There are tips to help with waitlists below. If you don’t need the background on the “how” and “why” of waitlists, scroll down to the section titled “So you (or your child) have been waitlisted. What now?”

WAITLISTS IN THE PANDEMIC

The pandemic has upended so many parts of life. I feel like I’m not the first person to write that sentence, nor will I be the last. The college admissions process is just another casualty of COVID-19 and the uncertainty that comes with it. Prior to 2020, university admissions offices relied on a plethora of metrics to help them build out their freshmen classes and maintain enrollments so that the rest of the university could function and fund itself. In 2020-21, however, many students opted not to enroll in colleges due to distance learning policies. Afterall, who wants to spend $10–80,000 to go to school from home?

The decline in enrollments hurt colleges financially. And worse for admissions offices, it hurt college metrics. The boards that run these schools have assessed the efficacy of their admissions offices based on two metrics: admissions rates and yields. You’ve probably heard of admissions rates: those are the often teeny-tiny percentages that get smaller every year, as schools accept ever-narrowing proportions of their applicants in order to seem more selective (and therefore more “elite”).

But you may not have heard of yields. Yields go hand-in-hand with acceptance rate: it’s the percentage of accepted students who actually enroll in your school. If your college accepts 10,000 students, but only 1,200 of those 10,000 students actually enrolled, then your yield is 12%. If you only needed 1,200 students, then great! If you need 3,000 students to fill your freshman class, then your admissions office has to admit more students, which will lower your overall acceptance rate.

Higher yields allow acceptance rates to go lower, as colleges can admit just-enough students to fill their seats, and no more. But the pandemic changed a lot of that. As different states and universities enacted shelter-in-place and distance learning policies, families reevaluated whether college was worth the cost that year. But admissions offices still relied on their acceptance rates and yields to gauge their performance. And that’s where waitlists come in.

WAITLISTS SHIELD COLLEGES FROM UNCERTAINTY

Metrics have shown that students accepted off waitlists yield at a higher rate in general than the regular applicant pool. This allows schools to “accept” fewer students and still fill their freshman class. In this way, colleges keep their lowest-possible admissions rate and their highest-possible yield rate while still filling their classes. Remember: the admissions office is often judged by these metrics.

The other reality is that colleges often ask for additional materials to help them pick between prospective waitlisted students. If students who were waitlisted don’t confirm their spot on the waitlist and submit the additional paperwork, then, from the college’s perspective, they weren’t worth admitting to the college in the first place. Why admit a student who won’t enroll? Colleges can winnow their applicant numbers by putting students on a waitlist.

Last year, many highly selective schools actually overenrolled their classes, as students were choosing the “best” schools with high brand awareness (think Ivy, Stanford, etc.). Some did this by mistake and accepted too many students. As schools have trouble predicting their yields, either under or overenrolling, they increasingly will use waitlists to protect themselves.

2023 AND WAITLISTS

These are the circumstances in which we find ourselves this year. Many many schools have waitlisted many more students than anyone could have anticipated due to unpredictable yields, overenrollment last year, and to shield their acceptance rates.

SO YOU (OR YOUR STUDENT) HAVE BEEN WAITLISTED. WHAT NOW?

The first thing I would say is: pick a school you did receive an acceptance for where your student thinks they will be happy and do well. Get excited about going to that school: throw a school-color party, get a hoodie or two, become a “<School Name> Mom” or “Dad” with your favorite mug or license plate frame. But don’t put down your deposit just yet. You have until April 30, afterall. Then do the following:

1. Slow Down — For many schools, the waitlist is not a first-come, first-serve proposition. Take care of each step of the waitlist process just like you did for your initial applications.

2. Contact the School Admissions Office — Have your student (not the parent! I REPEAT: NOT THE PARENT) either e-mail or—even better—call the admissions office. Ask about how they rank their waitlist (it’s not usually first-come, first-serve). Ask if there’s anything you can do to improve your chances of getting off the waitlist. This demonstrates your interest in going to that school. It also arms you with information that will help you submit additional documentation. Don’t worry, you’re not bothering them. Schools want to hear from you!

3. Prepare Whatever Documents The School Wants — Some schools will just put students on the waitlist, no questions asked. Most schools, however, want more information. Submit only the documents they ask for, and nothing else! They may ask for:

   • Updated Transcripts — ask your school to send an update.

   • A “Why Us?” Essay — treat this like any other college essay. Edit, revise, and polish! And be specific about the school, programs, opportunities, or professors! Whatever attracts you to the school. Do Not talk about the reputation, or the city the school is in. Do Not write a generic essay and copy-paste different school names in.

   • A “Letter of Continued Interest” — Thank the admissions office for reviewing your application. Reiterate your interest in their school. Talk about any new awards, accolades, or accomplishments; improved grades; new experiences. Reiterate again your interest in their campus and why you want to go there (a mini “why us?” essay). Thank them again.

   • Additional Recommendations

4. Confirm Enrollment in the School You Initially Chose and Pay the Deposit — Being waitlisted sometimes sucks, but losing your confirmed spot at another school because you forgot to pay the deposit sucks worse. You can still disenroll and go somewhere else if you get in off the waitlist, but you will lose the deposit (usually around $100).

5. Turn Down Enrollment at the Other Schools That Accepted You — This is a courtesy to those schools. They want to get a jump on their own waitlists. Do them a favor and decline enrollment once you’ve made a decision on the schools you got accepted to.

Best of luck in the last leg of your admissions journey!

Anxious about getting off the waitlist? Need advice about writing Letters of Continued Interest? Book a free consultation today! We’ll go over your application profile, look at the essays you wrote for your application, and plan your waitlist essays to position you for your best shot at getting in.