An Update for the 2024 Waiting List

 If you watch my weekly live q&a sessions on Instagram, you've heard me talk about the waiting list a few times already, but I have an official update for the waiting list from Greg Roberts, the Associate VP of Enrollment and Undergraduate Admission. This update is going into portals and will go out by email momentarily. 

Thank you for your continued interest in the University of Virginia. We are grateful that you chose to remain on the waiting list, and we realize that waiting is never easy.  Thank you for your patience, and thank you - again - for your interest.

You have demonstrated to us that you are more than capable of thriving at UVA and contributing to the education and experience of your classmates. We want you to know that we respect and admire all that you have accomplished, and that we have great faith in your future.

At the same time, after considering the size of the first-year class and the spaces available, we have unfortunately concluded that we cannot offer you admission to UVA this year. I expect this will be disappointing news to receive, and I am very sorry that I have to deliver it.

If your heart is truly set on attending UVA, we are here to help. Many waitlisted first year students earn admission after one or two years elsewhere, provided they let us help them with planning. If you would like to talk to an Admission Counselor about transfer admission, or how you might begin your college career at the excellent and welcoming UVA Wise campus in southwest Virginia, please contact us. We would welcome the chance to answer questions and assist.

We appreciate your interest in the University of Virginia, and wish you the best as you begin your college career.

I hope you can look at your chosen school and move forward with you plans to go there with excitement. Best wishes for a wonderful summer and exciting start to your college career!

2023 Waiting List Update

If you watch my weekly live q&a sessions on Instagram, you've heard me talk about the waiting list a few times already, but I have an official update for the waiting list from Greg Roberts, the Associate VP of Enrollment and Undergraduate Admission. This update is going into portals and will go out by email momentarily. 

Thank you for your continued interest in the University of Virginia. We are grateful that you chose to remain on the waiting list, and we realize that waiting is never easy.  Thank you for your patience, and thank you - again - for your interest.

You have demonstrated to us that you are more than capable of thriving at UVA and contributing to the education and experience of your classmates. We want you to know that we respect and admire all that you have accomplished, and that we have great faith in your future.

At the same time, after considering the size of the first-year class and the spaces available, we have unfortunately concluded that we cannot offer you admission to UVA this year. I expect this will be disappointing news to receive, and I am very sorry that I have to deliver it.

If your heart is truly set on attending UVA, we are here to help. Many waitlisted first year students earn admission after one or two years elsewhere, provided they let us help them with planning. If you would like to talk to an Admission Counselor about transfer admission, or how you might begin your college career at the excellent and welcoming UVA Wise campus in southwest Virginia, please contact us. We would welcome the chance to answer questions and assist.

We appreciate your interest in the University of Virginia, and wish you the best as you begin your college career.

I know this is disappointing news for many of you. I hope you can look at your chosen school and move forward with you plans to go there with excitement. Best wishes for a wonderful summer and exciting start to your college career!

Waiting List Update for #UVA27

Hello, everyone! I'm stepping back into the blog after a few weeks of student takeovers to let you know more about this year's waiting list. Here is what I can share today, May 2nd:

We are going to make some offers to students on the waiting lists. I can't predict exactly how many offers we make (more on that later). The total number of offers made will depend on how many people accept their offers.

At this point, it looks like most offers will be made to out-of-state, College of Arts and Sciences students, though there will be some offers made to Virginians and people in the smaller schools. If you've been reading the statistics posts on the blog, you know that Virginians tend to yield at a higher rate (that means say "yes" back to an offer of admission).

This is going to take time. Waiting list work happens in waves. For the rest of the week, we'll be reviewing applications from students who opted into the waiting list and going over additional information they may have submitted via their portals. Once me make an offer, the student gets a few days to think about it. Students waiting on a financial aid package will get a few days from the time their aid package is posted to SIS. Another factor to consider is melt. 

Melt (sometimes referred to as "Summer Melt") happens when students who accepted offers of admission decide that they aren't coming after all. You can see melt happen as schools go to their waiting lists. Someone who deposited at School A might get off the waiting list at School B and decide to withdraw from School A to accept that new offer. So, even if we fill spots that are available right now, on May 2nd, there may be other spots that open up later because of waiting list movement at other schools. 

The offers will go out via email at the end of the week. I will post a more specific update on my social accounts, if possible.

