You applied Early Action or even Early Decision to some colleges on your list. They’ve either accepted, denied, or deferred you. Deferring early candidates has become standard practice during the last few years, as universities have had difficulties predicting which of their accepted candidates will attend. Though frustrating, a deferral is not a rejection, and at some colleges you have a much greater chance of being deferred than accepted. A deferral means that if you applied ED or EA, your application has been converted to regular admission. The good news is your application is strong enough to warrant another review during the regular admission cycle with the rest of the applicants.
“So…what do I do now?”
First things first: don’t put all of your hopes in a small number of schools. Make sure you have a balanced college list. You want to go to a great school next year, even if it’s not your “dream school” or first choice. If you’ve only applied to highly selective schools, the time is right to apply to some more target schools. Most colleges still take applications in February.
“Do I reach out to the school that deferred me?”
In order to show the school that deferred you that you are still interested in attending, consider submitting a letter of continued interest (LOCI). Explain to the admissions committee that you’re serious about attending their school if admitted. Here’s the general strategy:
- Find out what they want in your LOCI. They probably outlined what they are looking for from deferred students in an email. Pay attention to these details and only send what you are supposed to send.
- Write to a specific person in the admissions office, if possible. If you know who the admissions representative is for your area, send the LOCI to them via email.
- In the first sentence, make it very clear where the school stands on your list. If it’s your first choice, you should absolutely state this. If it’s one of your top choices, you can also state that. Be honest, though, and only tell the top-choice school that it is in fact your first choice and that you will attend if accepted.
- The letter should include updates on activities and academics since you sent your application. Obviously, you should update any new awards or achievements. If you don’t have any of those, you may include things like good grades, continued extracurricular and leadership involvement, and job experience.
- Reiterate that the school is a great fit for you. Consider finding out more about the department or program you’re applying to and use some of those details for your LOCI. If you wrote a supplemental “why us” essay, you should reread that and reaffirm some of your original points, adding new context if possible. Be careful to only send new information; they already have your essays and activities list in your file.
More questions? Schedule a free consultation with Diane.
