Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 12:02     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Congrats to PP for being an anecdotal beneficiary of waitlists…proof that it does happen. That doesn’t change the fact that for 95%+ it is indeed a soft rejection and the notion that “you’re good enough but there just aren’t enough spots” is a bit, of course, silly. Many of these h.schools will literally put 5-10X the number of admitted students and available slots on the waitlists, knowing full well that they will admit, at maximum, fewer than 5.

If a school has 20 slots and admits 30 to account for yield but puts 150 in the waiting pool, they’re just doing everyone a disservice (except, perhaps, for parents who feel better about being on an infinite waitlist rather than simply moving on).


A "Disservice"?

The system is set up and administered by the schools. It's for their benefit. They need to fill their classes and estimating the "yield" is as much an art as a science. They also want to have a range of applicants on the waitlist so they can match the needs of the school to any shortfall that the process has left them with.

This idea of a "soft" rejection is the product of message boards and others that don't understand how the whole thing works.


It is a disservice to put 100+ people on a waitlist that historically has yielded less than 5 spots in a given year.


Depending on class sizes, I could see wanting to keep 3 or 4 kids on the waitlist per grade. That's already 50 kids not counting preK. And maybe they want more to protect yield and also to keep a variety of kids (gender balance, athletes in different sports, demonstrated interest/skill in different areas, demographics).
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 11:51     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I hear waitlists aren’t real- it’s a soft rejection!


Nope, they are a would have accepted, but not enough space for everyone we wanted to accepted. I have been waitlisted and gotten off the next week (as a parent), mid summer (as a kid myself), and not at all. People try to read into it, but you can't. It is luck of the one draw at a time after enough people chose to reject the school you are pinning your hopes on.


I heard maret waitlist moved


For which year
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 11:50     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:This. And sometimes it’s more than 100, including people that the schools know full-well will never be admitted. But, they’d rather drag everyone along than deliver the direct message that the student is rejected.


You have a fundamental misunderstanding of why there is a WL and how the schools use it to get full classes with the balance (financial. academic, athletic, relationships with "feeder" schools, etc.) they want.

You are asking the schools to tie their own hands by limiting the size of their WL's.

They ae concerned about rejecting anyone. They do it all the time. And putting someone on the WL doesn't appease anyone. Instead, it frequently leads to more work and discord as a portion of the WL tries to improve their position or get more clarity on their actual chances.
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 11:04     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Congrats to PP for being an anecdotal beneficiary of waitlists…proof that it does happen. That doesn’t change the fact that for 95%+ it is indeed a soft rejection and the notion that “you’re good enough but there just aren’t enough spots” is a bit, of course, silly. Many of these h.schools will literally put 5-10X the number of admitted students and available slots on the waitlists, knowing full well that they will admit, at maximum, fewer than 5.

If a school has 20 slots and admits 30 to account for yield but puts 150 in the waiting pool, they’re just doing everyone a disservice (except, perhaps, for parents who feel better about being on an infinite waitlist rather than simply moving on).


A "Disservice"?

The system is set up and administered by the schools. It's for their benefit. They need to fill their classes and estimating the "yield" is as much an art as a science. They also want to have a range of applicants on the waitlist so they can match the needs of the school to any shortfall that the process has left them with.

This idea of a "soft" rejection is the product of message boards and others that don't understand how the whole thing works.


It is a disservice to put 100+ people on a waitlist that historically has yielded less than 5 spots in a given year.


You keep saying that... Where are you getting that number from LOL... honestly the 150 for a class of 30 would mean that the school has terrible yield rate. You know it takes effort to maintain the waitlist and re-sort it every time right?
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 11:01     Subject: Wait list
This. And sometimes it’s more than 100, including people that the schools know full-well will never be admitted. But, they’d rather drag everyone along than deliver the direct message that the student is rejected.
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 10:55     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Congrats to PP for being an anecdotal beneficiary of waitlists…proof that it does happen. That doesn’t change the fact that for 95%+ it is indeed a soft rejection and the notion that “you’re good enough but there just aren’t enough spots” is a bit, of course, silly. Many of these h.schools will literally put 5-10X the number of admitted students and available slots on the waitlists, knowing full well that they will admit, at maximum, fewer than 5.

