<p>Hi UChicago,
I was wondering if the admissions committee will decide the waitlist results after we send the final report or before we send them. How much do second semester senior year grades matter in terms of being taken off the waitlist.
Should we send in our newer grades if they improved? Does it hurt me if my grades fell and I don’t send my grades in?
Do you recommend that I send in a list of new activities?
If I didn’t complete the optional essay would you recommend that I send in a new one?
Do our regional admissions officers decide if I will be taken off the waiting list?
Also around when will be hear back from UChicago? What is the typical date and the typical last date?
Thanks so much!</p>
<p>Hi Collegehoping, we do hope that, should the waitlist remain open once you have a final grade report available, you will send that to us. Extra essays and lists of new activities are not impactful in our decision making-- please do not feel a need to send them. As with all of our decisions, many people in our office will be involved in the decision to offer any student a place off of the wait list, but your regional counselor will be your primary advocate and contact person. We do not know when or if we will begin to be able to make waitlist offers, but students should assume they will hear back no earlier than May 1, and should plan to accept an offer of admission to a school to which they have been accepted before May 1.</p>
<p>I really mean this, UChicago:</p>
<p>As one who, a few years ago, made it off of the waitlist in a year in which I would later find out was borderline impossible to do so (which makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and whatnot), I remember being informed by a very matter-of-fact phone call in mid-May by my regional person. I said “YES!!!” so quickly that I got a completely un-ironic “Wait, is that a yes?” in response. I never even got one of those fancy fat envelopes I’ve heard so much about. </p>
<p>It didn’t bother me at all, and obviously it’s not a real grievance, but I’d love it if admissions came up with a way to inform the wait list acceptees in a manner befitting just how long and agonizing of a wait it can be, and the extra work they have put into their application. Do you know how tough it is to wait until May 20whateverth to get into UChicago? There are you-made-it-in-early notes, and those are fine. There are likely-letters, which are understandable. I’m sure the regular acceptance letters were nice as well, and I’ve already received a fundraising email with the subject line “Congratulations. You’ve been admitted to the University of Chicago.” You’ve seen the language in it. </p>
<p>But in the staggered, rolling, unceremonious world of the wait-list, I would just encourage you to consider how you would feel if, several months after the original decisions went out, plans made with smidgeon (or more) of disappointment to attend another college, you were informed that you had been accepted to UChicago and wanted to go. What manner of conveyance of that message (other than its content) would put a smile on your face?</p>
<p>For example, I would have enjoyed it if the phone call featured a:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Live guitar solo and an Journey-style “YOU’VE BEEEEEEN ACCEPTTTTEDDD!”</p></li>
<li><p>A recording of the above.</p></li>
<li><p>After you have informed them, a reaction on a par with that of the student’s response. (They: “Sweet!” You: “I know, right!?” They: “Are you kidding? I’m going to Harvard!” You: “Good! We didn’t want you here anyway!”)</p></li>
</ul>
<p>And later:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>An obnoxiously large package including a carnival-style Teddy bear wearing a t-shirt that says “We couldn’t BEAR to not have you here!” </p></li>
<li><p>A photo-manipulated poster of Can’t Hardly Wait that featured some sort of crazy UChicago shennanigans.</p></li>
<li><p>At the very least, that fat envelope. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Surely, you all can think up something in the next month and a half?</p>
<p>this is enormously helpful – thanks!</p>
<p>Hi, UChicago,</p>
<p>I was wondering if my letter of continued interest should be sent via snail mail (so I can sign it), emailed as an attachment, or both.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Being a waitlisted student is really like a torture but meanwhile a slight luck because I still have such a SLIM chance to be taken off. That’s why I’ve realized that reality is cruel, but dream is still (and always) sweet.</p>
<p>Really thanks for your heartfelt advice, UChicago!</p>
<p>And I have the same concern as dramafox8 and hope you can help make our confusion fade away! Thanks very much in advance!</p>
<p>I understand that UofChicago is able to meet demonstrated need but I was wondering if the waitlist is need-blind for students needing financial aid (domestic)?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance - this thread has been very helpful!</p>
<p>UChicagoGrad, we’ll work on getting our bagpipers involved-- they’re likely busy practicing for Convocation, but you never know! :)</p>
<p>dramafox and unbeatable, please feel free to send the note via email. Paper mail just takes us a bit more time to process and, we assure you, we’ll consider your information whether or not your letter was signed.</p>
<p>brokenrecords, we remain need-blind for the wait list as well.</p>
<p>Hey uchicago, I was just wondering how do they determine which students get admitted from the waitlist and also when are they notified. Also, could you tell me whether the number of waitlisted students are under or above 1000?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>Hi UChicago, </p>
<p>Firstly, I am extremely honored to be in th waitlist; UChicago is my dream school, and just the opportunity to still be admitted is great. </p>
<p>That said, I was wondering whether any additional writing, perhaps to gain a better understanding of the applicant, would seem superfluous? I mention this besides the recommended email. I understand that it is a really hectic time for the adcoms, and that they are likely barraged with such requests… Perhaps if I made it somewhat entertaining? Haha…</p>
<p>Congratulations on the huge number of applicants this year! :)</p>
<p>utbeatsou, we are still waiting to hear from all of the students we have given the opportunity on the wait list to let us know whether they would like to remain on it, so we do not have an official number at this point. We’re not sure when we will be able to make offers off of the wait list, or what factors we will need to consider if we are able to accept students to round out our class, but it will likely not be until after May 1, so we want to make sure waitlisted students accept a place at a school to which they’ve been accepted. </p>
<p>hy1080, glad to hear that you are still excited about UChicago. It is not necessary to send additional writing; additional material beyond the letter of continued interest is not something that will be impactful in our decision making, so it is really not necessary to send it. Of course we will still read it if it is sent, but we encourage you to spend your effort indicating your interest in your note, and considering the other options you have at schools to which you have been accepted.</p>
<p>Hi UChicago,
Along with the note of interest, I would also like to send my Semester 2 grades for consideration. So should I send them to my regional counselor via email or upload them onto the UChicago portal?
