In an effort to address concerns you may have about the waitlist process, the Office of Admissions compiled responses to a list of frequently asked questions.
If you have any additional questions, please contact the Office of Admissions at 716-645-2907 or law-admissions@buffalo.edu. We appreciate your continued patience and interest in the University at Buffalo School of Law.
Every year, we use historical data to predict how many offers of admission we need to make in order to fill the class. Since historical data are imperfect predictors, we maintain a waitlist in order to cushion ourselves should we encounter unexpected fluctuations in yield rates.
There is no set timeframe for making waitlist decisions. We do not anticipate making any offers to waitlisted candidates prior to our mid-April tuition deposit deadline for admitted students. In lieu of a second tuition deposit, we require committed students to submit an Intent to Enroll Form by early-June. By mid-June, we have clearer data about how many students plan to enroll in August, and use that information to make offers and/or release people from the waitlist. Admission from the waitlist depends on how many admitted students accept our offer of admission, how many wait-listed students accept their position on the waitlist, and a number of other enrollment factors.
To be considered for admission from the waitlist, you must submit the Waitlist Response Form by the deadline noted in our waitlist notification email.
It’s possible we’ll have unexpected drops throughout the summer and as orientation approaches, and that we may therefore call waitlist participants as late as mid-August. We do everything we can to avoid admitting students after August 1, but it has happened. Should it become apparent, at any point, that we will not be able to offer you admission, we will inform you so that you may plan accordingly.
The number of people on the waitlist is in constant flux since applicants are still choosing whether to participate through mid-May, and/or withdrawing their names from consideration throughout the spring and summer months. Since the number of people on the waitlist is constantly changing, and because we consider them holistically whenever we make offers, it is not ranked.
This varies greatly from year to year. In recent years, we've made as few as 18 and as many as 42 offers of admission to waitlisted candidates. As is such, it is impossible to predict your odds of gaining admission from the waitlist.
Since time is of the essence in the waitlist process, for both applicants and the Office Admissions, we will attempt to reach you by telephone. Please be sure you have the most up-to-date contact information on file with us.
While it's not necessary to contact us on a frequent basis, indicating your continued interest and availability to enroll is a good way to stand out. We recommend notifying us by email to law-admissions@buffalo.edu of your continued interest as well as any new developments, such as an improved cumulative GPA (after spring grades have been posted), new honors, achievements or awards, a job promotion (or any professional achievement), an additional recommendation letter, etc.
If you are a recent college graduate, the Admissions Committee strongly prefers academic letters of recommendation.
In the interest of time, your recommender is welcome to send their letter to us directly by email to law-admissions@buffalo.edu. Their letter should be on professional letterhead, signed, and in PDF format.
You are certainly welcome to call (or email) with questions. We do not, however, currently provide interviews to waitlisted candidates.
Participating in our waitlist process will in no way impact your chances for future admission. With that said, it is impossible to know whether next year will be more or less competitive than the current year. So, there is no guarantee you will fare better or worse as a reapplicant. If you are unsuccessful in gaining admission from the waitlist, we strongly recommend improving your application before reapplying. Submitting the same application with no updates typically yields the same admission result.
It depends on the timing of the offer, but in general, we try to allow those receiving an offer a week to ten days to respond. If we're calling you any time after late July, however, we may have to ask for a shorter response time.
Since you do not need an offer of admission to include UB on your FAFSA, we recommend doing so. This way, in the event you are admitted from the waitlist, the University will have your FAFSA information readily available to process your financial aid award letter. UB’s Federal School Code is 002837.
Questions about submitting the FAFSA? Contact UB Financial Aid at 716 645-8232, UBFA@buffalo.edu or Visit their website.