By the way, this blog is about the first year admission process. The UVA Transfer Blog is linked in the menu and will provide information for students on the transfer waiting list when there is news to share. 

An Update for the 2022 Waiting List

If you watch my weekly live q&a sessions on Instagram, you've heard me talk about the waiting list a few times already, but I have an official update for the waiting list from Greg Roberts, the Dean of Admission.

Thank you for your continued interest in the University of Virginia. We are grateful that you chose to remain on the waiting list, and we realize that waiting is never easy. Thank you for your patience and thank you - again - for your interest. 

You have demonstrated to us that you are more than capable of thriving at UVA and contributing to the education and experience of your classmates. We want you to know that we respect and admire all that you have accomplished, and that we have great faith in your future. 

At the same time, after considering the size of the first-year class and the spaces available, we have unfortunately concluded that we cannot offer you admission to UVA this year. I expect this will be disappointing news to receive, and I am very sorry that I have to deliver it. 

If your heart is truly set on attending UVA, we are here to help. Based on the same strengths that helped you reach our waiting list, we are optimistic that you will earn admission after one or two years elsewhere, provided you let us help you with your planning. If you would like to talk to an Admission Counselor about transfer admission, or how you might begin your college career at the excellent and welcoming UVA Wise campus in southwest Virginia, please contact us. We would welcome the chance to answer questions and assist. 

We appreciate your interest in the University of Virginia and wish you the best as you begin your college career.

I know this is disappointing news for many of you. I hope you can look at your chosen school and move forward with you plans to go there with excitement. Best wishes for a wonderful summer and exciting start to your college career!

Notes for the 2022 Waiting List

 

If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you should have followed the link to the Waiting List FAQs that was in your decision letter. Many of the questions we're getting are covered there, so please be sure to share that link with your parents and counselor so they understand the process. I'm going to go over the parts that come up the most and add some more information. Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

How many people are on the waiting list? 

The waiting list forms as people fill out the waiting list reply on the portal. The number on the list continues to change because students may remove themselves from it at any time.

The waiting list tends to be large because there are 10 different segments of it (VA and OOS groups for the four schools and the one program that take first-year students). Most schools include waiting list data in section C2 of the Common Data Set. 

From UVA's 2020-2021 Common Data Set:
Do you have a policy of placing students on a waiting list? Yes
Number of qualified applicants offered a place on the waiting list: 6,465
Number accepting a place on the waiting list: 3,780
Number of wait-listed students admitted: 165
Is your waiting list ranked? No

What's this thing about UVA Wise?

Virginia residents on the waiting list who applied for the College of Arts & Sciences are given the option of enrolling at UVA Wise for one year before guaranteed transfer to UVA. You won't be removed from our waiting list process and you aren't bound to Wise if you express interest in that option. Here's the link about the Wise option that was in your portal.

I accepted. Why is the form still there? 

You can always come back and pull yourself off the list. That is why the form remains after you opt in. There is no going back once you decline, so there are a couple confirmation screens to get through if you want to opt-out.

 

 How many people will come off the waiting list?

Even though I've been doing this for years, I can't predict this. It's hard to cite trends with certainty, especially with the pandemic affecting college decisions in the last few years. We're all waiting to see how this works out right now.

How many people got offers to come off the waiting list in the past?

The Waiting List FAQ page has a decade of information, but here are the numbers for every year since I started working here. This should show you how unpredictable this part can be. I don't have a breakdown of where the offers were for these years.

2021 - 83
2020 - 915
2019 - 9
2018 - 13
2017- 117
2016 - 360
2015- 402
2014- 42
2013 - 185
2012 - 284
2011 - 117
2010 - 240
2009 - 288
2008 - 60
2007 - 159
2006 - 145
2005 - 83

How do I improve my chances of getting an offer?

There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this. Uploading a letter with updates is fine, but I think you should want until the middle of April to upload it via the portal so you can put everything in one communication. Please do not email one or more admission officers about your decision. Use your portal.

By the way, showing up in Peabody Hall wouldn't affect our process. I can't tell you how many students have driven here ask the questions covered in the FAQs. It was not the best use of their time (or gas money!).

When/How do you make wait-list offers?

This is covered on the waiting list page. We start making waiting list offers as soon as we know we have space in the class, usually in early May. We move quickly because no one wants to drag this out. In the past, we've wrapped the process up in June. When the time comes, we always email the entire waiting list to let them know the class is full.

