waitlisted but goin to stanford so i won’t be mad ab missing the cold boston weather!
I have the same question as @Massey. Where should I send an additional rec letter to? Should I send it through the portal?
So far what have you guys sent besides the loci?
@emily523 have you rejected the offer for waitlist ?
@peonyplant and @Massey
I called the admissions office this morning and they said that additional letters of recommendation could be faxed in. The fax number that was given to me was 6174968821. Hope this helps 
Hi, does anyone know when meetings resume to review waitlisted applicants?
Admissions must wait until May 2nd to see how many students have accepted their offer of admission. Sometime time after that, they start reviewing waitlist applicants – so May 7th or so would be my guess.
@KableBrown Thank you!
Hello everyone! Does anyone know how many students Harvard has taken off the waitlist over the past five years? Also, any idea of how many students are eliminated from the waitlist once the committee convenes in May to review applications? Thanks!
^^ It doesn’t really matter how many students Harvard took off the waitlist in the last five years; it matters what they anticipate doing THIS year: http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2017/9/21/fewer-students-2022/
In years past, Harvard has admitted students from the waitlist in waves starting around May 15th. Students who are admitted off the waitlist are usually contacted by phone, and given a short time (about a week) to make their decision.
Thanks @gibby . I did see that article but was wondering how likely it is that they will accept 100 people vs the lower estimate of 40 to 50. Is it unprecedented? I’m not holding out much hope, but who knows?
^^ If Admissions is giving such a wide range, they can’t predict with any accuracy how many students they will take off the waitlist. My guess is they’ll take 20, 30, maybe 40, but 100 will be unlikely unless something unexpected happens.
To build upon. what @gibby says, the number they take off the WL for be dependent upon the yield. Only in the unlikely event that the yield is lower than anticipated will the number approach 100. My guess is less than 40. But we’re all just guessing here.
On the positive side, the assumed yield for this admissions cycle was higher than the actual yield last year. Last year,I think the actual yield was 84%, which is among the highest ever – if not the actual record. If we get a reversal to the mean, this year’s wait list class would get more admissions than the 40 to 50 expected. How likely is it that the yield stays at 84% plus? Is this a trend line or just statistical fluctuation? We should find out very soon, when the Harvard Crimson article publishes the stats for this year.
A little back of the envelope calculation knowing Harvard has about 1660 beds for incoming freshman students
So, if this year’s yield is 80% (1,962 times .80 = 1570), there might be room for about 90 students from the waitlist. However, if this year’s yield is 82% (1,962 times .82 = 1609), there might be room for 50 students.
NOTE: Harvard has never reported how they account for Z-listed students in their yield numbers. I think it’s a safe bet that 20-40 students (maybe more) from 2017 were Z-listed for the class of 2018, which is not accounted for in the above calculation as it’s an unknown variable.
I wonder why the number of the students accepted in 2018 is 76 lower than previous years. They expected even higher yield rate this year?
^^ Admissions regretted not being able to take anyone from the waitlist last year, so I think they are making a concerted effort to do so in 2018, even if the yield remains the same (or greater) than last year. In addition, last year I suspect Admissions admitted a higher than usual number of Z-listed students, as they were not able to take any students from the waitlist – which means they had to admit fewer students in 2018.
Someone said the fax number was 6174968821 when they called but I was told 6174960937 when I called… can anyone verify the correct phone number?
I doubt the goal is to accept people off the waitlist in preference to those already offered admission.
That makes no sense.
Rather, limiting outright acceptances and then, necessarily, taking a few folks from the waitlist is the sole means of preventing over-enrollment.
That is the point.