<p>Can someone please explain this concept to me? I think I understand it, but I'm not completely sure. I know that it has something to do with being a "likely" admit, but that's about all I know. When are these letters mailed out? How many people usually get them? Does Dartmouth send out unlikely letters too?</p>
<p>In my experience, which is limited, a likely letter is sent to those are virtually guaranteed admission, unless they screw up royally. This letter is sent before the official ED cutoff date.
It's intent is to prevent you from applying ED to other colleges that compete with the college in question.</p>
<p>A friend is an athletic recruit and was sent a likely letter after she completed her interviews. The coach was using his influence to gain her admission and she was sent the letter to discourage her from applying to other colleges.
So in this case, it was an athletic hook because the softball coach wanted her to play on his team.
A hook can be anything from a math whiz to trombone player.
I'm sure others can provide a more insightful response, but since you've received no replies so far, here's my best shot.
Good luck!</p>
<p>haha...thanks! Anything helps at this point. So, do you guys know if likely letters are for recruits or for everybody? Also, considering that they are sent before the ED cutoff date, I'm assuming that Dartmouth's done with likely letters for this cycle, right? Anything helps. </p>
<p>Thanks!!!</p>
<p>rskibum is right that likely letters that go out during the ED round are for recruited athletes, so that they can commit to attending _____.</p>
<p>Dartmouth's will have 3 more cyles of likely letters. The next cycle of letters will go out in February for candidates in the RD pool .</p>
<p>What RD non recruits do you think get likely letters and how many do you think they send out?</p>
<p>the school sends out approximately 500 likely letters through 3 cycles in february/march.</p>
<p>*The Admissions Office sends these letters to approximately 500 exceptional members of the regular-decision applicant pool that the office has decided to accept early in the process. The letters tacitly inform them of their acceptance well in advance of the official letter sent in early April on the common Ivy League mailing date.</p>
<p>"There is no question that when we mail our final decisions in April, you will be offered admission to the College," Furstenberg wrote in a past March letter.</p>
<p>The likely letters have been sent out for a number of years and serve a variety of purposes to benefit both the College and the applicants, Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg said.</p>
<p>"These letters go to truly outstanding applicants who emerge early in the process as clear admits," Furstenberg said, but students not receiving likely letters are not necessarily less likely to be admitted. </p>
<p>According to Furstenberg, informing students of their acceptance early allows them more time to learn about Dartmouth and helps push the College to the front of the minds of the particularly talented applicants that receive the letters.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>Awww.....I remember my likely letter days. I was glowing for a week.</p>
<p>And hi sybbie...I MISS YOU!!</p>
<p>KB</p>
<p>Hi KB,
I miss you too. I hope that you are having a great time at school. send me a PM and let me know how your year is going.</p>
<p>thanks sybbie! I read the remainder of the article, and toward the end, it says "'Other schools do likely letters in various forms,' Furstenberg said." Do you guys have any idea what other forms of "likely letters" are like? Also, I'm trying to see what percentage of the RD pool gets these letters. I found on their website that for the class of 2008, there were 11,734 applicants and 2,173 were accepted. However, I can't find the number of ED students accepted. If someone has a figure on the ED acceptance number of 2008, please post it! </p>
<p>Thanks guys! Ya'll are awesome! I wish all colleges were as friendly as Dartmouth...</p>
<p>The incoming class has between 1077 and 1080 students</p>
<p>For the class of 2009 1180 applied ED 397 admitted 33.64%
for the class of 2008 1277 applied ED 384 admitted 30.70 %
for the class of 2007 1216 applied ED 397 admitted 32.6</p>
<p><a href="http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Eoir/dataset.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.dartmouth.edu/~oir/dataset.html</a></p>
<p>Ginneell sends out a Wink Letter
Williams sends out an Early write
Amherst now sends out an early letter (Since the attached article was written)
Clark sends a love letter</p>
<p>assuming that Dartmouth sent out 500 letters, they sent these letters to about 28.5% of their accepted RD students for the class of 2008. I'm not sure if that's good or bad; the number seems pretty low considering that's out of the accepted pool. I do like this concept of early notification, though. I think I read somewhere (I might be completely off on this one) that some colleges go as far as to send "unlikely letter." Any thoughts/truths on this?</p>
<p>Dartmouth does not send out unlikley letters. I know that Wellesley will do some type of early assessment where they will tell you your chances of being admitted.</p>
<p>If anyone knows... What kind of stats, SAT's, academics, Ec's, what have you, would possibly merit a likely letter?</p>
<p>It really doesn't have anything to do with specific numbers and stats, or even ethnicity (I'm not an URM). I received one, and I in no way had any sort of hook. It was a complete shock, and in my mind a little unwarrented when compared to all of the amazing people around me at Dartmouth. For some reason, whoever read my app saw something in me. I get the feeling they are sent if an adcom reads your app, and really wants you at the school, but thinks you might be in danger of being stolen away by the competition, so they send you the letter so you will take a serious look at Dartmouth in the weeks leading up to April 1. It worked for me I guess, Dartmouth moved up a couple spots in my opinion by the time decisions from everyone else were mailed out.</p>
<p>My brother got a likely letter after he applied a few years ago. The only thing that really made him stand out was his SAT scores (he got an 800 on verbal and 800's on two SAT II's).</p>
<p>I'm a 9 and I got a likely letter last February. I didn't have anything special in ECs but my grades and scores were all very solid -- 1600 SAT, 3.95 GPA, etc.</p>
<p>oh man i think id have a seizure if i got a likely letter...followed by a conniption...</p>
<p>I know the most recent Daily Dartmouth story said "approximately 500" but I heard that closer to 600 "likelies" were actually sent out to prospective members of the class of 2009.</p>
<p>When you realize that nearly 400 had already been admitted ED, it is intriguing to note that the number admitted early and the number getting a "likely letter" were very close to the number who actually matriculated!</p>
<p>This tells me that the old Aprl 1 notification date is now meaningless, in that the class is largely set before that date rolls around - or at least Dartmouth would like it to be.</p>
<p>Since the Regular Decision yield rate is only around 40%, it seems that many of the Dartmouth "likelies" got love notes from other schools as well.</p>
<p>I think this whole "likely letter" business has gotten out of hand. Its all a scam to get around the nominal April 1 notification date to which the Ivies and others are allegedly committed.</p>
<p>Not really, Byerly. Even if you combine the two highest numbers to get 1,000 EDs or likelies, that's still less than half of the total number of accepted students. Furthermore, it's at least arguably and probably quite true that the only difference between Dartmouth and other schools is that Dartmouth informs those ~600 students of their chances. Just because Yale or Harvard doesn't send out 600 letters in February or March, doesn't mean that they haven't decided to admit 600 students.</p>
<p>Fact is, well before April 1 rolls around, Dartmouth has already admitted enough people to fill practically every seat in the class. A "likely letter" is tantamount to a letter of admission.</p>
<p>The fact that they HAVEN'T entirely filled those seats is simply a function of the low RD yield rate. </p>
<p>(Presumably, the low RD yield rate - and the need to do something about it - is the reason Dartmouth is going crazy with "likely letters.")</p>