<p>My son is waitlisted in Haverford. Should he do anything further to get admission?</p>
<p>It would probably help if he wrote a letter stating how much he really wants to go to Haverford and why to show that he is still interested. It couldn’t hurt to visit campus again and meet with an admissions officer if that is an option for you. My daughter was admitted to Haverford but just chose Tufts, so there is one spot that is available! Good luck to your son.</p>
<p>It doesn’t work that way. The college accepts more applicants than it has places for knowing that the yield is significantly under 100%. A student choosing another college does not open up a place at Haverford. That only happens if the class is not filled at the end of the process.</p>
<p>Sometimes the reverse happens and the class is oversubscribed (even with many admits choosing to go other places), and then colleges have to scramble to provide housing.</p>
<p>Yes, I realize that. I was just trying to be encouraging! And it does matter how many people don’t accept their offer of admission - a few every year usually come off the wait list.</p>
<p>Does he want to go there now that he has been accepted elsewhere? My S was waitlisted at Columbia but has another acceptance at a college he preferred (and is going to attend) so he isn’t doing anything to get off the waitlist. In his own words “if they don’t want me, I don’t want them.” Not what I would have done, but it is time for our kids to put on their big boy pants and make some adult decisions.</p>
<p>Yes, he does. He chose most of the colleges himself. I was not particularly enthusiastic about Haverford, but he was.</p>
<p>My son was waitlisted at his top choices(Harvard, Dartmouth, Amherst, Tufts,Midd-rejected by Princeton and Williams) in 2009-he was one of the lucky few off the midd wait list. He called admissions(himself) to ask if there was anything missing in his application(no), and then he sent a supplementary packet with a cover letter stating(in 1 page) why Midd was the best match for him, what he could bring to Midd, and that if he got off the wait list, he surely would attend. The packet had 2 new letters, one from a college professor who knew my son from political volunteer work who commented on his passion for politics, community service, and his maturity, and another from the head of the IB program at our public school saying our son was one of the best students he had been privileged to teach in 25 years. It also had several political columns my s had written for our local paper and his school paper. It wasn’t too thick, and it was all new information.
We also asked someone we knew with a personal connection at Midd to help us, had him talk to our son(interview him) and then call Midd and speak to an adcom member about him. We learned that our son was certainly qualified, but that no one on the committee had felt strongly about accepting him initially. So when 40 people came off the wait list, my son was one of them.
It was a very difficult, depressing, and eye-opening time. We thought that a bright kid with straight As, 2140 SAT1, 2250 SAT2s, college credits in computer programming classes with As, 2 varsity sports, president of student government, and editor of the school newspaper with awards for the best column in NYS would be able to get himself into a competitive school without help from his parents-or “grease” as I call it.</p>
<p>There is SO much competition for the few places at these top schools, that they are MUCH harder to get into than when we attended 30 years ago. It’s a world market now.</p>
<p>That’s why I post on CC. To help others realize that it’s a jungle for the not-so-well-connected, even if you are smart, if you have no “hook” and can’t contribute to a college sports team or music ensemble as well as the overall milieu.</p>
<p>My second son is a recruited athlete. With same grades, but lesser test scores, he was sought after by the same schools that rejected or wait-listed his brother. So as I say now “Geniuses are a dime a dozen…You need an angle to be accepted”</p>
<p>Seriously, you should actively try to get off any wait list if the school is your top choice. Pull out all the stops, use any connection you may have. But realize you are QUALIFIED. Just not lucky.</p>
<p>Thanks. That is helpful. I am acquainted with one Haverford professor who does not know him, and friends with an Emeritus prof who has known him forever. Should I bring them in?</p>
<p>Yes; nothing to lose by trying.
And there are many good reasons to be enthusiastic about Haverford.</p>
<p>Like hobbes, my daughter is going to open a spot for someone else. We just can’t justify the cost difference and don’t want to burden her/us with that much debt for undergrad. </p>
<p>Good luck all!</p>
<p>Haverford differs from other schools in the unique sense of community that is fostered here through trust, concern, and respect under the Honor Code. If your son believes this is a community he can truly thrive in, I would encourage him to write a letter, keeping in mind that Haverford rarely does accept students from the wait list. Best of luck!</p>
<p>Does anyone know when we’ll find out if Havorford will be taking anyone off the waitlist this year?</p>
<p>*Haverford whoops looks like AP studying is really getting to me…</p>