College Admissions Consulting College Denial Letters – Can You Appeal? Written by Karen Spenceron April 29th, 2013 Like many admissions officers, I was introduced to this line of work after having been a tour guide at Valparaiso University. I went to graduate school to study counseling in higher education and, while working in the admissions office at UVA, realized that admissions was my passion. As an admissions officer at Franklin & Marshall, I read and made decisions on applications from NY, CA, and CO, was in charge of transfer admissions, and was the liaison to all coaches during the athletic recruiting process. Moving to Georgetown, I continued to oversee transfer admissions and reviewed applicants from the Midwest, reading up to 1800 applications each year. I also acted as the liaison for the soccer coach, and led one of the business school admissions committees. During my time in the admissions world, I particularly enjoyed meeting with students, helping student athletes decide if they really wanted to play a sport in college, helping transfer students find a better fit at a different college, and helping students and parents debunk the myriad of myths that are out there regarding this process. Learn More About Karen choosing the right college, deciding on a college, Q: I have just received a denial letter from a college. Can I appeal the decision? A: It can be a natural feeling when receiving a thin envelope to want the admissions committee to reconsider their decision. Did they see your solid grades? Do they know how hard that AP Bio course is at your school? Do they know how hard it was to get that internship? Some colleges have a formal appeal process, some don’t. Many schools don’t have a process at all—every decision is final. Period. That said, schools will generally only overturn a decision if they had incorrect information in your file. Example-- They had the wrong John Smith’s SAT scores in your application folder and yours were significantly higher. Otherwise, your chances of them overturning your decision are slim. In the three years I worked at Georgetown, I saw over 300 people appeal their decision and only one time was it ever overturned, and it was for the reason given above—incorrect information. In the end, schools had all the information they needed to make a decision, and they did. Barring any intervention from someone very high up (think president of the college, a board member, etc.), the decision will likely stay as is. That said, at College Coach, we are confident that there’s a school for everyone. Learn more about finding the perfect college fit and picking a college. Related Resources Read | Posted on April 16th, 2024 Understanding Direct Admission: A Pathway to Success Read | Posted on April 10th, 2024 Acceptance by Emi Nietfeld; Why You Should Fill out the FAFSA Read | Posted on April 9th, 2024 Community Colleges with Campus Housing
