While a deferral (or rejection) is not what you were hoping for when you submitted an Early Decision application to the Claremont McKenna College, now is not the time to give up hope! You still have options in the college admissions process. 

After a deferral, you’ll need to focus equally on your Letter of Continued Interest as well as your Regular Decision applications. If you heard back the worst news, take a deep breath, and then understand that you’ll need to make some changes to the rest of your applications before submitting in the Regular Decision to ensure that history doesn’t repeat itself.

The Percentage of Accepted Claremont McKenna Early Decision Applicants

Admissions officers at Claremont McKenna seek to admit highly enthusiastic students who are 100% sure that this prestigious liberal arts college is meant for them, so they admit Early Decision applicants at a much higher rate than Regular Decision applicants. Roughly 30% of ED applicants have earned admission over the last eleven years, an acceptance rate that has stayed relatively constant even as it has dwindled to record lows at other elite institutions. 

Admissions Cycle	Claremont McKenna College Graduating Class	Early Decision Acceptance Rate
2024-25	Class of 2029	22%
2023-24	Class of 2028	25%
2022-23	Class of 2027	30%
2021-22	Class of 2026	29%
2020-21	Class of 2025	35%
2019-20	Class of 2024	28%
2018-19	Class of 2023	25%
2017-18	Class of 2022	31%
2016-17	Class of 2021	32%
2015-16	Class of 2020	25%
2014-15	Class of 2019	26%
2013-14	Class of 2018	31%
2012-13	Class of 2017	28%

5 Things Deferred Claremont McKenna Early Decision Applicants Should  Do

Don’t wait to take the following five steps to help counteract your deferral and earn admission to Claremont McKenna:

1. Objectively consider the shortcomings of your application in light of your deferral. Unsure where to begin? An Ivy Coach PostMortem application review with a former elite college admissions officer will clarify areas for improvement. You’ll come away with a new competitive strategy centered around a singular admissions hook.
2. Without delay, write a Letter of Continued Interest that shows Claremont McKenna how you’ll capitalize on all that their campus offers by pursuing your singular hook. And whatever you do, don’t come across as well-rounded! Students with a particular passion, pursuit, or cause are much more admissible than students who succumb to the well-rounded myth!
3. Review your remaining Regular Decision applications and revamp them with your new strategy.
4. Your high school counselor is a crucial ally in your journey to secure admission. They have a secret weapon to help you: their advocacy. Ask them to make an advocacy call to the Claremont McKenna Admissions office after reading about your singular hook in your Letter of Continued Interest. Even though some counselors may hesitate, it’s their job to get admissions officers to fight for your case.
5. After all this hard work, you must keep your grades up for the rest of senior year. Claremont McKenna’s mid-year academic check-in will factor into their final decision.

What Not to Do After Being Deferred by Claremont McKenna 

Now, let’s turn to the many actions to avoid as you navigate your deferral:

1. Instead of asking Claremont McKenna admissions officers why you didn’t get in, save your questions for an Ivy Coach team member. We’ll give you the truth about your application they wouldn’t dare to provide you with!
2. Don’t fill your Letter of Continued Interest with brags and boasts! Moreover, don’t send countless emails detailing every last achievement. If you’ve gotten Ivy Coach’s help with your Letter of Continued Interest, you’ve already done all you can to convince Claremont McKenna that you’re a good fit.
3. Don’t take out your frustration on your high school counselor when you need them in your corner to make an advocacy call. Your deferral is no one’s fault but your own.
4. Some families think any and all documentation of their child’s brilliance will surely convince admissions officers to reverse course. They upload everything from extra recommendations to Duolingo scores to dental records to the application portal. Don’t be one of these students or families.
5. While a trip to the California desert might sound relaxing, don’t make any visits to campus post-deferral. Your enthusiasm will come across as a nuisance!

What to Do After Being Rejected By Claremont McKenna College

Did you receive a rejection from Claremont McKenna? It happens! Almost 80% of students who applied Early Decision for the Class of 2029 either received a deferral or a rejection, and while there’s no way for us to know the exact breakdown of how many applicants to the Class of 2030 were rejected, you should know that you’re not alone. Now, is this the end of your admissions rope? We certainly think not.

At Ivy Coach, we believe your admissions destiny is still within your control. By signing up for Ivy Coach’s PostMortem, you’ll gain a competitive strategy, meticulously designed just for you by our team of former elite college admissions officers. This unique approach has led to success for numerous students who have turned to us after being rejected. That could be you next!

