Waitlist Questions

Applying to College
1

If I accept a spot on a school’s waitlist, do I have to decline other offers of admission? Or can I accept a spot on the waitlist and still consider other options (and then potentially take myself off later and accept a spot at another school)?

And is there ever any chance of getting off of a waitlist before May 1st (for context it’s Harvard)? If I don’t hear by then I’ll probably commit to another school rather than waiting and risking no college at all, so I just want to know what to expect.

2

No. In fact you should accept one of the offers, because there is no guarantee of getting of the WL.

For Harvard, none whatsoever. They will not review the WL until all offers are accepted.

3
  1. Assume you will attend one of the colleges you HAVE gotten into. Accept their offer of admission. Start reading all the info.
  2. For the WL school, tell them that you would like to remain on the waitlist. If you have won any awards or improved grades, send a Letter of Continuing Interest .
  3. If one of those WL schools is your top choice, let them know. Tell them that you would enroll if admitted.
  4. Sometimes you don’t get as much financial aid if admitted off the waitlist. Sometimes you do. Make sure you understand your family’s budget.
  5. Look on the Common Data Set in Section C2 to see if many students are admitted off the waitlist. If it is usually less than 10, don’t get your hopes up. If it is 400, then that is something else.
  6. If you are admitted, then they would probably ask you if you would enroll if admitted. If you said yes, then you would be admitted.
  7. After you put a deposit down on the WL school, Let the other school know you will not be attending. You may not get your deposit back.
  8. Sometimes schools start taking kids off the WL in late April…but often it is after May 1.