What's up with the College Waitlist System?

I've read about students getting waitlisted and I'm pretty confused. How exactly does the college waitlist work and how often do students stuck on it end up getting admitted?

The concept of the college waitlist can indeed seem a bit mystifying, but let's unpack it together. The waitlist is a reserve pool of applicants that a college may choose to admit if they have open spaces after their accepted students make their enrollment decisions. It essentially serves as a backup plan for colleges in case they don't reach their enrollment targets from the original pool of accepted students.

When you're waitlisted, you're neither accepted nor denied admission. Instead, you're in a state of limbo, waiting to see if spots will open up that will allow the college to pull from the waitlist.

The chances of being admitted off the waitlist will vary greatly based on the particular year and college. Some universities admit few or no students off the waitlist in certain years, while others may admit hundreds. The college's yield rate, i.e., the percentage of accepted students who choose to enroll, will influence the number of students admitted off the waitlist. If a higher-than-expected number of accepted students decide to attend, fewer spots will be available for waitlisted students.

Colleges can start offering admission to waitlisted students after the national decision day, which is May 1st. This is when most students have to commit to the college they plan to attend.

While waiting, students should commit to another college they've been accepted to, as there's no guarantee they'll be admitted from the waitlist.

Hope that clarified things a bit! It's an uncertain situation to be in and can feel a little stressful, but remember that being waitlisted means a college was impressed by your application--so kudos for reaching that phase in an increasingly competitive process.