You might even secure an acceptance from a college that’s an even better fit for you during the Regular Decision round. Now, we’re sure you’re scratching your head, wondering how such a feat can be achieved. That’s where we come in! We will develop a plan for making the most of your future campus by taking advantage of all the resources and opportunities it has to offer.

What Should Applicants Do After Being Rejected by Claremont McKenna College?

PostMortem Application Review

After hearing back about a rejection from Claremont McKenna College, we don’t recommend delaying before reaching out to schedule a PostMortem application review. It may not feel this way, but it is all going to work out. You now have the chance to rework your application strategy before you send it off to other schools, and it’s in your best interest to do so. 

During Ivy Coach’s PostMortem, we will:

• Rework your current applications that are still (luckily) not yet submitted. We’ll go through every part of both the essay and non-essay portions of each application and readjust as we review.
• Work to present you as a uniquely talented individual rather than a well-rounded one. Well-rounded candidates face nothing but struggles in the admissions process. Instead, it’s time to pivot to a strategy that actually works: the singular hook.
• Correct the small mistakes that may have contributed to your rejection decision. Sometimes, a rejection can be because of any one factor that strikes an admissions officer the wrong way. When colleges have such a surplus of applicants to choose from, though, they’re allowed to be picky. 
• Reevaluate your admissions prospects with realistic eyes. Now is the time to consider taking advantage of the Early Decision II round for a school that hits your sweet spot between prestigious and realistic. Not all students are right for ED II, and not all schools offer an ED II round. Do your research in order to determine an admissions pathway that works for you.

Application Assistance

Following your PostMortem with Ivy Coach, which is your key first step to understand what went wrong and how you need to reposition your narrative, we will:

• Rework your applications with Ivy Coach’s assistance. Now you have a game plan, and it’s time to execute that game plan with confidence. We’ll erase all the mistakes from your other applications so you can be in the best possible spot for a positive admissions decision. Although we can’t correct every error you might have made throughout high school, there’s a lot we can still fix in terms of your application narrative and how you hope to sway admissions officers to root for you, even at this late date.

What Not to Do After Being Rejected by the Claremont McKenna College

Below are five solid ways to ensure your Regular Decision admission round goes poorly after you receive a Claremont McKenna College rejection:

1. Do not submit your remaining applications as is. A rejection is valuable data on your admissions journey, indicating that something is wrong with what you’ve presented to the admissions office. Take that data point and do something with it!
2. Do not, under any circumstances, reach out to the Claremont McKenna College admissions office asking why you were rejected. They don’t want to hear from you. You won’t get an answer that you want to hear. Plus, you have more important things to be focusing on!
3. Do not be choosy with your selection of Regular Decision schools and/or omit safety schools from your Regular Decision list. Colleges are allowed to be picky, sure, but once a student has faced rejection, we cannot tolerate similar pickiness from them with remaining applications.
4. Do not blame your school counselor for an admissions decision that ultimately rests on your shoulders. High school counselors aren’t always perfect at their jobs (i.e., they sometimes will refuse to make advocacy calls on behalf of their students), but they are your #1 ally in the fight for your college future. Alienating them is the worst possible thing you can do right now. 

Claremont McKenna Deferral and Rejection FAQ

Is it really possible to earn admission to Claremont McKenna after a deferral?

It is possible to turn around a deferral to Claremont McKenna. Take it from our clients who have done so. The road doesn’t end here, so keep your spirits up and see this through!

Does Claremont McKenna courtesy defer some students?

Yes, some unlucky students are deferred for admission to Claremont McKenna even though they will not ultimately be admitted. These courtesy deferrals, as they are known, include legacies and underperforming students who attended a high school with a strong institutional relationship with Claremont McKenna. Admissions officers don’t want to upset alumni donors or jeopardize receiving applications from other students at the competitive high school who apply in the Regular Decision round, so they withhold their final decisions as long as possible. And, no, they’ll never tell you this.

After a rejection from Claremont McKenna College, should I submit my Regular Decision applications right away?

Absolutely not! We said it above and we’ll reiterate it here: something about your application isn’t working. Don’t rush to get your applications submitted, thinking the same strategy that failed you at  Claremont McKenna College is going to work somewhere else. You need to pause, make adjustments, and then move forward. 

Ivy Coach’s Help After Claremont McKenna Deferral or Rejection

Don’t take on the burden of your child’s deferral or rejection alone. Instead, turn to Ivy Coach to optimize your child’s odds of admission to Claremont McKenna or to their new dream school. Fill out our complimentary consultation form, and we’ll be in touch about our PostMortem and, in the case of a deferral, Letter of Continued Interest package.