Just looked at the portal. Accepted to Summer 2021. The problem is there is an “accept/Decline” button and a message that says
“You are being offered the opportunity to begin your education at UCF in the summer term rather than the fall.
Choose the Accept button below to accept this summer option within 30 days. Once you do so, you will be mailed a letter of admission for the summer term.
You will also have until May 1 to submit your enrollment deposit confirming your intent to enroll for the summer term.
If you choose to decline this summer option, you will be denied admission to UCF.”
Not sure what to do! First, I’m still awaiting to hear from other schools (its only mid November). Two, I haven’t had a chance to tour due to being out of state and the pandemic. Three, I don’t even know if I will qualify for any scholarships/merit (which I will need since I’m out of state)
It costs nothing to accept, so there is no risk, and you have until May 1 to pay your deposit. Wherever else you are applying, you certainly should receive those answers before May 1.
And if you don’t accept within 30 days, you’re done with UCF.
Second, understand what Summer enrollment is – it simply means you have to take ONE online course a little earlier than the Fall. You would take one online class during Summer B, after you graduate from HS.
You have to take 9 hours during the summer at some point during your career at any Florida state university anyway, so summer acceptance is actually nothing but a plus.
On the tour, I believe they have a virtual tour. Check the First Year Experience page on UCF.edu and see. The campus is beautiful, clean, and safe. I believe UCF is the largest public university in the USA, so they have abundant resources for just about anything you would want.
If you have any specific questions about the campus, maybe some of us there on CC can answer them for you.
Can’t help on the OOS financial aid question, but maybe someone else can.
There is absolutely nothing to feel bad about. Summer acceptance is an unmitigated GOOD thing, for several reasons.
You've been accepted to a very good, large, research university. If it's not your first choice, it's a very good "safety school." You are IN, and most college application deadlines haven't even come up yet. An acceptance at this point is like money in the bank.
You have to take hours in the summer at some point, so this gives you an early start. My daughter was admitted for Summer 2020. She took two of her core required classes, got A's in both, got used to college courses online (it's different from HS online or home school), and got 2/3 of her required summer classes done. She will take another course (maybe 2) in Summer 2021, and she'll be finished with the summer requirement. She's on campus now, but even though she did her Summer 2020 classes from home I think that experience eased the transition to being away at school.
On the tour question, from what I understand UCF is not doing in-person tours. That does NOT mean, however, that you can’t visit. Especially if you visit Orlando for other reasons, just a simple walking around tour on your own would be worth doing.
It was actually the tour that sold our daughter on UCF. She had applied to UF and FSU, but about 2/3 of the way through the tour she said UCF was where she wanted to go.
@JimDadinmia, Question. Why do you have to accept in 30 days? I have never heard that. Merit isn’t even out yet. My daughter got accepted in September and the website says we have until May 1st? This is her safety and she wouldn’t be making a decision until after FSU and UF are released.
I believe summer start is for students who have slightly lower stats to get adjusted to college. My guess is they may not receive merit. It is only the summer admits that have been reporting 30 days to accept.
The 30-day period for acceptance was specified in the other poster’s acceptance notification. I don’t remember that wording in my daughter’s offer for Summer 2020.
But I don’t think that is a totally irreversible commitment. I think you just have to pay the enrollment deposit, and you might lose that if you go somewhere else.
I think quite a few people risk the deposit waiting for UF and FSU. We had the advantage of being able to tour before making a decision. We got halfway through the tour and D said, “This is what I want” even though her BFF was at UF.
I think lintwo2go above is correct – the 30-day requirement is only for summer acceptances. I don’t remember that being a requirement for my daughter, but I may have missed it.
Yeah, that may have been the same thing we got. It’s been a while and I’ve forgotten. We accepted, went on the tour, and D decided she didn’t want to wait for other schools.
One caution, tho. That HOUSING acceptance date is an important date, so if UCF is what you want, accept and apply for housing right away.
Again, I think 1intwo2go is correct – probably no merit coming.
Our D had great grades from a great HS, but low SAT/ACT scores. She did not get offered any merit scholarships, but got one from a non-UCF source. From UCF, all she got offered was a non-subsidized loan…
Hey @JimDadinmia question…we are heading to FL soon and figured we’d stop in Orlando to check out UCF (full well understanding nothing much will be open if kids are heading home). Any suggestions on some must see things on the campus since we are walking around without a tour?
The various housing areas, including the Greek areas on the NW corner of the campus. They are scattered around campus, and it would be a good idea to get a sense of what the communities are like.
The Student Union, which is in the dead center of campus. The campus layout is like a target, and the Student Union is the bullseye.
The Knight’s Plaza, Addition Arena, Towers area on the north side of campus. Jimmy Johns and Burger U are both good spots to eat. They, and the big bookstore, are on EAST Plaza Drive. All the athletic facilities comprise the north part of this area.
Memory Mall – between the Knights Plaza area and the Student Union on the north side of campus. Beautiful, large open grassy mall where a lot of outdoor events are held.
The main Recreation and Wellness Center complex on the south side of campus. That’s the main gym, the leisure pool, obstacle course, etc, etc. If you explain what you’re doing and are masked, they might let you go in the main gym just to look. (Prepare to be amazed.)
The Lake Claire Recreation Area in the NW corner of the campus. This is an area of trails and a big lake where students can canoe and kayak.
Parking: To walk to the Knights Plaza/Towers, Memory Mall and Student Union, I would park at Parking Garage D on Gemini Blvd, just across from Towers III and IV.
To visit the Rec & Wellness complex on the south side - and also the Libra/Nike/Hercules dorm communities, I would park at Parking Garage B, also on Gemini right across from the main gym.
For Lake Claire, park in the surface lot there.
Go to one of the the terminals on the walls of any garage and get a one-day parking permit for $5.
On campus, you can pick a campus map just about anywhere – and they are indispensable!
It wouldn’t be a bad idea to stop at the Visitor and Parking Info Center (south Side of Gemini Blvd at Central Florida Blvd on the south side of campus). There you can get a map, parking permit, and info.
