Waitlists

Waitlists

So you’ve been waitlisted at your 1st choice university. What does being waitlisted mean, what are your chances of getting off the waitlist, and is there anything you can do about it?

Being waitlisted obviously isn’t as gratifying as being accepted, but it isn’t a denial either. In fact, it’s much more positive than a denial as it indicates that the university has a sincere interest in you. Remember that many more applicants are denied than waitlisted meaning that you possess the qualities to be admitted. So take heart. The great majority of students who received denials would gladly exchange places with you if possible.

What are your chances of getting an offer from a waitlist? Statistically, the number of waitlisted students receiving offers will vary from institution to institution and from year to year. In other words, you can’t be sure of receiving an offer, nor can you be sure of not receiving an offer.

How you respond to being waitlisted really is a matter of individual choice. In addition to arriving at an honest understanding of what being waitlisted means, the other key consideration is the wait itself and coping with the uncertainty, while determining the strength of your desire to attend.

Questions to consider:

  1. How important is this school to you? Compare it to the other schools where you received offers. Is this school really the better fit?
  2. How good are you at the waiting piece? Are you OK with a period of uncertainty?
  3. Are your parents willing to put down a non-refundable enlistment deposit at another school (which you will lose should you receive an offer from your waitlisted school and decide to enroll)?

After careful consideration, if you feel confident that you want to accept the waitlist offer, then here are some steps to take:

  1. Accept the university’s offer of a place on their waitlist.
  2. Find out who the university representative is who handles international admissions and address a “letter of interest” to him/her either by mail or e-mail.
  3. In your letter, explain how the university is a great match for you. Be specific. Writing: ”It’s such a pretty campus” implies superficial knowledge and lack of research or understanding of what’s important to you. Writing: “I’ve been reading Dr. Smith’s fascinating research on tree slugs and would love to be in your biology program” is much better (again, providing that it’s sincere).
  4. Update the university on any recent accomplishments, awards or improvement in academic performance.
  5. Emphasize your ongoing commitment to the college. If you would definitely accept an offer of admission, then clearly say so, but again, only if this is absolutely true.
  6. If you would even accept a deferred entry at mid-year (it doesn’t hurt to find out if this is an option) then say so in your letter. Universities are increasingly turning to their waitlists to make February admission offers thereby assuring a more stable enrollment following the inevitable 1st semester withdrawals.
  7. Your university counsellor will be happy to help you with your letter before you send it off. And work with your university counsellor through your waitlist anxieties in order to gain perspective and balance.
  8. Put a Plan B into action. Carefully consider and weigh your non-waitlist options and remind yourself that no school, regardless of its desirability, is the ultimate repository for all your hopes, dreams and prospects for future happiness and success. You’re in for a few weeks of straddling and weighing possibilities. Invest your energy where it can do the most good by focusing on the positives of the schools where you’ve received offers. That way, if you don’t receive an offer from the waitlist school, you’re in a better position to move forward and have a positive mindset toward the school you will be attending.

What not to do

The university counselling world is filled with stories of waitlisted students who have showered college admission officers with cookies, flowers, daily e-mails, or parents who have offered substantial donations, etc. in order to move a student off the waitlist. These examples, while possibly entertaining to consider, are most emphatically NOT recommended as a course of action (see below). Ultimately, you want to be accepted on your own merits, not denied because you were perceived as too hungry, nagging or unethical.

For further reading on how to best handle the waitlist, click here.