What to Do if You're Wait-Listed

Boost Your Chances of Getting In

You’ve sent in your applications. Now you’re waiting for a letter from each college you applied to, either offering you admission or turning down your application. And there’s another possibility: a college may put you on a waiting list.

This can happen when you meet the admission requirements, but the college has already accepted the number of applicants it has room for. If a spot becomes available later on, you may be offered a place.

The college won’t make you this offer, though, until after the May 1 decision deadline has passed. If you’re on the waiting list, it’s hard to know what your chances of acceptance are.

If you get wait-listed by one of your top choices, let admission officers know why you're a great fit for their college.

Decide Whether to Stay on the List

Your next step is to respond and let the college know whether or not you want to stay on the waiting list. It makes sense to keep your spot on the list only if you’re really interested in going to the college.

Before you decide, find out whether there are any conditions attached to being wait-listed. For example, since you’re notified later than other applicants, you may have fewer housing and financial aid options.

Even if you decide to remain on the waiting list, prepare to attend another college. Choose the best fit from the colleges that accepted you, fill out the paperwork and send a deposit. You’ll forfeit this deposit if the college that wait-listed you offers you a place and you accept. Still, you need to be sure you have a place in an incoming freshman class next fall.

Take Control

If you decide to stay on the waiting list, be proactive. Here’s what you can do to boost your chances of being accepted.

Get a sense of your chances of admission. Contact the admission office to find out if the college ranks wait-listed students or if it has a priority list. Most are willing to let you know your status. The higher you rank on the list the better your chances of being accepted.

Write a letter to the admission office. The college has already decided that you have the academic credentials for admittance. Now’s the time to mention any additional nonacademic factors that might help your case — any new achievements or supplemental information. Emphasize your strong desire to attend the college and make a case for why you're a good fit. You can tell them that you'll enroll if they accept you, but only if you're absolutely certain you will.

Study hard. This is no time to slack off. If you're wait-listed, you may be reevaluated based on your third- and fourth-quarter grades.

Stay involved. Show admission officers you're committed to sports, clubs and other activities.

Request another (or a first) interview. An interview can give you a personal contact — someone who can check on the status of your application. You can also enlist the help of your high school counselor or someone you know who graduated from that college.

Realize that you've already achieved something. You were wait-listed, not turned away. Many students were not as successful.

Reconsider the colleges that accepted you.  If you would be just as happy at one of your other choices, send in a deposit and plan to attend that college. Then turn down the spot on the waiting list. You'll be surprised how much better you feel after your decision has been made.

The Waiting Game - College Decisions

Check out this great blog post originally featured last year called The Waiting Game. The college counseling team loves these quick tips and insights! 

The Waiting Game

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Susanna

By: Mia Myklebust

     Many high school Seniors have completed their college applications (don’t stress if you haven’t there’s still time!) and are now playing what we like to call “The Waiting Game.” This is the time period between when students apply to and hear from colleges. At first it can be a relief to finish all your applications, but soon waiting to hear back can become nerve wracking. Many high school Seniors have found themselves waiting for the mailman every afternoon hoping that the fat envelope will come. Our best advice: don’t be that kid. If you’re stressed out try to focus on other things to get you through.

     Stay busy- If you keep yourself occupied you won’t have time to worry about whether or not your letter has come yet. If you play a sport or are in a club give it your full attention. If you don’t, come up with an out of school activity to occupy your time. This could be a great time to do some Independent Research or Volunteer. Which brings us to our second point.

     Update colleges on your accomplishments- If you have had any notable achievement since you submitted your applications, make sure to let your colleges know. Any new awards or honors can help your apps stand out, plus contacting admissions officers will keep your name fresh in their minds. Make sure you are only reporting new awards, don’t repeat anything that you have already included on your applications. Email or call the admissions rep designated to your area to inform them of your recent accomplishments. 

     Keep your grades high- This is an often overlooked, but critical part of your applications. If a college is on the fence about you, they may ask for your first semester grades to help them decide whether to admit you. You want to be able to hand over a stellar report card, not the evidence of your Senioritis. It is even possible for a college to rescind an acceptance if your Senior year grades aren’t up to par, so, study on!

     If you’re really feeling the pressure while waiting to hear back from your colleges, try some of our Stress Busting Tips. Also, don’t forget to record the status of each of your applications as you receive them on the Applications page of CollegeMapper. On this page you can mark whether you were accepted, deferred or declined and how much financial aid support you got from each of your schools. Good luck and yay, college!

Mrs. Sarah Morissette, M. Ed.

~ From Your Guidance and College 

Counseling Team

Class of 2015, Happy (almost) New Year = Time for FAFSA!

The holidays are here! The first of the month is approaching which can mean a few things, a new year to celebrate, making (and breaking) those New Year’s Resolutions, and FAFSA time!

