<p>Hey all. I'm really upset by this admissions cycle. I've been waitlisted at Carleton, Kenyon and Oberlin, which were the only schools I was really interested in attending. I was accepted to Boston U (with presidential scholarship), Bryn Mawr, and Wake Forest. I feel so horrible for saying this, but I don't want to go anywhere I've been accepted. If I had to chose one I'd go to Bryn Mawr, but I think my parents are going to make me go to BU. And it's a good school but I don't want to go. I only applied in hopes of getting into the Honors program, but I didn't. I will drown in the sea of undergrads.
My stats aren't bad?
I have a 3.6UW/4.5W GPA. Top 5% of class.
32 ACT
8 APs, mostly history. I applied as a political science major.
My main extracurriculars were theatre, dance, and an online science and tech high school, all of which I had leadership in.
My common app essay was really good, my supplements were at least okay.
What do you think my chances of coming off the waitlist are? Is there anything I could do to help those odds?
Still waiting on Amherst, but if they say no what should I do? I don't think I can take a gap year but I don't know if I should spend $40,000 going to a school I don't like.</p>
<p>Do you mean that you’d have to pay full tuition at all schools – including those that waitlisted you – except BU? I think that’s the real decision here.</p>
<p>It’s very difficult to predict waitlist movement. Express interest, send supplemental updates, and move your personal decision date out a few weeks. But first, clarify the financials.</p>
<p>My financial package isn’t ready yet, but Wake Forest isn’t really an option. BU won’t give me anymore financial aid, but Bryn Mawr should. I would think it could end up at 40k, and then I have 10k in outside money. Basically, BMC and BU should cost about the same eventually.</p>
<p>And the schools I was waitlisted at say they provide for 100% of financial need.</p>
<p>There’s no guarantee of financial for students on the waitlist, even at 100% schools. So even if the schools where you’ve been waitlisted admit you, youmay not be able to go. I agree that BU sounds a poor fit (your seem to like small colleges in quiet areas, which is the opposite of BU) and if you’re full pay or near, it’s not worth it. If your parents can come around to the idea of paying for Bryn Mawr then it’s good, but otherwise you can take a gap year. Volunteer near home. Or, if you have a relative who can have you stay with them, volunteer in that town. </p>
<p>Congratulations on the Presidential Scholarship at BU. I understand you are concerned about drowning in a sea of undergrads at BU. But there are ways of making it feel smaller.</p>
<p>With your APs, you may place out of a number of freshman or intro-level courses. Upper level courses are usually considerably smaller. This is worth discussing with an admissions counselor before making a final decision about where to attend.</p>
<p>If you are in a large class, it will usually have a teaching assistant or tutor assigned to it (my son is one of these at his college). Get to know that person. Also, go to your professor’s office hours. Join a few clubs. Your dorm-mates will also help to make the school feel more personal. </p>
<p>Good luck with your decision.</p>
<p>Have you talked to your parents about your feelings about BU? As a parent, I certainly wouldn’t want my child to attend a school they were not excited about. That is a recipe for disaster (I know, I transferred out of the school I started out because it wasn’t a good fit. I’d gone there because my parents and teachers said it was the “best” one I’d gotten into.)</p>
<p>Do you know why they prefer BU over Bryn Mawr, if it’s not cost? Bryn Mawr has an excellent reputation. It sounds as though you’d be happier there overall. (Also, I assume you have visited both schools?)</p>
<p>Also consider that you could always transfer. That is what I ended up doing. It’s not ideal, because you miss the continuity that (especially at small LACs) is built into their 4-year curriculum, but it might be an option. If you attended either school and got excellent grades, you could apply as a sophomore transfer next year.</p>
<p>On the other hand, you might find you love where you end up :)</p>
<p>We could swing full-pay for a year if I got into Kenyon or Carleton.
I have not visited either school. I had zero intention of attending either one before last week. I just know I would be miserable at a huge school.
