Maybe? After all, the waitlist is probably not exactly where you were hoping to be.
It’s the admission decision no one tends to expect. You worked hard on your applications, applied to great schools, and waited to find out if you were admitted or denied.
Decision day comes and surprise! It’s neither a YES nor a NO.
Your friends say it’s a backhanded compliment—after all, you weren’t rejected, and there is still a chance. Your parents say it’s just a polite “NO” and you should move on. But you’ve heard of students at your school being admitted after ending up on a waitlist and you don’t want to give up if there is a chance.
Below, we’ll talk through how and why students are waitlisted, how often students are admitted off of the waitlist, and how you can best assess your options to make informed decisions.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
(click to skip ahead)Why was I waitlisted?
Why were you waitlisted? Here’s how it usually works:
When a college reads Regular Decision applications, academic and personal ratings are assigned based on a rubric that puts all applicants on the same scale.
Certain applicants are advantaged because they are in special categories based on recruitment and institutional priorities.
These ratings eventually lead to recommended decisions: admit, waitlist, and deny.
A waitlist decision is sometimes confused with a deferral. Being deferred is usually in response to an Early Decision or Early Action application. With a deferral, the college decides not to make a decision in the early round and to move your application into the Regular Decision round.
The reasons?
To compare your application with those of students in the larger pool—and to take a look at your senior year achievement
Students offered a spot on the waitlist often have strong credentials comparable to many of those being admitted. The college knows they could do the work and they would like to admit them if room in the class becomes available.
Many admissions counselors at selective colleges say that upwards of 75% of the students who apply are qualified—but they can only admit a fraction of that number (often a very small fraction). Using the waitlist allows a college to add strong students to the class and come in at the target number they have for the class size.
What do I do if I’m waitlisted?
So if you’re waitlisted, what are your options?
1. Be decisive and end the process with a happy choice.
Don’t assume that the college that offered you the waitlist is a better choice because it is playing hard to get. Choose from the colleges that offered you admission and decline the waitlist. Many students simply don’t want to wait any longer.
2. Decide to give the waitlist your best shot.
But you’re not going to count on it. You’ll move forward with making a choice from the colleges that admitted you by the deposit deadline (usually May 1st).
If you’re indecisive, do a little research on the college's history of admitted students from their waitlist.
The decision letter may give you some data from past years and even a forecast of their intentions. Definitely go to the college’s most recent Common Data Set (google name of college Common Data Set) and look at the response to Question C2 to see what happened last year.
Here’s an example of what you’ll see: Cornell University Common Data Set 2024-25
What this tells you is that Cornell
Offered a place on the waitlist to 8103 applicants
Of that number, 6190 remained on the waitlist
Eventually, 388 were offered admission off of the waitlist—but we don’t know to which academic divisions of study
In case you don’t want to do the math yourself, 388 out of 6190 is about 6%; but keep in mind these numbers can vary a lot from year to year.
Some years a school lets in a bunch of students off the waitlist, and then the next year they let in zero.
With that in mind, if you don’t want to look up Common Data Sets yourself, here’s a link to a dynamic table from College Transitions that offers data on waitlist admissions from the last admissions cycle. (But big caveat: check the date on the data, and see if it’s built from the most recent Common Data Sets—depending on time of year, you may have a different year’s acceptance data on there.)
Who is most likely to be offered admission from a college’s waitlist?
Students who help the college meet its enrollment goals. A college will admit from its waitlist to do things like
balance gender
augment underenrolled academic programs
and add desired diversity.
Not much you can do about those things. You cannot control them.
But there are some things you can control: colleges will look to admit students who
follow their directions
fit the needed criteria
and are likely to accept an offer of admission.
“Working a waitlist” starts with following the college’s directions—yes, there are actually students who don’t seem to do that.
In their letter, each college will give details as to what you need to do and not do.
Working the waitlist
Here are some of the most common (or universal) things they’ll ask you to do, and how you should do them:
You have to opt in to the waitlist by a deadline, usually by checking a box in your application portal. After that, you’ll need to submit your most recent grade report—ask your school counselor to submit an updated transcript or progress report.
Beyond that, most colleges will invite you to bring them up-to-date on your academic and personal life. It’s important that you connect the dots between your experiences, interests, and why you see yourself thriving at the college. Be specific without simply quoting the website—and go deeper than what you shared in your application.
Reflect on why you believe the college will bring out your best and how you see yourself contributing to the community. This communication is commonly referred to as “A Letter of Continued Interest” (LOCI). (Check that link for detailed guidance on how to write a good LOCI, though keep in mind that not every college wants one—again, read carefully.)
Some—but not all—colleges will invite you to submit a new recommendation, something fresh that speaks to your growth and potential.
If you had an interview (in person or virtual) with an admissions counselor, a student, or an alumni interviewer, reach out to them and let them know of your continued interest. Thank them for taking the time to meet with you and encouraging your interest.
Reach out to your admissions counselor (the person on the admissions staff who has responsibility for your geographic regions. You can find this on the admissions website) with a short note. Introduce yourself and let them know of your continued interest.
What's the waitlist timetable?
Waiting is hard. Colleges know that but have to determine if space in the first year class is available and what their needs and priorities are before making offers.
Students may start hearing from colleges with offers of admission as early as mid-April and as late as mid-summer. The most activity happens in early to mid-May. Reach out to the admissions office if time has passed and you need an update.
By the way, don’t be surprised if your interest in the college diminishes over time.
You are going to pay your deposit elsewhere, join the enrolled students’ Facebook page, get information about course registration and housing. Your sense of attachment is going to build with that college and you may well decide to stay committed, even if the other college eventually makes you an offer of admission.
Whatever your story, know that whichever college enrolls you is the lucky one!
Susan Kastner Tree is a native New Yorker whose career in college admissions has included working both in selective college admissions and as a secondary school college counselor. Following her graduation from St. Lawrence University with a BS in Psychology, Susan moved to New England where she worked for twelve years as Associate Dean of Admissions at Bates College. She completed her Master’s degree in School Counseling at the University of Southern Maine and for the next 25 years worked with students from around the world as the Director of College Counseling at a college prep day and boarding school near Philadelphia. Since stepping out of that role, Susan has evaluated applications for two selective research universities and serves as College Essay Guy’s lead college counselor. Susan is a founding board member of the Character Collaborative, the Independent Curriculum Group, and the college access organization GoToCollege NYC; she has served on the Counselor Advisory committees of the College Board, the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and the Common Application. Her twins are recent college graduates.
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