<p>Your article to the Huffington Post was beautiful and will help so many other bright and worthy students get through this horrible time. My husband and I went to Duke and our oldest son is there now. I recommend that you send your article into admissions. Getting published in the Huffington Post seems like quite an addition to your application. Your letter is heartfelt, thoughtful and honest. Duke admissions is actually a wonderful admissions office. I would hope and bet that they would receive your letter well. You might write a letter with it that augments your article and highlights your continued love for the school and deepest desire to go there. Show them your resilient side. Also, of course, send them updates of how your senior year is going. As an independent college counselor, I’ve supported three students’ getting into Duke from the wait-list or deferral list by encouraging them to send more of their honest truth into the school, and it worked! The odds aren’t great, so definitely get excited about your other schools, but there’s still light at the end of the tunnel for you and Duke, and there’s lots of blinding light at the end of the tunnel for you in general. Also I have to remind you of this. The absolute worst thing about a deferral or rejection EA or ED is that you have to sit with it until late March! It’s torture. There’s a great chance that this time next year you will be at another school completely in love with it and floored and horrified that you might have missed it had you gotten into Duke. There’s also a chance that you will be on Duke’s East Campus, and this moment will be long forgotten. Can you share your other schools with us? PS Our middle son goes to a different school-- bet you can’t guess where-- and it’s perfect for him. We used to think that Duke was the only way, now we see there are lots of ways to do it right! Thank you for your wonderful post. I’m sending it all my students who got deferred or rejected right now.</p>