Waitlisted From College? Here’s What To Do: Three College Waitlist Letters That Worked Sarah O'Neill

 Sarah O’Neill Chester County Supreme Daily Editing Affair

Waitlisted from a College? Here is What To Do.

Write a waitlist Letter aka a Love Letter aka a Letter of Continued Interest.

Now that you have spent your whole fall semester vigorously working on your college resume, tweaking your activities, and composing admissions essays, you will wait until you receive those glorious letters of acceptance.

The thing is, colleges (the biggest ones and beyond) accept students based on certain criteria and needs of the university that year. Even if your resume mirrors a top-notch school career, extra-special service to your school, or whatever glittery aspect you include, the truth is that anyone is vulnerable to being waitlisted. With over a million applicants each year worldwide to US institutions, the odds are not always in your favor.

IF this is the case, keep reading for why writing a waitlist letter is an option to get ahead of the game and to remind colleges that they are your number one. You also get a chance to update the admissions committee about the wonderful activities you’ve been involved in since applying.

When should you write your waitlist letter?

Well, the first round of decisions for early decision (for people who are not playing a sport and have been recruited), are announced anywhere from early December until around Christmas. It’s always a spectacular “gift” to receive the news that you will be attending the school of your dreams, but what if you don’t get accepted ED? Then, you have to wait until the regular decision round. In the meantime, let’s start that ED love letter straight away. In fact, you can write a love letter for any school for which you are waitlisted (not if you are denied — let that go). Do it immediately following your waitlist status.

Another phrase that you might hear when writing this letter is that it is called a letter of continued interest. This makes sense. You are not only telling them how much you love their school, but you are telling them that you are STILL passionate about attending and updating them on what you have been up to that can add to their campus! Universities want applicants who will be original, can synthesize, and truly add to the beat of the school.

Here is a pithy step-by-step guide with three examples of waitlist letters below that worked! DO NOT let CHATGPT write it. This is a chance to also demonstrate your originality by proving that a bot cannot express how much you love the school.

STEPS to writing a letter of continued interest:

1. Pull up your blank Google doc and brainstorm reasons why YOU + that school are a great fit. Be sure to have all your particulars (be ultra-specific) ready to reverberate in the letter.
2. Once you generate your very specific list, write another list about all you have done since applying that proves you are who you said you are and that you will come to school to DO something great. Do not just discuss your theories or personal philosophy, but SHOW that you have been busy ever since applying — busy doing great things.
3. Now, writing a letter is not a dead art. Begin your heading with “Dear Admissions Committee” or, if you want to go further, write a letter to the president of the committee by including their name, but be sure to reference the committee or board as well.
4. In your first body, state who you are, when you applied, that you were waitlisted, and why you are writing, which is to be considered for admission.
5. The bulk of the bodies that come thereafter should be the ultimate MIX of particular aspects you love about the school and what YOU will bring to each aspect. Keep one subject per “paragraph”.
6. Do not write too much in terms of fluff. This means that every sentence and phrase and idea and assertion about the school and about you should be deliberate and considered and specific.
7. Sign it sincerely you or if could be fun and quirky like: From a Harvard Hopeful.
8. Ask your counselor to read it or a personal mentor. Proof it.
9. Send it out asap. Keep your name in their consciousness as they decide whether or not to take you off the waitlist and admit you.
10. What it takes to be taken off the waitlist is this: perhaps your application lacks in a certain area. FIND IT and add to it what you have done to fill in that gap. Also, your resume/application may mirror another student’s which means the committee is trying to decide between you and that person. Writing a letter can give you an advantage in that way as well.

In the end, only about 7 to 20% are admitted from the waitlist but it is POSSIBLE! Read below for three sample letters that worked since 2021.

SAMPLE 1

Dear Harvard Admissions Committee,

Hello! I’m Rachel — — -, a hopeful Harvardian from — — — — — -in New Jersey. Harvard University is my first choice, and if offered admission, there’s no place I’d rather be. I’m writing to tell you what I have been up to since being waitlisted and to thank the board for reassessing my application and for considering my progress since.

