A few tips if your child is wait-listed

Most likely, it’s been a long few months. We know you really want the private elementary school application process to end. But, if your child is wait-listed at a school you really like, you’ll need to continue with the process. Here are a few suggestions:

  • Call or email the admissions director immediately. Tell him or her you’re disappointed that your child was wait-listed, but you’re still very hopeful a spot will open up. Remind him/her how much you love the school. Let the admissions director know the school is your top choice and you’ll enroll your child if they offer you a spot. You are ready to write the deposit check!
  • Have your friends or parents you know at the school contact the admissions director and reiterate the same message: you’ll enroll your child if offered a spot.
  • Don’t be alarmed if you don’t hear from the admissions director. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes at the school and they are waiting to know how many parents (if any) will decline their offer and therefore create spaces for wait-listed families.
  • Don’t keep calling or emailing the school! You don’t want to appear panicked or over-involved, even if that’s how you feel.
  • Be very patient. Families are admitted from wait-lists right away and in the summer months.
  • Schools DO offer wait-listed families admissions! We know lots of families at many top schools who were initially wait-listed.
  • If the admissions director tells you to accept a spot elsewhere, take that as a hint that your child probably won’t get in.
  • If you have a “back-up” school, don’t give up that option just because your child is wait-listed at another school. A lot of parents will put a deposit on their 2nd choice school, but continue to keep in contact with their 1st choice school where they were wait-listed.
  • Keep your cool and don’t have an attitude or seem resentful. Being wait-listed is part of the process and it can end up working out for your child.
  • Patience and persistence can pay off…we’ve seen it many times.
  • Good luck!
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Christina Simon: Los Angeles, California, United States I'm the mom of two kids who attended The Willows School in Culver City and Viewpoint School in Calabasas. My daughter is a graduate of Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism ('23) and my son is a sophomore at UPenn/Wharton ('26). I live in Coldwater Canyon with my husband, Barry, and our dogs. Contact me at csimon2007@gmail.com

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