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One of my Fortuna Admissions colleagues heard recently from an anxious client who is still in limbo on the HBS waitlist \u2013\u00a0and, she\u2019s not alone. No matter that HBS is not wading through a surge of Round 3 apps like many other top schools, nor that it already announced that only 720 students would be joining its incoming class this fall. As Poets&Quants editor John Byrne quipped in our recent podcast episode<\/a>, \u201cThere are a lot of orphaned applicants right now all over the world. They\u2019re on vastly expanded waitlists, because schools are worried about the issue of deferments and who\u2019s going to be able to come and who\u2019s not going to be able to come.\u201d<\/p>\n Landing on the MBA waitlist is a very difficult situation to be in, and you don\u2019t really know when you\u2019re going to get a final decision \u2013 you can be on the waitlist for weeks or even several months. Especially in a year as uncommon as this one, where schools created extended deadlines for R3 or a new R4 round, and visa uncertainty is hindering the prospects for many international students to arrive in person.<\/p>\n Having been on the other side as former INSEAD<\/a> Director of MBA Admissions, the first thing is to take a step back and think about if you\u2019re committed to staying on the waitlist. Do you want to work at getting off the waitlist, or do you have another plan? Maybe you\u2019ve applyied to other schools and are preparing to accept another. Or, perhaps you\u2019re holding out for your dream school and more inclined to turnaround a stronger R1 application.<\/p>\n But if your goal is to turn that waitlisted notice into an acceptance, there are a few concrete actions you can take right now.<\/p>\n 1. Reinforce your commitment to the program <\/strong>and confirm that you accept a place on the waitlist. Keep your tone professional and positive, without a trace of disappointment (or worse, resentment).<\/p>\n 2. Supply a supplementary letter of support<\/strong> \u2013 ideally, from a member of the school community who can affirm your fit with its program. A one-page email is plenty \u2013 it need not be as formal as the letters of recommendation you previously submitted. Don\u2019t flood the admissions team with additional letters, however, this can backfire and potentially hurt your reputation. Also, note that certain schools don\u2019t accept any additional materials, so you should respect that policy.<\/p>\n 3. Share an update with your alumni interviewer on your situation<\/strong>, as well as ask for any suggestions or feedback (if you interviewed with an alum). While he or she won\u2019t be able to tell you \u201cwhy\u201d you\u2019re waitlisted (and they may not even know), they may be able to offer their sense of your fit with the school and some insight about your interview.<\/p>\n 4. Periodically contact the admissions office <\/strong>\u2013 without becoming a pest. It\u2019s appropriate to reach out every three to four weeks. If possible, share an update on your profile, such as a job move or promotion, or inform the admissions committee if you\u2019re on the cusp of accepting another offer. At the very least reinforce your motivation. Balance emails with the occasional phone call \u2013 personal touches can keep you on the radar screen and reinforce a positive impression.<\/p>\n 5. Step back and analyze why your application came up short. <\/strong>Ask for outside help to identify places of potential weakness. Retaking the GMAT may be worth considering, for example, if your score is below the program average, but only if you think you can gain by a solid margin, not just 10 more points.<\/p>\n 6. Consider <\/strong>Plan B.<\/strong> Now is the time to hatch a plan B if you don\u2019t already have one. Because if you don\u2019t receive an offer of acceptance \u2013 and know that most candidates on the waitlist will not \u2013 think about whether you want to reapply to the same program, or perhaps others, during the next cycle. In weighing your next steps, look for ways to strengthen your profile over the next year to increase your chances of future success.<\/p>\n 7. Don\u2019t have an emotional reaction to being put on the waitlist.<\/strong> I see candidates that sometimes take it very personally, but the door is still open. If you are motivated to gain that place, then keep at it. And if you want to get off the waitlist, then you need to respond positively<\/em> to the school. I\u2019ve seen some awful responses to waitlist announcements where candidates have responded in a very resentful way, which doesn\u2019t create a positive impression. You\u2019ve got to stay positive and reiterate your motivation \u2013 and your ability to do so in the face of disappointment reflects your maturity.<\/p>\n 8. Don\u2019t overstep your bounds.<\/strong> As told by my Business Casual podcast co-host, Maria Wich-Vila: \u201cI recently heard an admissions officer from one of the top programs say that she received a physical letter to her home address from a waitlisted candidate. That candidate probably thought they were going above and beyond by pleading their case, but that\u2019s just creepy.\u201d Again, your discernment and professionalism are a reflection of your maturity and self-awareness.<\/p>\n Finally, despite the odds, try to stay optimistic \u2013 you still have a chance of admission as waitlisted candidate.<\/p>\n For more advice on navigating the waitlist, especially if you have offers from other programs, check out this short video blog<\/a> discussion with my colleague Catherine Tuttle, Duke Fuqua former Associate Director.<\/p>\n Caroline Diarte Edwards<\/a> is Co-Founder and Director at Fortuna Admissions.\u00a0For more free advice and a personal, candid assessment of your chances, you can sign up now for a\u00a0free consultation<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While the waitlist can be tormenting, there are specific actions you can take now to increase your chances of MBA admissions success. One of my Fortuna Admissions colleagues heard recently…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":160,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"1","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,1831,775,243],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mba","category-fortuna-admissions","category-admission-consultants","category-blog","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49362","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/160"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49362"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49362\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49362"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49362"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmatclub.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49362"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}8 Key Tips to Navigating the MBA Waitlist<\/h3>\n
Mistakes to Avoid: What NOT to do<\/strong><\/h3>\n