This semester, my GPA has risen significantly since quarantine, which impacted my average. My counselor will send an updated transcript once it becomes available. Athletically, I have been selected by the USA Table Tennis Association to represent the US at the World Table Tennis Feeder Westchester event in May. It’s an international tournament featuring top players from all over the globe. I envision contributing to Harvard’s table tennis club in the future. I am also happy to report that my organizations, ArtInMind and GirlsWhoCode, are flourishing. ArtInMind has now served over 100 children with developmental delays, and I am training students of GirlsWhoCode to become the next club leaders. If admitted to Harvard, I would expand service to underserved communities of Cambridge and Greater Boston. This includes collaborating with the Harvard Mentoring Project and the Phillips Brooks House Association.

This past weekend, I visited Harvard. Walking down the brick road in front of University Hall, looking out at the statue of John Harvard, I imagined my younger self touching his shoe. Every year, my parents and I visit Harvard and browse surrounding galleries. Harvard has been part of my growth, and this time we are attending the School of Art exhibition at the Harvard Art Museum’s Lightbox Gallery. I was specifically impacted by Schmitt’s “Sympoietic System”. The piece invokes chance operations and computational thinking, gesturing towards the complexity generated by the collision between man-made and natural systems. To me, this work exemplifies Harvard’s philosophy of art to honor the complexities of humanity and to shine light on images that are multilayered. It emphasizes a critical approach to art making and encourages cross-disciplinary creative research. I also produce art. In mine, I focus on the value of the individual, sometimes fabricating images against a historical, social, or every day backdrop. Since applying, I have advanced my practice. For my AP Studio Art, I am investigating motifs like memory, emotional reflection, the passage of time, and multimedia. All works are available for viewing at https://rachelou.com

Since submitting in January, I also received Scholastic Art and Writing Awards: 1 Gold Key, 2 Silver Keys (1 Portfolio, 1 Painting), 1 Honorable Mention. “Harbor” was accepted for publication in the Fall 2021 Celebrating Art Anthology and received the “High Merit” award, placing my work in the top 5% out of thousands. The piece was selected for the “Fresh Perspectives” show at Morris Museum. “Blueberries” is featured as the cover art for The Connection Magazine April 2022 edition.

I would like to express how passionate I am to take advantage of Harvard’s vast offerings in the fine arts including Art, Culture and Technology Studio, Immersive Experience as Art and Vision in Art and Neuroscience. These courses would mean I’d get to examine reciprocal relationships between science, technology and their influence on human subjectivity, culture, and identity. I imagine learning from prominent artists and designers with the Artist-in-Residence Program. In addition to vibrant visiting artist lecture series, ArtLab’s dynamic community of artists, scholars, and researchers who are engaging with complex subjects, contemporary issues, and new materials and forms. I remain convinced that Harvard’s robust Fine Arts department will allow me to take further flight in my artistic skies — where I can become a research-based, multidisciplinary artist working at the intersection of art and science.

I cannot express enough my gratitude for considering me for admission to Harvard. I am happy to update you on any other information you require. I hope that my dedication to my grades, my service to others, my athletics, and my artistic flair will prove that I will strongly contribute to Harvard, and I open my arms to all it has to offer.

Yours truly,

Rachel — — — — — — — -

Reference Number: School Name DOB

SAMPLE 2

NAME

ADDRESS • CITY • Phone Number • email address

Date

University of Notre Dame Attention: Admissions

RE: Regular Decision Applicant | Application # — — — — — — —

To the Admissions Committee,

I am writing to express my great interest in your fine university. I applied through regular admission and although I was waitlisted, I am confident that the University of Notre Dame is the place for me! The Mendoza College of Business is of particular interest to me because of its strong academic focus on marketing as well as the vast opportunities available to conduct extensive research in my field of study. All the school has to offer is attractive to me. But even more, the spirit that is Notre Dame directly reinforces my own life motto so that I am absolutely certain this is the place I will prosper in my four years as an undergraduate.

