<p>Hi, I was wondering if BS's accept more students than they need, in the likely event not all students will attend that school. Or, do they use their wait list as students decline for another school. I assume it is a complicated issue with FA students v non-FA students.</p>
<p>I am trying to be prepared in the event my child is wait listed. I guess I want to know the value of the wait list.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Yes, they definitely accept more than they expect to matriculate. The schools assume a certain “yield” rate of acceptances. If the yield is lower than they assumed they might go to the wait list.</p>
<p>If you are waitlisted at one school and accepted at another. Do you have the time to wait for the waitlisted one or is that not a choice any more if you don’t want to let go the accepted one?</p>
<p>You will have until April 10th to send in your check and signed paperwork. If your child is placed on a Wait List, you are asked to send the AO an email saying you’d like to stay on or be taken off.</p>
<p>If you’re staying on the WL be sure to send the AO email with a return receipt. I had a friend once who sent an AO/ WL response that never made it! </p>
<p>If you have acceptances ( and your WL school is your first choice) don’t despair! Go to the Revisit Days and enjoy the experience. Sometimes there won’t be movement on a WL until the end of March or during the first week in April- if at all. </p>
<p>It’s very stressful to go down to the wire- for both students and parents. Mid March you’ll hear a lot of people saying - Love the school that loves you. Very wise words!!</p>
<p>Hope this helps- Good Luck M10!</p>
<p>Check out “The Wait List” thread pinned second from the top on the Prep School Admissions forum; it will tell you what you want to know.</p>
<p>If you want to stay on a waitlist, be mentally prepared to lose your deposit if you accept the offer at one school, but decide to withdraw if you get off a waiting list at a different school. Deposits are approx. 10% of the the family’s tuition contribution, nonrefundable.</p>
<p>One note - many of the schools are getting better at yield and few are going to their waitlist. And some that do are going well into summer (when existing families finally have to write the tuition checks) to decide if they have space.</p>
<p>Waitlists are even trickier for FA candidates because the money is already allocated and if all of those students accept their invitations, the waitlist draws will likely be full pay students.</p>
<p>So we often suggest “Love the school that loves your child.”</p>
<p>Oh Thanks. Yes, the “The Wait List” thread got it all covered.</p>