What Reviewers Look For in the MBA — Waitlist Letter (Letter of Continued Interest)
This rubric evaluates whether your message gives the admissions office useful new information, is tailored to that school when appropriate, and states any interest or enrollment plans honestly. It also looks for a concise, professional update that respects the school's stated process and makes clear what is new if you have contacted the school before.
What We Check
Mistakes We Flag
- Repeating your original application
- A waitlist message should not summarize your career story, qualifications, or reasons for an MBA without adding anything new since you applied. Use the space for an update the school does not already have.
- Giving vague updates
- Phrases such as "work has been going great" do not tell the reader what changed. Name the role, activity, result, date, organization, course, certificate, or other detail that makes the update concrete.
- Using generic school praise
- A paragraph about broad features such as culture, rankings, or class size can often fit many schools. If you discuss the school, explain a specific interaction or detail and what it showed you.
- Ignoring the school's stated process
- If you include the school's current instructions, do not ask for meetings, feedback, or materials that those instructions say are unavailable or discouraged. Use the required channel or format rather than writing a formal letter for a form field or portal upload.
- Following up without anything new
- A message sent only because time has passed or you have not heard back does not give the office a reason to revisit your file. If you have written before, identify the earlier contact briefly and explain what has changed since then.
How this rubric reads your essay
- Built from published reader guidance — the sources are listed below.
- Scored per section against defined criteria, not general impressions.
- Calibrated for consistent scoring, so a better draft shows up in the score.
References
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to say the school is my first choice?
No. A commitment statement is optional unless the school's pasted instructions ask for one. If you include one, state it once and keep it within what you can honestly promise.
What counts as a useful update?
A useful update is something that happened after you submitted your application and gives the school a different or updated perspective. Include a checkable detail, such as a date or period, role title, organization, course, certificate, test name, number, or named responsibility.
Should I explain why I still want this particular school?
You may, but it should be written for that school rather than used unchanged across applications. A specific interaction with the school and what you learned from it is stronger than general praise.
Is there a required length for a written MBA waitlist update?
No school publishes a word or character limit for this message in the materials behind this rubric. There is no minimum length; a complete short update can be enough, while any current numeric limit you paste with your draft takes priority.
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