Likely Letters: Which colleges send them, and when?

Applying to College
1

<p>Might be informative to have a list all in one place. Does anyone know?</p>

2

<p>Clemson - Before August 1st. - My son recvd a provisionally accepted letter before August 1st. I’m not sure when but he applied 8/1/12 using a code in that letter that waived his application fee. The letter said something about as long as his grades were in line with his SAT/ACT scores and he applied by December he would be admitted.</p>

3

<p>Many colleges use them. Amongst the 8 Ivies, they have agreed the window of sending them is Oct-01 to Mar-15. Here’s some info <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/9051471-post1.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/9051471-post1.html&lt;/a&gt; , most of which is applicable to LLs in general.</p>

<p>Bottom Line: LLs are very rare – only select athletes should await them. All the others are serendipity</p>

4

<p>Thank you both. T26E4, only athletes? I haven’t been through this process, so I have no idea how it works. But I am under the impression some colleges have students they particularly want, and send LLs to who aren’t athletes. I don’t know though. </p>

<p>It makes sense if a college really likes a student because with all the acceptances the student might have, then said student could prioritize a visit to admitted student weekends if he/she had a LL as a hint.</p>

<p>There was a NYT article by Alan Finder (in 2006 that wrote about LL) Link: <a href=“At Decision Time, Colleges Lay On Charm - The New York Times”>www.nytimes.com/2006/04/26/education/26admissions.html?pagewanted=print</a></p>

<p>Here’s a quote from the article: " Middlebury and countless others send out “likely letters,” personal notes that are sent a week or two before official letters of acceptance arrive. These are meant to let an applicant know how much the college admires him or her and to suggest that good news will soon be arriving in the mail.</p>

<p>The message behind the likely letters is neither subtle nor complex, said Mr. Clagett of Middlebury. “The one who kisses you first is the one who loves you the most,” he said."</p>

5

<p>As a followup to that information from Yale, Harvard also sends 300 likely letters a year. Only about 100 go to non-athletes.</p>

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<p>Ruby: I"m not saying only athletes get LLs. A few non-athletes do get them. However, with athletes, it’s not a surprise to them generally. That’s why I said only a few select athletes should be expecting them – the rest are serendipity.</p>

7

<p>OK, I see. I understand that a precious few outside of athletes receive these.</p>