"Official" Accounts/Groups (and Finding Roommates) on Instagram, Facebook, and GroupMe

A few years after social media opened up to more than just college students, third parties started trying to capitalize on students' and parents' desire to connect with others joining a college's community. Colleges created "official" class groups, but so did companies targeting college-bound students and parents with products and services.

In recent years, this has moved to Instagram, GroupMe, and probably some other channels, too. It's hard to know who is behind the class accounts/groups, but we know it's not us. Some of them are even charging students $10 to post their pictures, claiming to help with roommate searches. So here's the deal...

1. UVA did not create any of the class accounts on social media. 

Verify any information shared with official sources. Call us! We're open during business hours and are happy to help.

2. UVA Housing has a secure, private roommate search feature in their system. 

You can answer some questions to build your profile and then search for people based on how they've answered questions. The class isn't final yet (the deadline to reply to an offer is midnight on Friday night), so there are many potential roommates still to join you!

3. Be careful about sending your image and personal information online. 

When you send your image and biographical information to a third party you no longer have control of it. 

Last year, some group started selling tickets to a "Welcome Week" party on Instagram. The party didn't exist. The website for the party was registered in Iceland and I'm sure they were selling these tickets to students at lots of colleges. 

There are two Facebook groups for parents that I know for certain got started by UVA parents. One is called UVA Parent Network (12,000 members) and the other is called UVA Parent Discussion Group (5,900 members). I am not in these groups and can't speak to the conversations there. 

The new "parents and families" Facebook groups were created by people who have hundreds of similar accounts for colleges around the country. They might be tied to a tutoring company, but I'm not certain.  

Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars, Round 2

The second round of invitations for three of UVA's scholars programs went out last night by email and portals are updated. Applicants from all rounds (ED, EA, and RD) to the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering were reviewed for a potential invitation to three scholars programs: Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars. 

Students can apply to join these program and Miller Arts Scholars after some time at UVA. The process varies by program.

Scholars are less than 5% of the students in the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Engineering. There are many more exceptional students in the class that we can have in the programs. We may extend a few invitations after May 1st if spaces are available. 

You can read more about the programs on their websites. In addition to showing exceptional academic records, scholars show a love of learning and an extraordinary commitment to academic pursuits beyond the classroom. We see this in transcripts, recommendations, essays, and activities. The review for the scholars programs is not driven by GPAs or test scores. 

Congratulations to all!

Virtual Days on the Lawn Programming

Virtual Days on the Lawn programming starts this week! Admitted students can register for these webinars in their MyUVA Applicant Portals. Sessions are recorded and available in the portal within a few days. 

Thursday, March 19, 6 PM - Orientation and Transition Programs
Tuesday, March 31, 6 PM - Financial Aid 
Tuesday, March 31, 7 PM - College of Arts & Sciences 
Wednesday, April 1, 8 AM - Student Life: International Students
Wednesday, April 1, 6 PM - School of Data Science

Wednesday, April 1, 7 PM - Student Life: 10 Things to do Your First Year

Tuesday, April 7, 8 AM - Office of Engagement Admitted Student Celebration (International students)

Tuesday, April 7, 6 PM - Kinesiology Program

Tuesday, April 7, 7 PM - School of Nursing

Wednesday, April 8, 6 PM - McIntire School of Commerce

Thursday, April 9, 6 PM - School of Architecture
Thursday, April 9, 7 PM - Student Life: Being a UVA Fan

Tuesday, April 14, 6 PM - School of Engineering

Tuesday, April 14, 7 PM - Housing & Resident Life

Wednesday, April 15, 6 PM - School of Education & Human Development

Wednesday, April 15, 6:30 PM - Frank Batten School of Leadership & Public Policy

Wednesday, April 15, 7 PM - Student Life: Getting Involved at UVA

Thursday, April 16, 7 PM - Office of Engagement Admitted Student Celebration

2025-2026 UVA Admission Statistics (Unofficial)

Here are some numbers about the Regular Decision admission process and some overall numbers for the year. The Office of Institutional Research and Analytics website is the official source for admission data going back many years.

