Congrats on getting off the WL 
Go for it. Best of luck!
Congrats!
Never too early to planā¦ so here goesā¦
Hereās one WL strategy if your FC school waitlists you on M10. Obviously, Iām hoping no one will need it, but if you want to be WL battle ready, it may prove to be helpful on M10. Knowledge is powerā¦ or, something :
My 3/12/15 post on this thread :
Hereās the drill:
If you receive a WL decision from your first choice school and an acceptance from another school- the steps are pretty simple:
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Accept a place on the WL via email with Delivery and Read Receipts.
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Schedule a Revisit Day and put the WL school OUT OF YOUR MIND for now. Go to Revisit Day and have a great time.
Youāll have one month for the WL to shakeout and to make a decision about the other school . If you want to go the distance with the WL school ( WITHOUT jeopardizing the other school ) youāll have until A9. On A8 have your PARENT call the WL school and ask to speak to the DOA. Tell WL school that you have to act on an acceptance from another school before the deadline but youād like to check WL status ( one last time ) before you do. If they tell you that theyāre NOT going to the WL or they donāt expect much movement- thank them and have them remove your name from the WL.
Itās time to MOVE ON unless you choose to stay on the WL. If WL school miraculously does come through ( after A10 ) youāll have to break your commitment with the other school and forfeit your deposit (which is NOT a mere bag of shells, by the way ) . Personally, I could never take this route because Iām way too frugal and like closure .
Iām also big on keeping commitments- but thatās just me. So- now weāre one or two days away from the deadlineā¦
- Now that youāve given the WL time to play out ( and you can walkaway and never wonder because youāve seen it through to the endā¦ ) : Have your parent call the school ( youāll be attending ) and tell them the deposit check is on itās way via FedEx.
The End.
Now, If youāre handed all Waitlists without any acceptances - hereās basically what you need to know:
Unfortunately, all you can do is remain calm, guarded and optimistic. Out of the gate, I highly recommend that a WL student sends an email to the school(s) just as I outlined in Step One above. Then the waiting truly begins because the AOs are solely focused on accepted students and revisit days until A10. Yes, a waitlist parent can call an AO M10-A10 to echo what was said in their childās WL email, or to get a WL status update, but just remember where the AO focus is ( as cruel as that sounds- sorry 
), and remember that all interaction between you and the AO matters. IMHO- itās better to be cool, upbeat and patient. Persistence ( aka stalking ) has worked out well according for some persistent parents, but it has also backfired miserably on many parents , too. Everyone operates differently and Iām not here to tell anyone what to doā¦ just do what feels best and works well for your family.
If I had to pick two days for a WL parent to call ( after the M10 student email accepting a place on the WL ) , I would pick the day after the last scheduled revisit day and A11- the day after contracts/ deposits are dueā¦ but thatās just me. I think itās perfectly fine to call anytime before or on A9, too. Just not A10ā¦ because itās absolutely nuts in all BS AO offices that day.
*** THIS IS IMPORTANT *** Before and after A10, youāll hear about some WL movement here on CC. Youāll also see discouraging posts saying that your school has closed their WL. Please disregard those posts unless youāve received the same letter, email, or you were told the same information over the phone by the AO.
Most schools send out some sort of notification to all families when they officially close their WLā¦ while some ( forgive me ) will leave you languishing in the desert foreverā¦
Alsoā¦ even though itās pretty rare, some Waitlist movement will occur before school begins in late August/ early September. Itās also not uncommon for movement to happen in July, too ā¦ because thatās when the big money is due.
Life intervenes, plans change and spots at BSs do open up, but sadly itās infrequent. Thatās just the way it is.
The best WL advice Iāve heard during M10-A10 and beyond is to keep an open heart, keep doing all the things that make you happy, and keep moving. If you need to pause and vent there are plenty of veterans ( parents and students ) that are here for youā¦ many who have experienced exactly what youāre going though and could give much better WL advice than I can. So reach out if you need to - even if itās for a lousy cyber hug.
I wish there was some upbeat way to end this post. Itās depressing to write this, but I do hope it helps just in case someone needs it. All I can say is - I wish you all the very, very best on M10 and I will have my fingers crossed for everyone.
Especially the Chance Me and Freakout thread Peepsā¦ You guys are great! Good luck!!
Thank you so much for all of this since I think I really will be needing this! :-SS
Youāre very welcome and please donāt worryā¦ Youāll be fine!
I have two coffee cups I like to choose from everyday. One says : " Believe " in big bold print and the other one says : " It is what it is " in tiny letters . Large and small words to live byā¦ Now and always. 
Just one more quick suggestion to add to post #1363 for families that might need a Plan Bā¦
If you get completely shutout and BS enrollment for next fall is absolutely imperative because you donāt have a viable school option at home, or your child just really, really, really wants to go ( which happens more often than most people think ā¦ ) ā¦ I would recommend researching schools with more forgiving admission rates now and maybe look at some single sex schools so youāll be ready to act quickly ( if you need to ) just before or soon after A10.
Believe me ā¦ there are many wonderful BS options out there ( Single Sex - CC " Hidden Gem" ( 30-50 ) BS category) that will rock your world and you wonāt be the only "HADES " ( or whatever family ) scrambling for post A10 admission.
FWIW- The Good News: I know FP and FA families who were successful with placement post A10 and they donāt feel like theyāve compromised a thing. In fact, I believe many of these families would tell you that the BS Gods intervened and had a better plan. Their experiences could easily fall under the Bold Heading: Sometimes things happen for a reasonā¦
Maybe it involved a little or a lot of adversity upfront ( from waitlists or rejections ) but their kid landed at the perfect schoolā¦in many ways like it was always meant to be.
