After a deferral or a waitlist offer, a LOCI is one of the very few things you actually control, and getting the structure and tone right makes a real difference in how it lands.
What a LOCI is actually for
A Letter of Continued Interest does two jobs at once: it signals to the school that you would genuinely enroll if admitted, information that directly affects their yield planning, and it gives the admissions office fresh material to add to your file before a committee looks at it again. Neither goal is served by a letter that runs too long, leans too emotional, or repeats things already in your original application.
The structure that actually works
Open with one to two sentences stating plainly that this school remains your first choice and that you're writing to reaffirm your interest and share a few updates, something like: "I'm writing to confirm that [University] remains my first choice, and to share a few updates since I submitted my application in November." Follow with two to three sentences of genuine new information: a new award, strong first-semester grades, a leadership role you've taken on, a competition result, a publication. Be specific about what happened and why it represents real growth, not a list of minor updates padded for length. Add one to two sentences connecting to something specific about that school, a program, a professor's recent work, a particular opportunity, that continues to make it your clear top choice; this is what signals your interest is researched, not generic. Close with a single sentence reaffirming your enthusiasm and thanking them for their continued consideration.
A full sample structure
"I'm writing to confirm that [University] remains my first choice, and to share a few updates. Since submitting my application, I was selected as [specific award or achievement], which reflects the growth in [relevant area] I've been focused on this year. [Professor X]'s recent work on [specific topic] has only deepened my sense that [University]'s approach to [field] is exactly where I want to develop my own work. I remain genuinely enthusiastic about the possibility of joining the class of [year], and I appreciate your continued consideration."
What this means for you
- Keep the letter to roughly 150 to 250 words, one to two focused paragraphs.
- Only state this is your first choice if it's genuinely true, admissions offices notice when it isn't.
- Choose one or two updates that represent real, specific growth, not a running list of minor activity.
- Reference something specific about the school (a program, professor, or opportunity), not generic praise.
- Send exactly one letter, and address it directly to your regional admissions officer by name where possible.
A student I worked with
A student I advised had been deferred from her top choice and wrote a first draft that ran nearly 600 words, listing every activity, grade, and thought she'd had since November. We cut it down to four sentences: a first-choice confirmation, one genuinely significant update (a research competition placement), one specific line about a professor whose work she'd actually read, and a closing thank-you. It read as focused and confident instead of anxious. She was admitted off the deferral the following month, and the letter she almost sent, three times longer and full of filler, would very likely have buried the one update that actually mattered.
Mistakes students make
- Writing a letter that's far too long, diluting the one or two updates that actually matter.
- Claiming a school is a first choice when it genuinely isn't, which reads as insincere if noticed.
- Sending multiple follow-up emails instead of one well-crafted letter.
- Using vague, generic praise about the school instead of a specific, researched detail.
- Waiting too long after the deferral or waitlist offer to send it, timing matters.
Working on a waitlist or deferral response?
The Waitlist Breakthrough gives you the exact LOCI formula, timing strategy, and real examples of the moves that actually turn a waitlist letter into an acceptance.
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