A gap year is not an option. I cannot live at home for another year, and I can’t afford to live on my own.</p>
<p>I told Kenyon if admitted/ financially possible, I would attend. But I sent that email before I got waitlisted.</p>
<p>It sounds like Bryn Mawr is the best choice for you right now. It’s a small school with a great reputation. You can take classes at Haverford, Swarthmore and Penn. I think a heart-to-heart talk with your parents is in order. I doubt they want to spend $40,000 for you to be miserable.</p>
<p>Put together a WL package as advised on threads and sections here, send it to the schools, and then FORGET ABOUT THEM. LIke totally You may well clear the waitlists, but do be aware that even schools that guarantee to meet full need often do not do so for WLed students. You have some great choices there. Congrats. Start looking at one of them and discussing the choices you HAVE with your parents. </p>
<p>I second what @fireandrain said above: go to Bryn Mawr and you’ll be at a small college, plus you’ll have the opportunity to take classes at Swarthmore, Haverford, and Penn. That’s an AMAZING opportunity!</p>
<p>Attend the Revisit Days at both Bryn Mawr and BU. Go with an open mind. Be prepared to be surprised. And then sit down with your parents, after the visits, and figure out what you want to do.</p>
<p>Bryn Mawr is a well-known LAC, ifoundalaska, albeit non-coeducational.</p>
<p>Sorry, waitlisted at every LAC I thought I wanted to attend would be a more appropriate title. I was a little worried about BMC, both because of the lack of men and the acceptance rate is pretty high. </p>
<p>Can I have a parent or GC (my GC is clueless, she’s an angel but kids at my HS only apply to state schools, so that’s all she knows how to do) call the schools and ask why I was waitlisted? some materials might have been late…</p>
<p>Does it matter? Really, just move on. There are more constructive things your GC can do to keep you viable on the waitlist than that. You did get into an excellent LAC, Bryn Mawr. The others are highly selective. Had you been that focused on LACs, there are many out there that are a lot less selective, and you would have been a shoo in for them. </p>
<p>Even though you are at Bryn Mawr, I do believe that it is possible at some point to reside at Haverford, as well as major there and eat there. You’d continue to be enrolled at Bryn Mawr, but for all intents and purposes, you can basically be at Haverford full time - though you may not have first choice there since you would be a Bryn Mawr student.</p>
<p>Bryn Mawr is only a mile from Haverford and a shuttle runs all the time. The courses are scheduled to make it easy to take classes at both. In fact you can live, eat, or major at either school! It’s a lovely area, there are numerous schools close by and there are men at Haverford too. You can also take classes at Swarthmore, attend concerts/ activities and even eat at their dining hall, there is a shuttle which runs regularly (it’s about 20 minutes away.) My son is in the Swarthmore Jazz Band and Haverford or Bryn Mawr students can also be in the band. You also have Philadelphia right at your doorstep, a 1/2 hour by train. If possible, I strongly encourage you to attend admitted students days and see what you think about BU and BMC. They are both very good schools but quite different experiences.</p>
<p>I agree that in hindsight you should have applied to some less selective (but still excellent) LACs such as Skidmore, Bard, Hamilton etc. But you did get into one great LAC, Bryn Mawr and I don’t know why you are not excited to go there. BU is a fine school but it is a very different beast from the LACs you gravitate to. I’d get excited about the school that wants you and spend time trying to maybe get some additional aid and convince your parents to let you go to Bryn Mawr. Have an honest talk and let them know why you feel you are better suited for a LAC as compared to a large university.</p>
<p>@iFoundAlaska If I were you, I would not forget about the schools that waitlisted you. In my time of applying to colleges, I have been taken off multiple waitlists at schools that I had no business getting into. There is a strategy to it. Call them yourself, ask why you were waitlisted, ask what you need to do to get off it, ask if you can appeal. Don’t let your GC do it. They want to hear from you!</p>
<p>The most important thing is being confident and selling yourself when talking to the admissions people. You want to sound like somebody they want to accept. Show real, genuine interest and confidence. </p>
<p>If you have the opportunity, go visit again, use this to show interest. Most importantly, try to talk to somebody in admissions face to face. Ask why you were waitlisted, and ask if there is anything you can do to help your chances. BUT YOU NEED TO SELL YOURSELF. Be prepared to answer questions.</p>
<p>One last bit of advice, don’t count out BU. Boston is a great area and BU isn’t as big as it seems. I think it would be hard to be miserable with so much going on. I prefer big schools though. </p>
<p>Good luck! </p>