Likely letters from colleges—when to expect them?

Hey, fellas! I've heard about 'likely letters' from colleges, but I have no idea when they usually come out. Can anyone share when they tend to be sent, and maybe which colleges send them? Thanks!

Hey there! Likely letters are indeed a thing for some colleges, and they are sent out to a small number of applicants to let them know of their strong chances of admission before the official decision date. These letters are meant to encourage top applicants to remain excited about attending that particular college.

The timeline for receiving likely letters varies depending on the college and whether you applied through Early Decision/Early Action or Regular Decision. For Early Decision/Early Action, you might start seeing likely letters around late November to early January. For Regular Decision, these letters usually start going out from late February to early March. However, keep in mind that not all colleges send out likely letters, and even those that do only send them to a small percentage of applicants.

Some of the schools known to send likely letters are Ivy League institutions like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, Brown, and others such as Duke, Georgetown, and Stanford. However, not receiving a likely letter from any of these doesn't mean you won't be admitted—most admitted students don't receive a likely letter. They're more of a special gesture for a select few, and the majority of applicants will still have to wait until the official notification date to learn the decision.

I hope this helps! Just remember that not receiving a likely letter is not an indication of the final decision, and the best approach is to remain patient and wait for the official news. Good luck with your college applications!