And since I am an international student and I did request for financial aid, would you say that chances of getting any sort of financial aid exists if I am admitted from the waitlist? Or is it just wishful thinking on my part?</p>
<p>Hi there, UChicago,</p>
<p>First of all, thanks for your answer!</p>
<p>There’s still one thing on my mind about the letter of continued interest. I was wondering if, after I send it as an attachment of my email (to make it look more formal), I should expect a response from my regional counselor to ensure myself that s/he has read it. Or, is it recommended that I shouldn’t expect a reply to my e-mail? </p>
<p>Your answer will be deeply appreciated! Thank you very much! No matter what, I truly feel crazy about Uchicago - I will set my heart on it FOREVER! 
Haha</p>
<p>applepie, you are welcome to send your semester 2 grades; email would be the best method to communicate them. We remain able to meet 100% of demonstrated need for all students, including international students (so long as you have already submitted your aid application). </p>
<p>unbeatable, we do our best to try to reply to every letter we receive, but rest assured that not receiving a reply does NOT mean that your letter was not read. We do make sure regional counselors look over every note they receive from waitlisted students.</p>
<p>Hi UChicago,</p>
<p>I was looking at my UChicago account and it now says “Attention Transfer Applicants” and gives me a checklist for transfer applicants. Does this mean my wait list request somehow did not go through or I was rejected?</p>
<p>Also, if I would like to submit an update on recent awards I won after I submitted my application or any community service projects I have been organizing, do I send an email to my regional admissions officer or do I upload an updated resume to my UChicago account? What about when it comes to submitting a short essay? What is the deadline for submitting these materials?</p>
<p>Thank you for all the help!</p>
<p>Hi UChicago. I was so disappointed to be wait listed as U Chicago has always been and remains my first choice. I have already communicated with my rep but feel like the waiting is so painful. Can you speak to years past, roughly how many students were admitted off the wait list that were not legacies.</p>
<p>zhstk, we’d suggest you submit your letter any time before May 1, although there is no formal deadline. It is not necessary to submit new essays or other material. A short note indicating your continued interest will suffice.
The notice in your account for transfer students is not anything to worry about-- we use the same style of accounts for all students and as transfer students are currently in the admissions process, the notice is posted for their convenience. You may disregard it if it is not relevant to you.</p>
<p>barbie4, in past years we have had a widely varying ability to admit students from our waiting list, from no students to many-- but our past ability does not have any bearing on our ability to do so this year. If we have spaces available when our admitted students have accepted or declined those offers, we will offer those places to waitlisted students.</p>
<p>Hi UChicago:</p>
<p>All jokes aside, having just received my second fundraising email about newly-admitted Class of 2017 (this time about “perseverance”), I can’t help but be a little annoyed.</p>
<p>On their behalf, I’m going to be optimistic and assume that there will be a handful of applicants who are admitted off of the wait list and join the Class of 2017 in May. If that’s the case, they have spent over a month being actively (and understandably) discouraged from associating themselves with UChicago, and enjoying any of the opportunities to get to know their college that April affords admitted students. No “two-day long visits to campus with hundreds of other students,” no “overnight component,” and no “all sorts of class visits, and ability to meet with different faculty and administrators.” (And that aside, last choice at housing as well.) </p>
<p>In short, no way to get to know their college as an admitted student. All of that is a simple function of being on the wait list, and the make-other-plans advice currently being given to those on the wait is both decent and makes perfect sense, given the long odds. (And everyone on the wait list should follow it.) But the Class of 2017 is still the Class of 2017, whether they have been admitted on December 15 or May 31. </p>
<p>So my question is, does admissions now make any attempt to reach out or catch these students up on what they have missed, beyond just the logistics that come with matriculating late? Or are they simply encouraged to be very, very proactive? When I arrived for O week, I felt as though I was over a month behind, but I seem to recall paying the same tuition as everyone else. </p>
<p>There’s obviously no way to replicate an entire month of admitted students activities, opportunities, or experiences for students who have been accepted in May. In which case, an earnest attempt or gesture would be nice. If it’s a small group, get Dean Boyer or Jim Nondorf to give a brief congratulatory phone call to each of them once they’ve decided to matriculate, and a make a proactive offer to schedule a longer conversation with another admissions officer to answer any questions. Or some sort of other personal opportunity for the last admitted members of the Class of 2017 to get to know UChicago as the future students they are. </p>
<p>Or perhaps something along these lines already goes on that I’m not aware of?</p>
<p>UChicago, I was also wondering if waitlisted students have to send the remainder of financial aid documents, such as the signed 2012 tax returns, to the financial aid office?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>