Some call it a Letter of Continued Interest. Others call it a Letter of Enthusiasm. And still others call it a Waitlist Appeal Letter. Whatever you choose to call it, if a highly selective university has waitlisted you and you want to get off that waitlist, you have to submit a powerful letter that sways admissions officers to root for you. So what exactly is this Waitlist Appeal Letter, and how should you approach it?

What Is a Waitlist Appeal Letter?

It’s a note to express your continued interest in attending. It’s a — hopefully compelling — letter designed to inspire an admissions officer to want to pluck you from the waitlist and offer you a spot in the incoming class.

How to Approach Writing an Appeal Letter for a Waitlist

So how should you craft the letter to give yourself the best chance of admission?

What Should Be Included in a Waitlist Appeal Letter

A Waitlist Appeal Letter should be between 500-650 words (the length of a Personal Statement) and include the following:

• Specific after specific of how a student is going to contribute their singular hook to an institution through the school’s programs, institutes, activities, culture, traditions, etc.
• A demonstrated eagerness to attend the school. They want to know you love them and that you love them for the right reasons. Show, don’t tell.

What Should Not Be Included in a Waitlist Appeal Letter

A Waitlist Appeal Letter should not include the following:

• Brags. Students should not toot their own horns, as doing so will make them unlikeable.
• Updates. What have students achieved in the few months since they submitted their application? And if they have achieved something worth noting, let the counselor mention it during an advocacy call with the admissions office.
• Generic sentences that can apply to any school. “Brown is the school I most wish to attend.” “With its beautiful campus, small class sizes, and diverse student body, Dartmouth is in a class by itself.”
• College acceptance updates. “I thought I’d let you know, as I await word on the Yale waitlist, I’ve earned admission to UPenn, Columbia, and UChicago.” Yes, that will all but assure a student’s rejection.

The Distinction Between Waitlist Appeal Letters and Appeal Letters

Even though we’ve coined it a Waitlist Appeal Letter in this post (since some folks call this letter by this name), it should not be confused with an Appeal Letter.

Most highly selective universities do not accept Appeal Letters (or letters written after a rejection hoping to overturn the verdict). The University of Southern California, the University of California schools, and the University of Texas at Austin are the top schools that allow the submission of an Appeal Letter after a denial.

Your Chances of Admission Off a Highly Selective College’s Waitlist

Below are the waitlist acceptance rates for the Class of 2025 for America’s top national universities of 2023. If a college is not listed, like Harvard University, it didn’t report waitlist data to The Common Data Set.

College/University	2023 US News & World Report Best National Universities Ranking	Class of 2025 Waitlist Acceptance Rate	Number of Students Waitlisted to the Class of 2025	Number of Students Who Accepted a Place on Waitlist to Class of 2025	Number of Students Admitted Off Waitlist to Class of 2025
Princeton University	#1	15%	1,265	1,000	150
Stanford University	#3	13.8%	750	580	8
University of Pennsylvania	#7	4.4%	3,933	2,753	121
California Institute of Technology	#9	4.3%	312	235	10
Duke University	#10				381
Dartmouth College	#12		2,669	2,120	0
Washington University in St. Louis	#15	33.9%		2,696	915
Cornell University	#17	0.4%	7,746	5,800	24
University of California, Los Angeles	#20	3.3%	16,979	11,169	367
Carnegie Mellon University	#22	0.7%	8,792	5,319	35
Georgetown University	#22	1.1%	3,277	2,543	29
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor	#25	0.5%	17,805	13,063	68

Below are the waitlist acceptance rates for schools that reported the data to The Common Data Set for the Class of 2025 and Ivy Coach‘s corresponding waitlist acceptance rates for the Class of 2025.

College/University	US News Best Liberal Arts Colleges 2023 Rank	Class of 2025 Waitlist Acceptance Rate	Number of Students Waitlisted to the Class of 2025	Number of Students Who Accepted a Place on Waitlist to Class of 2025	Number of Students Admitted Off Waitlist to Class of 2025
Williams College	#1	0.1%	2,371	929	1
Swarthmore College	#4				0
Wellesley College	#5		2,578	1,304	44
Bowdoin College	#6				10
Carleton College	#6		1,367	580	11
Claremont McKenna College	#9		850	538	11
Washington and Lee University	#11		2,207	1,150	11
Vassar College	#13		1,526	634	96
Barnard College	#18		2,096		258
Haverford College	#18		1,331	741	21
University of Richmond	#18		3,891	886	9
Wesleyan University	#18		3,585	2,031	10
Bates College	#25		2,473	1,245	2

Your Chances of Admission Off a Highly Selective College’s Waitlist with Ivy Coach’s Assistance

Below are the waitlist acceptance rates for schools that reported the data to The Common Data Set for the Class of 2025 and Ivy Coach‘s corresponding waitlist acceptance rates for the Class of 2025.

Top National Universities

College/University	2023 US News & World Report Best National Universities Ranking	Class of 2025 Waitlist Acceptance Rate	Class of 2025 Ivy Coach Waitlist Acceptance Rate
Princeton University	#1	15%	66.7%
Stanford University	#3	13.8%	100%
University of Pennsylvania	#7	4.4%	75%
California Institute of Technology	#9	4.3%	N/A
Duke University	#10		100%
Dartmouth College	#12		Did Not Go to Waitlist
Washington University in St. Louis	#15	33.9%	33.3%
Cornell University	#17	0.4%	33.3%
University of California, Los Angeles	#20	3.3%	100%
Carnegie Mellon University	#22	0.7%	33.3%
Georgetown University	#22	1.1%	100%
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor	#25	0.5%	0%

Top Liberal Arts Colleges

College/University	2023 US News & World Report Best National Universities Ranking	Class of 2025 Waitlist Acceptance Rate	Class of 2025 Ivy Coach Waitlist Acceptance Rate
Princeton University	#1	15%	66.7%
Stanford University	#3	13.8%	100%
University of Pennsylvania	#7	4.4%	75%
California Institute of Technology	#9	4.3%	N/A
Duke University	#10		100%
Dartmouth College	#12		Did Not Go to Waitlist
Washington University in St. Louis	#15	33.9%	33.3%
Cornell University	#17	0.4%	33.3%
University of California, Los Angeles	#20	3.3%	100%
Carnegie Mellon University	#22	0.7%	33.3%
Georgetown University	#22	1.1%	100%
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor	#25	0.5%	0%

Getting Started with Ivy Coach on Waitlist Appeal Letters

If you’re interested in Ivy Coach’s assistance in crafting a compelling Waitlist Appeal Letter, fill out our free consultation form, and we’ll get back to you quickly.