<p>I just found out five minutes ago that I was waitlisted from WashU. It's freaking me out, especially since I'm still waiting to hear back from a few Ivies (Harvard, Princeton, Penn)</p>
<p>And i got into MIT early action, so it seems really weird.</p>
<p>Anyone in the same boat as me? :(</p>
<p>Right there with you. I didn’t exactly anticipated anything because WUSTl was never my dream, still I am very disappointed. Guess have to wait till April 1st… ><</p>
<p>I heard that WashU puts a lot of overqualified applicants on their waitlist because they are too qualified to want to go to WashU. This is likely to continue until WashU builds a name as wowfactor’d as the ivies…can someone confirm this?</p>
<p>SAT I - 2310
SAT II - 760, 780, 800
UW GPA - 4.0
great EC’s, pretty good essays, awesome letters of rec</p>
<p>I didn’t expect to be waitlisted, but I was haha. I guess that’s what I get for being overconfident. S’okay x)</p>
<p>It’s a little annoying seeing people use their supposed “over qualification” as an excuse for not gaining acceptance… if you look through the results thread, plenty of people with 2300+s (with several at or near perfect scores) and amazing stats WERE indeed accepted, even without visiting the school/having an interview. Some of you simply weren’t a good match, just leave it at that. You’ll do well wherever else you go.</p>
<p>^^ agreed.</p>
<p>my son wait listed too… also anxious as hoping for MIT or Ivy…BTW is “wait listed” a kind euphemism for “no thanks” or has any body actually been declined?</p>
<p>thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-03-30/dirty-secrets-of-college-waitlists/2/</p>
<p>Washington University in St. Louis has notoriously huge waitlists they wont even tell you how long. My bet is they put over 10,000 kids on the waitlist every year for a class of 1,350. The thing is, though, they dont count you on the waitlist until you tell them its your first choice. Its a despicable practice, but its a popular place and they can get away with it. Jon Reider, director of college counseling at San Francisco University High School</p>
<p>If I may ask, what defines this match, “fit” etc that is often used as a counterargument to the tufts syndrome? Moreover, in the absence of institution-specific essays, how can it be determined?</p>
<p>kimathi - what you write about in your common app essay can say volumes. A friend of mine that was accepted wrote about how he liked doing things that he was bad at. I was also accepted and wrote about how I identify as “a creative” (a person with the think outside the box thinking of an artist who can apply that talent to stereotypically non-creative fields) and wrote in the additional information section about living with a sibling with autism and how that has changed my character. If you wrote about how satisfied you were about winning the big game, your essay is boring and doesn’t really tell the office anything about yourself. Seriously… I can’t think of a person that isn’t satisfied when they win something important. </p>
<p>To everyone that was waitlisted - I had also heard that WUSTL has some serious Tufts syndrome. Its a pretty common accusation. But before you follow the crowd in believing that, spend some time actually looking at the stats of people who were accepted vs those who were waitlisted. After seeing the stats, I completely changed my opinion about WUSTL having Tufts syndrome. Tons of 23-- SAT and 4.0 students were accepted. Spend some time on the forums researching. I am sorry that you were put on the waitlist which, I admit, is suspiciously long. I am sure you will get into another great college.</p>
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<p>The problem with this, is that you are assuming that all those who were waitlisted had weak common app essays. Whereas it is more probable that there common app essays were just as (if not more) profound and engaging, as yours was, seeing as a lot of those waitlisted also get into other good schools as well. Almost anyone knows how to write a good, sincere common app essay and I find it a bit insulting that you would assume that I wrote one akin to “how it felt great leading my varsity basketball team to a championship final victory as captain, and actually scoring the final basket”</p>
<p>I guess my main point is that if WashU is looking for a certain 'fit", they really should have a supplement in order for applicants to have a chance to demonstrate this. I do not see how the common app essay would be sufficient.</p>
<p>Very well said kimathi</p>
<p>Bottom line: WUSTL is a highly selective school; it received over 28,000 applications, probably from many of the same applicants applying to HYPSM. Looking over the decision thread, it’s clear that many of the kids who got in had amazing stats, identical in fact to some of the kids who were either waitlisted or denied. This is no different from the EA/ED results threads of schools like Columbia, Penn and Yale.</p>
<p>We all know that at this level admissions is a crapshoot. No one should feel that they’re a shoo-in at a top 15 school, regardless of their merits. I completely understand people feeling upset that they weren’t selected but some of the attitudes displayed here are unfortunate. My S was accepted w/ SAT I and II scores in the top 1%, rank at the top of his class and remarkable ECs but he was humbled when he saw his acceptance. He never once took it for granted, nor did we. If he had been WL or rejected, we wouldn’t have been surprised. At this level, the decisions can go either way – there are many qualified, wonderful candidates to choose from. Once the admissions person gets beyond the stats, it might just come down to how you strike them in your CA essays, your interview and what your recommenders had to say. At another school, your very same essays and recommendations might affect the admission counselor(s) differently depending upon their own sensibilities and what the school needs for this particular incoming class. </p>