As I had mentioned above, marketing is a fascinating branch and has always intrigued me ever since my mother imparted her love of business through her role as an executive manager of a hotel. I often assist her in the planning of marketing strategies including analyzing data and conducting research. It is all I wish to do! Only at Mendoza College of Business, under the guidance of your top professors and high standards of teaching, will I greatly explore the field. Through the theoretical and empirical approaches to teaching in classes such as Marketing Research, I hope to impart my knowledge of the Asian Market and apply it to our studies. Classes such as this will indubitably help me to improve upon my research skills which are essential in marketing. Even more, I would enjoy courses such as Exploring Frontiers of Marketing Thought and Business Case Competition, which will allow me to explore interrelated disciplines.

In order to better prepare for my future field of study, I have completed a research project in December on marketing strategies in a typical Chinese hotel. In this project, I collected data from 2009 to 2013 from the Ruili Hotel regarding sales, costs, occupancy rates, and so forth. In this process, I created a suitable marketing strategy for the apartment hotel based on its location, rent rate and target customers. At this time, I not only learned how to analyze information from a real business but also became more skilled in the field of marketing. I have attached my project and would be honored to receive advice from your highly experienced professors such as Dr. Murphy.

Beyond academics, I regard Notre Dame as my top choice of schools because I am absolutely convinced that I perfectly belong here. As a university student, I will make every effort to share my knowledge, understand the talents and collaborate with others to find truth just like the university itself is dedicated to the pursuit and sharing of truth for its own sake. What’s more, due to the catholic beliefs, there are many organizations in which I would be proud to combine my own strengths with others to serve the community and its pupils. I would be grateful if you would reconsider me as a candidate for admission to your fine university.

Sincerely,

SAMPLE 3

Dear Admissions Committee,

My name is — — — — — — — -, a hopeful Lion from — — — — — High School in Massachusetts who was waitlisted for the class of 2027. I am writing to thank you for considering my high school record and for giving me this opportunity. I am writing to express that I value it, and that my goal to join Columbia class of 2027 is unwavering. Columbia University remains my first choice, and I commit to enroll if offered the opportunity! I’d love to tell you what I have been doing since submitting my application, and hopefully my uniqueness will shine through in this letter.

This year, I have been highly involved in my school as a student leader. As the math team captain, I have prepared diagnostic exams, hosted additional meetings, and organized pie-sales on pi-day. I work with the other captains to balance team-building and our achievements. I’ve also continued leading my Tutorial Club in which I help freshman and sophomore students prepare for the AP World History exam because our school has not yet offered the course. I also invited last year’s students to return and become teachers. I was overjoyed when returning members shared the test-taking strategies they had learned from me in the past. This time, I am a mentor! I’ve also been active in my school’s Science Olympiad Club, and we placed sixth in the 2023 Massachusetts State Science Olympiad Tournament, which is the second-best finish in the team’s history.

Academically, I am fully invested in mathematics, and I’ve been strengthening my skills by working through The Foundations of Mathematics. I’ve also devoured both fictional texts such as Kim Stanley Robinson’s Hugo-Award-Winning Mars trilogy series as well as non-fiction books such as Toni Morrison’s Beloved. I believe I can excel intellectually at Columbia University where I will take full advantage of its core curriculum that emphasizes the importance of humanities and literature while learning STEM.

Outside of class, I am deeply involved in the Go community. I’ve attached a photo of me playing just in case you want to learn about the game! During my Columbia interview with Hong, I was encouraged to look into the connections between math and Go. I also implemented math in Go lessons that I teach at the local Chinese Language School. Beyond being a teacher and a player, I am also a Go organizer. As the President of the American Go Honor Society (AGHS), the largest youth-led organization in North America, I led three successful tournaments in 2023! The Pair Go tournament reached more than a hundred participants which nearly doubled what we had last year. I was happy to help Go-enthusiasts find a local club where they could play regularly. While promoting our events, I established connections with Go-clubs across the country, one being the New York Institute of Go! I’d love to establish a Go club at Columbia.

Ultimately, I will bring my energy and curiosities with me along with my unique personal perspectives as a leader and community builder. I hope my gratitude for being on the waitlist speaks to my commitment to attend Columbia University! Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.

Sincerely,

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Sarah O'Neill Supreme Editing