Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Meet Tucker, a Commerce Student from Mississippi!

I'm very excited to share the first 2022 entry in a series of guest blog posts by UVA students. Tucker, a regular around Peabody Hall, is kicking things off. Keep an eye on @uva_students on Instagram for more content from Tucker and our other intern, Betsy, who you'll meet next week.

Hey everyone! My name is Tucker, and I am a third-year student at the University of Virginia studying Commerce and French. As a Student Intern at the Office of Admission, I work with the Communications team to engage with students through social media. In this blog post I’ll be introducing myself, talking about the UVA community, and also sharing more about why I made the decision to attend the University of Virginia. 

I am originally from Jackson, Mississippi, so coming to UVA was intimidating for several reasons: I would be hundreds of miles from home, I didn’t know anyone attending UVA, and I would be in the minority of students not from Virginia. However, after my first month on grounds, all of those concerns had melted away, and I was left with a deep appreciation for this university and the people who also call it home. 

Getting Involved

One important factor that made acclimating to life at UVA seamless was the strong communities that exist outside the classroom. Every club, organization, sports team, and activity has a vibrant social component. This emphasis on community made me feel welcome as a first year, and now, as an upperclassmen, I love sharing that welcoming energy with underclassmen as well as visitors to UVA. Some of my involvements beyond my job at the Office of Admission include the University Guide Service (which is responsible for giving historical and admissions tours of the university), Greek Life (both a pre-professional, co-ed business fraternity as well as a social fraternity), the Equity and Environment Fund (an endowment that funds projects that explore the intersection of sustainability and equity), and Days on the Lawn (our admitted student programming). In addition to these extracurriculars, I also work for the UVA Office for Sustainability, which has been a great opportunity to learn more about sustainability, to educate my peers, and to help reduce UVA’s impact on the environment. 

Community and Traditions

Beyond these individual involvements and the communities associated with them, I have felt a profound sense of community at the university level as well. UVA has so many unique, fun traditions. My personal favorite is Lighting of the Lawn, which happens right before the end of the fall semester. Everyone comes to the Lawn (which is the historic center of grounds) on a December evening and watches as the Rotunda and the Academical Village is illuminated in a light show that’s synced to music. This tradition arose in the aftermath of 9/11 as an act of solidarity. Today, it cointies to bring people from across the university together. Another quintessential UVA tradition is streaking the Lawn. This happens during the cover of night randomly throughout the semester. Have something to celebrate? Streak the Lawn. UVA win a national championship? Streak the Lawn. There’s no right or wrong way to do it - it’s just an (admittedly quirky), long-standing fixture of the UVA experience for those who chose to participate. Finally, another tradition I’ll highlight is trick-or-treating on the Lawn, which is where members of the Charlottesville/Albemarle county communities come to the Lawn as students and faculty hand out candy. It is a wholesome, fun event that helps connect the UVA community with its surroundings. 

The last variety of community I will touch on is the one that exists in the classroom. As a student in the School of Commerce, I have had the opportunity to get very close with members of my “block,” which is essentially a cohort of students with whom I take the core classes required for a degree in commerce. However even in other majors without a cohort system, there are so many avenues to develop friendships with peers. The academic departments try not only to help students by supporting their future professional pursuits, but also to provide opportunities to form connections with other students. Whether it’s having people to study all night with the day before a midterm or people to remind you about an assignment due the next day, the academic community at UVA fosters a sense of collaboration in a way I have found to be incredibly supportive. 

Why UVA?

Now that you know a little bit more about my experience joining the UVA community, I will share why I chose UVA in the first place. I was looking for a university where I would be challenged academically and surrounded by ambitious, intelligent individuals, but I didn’t want any of that at the expense of a fun, social, and vibrant college experience. During my senior year of high school I was visiting some friends in Richmond and wanted to check out colleges nearby, so I visited UVA. I knew nothing about the university and hadn’t even considered it. But, after touring and chatting with a few students, it quickly became apparent to me that UVA was exactly what I was looking for in a school: students here have a healthy balance between their social and academic lives. Of course there were logistical factors, such as geography and finances, that I had to consider, but, of the places that I could feasibly attend, UVA was where I felt most at home. 


