<p>This just happened to a friend of mine … does she have a good chance of getting in now because I heard that most people on the waitlist get in. Is it different if you appeal and then get waitlisted?</p>
<p>I heard USC has a short list of people on the wait list anyhow, so i say she has a good chance. At any other school though with those huge-long-list-that-nobody-can-finish no…</p>
<p>At a lot of schools waitlist is kind of a way to say to an applicant, “we like you but not enough to make a space for you here”. Apparently, at USC they don’t waitlist unless they have at least some realistic chance of getting in.</p>
<p>But on the other hand, this year was really tough to get in; there were a lot of really good applicants that got turned down. So I wish your friend good luck :)</p>