I know this will sound petty, but

Colleges & Universities A-Z Duke University
1

<p>Can someone tell me why I got waitlisted? I know I posted this in the main RD thread, but now I'm super nervous for March 31st, because I think I must have messed up horribly somehow somewhere. Anyways:</p>

<p>Decision: Waitlisted</p>

<p>Stats:</p>

<pre><code>* SAT: 2310 superscore(800CR, 780M, 730W), 2250 one sitting
* SAT IIs: 800 Math II, 760 Chem, 720 Lit
* ACT: 36 superscore, 35 one sitting
* GPA: 3.93 uw, 4.25 w
* Rank: 1/640
* Other stats:
</code></pre>

<p>Subjective:</p>

<pre><code>* Essays: Unique, though long winded. My Why Duke essay was pretty generic
* Interview: Absolutely stellar
* Teacher Recs: Good, but they sounded a bit generic
* Counselor Rec: I don't think he put much effort in it
* Hook (if any):
</code></pre>

<p>Location/Person:</p>

<pre><code>* State or Country: Iowa
* School Type: Sort of big public, rarely sends to Ivy League calbur
* Ethnicity: Asian. Was this my fatal flaw?
* Gender: Male
</code></pre>

<p>Other Factors:[list][li] Extracurriculars:Varsity tennis, Theater (with Awards), NHS 2nd VP, Placed in a State Math Contest, a bunch of little volunteering things, Went to a poor country and built a library and ran a summer camp and taught a load of english classes.</p>[/li]
<p>Was my essay possibly to "unique"? I know I caught one or two minor grammatical errors, but I really hope that didn't throw me off. I basically wrote something satirical of other what I thought were other college essays, like how people write about their heroes. So I wrote something that made a cartoon character (from Tiny Toon Adventures) seem like an epic hero. I thought it was funny, but was it just really stupid? I got accepted at Wash U, so I thought that would mean they didn't totally suck.</p>

<p>Or would bland recs throw me off kilter?</p>

<p>Give me hope, if you please. Or crush them quickly, either way.
Thanks guys, and a big super CONGRATS!!!!! to everyone who got accepted.</p>

2

<p>You won’t find the answers here. None of us “waitlisted” your application…</p>

3

<p>Yeah, it seems random, but welcome to college admissions…
You can still be proud of yourself though for your accomplishments.<br>
And I don’t think you need to be nervous for March 31, I’m sure you are going to receive a nice variety of acceptances.</p>

4

<p>i have heard that some schools often waitlist students if they don’t show enough interest and are so qualified that they will probably get into many amazing schools. this might be the case with you.</p>

5

<p>Where else did you apply to?
& did you fill out anything on your Duke app. saying who else you applied to?</p>

6

<p>because you’re in the top 15% of the US instead of the top 11%, like the rest of us who got waitlisted. better luck late march/ early april</p>

7

<p>I applied to Yale, Stanford, Harvard and U Penn (at least, that’s all that hasn’t replied yet, but I don’t recall filling anything out. Oh, darn, I remember telling my interviewer.
Man, if my stuff is top 15%, it pales me to think of the grand company I’m in.
Thanks everyone for your responses and support! I’ll be needing it…</p>

8

<p>I applied for those too XD let’s hope getting waitlisted by Duke means we’ll get into one of those…</p>

9

<p>Dude, I got wait listed with a 35 as well (they don’t superscore), 3.97 UW GPA, and I’ve won the state championship every yr in hs in tennis (plus other stuff and good (IMHO) essays, etc.). I’m not saying you’re not more qualified than me, but there are probably numerous ppl more qualified than us who got WLed as well; yeah I’m ****ed too, but don’t take it as an insult, they can’t let everybody in…you will do great wherever you go.</p>

10

<p>lol I applied to all those schools as well</p>

11

<p>Surprise.. Duke is not an easy school to get into! :stuck_out_tongue:
Congrats on Wash U and good luck elsewhere!
You will succeed no matter what college you end up at!</p>

12

<p>I think it might have been your EC’s.</p>

13

<p>Your stats are good. I’m somewhat surprised that Duke WLed you but not shocked. Sure you have the scores and grades, but I dont’ see any big award that will put you over the top.</p>

14

<p>yea its def the ecs that hurt you. nothing spectacular. same with me</p>

15

<p>Ah, that all makes sense guys. At least I still have a chance at other places, yeah? Thanks again for your support. And sorry for being so conceited, I really have no excuse.</p>

16

<p>Did you visit? They might place a lot of emphasis on students showing interest. </p>

<p>My stats definitely aren’t as impressive as yours, but I did visit over the summer. I think that might be why I was accepted. I really don’t have any hooks at all.</p>

17

<p>If you applied to those schools & told your interviewer maybe they thought you saw them as a (i dont want to say safety cause Duke is def. not a safety) but maybe didn’t really want Duke as much as the others because I see you stats as super competitive.</p>

18

<p>@staciehere: I think I only told my interviewer that I was also applying there, and I think (hope) I stopped there.
@Ketty: Nope, I never had the chance. And now I’ll never have the excuse…
@bigreddawgie: Hm, I thought all of my volunteer stuff with building a library and running a summer camp (all on my own initiative, sorry to sound arrogant but I thought that made a difference) would put me on the map. Yet again, the rest of y’all are USAMO finalists and stuff, aren’t ye? Oh, and I don’t have Science Olympiads or Academic Decathelons where I go, would Duke have known that? Would that have made a difference?</p>

19

<p>My ECs hurt me as well. nothing national or AMC, USAMO, or Siemens. Thought my scores and grades would be good enough, since i heard they put a lot of emphasis on those, but oh well. my essays weren’t the best out of my college apps either.</p>

20

<p>I got into Duke and WashU and got waitlisted at Northwestern. (according to Princeton Review, WashU is the 9th and Duke is the 12th “Toughest to Get Into.” Northwestern is not on the top 20.)</p>

<p>I don’t have any excuses and congratulate all those who got in.</p>

<p>I will note that I visited and applied to a scholarship at WashU, and I applied for a scholarship at Duke. Northwestern was the only one of the three where I didn’t “demonstrate interest.”</p>

<p>I think this just shows how random adcoms can be.</p>