<p>I am super disappointed to be waitlisted at Haverford because I really loved the school. But now I am further upset because it seems that there is no chance now for acceptance from my other top two choices Amherst and Swarthmore. What do you think? Is it unheard of for Haverford waitlistees to be accepted at other super prestigious LACs? </p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>Happens all the time.</p>
<p>You'll find out in a couple of days. Does it really matter what we think at this point?</p>
<p>I got rejected to Haverford and I am having similar sentiments, but I guess all we can do is wait. I think each school is unique, and hopefully their admissions processes are too. :) Hang in there.</p>
<p>Thank you for your replies! I realize that it is just a waiting game now, but I wanted to prepare myself for the worst if it was inevitable. And hear that it was possible if it had happened before. Good luck Shinnen!</p>
<p>Two years ago, my son was waitlisted at Haverford and accepted at Swat where he's now a sophomore. I can't imagine that his experience is all that unusual.</p>
<p>I was rejected by Hav but got into Swat, just shows how weird college admissions can be.</p>
<p>Haverford, like many others, wls people that they expect will get into more "desirable schools," in order to keep their yield up. Wash U and Tufts are well-known for it.</p>
<p>as haverford (in)/ swarthmore (?)/ pomona (?) are all my 1st choice, i have to respectfully disagree with the last post. "more desirable" depends on the person you ask and is not some fixed ideal for everyone. for a serious student who may not want the atmosphere of swarthmore, a more cozy, community-oriented (and some would say healthy) environment such as at haverford may be "more desirable". i personally don't know anybody who chose haverford over swarthmore, but i do know several people at haverford who were accepted to mit, brown, harvard, williams and amherst who decided to go to haverford for non financial reasons. i also have a friend at bryn mawr who was accepted to harvard but wanted to go to the mawr.</p>
<p>swarthmore's acceptance rate will likely be 18% this year and haverford will likely be 23%. admissions, as we all agree, is not an exact science, so of course given the closeness of selectivity, there will be many people for which college admissions will have no predictable pattern. </p>
<p>i think a more probable explanation in NJpitcher's case is that he is a stellar student for which both colleges get tons of... but the fact that he applied e.d. to swat and, it seems, campaigned pretty aggressively for admission to swat (and maybe not as much to haverford ?) may have been the difference. i don't think it's an issue of a school having an inferiority complex but rather, an applicant's enthusiasm, like a high gpa, or sats, or special extracurricular activities, or special demographics, may be the deciding factor between so many equally qualified applicants.</p>
<p>I put desirable in quotes for precisely that reason; from a statistical and not individual standpoint.</p>
<p>"Haverford, like many others, wls people that they expect will get into more "desirable schools,""</p>
<p>you seem to state this as if you know this is fact... is it? or, are you projecting your own opinion on haverford. as i have friends at haverford who were accepted into more "prestigious" schools, i don't think you can just make an unsubstantiated statement like that and pass it off as truth as it's an over reach. i think haverford, like many other schools, including swarthmore, will waitlist/reject you if you show limited interest in it (thus the importance of "why swat")... as there are plenty of applicants right behind you with near identical resumes but who also show enthusiasm for the school. we have to ask NJ pitcher if he spent as much time lobbying the haverford or carleton adcoms like he did swat's? sorry man... i'd hate to ruin your possibly best day of your life by asking you to get involved in this inane discussion.</p>
<p>You guys will give yourself ulcers trying to figure out the whys and wherefores. All you can do is give it your best shot and, if it is meant to be, it is meant to be. The slotting system used to build a class makes it nearly impossible to make individual predictions. </p>
<p>I think I've probably got as good a handle on what lights Swarthmore's fire as the average bear. If you notice, I almost never make a prediction for an individual student beyond "good shot", "probably a reach", etc. When I do make a prediction, it's because the application is a no-brainer -- early decision, 2350 SATs, valedictorian, 3rd generation legacy, and volunteered building hospitals in Uganda every summer.</p>
<p>once again, the voice of reason :)</p>
<p>Well, I was rejected at Swat-my love of all loves. Heart-crushing devastation here. Anyways, that's what happened in my case, but as these other anecdotes show, a decision from one college really can't determine another one.</p>
<p>Sorry Jaimie :(</p>
<p>Thanks, NJPitcher. Congratulations to you, Swat is (as you obviously know) amazing! The finality of the rejection was what got me. I'm planning on vigorously campaigning to get off the Haverford waitlist, but I know not to get my hopes up (I remember andi son's story). Nonetheless, I guess this is just how the admissions game goes...
Congrats again to you and everyone!</p>
<p>i feel for you too jaimie, but if swat was all that to you, why didn't you apply ed? njpitcher did and i think that level of committment helped him in the rd round.</p>
<p>I couldn't apply ED for financial reasons. I see how that could have helped though.</p>