Waitlist Discussion- Fall 2020 Virginia Tech

@mikeypie71 - Thanks for your information. Hopefully more in-state students (especially for engineering, sciences and business) will be able to get off waitlist early next week. Good luck everyone!

My friend called admissions this morning to see if engineering was filled up. Tech doesn’t have the official numbers yet, so for those hoping for engineering like me, there’s still hope!!

?

My son declined his offer yesterday (engineering) so an open spot for someone else. Best of luck to everyone!

Per my admissions officer regarding the article previously mentioned in this chat. " I believe that the article you are referencing was referring to a wave of offers that already went out at the time the article was published. We are monitoring our numbers daily and will let students know the outcome of the wait list one way or another as soon as we can."

@drewh02 - Any update on your waitlist status from either UVA or VT? We all care about you very much. Good luck and wish you the best!

Hello all, Tech has been putting me through the WRINGER! Back when I applied to the COE for ED the “vt_co2024” instagram page followed me; I thought this was a sign; IT WAS NOT. I’m still on the waitlist, but two nights ago a new Instagram page requested to follow me, “virginiatech.24.” This morning at 1:30am I received a DM from them congratulating me on my admission and giving me the access code to the co 24 group chat. I told them that I had not been admitted, but no reply as of yet. I highly doubt these accounts are run by people working for Tech, so any thoughts?

I suspect you’re right. As far as I know, VT Admissions doesn’t do anything officially or otherwise through Instagram.

So VT says they have an unranked waitlist - https://vt.edu/admissions/undergraduate/apply/wait-list-frequently-asked-questions.html

What does unranked waitlist mean? Do they just pull random names from pots filled with student names to assign seats (maybe 1 pot per major)? Anyone know?

They say that each wave, they review the candidates again, and then choose. However, I can’t imagine that each college department doesn’t have their lists handy. It is most certainly not random.

c’mon waitlist. 2nd choice is really good, but (secretely) looking for VT offer

Waitlist pulls are most certainly by major, as is the application process. “Unranked” seems to mean that it is not a linear process, but follows the holistic method like overall admissions. Best guess is that within each major, applicants are categorized (like the pots you mentioned). From there the total number of remaining seats could be divided by categories. Then it could be random selection within each category. If a specific category doesn’t fill up after 1st round of offers, then another random selection of remaining names takes place. I’m just guessing, but this seems plausible.

@ShenVal18 Why do you believe the application process is by major? Is this recent? In the past I thought there were only certain majors with different ‘standards’ for applicants (engineering and architecture, the ones that used to let you choose a second choice major). I was told a couple of years ago by a friend in admissions that other than those majors, it wasn’t any more or less difficult to get into any particular major (at least that’s how I understood the conversation).

I don’t think its a matter of difficulty, but rather just a numbers game. Engineering and Architecture are clearly the most competitive, but the other majors (not sure whether its majors or college, but still) likely have a certain quota of how many kids they want to admit. I think what @ShenVal18 has described is likely pretty accurate
especially the “categories” which include things like OOS/IS and possibly things like what part of the holistic process they’d best qualify (academic vs. services vs. etc.), which allows them to make sure they are getting a well-rounded class even when they pull from the waitlist.

When a student applies to VT, they select the specific college and major they are applying into (some colleges have an “undecided” category). So if a student applies to Pamplin for instance, they have to choose MGT, MKTG, etc. or they can select “business undecided”. You don’t just apply for admission to the university. I believe the school drills all the way down into this data when setting up their categories. As an example, the college of science may have categories for biology applicants, a different set for chemistry applicants, a different set for explore applicants. Doing so ensures that enrollees are spread across the disciplines offered (since that’s how seats are filled). Granted, first year coursework in many of the colleges is the same across the majors offered within the college, but I have to think they take a longer view of how to categorize, knowing that coursework will change and seats available change by 2nd year.

@ShenVal18 Yes, I know how they apply. I was specifically told that except for a couple of majors, the admission criteria are the same across the university. Do they have quotas that fill up? Maybe. But at least in the past in those cases students could be admitted into the generic University studies major (which is basically ‘undecided’). I thought you might have specific knowledge of a change to procedures in the last year or two. I lot changed when they brought in the new admissions staff, so that’s what I was wondering.

To my knowledge the only change in criteria was for class of 2023 applicants - they could no longer select an alternative major when applying to engineering or architecture. It’s always been my understanding that the individual departments have a relatively finite number of seats to fill for each incoming class, which is why I tend to think that is also how waitlist pulls are chosen - categrized records within specific departments rather than at the college level. If major isn’t being looked at, then you could conceivably end up with a college of science that is full of just psych majors.

Has anyone gotten off the waitlist so far today?

@rbc2018

As you get further along in the process and waitlist it has to be very much by department and it will make some departments harder then others to get in all based off the applicant pool.

Say you have 10 available spots in English and Math 
 two majors that are not restrictive.

English - you have 10 kids available on your list with 4.2 GPA and 10 kids on the list with 3.8 GPA 
 you accept the 10 kids with 4.2 GPA and the others don’t make the cut.

Math you have 5 kids with 4.2 GPA and 15 kids with 3.8 GPA. 5 of the 3.8 GPA kids got in where same stat kids with English major did not.

Overly simplified - but once you get past the general population and into filling up spots by department you will see a wide range of stats getting in and not. It is a complete guessing game for anyone outside of the departments to figure out 
 so as to why they say the waitlist is unranked (when truly it is at very dispursed level).

@PLO2020 Besides that email, I have not heard anything from Tech. I just received an email this morning asking about my interest in UVA, however.