Hey guys, I just wanted to get some thoughts on the role of college emails and fee waivers in admission. By fee waivers I mean those that you did not ask/apply for. Some colleges send emails saying that they are interested in YOU. Some even offer student fee waivers. We know that this happens because college want to bring their stats up and seem more selective. However, if you receive a “merit” based fee waiver (at least that’s what the emails seem to imply when they say they are “impressed by you.” lol) does it have any indication admissions wise? Does anyone have any thoughts or experiences with this topic?
I don’t really know how much impact it has on admissions. I applied to nine schools but only had to pay for two. (Buy nine get seven free deal!) I didn’t mind the arrangement at all (and my parents didn’t either). Some places just don’t charge freshmen application fees and other places deliberately offered it to you.
Aboutttt three(?) colleges were emailing me and offered the waiver. I got accepted to one place already, the second place is a reach but I might have a good chance, and the third place is a half safety that classified me as one of those VIP/Crown/Top scholars. I can’t say, for the first place, that their waiver and contact with me HELPED in the decision making but it probably showed that there was demonstrated interest involved.
Unless it’s U of Arizona, I think colleges would like to send emails with rejections than invitations, due to the increasing exponential number of applications and, in consequence, the decreasing exponential admission rate.