Dec 15, 2025
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By Justin Neiman, Former Admissions Officer
Deferred from MIT Early Action? This guide covers what an MIT deferral means, how many deferred students MIT typically admits, and how you can improve your chances of gaining admission in Regular Decision. We’ll walk through the available admissions data to help you understand the MIT deferred acceptance rate, key MIT EA deferral statistics, and how to write a strong MIT deferral letter.
MIT's Early Action Acceptance Rate is 6%. MIT provides more transparency than many of its peers when it comes to admissions statistics. For the Class of 2029, the university received 29,281 total applications and admitted 1,334 students overall, resulting in a 4.6 percent admit rate (Early Action and Regular Decision combined).
In the Early Action round, 12,052 students applied. Of these, 721 were admitted (about 6.0 percent), 4,845 were rejected (about 40.2 percent), and 7,486 were deferred to Regular Decision (roughly 62 percent).
MIT also reported that 175 deferred applicants were admitted during Regular Action, meaning about 2.3 percent of deferred students were ultimately accepted. This aligns with MIT’s historical patterns.
If you’re deferred, your application remains in consideration. The admissions committee wasn’t ready to offer you a spot but wants to evaluate your candidacy alongside the Regular Decision pool.
Submit the February Updates & Notes (FUN) Form
Rather than requesting a MIT Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) or traditional Deferral Letter, MIT uses their own update form. MIT explicitly outlines what they want in the deferral process:
If MIT is still your first choice, let that be known. While the Admissions Office may say submitting an update is optional, by submitting information, you are signaling that you remain enthusiastic and ready to enroll if accepted. If you don’t submit anything, it could be assumed that you are no longer interested in MIT and have moved on.
Strengthen Your Regular Decision Applications
A deferral is a second chance to reassess and refine your college applications.
Being deferred is not the end of the road—it’s a chance to regroup and come back stronger. Many students find their ultimate success in the Regular Decision round.
One former student shared this reflection:
"If I hadn’t been deferred in the early round, I wouldn’t have realized how much my application needed improvement. I made changes and ended up getting into all of my top schools during Regular Decision. It was a blessing in disguise."
What does it mean to be deferred?
A deferral means the admissions committee was not ready to make a final decision. Your application will be reviewed again during the Regular Decision round. It is not a rejection.
Do deferred students ever get in?
Yes. MIT admitted 175 deferred students in Regular Decision for the Class of 2029.
Does a deferral mean my application was weak?
Not necessarily. At schools with single-digit admit rates, many academically strong applicants are deferred because the committee wants to compare them with the larger Regular Decision pool. A deferral often means they want to see more — new grades, updates, or context.
If you’d like support with your LOCI or your Regular Decision applications, feel free to reach out.
This article was updated in December 2025 for the 2025-2026 Admissions Cycle.
Deferred from MIT Early Action? This guide covers what an MIT deferral means, how many deferred students MIT typically admits, and how you can improve your chances of gaining admission in Regular Decision. We’ll walk through the available admissions data to help you understand the MIT deferred acceptance rate, key MIT EA deferral statistics, and how to write a strong MIT deferral letter.
MIT's Early Action Acceptance Rate is 6%. MIT provides more transparency than many of its peers when it comes to admissions statistics. For the Class of 2029, the university received 29,281 total applications and admitted 1,334 students overall, resulting in a 4.6 percent admit rate (Early Action and Regular Decision combined).
In the Early Action round, 12,052 students applied. Of these, 721 were admitted (about 6.0 percent), 4,845 were rejected (about 40.2 percent), and 7,486 were deferred to Regular Decision (roughly 62 percent).
MIT also reported that 175 deferred applicants were admitted during Regular Action, meaning about 2.3 percent of deferred students were ultimately accepted. This aligns with MIT’s historical patterns.
If you’re deferred, your application remains in consideration. The admissions committee wasn’t ready to offer you a spot but wants to evaluate your candidacy alongside the Regular Decision pool.
Submit the February Updates & Notes (FUN) Form
Rather than requesting a MIT Letter of Continued Interest (LOCI) or traditional Deferral Letter, MIT uses their own update form. MIT explicitly outlines what they want in the deferral process:
If MIT is still your first choice, let that be known. While the Admissions Office may say submitting an update is optional, by submitting information, you are signaling that you remain enthusiastic and ready to enroll if accepted. If you don’t submit anything, it could be assumed that you are no longer interested in MIT and have moved on.
Strengthen Your Regular Decision Applications
A deferral is a second chance to reassess and refine your college applications.
Being deferred is not the end of the road—it’s a chance to regroup and come back stronger. Many students find their ultimate success in the Regular Decision round.
One former student shared this reflection:
"If I hadn’t been deferred in the early round, I wouldn’t have realized how much my application needed improvement. I made changes and ended up getting into all of my top schools during Regular Decision. It was a blessing in disguise."
What does it mean to be deferred?
A deferral means the admissions committee was not ready to make a final decision. Your application will be reviewed again during the Regular Decision round. It is not a rejection.
Do deferred students ever get in?
Yes. MIT admitted 175 deferred students in Regular Decision for the Class of 2029.
Does a deferral mean my application was weak?
Not necessarily. At schools with single-digit admit rates, many academically strong applicants are deferred because the committee wants to compare them with the larger Regular Decision pool. A deferral often means they want to see more — new grades, updates, or context.
If you’d like support with your LOCI or your Regular Decision applications, feel free to reach out.
This article was updated in December 2025 for the 2025-2026 Admissions Cycle.
Former Admissions Officer, Harvard University
Former Assistant Dean, Stanford University
As a College Counselor I help students navigate the college admissions process. My goal is to help students stand out and get accepted to their top-choice schools.
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