You submit your application. You receive an invitation for an interview and you ace it. And then…you wait.
If you’re lucky, when decisions come out, you’re admitted. If you’re less fortunate, you will be rejected, which, by the way, doesn’t mean you blew the interview.
And then, there’s the purgatory known as the waitlist (or, as Stanford poetically dubbed it for a while, the waitpool). You’re neither here nor there; you’re in limbo, especially if the school that waitlisted you is your top choice. Now what?
It’s the MBA nature to want to take action, but here you will want to proceed with caution. A little bit of effort goes a long way, and a few MBA programs (notably HBS) have let applicants and their supporters know that adcom does not want to be besieged by pleas for extra consideration. Although admissions officers are sympathetic to your plight — they know how painful it is — they also want to be fair to everyone on the waitlist and, more importantly, to make the decisions that seem best for that particular class.
Take your guidance from the school, and don’t hesitate to contact their admissions office if you have questions. Most schools will tell you how and when they want to receive updates (if they want updates). Generally, they want to know about any changes to your work (promotion? exciting new project?), community involvement (elected mayor of my town!), test scores, or program prep (online calculus course, MBAMath).
If you had a chance to visit campus and sit in on a class, that should give you ample material for an update.
The biggest question I’ve gotten lately: should I have an alum friend/mentor/family member write an email on my behalf. The answer is…maybe. If someone who knows you well and genuinely supports you wants to write a quick note to admissions, it won’t hurt (unless it’s HBS) and it might help. But the note should be authentic, not a recounting of your bio or major accomplishments, or anything that sounds too much like you wrote it (because you probably did). A letter of support that was clearly written by you will not help and it very well might hurt.
What am I talking about? Here’s an example:
“I’ve known [waitlister] since they were very young, and was blown away even then by their keen business sense — they started their first business at age 12 — and incredibly mature interpersonal skills. Waitlister is one of those likable people that everyone is drawn to, and their continued success is a testament to that. I would have loved to have had Waitlister as a GSB classmate — they’d be the person always asking the best questions in class, coming up with perspectives no one else could have imagined, and then organizing game nights for the section. They’ll be an amazing addition to GSB.”
And if you don’t have anyone to write such a note? Not to worry. Most people are admitted off the waitlist without any corroborating support.
