<p>I recall reading sometime ago (I think it was Michele Hernandez' book) that the student should call the school the next day after he learns of an ED/EA deferral, and ask to speak with his regional admissions officer. The intention of the call is to politely ask if there is anything the student could do to improve his application and to reiterate that the school is still his number choice. This sounds pushy to me. What have been your experiences? S plans to send a letter sometime in early March updating the Adcoms of any significant achievements at that time and let them know that the school remains his number one choice.</p>
<p>^ I think your S's plan sounds like a good one. He could also send an email to the regional adcom in March letting him know that he sent updates to his application to make the contact more "personal"...</p>
<p>I have read that adding more information is worthwhile (new ECs, awards, senior grades, I read on CC someone plans to make changes to his/her essay). My son was deferred at two schools and was eventually admitted to both of those schools. He DID NOTHING additionally. I think that he wrote them off as reaches, was admitted to other schools by then and was not about to "beg" or focus on a school "not wanting him". One of them offered him a sizable merit scholarship when he was admitted through the RD round. H and I were really surprised that he was admitted to both of them. We figured that he would be W/L or denied. We were wrong. At least your son is willing to face the situation head on and try to improve his application and the let admissions know that this school is still a number one choice.</p>
<p>OP I think it is a good plan. It is not being pushy, it is showing genuine interest in the school. Let S make any/all calls. Ask what he can do. Was is scores? grades? What do they suggest, if anything? THen update transcript after first semeter/term is done in Dec/Jan. Retake/update scores if appropriate. You could have additional letter of rec sent--different teachers who see a different side to S, a sponsor of a club where S stands out, even a boss who feels S is a valuable employee. Research if he has had any teachers who are alums who would take an interest in writing a letter about how its his first choice.</p>
<p>I DO NOT think his inquiring is pushy, nor is adding things to his folder--unless they specifically say not to.</p>
<p>Anyone who writes a letter on behalf of son, be sure he provides them with his resume and essay so they really see who he is. That is what you want to do, let the school see who he is and why he would be a good fit.</p>
<p>I wouldn't suggest calling the school immediately. The first few days after the ED decisions come out should be reserved for resolving genuine mistakes (e.g., "You just sent me an ED decision, but I applied RD.") rather than situations like the one you're talking about.</p>
<p>I think the student should take a few days to figure out what he can do to strengthen the application and send in the new material sometime in the next month or so. At that time, an e-mail (not a phone call, which is much more intrusive) to the regional admissions officer mentioning the new information and stating that the school is still the student's first choice might be in order.</p>
<p>DS's HS counselor called when he was deferred. I think the admissions officer was probably a little more open with her than he might have been with S. He told her he had been a strong advocate for my son, pointed out what had been considered weaknesses in his package and suggested some additional material he might submit (mostly a research paper in his area of interest that was reviewed by that department). He was accepted RD.</p>
<p>I already spoke to S' GC and she said schools do not want them to call. She is a really good counsellor and I really did not want to push it. Definitely, it would be S who would call, if he chooses to do so. I'll talk to him later.</p>
<p>Hearing about the conversation and the detail the admissions officer went into, I did not get the impression that the call was unusual or unwelcome. And I'm not sure my son would have been able to get as much useful information; he just wasn't as knowledgeable about the admissions process. (This was at Harvard.) In any event, it worked for him.</p>
<p>I agree that your son is on the right track. Last year DD was deferred at her first choice school (Yale) and did the same thing. She sent a cover letter expressing her disappointment that she was deferred and indicating that she would be favorably considered during RD. She attached a one page paper with two significant activities she had been involved in since the fall and that was that. Like Northstar's child she really put it out of her mind, never thinking in a million years that she would get good news in the Spring. She did. In fact more good news than she knew what to do with!</p>
<p>I really think the statistics give a false impression of how much more benign admissions is during the EA/ED round. If you remove athletes, URM's, and other kids they want to commit early, I don't think the rate of admission for the more usual candidates is much different from RD rate (if that made any sense?)</p>
<p>Anyway, good luck to your son, he seems like he is well grounded and sensible.</p>
<p>My son sent off the extra awards and two letters of recommendations from outside school - the two deferrals turned into rejections. Those recommendations went to the other schools however, and may well have helped there. I don't think he improved the rest of his application, but he could have.</p>
<p>Crunching the numbers at MIT, which is one of the few that actually gives enough numbers to the public to be able to do this, I think it's pretty clear that EA is still an advantage, overall kids who applied EA get in eventually (many are deferred) at twice the rate of those who apply regular. Still only one in four though. No way to know if they are also better candidates. Both of Mathson's EA schools (MIT and Caltech) specifically said they were welcome to send in more material.</p>
<p>I interviewed a girl for my school who called me and begged and begged ME to call the admissions office (the officer did know me). Honestly, I had been under the impression that they never tell alum interviewers anything, and I told her that but she wanted me to try. I was really surprised, he took my call and immediately told me why no acceptance. I guess HER calling would have been a better idea.</p>
