Crafting a Compelling Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) for College Admissions

For students deferred or waitlisted by a college, a Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) can be a strategic move. It's more than just saying you're still interested; it's a chance to reinforce your fit with the institution and update the admissions committee on new achievements. Understanding the key elements of a LOCI can significantly impact your chances of admission.

Understanding the LOCI

A Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) is a communication tool to express your ongoing enthusiasm for a college after you've been deferred or waitlisted. It signals to the admissions committee that you're still committed to attending if accepted.

Key Purposes of a LOCI

Reaffirming Commitment: A LOCI indicates that the institution remains your top choice.
Updating Achievements: It gives you the chance to update the admissions committee on any new accomplishments since submitting your original application. This can enhance your overall application and demonstrate your continued growth.
Expressing Gratitude: It helps create a positive impression and reinforces your enthusiasm for the institution.
Demonstrating Persistence and Motivation: Sending a LOCI shows your persistence and motivation, highlighting your fit with the school's values and programs.

It's generally advisable to send a LOCI if the school has indicated that additional updates are welcome.

Strategic Timing for Sending Your LOCI

Timing is vital when it comes to sending a Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI). If you've been deferred or placed on a waitlist, it's best to send your LOCI promptly after receiving that notification. This illustrates your ongoing interest in the school and keeps your application fresh in the minds of admissions officers.

Before sending your LOCI, check if the school requires you to complete any forms or surveys. Some institutions have strict protocols, so adhering to those can show that you're responsible and respectful.

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Make certain your letter is directed to the same person who sent you the original notification to guarantee it reaches the appropriate department.

If the school explicitly advises against sending additional letters, it's important to follow that guidance. Ignoring such requests could harm your chances.

If you're unsure whether to send a LOCI, don't hesitate to contact the admissions office for clarification. They can provide you with the best advice on how to express your continued interest in your application.

Key Components of an Effective LOCI

When crafting a Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI), start by addressing the admissions committee with a formal greeting and express gratitude for their consideration of your application. Clearly state your continued interest in the institution, emphasizing that it remains your top choice.

Highlighting Recent Accomplishments

Next, include recent accomplishments that may enhance your chances of acceptance. Update the committee on any improvements to your GPA, new awards, or significant extracurricular involvement since your original application. This information not only highlights your growth as a student but also reinforces your dedication.

Articulating a Tailored Fit

Additionally, it's vital to articulate tailored reasons why the school is a good fit for you. Reference specific programs, values, or opportunities at the institution that resonate with your goals and aspirations. This personal touch helps the admissions committee see the connection between you and the college.

Concluding with Enthusiasm

Finally, conclude your LOCI with a respectful closing. Reiterate your enthusiasm for the opportunity to attend and express your willingness to provide any further information that may assist in the college admissions process.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Your LOCI

Crafting a Letter of Continued Interest is an opportunity to strengthen your application, but it's important to avoid common missteps that can undermine your efforts.

Maintaining a Respectful and Positive Tone

When crafting your LOCI, remember to maintain a respectful and positive tone. Express gratitude for their consideration while enthusiastically reiterating why you're still excited about the opportunity to attend.

Providing Meaningful Updates

It's essential to provide updates on any achievements since your application, as this new information can greatly enhance your overall profile. Additionally, consider mentioning any recent letters of recommendation you have received, as they offer insightful perspectives on your character and achievements.

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Adhering to Guidelines

Be sure to send your LOCI promptly after receiving your deferral or waitlist notification, following any specific guidelines the institution has provided.

Addressing the "Early Decision" Question

In many LOCIs, there's a looming question a lot of people don’t address: if this is your top-choice school and you want to go here so badly, why didn’t you apply Early Decision? You’re writing this letter now saying that you love the college, it’s your first-choice pick, and if they accept you-even late in the summer-you will go there. The way to signal to a college that it’s your Number One and that you will definitely attend if admitted is to apply ED. So why didn’t you?

You should address this directly. This is the thing that’s missing from a lot of LOCIs-explaining what’s changed-and you can make your LOCI better by addressing it. Even if you’re writing a LOCI for a college that doesn’t offer ED, you can write a stronger letter by thinking about this question and answering as if they did.

Reasons for Not Applying Early Decision

There are three main answers for why a person has a top-choice but didn’t apply ED if they could have.

