<p>If a wait list student visit the school, would it help to increase his chance of being accepted? If yes, what would it be better time to visit the school? After 4/10?
Or would it annoy the AO completely???</p>
<p>At many schools, the revisit day event is by-invitation-only to accepted applicants. You have to register, and there is a scheduled program. Itâs not a show-up-and-roam-around-the-campus-on-your-own day.</p>
<p>I was waitlisted at Berkshire school ( hidden gem ) and I was pondering upon the idea of scheduling a meeting with the director of admissions or something of that sort in hopes of affirming my immense desire to attend their school. You know, I would update him of my current grades, EC and latest athletic achievements. I though this would demonstrate my genuine interest in the school as oppose to writing a letter. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>I understand the desire to try to do whatever you can to help your chances to move off the waitlist. You also have to understand that there are most likely <em>dozens</em> of applicants in a similar position.</p>
<p>The admissions office, and especially the Director of Admissions, is in the middle of their very busiest time. I donât believe you would be successful in scheduling a meeting with anyone in the office right now. </p>
<p>I do think itâs a good idea to send a letter to your interviewer expressing your desire to attend (send it snail mail, not email), and highlight any new and significant awards and accomplishments. (Iâm not sure current grades are significant unless they show a marked improvement over the last grades you sent - Bs to As, for example.) The letter will be placed in your file, and will be there if there is movement on the waitlist for your grade.</p>
<p>FWIW - last year my son was waitlisted at SPS, Exeter, and Andover. SPS and Andover informed us pretty early that they were fully enrolled. Exeter kept it active until the last minute. This year my son reapplied to Exeter and Andover but not SPS. He added Peddie and Loomis. Exeter and Andover both commented on how impressed they were that he reapplied this year and at what he had done to improve his chances. This year he was accepted at both schools. So while the chance may be low at coming off the waitlist you can use it to your advantage next year.</p>
<p>cut-n-paste from another thread:</p>
<p>Analysis (for the 2 lowest admit rate schools) of the statistically small number of applicants who posted their results as of 15-March, on the <em>Official List of 2012 Acceptances</em> thread:</p>
<p>ANDOVER 14% admit (last year)
Total 33 100%
Accept 10 30%
WL 11 33%
Denied 12 36%</p>
<p>DEERFIELD 13% admit (last year)
Total 25 100%
Accept 5 20%
WL 15 60%
Denied 5 20%</p>
<p>You can do your own analysis for other schools mentioned in that thread.</p>
<p>The subset of applicants who posted their results is probably not representative of the entire applicant pool. I suspect that satisfied applicants are more likely as a whole to post their results, than the unsatisfied applicants, hence the positive skewing of the Accept numbers. Nevertheless, some conclusions can be drawn from observing the trends. The WL pools at these 2 competitive schools are very large and may be even larger than the accepted pool.</p>
<p>Wait-listed at all 3 schools I applied to: Andover, Deerfield, and Groton. </p>
<p>Iâve been looking at the hidden gems list for schools with rolling admissions luckily Iâm currently in the second year of the PIB program and many IB boarding schools are on the list but Iâm pining for Milton.</p>
<p>Does anyone know if I would have a chance as a late applicant? </p>
<p>I know the debate coach there because I had her as a teacher at Andoverâs summer session last year, should I email her? </p>
<p>Are my chances slim? Or would it be a complete waste of my time to apply? </p>
<p>I love how itâs primary focus is in the liberal arts school. Had I discovered it earlier it would have been my first choice. </p>
<p>Anyone have any advice?</p>
<p>See [this</a> thread](<a href=âhttp://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/1304250-applying-late-candidate.html]thisâ>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/prep-school-admissions/1304250-applying-late-candidate.html) about late applications.</p>
<p>And if you look back to threads started in late February to early March, you should find at least one long thread about late applications. I just donât have the time to go digging for it right now . . . itâs probably several pages back.</p>
<p>I had gotten wait-listed at two of the four schools I applied to. I was thinking about asking another one of my teachers to write another recommendation? Would the admissions officers value that or would they consider it over-bearing?</p>
<p>Itâs appropriate to update your waitlist schools with significant new achievements, but you donât need to continue trying to sell yourself. The schools that have waitlisted you already know they like you . . . and if a space opens up that fits you, theyâll let you know.</p>
<p>So, if you win a national championship, send the school a short note, but more recommendations arenât necessary.</p>
<p>Valdog, I totally agree with you. I was accepted at 3 schools and waitlisted at 1. One of the 3 schools I was accepted to, was actually my #1 choice. I then, immediately contacted the school that waitlisted me and told them I did not wish to remain on the list. I am hoping it might be a spot for someone who really wants it.</p>
