Hi guys! I haven’t seen a form for all waitlisted students for the class of 2024. What are our chances of getting off the waitlist??
The good news is that Boston College actually takes people off the wait list. My daughter was wait listed and this was her dream school. She opted in and then went on a mission to let them know how interested she was. She had the email of her regional recruiter and sent a few follow up emails (spaced out appropriately). They were not very long, but each one contained some kind of update or a note about what she would do if accepted. She also had a few alumni recommendations from her teachers. Be patient - she did not get off the wait list until June! Today she is a junior and loving every moment. Good luck.
@ FridayKat
Just curious as to how Financial Aid works in regards to the waitlist. Did your daughter receive any once accepted?
Thanks!
Thanks so much for making this!
I’m in the same pool: I was waitlisted for the class of 2024. Some info on me—
- I'm a white male who goes to a Jesuit all-male HS in St. Louis. (Go Blues!)
- I got a 34 composite and super on my act and have a 3.97 UW GPA that has been going up since freshman year.
- I've taken 7 aps: BC Calc, Spanish, GoPo, CoGo, Psych, US History, and World (I go to a top highschool so more were available. My schedule wasn't very hard 9-11th)
- My ECs are my strong suit. Here was all that was on my common app: Senior advisor, two year v tennis captain (team got 2nd at state last year and was set to win it all this year) and a four year player, STUCO Spirit Leader (organize student sections and pep rallies), ACES member (social justice and diversity club), graduate of Youth Leadership St. Louis which is a selective community immersion and leadership program, went on the Kino border Initiative immersion trip, staff on weekly school newspaper, weekly tutor in 10th and 11th at city language immersion school, Admissions Ambassador, and 30 hr/week worker during breaks as a waiter at a CC.
- I hate when people grade their own essays on this platform so I wont do the same.
- In terms of expressed interest, I went on a tour. On the website they said that emails to Admissions Officer like wouldn't be considered, so I took the hint.
What’s changed since my app:
- My GPA has continued to improve.
- I was set to go on an immersion trip to Honduras, lead Kairos retreat, and in January, I tutored at a gradeschool for 40 hrs/week but this was mandatory senior service project.
- I got promoted to core staff member of the weekly newspaper.
- my parents got their divorce finalized. This specifically was the reason that I couldn’t ED to BC—I wasn’t sure in november what my family’s financial status was going to be in a few months so I couldn’t make such a big commitment.
- I appled Arts and Sciences undecided. I now know I want to dub major in PoliSci and education.
All the info I got on BC’s waitlist:
-Yes, they historically have 75-300 spots left, for an Active waitlist of 2500 https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/admission/sites/wait-list.html
- This means that the waitlist 'acceptance rate ranges from 3%-12%.
- You have the opportunity to write a continued interest letter. assuming that half of the waitlist consists of kids who didn’t write this letter, your chanced are a little better than the previously stated stats if you write it.
- BC does typically offer financial aid for its waitlist kids—I came to that conclusion after reading the 2023 waitlist thread.
- You won’t get 4 year housing.
- tranferring to BC is notoriously difficult, so it’s kinda this or nothing.
- there will be absolutely no waitlist movement until May 1 (because they don’t know how many kids will accept admissions offer)
- admissions this year for BC was slightly down but that takes into account the ED kids who have a gaurenteed spot.
Some questions I hope could be answered by this thread:
Could someone who was accepted after waitlish give a detailed explanation of the steps they took to get off and maybe even share their letter of interest?
Do waitlist students recieve FA?
What are the disadvantages of being accepted off of waitlist?
When should we expect decisions specifically?
I got waitlisted to BC, BU, GW, and probably soon, Northeastern lol. Kind of a college admissions horror story lol. But even so, BC has and will continue to be at the top of my list. Its definately been a difficult last couple of days. I made a commitment to not let college admissions rule my senior year a few months ago. I have been incredibly involved in stuff in HS because I genuinely like to be involved, not because I thought my commitments would get me into a good college. I kinda regret that mindset now. 
@ohmyohmyohmy thanks for the info on BC’s waitlist. Honestly, at this point, I think all we can do is have a plan to go somewhere if we do not get off the waitlist. This year has been crazy for college admissions, and a lot of people might decide to not attend BC because of things like the Coronavirus or not being able to afford it. BC is also my top choice. Best of luck!!
Yes! Thank you for the information!
As noted in #1, reach out to your Regional Rep.
Uh, no. Wrong question. Instead of a LOI, write a ‘Why BC?’ letter; show not tell, why you are a good fit for BC. In other words, what do you bring to the educational and service community?
Yes.
Only 3 years of on-campus housing. But then a lot of RD’s only receive 3 years of housing.
WL is typically held open until late June.
fwiw: while a gamble, BC is an awesome education so playing the WL game is worth it, IMO. In the meantime, fully engage in whowever shows you the March love.
Good luck.
They only do in years when they have room to do so.
During years when the number of those accepting admission is higher than what BC projected, then the waitlist can get little to no movement.
With 6000 on BC’s waitlist this year, here’s another way of looking at the situation.
