College Admissions Decisions - how they work

Applying to College
1

You know how most liberal arts colleges have the April 1st response deadline thingy - does anyone know if when they say April 1st, do they mean they will have all the responses mailed out before April 1st, responding as they review the applications (in that regard, how to thy order the applications to be reviewed - by last name?!?! or by the date they received it?) or do they mail ALL the regular decision responses at that date (give or take a few days)?

I’m guessing that as they process them and review the applications they send the replies out to the applicants. Like the first applications they review will be the first people to receive responses…Anyone know?

2

<p>Last year when my son and I were visiting colleges during his spring break at the end of March, we were at a top university on the east coast on the day decision envelopes were mailed... all mailed at the same time. We saw the mailroom workers transporting dozens of handtrucks stacked with postal totes each jammed full of envelopes. Everything was mailed to everyone on the same day. I believe this is the common practice.</p>

3

<p>my pomona acceptance letter was sent priority mail. i felt so bad when i called my friends to see if they got in, but their rejection letters came a day or two later.</p>

4

<p>Awesome thanks. I just want to know if I'll be getting an early surprise :)</p>

<p>So I guess they mail the RD responses out at the same time...anyone have a different opinion?</p>

5

<p>Generally, they mail the reject/waitlist mail thingys a few days earlier than the priority packages so they are received the same time.</p>

6

<p>A few schools will surprise you but most (top 25)are very firm on their date and many post it on the internet at a cetain hour on a certain day. You get the letter a few days after</p>

7

<p>So I guess I do have to wait...</p>

<p>Why can't April 1 be tomorrow!!</p>

8

<p>Actually, many schools have on line notification, and a lot of schools just below the top "jumped the gun" last year in notifications.</p>

<p>Go cruise the old boards.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

9

<p>Thread for Dartmouth likley letters. I would also suggest checking Williams and Amherst</p>

<p><a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Link for Amherst</p>

<p><a href="http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeconfidential.com/discus/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

10

<p>Well thanks to all who responded - I guess I get to wait until April! Oh well, hopefully I'll forget about them by then and early April all of a sudden I'll get some letters and be like "oh yeah, college." :)</p>

11

<p>Last year Wash U actually UPS'd my acceptance in mid-March...a couple of others came before April 1st, but those schools actually said that decisions would be available before then. For the rest, of the schools that said April 1, the decisions were available April 1st and all the letters somehow managed to come on April 2nd. Dartmouth, Princeton, and Hopkins all said that the decisions would be available on April 2nd, and those letters were actually in my mailbox on April 2nd.</p>

12

<p>What about international students? Do they get mail in the second week of april if they live in asia?</p>

13

<p>Last year, a number of Ivy level schools sent admissions letters to internationals by overnight courier. With email and online notice, it may be less of an issue.</p>