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It’s not just that more people are applying, but that because of the economy many high-achieving students and their families are no longer willing to pay the price or take on the debt to go to high-end private schools, so they are now applying to state schools. That raises the bar for everyone and it is starting to make it tough for A-/B+ students to get in, and it’s not a lock any more even for the A students.</p>
<p>My guess is that the odds of getting of the waitlist are actually better than the 10% the stats show, for two reasons: 1) a lot of kids accept spots on the list even though they aren’t really that interested in attending; and 2) by the time they get off the wait list they are emotionally invested in wherever they accepted and aren’t really interested in the wait list school any more.</p>
<p>If your last semester grades are really good, I would encourage you to submit them, and write a letter expressing that UMass is your first choice and will definitely attend if taken off the wait list. Grab every little edge you can.</p>