College admission decisions can take up to several months, leaving applicants to wonder whether they’ve been accepted, rejected or placed on a waitlist.

The results leave some applicants discouraged, especially those who were wait-listed at their top-choice college.

 ”If you’re on a waitlist, it’s a good sign,” says Kerr C. Ramsay III, senior vice president for enrollment at High Point University in North Carolina. “That’s the school saying that they feel you, in essence, are qualified to be admitted. If they didn’t feel that you could succeed at the institution, you would not have even been offered the waitlist opportunity.”

What Are College Waitlists?

Colleges have a limited number of seats each year, given physical space requirements or to maintain faculty-to-student ratios, so some promising applicants are put on a waitlist in case enrollment spots open up.

 ”It’s becoming harder for colleges to really know which students are serious about their institution and will enroll if offered an opportunity to,” Ramsay says. “So many schools use a waitlist as a way to help ensure that they meet their appropriate class size without overenrolling, and make sure that all programs have the appropriate number of students in them.”

Some applicants are offered spots on the waitlist during the regular decision round of admission. Wait-listed applicants generally won’t hear back about a decision on their admission until after the national May 1 deadline for high school seniors to submit their deposit and secure their spot at a college. Sometimes, they don’t find out until soon before the fall semester.

The admissions office’s final decision often comes down to whether there are openings for students left in the incoming class – that is, how many admitted students ended up deciding not to enroll.

“They’re eligible, they’re qualified, they could fit in the college community,” says Jeff Knox, founder of Moxie College Counseling. “But there are institutional goals from that college that’s just getting in that student’s way.”

Students and parents often think that “there’s just some extra glitter that they need to throw into the application, some new update – win the Nobel Peace Prize or whatever,” he adds. “But really it’s about waiting to see, does a space that’s your shape open up?”

What to Do After Being Wait-Listed

Experts suggest wait-listed applicants carefully follow a college’s specific procedures and take these seven steps.

1. Accept a Spot on the Waitlist

Wait-listed applicants can typically accept or reject a waitlist offer. Those considering accepting – which is required for further consideration – should ensure the school is truly a top choice, experts say.

“If there’s a situation where they would not accept an offer should they come off a waitlist, they should go ahead and remove themselves from that list,” Ramsay says. “Not only will it probably lessen the email volume in their inbox, that also lets the schools move on more quickly to students who are interested.”

2. Express Interest Again in the School

Colleges have different approaches to the waitlist. Some may want additional materials such as an update from applicants, whereas others may not even look at additional information supplied.

“The number one way to ensure you’re not admitted off the waitlist is to not follow the instructions that the school provides,” Ramsay says. “Just make sure you’re doing what the school asks you to do.”

Lee Norwood, founder of Annapolis College Consulting, suggests reaching out to your regional admissions counselor – if that school has them – for specific details and advice on the waitlist. Sending that person a letter of interest is one way to demonstrate continued interest, she says, to emphasize that you’re a good fit and to provide important personal or academic updates.

3. Submit a Deposit to Another College

Even if an applicant is wait-listed for their No. 1 choice, it’s wise to submit a deposit – generally a few hundred dollars – to enroll at another university before the traditional May 1 deadline, experts say.

 ”If they’re willing to remain on a waitlist somewhere, it’s probably their first-choice institution,” Ramsay says. “And they need to continue to pursue that path, but they also need to make sure they have somewhere that they’re going to land. I don’t want students to miss an opportunity to enroll at another great institution by putting all their eggs in one basket.”

Ultimately, you should “ fall in love with another school,” Norwood says. “Go visit the schools where they have said that they want you because an admitted student’s eyes and brain are very different than that first timid kid who took the college tour the first time.”

4. Manage Expectations in the Admissions Process

Even if college waitlist data is available from the prior class, comparing it to the current year is an apples-to-oranges scenario.

“It’s tempting for parents and students to look back on what happened last year with the waitlist and the year before that,” Knox says. “It’s not relevant because institutional goals are ever-shifting and you just can’t draw any conclusions from that.”

5. Continue to Focus on High School Academics

The last few months of high school are filled with milestone events, including prom and graduation. While it’s important to stay on top of deadlines before attending college in the fall, high school academics should still be a priority, experts advise.

Not only do schools receive end-of-term transcripts for each student, but scoring high enough on an Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate exam can lead to college credit.

6. Be Ready to Make a Decision if Admitted

An acceptance offer off the waitlist is rare – though possible – so experts encourage applicants to consider other options.

The timeline for being admitted off the waitlist varies, but many schools try to let applicants know before June 30, experts say. If that admissions offer does come, the prospective student should be prepared to act fast.

That means families need to be ready for the possibility and discuss in advance what they can afford and other factors in the final college decision.

7. Contact the School Where You Submitted a Deposit

Applicants who are admitted off a waitlist are not required to accept. But applicants who accept should notify the school where they submitted a deposit to alert officials that they won’t be attending, experts say. Most deposits are nonrefundable.

From there, focus on preparing to start school in the fall by meeting deadlines and submitting required documents.

“Between even December and this time, but certainly from May 1 to this time, you want make sure you just didn’t miss any steps that were provided to the students who were admitted before the waitlist,” Knox says.

To learn more about the college admissions process, sign up for U.S. News’ twice-monthly Extra Help newsletter, which provides advice to parents as their teens navigate applying to and paying for college.