Possibly because you know that half of the WL students will commit elsewhere before the waitlist clears and 10 of the remaining will have trouble making the finances work. In this age where so many students apply to many schools I kind of “feel” for the colleges too. They want to fill their class with the best fit students possible but they could easily end up admitting the same 30 kids that another school of similar desirability admits and then it’s down to things like “who has a Chick Fil A near campus” (small joke) that determines if they get those 30 out of 30 or 20 or 15… The very small class sizes of these programs means that “yield percentage” is critical. Schools know historically what their yield percentage is but they need to cover their rears in case it changes. BU said (from memory) they used to admit 90-100 for a Acting class of 40, then they had a year where they accepted 85 and got 55 acceptances. The opposite can happen too. Some schools (especially urban ones, which are hot) are seeing their yield go up every year - with more students applying the multiple colleges that means many other schools are seeing their yield go down.
Very good point @CaMom13 and something I didn’t consider. I rescind my comment about Ithaca. And as I said, they were completely up front about it.
Any current or past knowledge on Wait List movement for Indiana University or University of Alabama-Birmingham? My D is on the Wait List for both. We have some very good acceptances, thankfully, but D also LOVES her Wait List programs. And wondering if we should add them to our accepted school visits this month.
@2019wolves I do know that UAB has gone to their waitlist in previous years. But I do not know how many they accept to know the odds and it’s definitely an up and coming program. I wouldn’t write them off for sure. They are very honest and up front so I would suggest reaching out and try to assess if they think you should visit. Bonus if you can visit when they are premiering Savage because that show just sounds way cool. But as we did with my D’s waitlist take into consideration that she could fall deeper in love and not come of the list. Best of luck!
Anyone know how the wait list at Tech works? How many are on it, is it by type, etc?
My son was on the WL for one school when he went through the process two years ago. He was informed about mid-April that the program had filled its class and that he would not be receiving an offer. The program only accepts twelve students so we were not surprised.
As others have said, it’s a function of each program’s targeted class size, the number of offers they send, and the number they placed on the WL. Some programs also WL by type, so if the type is filled, they may release anyone of that type from their WL That varies greatly, though, as some programs do not fill their program by type. That is also probably a function of the class size: a program with only 12 freshman would not want 12 blonde sopranos. A program with 60 freshman would have a lot more flexibility.
One more thing about Wait Lists. Honestly when you think about it, the WL is the school’s insurance that they will fill their program. They send out the number of offers they expect will get them the targeted class size. The WL is just their insurance that if they do not reach that target, then they still have a pool of candidates in reserve from which they can fill. If they did the math right in the first place, they could very well fill the class from their initial offers and never go to the Wait List.
oops! @MTCoachNYC you are of course correct. I just want to apologize for posting any misinformation. I guess two years really have gone by! I do still remember the stress of waiting however, so I feel for everyone on this page. Hope my input about the financial aid award gives hope to people applying in the future. Some schools really can surprise you with aid packages even when all you hear is how expensive they are. I’m a firm believer in dreamers dreaming and reaching for those dreams because you never know how things might turn out. BAL everyone - and best of luck with those waitlists!
At this point last year, my kid had two WL and two acceptances, and his decision was NO COLLEGE. He wore a plain t-shirt to school on May 1 Decision Day! So we had our ups and downs. And now he is finishing his freshman year at BoCo. Good luck to everyone on the WL ride.
Yesterday we visited Western CT. My daughter had an amazing day. The faculty is stellar and don’t even get me started on the facilities and dorms - hands down the most beautiful arts facilities, theater and dorms we have seen (and that is saying a lot as my daughter started out with 24 schools on her list!)
Tim Howard explained that he accepted the exact number of students that he wants to have in the program, which is 16. He plans to pull from his waitlist to fill any spots that decline from the initial 16. He said he does not use the yield thing b/c it’s unpredictable and that lead to him having 22 kids accept last year, and he does not want another large cohort. I found this very interesting (& risky b/c he could wind up with less than he wants as well by time the waitlist moves & kids may be committed elsewhere).
Anyway, my feeling is that this program, once it’s more established (they only converted to a BFA 4 years ago) is going to really rise in popularity. We saw their production of Crazy for You and it was stellar. The talent was incredible, set, sound, lighting… all amazing. On par (actually better than!) some productions we saw at several other prestigious schools.
Lastly… my daughter will be releasing her spot this weekend (it is ultimately not the best fit for her of the acceptances she has - but she literally cried upon that realization b/c she loved so many aspects of this program!) so to anyone who gets in off the waitlist, and there will be at least one very soon… ~ take a very good look at the program!
West Conn is a total hidden gem that should be on more people’s list. Only reason it wasn’t on ours was that we’re from CT, and my D was adament about going out of state for college. Too bad, cause that in state tuition sure is attractive!
So not trying to be negative just curious - I have a friend whose D went to Western CT for one of their professional programs (not MT) this year, completely hated it and is leaving after a year. Their reports of what the school was like to attend are nothing like these glowing reviews and the school itself has an abysmal (43%) 6 year graduation rate. How can the same campus be so different for different majors? Are the performing arts kids in a world of their own there?
@CaMom13 - yes, very much so. The PA kids are literally on a separate campus (which was a definite detractor for us as my daughter does want a full campus experience without being on some satellite-campus with just the MT kids). The sports kids are also on that same campus so it’s quite an interesting dichotomy. The satellite campus is very small but only a few years old, hence the fact that everything is new and beautiful! So the kid who does well with West CT would have to be ok with being in their own little “arts-bubble” and having a close-knit situation. I could see this working for the right kid (for instance my younger daughter who is introverted and gets overwhelmed in many social settings…)
I think after visiting one would know if it were a good fit. As I said, in our case it was not. However we were blown away with the faculty and facilities and I know it’s a very “under-the-radar” program.
Very interesting @El-Cee - that makes a lot of sense and it’s good to know. Thanks!
Just bumping this thread because I hope people will update when they’ve heard from a waitlist. 
Molloy offered multiple acceptances off their waitlist last Wednesday 17th!
Best of luck to those still waiting. Definitely keep in touch and let them know you are really interested!
?? For movement on WL!
My D just got off the waitlist at Ohio U and it has jumped to first place among her options. She is still waiting for a WL decision from Syracuse. Anyone hearing about that? Any thoughts on when it might move? At this point she is so psyched about Ohio that it might not matter, but we want to make a reasoned decision.
@MTthreats Congratulations! And Yay On the WL movement!!
@MTthreats My D is on Syracuse’s WL too and has not heard anything from them, Congratulations on the OU acceptances though.
Also congratulations @MTSongbirdMom!
Hoping for more schools to reach out to their WL, before 5/1 preferably!
D just came off the waitlist at Wright State (Acting), so there is movement.