<p>So here's the scoop. I was waitlisted at WUSTL today. I'm disappointed to say the least. I was also deferred SCEA at Yale. Are my hopes absolutely destroyed for HYP (Y is my number 1), Duke, Dartmouth, and Creighton? I've already posted my stats before, (all things considered, I'm a very middle of the road applicant). I'm just curious if I should read into this waitlisting as a sign of things to come, or accept that WUSTL actually has "Tufts Syndrome".</p>
<p>I’m curious about what to think too. Yale is my number one choice, and I got waitlisted from WUSTL too. But I’m also curious because I just got a likely letter for UVA earlier this week.</p>
<p>UVA and WUSTL are in about the same bracket, so I’m wondering how I could get such a different response from each - one a waitlist, one an early notice because my application was “unusually strong.”</p>
<p>I also have a question regarding deferral. A lovely girl I know, who also applied to HYP, told me that deferral was as good as “thanks but no thanks.” How true is this?</p>
<p>Sounds like a case of Tufts Syndrome. I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Wash U is supposedly notorious for waitlisting candidates they believe to be “overqualified” out of fear that, if admitted, these “overqualified” candidates would choose Ivy League schools over Wash U and thus hurt Wash U’s yield.</p>
<p>This phenomenon isn’t well documented or proven to be statistically significant, but it’s popular speculation on these boards. Personally, I don’t think it’s too far from the truth, but I can’t give you anything outside of a bunch of anecdotal cases to support my claim.</p>
<p>What is “Tufts Syndrome”?</p>
<p>wrightm:</p>
<p>Admissions at these top schools can be unpredictable so your hopes should not be “absolutely destroyed”. On an earlier post you were advised that your list did not include safeties. Did you ever put in an applicaion to UW Madison? Your deferral at Yale is a good sign of the competitiveness of your application so long as you applied to some safeties and have options if HYP doesn’t come through.</p>
<p>A deferral is a “we like you a lot, but we like everyone else in the early pool more, so we’ll hold off your decision until later because we want to see if we like the RD applicants more too.”</p>
<p>Essentially, anyway.</p>
<p>Definitely do not agree with the “thanks, but no thanks” with deferral as these students do get admitted outright in the RD round.</p>
<p>Are there any stats for yield of deferred applications versus RD? I know of some ED late admits in past years but I think at lower rate than straight RD. </p>
<p>Sent from my ADR6300 using CC App</p>
<p>I did end up applying to Madison yalegradanddad. :D</p>
<p>Ugh I’m also in the same boat. I got waitlisted in WUSTL as well, which is not as competitive as HYP. This pretty much makes me think I have no chance for Yale 
Hopefully I’m wrong, though.</p>
<p>sunshinesmom - Tufts Syndrome is (depending on who you talk to) either an actual or mythical practice of protecting a college’s yield by waitlisting highly qualified applicants under the assumption that they wouldn’t enroll anyway. People speculate that places like WUSTL, and I guess Tufts, engage in this sort of thing because they expect their top applicants to accept admission at places like HYPS.</p>
<p>I have the exact same deal, deferred ea at Yale and waitlisted at wustl. </p>
<p>I’m from BC in Canada, and nobody from lower mainland BC was accepted, only deferred. Although I have heard people say that deferral is not a good sign, I do not agree
(maybe it’s because I am trying to keep my hopes high). Out of my school, 5 people applied EA and 3 got rejected, only 2 were deferred. I attend the best high school in BC and one of the best high schools in Canada, and 2 of the 3 that got rejected are literally out of the top 5 students in my school, so for me their rejections were a large surprise (I spoke of 2 because the other girl, also a top student and an outstanding ballerina, had a mistake made with the processing of her information, which she had not known until the decisions came out). I was originally disappointed with my deferral but the fact that they had “chosen” me for deferral over those other students was surprising for me, and I considered it an honour. </p>
<p>so all of you who were deferred at yale, be happy! think positive 
and same as the other schools. </p>
<p>we will all unavoidably be disappointed in several weeks, so let’s enjoy life for now :)</p>
<p>I am also in the exact same place! How odd. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for my Brown and Yale RD results :)</p>
<p>I think they do practice yield protection … I mean one of my friends that got into all of HYPS (Yale SCEA) got waitlisted. Same for another friend that got into S and M. Only anecdotal evidence though.</p>
<p>To be honest though, I’m not sure you should simply place the blame on yield protection unless you’re certain that you’re an absolutely stellar applicant. I’m not saying you aren’t (I haven’t seen your stats), but those mentioned above all had near perfect or perfect SAT and GPA, several amazing achievements at the national level, great essays, etc.</p>
<p>I’d think your Yale SCEA deferral means that you are at least competitive for a Yale acceptance so that should be a good sign :)</p>
<p>I’m basically in the same boat as you, wrightm! I didn’t apply to Yale early, but I was deferred by Georgetown (probably my top choice) and waitlisted by Wash U.</p>
<p>As for Tuft’s Syndrome . . . Wash U DEFINITELY practices yield protection. Almost the entire graph for Wash U on my school’s Naviance is filled with blue dots, and blue dots represent waitlisted applicants! It’s kind of ridiculous, in my opinion.</p>
<p>Yelopen, to respond to your comment, I wouldn’t be considered a stellar applicant, just a relatively good applicant.</p>
<p>OP and others, </p>
<p>I would not worry too much, as I know people who received likely letters from Columbia who were waitlisted at WUSTL. Chalk that up to small sample size if you wish, but it’s something to assuage your fears. Also, the SCEA deferral, like others have mentioned, is not a death knell for your college dreams - I was deferred SCEA stanford but got likely’s to three ivy league schools.</p>
<p>all you peoples complaining about getting waitlisted at WUSTL… I just got straight up rejected.
[WUSTL</a> RD Official Decisions Thread, my post](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12139359-post60.html]WUSTL”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12139359-post60.html)
I think we’ll all be alright for Yale.</p>
<p>@YeloPen, that’s reassuring</p>
<p>I don’t know if WashU succumbs to “Tufts Syndrome” or not…
But I have heard repeatedly that they do care very much if you’ve shown interest in them (as in visits, interview, etc.) They definitely want you to “show the love”, where a school such as UVA doesn’t even track interest.</p>