First of all, students who are in the waitlist or hold status should contact us directly with questions. Each applicant's situation is unique, and we do want to engage in a dialogue with our applicants. When we ask students in the waitlist or hold status to take courses, read texts, or retake exams, we do this so that the student will be prepared in the event a spot does become available. The Berkeley MFE program is very intensive, and we want to make sure that anyone who joins the program is ready from the first day they are here. We also know from experience and from speaking to candidates on our waitlist that many candidates plan on applying for a future term if they are not admitted this year. If a candidate takes the courses one year, is not admitted, but then is admitted in the following year, the candidate is welcome to retake the courses for free as a refresher.
Contrary to popular belief, we do not ask the waitlisted candidates to take the pre program courses simply to make money. I am not sure where one of the posters got the information that the money goes only to our program, but that statement is false.
In addition, we did not remove the video requirement from the application because we were unhappy with the quality of the 2010 class. We found the process of collecting the videos to be cumbersome, especially since there exists technology (such as skype) that allows us to engage in video chats with candidates in real time.
Two final points: We notify all waitlisted students that there is no guarantee of admission if they complete the steps we ask them to complete. Second, we notify all waitlisted candidates that we keep admissions open until the start of the program in March and that candidates could be notified of a change in status at any time before March.
Again, we want to underscore that concerned applicants should contact the admissions office with questions. This is the best way to obtain information on your status.
