Stanford Round Two WL Adds 110-still no word as to what total is, or how many were accepted off WL in R1
Saturday, April 4th, 2009hmmmm, you need to read down to the FAQ to find out they put 110 kids on WL Round 2, but no data on how many are left on WL after Round 1, or
how many kids they took off WL in Round 1. WL Transparency Award goes to
HBS. See their post a couple of entries below.
4/2/2009
This letter may be the most frustrating of all to receive. It does not offer you admission to the Master of Business Administration Program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, nor does it tell you that we cannot offer you admission. It is a “waitlist” letter.
Your application for admission to the Stanford MBA Program for Fall 2009 was impressive. Unfortunately, the number of candidates to whom we would like to offer admission exceeds the number of available places in the class. We ask for your patience as we determine whether we will be able to offer you admission to the MBA Class of 2011. If you decide to accept a place on the waitlist, we will review your file again, along with those of other waitlist candidates, and post an updated decision on 22 May 2009.
Candidates on the waitlist are not ranked. As such, we cannot predict your chances of being admitted. We can promise that your file will receive another thorough and careful review if you choose to remain active on the waitlist.
We hope that you will accept a place on the waitlist by submitting the online Waitlisted Candidate Reply Form by 17 April 2009. The form is at https://gsbapps.stanford.edu/mbaadmissions/waitlist. At the login page, enter mbawait as your username and stan09ford as the password. While we are unable to speak individually with you to discuss your file, we hope that the following information will answer your questions and provide you with more details about the waitlist. Thank you for your patience and cooperation in adhering to the waitlist procedure.
We advise you to begin the financial aid application process while on the waitlist. U.S. citizens and permanent residents should complete both the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and College Scholarship Service (CSS) PROFILE form. International candidates should complete only the PROFILE; there is no need to complete the FAFSA. You may complete the FAFSA form online at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov; to request that a FAFSA form be mailed to you, please call (800) 4-FEDAID. The Stanford GSB federal school code is G22249. To complete the CSS PROFILE online, please visit http://profileonline.collegeboard.com. The Stanford GSB CSS PROFILE school code is 0265. All financial aid applicants are also required to send a copy of their most recent tax return/statement to the GSB Financial Aid Office. You can find detailed information about the financial aid application process on the GSB Financial Aid web site at http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/finaid.
I apologize for prolonging what already may seem a long and drawn-out process, but please know that you are still a competitive candidate for admission. Thank you for your patience, and for your interest in the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Sincerely,
Derrick Bolton
Assistant Dean and Director of MBA Admissions
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MBA Application Process, 2008-2009
Frequently Asked Questions About the Waitlist
Being placed on a “waitlist” can be frustrating and confusing. Each school has its own policies, expectations, and explanations of the waitlist process, which can make it difficult for you to know what it means to be waitlisted and how you should respond. Accordingly, we want to provide you with as much information as we can about the Stanford MBA Program waitlist process. We respect the time and effort you have devoted to your application. We hope that the explanations and suggestions below will help to clarify our procedures and timetable. Thank you very much for your patience and continued interest in Stanford.
What is the “waitlist”?
The waitlist is a small group of hand-selected applicants who are very strong candidates for admission for the current year. It is not a “consolation prize” or an empty “courtesy”; rather, we select applicants whom we wish to see in the class.
Why was I waitlisted?
Space constraints prevent us from immediately admitting all the highly qualified applicants we see in any given application round. Therefore, we create a waitlist of candidates whom we hope we will be able to admit as the year progresses. While you may wonder what aspect of your candidacy prevented you from being admitted outright, please be assured that being placed on the waitlist at Stanford means that there are no glaring weaknesses in your application — nor are there aspects of your file that require clarification or additional information.
What happens now? When will I receive a final decision?
If you intend to remain on our waitlist (and we very much hope that you do!), you should submit the online Waitlisted Candidate Reply Form at https://gsbapps.stanford.edu/mbaadmissions/waitlist. At the login page, enter mbawait as your username and stan09ford as the password. [This is an important step, as we will only admit waitlisted candidates who have submitted a reply by 17 April 2009.]
In May, we will review the waitlisted candidates as a group. If you choose to stay on the waitlist, we will update your decision on your online application on 22 May 2009 that either: (1) offers you admission to the Stanford MBA Program, (2) requests that you continue on the waitlist, or (3) releases you from the waitlist. Naturally, we do not know how many of each type of decision we will make, since the number of candidates admitted from the waitlist depends on the number of available places in the class. Our decision to admit a candidate from the waitlist also will depend on the degree to which the individual candidate’s talents, achievements, and perspectives complement the existing class profile.
I have been admitted to another business school, and that program requires a decision and a substantial deposit soon. May I receive an early decision?
We admit waitlisted applicants based on the number of people who accept/decline our original admission offers. Consequently, we cannot review the waitlist comprehensively until May, because we will not know how many places are available in the class until then.
If you have been admitted to another school and are unable to postpone your decision, we strongly advise you to accept the other offer of admission.
Is the waitlist ranked? If so, what is my place on the list?
Our waitlist is never ranked. (For logistical ease, we keep waitlist applications in alphabetical order.) Consequently, it is impossible to pinpoint your “rank” among the group of waitlisted candidates. When reviewing the waitlist, we base our decisions on the context in the applicant pool and the entering class as a whole.
How many people were waitlisted? How many will be accepted? Can you give me some historical data?
We understand your interest in trying to assess your “odds” of being admitted, and trying to quantify your situation in tangible terms. These numbers are not reliable predictors of future offers of admission. In the past five years, we have had waitlists ranging from 75 to over 200 people. Some years we are able to admit a high percentage of those placed on the waitlist; some years that percentage is much lower. It varies so dramatically each year — based on a host of ever-changing factors — that historical statistics are not very illuminating.
This round, we selected approximately 110 candidates for the waitlist. As always, we hope to admit as many waitlisted candidates as possible.
What can I do to help my chances? Can I meet with staff? Should I send additional recommendations? Can I arrange an interview?
It would be appropriate for you to reaffirm your interest in Stanford by sending a brief letter to the MBA Admissions Office. Additional submissions are neither requested nor suggested in order to be admitted from the waitlist. If, however, someone offers to write a letter on your behalf with new information not already reflected in your application, or if you wish to update us on any recent and substantive changes or achievements, please forward the supplemental information to the MBA Admissions Office.
Interviews are offered on an “invitation only” basis. If you have not had an interview and we feel that one is necessary, we will contact you. Otherwise, please do not travel to Stanford specifically for that purpose. We also are unable to respond to your requests for individual appointments with Stanford MBA Admissions Officers. If you have any questions or concerns about the waitlist process, you should email us.
If I am not admitted this year, should I re-apply? Will being waitlisted this year enhance my chances of being admitted next year?
Being waitlisted does not automatically increase the likelihood that you would be admitted if you were to re-apply. Rather, being waitlisted shows that you are a competitive applicant for admission for this particular year. We regret that each year we are forced to deny admission to many qualified applicants, including some who were formerly on our waitlists.
Is there any other advice you can give me?
Our best advice is to submit your online Waitlisted Candidate Reply Form as soon as possible, because that confirms your place on the waitlist.
Our only other request is to ask for your patience during this process. We are committed to your candidacy — that is why you were selected for the waitlist — and hope to be able to offer you a place in the MBA Class of 2011. Please be assured that your candidacy is important to us, and that we will devote our full attention to your application during the waitlist review.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and we hope that it provides you with useful information about the Stanford waitlist.
[April 3, 2009]
