A deferral letter, or a letter of continued interest, is written in the case when you sought to enter a college or university and were deferred, but nevertheless want to show your interest in successfully entering. As a deferral means you might be accepted to a college or university later, writing a deferral letter increases this chance.

Steps for Writing a College Deferral Letter

1. Start the letter properly. Specify the detailed contact information of the school/college/university you are sending your letter to, as well as your personal contact information.
2. Briefly mention the situation you currently are in and what are your reasons for writing the letter. One-two sentences should be enough. This is the introductory part, and the shorter the better.
3. Explain what makes you think the school/college/university you were applying to is a great match for you. Connect this institution’s classes, programs, professors, and so on to your interests and goals; this will make your motivation look more specific.
4. Update the admission committee on what you were doing since filing your application form. It should be something important and useful, like attending lectures on the disciplines of your interest, having a part-time job, working as a freelancer, and so on. Writing about unique or at least significant experiences will increase your chances of being admitted.
5. Double-check your letter for mistakes, typos, and so on. Grammatical mistakes can ruin what you have written.

Key Points to Consider

1. One of the crucial aspects of writing deferral letters is doing it as soon as possible. It would be perfect if you wrote a deferral letter right after you received a note from the college you wanted to enter.
2. The length of your deferral letter will not impress anyone, so do not bother making it longer than one page.
3. Sending a deferral letter via email is a bad idea. Much better would be to make it handwritten on paper, and send it as regular mail. Does it need to be mentioned that your handwriting should be clear and accurate?
4. Knowing whom exactly your deferral letter should be sent to is a bright idea.

Do and Don’t

Common Mistakes When Writing a College Deferral Letter

– Expressing your frustration with the deferral in the letter.

– Not checking with the educational institutions’ policies before sending the deferral letter. Some institutions ask people who are enrolling to not send them deferral letters in case of being postponed.

– Being too emotional, begging the admission committee to accept you, and so on.