If you or your child received word of being waitlisted to the Swarthmore College Class of 2029, many questions are probably swirling around, chiefly — is it possible to get off the waitlist? We at Ivy Coach have some reassuring news: the answer is a resounding yes! However, you must spring into action within days of your waitlist notification to optimize your odds of admission. Let’s review the best strategy below:

Swarthmore College Waitlist Acceptance Rate and Statistics

Unfortunately, Swarthmore is a bit coy when it comes to waitlist statistics. All we know is the number of students admitted off of the waitlist each year:

Swarthmore College Class Year	Number of Students Waitlisted to Swarthmore	Number of Students Who Chose to Join the Swarthmore Waitlist	Number of Students Accepted Off the Swarthmore Waitlist	Swarthmore Waitlist Acceptance Rate
Class of 2029	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD
Class of 2028	Not Published	Not Published	Not Published	Not Published
Class of 2027	Not Published	Not Published	23	Not Published
Class of 2026	Not Published	Not Published	0	Not Published
Class of 2025	Not Published	Not Published	0	Not Published
Class of 2024	Not Published	Not Published	33	Not Published

Your Chances of Admission to Swarthmore After Being Waitlisted

Even though these figures might leave you with a vague impression that very few students get into Swarthmore off the waitlist, remember that what determines admission is a little-known factor called yield rate. Yield rate describes the proportion of admitted students who end up matriculating. Admissions officers at places like Swarthmore aim for the highest yield possible to drive up their all-important rankings (yes, it’s all a numbers game!). Only during the admissions cycles in which they overestimate yield must they dip into the waitlist to fill out their class.

At Ivy Coach, we believe in providing straightforward advice. The truth is, no one, not even the Swarthmore admissions officers, can accurately predict the yield rate for the Class of 2029. But that’s not something you need to worry about. Your focus should be on presenting the best version of your candidacy and ensuring that Swarthmore will choose your application if they need to dip into their waitlist. Here’s how you can achieve that:

Your Chances of Admission to Swarthmore After Being Waitlisted with Ivy Coach’s Help

Over the last 30 years, 100% of students who have first come to Ivy Coach after being placed on the Swarthmore waitlist have earned admission. That’s right — we’ve never once had a student who came to us after being waitlisted to Swarthmore face rejection (and it so happens that every year we’ve had a waitlisted Swarthmore student, the school has turned to its waitlist). It’s a figure we’re mighty proud of.

So why does Ivy Coach have such success with Swarthmore’s waitlist? It boils down to our tried and true method of optimizing a student’s chances for admission after being placed in limbo. That two-step process is as follows:

1. Complete Ivy Coach’s PostMortem application review. We need to see what a student did right and what they did wrong. The narrative we help craft can’t be out of left field. It must be consistent with the story conveyed in the application — just told in a much more compelling way.
2. Submit a powerful Letter of Continued Interest. Most students know they should submit a letter after being placed in limbo, and most know they should do so promptly after learning of their decision. Yet most students submit the wrong kind of letter — letters filled with brags and updates on everything they’ve done in the three months since they first applied. Ivy Coach’s letters contain no brash claims or unlikable boasts. It’s a big reason our wonderfully weird love letters are so successful. We motivate admissions officers to want to root for our students. We dare them not to offer them admission!

Getting Started with Ivy Coach on the Swarthmore Waitlist

If you wish to give your child the best shot possible at earning admission off the Swarthmore waitlist, fill out Ivy Coach’s complimentary consultation form, indicate that your child has been waitlisted, and we’ll get back to you. We understand that you need to contact Swarthmore urgently to express your continued interest. As such, you’ll receive an immediate response to your inquiry, and you’ll be able to set up a complimentary consultation to learn about Ivy Coach’s waitlist service within the next day or so.