Hi everyone, been lurking here for sometime, but this is my first post (so please be gentle). My daughter has been waitlisted at her top BFA choice. Does anyone who’s kid has had a successful experience getting admitted off a waitlist have any concrete advice on what to do (and what not to do) to improve her chances? We would like to strike the right balance between showing interest/enhancing her case and not be annoying. Thanks so much!
My daughter sent an email expressing her desire to attend if taken off the wait list. She was admitted…
My d did the same as @bisouu’s d with a similar, positive result.
Thanks to both of you! She knew to send an email to the program director right away emphasizing her intent to attend if admitted. He sent a nice reply back, which she found encouraging (though perhaps it was just a formality). We have heard of other waitlisted kids having additional recommendations submitted on their behalf and/or visiting the schools again. But I’m not sure how additive any of that would be, with such actions possibly running the risk of being too pushy, and patience perhaps the greatest virtue now. Wondering if anyone else has an experience they could share. Thanks again!
If you CAN visit (without long/expensive travel) I would think that would indicate sincere interest. Best of luck!
@MTDad2020 My D is on 3 waitlists so far - with 2 schools left to hear from. She has contacted each program director (via phone and email) to say she remains interested and to discuss the “waitlist process.” We are planning to visit 2 of her waitlist schools over the next few weeks (she’s already been to the 3rd). I would not worry about being too pushy. Showing interest is a GOOD thing and could be the thing that distinguishes your D from others in the pool. I’d not heard of adding recommendations (interesting idea) but I have heard of students sending update emails (about additional shows, training, etc). Many of auditors will tell you they could fill their programs 3 and 4 times over with the talent they see each year so we’ve taken the approach to do a few additive things which could help my D stand out.
@MTDad2020 We had an excruciating WL story from last year. Let me start with the positive…my D loves the program she is currently in. It has the right culture for her to thrive in…I think her “dream” school would have been too intense for her. This is where we thank God for unanswered prayers & the repeated sentiment on these boards that your child will end up right where they need to be!
So, my D went to a summer program at her dream school and then went on to their fall audition. So, she knew the faculty pretty well. She was left hanging on the WL until April 27th! Shortly after her fall audition she had sent a thank you and in that had expressed her interest in the program. She had also sent an email later on as well. We didn’t need to schedule a tour, she had done one previous to the summer program and then had spent a week there for that. It really was an anxiety ridden Spring. She had had her acceptance to the program she is in now, but couldn’t fully commit (on paper or mentally) until there was no hope left. It had been the first school she had stumbled upon when doing our initial research, it was in her fathers hometown (so lots of family around) & then there was the fact that she had made it into their highly competitive summer program. All the stars seemed to be aligning which made the waiting even more painful. There was a lot of talk about why is this happening…it seemed meant to be, but it wasn’t.
I think writing a note and visiting are necessary if it is a program she loves. However, I would just caution that you go in with eyes wide open and the fact that it IS a WL and not an offer. It’s impossible not to have hope just try and temper it with a little reality. Trust that things will work out as they are supposed to!
Excellent advice! @toowonderful and @artskids , thank you, we will definitely visit the school again. Hopefully, she will get another opportunity to meet with the Program Director, who she sat down with during her previous visit. Either way, sounds like the visit itself should help convey her strong interest.
And @MTRaleighmom , yes, this is the challenge, which is more emotional than anything. I’ve heard this predicament likened to dating someone who loves you, while having unrequited love for another. Part of me hopes that she will fall in love with one of the programs to which she’s been admitted when she visits them in the next couple weeks. But I do understand why she prefers her WL school. So we are just trying to make sure she does all she can to see if it can become an option for her.
Doing too much to express your interest can raise red flags. A simple “You are my top choice and I would love to be a part of your fall class” is sufficient. We keep track of who sends us those types of messages. At SU our wait list size can vary year to year. If a student stays in touch (meaning they send an email like we mentioned) we usually give them priority. We don’t want to miss out either. We are looking for students who are just as interested in us as we are in them.
