<p>My D is waitlisted at her #1 choice, Pitzer, and I feel woefully ill-informed about waitlists and waitlist strategy. Is it basically over now, except without the closure of an outright rejection? Should I encourage her to just let it go and decide on her #2 school? </p>
<p>Waiting on decisions was so nerve-wracking for her that it's hard to imagine extending the uncertainty into the summer.</p>
<p>Yes, you should encourage her to get rolling on the sure choices she has. She can work on Pitzer as well, looking at advice out there about clearing the waitlist, but she should also move on. Yes, it can be nerve wracking if that first choice is what she had really wanted above and beyond. My oldest who was waitlisted, could not care less. He just automatically moved on, and when he cleared the waitlist, did not want to go there any more.</p>
<p>There is really not much to think about here. Commit to your #2 choice on a timely basis. If and when Pitzer comes through, then you can switch and go with that. You can try to keep pushing Pitzer with your counselor and another last effort email, but other than that, you should look at the situation as a big load off your chest by having a baseline option that is there for you no matter what.</p>
<p>Have you checked the common data set for Pitzer to check how many kids they put on their waitlist? Some colleges go nuts and put hundreds on while other are more restrained. Analyzing it may give you an idea of how much to hope.</p>
<p>She is going to have geographic diversity working in her favor, so it may be worth while to go after pretty hard.</p>
<p>Twomules, I took your suggestion–and the common data set is extremely discouraging. They took ZERO students from their waitlist for 2008-09. Same story for a couple of previous years for which the data set was available.</p>
<p>I’m going to urge D to focus on a firm decision for her #2 pick. She can stay on the waitlist if she wants to, but it looks like a lost cause.</p>
<p>I just took a look at the common data set. Yikes, they had more kids on the waitlist than had been accepted. If this were my kid, I would be so annoyed. I would think that a school that doesn’t often go to their waitlist wouldn’t need to keep more than 100, at most.</p>
<p>I think if you are anywhere close to being full pay, this is the year to have hope and ‘work’ the situation. Extra recs, calls from counselor declaring it first choice, calls from alum…</p>
<p>Nowhere near full pay, but thanks for the advice anyhow…</p>
<p>I think that this year there may be a bit more wait-list movement as families review the finaid/merit offers, crunch the numbers and then decline private school offers in favor of state unis.</p>
<p>I would share the information about the wait-list stats with my kid, as terrible as they are. That may help her to let go and move onto the next school. </p>
<p>Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>Pardon my rant, but I am still steamed about this on your behalf. Pitzer last year admitted fewer than 900 students and put 1300 on the waitlist! Is this a sign on a deadlocked committee unable to reach a consensus or do they want to have different levels of rejection? The “no way do we want you pile” and the “I’m sorry, you seemed like such a nice kid pile.”</p>
<p>My daughter was on a waitlist last year. Late May/early June the university sent out letters saying that they were going to keep only a handful on the list and the rest were let down politely. I thought it was very well done.</p>
<p>Good heavens! are you serious? Admitted 900 and put 1300 on the waitlist?!?!?!?</p>
<p>I copy and pasted this from their common data set:</p>
<p>C1. First-time, first-year (freshman) students: Provide the number of degree-seeking, first-time, first-year students who applied, were admitted, and enrolled (full- or part-time) in fall 2008. Include early decision, early action, and students who began studies during summer in this cohort. Applicants should include only those students who fulfilled the requirements for consideration for admission (i.e., who completed actionable applications) and who have been notified of one of the following actions: admission, nonadmission, placement on waiting list, or application withdrawn (by applicant or institution). Admitted applicants should include wait-listed students who were subsequently offered admission.</p>
<p>Total first-time, first-year (freshman) men who applied 1452
Total first-time, first-year (freshman) women who applied 2579</p>
<p>Total first-time, first-year (freshman) men who were admitted 330
Total first-time, first-year (freshman) women who were admitted 569</p>
<p>Total full-time, first-time, first-year (freshman) men who enrolled 101
Total part-time, first-time, first-year (freshman) men who enrolled 0</p>
<p>Total full-time, first-time, first-year (freshman) women who enrolled 163
Total part-time, first-time, first-year (freshman) women who enrolled 0
C2. Freshman wait-listed students (students who met admission requirements but whose final admission was contingent on space availability)</p>
<p>Do you have a policy of placing students on a waiting list? Yes</p>
<p>Number of qualified applicants offered a place on a waiting list 1311
Number accepting a place on the waiting list<br>
939
Number of wait-listed students admitted 0</p>
<hr>
<p>I think anyone who is placed on a waitlist needs to look into the common data sets for the previous 3 years to see how things are trending. This year is a little wacky with the economy so things may alter some, but I am guessing that all 900 admitted students aren’t going to change their minds and not enroll. There is no call for having such a huge waitlist.</p>
<p>If you look back at last year, there was some thought that it was a wacky year also. I think due to the large number of kids applying and the large number of applications each one submitted. I could be remembering wrong – but I think it was a crazy waitlist year also.</p>
<p>I think many kids in the Pitzer range use the waitlist to make sure they are not discouraging future applicants. They are keeping schools/counselors/alums on a friendlier level than if they had rejected their kids.</p>
<p>It does seem dismal. On the other hand, it seems like many kids applied to many, many schools, so it seems like there should be some waitlist movement this year.<br>
Good luck to all those waiting.</p>
<p>Something written by oldfort about how her D got off 2 waitlists during the month of May:</p>
<p>When my D1 was waitlisted from her ED, we were prepared for possible waitlist and transfer later. She probably worked harder her senior spring than any other semester, she ended up with the highest GPA in her senior class. I told her that she needed to keep up her grades if she wanted to transfer later. As it turned out, her GC did used her new transcript and additional recommendation letters from her senior year teachers to get her off her waitlists.</p>
<p>“I think that this year there may be a bit more wait-list movement as families review the finaid/merit offers, crunch the numbers and then decline private school offers in favor of state unis.”</p>
<p>Statistical analysis shows that waitlist admissions are very consistent, and variables such as the economy, number of applications, number of accepted applicants, etc. have negligible impact on the number.</p>
<p>To give false hope based on these factors is extremely irresponsible.</p>
<p>One time events that spook the admissions office at any university can lead to very conservative behavior on the part of the school and to a difference in how many kids are put on a waitlist and how many kids are taken off. When Harvard did away with early action, they ended up taking 200 kids off the waitlist–many more than in previous years.</p>
<p>This is a “100 year storm” year when it comes to the economy. Universities aren’t sure what will happen and are hedging their bets by having a large waitlist.</p>
<p>But I do agree with gtelvis–anyone who is counting on a waitlist to come through with an acceptance will most likely be disappointed. Stay on a waitlist, be happy if you get off, but psychologically move on to your other choices.</p>
<p>I would certainly have your D write to the person below stating how she saw his recent article and understand how difficult the selection process is but REALLY want to go. The article at least gives her a contact in. Just yell and scream!!!</p>
<p>College admissions’ wrenching ins and outs
For school officials, deciding on students’ dreams is a difficult, emotional task.
By Angel B. P</p>