Great article - this makes me even more certain that results will be released tomorrow, as there is realistically nothing to be gained by postponing waitlist decisions any further.
If there is movement tomorrow, do u think they will close the waitlist / reject everyone, or will there be any acceptances?
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If they just reject everyone, what was the point of their last email saying that they would go into July and asking if we wanted to remain on the waitlist. Even if they only pull off a few now from the waitlist I hope there was a purpose behind making everyone wait so long.
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I’m intrigued by Harvard’s decision to reject a $500 million settlement. It raises a big question: what’s the real plan here, and why is the waitlist still open if the class is supposedly full?
What do you think Harvard’s purpose might be? Is Garber standing firm to make a broader statement about institutional independence and values? Or could they still be holding the waitlist open as a safety net, in case some international visas fall through or unexpected enrollment changes happen last minute?
Curious to hear everyone’s take, especially as we head into what’s likely the final week of decisions.
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At the point when schools ask if students want to be on the WL, they do not have openings. If they did, they’d extend offers because the schools are best served by asking sooner than later.
BUT they want to be prepared if there is attrition, and that’s the purpose served by the WL. Schools that close their WL early are often slightly overenrolled, and attrition will simply “right-size” them. Remember, the WL serves the school. And it is not a deferral - they don’t use it to postpone decisions.
If you are on a WL, you should not be expecting a decision. You got it in April – it was a rejection with an offer to stay on yhe WL. Most WL activity happens in May when schools see what enrollment looks like. You have indicated to the school that if a spot opens - even late in the game - you’d love to be considered for it.
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Tbh, all scenarios are possible. If I were Harvard,‘I would take the risk of over enrollment and take a big chunk of kids off the waitlist for the likely scenario that they’re gonna lose the legal battle eventually . But I’m not Harvard obviously.
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I agree with everything you said. However, having been on other waitlists at other schools, I do expect something that says “the waitlist is closed”. Every school my waitlisted friends or family applied to let them know when the school was full and the waitlist closed.
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I second this. It would be blatantly impractical for Harvard to not announce the closure of their waitlist. Especially considering how sought after of a school they are. I personally know people who would be willing to lose their deposit/tuition for their currently commited institution to be at Harvard. Harvard knows this as well. They will definitely announce the closure of their waitlist.
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Hopeful to hear this week
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You’re right - most (but not all!) schools let students know when they are done, but occasionally, a school will take a student or 2 right before classes start. If they want to preserve that flexibility, not closing the WL is how they do it.
Fwiw, over the last 40 years, I have personally known 2 people to be admitted to Stanford very close to the start of classes. That’s hardly the norm, and nobody should make plans around it, but it can happen.
Important development in China that’s relevant to this thread:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/03/world/asia/china-passports-civil-servants.html
I don’t deny that you’re probably right, but throwing away 45k is insane to me. At some point, the “harvard or die” dreams have to end and I don’t think double paying a semester is worth the probably only slight brand name increase Harvard provides over whatever other school people have paid for and are committed to.
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Darn. I really want to read this article but I don’t have a NYT subscription. Would you mind sharing the gist of it?
Ehhhh it depends. If it’s another T20 against Harvard, you’re right. But if you’re in a state school (like myself rn - summer term), and have the ability to go to the big H, the difference is night and day. Also, Roughly 50% of Harvard’s Class of 2025 expect starting pay north of $90,000 which is well above the $66,600 median for all bachelor’s degree holders in 2022.
Not to mention, there’s the crazy alumni network that simply offers a somewhat unfair advantage over others. Really, it depends on where you are currently committed to. In my case, Harvard is my ride or die.
That’s a fair point, but I think the common denominator is largely the students and not the school. If you’re the type of person who can get waitlisted at Harvard, chances are, you’ll be successful wherever you go, and many studies show that one of the highest indicators of success is ranking within your college class, not prestige of your institution.
I’m sorry that you’re not happy about where you’re headed, and I apologize for being a bit too harsh on Harvard. That said, I know plenty of people at Harvard who don’t like it there or feel wholly lost, and I think especially right now, there are far better places to be to seek a good education and access to future opportunities, prestige aside.
These medians and statistics don’t have to define your personal journey. I wish you the best of luck tomorrow, but I trust that you will get what you seek out of your college experience and future opportunities no matter what
I think the restriction only applies to government employees, not to (incoming) undergraduate students who aren’t affiliated with government.
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I may have not expressed myself properly lol. I definitely am happy with where I am right now, but getting an upgrade such as Harvard would only help me more in the long term. I guess at this point, it’s not really an acceptance I want -it’s closure. See, I’d hit the withdraw application button but then the “What if I was going to be accepted” thoughts will flood my conscience.
I guess we’ll have to wait and see tommorrow.
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Yeah it’s a very fair point, the lack of closure is rough, especially because we applied and waited 3ish months for an answer and then have been in purgatory for 4 more. I’ve been unsure the entire time if I would accept a spot from Harvard, and I’ve told myself I’d have to react in the moment, and still, I want that closure. I can’t tell myself I don’t care, because if I truly didn’t care, I would’ve withdrawn.
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Well, hopefully we all get the closure we want tommorrow.
I see your point. Harvard is definitely a big step up from most state schools, but it’s not automatically better than other T5s, which also have powerful alumni networks. I’ve already committed to one of them. Unless Harvard matches the aid I’ve already been offered, I’ll decline. Paying nearly $90K a year just doesn’t make sense when my committed school has an outstanding track record for both pre-law and pre-med. I’ve turned down two other T5 offers for the same reason.
And let’s not forget - while Harvard has produced plenty of billionaires, great opportunities aren’t limited to Cambridge. The CEO of NVIDIA, for example, went to a state school for undergrad and still built a $4 trillion company. At a Stanford admit event, an organic chemistry professor joked that many of us would one day have bosses who graduated from state schools; he completed both under/grad degrees at UC Berkeley. It was a light-hearted reminder that great success isn’t defined solely by where you start.