Early Admit article in the HOYA

[Jack]

TBird- In a word, no. Statements like that have no bearing on the admissions decisions. The only place a statement like that might be helpful is when a student is trying to get off the waiting list.

[TBird41]

Thanks, Jack.
That's what I figured, but he was well regarded enough as a college counselor that I thought it had a chance of being true.

It's good to now it was all me then (just what I needed, another ego boost ;D)

[Nevada Hoya]

Tgo, you are right in saying that interest in an institution goes a long way. Case in point, my son just got a job at a company, who hired him in part, because he knew so much about the company and conveyed his interest. On some of the interviews I can tell whether a student did his home work and his interest in GU was long standing. This sometimes influences by rating score, independent of his/her GPA, SATs, etc. But this interest usually correlates to their involvement in extracurriculars (class president, etc.)

My HS sent eight or nine students to GU my year. However, that was in the early '60's, and the admissions scheme at GU, I am sure, was vastly different than now.

To add to your anecdotal info, reformation, my cousin, went to you HS, went to GU, and GU Med (I believe) and now is a cardiologist.

[Jack]

It's good to now it was all me then

It's also good to know spelling was not a factor.

[hoyadrummer]

Jack - You don't seem to have your facts quite right. I was waitlisted by Georgetown and subsequently received a call from someone in the admissions department informing me that I was one of a number of wait list candidates that would be up for discussion and potential admission shortly. She wanted to know if I had done anything since submitting my application that could boost my chances. She also asked, flat out, if I would attend Georgetown if I was admitted.

I said yes, and I was admitted.

Also, Georgetown typically places large numbers of students on the waitlist, and admits them to the University as late as mid August. I worked NSO and dealt with one student who had the car packed for Trinity in CT and got a call the night before she was to leave that Georgetown had admitted her.

It certainly sounds to me like Georgetown is waitlisting people to push up its yield.

[TrueHoyaBlue]

Drummer, I think that's what Jack meant when he wrote the following.

Jack said:

TBird- In a word, no. Statements like that have no bearing on the admissions decisions. The only place a statement like that might be helpful is when a student is trying to get off the waiting list.

In other words, intent to enroll makes a difference in admitting off the waitlist, but not in terms of regular admission.

[Jack]

THB has cited the salient point from my prior statements. Georgetown definitely looks to have a high yield off of the students admitted from the waiting list but does not waitlist the top students in the pool in order to gauge their interest. The waitlist is filled by the next ranked group of students after those who were admitted, and it is large to leave enough candidates to make up for any shortfall in the different schools and academic departments. It is intended to be used every year to make sure that the enrollment cap is not exceeded and the class is properly balanced. It is simply a matter of efficiency to look at those who are most likely to enroll when considering the waiting list- with few spots to fill you have to be precise and the fewer students you have to admit, the sooner you can be sure about filling the various parts of the class.

As for the experience of students being admitted in August, I cannot speak for anything before my time in the office, but I can tell you that there is a common agreement among colleges and universities that no waitlist activity will take place after July 1. I suppose it is possible that the policy was different when you were working with NSO- I was class of 2000 too so that was before I started in admissions, but my understanding is that this agreement has been in place for some time. I can tell you with absolute certainty that no one has been admitted in August or even July in the last 5 years. Law school and grad school behave differently, but undergraduate institutions try to give each other some predictability.

[TBird41]

Jack said:

It's also good to know spelling was not a factor.

Spell check baby, spell check (that and having my mom edit my essays) ;D

[Cambridge]

My best friend got into Georgetown in mid-July off a waitlist. He was all ready to go to Emory when he got the call. He went on to become editor in chief of the Hoya at GU. I was class of 2002.

[Jack]

I am told the July 1 cut-off has been in place for at least 20 years, so I think we are looking at people not remembering correctly or exaggerating. Getting your notification in June undoubtedly feels late when you decided you were going to Emory or Trinity in April, but it is not the same thing as getting your letter in mid-July or August.

[tgo]

I thought this might be of interest.

I am a first year committee chairman I just got the list of people accepted from my committee and it was interesting to see that almost all the students who got 8's & 9's got in or got waitlisted, which is good since i think the interview should have as big a weight in the decision as possible

Also, two of my people that i interviewed got in!!! After many years of interviewing I had yet to have anyone get in so this feels good. I cant wait to call them and congratulate them this evening.