If you are going to get an offer, we'll call you at the number you put on your application. The call is a heads up that your status is about to change in the portal. Of course, it's fine if you tell us "no thanks" and that's the end of it. We hope that people who are no longer interested in UVA use the portal to remove their name from the list, but some people forget. When the portal updates, a new letter shows up along with the ability to pay a deposit. We work a traditional business day, Monday through Friday. Our office hours are 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. We call from phone numbers like 434-982-xxxx.

Because we want to give students a few days to think about the offer (and because the Financial Aid folks need time to post a package if the newly-admitted student applied for aid), this process takes a while. I can't give constant updates on the blog. I will always post when the Dean says the class is full and we are done making offers.

What about aid?

If you applied for aid by March 1st and got all of your documentation in, Student Financial Services will put a financial aid package together. Once that's posted, you'll have a couple days to accept the offer and pay your deposit.

Will my housing and class options be limited if I come off the waiting list?

In a word: no. Students coming off the waiting list aren't treated differently in the housing process. During the Orientation season, seats in certain popular classes are held for each orientation session. That means people who sign up for the first orientation can't scoop up all the seats in classes. What's more, the registration system opens up for course changes in August. Lots of students don't finalize their courses until that period. Many will continue to tweak their schedule during the "drop/add" period (some schools are calling it a shopping period now) at the beginging of the semester, when you can visit classes and make changes without penalty.

What now?

For now, you need to look at your other options and think about which one feels right to you. Some of you will want to hold on and see what happens with the UVA waiting list and others will want to fully invest themselves in another school. Either way, you need to submit a deposit somewhere by May 1st to ensure yourself a spot in a freshman class. If you are offered a spot in our class and you decide to accept it, you'll have to write to that other school and withdraw your name from the class (you may lose your deposit at that school). Just remember that you can't "double deposit".

By the way, calling a student and telling them that they are getting an offer of admission is probably the most exciting thing admission officers experience! We can't wait to make them and everyone has a story or two about favorite calls. I promise you that when it's time, we'll be working very quickly so we can deliver happy news!

The UVA Class of 2025 is Complete

A waiting list update from Greg Roberts, Dean of Admission:

On behalf of the UVA Office of Admission, I’d like to send a heartfelt thank you to all of the applicants and their families who placed their faith in us during this challenging and chaotic year, including those who were on our waiting list and received our final decisions last week. We are honored and humbled that you chose to apply to UVA. While we were unable to offer admission to every deserving and capable candidate in this intensely competitive year, please know we saw you, we heard you, we believe in you, and we are grateful to you. And please know we wish you happiness and success as you begin your college journey in the fall. 

 

I know this is disappointing news for many of you. I hope you can look at your chosen school and move forward with you plans to go there with excitement. Thank you so much for being part of this blog.  Best wishes for a wonderful summer and exciting start to your college career!

 

Waiting List Reply Forms (the #UVA LOCI) Due TODAY!

If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you have until the end of the day to submit your Waiting List Reply Form in the applicant portal. This form is your "Letters of Continued Interest" (aka LOCI).

If you are a Virginia resident who applied to the College of Arts & Sciences, you will also see a question asking about your interest in spending your first year at UVA's College at Wise.

 

If you accept a spot on the waiting list, you will see a confirmation message in your portal. You will also see a link to withdraw from the waiting list if you decide that you are no longer interested in UVA at a later date. 

 

Please remember to follow the instructions in the Waiting List FAQs if you would like to submit an update to your file. 

 

Notes for the #UVA25 Waiting List

 If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you had a link to the Waiting List FAQs in your decision letter. Many of the questions we're getting are covered there. Please be sure to share that link with your parents so they understand the process. I'm going to go over the parts that come up the most and add some more information. Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

How many people are on the waiting list?

The waiting list forms as people fill out the waiting list reply on the portal. We offer spots to many, but only a portion those students will actually put themselves on the waiting list. 

The waiting list will be big because we need to ensure there are students for all ten sections of the first year class. The class is made up of Virginia residents and out-of-state students for five schools/programs that take first years.

What's this thing about UVA Wise?

