Do I write letter of interest to Harvard for waitlist?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>I've been waitlisted to Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia. I know for Columbia, they accept a one-page letter, but for Harvard (and Princeton), can I do the same? Does it hurt? I'll talk about recent awards and updates to my EC's? Anyone know?</p>

<p>Here's helpful info I've dugged up for you waitlisters:</p>

<p>To assist students in the spring of 2012 who are placed on the waitlist for the Harvard College Class of 2016 and look back at this thread for guidance on what they might expect to happen, this note tries to provide a summary to date of this year’s Harvard College waitlist postings on College Confidential.</p>

<p>On May 12, 2011, the Harvard Crimson newspaper reported that almost 77% of the students offered admission had accepted, and hence that Harvard would likely admit only 10-15 students from the waitlist for admission to the Class of 2015. This number presumably did not include an additional number of students who would be offered admission to the Class of 2016 with a mandatory gap year.</p>

<p>On May 17, a first wave of e-mails consisting of a few admissions (for either the Class of 2015 or, following a gap year, the Class of 2016) and many rejections was sent out. Each of the admissions was apparently preceded by a phone call to the student from the regional admissions officer several days earlier.</p>

<p>On June 6, a second wave of rejections was transmitted by e-mail. It is unclear whether this wave included any admissions.</p>

<p>On June 20, a third wave of admissions (again, for either the Class of 2015 or the Class of 2016) and of rejections was transmitted by e-mail (again, with each of the admitted students having apparently gotten a phone call from the regional admissions officer several days earlier).</p>

<p>It is unclear whether any students still remain on the waitlist at this time.</p>

2

<p>See: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1318440-what-do-when-youre-waitlist.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1318440-what-do-when-youre-waitlist.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>Send the letter. Harvard will want to know that it is your top choice (only say so if that is the case) and that if offered you will accept admission.</p>

4

<p>I still don’t understand. Does Harvard Admission Office tell you who your admission officer is, then, do you refer to them in your letter? I was just going to write “To whom it may concern” or “Dear Admissions Officer”–somewhere along those lines.</p>

5

<p>Harvard Admissions does not publish a list of Officers email addresses, nor do they readily give them out. If you are lucky, when you call the Admissions Office, a Harvard student, who is on a work-study program, might answer the phone. You will have to “sweet talk” them, and if you are successful, they might give you your Admissions Director’s direct email. If not, you can always send your update letter to: <a href=“mailto:fileroom@fas.harvard.edu”>fileroom@fas.harvard.edu</a>.</p>

6

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<p>And rightly so. I can’t imagine them getting anything done otherwise.</p>

7

<p>^ Yale and Stanford publish Admissions Officers names and email addresses right on their website. Harvard and Princeton do not. Maybe that’s one of the reasons why YS are seen as more user-friendly.</p>