If a school has 20 slots and admits 30 to account for yield but puts 150 in the waiting pool, they’re just doing everyone a disservice (except, perhaps, for parents who feel better about being on an infinite waitlist rather than simply moving on).


A "Disservice"?

The system is set up and administered by the schools. It's for their benefit. They need to fill their classes and estimating the "yield" is as much an art as a science. They also want to have a range of applicants on the waitlist so they can match the needs of the school to any shortfall that the process has left them with.

This idea of a "soft" rejection is the product of message boards and others that don't understand how the whole thing works.


It is a disservice to put 100+ people on a waitlist that historically has yielded less than 5 spots in a given year.
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 10:14     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:Congrats to PP for being an anecdotal beneficiary of waitlists…proof that it does happen. That doesn’t change the fact that for 95%+ it is indeed a soft rejection and the notion that “you’re good enough but there just aren’t enough spots” is a bit, of course, silly. Many of these h.schools will literally put 5-10X the number of admitted students and available slots on the waitlists, knowing full well that they will admit, at maximum, fewer than 5.

If a school has 20 slots and admits 30 to account for yield but puts 150 in the waiting pool, they’re just doing everyone a disservice (except, perhaps, for parents who feel better about being on an infinite waitlist rather than simply moving on).


A "Disservice"?

The system is set up and administered by the schools. It's for their benefit. They need to fill their classes and estimating the "yield" is as much an art as a science. They also want to have a range of applicants on the waitlist so they can match the needs of the school to any shortfall that the process has left them with.

This idea of a "soft" rejection is the product of message boards and others that don't understand how the whole thing works.
Anonymous
Post 03/24/2026 10:01     Subject: Wait list
The Maret waitlist moved last year, perhaps not in all divisions, but it did.
Anonymous
Post 03/23/2026 21:11     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I hear waitlists aren’t real- it’s a soft rejection!


Nope, they are a would have accepted, but not enough space for everyone we wanted to accepted. I have been waitlisted and gotten off the next week (as a parent), mid summer (as a kid myself), and not at all. People try to read into it, but you can't. It is luck of the one draw at a time after enough people chose to reject the school you are pinning your hopes on.


I heard maret waitlist moved
Anonymous
Post 03/23/2026 20:35     Subject: Wait list
Congrats to PP for being an anecdotal beneficiary of waitlists…proof that it does happen. That doesn’t change the fact that for 95%+ it is indeed a soft rejection and the notion that “you’re good enough but there just aren’t enough spots” is a bit, of course, silly. Many of these schools will literally put 5-10X the number of admitted students and available slots on the waitlists, knowing full well that they will admit, at maximum, fewer than 5.

If a school has 20 slots and admits 30 to account for yield but puts 150 in the waiting pool, they’re just doing everyone a disservice (except, perhaps, for parents who feel better about being on an infinite waitlist rather than simply moving on).
Anonymous
Post 03/20/2026 21:36     Subject: Wait list
Anonymous wrote:I hear waitlists aren’t real- it’s a soft rejection!


Nope, they are a would have accepted, but not enough space for everyone we wanted to accepted. I have been waitlisted and gotten off the next week (as a parent), mid summer (as a kid myself), and not at all. People try to read into it, but you can't. It is luck of the one draw at a time after enough people chose to reject the school you are pinning your hopes on.
Anonymous
Post 03/20/2026 21:33     Subject: Wait list
What schools deny in the form of waitlisting?
Anonymous
Post 03/20/2026 21:29     Subject: Wait list
Where are the PPs waiting for? As millions have pointed out, if it’s a large Catholic, you might have a shot. If it’s a competitive independent, it’s much less likely. If it’s one of the schools that deny in the form of waitlisting nearly everyone, it’s exceptionally unlikely.
Anonymous
Post 03/20/2026 20:05     Subject: Wait list
We are also waiting for 6 WL and nothing so far
Anonymous
Post 03/20/2026 15:19     Subject: Wait list
Any schools w/ 6th grade WL movement so far?