Virginia residents on the waiting list who applied for the College of Arts & Sciences are given the option of enrolling at UVA Wise for one year before guaranteed transfer to UVA. There are some academic requirements for the time at Wise, of course. If you are a Virginia resident, you will see a question about the UVA Wise option on your waiting list reply form. Answering yes will get you some more information from our colleagues at Wise. You won't be removed from our waiting list process and you aren't bound to Wise if you select the "yes" option.

I accepted. Why is the form still there? 

You can always come back and pull yourself off the list. That is why the form remains after you opt in. There is no going back once you decline, so there are confirmation screens if you want to opt-out.

How many people will come off the waiting list?

Even though I've been doing this for years, I can't predict this one. If we don't have ~3,800 admitted students accepting a spot, we move to the waiting list.

It's hard to cite trends with certainty. One year, we might have room for in-state Nursing students and the next year, that group could be full on the deposit deadline date. We're all waiting to see how this works out right now.

How many people got offers to come off the waiting list in the past?

Here's over a decade of data, which should show you how unpredictable this part can be. I don't have a breakdown of where the offers were for these years.

2020 - 915
2019 - 8
2018 - 13
2017- 117
2016 - 360
2015- 402
2014- 42
2013 - 185
2012 - 284
2011 - 117
2010 - 240
2009 - 288
2008 - 60
2007 - 159
2006 - 145
2005 - 83

How do I improve my chances of getting an offer?

There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this. Uploading a letter in the portal is appropriate. Bombarding every admission officer with an email each day is not. Please don't email one or more admission officers directly with your updates. Following directions is important.

By the way, though this is not an option now (we are working remotely), showing up wouldn't affect our process. I can't tell you how many students have driven here ask the questions covered in the FAQs. It was not the best use of their time (or gas money!).

When/How do you make wait-list offers?

We start making waiting list offers as soon as we know we have space in the class. We move quickly because no one wants to drag this out. In the past, we've wrapped the process up in June. Every year is a little different, with last year being very different. When the time comes, we always email the entire waiting list to let them know the class is full.

If you are going to get an offer, we'll call you at the number you put on your application. The call is a heads up that your status is about to change in the portal. Of course, it's fine if you tell us "no thanks" and that's the end of it. We hope that people who are no longer interested in UVA use the portal to remove their name from the list, but some people forget. When the portal updates, a new letter shows up along with the ability to pay a deposit. We work a traditional business day, Monday through Friday. Our office hours are 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern.

Because we want to give students a few days to think about the offer (and because the Financial Aid folks need time to post a package if the newly-admitted student applied for aid), this process takes a while. I can't give constant updates on the blog. I will always post when the Dean says the class is full.

What about aid?

If you applied for aid by March 1st and got all of your documentation in, Student Financial Services will put a financial aid package together. Once that's posted, you'll have a couple days to accept the offer and pay your deposit.

Will my housing and class options be limited if I come off the waiting list?

In a word: no. Students coming off the waiting list aren't treated differently in the housing process. During the Orientation season, seats in certain popular classes are held for each orientation session. That means people who sign up for the first orientation can't scoop up all the seats in classes. What's more, the registration system opens up for course changes in August. Lots of students don't finalize their courses until that period. Many will continue to tweak their schedule during the "drop/add" period at the begging of the semester, when you can visit classes and make changes without penalty.

What now?

Look at your options. Get excited about one of them and pay a deposit to guarantee yourself a spot in a freshman class somewhere.


By the way, calling a student and telling them that they are getting an offer of admission is probably the most exciting thing admission officers experience. We can't wait to make them and everyone has a story or two about favorite calls. I promise you that when it's time, we'll be working very quickly so we can deliver some happy news!

Let's Talk about UVA Admission Decisions: The Waiting List

Students offered a spot on the waiting list can use this entry to talk.

This is probably the toughest decision to get from a school. At UVA, the waiting list tends to be large because there are so many different segments to the population here (VA and OOS groups for the four schools and the one program that take first-year students). At this point, we don't know where there will be openings in the class.

We won't know how large the waiting list is until you all accept or decline your waiting list offers.  Right now, you've been offered a spot on the list. You have until April 15th to reply via your portal.

You should have already seen the link to the waiting list FAQ page in your decision letter, which answers the most common questions (is the list ranked, what do I do now, what's the time line, etc.) and provides a decade of data about waiting list offers.

