How to Get off the Waitlist

April 19, 2014

Ellen, a freshman at UCLA, shares her experience of getting waitlisted and what she did to get in!

I still remember the nervousness with which I checked my application status on the day admissions were revealed. I also remember the disappointment I felt upon seeing the word waitlisted on my application. There was some unease at knowing that while all my friends would be knowing where exactly they would be going next year by May 1st, I would still be, in a way, undecided, until I knew my final decisions from the schools I applied to. Yet, I understood that I did have a shot at admission, unlike many of my friends who received an acceptance.

With this knowledge, I did everything I could to continue appealing to the school. I continued achieving high grades into my second semester of my senior year, and constantly had a 4.0 GPA throughout the quarter. I also emailed the admissions office and let them know of my current situation and updated accomplishments since submitting my application in November of the year before. I believe that this persistence put me in good standing within the waitlisted applicants, and believe it or not, a week after May 1st, I was emailed with an acceptance from my waitlisted school!



Browse Successful Application Files

alm25
UT Austin


Accepted to UC Berkeley, USC, UMich, Illinois, UT Austin, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UCSD, UCSB, U of Minnesota, Arizona, WVU, Cal Poly, San Jose State

I'm from the SF Bay Area, but I'm betraying my roots by attending The University of Texas at Austin as a chemical engineering major. I like music, science and eating!
nten_nyiam
MIT


Accepted to MIT, CalTech, UChicago, Macaulay Honors

I am a technologically inclined person who likes puzzles, video games, tutoring, late night cramming, and helping others.
BGrove
Duke


Accepted to Duke, UT Austin, GA Tech, Washington, Arizona

I am a normal person: I promise. I am a big sports fan who will be attending Duke to watch basketball (and hopefully graduate with an economics degree).
htownbrown
Stanford


Accepted to Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, UPenn, Pomona, Williams, Amherst, Claremont (CMC), Northwestern, Vanderbilt, USC, JHU, UC Berkeley, UT Austin, UNC, Tulane, UMich, Georgetown

An aspiring lawyer who wants to make a difference in the world.

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