~VT
@VoiceTeacher, so how much is too much? My son is waitlisted at two schools that are within reasonable driving distance from a school where he is accepted. We plan on visiting the accepted school over his Spring Break next week. Is it “too much” or a “red flag” to call in at the waitlist schools on the way home? One of the waitlist letters indicated that a visit would be welcomed; the other didn’t specify. We don’t mind taking the time to do this, though it feels a bit awkward, but don’t want any faculty members to feel that we are pushing the envelope. The other consideration is that my son’s spring musical is coming up in April and we will have no time to visit if we don’t do it now.
@Claire74 Yes, you should visit the wait list schools so that IF an offer comes down the pike later on, your son would have done the campus visit and have what he needs in hand to make an informed decision. Visiting is for your child’s sake. Showing interest in the school is an added benefit and no, it is not too much at all.
Thanks @soozievt. It’s tricky to figure out just how to handle this. I’m thinking that I stay in the background–maybe do the general tour then go for coffee while he meets with faculty and observes classes. Or maybe call in on Financial Aid. My son presents himself pretty well–he’s funny, low-key, and confident, though he has been known to ask knuckle-head questions. Maybe some gentle tutoring during our seven hour (yawn) drive…
@claire74 - Sent you a private message. If they suggested you visit - go for it! For the other schools - I think you really have to feel it out. Has the admissions department been encouraging/welcoming? Has the department head been in communication at all? Do you get the feeling that the faculty are friendly and outgoing or more reserved? If the whole process has seemed more reserved and distanced, I would lean towards saying don’t push a campus visit. If they have been open, outgoing, friendly - I don’t think it hurts to ask.
~VT
Thank you very much @VoiceTeacher . That’s perfect advice. We will not go beyond the email expressing her strong interest in attending the program if admitted that she has sent in. Plus, she already visited the school; thus, a follow-up visit would seem both redundant and potentially overbearing as you suggest. We will do our best to be patient as we await further news. Thanks again for everyone’s advice.
You’re welcome! The other instance in which it makes since to contact the school is if you are on a timeline to make a decision for another program. In that case, you would want to email them and say something along the lines of “I am currently on the waitlist for your program and it remains my top choice. However, another program is asking me to give them my final decision. Can you give me an idea of whether or not I am still in consideration and if I am, when final decisions will be made?”
~VT
@VoiceTeacher aren’t all the schools on the same May 1 deadline? Our plan was to accept a spot by then at one of the schools to which she’s been admitted if we hadn’t heard from her wait list school by then. I was under the impression it would be unlikely to be accepted off a wait list before May 1, but perhaps that’s not correct.
@MTDad2020, I’m hoping that once that avalanche of "no"s rolls down the hill from Carnegie Mellon on Saturday, lots of decisions will be made and waitlist spots will pop up all over the place… Good luck!
@VoiceTeacher
It is a tricky line. Our child has one wait list so we also have discussed what do you do? She also ran into a variety of responses at Unifieds. She had 4 on campus auditions, one which she sent a note, it was a big big school, two at smaller schools with brief thank you emails, and 4 Unifieds. At two Unified auditions someone took special interest in her dance background, it is a bit unusual, she followed up with that person with some dance clips, the other we did not hear about, but she probably should have followed up on. Anytime a school reached out to us we responded, however most went to my kid and we did not see or she said oh yes I got this email a month later. She was often clueless, maybe thankfully at this age, to some of those nuances. Your feedback is really helpful, and your Blog:). We did not apply to your school, should have, looks wonderful. We were lucky to come up with 8 schools by December 31st.
@claire74 , yes, that makes a lot of sense, and we will be hopeful that the dominos fall in our favor. In the meantime, she is starting to warm to one of the schools to which she’s been admitted, though her WL school remains her top choice. While perhaps not as stressful as the period before getting any acceptances, this phase certainly has its own share of stresses.
Coming from the opera world, I think a good idea regarding waitlists is to definitely let them know if you’ve received another offer, especially if it is from a competitive school, or if it comes with scholarship money. You know, play the game a little bit.
Also, I think adding to the “I’m very interested in your program” email with a “Let me know if you would like any supplemental information to enhance my application” would also be positive, but not too pushy. Leave it at that, and let fate play out. This is such a sticky situation for anyone! Try not to do too much is the best piece of advice.