For now, you need to look at your other options and think about which one feels right to you. Some of you will want to hold on and see what happens with the waiting list and others will want to fully invest themselves in another school. Either way, you need to submit a deposit somewhere by May 1st to ensure yourself a spot in a freshman class. If you are offered a spot in our class and you decide to accept it, you'll have to write to that other school and withdraw your name from the class (you may lose your deposit at that school). Just remember that you can't "double deposit".

Feel free chat here.

We hope you find a peaceful place to think about your options

A #UVA24 Waiting List Update

Hello, everyone! I'm stepping back into the blog after weeks of student takeovers to let you know some more about this year's waiting list. If you haven't read the Waiting List FAQ page (linked in your letter) and the first post about the waiting list on this blog, those might be helpful.

During our 4/21 question and answer session on Instagram, I shared that we would be making waiting list offers, but I couldn't predict how many offers we'd make. Historical data can help admission officers predict their yield (that's the term for the students to accept admission after we offer it) and something that is called melt.

Melt (sometimes referred to as "Summer Melt") happens when students who paid an admission deposit decide that they aren't coming after all. You can see melt happen as other schools go to their waiting list. Someone who deposited at UVA might get off the waiting list at another school and decide to withdraw from here to accept that other offer.

While admission officers have historical data to look at when trying to predict their yield and melt, no one anywhere had data that could predict the impact of a global pandemic. We are all learning about this together.

So...Who is Getting Offers?

You are probably aware that I think of our waiting list as having ten different segments: in-state and out-of-state for the five academic entry points. There are years when we need all of the segments to fill in spots and years when we might need one or two. Generally, more spots are available in the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Engineering. The College is the largest school with about 11,500 of the 17,000 undergraduates enrolled there. Engineering is the next largest with 2,870. As usual, those are the schools where we've made almost all of our waiting list offers. We have made offers to both Virginians and non-Virginians.

Why is This So Slow?

This is a time when we work one-on-one with students, not with large groups. It may feel a little slow on your side. We review the applications of those who accepted a spot on the waiting list and submit the names of students we'd like to admit from our regions to the Dean. The Dean approves some of our students for an offer and we get to call to let them know that an offer is coming in the student portal.

Students coming off the waiting list get a few days to think about their offers and make a deposit.. If the student applied for financial aid, we let Student Financial Services know so they can put together an aid package and their days to consider the offer begin when we get word that the package has been posted to their SIS account.

On our side, the waiting list process moves like a pendulum. We make some offers, we wait for the replies, then we make a few more offers.

What Can You Do?

There are two things you can do if you are on the waiting list. First, you can submit any updates through your applicant portal. Second, you can look for an email that is going out to everyone on the waiting list asking you to confirm that you still want to be considered. That's it.


I'm going to make some calls myself in a moment, so I'm in for a happy afternoon. I hope I get to talk to a few of you!

Notes for the #UVA24 Waiting List

If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you had a link to the Waiting List FAQs in your decision letter. Many of the questions we're getting are covered there, so please be sure to share that link with your parents so they understand the process. I'm going to go over the parts that come up the most and add some more information. Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

How many people are on the waiting list? 

The waiting list forms as people fill out the waiting list reply on the portal. We offer spots to many, but only a portion those students will actually put themselves on the waiting list. The Common Data Set, something every school fills out, has a section about waiting list numbers. Some schools omit this section, but here are our numbers from last year:

From the 2019 Common Data Set:
Do you have a policy of placing students on a waiting list? Yes
Number of qualified applicants offered a place on the waiting list: 5,486
Number accepting a place on the waiting list: 2,969
Number of wait-listed students admitted: 8
Is your waiting list ranked? No

The waiting list will be big on because we need to ensure there are students to fit all ten sections of the first year class. The class is made up of Virginia residents and out-of-state students for each of the five schools/programs that take first years.

What's this thing about UVA Wise?

Virginia residents on the waiting list who applied for the College of Arts & Sciences are given the option of enrolling at UVA Wise for one year before guaranteed transfer to UVA. There are some academic requirements for the time at Wise, of course. If you are a Virginia resident, you will see a question about the UVA Wise option on your waiting list reply form. Answering yes will get you some more information from our colleagues at Wise. You won't be removed from our waiting list process and you aren't bound to Wise if you select the "yes" option.

I accepted. Why is the form still there? 

You can always come back and pull yourself off the list. That is why the form remains after you opt in. There is no going back once you decline, so there are confirmation screens if you want to opt-out.

How many people will come off the waiting list?

