For students who were deferred or waitlisted
Letter of Continued Interest Writer
A one-page letter of continued interest built from what's new since you applied, after River checks what the college asks for.
Free to start. No card needed.
How to write a letter of continued interest yourself
First, read your decision email and the college's page for deferred or waitlisted students, and do what they require. On a waitlist, that may mean returning a reply form, which Georgia Tech1 required by April 8 in 2026. After a deferral, it may mean midyear grades from your counselor, which Cornell2 asks of everyone it defers. Then note whether the college wants a letter, a form or nothing, and how to send it; if it wants nothing, send nothing. If it gives no instructions, use its applicant portal or email your regional admissions officer.
Open with thanks, and call the college your first choice or promise to enroll only if it's true. Then give your two or three strongest updates, each backed by a detail or number: “an A in AP Statistics,” not “my grades improved.” Tie them to one or two reasons the college fits that you didn't give before, such as a program or lab, not its ranking. Close by offering to send anything else, and sign with your full name, high school and applicant ID.
Keep it to one page (250 to 400 words) and send it once: after a deferral, when midyear grades are in, or soon after you accept a waitlist spot. Don't repeat your essays or ask about your chances, and skip extra recommendations, which Cornell3 discourages for waitlisted students. Be realistic, too: about 5,900 applicants a year confirmed a spot on Cornell's waitlist3 over the past four years, and it admitted 24 to 362 a year. Cornell also tells waitlisted students to secure a place at another college.
How it works
What is a letter of continued interest?
A letter of continued interest (LOCI) is a short, optional letter you send a college that deferred or waitlisted you. It tells the admissions office what's new since you applied and that you still want to attend. Colleges treat these letters very differently: Cornell3 invites one through its applicant portal, but Georgia Tech1 says it does not consider them from waitlisted students. UW–Madison4 asks deferred students not to send documents it hasn't requested, and MIT5 prefers updates through its February Updates & Notes Form.
Start by naming the college and pasting what's new. River checks the rules first: it reads the college's own pages for deferred or waitlisted students and quotes what they ask, with links, at the top of your doc. If you add your decision letter, River follows it where it differs from the website. For a college with its own form, River fits an update to the form's limit and says where to paste it. When a college doesn't want letters, your doc says so in its first line.
River builds the letter only from what's new since you applied: midyear grades, awards, new roles, finished projects. It ties that news to one or two reasons the college fits, taken from what you wrote or the college's own site. The letter calls the college your first choice, or promises you'll enroll, only if you said so. Anything missing becomes a bracket with a question, never an invented grade or award. The why this college essay tool finds sharper fit reasons, and the college interview prep tool helps if an interview is still ahead.
How it works
From your news to a letter that follows the rules
Paste what's new
Name the college, paste new grades, awards and projects, and add your decision letter if you have it.
River checks the rules
It reads the college's admissions pages for deferred or waitlisted students and quotes what they ask.
Get your letter
A one-page letter or form update with a subject line, word count and questions for anything missing.
Fill in and send
Answer the questions, ask River for any changes, then send it once, the way the college asks.
Dear Cornell Admissions Committee,
“Updated materials can include a letter of continued interest.” Upload it through the Applicant Portal.
Cornell remains my first choice, and if I am admitted, I will enroll.
In February, I presented my bus-delay study to our county transit board. The board added two morning trips to Route 9 this spring.
I still plan to study civil engineering with a focus on transit, and I want to join one of Cornell's engineering project teams.
Priya Raman · [Applicant ID]
What you'll get
A one-page letter that tells the college what's new, sent the way it asks
- The college's own instructions for deferred or waitlisted students, quoted and linked at the top
- A one-page letter of 250 to 400 words built only from what's new since you applied
- A subject line, brackets for anything missing, and a short checklist before you send
Before and after
Your news in. A one-page letter out.
Waitlisted at Cornell for engineering. It's my first choice and I'd definitely go if I get in. New since I applied: A in AP Stats, A- in AP Physics C (fall). Counselor sent my midyear report. Stats taught me to test if the bus delays were real. In February I presented my Route 9 bus-delay study to the county transit board. I logged arrival times for weeks; the 7:40 bus was late most school days. They added two morning trips this spring. Elected robotics captain in January, so I run our build schedule. Still civil engineering, mostly transit. Want to join a project team.
What Cornell asks waitlisted students to do “Updated materials can include a letter of continued interest.” Cornell wants it to focus on the college you applied to, uploaded through the Applicant Portal. Subject: Letter of continued interest · Priya Raman · [Applicant ID] Waitlisted · 266 words Dear Cornell Admissions Committee, Thank you for keeping my engineering application on Cornell's waitlist. Cornell remains my first choice, and if I am admitted, I will enroll. Since I applied, three things have changed. I finished the fall semester with an A in AP Statistics and an A- in AP Physics C, and my counselor has sent my midyear report… To fill in [how many] How many weeks did you log arrival times?
The first-choice line and the promise to enroll are there only because the student wrote both. Without them, the letter says the student remains very interested, and River asks both questions under “To fill in.”
What lands in your doc
What's in your doc
- What the college asks deferred or waitlisted students to do, quoted and linked, with how to send it
- A first-line warning if the college doesn't want letters, and an update sized for any form it uses
- A letter that spends about half its length on your news, strongest first, in a warm, plain voice
- An opening that calls the college your first choice, or promises to enroll, only if you said so
- One or two new reasons the college fits, tied to your updates rather than your old essay
- A subject line, the exact word count, a question for each bracket and checks specific to this college
Questions applicants ask
Common questions
Does a letter of continued interest help?
It depends on the college, so check its page first. Where a college invites one, as Cornell3 does, it's your chance to add real news to your file. Georgia Tech1 says its reply form is the only extra information it reviews from waitlisted students. For deferred students, grades may matter more than any letter: UW–Madison4 calls self-reported grades the primary factor in its review.
When should I send a letter of continued interest?
Send it once, when you have real news and before any deadline the college sets. After a December deferral, that usually means January or February, once midyear grades are in and before regular decisions go out. On a waitlist, return the reply form first, then send the letter within a few weeks, before offers begin; Cornell3, for one, makes none before early May.
How long should a letter of continued interest be?
One page, about 250 to 400 words, unless the college sets its own limit. That leaves room for a thank-you, your two or three strongest updates, one or two reasons the college fits and a short close. If the college gives you a form with a word or character limit, stay inside it; River fits a form update to that limit and shows the count.
Should I say the college is my first choice?
Only if it's true, and only to one college. If it is, say so plainly in your opening. On a waitlist, the clearest version is a promise to enroll if admitted, so make it only if you would keep it. River writes either line only when you tell it to; otherwise the letter says you remain very interested, and River asks you both questions.
What should I do if I'm deferred from college?
Do what the deferral email and the college's page ask, which usually means midyear grades and, where invited, a short update. MIT5, for one, requires deferred Early Action applicants to complete its February Updates & Notes Form. Keep your other applications moving: Cornell2 frees Early Decision applicants it defers from the agreement and encourages them to apply elsewhere. The college application organizer keeps every deadline in one place.
How do I write a letter of continued interest with River?
Paste what's new since you applied in the box at the top of this page, name the college and pick your status. River checks the college's instructions, then writes the letter, or an update for its form, into your free River workspace. There you can fill in any brackets and ask for changes before you send it the way the college asks.
Is the letter of continued interest writer free?
Yes, it is free to start. Your letter opens in a River workspace, where you can edit it, share it or ask River to change it. You can write a separate one for each college that deferred or waitlisted you. Paid plans add more AI use and access to the most advanced models.
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