<p>Would it be a bad idea to stay on more than one waiting list?</p>
<p>It seems that doing so would improve one's chances a little, but are there downsides?</p>
<p>Obviously, everything still applies about paying the deposit for another school, and recognizing that the odds of being accepted are still small.</p>
<p>Is getting accepted off of a waitlist totally random?</p>
<p>Well, it depends on which schools you are wait listed at. Some school's wait lists are ranked so when spots become available they just start going down the list. If this is the case, you can sometimes call the adm. office and find out where you rank on their list. Other schools, like Harvard (where i'm wait listed at) have no rank system, so when spots become available they re-review every applicant on the list (most people think to find a person with a similar profile) for each place.</p>
<p>I second sbroy's question. Also, how do we got about campaigning for admission? I'm referring to Haverford, Amherst, and Williams where (like sbroy's Harvard) they re-review every waitlistee.</p>
<p>I can't think of any downsides to staying on one or more waitlists, as long as you like the waitlisted schools more than the one you are enrolling in.</p>
<p>Campaigning for admission is like trying to sell somebody a subscription to a magazine that they already get. Chances are, if you're on a waitlist it means that you are completely qualified to attend the school but someone who comes from a similar sitch. or area with similar qualifications has already been admitted. Wait lists are like insurance for keeping a certain number of a certain "type" of student at their school. In other words, if the person who has similar characterists to you does not accept their offer, the school will have you as a back up. Campaigning will have only a nominal effect on your admittance (iow, they won't "forget your name"</p>
<p>Alright, thanks.</p>