waitlisted (not deferred) ED and nervous

aquapt
Wed, 14 Feb 2018 05:41:19 +0000

Well, my gut is no authority - if admissions says ED waitlist is better than deferral, that’s good! I’ve never heard of it before.

I would guess that some merit from Scripps is entirely possible, whereas Pitzer’s merit is more limited. Scripps merit scholarships can be up to $27K/year; Pitzer’s merit tops out at $5K/year. Whitman has merit aid up to $20K/year, and quite a few of your other schools have more limited merit scholarships available. So, it’s worth thinking not only in terms of “all things being equal” preferences, but also about how swayed you might be, both by a good value, and by the “love the school that loves you” factor. Even if Wesleyan did come around… what if you ended up with the option to go to Scripps and save $100K over four years? (Not to harp on that example; it just happens to be the one with which I have real-life experience!) The silver lining in your ED disappointment is that you get to step back and give other opportunities the chance to win you over.

The process is anxiety-inducing for sure, but you have wonderful safeties already nailed down. I know several students who are ridiculously happy in Honors at UVM; Beloit for the cost of a public U is a terrific option too; and the Dickinson offer is great as well. And out of the 13 schools you haven’t heard from yet, there are certain to be more good options. There is no one Perfect College - you could most likely be very happy at any of the schools you’ve applied to. You have time to breathe and think now; try to take turns thinking about each of your schools and really imagining what would appeal to you about going there. You are done being the product; it’s time to shift gears to being a consumer.