What Does Your Admission Decision Mean?

Admission Office at Bancroft School

March 10th comes each year with excitement and sometimes anxiety as families wait for private school admission decisions. What does your child’s admission decision mean and what should you do next? Here are the five different admission decisions your child could receive, and how to respond to each.

Before March 10th:

• Contact each school so you know your child’s admission file is complete and that you will receive a decision on March 10th.
• Learn how the school will inform you of the admission decision.

The most common ways to hear are by:

• email
• a posting online to a secure admission portal
• in a letter
• Check each website so you know what to look for and when.
• Some schools will let you know exactly what time decisions are posted and some give a range of times.
• In most cases, if you've applied for Financial Aid you will receive a Financial Aid Notification.
• In some cases parents will receive the notification separately.
• Some schools may send the Financial Aid award a day or two after the admission decision is sent.

Decision Time!

If your child’s decision is: ACCEPTED

Congratulations! We hope your child is accepted to one of your three top choice schools. If your child receives an acceptance or even more than one, carefully read through the materials the school(s) sent you. Make sure you understand when deposits are due. Check the admission packet for Revisit dates. Be sure to attend the Revisit days for any schools where your child is accepted. If your child was accepted to more than one school, revisiting the campus will give your family a better understanding of what each school offers and which might be the best fit.

What should you do? Attend Revisit day and sign your enrollment contract and pay your deposit by the due date.

If your child’s decision is: ACCEPTED, FINANCIAL AID WAITLISTED (OR NO FINANCIAL AID)

You may find that your child is accepted to your first choice school, but your family is waitlisted for Financial Aid. Schools receive more requests for aid than they can accommodate. Where to allocate Financial Aid resources is determined by an in-depth process. Your family may have applied for Financial Aid, but learns that you are not eligible and therefore no award is given. Another possibility is your family is eligible for aid, but the family has been placed on the Financial Aid waitlist. Being placed on the Financial Aid waitlist means you need to wait to see if other accepted students decline their offer and the offer is made to your child. The last possibility is your child is accepted, your family is eligible for financial aid, but the school does not have the resources to grant you the aid you need and grants none. If you are granted Financial Aid, you will need to reapply each and every year your child is at school.

What should you do? If this is the school you want your child to attend, reach out to the school and ask them to keep your family on the Financial Aid waitlist. If you feel your family may need more aid than you were granted, you may ask to appeal the decision.

If your child’s decision is: WAITLISTED

Schools typically receive far more qualified applications than there are spaces available. Every year, a small group of these highly qualified applicants are placed on a waitlist. Being placed on the waitlist means the school thinks your child is qualified for admittance although your child is not granted a spot at this time. As schools see how many accepted students accept their offer of admission, your child may be removed from the waitlist and be offered a spot in the school.

What should you do? If you know this is the school you want your child to attend, reply to the waitlist decision by telling the school you are interested and want your child to stay on the waitlist. We do not suggest passing up an offer of acceptance from another school in order to stay on the waitlist.

If your child’s decision is: DENIED

Remember, it's all about 'fit'. While you were looking for the right fit schools for your child, the schools were also looking for students meeting their mission and academic standards. Receiving a denial can be frustrating. You and your child should be proud that they completed the process, a process that not everyone begins, let alone completes!

What should you do? Encourage your child to find interests to explore and develop. Help them work at improving their GPA and interviewing skills. Consider working with an educational consultant to help you define which schools are a good fit for your child. Look at schools offering Rolling Admissions after April 10th.

If Your Child’s Decision Is: NO DECISION

What happens if March 10th comes and goes without receiving an admission decision? You should immediately contact the school to be sure a.) your child’s application was complete and b.) your mailing and email addresses are correct.

What should you do? If your child’s application was not complete, including your Financial Aid file, ask if the school will accept late applications. If not, look for a school with a Rolling Admissions policy.

Good luck to you and your family as you hear back from schools!