Hey CC, I got most of my admissions decisions already and i either got waitlisted or reject by every school i applied to, which is fine, but i was hoping to some people on here could give me tips on getting off the waitlist. The schools i have been waitlisted by are Franklin & Marshall, Dickinson, University of Rochester, and Brandeis University. I’m only going to accept waitlist positions at Franklin and Marshall and Dickinson, because the other two school are really far and i don’t think my parents will be comfortable with me going that far. So i would love to get tips on how to increase the chances to get off the waitlist. Thanks in advance CC people.
Did you get into any safeties?
Well no, but my local community college is my safety.
There is a list made available by NACAC after May 1 every year of schools with space remaining for the fall class. There are always some very nice options available there. For example, last year the list included schools like Ohio Wesleyan and Knox College.
Accept every WL. If it is not money, you can always convince your parents. Especially if the choice is CC or Brandeis or Rochester. No disrespect to CC it is a wonderful option of course. Boston especially is a great city with easy transportation up and down the east coast less than 4 hours from most parts. Rochester is drivable from the locations you mentioned. Plus remind your parents that they should not have let you apply to schools they were not willing to let you go to based on distance
As other threads have noted look at your odds from the common data set, pick the one you want or have the taken the most from their waitlist. Have your GC contact that one to find out why you were waitlisted. If it is a limited major maybe she or you can have a conversation with admissions about another major. Send them your grades if they are good, a letter with any new accomplishments and telling the one that you would attend if you are admitted exactly that but you have to mean it (if there are financial considerations those have to be taken into account). Send a similar letter to the other 3 but just let them know you are still very interested.
I agree that you should accept every waitlist. If you have one particular school you can email them and let them know it is your top choice and say something like if accepted I will attend. Some guidance counselors will make call to a top choice school on behalf of students on a waitlist as well so I’d talk to him/her.
Thanks guys, I really appreciate your advice and i never know that schools as prominent as Ohio Wesleyan have trouble filling their class, so i will key my eye open for list @sltxdad mentioned. Also I will take the waitlist offers from all schools like you guys advised. Thanks for the help guys.
Realistically, few students get off of most waitlists. Stay on all of the waitlists, but don’t get your hopes up too high.
F&M admitted 31 out of 1,330 on the waitlist last year: http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1171
Dickinson admitted 10 out of 260 on the waitlist last year: http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1155
Brandeis admitted 40 out of 615 on the waitlist last year: http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=453
Rochester had 808 on the waitlist last year and may not have admitted any: http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=117
Make plans to start at a community college and investigate what courses you need take there to prepare for transfer in your major at your transfer target schools.
Of course, you can investigate whether there are less selective four year schools with late application deadlines. However, scholarship deadlines may have passed even if the deadline to apply for admission has not.
In addition, most students who get off waitlists tend to have very little financial need.
Ohio Wesleyan, Knox, or Hendrix are still accepting applications I think.
Lots of good advice for what to do if you are on a waitlist here: http://www.collegeconfidential.com/?s=waitlist
Good luck.
You didn’t apply to Temple?
@gearmom No I didn’t because even with merit scholarship the net price is still $8000-$12000 before loans. My local community college would be $4000 and they have a transfer agreement with Temple University, which allows anyone to transfer with a 2.5 GPA. It was a purely financial decision.
@westnext That is a good option then. You might have been able to squeak by with a 5.5k Stafford loan, summer job and a bit of help from your family. Less debt will be nice though. You should have good options as Physics major. @Xraymancs
Sounds like that is great option
By all means go for the affordable option. You can get your physics courses started at CC and then with the transfer agreement with Temple you can get a very solid physics background. The key is to realize that CC courses may not be as demanding as the same courses at Temple. This means that you have to take the most demanding schedule you can at your CC and really learn the material well if you want to be able to walk in and not feel like you are behind.
@xraymancs That is a good point, but the truth is that i don’t know what i really want to do with my life. When I first started my school search process in December, i wanted to major in economics, then that changed into physics, and now i want to become a data scientist – which is random I know. The problem with that is that not many schools offer a concentration or a major in data science (which is really a statistics and computer science double major.) I feel that community college will give me time to sample all three areas of study and then finally decide what i want to do. But of course there is a bad connotation that goes with going to CC. My parents and my sisters are absolutely against it.
Many students from all backgrounds are attending CCs because of economics. If your parents and sisters are absolutely against it then are then helping pay for a live away option?
@gearmom Well my parents would help pay for college, but they really can’t afford to. By help me, I mean they would be willing to take out PLUS loans which, I would be responsible for paying after college. The reason I don’t want assume to much debt is because i can only take a limited about of loans and i don’t want to burden them with the loan payments if i decide to go to graduate school.
Even if money is a major consideration, the reality is that if you plan well, given that you were at least WL at some good schools, you might have gotten either merit or FA at some school one step down from where you were WL.
What about working for a semester and researching January programs?
Edit, did not see the comment about money and Plus loans. Not a great option, interest is very high (over 7%) and begins Freshman year, research it. You should look for scholarship programs where you will get Merit money at least full tuition. Focus on your grades through the end of this year, get a job or an internship that will add to your application and apply as a Freshman for January or 2016.
Since you are undecided, all the more reason to start at CC. I understand your family’s position about starting at a 4-year school but if you are undecided as to where to go and what to major in and the finances would impose a hardship on you and your family, CC might be the wisest decision.
If you want to be a data scientist, you can start in physics or applied mathematics. In both those curricula you have some computing and you can add in a CS minor to get the skills you need to work in the field. You don’t need a degree in data science to start in the field. What you do need is a good background in science and mathematics and an analytical mind. This is what physics or applied mathematics can help you develop.