Wait-listing becomes an increasingly common practice

In April, the mailman changes lives. His daily deliveries define a senior’s next four years. Will he hold large envelopes, stuffed with information about the first day of college, or will he have small envelopes, holding only a rejection? This year, the situation has moved past the big envelope or small envelope dilemma, as a third option becomes increasingly prevalent: the wait-list.

Wait-lists function as insurance for universities, according to Collegeboard’s Web site. Colleges can admit a certain number of students each year; admit too many or too few and the budget will be unbalanced. So colleges put together a list of qualified students that can be back-ups if all of the initial applicants don’t accept their spot at the school.

Wait-listing has become an increasingly common practice over the last few years. A 2009 National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) study reported that 35 percent of colleges use the wait-list and each year half of those colleges report an increase in students placed on the wait-list. Additionally, the report states that of selective colleges, those that accept fewer than 50 percent of applicants, 78.2 percent utilize the wait-list.  An average of 30 percent of wait-listed students eventually get accepted, but at “selective schools” that number drops down to 13.2 percent.

That figure is only exacerbated by the recent increase in applications to selective colleges. According to a recent New York Times article, Dartmouth College, Stanford University, and Duke University all reported “sharp increases” in their applicant pools this year. Harvard University’s applications increased 5 percent, and their acceptance rate dropped to the record low of 6.9 percent. East counselors Lilli Englebrick and Laurie Carter could not provide specific statistics but reported that East has also seen an increase in applications to selective schools.

David Hawkins, director of Public Policy and Research at NACAC, said there are two main reasons for the increase in applications to Ivy Leagues. First, more students are graduating from high school, with 2008 being an all-time high. Second, individual students are submitting more applications.

“The most selective colleges often see the biggest increases, mainly because students are inclined to ‘aim high’ in their application process,” Hawkins said. “In addition, the most academically ambitious students, who tend to apply to the most selective colleges, are also more likely to submit more college applications per capita.”

Senior Alexa Schneiders was one student who applied to many selective universities this year. Among her several selections were Yale University, Brown University, and University of Pennsylvania. The Ivy League’s process of solely offering need-based scholarships and grants, rather than loans, was a big part of Schneiders’ decision in applying.

“The opportunities that come from Ivy Leagues to score internships or grad school or study abroad, they’re a level above other schools,” Schneiders said. “Because I don’t really know what I want to do, I want to have all of those offered.”

Schneiders was wait-listed at UPenn, Notre Dame University, and Washington and Lee University. Because she expects many applicants to turn down their spots at the schools, she made the decision to wait until one accepted her. She will know sometime between the middle of May to the end of June where she will be attending next year.“I’m really glad you can get wait-listed because you can get a second chance to get into schools that didn’t accept you right away,” Schneiders said. “But, at the same time, being wait-listed sucks. It’s a waiting game… it’s basically going to be find out where I’m going to school then get on a plane and go.”

Senior Haley Dagleish is not as confident that she will make it off a wait-list. Dagleish accepted her position on the wait-lists at Stanford and Vanderbilt University, but said that if she still does not know by June she will accept elsewhere. Texas Christian University and Wake Forest University are her top back-up schools.

“It’s really stressful because I can’t get excited about where I’m going because I never know if one of the other wait-list options is going to come through,” Dagleish said. “But I still think it’s an honor to be on a wait list somewhere rather than get rejected.”

Hawkins said that two basic principles go into how a college chooses students to admit from off their wait list. The process is similar to how colleges admit students during regular decision: student interest is key, as well as specific skills or interests. For example, if most prospective Sociology majors turn down spots at first, the college would choose students from the wait list with that major in mind. So, for students put on the wait list, there is little to do but…wait.

“An admission offer is always better than a wait list offer, which is common sense, so if you have already been accepted to a college in which you’re interested, taking that offer is usually a better bet,” Hawkins said. “But for students whose ‘dream’ school has wait-listed them, we urge students to communicate with the school and let them know that you are holding off all other suitors in favor of that institution.”

But Englebrick said there are several things a wait-listed student can do to show the colleges that they are good choice. First, the student should make a deposit at a school they did get into. If they get into the wait-listed school, they will forfeit the deposit, so it all depends on how willing they are to take the gamble.

Wait-listed students also can’t fall into the trap of “senioritis.” Englebrick says many times colleges look to third and fourth quarter grades when making final decisions. All-in-all, Carter and Englebrick agree that students should make their interest known to college admissions.

“In my mind, wait list means they want you but they had to make a choice between you and someone else and that other person was picked first,” Carter said. “It must be like deciding between two houses or puppies that you want to buy.”