Total Applications

Total applications: 82,118 (64,463)
Total VA applications: 19,964 (17,608)

Total OOS applications:  62,154 (46,855)

Total offers of admission: 10,287
Total VA offers: 4,317 (22%)
Total OOS offers: 5,970 (10%)

It's misleading to average the offer rates together because residency is a major factor in our review. If you are going to share these numbers, cite both rates instead of an average. 

Yield (the students who accept their offers of admission) is used to determine the overall number of offers we make and the balance between VA and OOS. See yield rates by residents on the second tab of admission statistics website. We aim to have a 2/3 majority of Virginians in the class. 

Defers: 394 (21%) of the offers went to deferred applications

First year Class Goal: 3,995

Regular Decision Applications

Total number of RD applications: 26,767 (17,568 last year)
Total RD VA apps: 6,377 (3,319)

Total RD OOS apps:  20,390 (14,049)
We use completed applications in our statistics. These totals do not include deferred applications from the ED/EA rounds. Deferred students can withdraw at any time, so any RD total with the defers would be a snapshot of just one day.

Regular Decision Offers

Overall offers: 1,895 
Total VA offers: 472 
Total OOS offers: 1,423

Waiting List

The waiting list can be thought of as having ten different segments (in-state and out-of-state for each of the five schools/programs that accept first-years students). The waiting list forms as students opt-in to process in their portals. We have seen up to half decline to be added to the list. This year, we offered 8,624 students the waiting list. 

Some notes:

1. I do not have additional statistics to share. We are now immersed in transfer application review and working with visitors. Here is last year's stats post if you'd like to compare.

2. Decisions will be posted in the applicant portal around 5 PM. You got login credentials back when we received your Common App. If you never logged in before, do it now so you know how it works. 

3. Admitted students will get an admitted student packet by mail. I can't really predict when the USPS will get that into your mailbox. Your enrollment deposit is due by May 1st.

 
4. Please share the waiting list student information with your parent(s) and counselor. Our instructions for students on the waiting list are clear because we know there are third-parties who sometimes give conflicting advice. Please remember that all updates are uploaded in your portal, not emailed to admission officers. 

5. The first round of invitations into Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars, will probably be sent by email and via the portal next week. I will post an update when that happens. This review round included all applicants (Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision). Miller Arts Scholars apply after the first semester.

If you get an offer, we are thrilled to have you considering UVA! We hope to see you at some of our virtual or in-person admitted student programs. Information about those will be in your portals. 

If this is the end of your time with UVA, best wishes for the rest of your college search. There are exciting times ahead for all of you. I have loved interacting with you here and on social media. Thank you all for considering UVA! 

Regular Decision Notification this Friday

 Let's get right to the news...

Regular Decision notification will be

Friday, March 13, 2026

Where are the decisions posted? 

You will see a place to view your decision when you log into your MyUVA Applicant Portal. You received login information for the portal back when you applied. Decisions are not sent by email, but the system sends an email when you have an unseen status update (there's a lag, so if you view your decision quickly, the email won't go out to you).

What time will decisions show up? 

The decisions will get posted all at once to portals around 5 PM. There's a technical team runs several processes to get the portals updated and I can't predict the exact time that they'll finish their work. 

Why is the portal changing? Is it a sign of my decision? 

The portal will look a little different as the technical team prepares for the release. The changes are not tied to your decision. 

What about the Scholars Programs?

We will probably post invitations to the Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars programs next week. The review included Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision students. I'll post an update when I have one. 

When will I hear about Financial Aid?

Student Financial Services aims to have packages ready for students close to the end of the admission review. Please keep checking your SIS account to make sure SFS has the information they need to create a package for you. 

 As always, I'll have a post with admission statistics when I get them. I'll do my usual live q&a session on Instagram (@uvadeanj) Thursday at 3 PM. 

Good luck to you all! 

Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholar Invitations, Round 1

The Office of  Undergraduate Admission reviews all applicants to the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering for three scholars programs: Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars. 

Our first round of review is complete! If we are inviting you to one of the programs, you will see a short note in your MyUVA Application Portal now. An email will go out around 5 PM. This round included students from the Early Decision and Early Action pools. 

The second round of invitations will include students from all three rounds and will be posted after the conclusion of the Regular Decision process. If we have space available after May 1st, we may extend a few more invitations. 

You can also apply to join these programs in the second semester of your first year. 

Less than 5% of students in the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Engineering are invited to join these programs. You can read more about them on their websites. In addition to showing exceptional academic records, scholars show a love of learning and an extraordinary commitment to academic pursuits beyond the classroom. We see this in transcripts, recommendations, essays, and activities. The review for the scholars programs is not driven by GPAs or test scores. 

Congratulations to our first group of scholars for the Class of 2030!

2025-2026 Early Action Admission Statistics

I've written a post like this few times per year since 2008 and the numbers have changed a lot over the years. The Office of Institutional Research and Analytics website has admission data going back many years and this blog has data from past years as well.

Early Action Applications

Total number of Early Action applications: 57,495 (41,885 last year)
Total number of VA apps: 13,445 (11,240)

Total number of OOS apps: 44,050 (30,645)
We use completed applications in our statistics.

Early Action Offers

Overall offers: 7,151
Total VA offers: 3,071 (23% offer rate)
Total OOS offers: 4,080 (9% offer rate)
It's misleading to average these offer rates together because residency is a major factor in our review. If you are going to share these numbers, cite both offer rates. 

Defers: 8,480 (14.7%)

Deferred students can opt-into the Regular Decision round in their portals and can withdraw at any time. The Deferred Student Information page is linked in decision letters. 

Our total applicant pool (ED, EA, and RD) is just under 83,000 students. 

Some notes:

1. I do not have additional statistics. We are already immersed in the Regular Decision review process and I have files to read tonight!

2. Decisions will be posted in the applicant portal tomorrow night around 5 PM. You got login credentials back when we received your Common App. If you never logged in before, do it now so you know how it works. 

3. Admitted students will get a paper copy of their admitted student packet by mail. I can't really predict when the USPS will get that into your mailbox. Your enrollment deposit is due by May 1st.

 
4. Please share the deferred student information with your parent(s) and counselor. If you'd like to be considered for during the Regular Decision review, complete the reply form in the portal by and upload your semester grades and any other updates when they become available. Our instructions are clear that updates are uploaded in your portal, not emailed to admission officers. 

5. The first round of invitations into Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars, will probably be sent by email and via the portal next week. I will post an update when that happens. A second round will be posted after the Regular Decision process is completed. Echols and Rodman also allow self-nomination after your first semester. Miller Arts Scholars only apply after the first semester.

Early Action Notification Update!

Let's get right to the news...

Early Action notification will be

Friday, January 30, 2026

Where are the decisions posted? 

You will see a place to view your decision when you log into your MyUVA Applicant Portal. You received login information for the portal back when you applied. Decisions are not sent by email, but the system sends an email when you have an unseen status update (there's a lag, so if you view your decision quickly, the email won't go out to you).

What time will decisions show up? 

The decisions will get posted all at once to portals around 5 PM. There's a technical team runs several processes to get the portals updated and I can't predict the exact time that they'll finish their work. 

Why is the portal changing? Is it a sign of my decision? 

The portal will look a little different as the technical team prepares for the release. The changes are not tied to your decision. 

What about the Scholars Programs?

We will probably post invitations to the Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars programs next week. The review included Early Decision and Early Action students. I'll post an update when I have one. 

When will I hear about Financial Aid?

Student Financial Services aims to have packages ready for students close to the end of the admission review. Please keep checking your SIS account to make sure SFS has the information they need to create a package for you. 

 As always, I'll have a post with admission statistics when I get them. I'll do my usual live q&a session on Instagram (@uvadeanj) tomorrow at 3 PM. 

Good luck to you all!