If you were offered a spot on the waiting list at UVA, you should have followed the link to the Waiting List FAQs that was in your decision letter.
Many of the questions we're getting are covered there, so please be
sure to share that link with your parents and counselor so they understand the
process. I'm going to go over the parts that come up the most and add
some more information. Feel free to ask questions in the comments.
How many people are on the waiting list?
The waiting list forms as people fill out the waiting list reply on the
portal. The number on the list continues to change because students may remove themselves from it at any time.
The waiting list tends to be large because there are 10 different
segments of it (VA and OOS groups for the four schools
and the one program that take first-year students). Most schools include waiting list data in section C2 of the Common Data Set.
From UVA's 2020-2021 Common Data Set:
Do you have a policy of placing students on a waiting list? Yes
Number of qualified applicants offered a place on the waiting list: 6,465
Number accepting a place on the waiting list: 3,780
Number of wait-listed students admitted: 165
Is your waiting list ranked? No
What's this thing about UVA Wise?
Virginia residents on the waiting list who applied for the College of Arts & Sciences are given the option of enrolling at UVA Wise for one year before guaranteed transfer to UVA. You won't be removed from our waiting list process and you aren't bound to Wise if you express interest in that option. Here's the link about the Wise option that was in your portal.I accepted. Why is the form still there?
You can always come back and pull yourself off the list. That is why the form remains after you opt in. There is no going back once you decline, so there are a couple confirmation screens to get through if you want to opt-out.
How many people will come off the waiting list?
Even though I've been doing this for years, I can't predict this. It's hard to cite trends with certainty, especially with the pandemic affecting college decisions in the last few years. We're all waiting to see how this works out right now.
How many people got offers to come off the waiting list in the past?
The Waiting List FAQ page has a decade of information, but here are the numbers for every year since I started working here. This should show you how unpredictable
this part can be. I don't have a breakdown of where the offers were for
these years.
2021 - 83
2020 - 915
2019 - 9
2018 - 13
2017- 117
2016 - 360
2015- 402
2014- 42
2013 - 185
2012 - 284
2011 - 117
2010 - 240
2009 - 288
2008 - 60
2007 - 159
2006 - 145
2005 - 83
How do I improve my chances of getting an offer?
There is a lot of conflicting information out there about this. Uploading a letter with updates is fine, but I think you should want until the middle of April to upload it via the portal so you can put everything in one communication. Please do not email one or more admission officers about your decision. Use your portal.By the way, showing up in Peabody Hall wouldn't affect our process. I can't tell you how many students have driven here ask the questions covered in the FAQs. It was not the best use of their time (or gas money!).
When/How do you make wait-list offers?
This is covered on the waiting list page. We start making waiting list offers as soon as we know we have space in the class, usually in early May. We move quickly because no one wants to drag this out. In the past, we've wrapped the process up in June. When the time comes, we always email the entire waiting list to let them know the class is full.If you are going to get an offer, we'll call you at the number you put on your application. The call is a heads up that your status is about to change in the portal. Of course, it's fine if you tell us "no thanks" and that's the end of it. We hope that people who are no longer interested in UVA use the portal to remove their name from the list, but some people forget. When the portal updates, a new letter shows up along with the ability to pay a deposit. We work a traditional business day, Monday through Friday. Our office hours are 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. We call from phone numbers like 434-982-xxxx.
Because we want to give students a few days to think about the offer (and because the Financial Aid folks need time to post a package if the newly-admitted student applied for aid), this process takes a while. I can't give constant updates on the blog. I will always post when the Dean says the class is full and we are done making offers.
What about aid?
If you applied for aid by March 1st and got all of your documentation in, Student Financial Services will put a financial aid package together. Once that's posted, you'll have a couple days to accept the offer and pay your deposit.Will my housing and class options be limited if I come off the waiting list?
In a word: no. Students coming off the waiting list aren't treated differently in the housing process. During the Orientation season, seats in certain popular classes are held for each orientation session. That means people who sign up for the first orientation can't scoop up all the seats in classes. What's more, the registration system opens up for course changes in August. Lots of students don't finalize their courses until that period. Many will continue to tweak their schedule during the "drop/add" period (some schools are calling it a shopping period now) at the beginging of the semester, when you can visit classes and make changes without penalty.What now?
For now, you need to look at your other options and think about which one feels right to you. Some of you will want to hold on and see what happens with the UVA waiting list and others will want to fully invest themselves in another school. Either way, you need to submit a deposit somewhere by May 1st to ensure yourself a spot in a freshman class. If you are offered a spot in our class and you decide to accept it, you'll have to write to that other school and withdraw your name from the class (you may lose your deposit at that school). Just remember that you can't "double deposit".
By the way, calling a student and telling them that they are getting an
offer of admission is probably the most exciting thing admission
officers experience! We can't wait to make them and everyone has a story
or two about favorite calls. I promise you that when it's time, we'll
be working very quickly so we can deliver happy news!