Even though I've been doing this for years, I can't predict this one. If we don't have 3,748 admitted students accepting a spot, we move to the waiting list.

It's hard to cite trends with certainty. One year, we might have room for in-state Nursing students and the next year, that group could be full on the deposit deadline date. We're all waiting to see how this works out right now.

How many people got offers to come off the waiting list in the past?

Here's over a decade of data, which should show you how unpredictable this part can be. I don't have a breakdown of where the offers were for these years.


2019 - 8
2018 - 13
2017- 117
2016 - 360
2015- 402
2014- 42
2013 - 185
2012 - 284
2011 - 117
2010 - 240
2009 - 288
2008 - 60
2007 - 159
2006 - 145
2005 - 83

How do I improve my chances of getting an offer?

There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this. Uploading a letter in the portal is appropriate. Bombarding every admission officer with an email each day is not. Please don't email one or more admission officers directly with your updates. Following directions is important.

By the way, though this is not an option now, showing up in Peabody Hall wouldn't affect our process. I can't tell you how many students have driven here ask the questions covered in the FAQs. It was not the best use of their time (or gas money!).

When/How do you make wait-list offers?

We start making waiting list offers as soon as we know we have space in the class. We move quickly because no one wants to drag this out. In the past, we've wrapped the process up in June. Every year is a little different, but this year will probably be very different. When the time comes, we always email the entire waiting list to let them know the class is full.

If you are going to get an offer, we'll call you at the number you put on your application. The call is a heads up that your status is about to change in the portal. Of course, it's fine if you tell us "no thanks" and that's the end of it. We hope that people who are no longer interested in UVA use the portal to remove their name from the list, but some people forget. When the portal updates, a new letter shows up along with the ability to pay a deposit. We work a traditional business day, Monday through Friday. Our office hours are 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM.

Because we want to give students a few days to think about the offer (and because the Financial Aid folks need time to post a package if the newly-admitted student applied for aid), this process takes a while. I can't give constant updates on the blog. I will always post when the Dean says the class is full.

What about aid?

If you applied for aid by March 1st and got all of your documentation in, Student Financial Services will put a financial aid package together. Once that's posted, you'll have a couple days to accept the offer and pay your deposit.

Will my housing and class options be limited if I come off the waiting list?

In a word: no. Students coming off the waiting list aren't treated differently in the housing process. During the Orientation season, seats in certain popular classes are held for each orientation session. That means people who sign up for the first orientation can't scoop up all the seats in classes. What's more, the registration system opens up for course changes in August. Lots of students don't finalize their courses until that period. Many will continue to tweak their schedule during the "drop/add" period at the begging of the semester, when you can visit classes and make changes without penalty.

What now?

Look at your options. Get excited about one of them and pay a deposit to guarantee yourself a spot in a freshman class somewhere.


By the way, calling a student and telling them that they are getting an offer of admission is probably the most exciting thing admission officers experience. We can't wait to make them and everyone has a story or two about favorite calls. I promise you that when it's time, we'll be working very quickly so we can deliver some happy news!

Updates for the #UVA Class of 2023 and Prospective Class of 2024 Students

I debated posting two separate posts within hours of each other, but figured it would be okay to shares these two updates in the same post.

First, we emailed the handful of students who were on the waiting list for the Architecture, Nursing, and Kinesiology last night to let them know that we are releasing the waiting list. No further offers will be made and the class of 2023 is complete.

Second, UVA is adding the option of applying Early Decision for next year's class. Next year's applicants can choose to apply under Early Decision, Early Action, or Regular Decision.

You can see the timeline for all three plans on the application instructions page of our website, but let me point out that we will release the results of the Early Decision review in December. We haven't been able to do that in about a decade. The application numbers are a bit higher than back then, so the deadline for that first group is moving up to October 15th.

Our review will be consistent throughout the season, as was the case when we just had two options, so there isn't a time when it's harder to be admitted. You'll have to think about the strength of your application and whether you want to commit to UVA up front when deciding on the plan that is best for you.

As always, I'll be posting our essay prompts in June for those who want to spend some time thinking about their essays over the summer.

A quick #UVA23 Update

With the May 1st deposit deadline looming, I thought I'd give you all a heads up about how the class of 2023 is coming together. Admitted students have until 11:59 PM on May 1st to submit their deposits, but we already know that we will be over the enrollment target for the first year class.