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<p>Congrats kaye 
Iâm hoping thatâll happen to my first choice school in which i got waitlisted 
Anyway, many people say that you should send a letter explaining why you want to attend a certain school and some of your latest achievements, but is it advantageous to do this even if the school doesnât specify? For example, Exeter says that you can send such letters but Andover doesnât mention it at all and says to only send in certificates and your final transcript. Also, I was wondering if anyone has tried calling the schools they got waitlisted at and asking why they werenât accepted. If so, did you get specific answers or just the general âthere just wasnât enough spaceâ? I tried calling Andover and they said theyâd have an AO call me back but itâs been a week and they havenât yet⊠I think Iâll just call again. :)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>If you are denied or waitlisted and choose to contact the school to ask how you might improve your application for next year, you can certainly do so after April 15, when things arenât quite so busy for the AOâs.</p>
<p>But to call and ask âwhy you werenât acceptedâ sounds like sour grapes . . . and certainly wonât help you if you actually want a shot at being pulled off the waiting list.</p>
<p>As for notifying the school about your achievements, see my post #90 above - keep your communication brief and to the point and restrict it to significant achievements only.</p>
<p>@RedSoxFan18</p>
<p>A lot of kids do that - with little success - so itâs important for other students to know that reapplying is not a guarantee. And to know that the repeat applications are another reason why the pool keeps rising at those schools.</p>
<p>Having said that - congratulations to your son for his perseverance! Clearly he had the right stuff they were looking for. Exeter is a great school and heâll really get a lot from that experience.</p>
<p>@ dodgersmom </p>
<p>Iâm sorry if it came out sounding bitter. My main reasons for wanting to know the reasons is so I can maybe improve my chances of getting off the waitlist and for college since I wonât be reapplying. I should have thought more about how the question might sound to the AOs. I also didnât want to word it âwhy was I put on the waitlistâ even though that might sound more grateful because I thought then theyâd say it was because there wasnât enough room. I guess I should have waited, too. Thank you for this comment.</p>
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<p>zelazowawola - I really donât think thereâs anything you can learn from the schools at this point that would help you get off the waitlist. As I said, they already know they like you - and if they find they have a spot that fits you, theyâll call.</p>
<p>As for college, follow the same suggestion I gave with regard to reapplying. Wait until late spring/early summer, and then call the AO and ask what you might do to be able to strengthen your application for college. They should be happy to help!</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Has anyone tried call admissions after the 15th to find out the exact numbers? I know a lot of schools donât rank, so how else would anyone know the odds than to check how many others were waitlisted? Or would it be a better idea to wait until after April 10th? Also, in the letters of continued interest, how long (or short) should they be for prep schools? I got WL at a couple HADES but donât want to annoy the officers by sending in an extra packet for them to read.
This isnât much of a problem since I actually took the advice from the notorious âHidden Gemsâ forum and applied to a lesser-known school, and got accepted with full aid, but I would like to know my chances (however slim they may be). And I am curious about what I could do to improve so thanks for that advice dogersmom.</p>
<p>ZFinches,
Youâve got a full FA pkg in hand, and you are waiting for a HADES pkg also w full FA???</p>
<p>For the HADES schools, thereâs no ranking of the WL. If an admitted sophomore female candidate from the midwest, who is a tuba-playing swimmer declines the offer, then the school will draw from the WL a female sophomore candidate w a similar profile. The schoolâs objective is to maintain a demographic balance. Your odds of getting pulled off the WL and granted full FA are extremely small to none.</p>
<p>@ZFinches - GMTplus7 is being optimistic in my opinion. I think your odds of getting off the waitlist with full FA are about the same as getting struck by lightning*. </p>
<p>âLove the School that Loves You!â If a school has offered you admission - WITH FULL AID - then they really, truly want you to be a part of their community. Only applicants who are at the very top of their admit pile are in that wonderful position.</p>
<p>Take the offer. Let go of the dream of the HADES school. Donât look back - only forward!</p>
<p>(And if lightning strikes, and you get called after April 10 with an offer to come to the HADES school with a full financial aid package, you do have the option of forfeiting the deposit at the first school, and accepting the waitlist offer.)</p>
<p>(*odds of getting struck by lightning - 576,000 to 1)</p>
<p>. . . and before anyone starts a debate about the exact odds - and brings up the fact that since there are not 576,000 students on all the wait lists put together, this canât possibly be the âreal oddsâ:</p>
<p>Iâm using a literary device called hyperbole. Great vocabulary word - look it up!</p>