Being on the waitlist means it’s time to focus and put all your energy into your “Plan B” schools. Nothing about getting off the waitlist is in your control. BC, like any school, will look to see who accepts admission by May 1st. If there are available slots (some years there are none), then it will selectively pick and choose off it’s waitlist to round out the diversity for the incoming class it’s trying to build.
Here’s a link to a great CC discussion on waitlists. Although it’s a few years old, it’s still relevant today and relevant to competitive schools like BC.
Being on BC’s waitlist is a big blow. But even being on it means you possess some very strong skills. Pretty soon the blow of being waitlisted will become a distant memory as you succeed at your next opportunity.
All the best.
@jpm50 Clearly the odds are not great, so not sure why you wanted to restate the obvious. However, some colleges have already conceded that they will likely take more kids off the waitlist this year. Also, I disagree that there’s nothing to do to get off the waitlist. Writing a LOCI is very important to show admissions you are still interested.
Would you mind sharing some of the topics she shared in emails ?
Crazymocha:
Yes, letting BC know you want to remain on their waitlist (LOCI) should be done.
I wrote what I did in comment #8 because it isn’t obvious for so many. They hold onto hopes for BC for way too long, resulting in a harder fall in the end.
Are you implying there are things an applicant can control to improve their chances?
That’s fair. I guess I assumed most people had already come to terms with the realities of being waitlisted. And besides the LOCI, I agree not much can be done.
Hi! I was waitlisted at BC for the class of 2023 and I was taken off of the waitlist on June 4th. If BC is truly your first choice and would like to pursue the waitlist, I highly recommend writing a letter of interest that outlines what you have achieved in the time since your initial application. I wrote how I would be an additive member in the BC community as well as what I have been doing in school and outside of school. If you do not say that BC is your first choice and if offered a place in the class, it is very unlikely that you will be taken off the waitlist. In addition to writing this letter, it’s important that you email your admissions rep once or twice (but not too much) as well as stay in touch with your school counselor.
There are no disadvantages to being accepted off of the waitlist, only positives if BC is your dream school. None of the other students will know that you were waitlisted unless you specifically tell them.
Last year, admissions decisions started to come out the second and third weeks of May and into early June. However, with ED I and ED II being introduced this year, I think that BC will not be going to the waitlist as extensively as they have in the past. I would not lose hope because it is still possible but I think it is important to note.
If you have any other questions please feel free to ask me! Good luck to everyone who was waitlisted!
@bc2023 Thank you for your message. I have a few questions
- How much will it hurt my chances that all of my spring EC’s have been put on hold for obvious reasons? I still have a few updates but this will limit them
- What should I email my rep about if we are supposed to submit the LOCI online?
- Is it worth emailing my school councilor?
- Should I wait closer to May 1 to send a LOCI or write it ASAP and then follow up with one or two updates?
- Everyone is in the same boat so to speak, so your spring EC's will be no different than every other applicant's.
- You can draft a 1-2 page LOCI and attach it to an e-mail. Make sure that you write that you will immediately accept an offer of the WL if true. (They don't want to waste time with cycles.) The key to the LOCI is answering 'Why BC?'. Show, don't tell, on why you are a good fit for BC, what you bring to the educational community. (Don't fall into the typical 18-year old trap of telling them why they are a great fit for you.)
- Sure, if your GC has an existing relationship with BC.
- Last week of April.
Good luck. (My D got off the WL and it was well worth it.)
Uh oh. I feel like I made the mistake about #2. Do you think I should submit another LOCI or am I out of luck?
I was waitlisted last year.
I believe I was among the first to be accepted off waitlist on May 22, 2019.
You MUST send LOCI.
Make it personal about what you will do at BC, how you fit in and will add to BC if given the opportunity.
I was checking the board continually to see when we would hear. On the previous year (2018 class of 2022) some received offers on May 10. So when May 10 came and passed, I figured it was over.
Then on May 22 I received email with decision (exactly the same as the decision emails of early action and regular decision) that had a decision letter accepting me.
It gave 5 days to accept the admittance.
At that point I had accepted the fact that I would be going elsewhere and got very into the mindset of going to the school that I had sent a deposit to. It took me a few days to decide to switch back to BC as it was my first choice.
I think( not know) that others had the same difficulty at that point as BC it seemed sent out a few acceptances off the waitlist at a time starting May 22 through some point in June when they filled the very few spots that opened up.
Note that last year was totally different. As BC removed the early action restriction last year, many who applied to Ivies and other difficult schools also applied to BC which is why their early application numbers increased from approx 5k to almost 16K early action last year.
While 1k seats this year are locked up bc of early decision numbers and only 1300 seats remain, who knows how the current climate of the world will impact decisions. Many families may opt for schools that give more Money than BC.
You will not be able to know how many BC takes off the waitlist (could be zero, could be a lot) until you hear. So if you want to go, send a great LOCI and be hopeful, but don’t despair as things work out and happiness doesn’t lie in 1 place.
Good luck
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Hi,
I emailed my officer my LOCI on Saturday, and I haven’t gotten a response yet. Should I be worried. Do the officers respond? I am definitely being like paranoid and that they are busy rn, but it would be good to know if I have to further reach out.
Patience, grasshopper. The Reps have been working 18+ hour days for several months. Once regular decisions are posted, late March early April is when they get some (deserved) time off before they get back to the job and WL’s.