There is a factor that has to be considered before we make any decision about releasing the waiting list. That factor is called "melt." Melt is what happens when students who paid an admission deposit decide that they aren't coming. You can see melt happen as other schools go to their waiting list. Someone who deposited at UVA might get off the waiting list at another school and decide to withdraw from here to accept that other offer. Just as students are waiting for news of waiting list movement, admission officers are. We know that if peer schools start making offers to their waiting list students, we might see some people withdraw from our class.

The other factors that come into play at UVA are residency and the five academic entry points for first years. We could be over-enrolled in one school/college, but under the target for another. We'll know more about that after all the deposits are in. 

The tl;dr is that there probably won't be much waiting list movement at UVA this year. I'll have another update after May 1st.

(tl;dr means "too long; didn't read" and it is a way to indicate a summary statement follows.)

A 2018 Waiting List Update

You may have seen our tweets and Instagram posts about UVA having a higher than usual yield on offers of admission this year. We were able to make a few offers to students on the waiting list, but it's become clear that there will be no movement in certain parts of the class. 

This evening, an email is going out closing the waiting lists for the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering, School or Architecture, and School of Nursing. 

After considering the size of the first-year class and the spaces available in the student body, I regret to inform you that we will not be able to offer you admission this year. Our first-year class is full and I believe it would be unfair to keep your name on the waiting list any longer.

We sincerely appreciate your interest in the University of Virginia and wish you the best of luck in all of your future endeavors. If you are interested in pursuing the possibility of transferring to the University after one or two years in another college or university, please visit our transfer page to learn more about this process.

Sincerely,

Greg W. Roberts
Dean of Admission
University of Virginia

We are keeping the [tiny] waiting list for the Kinesiology program open in case of cancellations.

I know this is disappointing news for many of you. I hope you can look at your chosen school and move forward with you plans to go there with excitement. Thank you so much for being part of this blog.  Best wishes for a wonderful summer and exciting start to your college career!

The #UVA Class of 2021 is Complete

In about half an hour, everyone who opted to remain on this year's first-year waiting list will receive an email from Dean Roberts informing them that the Class of 2021 is complete. We won't be making any more offers of admission and it is time to release the waiting list.

Please be sure to check the email account associated with your Common App account for Dean Roberts' email.

Best wishes for a relaxing summer and an exciting start to your college career at your chosen school.

A Waiting List Update for #UVA21

Remember when I said I might not check in more than once or twice in May? Well, here we are in June and I have a small, but not too significant, update about the waiting list.

We made a few offers to students on the waiting list just before May 1 and the offers continued slowly over the course of the month. The speed of this process is slow. We want to be respectful of the fact that accepting an offer off the waiting list is a huge decision. In most cases, an enrollment deposit at another school will be lost and that is a significant amount of money. What's more, plans that have been made for that other school have to be abandoned. This is why we give students a few days to think about their offer before we expect to hear back from them.

Virginia residents usually get more offers during the EA and RD phases of our application process and they also got more of the offers during the waiting list process. When it comes to academic areas, more offers traditionally go to the College of Arts and Sciences, our largest school, and this held true this year. I don't have exact number of offers, but those will be posted in our Common Data Set in the fall.

Once we feel it's time to disband the waiting list, we'll email everyone on it to let them know that no more offers are possible. 

What's Happening with the #UVA21 Waiting List?

It's May 2nd and I think I'll skip right to the information you're probably craving. We're making a few offers to students on the waiting list. I'm not able to post a total number or a breakdown of where the offers will be.

How We Make Waiting List Offers

We will call or email a student on the waiting list to give them a heads up when we are ready to make them an offer of admission. Students who put themselves on the waiting list a month ago may have moved on by now, so some tell us right away that they aren't interested anymore. That's totally fine...we appreciate the ability to move quickly right now since we know there are students eager to hear some news from us.

Within a few hours, we can usually have the student's official status in SIS changed so they can view their offer letter. The student will have a couple days to make a deposit. If the student has all of their financial aid forms submitted, they'll have a couple days after the aid package is posted to make the deposit.

When We Make Waiting List Offers

We contact students in the afternoon so we don't disrupt the school day. Adjustments are made for the time zone of the student, of course. Our office closes at 5 PM each day, so there's a window of a couple hours during which we make our calls.

