It’s just about that time of year when our phones ring off the hook and people start calling us in search of help after being deferred from a dream school. We are here to remind you that yes, even if you got deferred, it’s going to be okay. A lot of students get deferred. It might even be fair to say that most students get deferred. And despite this unfortunate reality, and the feelings that accompany it, you have no choice but to get your life together. It’s time to make a plan, stick to it, and power through the rest of the year. Here’s how:
Stop thinking about the school you just applied to.
Pretend that it doesn’t exist. While a deferral is not the same as a rejection, we like to be realistic. You weren’t an automatic “yes” the first time around, and there’s a chance that your application won’t pass the buck during regular decision, either. Do your best to compartmentalize so that you can free up some mental space for the work you have ahead of you, and also for the ~possibilities of the future~.
Create a realistic school list.
It’s possible that you were a bit too aspirational in choosing an E.D. school, so let’s start there. Look at your grades, extracurricular activities, and test scores. From there, see where you stand at the rest of the schools on your list. You should be within range at all of the schools on your list. It should be broken out by target, safety, and reach – but leave a little breathing room. You know this, but it’s worth repeating that it’s harder than ever to get into college this year. We’ve also all been tricked into thinking that attending an Ivy League school, or another top tier school, is the secret to life. The truth is that going to Harvard won’t solve all of your problems, and there are many worthy schools out there. You just need to get clear on what you’re looking for, and keep an open mind.
Get organized.
Grab a coffee, a pen, and a highlighter. Or a Google doc, your choice. Write down all of the schools that you’re applying to and the due dates of their application. IMPORTANT: see if any of the schools on your list offer an Early Decision II option – we also wrote a blog post about it here. If you can swing it, it’s not a bad idea to prioritize an E.D. II school. You should also look at the supplements for all of the schools on your list, and be sure to triple check for the questions that are lurking in random tabs of the common app website.
Send all of your materials to the schools on your list.
Pretty self-explanatory, but again, double-check that you’re sending in absolutely everything they need.
Review your common app essay.
We know the pain of opening up a document we once thought was good to go, but it’s worth it. We recently wrote a few blog posts that might help – check here, here, and here.
Finish your supplements.
This is going to take a while, and we encourage you to work smarter, not harder. Look for overlap and carve out DAILY time to work on everything. We all mean well when we say the weekend is the best time to power through essays, but realistically, you’ll get tired and your eyes will burn and Netflix will start calling your name. You’re much better off chipping away at things during doable increments throughout the week.
Hit submit!
Only after you’ve made your way through the list should you start thinking about the school that you were deferred from. Is it still top of mind? If so, you should send them a deferral package. If and only if your heart is still set on attending the original school, you need to update them about what’s happened in your life since you applied. We recommend reaching out to the school via email in late January or February – here’s what you should include:
A reintroduction. Let them know that you applied (and were deferred) E.D. and are still interested in attending.
Re-express your interest in the school. And no, we don’t mean copying and pasting your original supplement. This should be new information that speaks to why you believe X school is still a perfect fit.
An update: first semester grades, and improvements (!!) that you’ve made regarding grades, jobs, extracurricular activities, etc.
Another letter of recommendation (that they haven’t seen before.)
The purpose of the deferral package is to show growth and continued commitment. If you haven’t stayed committed to your passions or essentially threw in the towel, don’t waste their time. You should only write the email if you’ve genuinely kept at your passions, and still truly want to attend the school.
As it relates to the rest of the applications you need to finish, keep your head up. Your hard work will pay off in the end.
Reach out to us here if you’re feeling lost.