peachjelly

I was waitlisted at Cornell. I have no "connections" (ie legacy) in any way. I'm hoping this is not a case of "courtesy waitlisting", because I dearly hope to go to Cornell. To which kinds of people does "courtesy waitlisting" apply to?

tiff90

When I began the application process, I admit I did not research/visit enough, and made some rookie mistakes. I didn't start looking soon enough, should have picked a better list of schools etc;
I fell in love with 2 reaches and 2 matches, and though I had a good chance, talking w/my gc, internet etc;/ I applied to a few schools as safties/matches just in case, without much interest. 4/1 rolls around, I got rejected form my top 6. I was upset and angry, because I got into 4 other schools. I know I made mistakes in this process, but I'm just looking ahead.
I started to look more at other schools I applied to, and fell in love with Tulane. I thought I would get in easily with a nice merit scholarship, but got waitlisted(record apps this year-stopped accepting). I didn't interview or visit, but a friends brother goes there so I pretty much know everything about the school.
Anyways, I got into Case but my heart is set Tulane now. I really want to get off the waitlist, but need a gaurentee of good aid(people w/similiar stats got honors and 17,000-24,000 scholarships) but they applied early.
Basically, any advice how to salvage the situation? Is emailing updated achievments and calling enough? I don't want to be too pushy

trackie10x

definitely call them... tulane is looking for the top students to boost its rankings, and if you're one, i'm sure you can get off the waitlist easily

tiff90

Thanks. I've emailed them my activities since the app and called. However, my conselot hasn't returned my emails or calls yet, but will be away until monday I am a bit worried my financial aid needs may be a hindrance...

trackie10x

i visited BC yesterday, and i decided i'm going to go to tulane.


unless i get that lucky phone call from washu/penn/brown, it's tulane 2012 for me!

spazattack

from what i've heard, next year's admissions is going to be EVEN tougher.

trackie10x

yeah everyone says the number of kids graduating will peak this year or next... so that's really hard. at least it won't be the year of the waitlist, like this year.

adso

Is it true for other Universities too like Upenn and Duke? Cause a friend who had steller stats was waitlised at each of them.

trackie10x

well i mean... there's waitlists everywhere. how they're used is a little different for each school, but basically, at least i feel, you need to assume you're not going to get in if you're on a waitlist. think of how many kids are on the waitlist (for upenn, it's 880) and then how many they'll actually need. it's a tiny number.

trackie10x

i remember counting down to march 31st... now it's a countdown to may 1st.

metaldragon2400

It doesn't come out May 1st. It usually comes out around May 15th because they need to see how many people enroll on May 1st.

trackie10x

yeah i was just saying may 1st because really anytime after that you could get notice

firebird

Waitlisted at Harvard and Stanford, and rejected at Yale, my top choice... a bit heartbroken.

I'm doing a bunch of stuff for Harvard, but Stanford says specifically NOT to send anything in. I'm not sure whether or not I should sent in a letter, anyway. There's a place on their waitlist website where you can add updates, and I've added recent achievements [but I had to cut down a bunch], and there's a 600 character limit. (600 characters with spaces is NOTHING!!).

Should I send them a short one page letter, anyway?

trackie10x

i think if they said don't send anything, they mean it. i wouldn't want to tick them off, especially if it's just the usual "here's my new stuff" letter. on the other hand, if you go to the admissions office and talk in person, i'm all for it!

redribbon08

This thread has really been a comfort in the last couple of weeks- thanks!

But now that I have sent a letter of interest (plus updates on an award, new rec, transcript) and follow-up (I'll do that Monday morning)... how do I keep calling? Do I call the admissions officer or just talk to the person in the office?

And how will tardiness hurt me now? (I sent the update two weeks ago, but didn't follow up.) Have I already screwed myself over in THIS process?

I discovered CC pretty late in the game (after being waitlisted). While it's been helpful, it's also opened my eyes to the competition. I had read the articles about the process and the competition, but never really understood that there was more to applying than just the application. I feel incredibly niave... We don't have kids who are waitlisted and try to get off. I had never heard about that concept until CC!