<p>It’s very subjective, as is your own affinity for colleges on your lists. Why do you favor some over others? My S, despite his stats, did not apply to HYPSM because they did not appeal to him, although other top 15 schools, including some ivies, did and made his application list. He happened to really like WashU on his visit in a way that made him decide to keep it on his list, and he’s now thrilled to have it as an option and will seriously consider it come April. </p>
<p>So, for whatever it’s worth, I suggest that for those of you who were WL or denied, don’t needlessly worry that this is indication of ominous news to come, since it clearly isn’t, or espouse the opposite; and don’t disparage a school because it didn’t select you. Regard this as an opportunity to exercise good sportsmanship.</p>
<p>I am definitely not happy with being waitlisted on WUSTL. However, I do not think I got wait-listed b/c I was “overqualified.” Seriously, even people with nearly perfect SAT scores and perfect gpa cannot be “overqualified” for top 20 schools.</p>
<p>I had SAT I: 2240 and 750+ on SAT IIs, but high sat scores and gpa do not guarantee your admission to colleges (WashU in this case)</p>
<p>So, for those who talk badly about WashU just b/c you didn’t get accepted, just let it go. It seems like WashU wasn’t your top choice anyways, right? Just accept the outcome and move on.</p>
<p>Did you visit WASHU? “Interest”, through visits, etc, is very important to them - almost to the exclusion of scores/grades.</p>
<p>i was very excited about my wustl acceptance until i came online and started reading about this “tufts syndrome”… do you guys all agree that wustl rejects most of its “overqualified” students? i guess it does seem reasonable to believe that wustl would like to protect its yield but would they risk waitlisting a student that was genuinely interested in going, with very high stats? i’m not sure… and now, waiting for a few ivies and stanford results to come out, i’m worried that i am now “underqualified” for those schools… anyone have a good answer?</p>
<p>and to those waitlisted, i’m sure there will be lots of more offers coming in the mail soon…!</p>
<p>My S and one of his best friends were both waitlisted by WUSTL. Both boys test scores put them in the 75%ile range. Both boys are NM Finalists, Eagle Scouts, and have good ECs. Ss grades are good but low by WUSTL standards. Do you think he fits the overqualified profile? His counselor felt WUSTL was a reach school for him.</p>
<p>S visited campus and interviewed, plus made a second visit for Engineering Days last summer. Both boys are double legacies (all the parents are WUSTL alums some with both undergrad and graduate degrees from the school). So, I think we had the interest thing covered. We are local, however, which we think might have been one thing that hurt their chances.</p>
<p>So, to me it seems much more random than being overqualified.</p>
<p>4getit I agree, I don’t think they passed on students who had extremely high stats as I saw several perfect and near perfect scores accepted. I think it was who read the app and if they were looking for that “type” on that day and time.</p>
<p>I think that Wash U has several criteria that are not used at the Ivy league schools that leads to this notion of Tufts syndrome. </p>
<p>First, Wash U is very clear that interest matters to them while the Ivy’s don’t pay attention to who visits them. Second, unlike the Ivy schools, Wash U is not need blind in admissions. </p>
<p>Thus, it would make sense that the academically talented who do not express any interest (visit, interview etc.) and will need significant financial aid are to some degree at a disadvantage. Why else do they have these criteria?</p>
<p>This doesn not mean that cases can’t be cited where someone with great scores who needs significant aid gets admitted - of course there will be those cases - but it does tell you that there is a pool of money out there and that at some point they have allocated all the money available and, after that, an academically superior student must give way to someone who is better able to afford the school.</p>
<p>Getting into any of the top 15 colleges is a long shot. With most of these top schools receiving 20000+ applications, every single applicant is underqualified. The admissions committee can choose whom they want. WashU has some of the top programs in arts & sciences, law, social work and business. Students who got into a 4 year program at WUSTL are really lucky because it is a ‘highly selective’ school. It opens up great possibilities for professional programs in Law, Business and Medicine.</p>
<p>With my 4.18 GPA and 2240 SAT, I would just like to point out that I felt myself out of place in the acceptances thread of students with 2300+ SAT’s and significantly higher GPA’s.</p>
<p>Here is my philosophy on why I got accepted: I am very, very genuine in my efforts. I did not take any SAT prep courses. I succeeded in the classes that I enjoyed and that were important to me. I did activities that I personally found to be fun, and not to fill a quota. Very much of the “college-BS” process was lost on me, and I expressed myself to be a very human person: with flaws, mistakes, issues, successes, happiness, and love for my life and the pride in the accomplishments I had. This is very reflective in my application, and probably the reason why I am getting no love from the UC-system: I don’t conform to their numerical standards, as well as most of yours.</p>