<p>Hi everyone. Does anyone know how to decline an early decision offer due to financial reasons? (If the package is not too horrible, but a state school is offering full ride and since our family background is far from wealthy). Should I write a letter explaining, and just not pay the deposit?</p>
<p>You’re not supposed to decline ED unless the package is horrible. It seems it’s not.</p>
<p>In most cases, it’s ill advised to decline an ED offer…but, if it is a state school and a full ride, you could call the ED school and talk to them about your financial situation, and your reasons. I wouldn’t just “do it,” but I’d talk to them. In this economy and since it is a STATE school, I think they might accomodate you. FWIW. Just be honest and be prepared to honor your agreement if they don’t let you out. I suspect they will under these circumstances.</p>
<p>Tell the school you can’t afford it. Your family is far from wealthy. When did you find out about the state school scholarship? Did you already get a financial aid package from the ED school?</p>
<p>I am guessing you were accepted at State school before early decision, right? I hope so.
Part of ED obligation is that if you are accepted, you must withdraw any other pending apps. The give-and-take of ED is that student promises to go to school if accepted, and in exchange, the school promises to let the student know early. Many here advise strongly against such an ED agreement for the very reason you have. You promised to enroll in another school, but now have a better offer elsewhere that is tempting you to renege.</p>
<p>As best I know, and as has been discussed on this forum many times before, the only couple of exceptions are death or a horrible aid package. The idea that “one offer is quite a bit better than the other” is NOT enough. This is the student and parents’ integrity on the line. The student has promised, in writing, to attend if accepted.</p>
<p>I guess there is no harm in talking to the ED school, unless of course you make them mad(if you failed to honor the agreement). I’d urge parents and student to honor their word.</p>
<p>Yes, this really bugs me. Why apply ED if one was not prepared to honor one’s word? It’s not difficult to figure out the wording on the ED contract!</p>
<p>Actually, most ED agreements say that you must attend if offered admission unless the finanancial aid award is so bad that it is IMPOSSIBLE for you to attend. Based on what you’ve said, that does not seem to be the case. Nevertheless, I agree with poetgrl that the school might accomodate you since the other college is a STATE school and if you explain your situation. But just withdrawing unilaterally would be a real bad move.</p>
<p>This same dilemma was posted a couple weeks ago if the OP wants to see those results:
look for this thread title:</p>
<p>Withdrawing other apps after ED</p>
<p>I’m so sick of this ED crap. </p>
<p>OP…you can walk. You don’t have to go to the ED school. The binding part is total bs.</p>
<p>A school can’t hold you to an ED acceptance. It definitely can’t hold you to an ED acceptance if it is bad for you or your family financially.</p>
<p>Just tell the ED school.</p>
<p>There are people walking away from their mortgages. Leases. CalPers walked away from a $50 million loan. Sam Zell is going to walk away from deals and he is a billionaire. To tell some kid he has to take an Ed acceptance is irresponsible and wrong.</p>
<p>I agree. Just talk to them. Some schools may be miffed and you’ll have to go through some sort of process with them about it, but on the other hand you may be dealing with a school that isn’t interested in spending time on such things and will just accept your request to attend elsewhere. I don’t think there’s any reason to assume it’s going to be a problem until and unless it actually is one. Which it may be, or it may not be. But I agree you should approach it as a conversation, not a declaration.</p>
<p>I would appreciate it if you could come back and post on the result. There is much speculation about this on CC and it would be enlightening to hear of a student who has actually gone through the process of declining an ED acceptance.</p>
<p>This is an acceptable reason to decline.</p>
<p>Agree, you need to call them. Be very prepared for the conversation as you might have been able to turn your ED application into a regular decision application and you wouldn’t be in this position. My first thought when I read your post was to wonder why you continued in the ED round and I suspect admissions may ask that question also.</p>
<p>dstark may have a point with his idea that <em>others can default, you can too!</em>.</p>
<p>I not 100% sure how binding giving one’s written word is legally to a college. I’m not sure how hard they would press you to make you honor your word. I was looking at the bigger picture, in addition to the ED school.</p>
<p>One angle to consider: what if ed school led you to believe you were accepted, and honoring your word, you cancelled all other apps. You sent in your deposit. Then about 2 weeks before school they returned your check, uncashed, and told you they changed their mind and accepted another student instead. Just an angle to consider.</p>
<p>Yes, appeal to UPenn first; maybe they can do better. Because UPenn is a Common App school, the decision is yours; you don’t need to prove anything.</p>
<p>But many out here will wonder, if the FA is workable, why you want to give up UPenn for a state school.</p>
<p>It’s not a matter of UPenn vs. state school. I’m not dissing state schools. I have no idea which it is, anyway and many are excellent.</p>
<p>This is not a matter of facing starvation or homelessness but of getting a better finaid package. I’ve never been of the opinion that “just because others do it, it’s okay for me, too.”</p>
<p>I don’t like ED. But if one is willing to play the game, one ought to see it through.</p>
<p>[Penn</a> Admissions: Applying Early Decision](<a href=“http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/applying/early.php]Penn”>http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/applying/early.php)</p>
<p>Student must answer by Jan 1. Hmmm…</p>
<p>wow thanks guys for the very thorough and thought-provoking answers. I got accepted to the STATE school in October, and they just sent me a letter 2 days before the early decision result. the full ride, plus tuition and fees and books and room and food is very tempting, since my parents can’t contribute ANYTHING… They have a big loan to pay and I expected they would cover the whole thing…
I understand it’s a integrity issue. and I can honestly this bothers me very much to not honor my words even under such circumstances.
