An Update to the Update
We Admit It! We have an update to our update on the freshman waitlist (we also admit that’s a lot of updates). On Friday, May 8, we emailed all students currently on our waitlist to gauge whether they remain interested in persisting on our waitlist should we be able to make additional offers of admission.
As we have begun to activate our waitlist we have seen an outpouring of Tribe pride; students who are over the moon at the chance to join our Class of 2019. We’ve also had many students tell us thanks, but no thanks. And that makes total sense. The gut reaction when receiving a waitlist decision is to let the institution know that you want to remain on the waitlist and in consideration for admission. But with each passing day of April, as your decision becomes clearer, and your excitement for another university grows (you send in the check, you buy the t-shirt, you begin the search for a roommate), your interest in William & Mary may wane. Just as it’s helpful for us to know who remains interested in William & Mary, it’s also helpful for us know who is not.
The email we sent this morning asks all students on our waitlist to complete a short online form simply indicating whether or not they remain interested in staying on our waitlist and being considered for admission. As our previous blog states, we are in the process of notifying students who the Committee has selected to take off the waitlist. As we also stated, we don’t know at this point whether we will be able to admit additional students or not. But if we are able to, it will be helpful to only consider those who have genuine interest in attending. To consider those who do not simply prolongs the process for everyone and we know no one wants that.
As promised, we will still send an email update to all students remaining on the waitlist by mid-June. The email you received today was not that update. It’s simply an interim request so that we can work through the waitlist process as efficiently and thoughtfully as possible.
Wendy Livingston ’03, M.Ed. ‘09
Associate Dean of Admission
Comments are closed on posts older than one year, but we still want to hear from you. If you have a comment or question for us, please email admission@wm.edu.
Is there going to be a similar survey-esque form for the transfer waitlist?
@Nick, the deadline for transfers to submit a deposit isn’t until May 15. Once that days passes and we’ve had time to assess our incoming transfer cohort we’ll have an update on our plan for the transfer waitlist.
Hi,
I saw you said” As our previous blog states, we are in the process of notifying students who the Committee has selected to take off the waitlist.” Have you started to notify “students who the Committee has selected to take off the waitlist” already? I didn’t get any kind of notification, does that mean I have no chance to be admitted. BTW, I ‘m an international student from China.
@Kenneth, yes, last week we did notify the initial group of students who the Committee elected to admit from the waitlist. Those who have not yet heard from us may be notified later should we be able to admit additional students and should the Committee select them. If you remain interested, please complete the online form linked in the email you received on Friday.
I completed that online form. Thank you very much.
Hi,
Similar to what Kenneth asked above, if I didn’t receive an initial email last week, does that mean that I might not get off the waitlist? However I did receive the email sent out on Friday about continued interest in WM and remaining on the wait list. Does that essentially mean that I am on the wait list for the waitlist?
Thanks!
@Rachael, unfortunately most students on our waitlist do not come off it. We’re just generally not able to take a large portion of those students. The possibility certainly exists that we will take additional students from the waitlist and we monitor that daily so that we can act quickly should we be able to make additional offers. What we asked Friday is simply for students to let us know if they still want to remain on the waitlist. We recognize that as time passes between late March and May 1, many students who initially wanted to remain on the waitlist no longer feel that way come May 1. If we can know who is still interested and who is not that helps the waitlist process move as efficiently as possible.
How many spots did you offer in the context of the initial group?
@Curious, we’re still processing the results of those offers and as we said, the composition of the class changes daily so numbers we have today may not be the same as the numbers when we look at them tomorrow or the next day. It was a select group of students…not so small as to say only a small handful of students but was still a select group from the waitlist.
Are there more offers being made to out-of-state or in-state applicants?
@M, we are admitting students from the waitlist from both in-state and out-of-state.
How many students have been admitted off the waitlist so far?
@Abby, we’ve admitted a select group of students from the waitlist. As we’ve mentioned, it’s an ongoing process (and that applies still today) so figures are still always in flux. We should have a more specific update on the waitlist we hope next week for both freshmen and transfers.
Do you rank your wait list? How do you decide which students to take off the wait list as compared to others? More or less, is there anything that can increase the chances of being accepted?
@Wondering, we do not rank the waitlist. Just as with our initial process, the waitlist process is determined by deciding which applications are the most competitive for admission. We simply ask those on the waitlist to provide academic and other significant updates to their file. Our initial blog about the waitlist decision itself and the blog that preceded this one provide this information and more about the waitlist process (http://wmblogs.wm.edu/admiss/freshman-waitlist-update-3/).
I was wondering how to apply if I’m turning 60 this November. I’m interested in International Studies. Is housing free also, or just my classes, as I understand I can go anywhere after 60 and get a free education. Please let me know if you can help me.
@Anne, you have the opportunity to either audit classes at William & Mary, or take classes for credit. The guidelines for both of these options can be found here: https://www.wm.edu/offices/registrar/studentsandalumni/nds/applynds/seniorcitizens/index.php. Unfortunately, we are not able to offer free housing. For more specific questions about taking classes, I would encourage you to reach out to the University Registrar, which handles such matters. They can be reached via phone at (757) 221-2800.