Much Better to be Waitlisted Than Deferred

charlieschm
Wed, 28 Dec 2011 12:18:35 +0000

Depends on the college.

Some colleges clearly state that they only accept the very most qualified students in Early action, and they may tell you what percentage of deferred students end up being admitted in regular decision.

In regards to wait list, the important number is not the number of wait list students who enrolled, or the number of people on the wait list. The important number is the number of wait list students in the previous year who were offered admission. That is typically available at the end of the “common data set” for a university. Some colleges have absolutely huge wait lists and almost never use them. Others regularly pull from their wait list.

The number of wait list students who are admitted may vary from year to year. For example, one year a college may find they admitted too many students, so the next year they admit fewer students in the regular cycle and rely upon the wait list more. Or visa versa.

Just be aware that some colleges have a policy of giving preference on wait lists to students who can pay full price, and they may say that financial aid is not available to wait list students.