Anyone else still hoping to get off a wait list?

[JustAMomOf4]

Justamom, kids and parents do feel better about being waitlisted over being rejected

well my daughter is waitlisted and I don't feel better about it and neither does she. The limbo is not healthy and she can't move on. She is not a legacy and is very competitive for admission.
This school has been her #1 school which is why she accepted the waitlist offer. I personally think she was not admitted because her jr year grades were "poor" - she had health problems and missed a lot of school.

Anyway a lot of kids who apply to very selective schools apply here as well -
application stats last year were:
9330 applications - this year nearly 9500
3869 acceptances for a class of 1286.
Now get this they waitlisted 1211 applicants last year and pulled in 39 off the waitlist.
What we don't know is how many on the waitlist got offers for them to get 39.
But - I find it hard to believe you need to make a waitlist the size of the freshman class and that you need to have a list of 1200 to get 39 acceptances.
Do a lot of kids stay on the waitlist just so they don't get a rejection and then reject the waitlist offer?

I am trying to explain to my D that she doesn't have a chance but she is holding out hope. yuk.

[fireflyscout]

Lots of waitlist activity being reported in the college admissions forum.

[cptofthehouse]

I'm sorry, Justamom. The waitlist caused us trouble too. But when all is said and done, parents and kids end up liking to say they were waitlisted over being rejected. It works better when you know you are a courtesy--when the school is accepting NO ONE off the waitlist so it is all courtesy.

I'm sure there are kids who are staying on the waitlist for spite, but there are many kids like your D who are really hoping for a spot. My close friend's daughter was wl at Georgetown and Penn, and it really caused a lot of grief as she so wanted to go to either of those schools, and could not get her mind on her choice of school that accepted her. SHe was courtesy waitlisted, in my opinion, but that is a hard one to swallow, and she would never have believed that. She revisited both schools and pleaded her case; it really was painful.

They do not need a list of 1200 for 39 acceptances. They might have a true list of about 60 and the rest are courtesy. Sometimes, a GC can find out if there is a chance in H that a student can clear the list, or if it's a really not a good possibility (meaning forget it, you're a courtesy). That might get things rolling the right way.

[CountingDown]

We know someone (this is firsthand experience, not urban legend) who was offered a spot off the waitlist at JHU around the third week of April last year.

JHS,
S2 is a defensive tackle. Sounds like he should learn the other side, too.

[JAKNd]

We are in waitlist misery x 2. Twins both waitlisted at 4 schools and struggling to stay positive.

[trackie10x]

i know this is in the parent's forum and i'm a kid, but i just want to say that from a kid's perspective, waitlisting is much, much worse. we have waited SO long to hear whether or not our colleges want us, and sure, when i logged on to the penn and brown websites, i expected to get rejected, and i felt better when i saw i was waitlisted. but being waitlisted for these months and not knowing when or if you'll get that lucky call is horrible. waitlists give you that tiny bit of hope that you'll get in, and you want to believe it soooo badly, but the truth is, you probably won't ever get that call. i'm not saying that schools shouldn't have waitlists, because it's very useful for them, but it is pure misery for us kids.

[JustAMomOf4]

cptofthehouse - thanks for your support.

I know my daughter has done all she can. She has done really well senior year, excellent grades in tough courses, increased SAT's in Dec, visited, etc.
The GC sent her 3rd qtr report card and will send final transcripts which will be ready early June.

The GC made it seem like that was all that could be done - are you saying if the GC calls then she has a better chance?

I wouldn't care but my daughter has no interest in attending any of the 5 other schools to which she was accepted. If she goes where we deposited she already said she will transfer out. Not the best attitude to bring.

trackie10x - you hit the nail on the head - you feel better initially but worse over the long haul. It would be better to get the rejection over with. Then at least you can move on.

JAKNd - I guess everything is amplified with twins - I am sorry for your misery.

[oldfort]

I believe if the GC calls then you have a better chance. GC is in it for the long haul - do me a favor to take this good student that REALLY wants to go to your school, in the future I will promote your school to my students. I have known admission reps wining and dining GCs to get more applicants to their schools.

[cptofthehouse]

Our school GC does go to bat aggressively for kids on the wl. Kids do clear the wl regularly, but who knows if that is the reason. However, there have been times when the GC can get the inside scoop of whether someone has much of a chance (which usually means no chance if it's very little chance). That can effectively end some of the agony. I have seen that happen. However, if your GC has not dealt with this college and is not used to dealing with adcoms at that level, you are not going to get much info. Still, the GC can reiterate that your D will go to this college as soon as she is admitted, that she really is eager to go there, and would be a good candidate. That means more coming from the GC. You can ask him to communicate that to the college. Good luck. I do know how she and you feel.

[JAKNd]

After reading the waitlist letters our GC told my twin D that he thought it was best just to update with grades and not call. I think we could go on forever with the second guessing of what we did or did not do.

[JustAMomOf4]

I don't think her GC really cares - they don't do alot for kids going to college anyway. The school is 3 states away and no one from her school goes there - this may be a plus or a minus.
It sounds like kids who come from schools with a more aggressive GC have a better chance - maybe?
Thanks for the info and support. I know this anguish won't last forever and will eventually pass - although she is talking about applying to this school as a transfer. Oh why does the 4th child (and youngest) have to be so difficult? LOL

[Singersmom07]

Rice just announced that they are not taking anyone off the wait list this year. Seems their yield was up and they may be over. Other schools should be giving indications now, too.

[mountains]

Colby sent an email to their waitlisted students that they are not going to the waitlist, according to a post on the Colby forum. Hmm, does this mean S will be in a triple (he's going to Colby)?

[islandgirl1960]

My D did not get that email from Colby.

[mountains]

islandgirl1960 - The poster on the Colby forum is an international student and I wonder if that had something to do with it. I know Colby has limited financial aid for internationals, so that may have something to do with it.