All about the alternate list

I'm going to be writing a lot this month about the admitted students.  That's just what happens in April, what with yield events, the Admitted Student Program, and the chance to win everlasting glory by sweeping the betting pool we have going for the number of deposited first-year students by May 1 (I've got my money on 187).  But there's another group that is still very much on my mind, and that is the alternate list.  I know there are a lot of misconceptions about the alternate list, including why we even have one in the first place, so bear with me while I try to explain how exactly the alternate list works.  And, of course, if there's anything I left out, please leave your question in the comments section, and I'll update the post with your suggestion.

First, let's talk about the depressing stuff.  The reality of a selective college admission process means that there are many deserving students who are not admitted to HMC.  There just isn't space.  To keep our classes small and our dorms at reasonable capacity, we can only admit a fraction of the students we find compelling.  Then we cross our fingers, do a rain dance, and hope for the sake of our jobs that we will yield a class of 195 students or fewer.

Here's where the alternate list comes in.  We've set 195 students as our target goal for the Class of 2015.  If, say, 228 admitted students decide to enroll, then we cry and turn over our offices as auxiliary dorm space -- and nobody gets admitted off the alternate list.  If, however, the May 1 deadline passes, and there are still spots left in the first-year class, then we can turn our attention to the alternate list.  This is, in fact, the outcome we want -- it's much better to come in under the target and add more students one by one than it is to run the risk of over enrollment.  And on a more personal level, we'd all be excited to be able to pull some of our favorite candidates into the class.  So that's the best case scenario -- May 1 arrives, we reconvene the admission committee, we make happy phone calls.

An artistic interpretation of the happy phone call (hamster optional)

 

For the sake of honesty, I need to tell you that for the past several years, there have been no happy phone calls.  But before you roll your eyes and/or spit at the computer screen, let me explain why this does not necessarily predict this year's outcome.  In addition to the natural fluctuations that occur in any process involving real people (and a relatively small sample size of real people, at that), we also made a conscious choice to admit fewer students this year.  23 fewer students, to be precise.  While this made for some difficult selections at the end of the regular decision committee -- I can tell you, just off the top of my head, 23 students I wish were in the class right now -- it means (we hope) that we will be able to use the alternate list.  There's no guarantee.  It's possible that all 228 students I used as an example earlier will decide to enroll, and I'll be blogging from under a shrub next year instead of my comfortably climate-controlled office with a mini-fridge.  But please know that we've tried our best to make the alternate list a viable possibility.

Unfortunately, the most frustrating hallmark of a wait list is waiting.  We won't have any new information to give you until after the May 1 response deadline.  But in the meantime, there's one important thing you can do -- and that's update us.  If Mudd is still a school in which you're interested, tell us!  Send us a quick e-mail or a letter reiterating your interest and giving us a few updates on things happening in your life.  Things can change quickly senior year; maybe your interest in chemistry has solidified since you wrote your essays back in December, or maybe the debate team you joined on a lark has turned out to be a serious interest.  By all means, tell us.  And tell us prior to May 1, because if we're able to move to the alternate list, we'll do it quickly; there won't be any lag time between "Guess what? Spots have opened up" and "Congratulations! One of them is yours." 

In the meantime, this is your chance to explore your other college options.  You just might find, as I did, that the "extra" college on your list turns out to be your dream school.

Image from flickr