<p>I have read comments that if you get a likely letter it means you are going to be accepted because you don't get a likely letter and then get rejected. If this is the case then why not wait until March 31st when decisions come out and tell everyone at the same time?</p>
<p>If the point is to attract an applicant who might consider going to another school-- well wouldn't you wait to hear from the other school whether or not you got a likely letter??? Either way you can't respond early because the letter is not an acceptance --- so what's the point??</p>
<p>Generally people getting a likely letter are going to be thrilled to receive it, and will be more inclined to choose the school which has demonstrated such a strong interest in having them attend. You're posting this here in the Yale thread. Imagine being worried whether Yale, with whatever its low acceptance rate is, will reject you. Instead you receive a letter saying you stand out so strongly in the pool of twenty-some thousand applicants that they plan on accepting you. You may be assured a spot in a particular program. In addition to the letter itself, students usually receive calls from their admissions officer and from students with majors similar to your interests. You have more opportunities to find out about what the school has to offer you given your specific interests, and to picture yourself there. Sure, it makes sense to want to see what School B says and what kind of financial aid they offer, but you know they didn't want you enough to send out the likely letter and Yale did. Yale gives itself a head start over the competition with the extra time and attention.</p>
<p>Likely letters help athletes and merit scholarship winners gauge whether or not they should just accept the other offers or wait and see. Many, if not most, merit scholarships and athletic scholarships are from universities with rolling admissions. In the not too distant past, pressure was politely put upon scholarship awardees to accept early so those schools did not lose sought after students to more elite academic institutions. Was quite common with large state school honors programs. There are several other facets concerning the usefulness of likely letters. My son, for example, received full tuition scholarships and one fellowship from rolling admissions schools in early October that prompted him to withdraw his ED (early decision) supplement from his first choice school.</p>
<p>Likely letters are used to capture the attention of the student and to encourage him to invest in researching the various options available at the respective universities. Waiting till March 31 at a competitive school such as Yale is stressful, so the likely letter is a sign that screams "We want you here at our campus." Definitely a nice gesture of goodwill not that Yale needs to do it since it is such a wonderful university. I had never thought about Yale when I applied HYP. While I wait for my other decisions, I am definitely more inclined to eventually attend Yale if I find the course offerings and job opportunities the same for all three institutions because of the likely letter. Best of luck!</p>
<p>"I have read comments that if you get a likely letter it means you are going to be accepted because you don't get a likely letter and then get rejected."</p>
<p>Not getting a likely letter doesn't mean rejection. Many RD applicants who will receive offers don't get likely letters. As stated before it's a marketing tool for selective schools to target special applicants who otherwise are facing lots ofpressure to accept other offers. D-1 atheletes have other deadlines outside of the Ivy March inform date. It allows that student to say "I can pass at X school with big scholarship who is pressuring me to accept because Ivy school Y is gonna take me"</p>
<p>Absolutely do not interpret not getting a likely letter as a rejection. It's not just "many RD applicants" who do not get likely letters; it is the vast majority of RD applicants don't get likely letters.</p>