Where are Admissions Teams at in the process right now?

gardenstategal
Sat, 05 Mar 2022 17:42:43 +0000

@AnonMomof2 , me too!

But when I have spoken with folks in admissions, it is one of those "it depends " things. Where there are smaller baskets of students to fill - i.e., foreign students from xyz country, and particularly when they work through consultants the school knows, it can be helpful to everyone to know who really wants to attend and who was filling out their list. It may not mean that the kid who has another top choice won’t be given an acceptance, but it may mean that the school can assure itself of having a good student from xyz by admitting the kid who really wants to go. Athletic recruits might be in this group as well - no coach wants 3 top goalkeepers in one year. A kid who is a legacy at another school might want to do this.

My own hunch, though, is that these letters are unnecessary and won’t matter at all for the vast majority of applicants - who tend to be those represented on this board. As one AO at one of the most selective university said, “if you took the time to apply, we’ll believe you are genuinely interested and will give real consideration to an acceptance if we give you one.”