Hi guys, I’m a new member on CC, and I have a quick question:
I have been recently waitlisted at a couple of my dream schools, and I am writing my letter of continued interests to each of them right now. A friend of mine advised me to promise to “definitely enroll if admitted” on all of my letters; she said that everybody does it and the colleges won’t care if I don’t stick to my promise. Is that true?
On one hand, it’s a tempting, albeit morally questionable, idea to maximize my chances at the schools by putting on this promise, but on the other hand, I don’t want to mess up the chances of others on the waitlist and I really don’t want any trouble.
Their WL spot for you is conditional. If they offer you a spot is DEFINITELY conditional. Your “promise” is conditional as well. I see no incongruity stating what your friend suggests you say. There is no trouble to be had. When and if any offers come in, you evaluate it in that context. If fine, then enroll. If not, then you’re free to decline.
Your chances of getting off the waitlist often increases if you have strong support from your high school college counselor. Depending on your school, its size and prestige, your counselor may have strong relationships with the regional representatives of the colleges that wait listed you. So having him/her advocating for you is a strong plus. Share your communication with the wait listed college with your counselor. As you would gather from this advice you need to be brutally honest. If you say that you will attend if they take you off the waiting list you must mean it.
Hahaha at the idea that colleges “know” H’s guidance counselors. Unless you’re at an elite private or super affluent public school, the GC is just a name on a piece of paper to the college.
Maybe I’m just old fashioned, but I would not write “definitely enroll if admitted” if there’s a chance of turning the school down. Never burn bridges if it can be avoided - who knows, you could be needing a transfer school down the road.
Guys thank you so much for the replies! I’m probably not going to promise every college to enroll upon admission, but if I do, I’m hoping that the colleges won’t be like “oh you said you would enroll if we take you, but you didn’t, so we are going to send cops to your house” lol
Make sure you look at section C2 of the common data set for the schools at which you are waitlisted. This will tell you how many students were waitlisted and how many were offered spots in past years.
For example, DS was waitlisted at Haverford and choose not to accepted a spot after looking at the common data set. According to the 2015 CDS, 831 kids were waitlisted, 368 accepted spots and 5 were offered spots.
If “everybody does it” then adding the phrase means nothing, since colleges already know they are empty words. If most people only do it that mean it, it might be worth asking yourself when/where you will draw the line at taking unethical advantage.