<p>Just wondering if anyone is experiencing a trend toward wait listing students who are “over qualified” for a mid level school? I’m assuming they want to find out if the student is seriously interested &/or they do not wish to offer the money it would take to entice a superior student to opt for their school.</p>
<p>My salutatorian son, GPA 102.4, 9 APS (all that were available at his school), Editor in chief of newspaper, varsity sports captain, accomplished musician, president of honor society, community service, volunteering, science research, etc gets on the wait list for a mid level school. Their reply when queried by me and his guidance counselor is that they don’t know enough about why he is applying there and with his accomplishments it seemed unlikely he would attend. (???) They only required the Common Ap, no supplements. Every kid needs to apply to one or 2 “safeties” so this was one of his. I’m perplexed as is the very seasoned counselor. (and also really nervous if the top schools don’t work out!). Do you think it is a reflection of the economy that some schools would rather take kids who they don’t have to offer money to?</p>
<p>The definition of “safety” is a school where the applicant is virtually assured of being accepted. If the mid-tier wasn’t numbers-driven, then yes the applicant may have been wait-listed because the school didn’t think he’d attend.</p>
<p>A variation of this is “My S/D was wait-listed at a private college despite his/her stats being above the 90th percentile for enrolled freshmen.” Yes that can happen when the applicant is need of a full-ride scholarship.</p>
<p>Trend towards waitlisting (or even rejecting) kids who are “over qualified” is not new. So-called “Tufts Syndrome” has been reported for years…</p>
<p>Did you look at a the common set data, and is it a school where “demonstrated interest” is weighted in the admissions decision?</p>
<p>It’s certainly possible that if the admissions office knows it’s likely your son will be admitted to other schools with money…and won’t attend their school without money…it may have played into their wait list decision.</p>
<p>Hope there are some true safeties…or already a rolling or EA admit…for your son.</p>
<p>It’s probably too early to bring up this thread again…better after all decisions are in…and at the beginning of the cycle for rising seniors. This kid wasn’t 2nd in his class…but was near the top.</p>
<p>Thread is titled: No Acceptances: One Kid’s Story - A year later…</p>
<p>I think this is a common story at schools which weigh “demonstrated interest” as a factor. (Not all schools do.)</p>
<p>Did your son visit the school, meet the rep at his high school, email the admissions office, request materials from the website?</p>
<p>I can see how there isn’t much opportunity on the Common App to explain why a particular school appeals to an applicant, and to convey “demonstrated interest.” My kid chose to apply to one school via its own application rather than via the Common App (they offered both options) because only the school-specific application had a “Why this school?” essay.</p>
<p>"Their reply when queried by me and his guidance counselor is that they don’t know enough about why he is applying there and with his accomplishments it seemed unlikely he would attend. "
Sure sounds like Tufts syndrome to me. But if Demonstrated interest IS a factor and the college did NOT “feel the love” from your son, then it’s really not surprising that an overqualified student, relative to the rest of the student body, would be wait listed. NO college wants to be treated as a “safety” .
That was the mistake Andi’s son made. [ referring to the thread “No Acceptances: One Kid’s Story - A year later…”]
The admissions officers think he will be accepted elsewhere,and decide not to matriculate at there college, which is based on their past experiences with similar students. Its called Enrollment Management and all colleges practice it.</p>
<p>There are definitely schools that want to see demonstrated interest. When my son applied to Emory, they asked you to list all the ways you had contacted the school - tours and visits, ordered the dvd, phone calls, etc. I can see their point. With the common application process being so easy, many kids are applying all over the place just to see if they can get in.</p>
<p>S came home today and said that several well-qualified applicants were waitlisted at Elon. These were IB Diploma kids who statistically would have been at the top. This is the crazy season…</p>
<p>I’ve never seen this happen personally except at some schools where females are way overrepresented, the school was selective and not much interest was shown by the student. But I have heard of it happening. In many cases, if the school is genuinely a top choice, the guidance counselor can let admissions know, and an offer will be made.</p>
<p>In the case of the OP, if the son called the college and told them he would attend if accepted they would probably move him off the waitlist but I suspect that the college wants some “love” and felt they weren’t a likely choice from the OP’s son…which is pretty much what they said it sounds like…</p>