You wrote an awesome essay. You spent time ensuring your activities list was awesome. You proofread the application a million times. You applied Early Decision or Early Action. But then you learn your application was deferred to regular decision. What do you do when you are deferred from your first choice college?
What do you do when you are deferred?
Let’s just be honest. Being deferred in the early round of college admissions really stinks. It’s a kind of purgatory. It’s disappointing, especially if the college in question was your first choice. A deferral feels like a rejection, even if it is not a final decision: you COULD still be accepted in the regular round. Nevertheless, a deferral feels lousy.
You do have some options about what to do, though not all of them are very good.
Option 1: Sit around and mope when you are deferred
This might be tempting. But it’s obviously self-defeating. There is no denying that deferrals are filled with negative emotions, and you must honor those feelings and understand that you really and truly feel down-in-the-dumps about a it. But wallowing in self-pity is not going to help make things different. You need to recognize and deal with the emotions, but then get up out of that chair and make some decisions and take some action.
Option 2: Do nothing
On its face, this sounds like a bad option, too. I mean, you’ve gotta something, right? Actually, in some cases doing nothing is just the right thing to do. But it implies that you already have a plan in place in the case of such a possibility. As educational planners, we help our students have a Plan B (and C and D) in place, just in case Plan A does not materialize. And in some cases, students find that Plan B is just about as desirable as Plan A, so they can just ignore the deferral and execute on their subsequent strategy without a whole lot of hand-wringing and teeth-gnashing. Let Plan A go and turn to the other desirable options in front of you.
Option 3: Apply to a bunch more schools
This is a possibility, but probably not advisable. First, it will just make a whole lot more work for yourself in trying to get new applications out the door. Second, these schools may be added to your list without full consideration of whether you even want to attend. Good decisions are seldom made in a panic. Again, if you have taken the time to fully consider your options before you even submitted those Early Decision (or Early Action) applications, then stick with your original plan. Just because Plan A did not pan out does not mean that the other elements of your overall strategy should be thrown out. The deferral was always a risk–assuming you planned for that possibility in the first place. Don’t let the emotional turmoil of a deferral push you into making silly decisions that don’t make sense when you’re in a more rational, calm state.
Option 4: When you are deferred, write a letter of continuing interest (LOCI) to the school(s) that deferred you
This is the best option by far. It allows you to do what is necessary to keep Plan A open as a possibility, but also lets you execute on the rest of your strategy.
So what’s needed? It depends on the school in question. When you receive your deferral letter, the university will have explicit instructions about what you do in the case of a deferral. We recommend that you follow those directions faithfully. Some will advocate that you try to go above and beyond those instructions. But our belief is that you can easily go overboard and risk annoying admissions officers for not following their instructions. They are giving you these instructions for a reason.
For example, some might advocate sending something that will help you stand out, like a box of cookies or a singing telegram. This would surely help the admissions officers to remember your name–only because you were over the top in desperation to be accepted. You might become memorable for all the wrong reasons and thereby tank your chances of admission. So please: follow directions.
When you are deferred, how should you write your letter of continuing interest?
Again, the university will tell you exactly what you should do if you are deferred. Sometimes the instructions will be very simple: “please check this box on this form to indicate that you would like to be considered in the regular admissions round, or check this box if you would like us to chuck your application in the bin and take a flying leap.” (Most likely you’ll want to check that first box).
Sometimes they will ask you for any updates that you would like to add to your application that would be considered in the second review of your application in the regular decision round. Most often, you will be asked to deliver these updates through the university admissions portal. You simply complete a text box on the portal with your updates and press “send.” These updates will then be automatically added to your file.
Depending on the school, you may also be invited to submit a “letter of continuing interest” or LOCI. This letter is what it sounds like: it’s a proclamation of your continuing desire to attend the school if admitted. You simply are reiterating what they already know: that you submitted your application early in hopes of being accepted and those feelings of desire have not dissipated, and that despite your disappointment in the deferral, you still really, really, really want to go there.
What should I say in my letter of continuing interest?
A lot of ink (okay, maybe not ink…but a lot of pixels?) has been spilled explaining what these LOCI should like. Our take is that these should be very simple statements of fact and intent.
The facts
What have you done since you sent in your application that admissions officers should know and consider as they review your application for a second time? In most cases, the reality is that you have done very little in the six weeks between the early application submission and your receipt of the deferral. But there are things you might want to share, depending on how seminal those six weeks have been.
Here are some examples:
- Your first semester grades in your senior courses were a triumph.
- Your SAT or ACT score took a great leap upward.
- You won a major sports award.
- You won a major academic award.
- You were accepted into a very competitive summer program.
- You were won a concerto competition with a local orchestra or band.
- You completed a major service project that you were preparing while you were preparing those early applications.
- You completed your Girl Scouts Gold Award.
- You had a poem published in a literary journal.
You get the idea: what have you accomplished since the application was originally submitted that make a material differences in how you might be evaluated by the admissions office?
Again, our experience is that the vast majority of students do not have a lot of facts to add to their application. But if there are facts to share, share them!
The continuing interest
In this part of the letter you should express–very briefly–your continued hope that the admissions office will select you. With this short paragraph of the letter, you really need to be concise. You also must not whine. You must not become a sycophant–complimenting the college (or worse, the admissions office) on the many positive traits this college possesses. You can reiterate that the school remains your top choice, that you remain eager to attend, and that you appreciate that your application will receive a second, serious review.
Some students have an impulse to go on and on about how wonderful the school is, about how they can imagine having coffee in this little cafe or they hope to be able to study in this or that library or take a course with Professor Longbottom.
Please spare your overworked admissions officers this schmaltz. All they want to know–really–is that you cared enough to send them a note and that you remain committed to attend if accepted. Just make your point and close your letter with a “Sincerely yours” or “Yours truly” and be done.
So, in summary, what should you do when you are deferred?
The three-part answer is fairly simple.
First, feel the pain. It stings. Deferrals are no fun. You applied to a school in hopes that you’d be accepted. You weren’t–at least not yet. And the feeling you are feeling is real. So let it wash over you. But don’t let it debilitate you. There are things to do.
Second, execute on your backup plans that you put in place precisely for this possibility. You need to complete all the rest of your applications (if you haven’t already–which you should have done long before you received this deferral), and send them off.
Third, do whatever the college asks you to do to keep your application in consideration for the regular decision admissions round. Follow their instructions faithfully.
And if you are asked or invited to write a letter of continuing interest, do it. But keep it short, sweet, and to the point. Share any new information that needs to be included in your application in the second review during the regular round. And simply restate that you would likely attend–or certainly would attend–if admitted.
Do you need help when you are deferred from your first choice college?
The counselors at Great College Advice are experts in helping students to pick up the piece after a deferral. Most of our clients have created clear alternative strategies in the event that their early choices do not come through as planned.
But if you find yourself at the end of your rope, not knowing what to do, feeling lost and without a strategy, we can help. We can assist in getting you back on track. We can help you create that last-minute plan that will ensure that at the end of the regular admissions round that you have solid choices for your college education.
If you need help when you are deferred, contact us and we’ll show you how we can help.
Mark Montgomery
Educational Consultant, Great College Advice