<p>Has he already visited and interviewed? My son was deferred at two EA schools. My son had a mixed transcript and SAT scores with a gap of 140 points verbal versus math. I also knew that he did really well in interviews. I scheduled spring visits to both schools with appts to tour the school, visit classes and have a meeting with admissions. In both cases he interviewed well and was eventually accepted.</p>
<p>I don't know about calling the school, which seems a little pushy or emotional to me, but certainly contact from school GC or college counselor is appropriate to see if there is any way to strengthen the app in the RD round. It is also pretty common practice for the student to send a note reiterating interest in the school and providing any additional supporting information. That was the path followed when my D was waitlisted by her ED school several years ago.</p>
<p>Bad news/good news follow-up:
None of this worked in my D's case; she was waitlisted in the RD round by her ED school and several others. She declined spots on two of the waitlists and accepted places on three. She was admitted by one of the three schools with no additional effort on her part other than returning the postcard saying she would like to remain on the waitlist; the other two, which were her top choices, did not accept her off the waitlist, despite continued contact from the high school counselor (the high school was known to the admissions offices at the colleges), gracious notes from my D expressing continued interest in the two schools, and a nice little boost of letting the schools know about additional honors she had received from her high school in spring of senior year.</p>
<p>Happy ending, however: she attended the accepted students weekend at a school that had accepted her in the RD round but that she had not visited prior to acceptance; she liked it very much. When she got the call in early May offering her admission off the waitlist at the school referred to above, she visited that school again and found that she did not like it as much as the school she had gotten into and visited a few weeks earlier. So she declined the offer to come in off the waitlist and has not looked back. She expects to graduate from college this coming May, and has gotten an excellent education, worked very hard, had a great deal of fun, and made wonderful friends.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions. </p>
<p>mom60 - Yes, S has visited (several times), met with professors and TAs, and had a great interview. He will send in a letter reiterating his interest in the school and subsequently update them on his awards/etc. Interestingly, he has now let go and working on another application (he has already submitted the rest way before ED decisions came out). His ED school is a reach school, and, inspite of the outcome, he is still glad he tried.</p>
<p>mattmom - Thanks for sharing. In an odd sort of way, I am grateful that S may have more options come spring. This child is so resilient and easy-going that I have no doubt he will thoroughly enjoy his college years and gain a lot from the experience, wherever that may be. I'm glad to hear it worked out very well for your D.</p>
<p>** Do Not Call **</p>
<p>In all fairness, think about if every applicant deferred simply decided to call the admissions office of said school. . . . imagine if you were the 100th person.... probably not the best idea.</p>
<p>The best idea, in my opinion, is to do what was stated in a prior post and that is to send an additional letter reiterating your interest in the school and sending along any pertinent updates. </p>
<p>Calling the school is unnecessary I feel. Further, schools do not give reasons for deferring an applicant, so a phone call will not yield any new information. Send the letter- it's the best idea.</p>
<p>GL to all those deferred.</p>
<p>WealthOfInformation - S did not call but instead sent a letter letting the ED school know they are still his no. 1 choice - and has now let go. :)</p>
<p>This is very helpful - Thanks !!</p>
<p>Okay, I think this forum is divided on the call/not call issue. But the GC said to let her know so that she can call.</p>
<p>I still have a question about the timing of any additional information - can it be sent in Feb/Mar, or does it have to be sent before the RD deadline (which is 1/1 ??) It would be hard to update admission with any new information because not too much has happened since 11/1 ??</p>
<p>My d has some ideas about additional information to submit, but needs time to pull it all together !!</p>
<p>I vote for don't call, but if your GC is comfortable calling (and some have good connections to admissions officers), I'd be happy. In most cases I don't think there's any specific reason a kid was deferred. They were good enough, but just didn't grab anyone's attention.</p>
<p>S's GC told me she did not want to call. To quote, "They don't really like calls," so I deferred to her decision. NorthEastMom2, my S plans to send them an update by March 1 - if there are significant updates, that is. He has already sent out his letter reiterating his interest in the school. The GC will send out the mid-year report sometime in February, as required.</p>
<p>D did call immediately. She had met the actual Asst. Director of admissions when we went for interview. She was interviewed by senior student, but I spent the time speaking to this Asst. Director about applying ED when in need of financial aid. She was very encouraging.</p>
<p>Fast forward -- great interview, great fit for ED school, but deferred. D was upset and called. She even was a bit emotional to this Asst. Director insisting, "But you said I was perfect for school" or some such. Woman was a bit nonplussed and annoyed (who could blame her?), but D apologized profusely and said she was not communicating well and that wasn't what she meant.</p>
<p>Guess what? D was accepted RD!!!!!</p>
<p>S was also deferred ED. Family curse. He was more sedate. Did send in materials, but did not make phone calls. Also had a relationship with Asst. Director of admissions so he did not contact regional rep. Contacted prof whom he had sent supplementals too. He was rejected.</p>
<p>Happy ending: He now prefers his top RD acceptance school. In fact, I think he's been drinking a bit too much of the Cool Aid (sp?) he loves his school so much.</p>
<p>mountains: Good luck to your son! It's a stressful time, but things seem to work out.</p>