We know time creeps by slowly between deadline and notification. Many schools break the silence by sending "Likely Letters" to a handful of students with strong profiles. For some, the arrival of the letter will be confusing. What does it mean? Is a response in order?
Here's the deal:
1. A Likely Letter is our way of saying we think you're a strong candidate in our pool. It is not an offer letter, but if your mid-year grades are as good as those already on your transcript, you can be fairly confident about you admission decision.
2. There is no set number of Likely Letters, but comparatively few are sent. As I've written in the past, it's safe to assume you won't get a Likely Letter. Don't look for it. If it comes, it's a pat on the back.
3. There are times when mid-years arrive and show a drop in curriculum strength or grades that prompts us to change our decision.
4. Likely Letters go to domestic and international students, but they are put in regular mail, so they will not get to some students in foreign countries. They will not be posted online.
5. Please don't call to ask about Likely Letters. They mean exactly what they say. There is no need to respond to these letters.
Questions?
2/21/09 Update:
I posted this elsewhere and figured I'd post it here, too.
Last year, I believe we ran the letters three different times during the reading process. There are still plenty of applications to read and more letters will be run at some point in the future. I'll let you all know on this blog when they get sent out again.
We are still "first reading" applications at this point. The administrative staff that has been scanning and linking mid-year reports is also trying to contact students and schools about missing documents to get nearly complete applications ready to read.
We are still over a month away from having decisions ready. Hang in there!