I just feel like if my parents and I don’t have the ability to pay, I should communicate and at least give all the defered and waitlisted more chance.
I hate how the scholarship and the early decision result came out pretty much at the same time!!!</p>
<p>that was ambiguous, sorry:They (my parents) have a big loan to pay and I expected they(the ED school) would cover the whole thing…</p>
<p>This is not directed at the OP, but rather at a more general attitude I detect among adults:</p>
<p>Actually, I think telling some kid that the written contract (a promise of performance on both sides) can be walked away from ‘just because’ he found a better deal for himself is irresponsible and wrong.</p>
<p>All ED applicants are told up front that this is an agreement–with consideration given on both sides (as any number of folks have spelled out on CC for those who don’t feel they need to read the fine print): In for the early admission decision, the applicant agrees to give up the opportunity to shop financial aid packages and the university agrees to commit to admitting this student without benefit of reviewing the entire applicant pool of interested students (ED + RD).</p>
<p>The colleges do make a further commitment for those students who need financial aid: the university commits to providing sufficient financial aid as deemed by the FA application information. The colleges make it quite clear, however, that this does not necessarily mean that it will be the most favorable, largest, or best FA package the applicant could get if shopping all schools. The colleges further clarify that there is an escape clause–which tends to come into play only in the event of a significant change of financial circumstances and NOT in a simple matter of a ‘better bargain’ offered elsewhere.</p>
<p>So, if these terms—all of which are pretty clearly laid out before the ED application is sent off—are not acceptable, then the option is to apply RD, compare and contrast all offers of admissions and all offers of financial aid. No harm, no foul.</p>
<p>If these terms are not acceptable OR mere curiosity regarding all the “what ifs” regarding admissions and/or financial aid packages, etc. are important to applicant or parent, WHY apply ED?</p>
<p>And to the extent the ‘full-ride’ scholarship offer came prior to the ED decision and one is tempted or inclined to accept that offer, then it is easy enough to convert the ED application to RD or to withdraw it completely. </p>
<p>“Buyer’s remorse” is not a valid reason to void a contract. Now, whether the ED contract is not enforceable in a court of law (which some suggest it is not, but it might very well be if the college felt inclined to pursue it, but cost effectiveness probably would prohibit) does not make one any less morally and ethically responsible to honor it, if for no reason other than to maintain one’s honor and integrity of self. </p>
<p>If you really don’t like the college or it really is too expensive to continue for four years, then transfer next year. The ED admission really only requires you to matriculate for this coming year. Surely, you could handle that—after all you signed a statement that if offered early decision admission, this school was your first choice and you would attend.</p>
<p>Granted, the ‘full-ride’ scholarship offer probably would not be available to you as a transfer student, but that was part of the bargain you struck with the ED school when you assured that school that it was your first choice and that you would come IF ONLY they would admit you in the early decision round, which they did. So, you got what you bargained for-- but now don’t want what you asked for and the ED school relied upon.</p>
<p>But a deal is a deal. The college is certainly expected to honor its promise to permit the matriculation of each ED acceptance–even if there are some ‘better’ deal applicants that show up during RD. Barring some significant reversal of finances between the date of the ED application submission and the ED admission offer, what makes the ED applicant’s circumstances any different? Why is it okay for one side to renege at whim, but not the other?</p>
<p>Seems to me, folks should take these matters more seriously and instill in our young people that the integrity of one’s word is definitely worth something more than ‘what’s best for me and me alone at any given instant’—regardless of whether a court of law would force one’s compliance. Shame on adults for encouraging young adults-to-be to take these matters so lightly, cavalierly, and flippantly. </p>
<p>That ED spot could have gone to someone else who took the agreement entered into seriously and was ready to honor his/her end of the bargain. If the ED applicant/admittee is so cavalier about reneging on the ED agreement, why should/would he expect the school offering the ‘full-ride’ scholarship to follow through on that offer. It is ‘just’ a letter sent by the university, after all. The answer is, of course, that applicant (and family) would expect the university to honor its word—but the applicant doesn’t feel that same responsibility? THAT’s what would be wrong and irresponsible!</p>
<p>If the financial aid package is important to the ability to attend a particular school, then one should not apply ED. That point has been made very clearly in FAQs about whether one should apply ED.</p>
<p>I am not applying anywhere after ED. but since the state school has rolling system, so I just did its app in August.
I understand Younghoss’s point about thinking from the other’s perspective. however, I only applied to two schools and options are very limited to me and with them returning my uncashed check, the 4 years of my life would be wasted , whereas that ED school has thousands of applicants(waitlisted and defered) to choose from if just ONE student can’t afford to go.</p>