How Coming Off the Waiting List Affects Housing and Orientation

Summer Orientation doesn't start until June, so students admitted off the waiting list still have time to register for a summer orientation session. Housing forms aren't due until June 1 and the Office of Housing and Residence Life does not even start to assign dorms until after those forms are in. In other words, there's no disadvantage to joining the class from the waiting list.



We're going to move quickly on this. We're so excited to make these offers!

Notes for the #UVA21 Waiting List

If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you had a link to the Waiting List FAQs in your decision letter. Many of the questions we're getting by phone and email are covered there, so please be sure to share that link with your parents so they understand the process. I'm going to go over the parts that come up the most and add some more information. Feel free to ask questions in the comments.

How many people are on the waiting list? 

The waiting list forms as people hit the "accept" buttons under their letters in SIS. We offer spots to many, but about half of those students will actually put themselves on the waiting list. The Common Data Set, something every school fills out, has a section about waiting list numbers. Some schools omit this section, but here are our numbers from last year:

From the 2016-2017 Common Data Set:
Do you have a policy of placing students on a waiting list? Yes Number of qualified applicants offered a place on the waiting list: 4,987
Number accepting a place on the waiting list: 2,871
Number of wait-listed students admitted:360
Is your waiting list ranked? No

The waiting list will be big on May 1st because we need to ensure there are students to fit all ten sections of the first year class. The class is made up of Virginia residents and out-of-state students for each of the five schools/programs that take first years.

I accepted. Why are the buttons still there? 

If you hit the "accept" button, you can always come back and pull yourself off the list. That is why the buttons remain after you opt in. There is no going back once you decline, though. If you decline the spot, the buttons disappear.

How many people will come off the waiting list?

Even though I've been doing this for years, I can't predict this one. May 1st is when all of the admitted students need to have deposits submitted to reserve a place in the class, which should be about 3,725 students. If we don't have that number of admitted students accepting a spot, we move to the waiting list.

It's hard to cite trends with certainty. One year, we might have room for in-state Nursing students and the next year, that group could be full on May 1. We're all waiting to see how this works out right now.  

How many people got offers to come off the waiting list in the past?

Here's a decade of data, which should show you how unpredictable this part can be. I don't have a breakdown of where the offers were for these years. 

2016 - 360
2015- 402
2014- 42
2013 - 185
2012 - 284
2011 - 117
2010 - 240
2009 - 288
2008 - 60
2007 - 159
2006 - 145
2005 - 83  

How do I improve my chances of getting an offer?

There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this. Emailing a update letter is appropriate. Mailing a package is not. Updating us with significant news is okay. Bombarding every admission officer with an email each day is not. Please don't email admission officers directly with your updates. We're just going to forward your email and it will delay your email being filed. Please use the general account.

By the way, showing up in Peabody Hall will have no affect. I can't tell you how many students drive here and then sit on the sofa and ask the questions covered in the FAQs. This is not the best use of your time (or gas money!).

When/How do you make wait-list offers?

We start making waiting list offers as soon as we know we have space in the class. We move quickly because no one wants to drag this out. We aim to have everything wrapped up by the end of June. Last year, we completed the class on June 2nd. In 2015, we were done by June 22nd.

If you are going to get an offer, we'll call you at the number you put on your Common Application. The call is a heads up that your status is about to change in SIS. Of course, it's fine if you tell us "no thanks" and that's the end of it. We hope that people who are no longer interested in UVA use the "decline" button to remove their name from the list, but some people forget. When SIS updates, a new letter shows up along with the buttons to accept the offer and pay a deposit.

Because we want to give students a few days to think about the offer (and because the Financial Aid folks need time to post a package if the newly-admitted student applied for aid), this process takes a while. I can't give constant updates on the blog. I can usually check in once or twice in May. I will always tell you when the Dean says the class is full. 

What about aid?

If you applied for aid by March 1st and got all of your documentation in, Student Financial Services will put a financial aid package together. Once that's posted, you'll have a couple days to accept the offer and pay your deposit.
 

What now?

Look at your other options. Get excited about one of them and pay a deposit to guarantee yourself a spot in a freshman class somewhere.


By the way, calling a student and telling them that they are getting an offer of admission is probably the most exciting thing admission officers experience. We can't wait to make them and everyone has a story or two about favorite calls. I promise you that when it's time, we'll be working very quickly so we can deliver some happy news!