Now- The Bad News: I also know many families who were unsuccessful with their Hail Mary placement efforts post A10 - mainly because they clung to a stupid Waitlist too long instead of making rapid inquiries at other schools.
And, of course, sadly thereās always the real possibility that many of these beautiful post A10 Hail Mary āGemsā are also fully enrolled, tooā¦ and have unforgiving Waitlists as well . My advice: Donāt wait- call after the last revisit day at any school that interests your family and ask the DOA ( not some random AO ) if they have space ( #1 ) and would consider an application (#2) for next year. Keep in mind : You do not need an expensive EC to handle this. Itās going to be a very difficult climb but it is possible with a cool head, time ( and good timing ) , some patience and resolve . Just donāt wait to make the calls!
Hereās what I think : I think regardless of what your BS dreams are today - families ( who truly want or need BS placement for next year ) should have at least one " Plan B- What Ifā¦ WL- Rejection- BS Zombie Apocalypse " conversation prior to M10 . Perhaps take some time to explore and discuss possible- future BS options/ alternatives togetherā¦ just in case the apocalypse comes . I know itās really unpleasant and you certainly donāt want to dampen spirits right now or hinder any good vibes leading up to M10, but IMHO you really have nothing to lose and everything to gain by having a āwhat ifā talk now.
You knowā¦ while things are still relatively calmā¦ because I can absolutely promise you this: Things will NOT be calm during M10-A10- especially if your child needs to be enrolled somewhere next year.
Over the years there have been many threads and countless posts relating to āemergency placementā during M10-A10. If this could be a scenario that you think you should try to prepare for in some way ā¦ Iād have a list of potential āPlan Bā schools ( with DOA phone numbers ) at the ready in a file somewhere ready to goā¦ ā¦ now.
You can have a plan and just tuck it away just in caseā¦ instead of full on panic later. If you donāt need the file ( Yay!!! ) just toss it in the fireplace and burn it. Enjoy burning itā¦ even better!!
Much like a committed ex-smokerā¦ who hides one cigarette in a sealed glass container somewhere "just in case " ā¦ with a hammer nearby . Now-thatās what I call good planningā¦ Anyway-
Something to think about now based on what has happened to many families in the past. IDK- I like to try to avoid as much misery and panic as I canā¦ so I tend to focus on Worse Case Scenarios upfront more than most people here or anywhere for that matter - and please know Iām not trying to freak anyone out right now. I just think itās very wise to think about it a little bit now and maybe talk about a possible Plan B or other post M10- A10 school scenarios, too ā¦
ā¦ so there you have it.
Sorry for the long post- just know that Iāll have my fingers crossed for everyone on M10. Especially you, @GrotonKid123 ~O) Take care and think positive thoughts!
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^ I agree completely! We were one of those families who was completely shut out on M10. We kept an open mind and in May found a wonderful placement for our DS. It isnāt what we were expecting, but has definitely been a good fit. The upside is that it is a day school and I get to keep him at home!
This is so helpful. I am so worried that my son will get WL or rejected from all BS and he really really wants to go. He is not a HADES kid, so none of those schools. But it didnāt occur to me to make a list now of other schools to call just before Apr 10. Is there a list somewhere of āHidden Gemā schools?
@Summer1974 - Two helpful BS websites :
http://www.boardingschools.com
https://www.boardingschoolreview.com
Here is a very good CC " Hidden Gem Thread ". I have brought you to p 4 because there are links to school websites along with some great mini- reviews and blurbs, but the entire thread is definitely worth reading :
Some of the āhidden gemsā on that old thread are EXTREMELY hard to get into. They arenāt hidden anymore
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^very true @calimex. And some, although hidden, wont have spots available for late applicants. There are several schools with rolling admissions, though. And some of the same sex schools may have spots despite their early application deadline.
They were never hidden. Theyāre also the first choice for many, many families and have been for over a hundred years but their status has been reduced on CC because people who donāt know about BSs seem to focus on only a select group of boarding schoolsā¦ which is sad, not very smartā¦ and slightly ridiculous, if you ask me.
Donāt get me started . Pretty sure everyone would like to keep the WL thread about Waitlistsā¦ so I wonāt dive in on that one ! Not today on this thread anyway!! But I hear you, @CaliMex !!
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Yes, @ Calimex is correct. For parents reading this new to the BS admission process, I would take Peddie, Taft, Thacher, Hill, and SAS off that list if one is looking for higher admission rates!
@PhotographerMom there are many points youāve touched on that get me started. So, we can grit our teeth together. Can yāall tell my computer has crashed at work?!?! Lol.
Iāve mentioned this before, but my son got into Thacher off the wait list. It does happen. He was admitted to a number of other schools, but Thacher was his first choice. Our message to Thacher was āif he is admitted off the WL prior to having to declare to another school, he WILL attend.ā About three days before we had to make a final decision, the School called and we said yes. For those getting waitlisted, there are lots of individual circumstances that figure into strategy, but I just wanted to note that good things can still happen.
Does anyone know if the school gives the WL#? for e.gā¦ you are Wait List # 51 so that we know our chances?
Iāve never heard of a WL # because the school is putting together a class. So if the track sprinter they needed turns them down, they pick another track sprinter. Itās all over the map.
Agree with @preppedparent I think it depends on the holes that open and the type of students they need to fill those holes.
Wait lists arenāt ranked in that sense. They are used to match the hole left by an admitted student who declined. So, for example, if all the declines are male and your student is a female, it wonāt matter how attractive a candidate she is, she isnāt a substitute.
@ChoatieMom I play the violin and paint. Since these are fairly common ECs, would my chances of getting off a waitlist be reduced, if I was placed on one?