<p>I was waitlisted like two weeks ago and had Senator Kerry write me a letter of rec just cause he offered. I had noo idea it would actually work! I just got an email saying I was admitted into the summer term! I AM SO PUMPED!! :)</p>
<p>Congratulations! It never hurts to have friends in high places. Go Blue!</p>
<p>congrats 
its not even may yet; you must have been an extreme case :)</p>
<p>how did you find out?</p>
<p>haha that’s awesome.
how did you get in touch with kerry?</p>
<p>Haha thanks!
I am def an extreme case. My grades are mediocre at best. I’m a lucky lucky girl.
I found out via email and I intern for Senator Kerry :)</p>
<p>“grades are mediocre at best”
“intern for Senator Kerry”
Looks to me like just another example of a well-connected individual getting in over many more qualified candidates.</p>
<p>In life, you will find that much of what turns out to be a “qualification” is how well you build relationships. Relationships are really the key to success. I was actually taught this long ago on an undergraduate summer program where the professor insisted on twice a week get togethers in the evenings. He was an extremely successful man who had chosen to come back to his STATE SCHOOL (btw) alma mater and teach after his early retirement. He used to say “All of your classes are about learning how to talk to other people, learning how to listen to what other people say, and learning how to learn what they need and want and how you can create a relationship, all your classes, even math, even science, are about learning how to communicate.”</p>
<p>“What can I do for you,” he said should be your first thought in any business setting. Never “what can you do for me.” Even in sales, he said, it’s all about relationships. He used to tell a story about how he’d never gotten one thing out of this one big relationship he’d built for like ten years, but he kept having lunch, kept doing little favors, kept offering information, ideas, and one day, BAM! The guy says, “You know what? I trust you.” That’s the deal which led to his early retirement.</p>
<p>The guy was teaching us english, too. Not business or anything. English and theater, because that’s what he really loved and what he had majored in. What he loved.</p>
<p>So, I would say the OP is eminently qualified by world terms. I’m sure long before she ever asked for that rec, she’d asked what she could do for him.</p>
<p>Congratulations. I hope you continue to build your relationships throughout your life.</p>
<p>Just wanted to congratulate you!</p>
<p>And yes, relationships are one of the more, if not most, important things should be building.</p>
<p>congrats, that’s awesome lol :)</p>
<p>Ya, well, President Obama wrote me a letter of recommendation. </p>
<p>I win. ;)</p>
<p>Brosen, </p>
<p>I don’t think I took a spot of the over qualified applicant if I got in TODAY and was originally wait listed. Everyone who is deemed “more qualified” should has gotten their acceptance by now. Yes, I got lucky and am not denying that by any means but I do think that I am qualified and I do think that Michigan saw something in my application or else they would have rejected me instead of putting me on the wait list. I doubt I took anyone’s spot. Especially since I was admitted summer not fall.</p>
<p>Hahah I wish. I’d be going to Harvard with a recommendation of his.</p>
<p>Congrats, til, we’re glad you went ahead and submitted that letter. And poetgrl, thanks for an inspiring post!
Cheers,
k</p>
<p>Congrats, that is awesome!</p>
<p>yeah i actually agree with the post up there
just because YOU think you’re qualified doesnt mean the college thinks so
obviously if you were, then you wouldn’t be waitlisted
and other people that got waitlisted, there could be someone that got waitlisted that had better qualifications than you
that would’ve gotten in if space was available
and you are taking a spot from someone else even if you got into summer
cuz someone else would’ve gotten it maybe</p>
<p>using “connections” to get in just looks bad on you and sen. kerry for actually writing that</p>
<p>and the person that wrote that connections are important and stuff
yeah they are in a way
but honestly would you rather say
“i got into umich because of my qualifications”
or " i got into umich based on who i knew"
you shouldn’t always look for things you can get for yourself in people
make relationships for the sake of having friends, etc…</p>
<p>talent gets you further than connections, ALWAYS
no matter what, if you’re smart you’ll go places
but not everyone takes recommendations</p>
<p>you’re just cheating yourself</p>
<p>Ha that makes no sense at all. Why would the college put me on a wait list if I do not have the qualifications? I may not be as strong as some applicants, but I am by no means worse. </p>
<p>I know I am smart and I know I have what it takes to succeed at UMich. Just like many others out there, I was wait listed because getting into college this year is super competitive, especially for a school like UMich. Sentor Kerry might have been that little push I needed to get recoqnized at UMich. It’s not like he’s going to write me a recommendation if he thinks I’m a crappy student, that doesn’t make sense. I work hard and I am not gonna let you tell me that I don’t deserve this, because I do. There are many brilliant applicants who applied, it’s hard to be the shining star so I used my resources. You making think it’s “cheating” but I think it’s being smart. </p>
<p>Regardless of what you or others think, I am thrilled to be going to UMich next year.</p>
<p>Thanks again for those with the kind words :)</p>
<p>You guys do realize that she had to get the internship in the first place, right? She probably had to beat out many other smart and talented applicants. And then she went on to impress him enough that he offered to write a letter of recommendation for her. That’s a pretty great qualification in itself.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>this is false, and youll find that out very quickly once you get out into the real world</p>
<p>plus, the op personally built the relationship which got her the rec, it wasnt just handed to her, and im pretty sure her motivation for working with kerry wasn’t that it would help her get into umich.</p>
<p>congrats to the op!</p>
<p>Without good recommendations a resume is meaningless. But, relationship building IS a qualification, and it should be. The school, like any institution, is looking for people who can succeed, who can learn from what they are offering, and who can put it to use in the world. Any evidence that you have been able to put your skills and talents to use in the world IS a qualification, or a “hook” as some like to call it on this board, evidence of the ability to do well in more than one area, proof you will bring something extra to the campus. That said, I do hope very much that you will end up getting the result you want, as well. You have obviously worked very hard, as has the OP, and you have had to apply to college in a very competitive year when everyone had to use everything they had to even get offered the waitlist. I sincerely wish you all the best in your pursuit of an education, which is nothing but commendable!</p>