vibe of the college. Explain again, using your updated grades and experiences, why you would be an excellent addition to their college.
We’ll cover exactly how to write one of these in the next blog, but that’s the general idea.
So do you send one?
Well, that depends. If a college expressly says not to send anything, then obviously Step 1 applies. Others might say something to the effect of, “You do not have to do anything. Your application will automatically be put into our regular applicant pool.” In that case, likely all the college will want is Steps 2-3. Some colleges, like Michigan, will offer up a text box for the student to write their LOCI in. Some will allow a document upload for an updated resume and/or LOCI (again, only send what the college asks for). If the college does not expressly say they do not want additional documentation, then it’s likely that you can send a LOCI. If there is not a place for your child to upload the letter in their portal, then the best bet would be to send the letter to one of two people:
The person who signed the deferral letter from the college (unless it’s a general administrator, like the dean of admissions, this is likely the person who read your application)
If the person who signed the letter is the dean or some other administrator, you’d be better off sending the LOCI to your regional admissions representative. If you don’t know who that is, you can usually find out by searching on the college’s admissions webpage.
Summary
I can’t stress enough that Step 1 should overrule all other considerations: whenever you’re in doubt, follow the college’s directions. Ignoring their specific instructions can send all sorts of unintended signals, none of them flattering—desperation, haughtiness, a cloying zeal. Send what they ask of you, and no more. But when their directions are less clear, be modest in your communication. It never hurts to have your child reach out to ask if certain documentation is welcome; college admissions people understand that your child has likely never done this before, so they will happily provide guidance.
Next time, we’ll discuss how to write the LOCI!