<p>My S got waitlisted at his top three schools. Any advise?</p>
<p>What is it with the waitlisting? Some of the University of California schools are waitlisting for the first time.</p>
<p>Is your son still waiting to hear from other schools? What kind of schools did he get waitlisted from - LAC, top universities? There may be hope to get off the waitlist if it’s small private LAC, and you are paying full fare.</p>
<p>I suspect it has to do with the shaky economy. Schools are having a hard time predicting their yields. Also, I think there is a record number of students applying this year. Still, what is the best way to proceed when put on at all of your top schools.</p>
<p>Let’s see he got waitlisted at Tulane, BU and BC. He got rejected from GWU and accepted at SUNY Binghamton. We are still waiting for NYU and McGill.</p>
<p>I would wait for a week or two, then ask the GC to contact those schools to find out why he was waitlisted. Determine which one he has the highest probability of getting in, then zero in on that one by letting the school know your son would absolutely go if admitted. You could also get your GC to say that on your behalf. Of course, if it’s to happen, your son would have to go or the GC’s reputation would be on the line. Our GC did that for our D1, but she got our commitment before she let the adcom know. You should also put another packet together to be send to all the waitlisted schools - 1) letter of interest, 2) latest transcript (hopefully it’s better than before), 3) another recommendation letter from GC, 4) a rec letter from one of his best senior year teacher. If you were in a position to pay full fare, YOU may want to let the schools know.</p>
<p>Good luck with NYU and McGill.</p>
<p>Thanks for your good advise. It is greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>I would also wait to talk abou the next step with your son until he has recovered a bit. Lots of TLC.</p>
<p>My best friend’s son is at SUNY Binghamton and is happy there. A lot less expensive than the other choices!</p>
<p>I would first research how many kids were waitlisted/taken off waitlist in previous years for those schools. Some schools put a ridiculous amount of kids on the waitlist and take very few off, others pull from the waitlist every year. If it looks like a school is likely to take waitlisted students, your son can send them any additional grades, honors, awards and express the sentiment that the school is still his first choice.</p>
<p>But Binghamton is a very good school, a lot of kids would be thrilled to go there, so it’s far from the end of the world.</p>
<p>At many schools, waitlisting qualified applicants who need financial aid is being used as a “soft rejection”. Not that all students who need financial aid are being waitlisted, just more than in the past.</p>
<p>I wonder if any families applied for admission, did not request financial aid, got into the school, and then asked for aid because of the bad economy. This would be enormously unfair to students who were upfront about financial need but the general public is unlikely to ever see information about this circumstance.</p>
<p>The whole process is flawed.</p>
<p>Big G – to me it is one thing if family’s situation changes dramatically; another if they are being cagey.</p>
<p>China, I think a problem adcoms are trying to deal with is what I suspect is an increased number of applications. Not the very tip top, but many good schools. My GC said if you are prepared to lose a deposit (like big deal – $300?), be flexible and sit tight.</p>
<p>kayf,</p>
<p>How can the school know? </p>
<p>Even if it is a real circumstance it is still unfair to the waitlisted/rejected applicant. </p>
<p>Since it is unfair, the school has no incentive to publicize or investigate these cases.</p>
<p>The simple solution is to have everyone apply and recieve acceptances/rejections. Then financial air would be applied for at a later date. Since a much smaller pool of financial aid applications would be processed, the process would be faster. This would not be perfect. Adcoms can spot affluent prospects by the information on the applications. There would be more “fairness”.</p>
<p>How can the school know what ? If there was a change in family situation – kid calls and says dad lost job, mom in hospital, etc. If kid/family just says we want finaid, after not originally saying we want, it seems to me a different situaion.</p>
<p>How do you know they are telling the truth?</p>
<p>Even if they are, the changed circumstances make them less desirable as admits to need aware schools. A student can get resinded for a D, why not for trying to go from “no aid” to aid?</p>
<p>Despite what some kids on this board seem to believe, adcoms are not the CIA or NSA. </p>
<p>When people can cheat, someone will cheat.</p>
<p>I am not a financial aid expert, but I think dad losing job may be considered as a temporary situation, therefore no additional aid. Even if they would consider it, a letter from parent’s company probably would be required, no different than if you were applying for unemployment. Whatever new financial hardship could be easily documented and investigated.</p>
<p>The vast majority of colleges would not give you aid if you didn’t apply initially. The full need schools that might would require documentation of change in family situation.</p>