Gaining More Knowledge About the School: One reason is that you’ve learned more about the school. Since applying, you’ve done more research, gone on a visit, or somehow gotten a better idea of what the school is all about. If this applies, say so, and explain what changed. Tell them what you’ve learned about them since you submitted your application. Be as specific as possible. Or maybe you are the one who’s changed. You’ve gained a better understanding of yourself or have made some major decisions that make the school a lot more attractive now than it was at the end of last year. Either way, the college feels like a much stronger fit that it did when you had the chance to apply ED. Make that clear, and give concrete details.
Financial Aid Considerations: Another reason people don’t apply ED to a top-choice school is that they are fearful of applying ED because they want to compare financial aid offers. That’s perfectly reasonable and understandable. If you’re now in a situation where you wanted to apply ED to a school but held off for financial aid reasons, but the other financial aid offers you got just aren’t good enough to make you change your mind, say so. Make sure you discuss this with your family first, though. You’re basically signaling that attending the college is more important to you than financial aid. That’s potentially a very expensive thing to say, so be thoughtful about saying it. No, you’re not obligated to take a waitlist spot if they offer you one but don’t offer enough financial aid to make it affordable. But understand up front that they’re probably not going to offer much financial aid, because their budget may be limited by the time they get to the wait list. So if you think it’s a strong possibility that you won’t be able to afford to go even if they offer you a place, you may not want to bother with the LOCI and wait list.
Shifting Priorities: There’s a third situation that’s tricky to write about. That’s when you’re asking for a wait list spot not because the college is really your first-choice pick, but because your first-choice pick didn’t accept you, and maybe your second also didn’t accept you, and now the top of your list is the one who waitlisted you. It’s hard to tell them “you never were my favorite, but now I guess you are, because all my favorites didn’t accept me. I’m feeling a little desperate.” You don’t need to hide this or feel embarrassed. Still, your LOCI will be stronger if you take the time do some research and write most of your LOCI as if you’ve learned a lot more about the school and/or learned more about yourself.

Content and Format Guidelines

Give them any updates that may be useful. Has your GPA gone up at all? Have you won any awards, completed any big projects, or done anything else noteworthy? If there's anything that's substantially changed for the better since you applied, let them know about it.

All this is going into a single page. Unless the school directs you otherwise, aim for 400-500 words.

Avoiding Red Flags in Your LOCI

A letter of continued interest (LOCI) is a brief note to admissions officers expressing an applicant’s desire to attend should they be accepted and offering concise updates to inform the admissions committee’s secondary evaluation of their materials.

In order to write a letter that elevates your application, it is imperative to avoid these three red flags:

Rambling: A LOCI should provide admissions officers with new and relevant information. A student should not rehash their entire resume and application in their LOCI, nor is it appropriate for them to list every minor activity they have participated in since applying. Depending on the school, admissions officers may receive hundreds of letters, so students should keep theirs brief to show respect for the committee’s time and to ensure that they convey their key points effectively. Applicants should therefore focus on providing concise updates that directly impact the reassessment of their application. Have you received any new awards, honors, or leadership positions? Have you started a meaningful project or initiative? Have you improved upon a weakness in your application? Have you boosted your standardized test scores or GPA? Such updates are tangible, often quantifiable, and directly impactful. While you can-and should!-show your humor, personality, and perspective, make sure that you are doing so in a way that highlights, rather than distracts from, the concrete information in your letter. The more you can showcase these positive updates in your own unique voice, the greater impact your LOCI will have.
Reproaches: You may feel frustrated that you weren’t accepted or anxious that you won’t ultimately get into your dream school, but those emotions should not be evident in your letter. Statements such as “Yale has been my dream school since I was a kid,” “I thought I was a shoo-in at Vanderbilt,” or “I don’t know what I will do if I don’t get in” will not translate as genuine enthusiasm for the school, but as immaturity and lack of perspective. That being said, your letter should clearly signal to admissions officers that the school is at the top of your list-the key is communicating that effectively. Approach your LOCI with gratitude and poise. Open by thanking the admissions committee for considering your application and reaffirming your enthusiasm for the institution. Acknowledge the competitive nature of the process while expressing optimism about the possibility of contributing to the university’s community. Here, you might include an anecdote about your time visiting campus or another personal detail to convey why you see yourself as an ideal fit for the school. References to specific aspects of the campus community will demonstrate your candidacy and interest in the school more effectively than desperate pleas for admission. Admissions officers value maturity, resilience, and positivity-traits that will render you a positive addition to their campus-so use your letter to showcase these qualities.
Redundancy: Finally, students should keep in mind that admissions officers have already read their application materials. This means that there is no need to reproduce their Activities List or essays-students should provide important updates while trusting that their previously submitted materials will stand on their own in the second review process. Additionally, students should resist the temptation to send more than one letter. After sending their note to admissions officers, they must do the hard work of waiting for a decision; continuing to flood the admissions office with correspondence will not reflect favorably on the applicant. As Yale’s admissions blog notes: “You should not try to re-do any parts of your application. More often than not it is the required pieces of the applications, like the essays and teacher recommendations that we already have, that make a student stand out for us.”

