My son checked in with his counselor the other day, because he got off Bucknell’s waitlist (and was seriously considering it) but prefers Richmond. He’s already committed somewhere else, so was looking for any insight into whether he had a shot. (We are not dying to end up in a cycle of depositing to schools then leveling up as he comes off waitlists; and he’s already come off two where he didn’t write locis, including Northeastern, which was kind of shocking.)
She said there’s already been some movement and they do anticipate more, but because the waitlist is unranked, she couldn’t speculate as to his chances. I didn’t find this especially encouraging, where he’s concerned. I don’t know if I’m overthinking it, but I feel like if he was in the queue of waitlisted kids on deck for offers, she might have indirectly indicated having decent chances.
I don’t understand how schools don’t rank their waitlist. How do they decide who they extend an offer to? For the class of 2028, 8% is made up of kids from the waitlist per the admissions website. Good luck.
Congrats to your son! Off two waitlists, and it’s only May 5th?!
When you say he checked in with his counselor, is that his counselor at school or the admissions rep at UR?
it’s very heavily depended on what “buckets” they need to fill based on their yield. Majors, region, gender, aid, etc. all come into play. I’d imagine these factors are even more tightly considered at a smaller school like Richmond.
For example, Richmond take a lot of pride in geographic diversity, right? So if they end up with a lot of kids from the Midwest declining offers, then kids from the Midwest may bump to the top. In my son’s case, we have a child from his own school who was still evaluating his options the last time my son talked to him. Given that Richmond’s current class has something like 650 kids from 800 high schools (according to our tour guide), I would think my son’s chances plummet if his classmate accepts. Conversely, if his classmate decides on another school, my son may have a higher chance. I know it’s not that simple, but I think these are the things that come into play.
He checked in with his Richmond admissions rep, which was also who he’d sent his loci to. Despite having gotten off two other waitlists (both prior to May 1), my son did only one loci—to Richmond.
The fact that the Richmond rep responded to your son is a win in my book. Throughout the course of this year, my D reached out to her rep three times: a loci post ed deferral, a loci post rd waitlist, and 1 grade update. Not once has she received a response or acknowledgment of receipt. It’s pretty demoralizing. Especially when reps from other schools have been so lovely. I’ve urged her to move on, and she’s thankfully embracing the school she selected, but I know she’s secretly holding out hope for Richmond. As an alum, I’m so disappointed in the lack of communication.
Thanks for the response. I do know that colleges tweak the class demographics with kids off the waitlist. My question for an AO would be if you have 15 kids in a target demographic but only one spot, how do colleges decide which kids to pick? It’s more of a general question that Richmond specific.
Feel free not to answer if these are too personal ( ) but this is the one my kiddo is waiting on. Can you share any more about major, region, or financial need? And congrats to her!!
Congrats to her! My DD also received a call from the Admissions Office offering her a spot off the waitlist! However, he only told my DD the financial package on the phone and hesitated to send a soft copy. Was that the same with your DD?
My DD received word yesterday that she has a spot at Richmond if she would like it. She had applied EA and was deferred to RD and then waitlisted. We are from Oklahoma and would be full pay. We did not apply for any financial aid. Richmond was initially a top choice but we were hoping for some merit award. She is leaning toward turning it down as she kinda mentally moved on and has a great merit offer from the college we deposited with. She has also already connected with future classmates and found a roommate so I think Richmond may have just come in a little too late. UR would be more than twice the cost of the small private LAC that my DD is currently committed to.
) but this is the one my kiddo is waiting on. Can you share any more about major, region, or financial need? And congrats to her!!