Georgetown Deferred You: Now What?

Submit a letter of continued interest as soon as possible, ideally by December 15th-17th, and afterward, have your guidance counselor call or at least email the admissions office to update them concerning all of your awards, publications, accomplishments, and grades since you applied. They should affirm that no matter what other admission decisions you receive, you will choose to attend Georgetown if offered a spot.

But not just any letter of continued interest. This letter should be one of the most inspired pieces of writing you've ever composed. In it, you need to let your heart write a love song for Georgetown and translate that into giving the reader a concrete picture of exactly who you will be as a person on their campus. This includes demonstrating how you will contribute to spaces and organizations on campus and reminding the reader of your academic hook. In reintroducing your hook, the academic niche you spent time and effort carving out in high school to distinguish yourself from others, you want to remind the reader how you can change the world for the better if you have the opportunity to leverage specific academic opportunities at Georgetown.

I personally recommend starting the letter of continued interest with something funny or lighthearted. It is naturally awkward reading something from someone whom you, in a sense, deferred. To make the experience as cringe-free as possible for the admissions officer, I wouldn't reference the deferral explicitly or convey any feelings of disappointment.

After a lighthearted and positive introduction, I would then proceed to talk to the reader about something related to your niche, such as a new cutting-edge development or something new that you learned. I would then connect this new piece of information regarding your niche to something currently going on at Georgetown and explain how, by leveraging certain opportunities there, you can achieve some goal, and make the reader understand how achieving this goal can change the world. Georgetown's Jesuit mission of cura personalis, care for the whole person, and commitment to social justice should resonate throughout your letter if these values align with your own goals.

Afterward, I would paint them a picture of you on their campus. Have fun here. Feel free to write a hypothetical scenario of you making some of the best memories of your life there. You want the reader to feel like by not admitting you, they will be denying you the opportunity to live your best life for four years. Show them you doing activities that have garnered you friends in high school on their campus. Show them how your hobbies or talents will brighten up the days of your Georgetown classmates. Present yourself as someone they want on their campus.

To conclude the letter, I would thank the reader for their time and add something to the effect of thanking them for the opportunity to share with them your favorite subjects and hobbies. Finally, I would tell them that no matter what other decisions you receive, you are absolutely resolute in attending Georgetown, and that if you are offered a seat, you will immediately accept it no matter what. I would then include a signed signature.

Ensure the letter is addressed to your regional admissions officer. Georgetown guarantees that all applications are read by a regional admissions officer who applies their regional knowledge to the decision-making process. You can reach the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at (202) 687-3600 or guadmiss@georgetown.edu. When it comes to bragging about grades, prizes, or publications, please save it. If you made it this far in the admissions process at an elite school like Georgetown, then you already have enough academic credentials to be a strong candidate for Georgetown. Remember: Georgetown does not deny anyone in the Early Action round, everyone not admitted is deferred for a full second review in Regular Decision. This means the deferred pool is quite large, and you'll need to distinguish yourself.

Your guidance counselor should be the one bragging on your behalf. When they do it, it carries much more weight and shows the colleges that there is something beyond those accomplishments to consider. By your guidance counselor going out of their way to share your accomplishments with the admissions officer, it demonstrates to them that there is something compelling enough about your personhood for them to be doing this. Given how accomplished you must be to be deferred from a school like Georgetown in 2025 where the Early Action acceptance rate was approximately 11%, this intangible quality they can infer is what will distinguish you from other overachievers.

One additional opportunity to consider: if you did not complete an alumni interview as part of your initial application, there may still be time to request one. Georgetown offers every applicant an alumni interview, and deferred students can often schedule these into February. This is another chance to make a personal impression and demonstrate your genuine interest in the university.

Approximately 15% of deferred applicants are ultimately admitted in the Regular Decision round. While this may seem like long odds, a compelling letter of continued interest, strong senior year grades, updated accomplishments, and an advocacy call from your counselor can make a real difference.

If you'd like help writing your letter of continued interest for Georgetown or any other school, please schedule a free consultation with us below.