Waitlists as a good sign? Forum

[ljmrc3344]

I'm sure that this topic has probably been beaten to death. But I was wondering what the general consensus is about how positive one should be with waitlists in the MVPB area with what, in any other cycle, seem to be CCN numbers.

I was waitlisted at Michigan today, which frankly is a bit of a surprise, since they are not normally notorious for yield protection. I was waitlisted at UVA, too, which didn't surprise me given their reputation. However, I DID get into UPenn (and Cornell and Duke). I haven't heard back from Chicago and NYU yet, and Columbia held me.

Should I be taking this as I sign that based on my application the admissions offices see me as CCN-bound? Maybe I'm just looking for a bit of solace, but the wording of the Michigan notification sounded very "we would definitely take you if we were sure you wanted to go." Then again, in all likelihood that is probably the one they send to everyone, including the borderline waitlisted people. The only thing that worries me is that I wrote Why? essays for all of these schools in order to avoid this from happening. Perhaps the essays were a little perfunctory or spare and they didn't really buy my commitment, but the whole situation has thrown me for a bit of a loop. I'm really gunning for CCN, so it just kind of makes me worry that my applications weren't good ENOUGH rather than TOO good.

I apologize if I sound presumptuous.

[erniesto]

I'm not exactly sure how true the YP claim is.

This is just a wild assumption, but keep in mind that UVA, UofMich, Boalt are public universities, and have lower instate tuition. The two former have drastically lower costs of living than the CCN. ITE their apps might be up more than usual. Hopefully you get into the one of your choice eventually.

[ljmrc3344]

That could be true. I should also mention that the Michigan notification actually came out and cited the 20 percent increase in applications and that they are trying to guard against over-enrollment. So, I don't know. If only I could have applied a year ago.

[spiffypyro]

I feel you- I've been accepted to all of CCN, but WL'ed at Penn and Mich (and expecting to be at UVA too, since I applied so long ago and haven't heard anything). I was accepted to Berkeley, but I expressed particular interest there, unlike the other 3 in the tier.

Anyway, I think that since it is an especially competitive cycle, schools that might not normally YP can afford to do so with the rise in applications. Maybe I'm just trying to make myself feel better though...