Well it is that time of year again, where admissions, waitlists, and dings start rolling out for most of the top schools. If you were
Admitted then congratulations to you! If you recieved a
Ding I hope you got some good news from another school! Now if you were put on the
Waitlist then this is not the time to give up! There are still some things that you can do to get yourself off that waitlist and into your dream school. You should consider all the following tactics and figure out which direction you should concentrate all your energy. Remember, you only have a short amount of time, so not enough to complete all these task. But even completing 1 or 2 of them might be that extra boost to get your name at the top of the waitlist!
1. Get a promotion at workI know, I know, easier said than done right!? Well for some of you, you might be RIGHT on the cusp of that promotion. Or who knows, maybe you were promoted while your application was being reviewed and you never though to update the Adcoms. This is your chance! Anything you can add, might help.
2. Retake the GMAT and score higherIf you believe you left some points on the table when you took the GMAT, this might be the time for you to give it another go. Especially if your Quant abilities might be the concern. If you did not have undergrad quant classes, did not do well, or scored below the 70th percentile on the GMAT, this might be a huge opportunity. I would recommend giving it another go, BUT only if you really know or believe you will raise your score. Practice on a GMATprep test from MBA.com before you go in to make sure you're scoring higher. You don't want to end up hurting your chances for reapplications b/c you will have many months to retake if you want for next year.
3. Enroll in a Statistics, Calculus, or pre-MBA style math courseThis might let the adcoms know exactly how committed you are to their university. Maybe even take these classes from your desired school (if available, maybe online). This will show your commitment, and show them that you are overcoming any quant weakness they may think you have.
4. Attend school functions (if you live around there) and get to know the admissions director or teamNow this is a tough one, and hopefully you've already been doing this. But if for some reason you believe "Hey, if they get to know me, there is NO WAY they will say no". Try to attend an open house, or a recruiting event and let them know your position. Tell them how committed you are, and how much you hope that you'll be attending this year. Again, who knows, this could be the boost you are looking for!
5. Take on big leadership type pojects or roles at your current job if possibleIf you take on, or are finishing up a HUGE project that was not included in your application, this might be time to show them your leadership. Just make sure that this project is noteworthy enough to make them say "wow, that's impressive" and possibly get them to reconsider your position on the waitlist.
FinallyIf you are able to complete any of the above, send them an update and continue to show how interested you are. You only get ONE chance at an update, and it should be extremely well crafted, professional, impressive, and with the correct timing. Your goal should be to get your name as HIGH up on that waitlist as possible b/c it might be the difference between getting in and not getting in.
I do not represent any admissions consulting companies, but it would be my opinion that you speak with one of them about your specific situation, and figure out a way to craft this letter and get yourself to the top of the list. This is your last chance, and you should definitely get a professional opinion! Plus, you might be able to get some well deserved feedback as to why you didn't get an Admit in the first place. Check them out here:
ask-admission-consultants-124/ And also, here is a professional opinion on the topic:
http://gmatclub.com/blog/2012/01/how-to ... situation/PS. Only send ONE update. You do not want to be the person bombarding them otherwise they will consider you "that crazy guy" and that will definitely earn you a ding. So make sure to be tactful with your only update. So pick the right time, right info, and right way to update them.
PSS. Contact your school directly if they have not given you a way to give the Adcoms an update. Normall this is done through the internet or letter.
GOOD LUCK TO ALL WAITLISTERS!
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