call from admissions office?

'rentof2 · 02-21-2008, 01:56 AM

A woman on another board posted today that her daughter got a call from Harvard's admissions office telling her she was accepted, and that they really wanted her to come, loved her application, etc. Does something sound off about that? Why would they call, and especially why would they call before they've even finished their decision making? Could this be a phone version of a "likely letter" or something like that?

IndigoRock13 · 02-21-2008, 08:39 AM

Hello. I got such a call the other night, actually. There's nothing "off" about it. My regional admissions officer called to tell me verbally that I was accepted, and told me that my likely letter would be arriving in the mail shortly. That was Tuesday night (today is Thursday), so I haven't received the paper likely letter yet, but if you'd like, I'd be happy to let you know when I do. I did receive a follow-up email to the phone call, confirming that I was not just having an auditory hallucination. =]

Out of curiosity, what exactly sounds "off" about this? If it's just that they haven't yet finished the decision making process, that's true, but likey letters generally go out before they've finished reading applications. That's kind of the point of a likely letter. I don't think it's all that strange that Harvard has decided to add a phone component of early "likely" notification, especially considering the confusion that sometimes surrounds the wording of likely letters. I've heard that some students receive them and aren't quite sure what exactly they mean, so it makes sense that maybe admissions offices have decided to notify them verbally as well, just to clarify the situation.

Please let me know if you have any more questions.

'rentof2 · 02-21-2008, 09:38 AM

Congratulations, Indigo! I just hadn't heard of it happening before, is all. But what happy news for you!

mahavir10 · 02-21-2008, 04:55 PM

Congrats IndigoRock13, if you don't mind me asking, what are your stats? Also, do you know how many people get these likely letters/phone calls, and do they all go out on the same day?

acadec · 02-21-2008, 07:47 PM

many congratulations to Indigo! I would also be interested in seeing your statistics, if you aren't averse to giving them out.

classic3020 · 02-22-2008, 01:15 AM

Moi aussi.

goforharvard · 02-23-2008, 12:08 AM

No stats? let's see them.

akybaky · 02-23-2008, 12:22 AM

congrats...i wish i got a call...lol...i guess its more waiting for me

estrella29 · 02-23-2008, 09:12 PM

That's awesome, Indigo! I got a similar call from Yale, and I hadn't heard of anything like that happening before either. It's pretty mind-blowing - you should be really proud, especially from a place like Harvard!

mia305 · 03-03-2008, 09:42 AM

These are used by harvard and other Ivies typically in the case of recruited jocks and certain other "special" recruits, artists etc. Therefore, I am somewhat skeptical that the whole story is being told here, particularly since no stats are provided.

wumasterx · 03-03-2008, 04:36 PM

Thanks for the clarification on likely letters.

I was always a bit confused about those (This kinda worried me since I was like, Why haven't I received a likely letter. Oh no!) because I knew a lot of people who had gotten in that had never received such letters. Of course, they were just your ordinary recruits without special talents in sports and art, but all-around students.

alchemymom · 03-10-2008, 12:38 PM

mia305 wrote:

"Therefore, I am somewhat skeptical that the whole story is being told here, particularly since no stats are provided."

The candidate in question is my daughter. Here's the whole story: she got a likely letter from Harvard in mid-February. She is not an athlete. She is not a URM. She is not a legacy. In late February she met with the Harvard admissions officer who called her to admit her. He said she was not admitted to fill any particular need or slot, and that she was given a likely letter because she was "one of the most amazing candidates for admission any of us had ever seen". Her interviewer, extremely prominent in alumni circles, reported to Harvard that she was the most impressive candidate she had ever seen in her 30 years of interviewing for Harvard.

Why must stats be posted for something to be true?

kyzan · 03-10-2008, 03:18 PM

Considering that interviews count for next to nothing, I also find this story hard to believe.

alchemymom · 03-10-2008, 05:20 PM

Don't believe it if you don't want to, kyzan. Why on earth would my daughter and I come on these boards to lie about something like that? I've seen the question posed on several threads as to whether it is possible for non-athletes to receive likely letters. We simply tried to give information for other people to use, as we have been grateful for information shared here by other posters.

Fortunately, your belief or disbelief has absolutely zero to do with my daughter's likely letter from Harvard or her early acceptance at Yale. i also disagree with you about the unimportance of the Harvard interview.

akybaky · 03-10-2008, 05:32 PM

why don't you just post her stats so everyone can leave it alone...

by the way i believe it...just for the reason you stated...i don't see any reason to discredit it...