The 2014-2015 FAFSA, Free Application for Federal Student Aid, becomes available on January 1^st, 2015. All seniors should be in the process of exploring, reviewing and completing his FAFSA. In order to begin your application in the New Year you must have an identification PIN - which you must apply for. You can apply today for this PIN (which we recommend as it can take up to 2 week to receive your PIN).

Each student and his parent need a PIN. Apply for a PIN at https://pin.ed.gov/PINWebApp/pinindex.jsp. Deadlines to complete the FAFAS vary by state, for New Jersey the deadline is June. However the sooner you complete the FAFSA, the sooner you can receive your maximum financial aid package from each college you have been accepted to.  

There are many helpful resources to support the student and his family through this process – two of my favorites being http://studentaid.ed.gov/ andhttp://www.fafsa.ed.gov/index.htm. Be sure when filing your FAFSA to use the .gov website and not an imposture!

Happy Holidays and Happy Filings!

Mrs. Sarah Morissette, M. Ed.

Junior Spotlight

Juniors, Your time is coming up as well - so let's take the spotlight off of the seniors for a moment and checkout the to-do list below. Are you on track?

December College Checklist for the class of 2016

By JEFFREY NEILL

With Thanksgiving behind us and our next vacation just weeks away, it is easy to let the college process slip our minds temporarily. However, there is plenty that can be done now, particularly planning. Taking advantage of these winter months can make an enormous difference come summer and next fall.

Be Committed to the Process

The college application process, from research through to submission, takes about 40 hours of work by the student. You do not need to wait until the summer or the fall of your senior year to do much of this work. Just 15 minutes per day — a study break, really — will have you through 40 hours by the middle of August, happy and satisfied with the knowledge that you are well-situated for the senior fall. Be diligent and committed, and the process will take care of itself.

Communicate With Your Parents

This is your process, but you should make sure that your parents are informed and contributing to your college search. Take time to talk with your parents about the ways in which you want to involve them. Have this conversation early and often, even weekly.

Set up a schedule for visits, even though you may not yet have a list. Follow up with your parents after meetings with your college or guidance counselor. Work to understand your family’s financial situation. Explore costs as well as financial aid and loans. These all are essential conversations; now is the time to set up a plan for how you will communicate.

Plan Your Summer Now

December is the ideal time to make plans for the summer so that you don’t scramble at the last minute to pull something together. Have you considered an academic program to pursue advanced work in a field of interest, to bolster or supplement shaky areas of your transcript, or to explore new disciplines not available during the regular academic year?

What about a job? Can you make and save money for college? Have you considered an internship? Community service or volunteer work? Travel? Are there sports or arts camps that would assist in your plans? Discuss with your parents and college or guidance counselor a plan for the summer. Be deliberate and intentional in your planning, and reserve some down time, too.

Research, Research, Research

Begin to construct that college list. There is no substitute for visiting a college for a tour and interview or information session, but there is much to be said about getting online and exploring. Individual college Web sites can be enormously helpful in providing a sense of what your experience could be. What courses could you take? What courses must you take? How difficult is it to double-major or to switch majors? If you are undecided on a major, how might the college’s curriculum assist you in selecting one? What drives social life? How many students live on campus? What are the application requirements? Are SAT Subject Tests required? Keep note of these items that you deem to be important. The more of this information you can obtain and process, the more informed your search will be. 

Make a Standardized Testing and Test Prep Plan

Many juniors will receive PSAT results shortly. Take time to review them (and/or any other results that you have, including actual SAT and ACT results or any state exams) and put together a plan for future tests.

You should also carefully consider if and how you will go about preparing for those tests. Results from previous tests should figure prominently into any plan. To prepare, some students will opt to take courses or to work with tutors. You may also self-study by using free resources from the College Board or ACT Web sites. Regardless, now is the time to plan.

Be Genuine and Explore

This time of year, you will hear much about “what colleges want to see.” Of course, the danger here is in pursuing any end exclusively because colleges want to see it.

Be genuine. If you are going to commit your time to anything, be sure that you are doing so because it is of significance to you. Ultimately, this is what colleges want to see, and they are exceptionally talented at sniffing out students who do things exclusively because they are trying to impress.

Keep in mind that we are all lumps of clay, still being formed. Remain committed to those things that are important to you, exploring positions and experiences of leadership, but do not close the door on new opportunities that might help you learn more about that unknowable enigma: you.

Happy Thanksgiving - Your College Counseling Team

What IS the perfect number of colleges to apply to?

hmmmm...

http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/17/student-opinion-what-is-the-perfect-number-of-college-applications-to-send/?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Ar%2C%7B%221%22%3A%22RI%3A8%22%7D