College Decision Terms

As more and more students begin hearing from colleges I thought it might be helpful to review some of the most common terms you will see in response letters from colleges. Below are some of frequently used terms/ phrases for admissions decisions. If you (or your son/ daughter) receives a letter and you are uncertain what they mean, please feel free to let me know or to contact the college directly.

- Accepted: Congratulations - they are inviting you to join and be a part of their college/ university!

- Declined/ Rejected/ Not Accepted: For whatever reason the college did not feel that you would be a good fit. While it is understandably disappointing, please remember that there are lots of colleges and universities out there, so don’t give up on finding a good match.  You will still be successful at a college and you will find one that is a good fit!

- Decision Deferred: The college is not sure yet… usually they will tell you what additional data/ information they are interested in receiving to help them make their decision. The most common piece of data they will look for are senior year grades at the semester time.

- Wait List: The wait list is not a denial, but it is not an acceptance either. Colleges use wait lists as insurance to make sure that their freshman class will be the appropriate size. If enough students decide to attend, the college will not accept anyone off of their wait-list.  This is limbo-land so if you end up on a wait list, we need to talk about how this will play out for you.

The other piece of information you will notice on all college acceptance letters is that they will say something to the effect of provisional or pending which is basically the college's way of telling you that they expect for you to finish out your high school career in the same manner and fashion that you had presented yourself in your application.  Same level of courses, same caliber of grades, same activities and involvements, same discipline record, etc.