Example Letter of Continued Interest

Dear Ms. Veronica Lauren,

My name is Zola Avery, and I’m a hopeful Yalie from Bergen County, New Jersey. Though deferred from the Early Action pool, I remain absolutely convinced that Yale is the school for me. I’d like to thank the admissions department for reevaluating my materials.

This past weekend, I got the opportunity to spend some time up in New Haven for the Yale University Model United Nations Conference (YMUN), serving as part of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction Committee (UNISDR) and debating rising sea levels and volcanic eruptions. Speaking with current Yale students made me realize more than ever before that I was with my people-warm, incredibly funny, artistic in their own way, and unabashedly inquisitive. This weekend, I was where I belong.

I would also like to take this time to briefly tell the admissions department about a few things that have happened since I submitted my Early Action application. First, I wrote, illustrated, and published a children’s book centered around gender inclusivity in STEM fields, with all proceeds going towards supporting curriculum development and outreach for the Stereotype Project, an organization I’ve been running for the past four years that focuses on combating stereotypes through art. I very much believe the magic of reading is magnified when the book is in its physical form (and I think my brother and sister, 5 and 9, would definitely agree).

Secondly, I’d like to add the following honors to my admissions file:

Best Delegate, Yale University Model United Nations Conference
Outstanding Delegate, Bronx Science High School Model United Nations Conference
Member of the Andrea Rubino Sheridan Chapter of National Honor Society

Note that these are new awards and she is not re-hashing what was in her application already, which can sound desperate.

My whole life I have worked to draw connections and bridge the gap between science, social justice, and art. Whether wandering through the Yale Art Museum, bringing together feuding nations as part of YMUN, or listening to Dr. Woo-Kyoung Ahn speak about causal learning and the relationship between genetic explanations and psychopathology, I know that no community will help me flourish quite like Yale’s would. I know that there is nowhere else I’d rather create the future.

Again, thank you for taking the time to reevaluate my application.

Addressing the Waitlist with a Positive Mindset

Being waitlisted can evoke a range of emotions-from frustration, disappointment, and even despair, to hope, belief, determination, and resilience. It’s essential to acknowledge these feelings while maintaining a balanced perspective.

Immediate Steps to Take

Respond Promptly: Most colleges require waitlisted students to confirm whether they wish to remain on the waitlist.
Submit a Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI): A well-crafted LOCI can reinforce your enthusiasm for the college and provide updates on any new achievements.

Key Elements of a Concise LOCI

Be Concise: Admissions committees are busy and have a lot of applications to review, so it’s important to keep your letter brief and to the point.
Highlight New Achievements: Since submitting your application, have you won any awards, received any special recognition, or taken on any new leadership roles?
Express Specific Interest: Use your letter of continued interest as an opportunity to reaffirm why you want to attend the school in question. Be specific about what draws you to the school and what you hope to gain from your education there.

Maintaining a Realistic Outlook

It’s crucial to approach the waitlist with a realistic mindset. Admission off the waitlist is highly competitive and varies annually based on factors like the number of applicants, yield rates, and institutional needs.

Securing Alternative Options

Accept Another Offer: Secure your spot at another institution where you’ve been accepted.

Staying Positive and Exploring Alternatives

Stay Positive: Getting waitlisted can be depressing, but it’s important to stay positive.
Consider Transferring: If your heart is set on a particular college, remember that transferring is an option.

Where and to Whom Should You Send Your LOCI?

The school will likely tell you where to send your LOCI in your waitlist or deferral notice. There may be a form to fill out-if so, use that!-if not, send your letter to the person who sent you the original notice. You should address your LOCI to the admissions officer assigned to your region.

When Should You Send Your LOCI?

Students should be prompt in sending their LOCI. Aim to submit your letter within a few weeks of receiving your waitlist notification.

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