Thank you for taking the time to learn more about my journey at UVA. Please feel free to reach out to the Office of Admission should you have any questions. I also encourage all admitted students to sign up for Days on the Lawn, which is happening throughout April! 

Thursday, March 24, 2022

#UVA Scholars Programs Notifications, Round 2

We have completed the second round of review for the Echols, Rodman, and College Science Scholars programs and notifications are in portals. The students we've added in this second round should also have an email from the director of their program in their inboxes. We'll mail a hardcopy tomorrow.

About 5% of students in the College and School of Engineering are invited to join these programs. Echols and Rodman have a third round that takes place after the first semester (you can self-nominate for that round). You can read more about these programs on their websites.

Congratulations to our second group of scholars for the Class of 2026!

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

Notes for the 2022 Waiting List

 

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!






Thursday, March 17, 2022

2022 #UVA Regular Decision Admission Statistics

 Here are some unofficial numbers about this year's process. These numbers are up to date as of today, March 17, 2022. If you are a reporter, please contact the Office of University Communications for current, official information.

A few notes:

1. I can not fulfill requests for more statistics. You can see official admission data, including admission data by residency and school of entry from last year, on the website

2. Admitted students will get a hard copy of their letter in their offer packet. Unfortunately, I can't predict when USPS will put that in your mailbox.

3. Students offered the waiting list should read the Waiting List FAQs. That link will be in the decision letter as well.

4. The EcholsRodman, and College Science Scholars program invitations will be visible in portals next week. I will post an update when I have one. Some invitations are going to students to applied in the early rounds. Echols and Rodman also allow self-nomination after your first semester. Miller Arts Scholars apply after the first semester.


Total Applications

Total applications: 50,962 (48,011 last year)
Total number of VA apps: 14,305
Total number of OOS apps: 36,657

Total Offers of Admission 

Overall offers: 9,522  
Total VA offers: 3,946 (28% offer rate) 
Total OOS offers: 5,576 (15% 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.
 
 

Total Regular Decision Applications

Total RD applications: 16,306 (16,060 last year)
Total number of VA RD apps: 3,924
Total number of OOS RD apps: 12,382

Total Regular Decision Offers of Admission 

Overall RD offers: 2,123 (2,628 last year)
Total VA RD offers: 650 (17% offer rate) 
Total OOS RD offers: 1,473 (12% offer rate)
We do not try to figure out an individual student's likelihood of enrolling (demonstrated interest), but overall yield influences the offer rate. Out-of-state residents tend to have a lower yield rate than Virginia residents. You can see yield rates on the statistics website.

Defers and Waiting List 

VA Deferred students offered admission: 72 (162 last year)
OOS Deferred students offered admission: 83 (150)
Waiting list offers: 16% (18% last year)
The waiting list forms as students opt into it via the applicant portal
 and we have seen up to HALF decline putting themselves on the list. The waiting list can be thought of as having ten different segments (in-state and OOS for each of the five academic areas that take first-year students).


Good luck tomorrow night! If your path leads to UVA, we are thrilled to have you with us! We will be in touch by email to let you know about virtual and in-person admitted student events. 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, on Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok, and reddit. Thank you for considering UVA!

Wednesday, March 16, 2022

#UVA Regular Decision Update!

If you're a regular reader of the blog, participate in my live q&a sessions on Instagram, or see me reply to questions on TikTok/Twitter/reddit/etc, you know that we release admission decisions early whenever possible. We are ready.

Regular Decision notification will be
Friday, March 18, 2022

This is official. Please do not call our office to confirm it. The decisions will get posted all at once to portals after office hours. 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.

As always, I'll have a post with admission statistics to share between now and Friday. I'll be back next week to talk about the waiting list. For now, those who are offered the waiting list should click the link in their letter to read through the information on the waiting list page.