by Megan Briggs
Applying to colleges is a convoluted process,
and it can be even more confusing when you’re not in on the lingo. As a senior
having just recently submitted 14 college applications, I’m going to break down
a few items you may encounter that I was in the dark about at the beginning of
my senior year. In my first post of this series, I dug into what a likely letter
was, and gave some background on different types of admissions. Today’s topic
is another, quite different letter: a letter
of continued interest, commonly shortened to LOCI.
So, what is it? Well, let’s say you apply
early decision to your top-choice college. Rather than getting accepted or
outright rejected, you get waitlisted or deferred. This means that while you
are a strong applicant (woo!), the admissions committee wasn’t entirely
convinced that you’d be the best possible candidate for one of the coveted
spots in the incoming class. If this happens, you’re probably not feeling
great. You have to wait longer to find out if you’re in or not, the chances are
slim, and you feel pretty helpless in the whole process. One way to take action
and possibly distinguish yourself from the other applicants is with a letter of
continued interest. An LOCI is exactly what it sounds like: a letter telling
the college that you are still very interested in attending. It’s a great
opportunity to demonstrate some of the qualities below:
Applying to colleges is a convoluted process,
and it can be even more confusing when you’re not in on the lingo. As a senior
having just recently submitted 14 college applications, I’m going to break down
a few items you may encounter that I was in the dark about at the beginning of
my senior year. In my first post of this series, I dug into what a likely letter
was, and gave some background on different types of admissions. Today’s topic
is another, quite different letter: a letter
of continued interest, commonly shortened to LOCI.
So, what is it? Well, let’s say you apply
early decision to your top-choice college. Rather than getting accepted or
outright rejected, you get waitlisted or deferred. This means that while you
are a strong applicant (woo!), the admissions committee wasn’t entirely
convinced that you’d be the best possible candidate for one of the coveted
spots in the incoming class. If this happens, you’re probably not feeling
great. You have to wait longer to find out if you’re in or not, the chances are
slim, and you feel pretty helpless in the whole process. One way to take action
and possibly distinguish yourself from the other applicants is with a letter of
continued interest. An LOCI is exactly what it sounds like: a letter telling
the college that you are still very interested in attending. It’s a great
opportunity to demonstrate some of the qualities below:- Perseverance
It’s important to
keep a positive, upbeat tone in your letter to display that you’re not the type
of person to let obstacles (i.e. a deferral) get you down.
- Interest in the School
An LOCI takes time
and thoughtfulness, and this shows the college that you really want to be there
(psst! Colleges want to accept students that will say yes!) You should
reiterate in your letter the qualities of the college that you like and what
you believe you can contribute as a member of the class. Be specific – if you
sound too general, they’ll think you don’t really know much about them or
didn’t care to learn.
- New Accolades
Maybe a week after
you submitted your application you were made captain of the soccer team. Maybe
you just recently were awarded 2nd place in your school’s art show. Whatever it
is, if you have new things to add, let them know! The school year doesn’t stop
after you submit your apps, and you should show them your hard work.
- Writing Ability
Take the time to make
this letter really good. To be clear, that doesn’t mean you should replace
every word with a longer more intellectual-sounding one from a thesaurus.
However, you should put a lot of thought into it to make it professional and
error-free. Frequent editing and having someone else look it over is key. And
don’t make it too long; a page is sufficient and that way you won’t need to
worry about wasting an admissions officer’s time.
- Personality
This is where your
distinct writing style should come out. Be true to yourself. It’s okay to be
honest and say that the thing you love most about the college is *gasp* not
just the amazing academics, but also the chocolate ice cream machine in the
dining area or the British Art club. They have thousands of people telling them
how amazing the curriculum is, so this could make you stand out and will show
how passionate you really are.
If you include those five items in your
letter, you’re sure to make a good impression! You should send it to the
admissions office of the college and include your application reference number
if they gave you one so the letter can be added to your file. If you still need
a little more guidance, Thought Co. has a great article including several
examples of what to do and what not to do in your LOCI: https://www.thoughtco.com/sample-letters-of-continued-interest-4040198
TL;DR: A waitlist or a deferral is not the end
of the road, and an LOCI can increase your chances of acceptance.
Stay tuned for the next post on all the
obscure yet essential things to know about applying to college!
Comments
Post a Comment