New York University, best known as NYU, is one of the most famous universities in the world, and one of the most sought after acceptances. Applying to NYU early is the best way of getting your foot in the door, but sometimes it doesn’t work out as planned — which is probably why you are reading this post. When you decided to apply to NYU early, though, you most likely didn’t see a deferral in your future. An acceptance? Hopefully. A rejection? Hopefully not. But a deferral? That was definitely not in the plan. What you do next, though, can transform your chances of getting into a dream school, including NYU.
The acceptance rate for the NYU Class of 2028 was 8%, with three of the undergraduate colleges accepting fewer than 5% of applicants from a pool of nearly 120,000. They have also experienced a massive surge in Early Decision applicants, likely related to the decreasing acceptances at top colleges across the board nationally. More people are making NYU their first choice, driving down the acceptance rate to be comparable with other schools at the very top of the higher education pyramid.
Given this demand, NYU needs to manage the deluge of applications and do their best to accept a very high number of students who aren’t using them simply as a backup for another famous New York university with a terrifyingly low acceptance rate (*cough* Columbia *cough*). Deferrals are a clever way for NYU to push along applications that are impressive but that aren’t convincing enough to accept yet. And NYU has a high bar for applications that qualify for deferral. Recently, “less than 5% were deferred to a later round of admission.” They also clearly state that they “only defer students who are viable candidates for admission.” This means that you are in a selective group, and you do have a chance of getting in. So, let’s do everything we can to make that happen.
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Before you do anything else for NYU, you need to address the big picture of your college application experience. It’s possible that you’ve had a college list for years, that you’ve been working on essays since (most) came out in August, and that you feel well-positioned for the Regular Decision and Early Decision II deadlines. Chances are, though, that this isn’t the case. Most students we meet after a deferral decision feel behind, whether it’s because they haven’t working on writing or don’t even have a solid list. So, let’s catch up.
Review Your College List
First, the college list. A solid, well-balanced college list is the foundation for a successful college application experience. To make yours, you’ll need foundation schools, or safeties, targets, and reaches. There should only be 2-3 reach schools on your list, and NYU is one of them. Then you want to have 3-4 targets, which are schools that you are likely to get into based on the scores and grades of recently accepted students or based on a connection to the school like a parent who works there.
The most important chunk of your list are the foundation schools, not because they are your dream schools but because they are your back-ups that ensure that you will end up somewhere that you’ll be happy to be — even if you decide to transfer. Pick foundations that you are very likely to get into based on your tests and scores, and possibly also in-state status for state universities.
Once you have your refreshed college list, it’s time to turn your attention back to writing.
Reassess Your Writing
Applying to college requires a lot of writing, and we encourage students to start it early. But now it’s winter, you’re weeks away from RD and EDII deadlines, and you’ve likely got at least a dozen supplements to write. Your college essay is ‘done,’ but it, too, could probably use some work. We highly recommend reviewing our 2024-2025 Guide to the Common App Essay as well as our college-specific supplement guides to set you on the right track.
Press Submit
Once your writing is done and edited, and everything is input into the application portal appropriate to the school, it’s time to submit. This may sound obvious, but we have seen a lot of essays get ruined by antsy fingers and stressed out feelings in the time between when their work is perfect and when they press submit. Because of this, we highly recommend submitting as soon as you feel ready, and then moving on. You’ve got work to do for NYU!
WHAT NYU WANTS
NYU has clear instructions for what they want from you after a deferral, so read carefully and always follow directions. Going ‘off-book’ doesn’t get you bonus points when it comes to the college admissions process.
Opt-In
Unlike many colleges and universities that defer students from early rounds, NYU requires deferred students to ‘opt in’ to the regular decision cycle. When you were notified that you had been deferred, NYU gave you a response deadline. This deadline is firm, and we advise replying a little in advance of it to give you some buffer.
Applicants who still want to be in the running “must complete” the Deferral Response Form, which will also offer you an opportunity to “indicate any additional campuses or programs of interest that they did not indicate on their initial application, as well as provide any updates on any accomplishments or awards they have received.” Don’t do any more on this, though, until you’ve read the rest of this post!
Mid-Year Grades and Report
NYU also definitely needs to receive your mid-year grades, and they also prefer to have a Mid-Year Report from your school counselor. Both can be submitted by your counselor. They may do it automatically, but we recommend scheduling a conversation with them to confirm that the report and grades will be submitted. This can also be a great time to kindly ask if they would be willing to make an ‘advocacy call’ to NYU in support of your application. These calls are not at all mandatory nor even expected, but they can make a big difference.
New Scores
The admissions representatives and application readers at NYU also want to see new test scores — if you have them. New scores should be submitted as an unofficial score report through the applicant portal, or sent as official scores directly from the testing agency.
Updates and Reinforcing Interest
The most important thing you can do after a deferral from NYU is to let them know that NYU is still your first choice. When you fill out the Deferral Response Form, you have the opportunity to update them about anything important that has happened since you initially applied. Updates could include new awards or recognitions, leadership positions, extracurricular commitments, volunteer experiences, or an after-school job. Updates should not include things like doing well on a test, and you certainly shouldn’t make excuses for a weak spot on your updated grade report. It’s important that any updates are concise, specific to what has happened since you first applied, and cohesive with your original application. You should also specify in this update, even if it feels redundant, that NYU remains your top-choice university. Yes, you should say this even if it isn’t technically true anymore. The Early Decision agreement no longer applies, so you saying this is not binding — but it is important.
Don’t…
There are a few things you shouldn’t do. NYU specifically asks that you “not send additional letters of recommendation, artistic materials,” or the like.
Not all students who apply to NYU early are admitted, denied, or deferred, though. Sometimes, NYU puts Early Decision I students directly onto the waitlist. If this is your situation, you should do everything listed above, and send your update to the admissions office via email. You should know that you chance of admission from the waitlist are extremely low, but it is only possible if you act now.
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