@gibby Does anyone (maybe you would) know about how many people have been taken off the waitlist in more recent years?
^^ Last year, 93 students were admitted from the waitlist: https://college.ha.rvard.edu/admissions/admissions-statistics
I suspect they try to keep a balanced class, so if a tuba player, a Native American, and a math whiz all decide to go to Stanford instead of Harvard, then H may look to fill those slots with waitlisters who can replace those talents.
If the student was waitlisted as a courtesy (rather than outright denied) as I described a few posts up, I guess they would continue to be passed by.
I agree YP do the same, however they publish the number of waitlistees, and how many are taken later. Harvardās mystery numbers allow dreamers to dream, and keep public relations and fundraising campaigns cheerier.
Iāve heard the tuba player example a lot, does anyone know how valid that is? Iām just wondering because I play an instrument but donāt intend to play much in college (I indicated that in my application). However, I also could play if there is an opportunity to - or do they only care if you are a top player? This question is really specific and hypothetical so I doubt people have answers but just wanted to hear peopleās thoughts.
I just deleted my LOCI sent on May 1st and sent in an updated one from my portal. Is it too late for them to see this updated LOCI or is there a chance they wonāt check my app again and see it?
Someone in the Harvard 2020 groupme said that they got in off of the waitlist.
Actually not true
Interesting my son was on this waitlist as well as the Stanford waitlist for 2020. On Friday he got the call from Stanford and he is very happy and will take his name off the Harvard list on Monday. We live in New England so I was hoping for Harvard 
but I certainly did not want him to keep waiting for Harvard and miss out on Stanford which he slightly preferred anyway. I wonder if Stanford always acts more quickly?
Good luck everyone!!
Hopefully weāll be hearing some news this week!
@NewStanFordMom Just curious, why would you prefer Harvard over Stanford? Both are very good, but Stanford has a much stronger Engineering (not sure if your son is Engineering). Stanford also has much better weather than Harvard and is located in silicon valley. Between Harvard and Stanford, it is hard to go wrong with either. He should definitely accept the Stanfordās offer. Congrats on the admission!
Does anyone know how Harvard Z list work? Like I know what it is, but what differentiate students between directly admitted from waitlist and students placed on Z list from waitlist?
@NewStanfordMom congratulations!! this is awesome Stanford is an amazing school as well
@NewStanfordMom Congratulations! Stanford admissions decisions came out the week before Ivy day so maybe that is why Stanford is already making waiting list decisions. Either way, that is awesome. Stanford is statistically the most difficult school to get into.
@fauve Your comment about vals and sals being waitlisted but not really being considered for admission is very interesting. When my son, the val of his school, got waitlisted at Harvard, his guidance counselor told me he will not get in because the sal got in. He continued to tell me that my son and the sal are equal academically but that that she has way more ECs so she is the stronger candidate. He argued that because they are both NMF, they are equal academically. My son will have taken 15 APs by the time he graduates, which puts him at the very top of our state. He is at least 5 APs ahead of the sal, so his weighted GPA is significantly higher than hers. Based on 4 years of work at our school where this counselor works, my son is #1 and she is #2. They are not co-valedictorians. And ECs are very subjective. My son has done more sports than the sal but the sal has done one sport and more clubs. The sal is a female so I didnāt really think they were in direct competition with each other, but I guess I was wrong. I let the guidance counselor have a piece of my mind. I might be paranoid, but I felt like he had had this conversation before with someone at Harvard. If the guidance counselor is not going to advocate for my son, who will? But it just made me think about the mindset of these schools. They are looking for more than great academics and will sacrifice some academics if they think one kid is more well rounded than the other. Or if one student seems to have more support from the high school, that probably makes a difference too.
@m22boys Thatās a very interesting story! Thank you for sharing. College admissions especially that of top schools is really a mystery. You never know what they exactly wantā¦ Which school did your son end up going to?
@Wreckdecembersat The entire admissions process has been a nightmare so far. My son is still on 4 waiting lists including Harvard. He is on the list for Dartmouth (he is the legacy of legacy there but we know Dartmouth is not moving its waiting list), Tufts (this is where both of his parents went to medical school but I read that Tufts has not used the waiting list at all in the past 5-10 years!), and Rice (we have family in Houston but no other connection there). I honestly thought his chances of getting off the waiting list at Harvard and Rice were better than at Dartmouth or Tufts because schools donāt want to reject legacies. Dartmouth did not even interview him even though we visited this summer. He applied too late to interview for Tufts but his numbers are too high for Tufts that Tufts probably thought he would never attend. I read that they call it Tuftsā syndrome. He was rejected by 3 schools. I regret that I did not have him apply to my undergraduate alma mater (Cal Berkeley). I just felt that he would get lost in the huge school that really doesnāt take care of the students well.
Anyway, my son had no admissions as of May 1. His counselor told him the week before Ivy Day that he needed to apply to our state college system where the top 10% of graduating seniors get free tuition. I just felt like his counselor knew that this would happen before it happened. My son did apply and get in, but he wants to leave the state and the counselor knows that we have the money and are more than willing to fund his college education. He has secured admissions to Arizona State University and can use his National Merit Finalist status to get free tuition. He has to apply to Barrett Honors College by 5/31. He has applied to Clemson on the recommendation of a friend of a friend. And we wait, but at least he has somewhere to go in the fall.
@m22boys Iām so sorry that you have to go through this painful process. These schools are highly selective and I think everyone whoās given a chance on the wait list should feel grateful - yes I agree that the process is very very unpredictable and somewhat unfair but considering the number of people who apply makes me glad that they at least read my application and considered my case. I totally understand your frustration and I hope that in the near future you will hear great news from these schools!
Also, no matter where you son end up going for college, Iām more than certain he will do amazing things, based off what you described - 15 APs throughout high school and many extracurricular activities are not something that can be accomplished by many studentsā¦ Also there is grad school so you never know what the future holds. Best of luck on everything!!!
@idkName: My guess is that students taken off the waitlist resemble admits who turned Harvard down for another college. Z-Listed students meanwhile are students that Harvard really liked, but didnāt fit into the mosaic of the class Admissions was building this year.
@gibby Do we have any statistics on the numbers placed on the z list each year?
^^ As far as Iām aware, Harvard doesnāt publish those statistics.
@m22boys Iām sorry the app season has been so rough for your family. Your sonās academic record is exceptional, so it is natural to expect him to top the salutatorian, However, there are so many unknown factors that the college may see and weigh.
Your son had the stats, no doubt. But perhaps the Sal presented her passion for her ECs through the essays or accomplishments outside of school that you are unaware of. Adcoms look carefully at the GCās character ratings as they are looking for mature, humane students who might bring empathy, generosity, honesty, as well as the ability to ace classes, to the college community. Or the Sal could have a legacy or URM advantage, unknown to most.
If your son can see that his academic success is a foundation for his adult profession, rather than a game to clench an Ivy trophy, he can grow from this painful experience. Meanwhile, I wish him success on getting off a waitlist. (Has he written Tufts to say he would definitely attend if invited?) Best of luck.
@gibby if you are on the z-list are you allowed to enroll in another school for a year before attending Harvard?