<p>You know what’s funny? At least one MIT admissions officer is on CC. In other threads, the OP has posted enough specifics about herself to be identifiable. :)</p>
<p>I’d somewhat agree vossron. It could probably be technically a legal document but as one poster pointed out it’s been vetted by enough attorneys that the loopholes are pretty obvious and neither party would likely want to duke it out in a court. I doubt the OP is going to be able to simply “write a note” and “not send a deposit” and shouldn’t. The OP and the parents should have to jump through a few hoops to get out of the agreement so the OP can attend the state school for free and I think the colleges should include the parents and the GC in that discussion since all three had to sign the ED agreement. I do think there is some honor involved that requires more than “oops changed my mind, thanks but no thanks” on the part of a 17 or 18 year old.</p>
<p>^^^(Post 321) That observation may the most important entry on this thread. Students and parents alike should be aware that this board is not so anonymous.</p>
<p>Believe me, I wish I had not been so naive as to give myself a CC name that is a geographic identifier.</p>
<p>“Therefore, getting a better FA package from MIT to bargain with Penn over is not going to work.”</p>
<p>Well, not necessarily … if we’re willing to slide a bit further down the ethical slope. T-e-c-h-n-i-c-a-l-l-y, the OP won’t be in a position to withdraw from ED until she finishes FA negotiations with UPenn, and t-e-c-h-n-i-c-a-l-l-y the OP shouldn’t have to withdraw her MIT application until she accepts UPenn’s offer, s-o-o-o-o the obvious course of action for an ethically-challenged student is to string out the FA negotiation with UPenn another 145 days. I’m sure this can be (legally) accomplished … especially with the assistance of a well-compensated legal team.</p>
<p>Note that the OP, BlueRedBeaver, has posted nothing here recently – no explanations to her actions. If she cannot do that here, she certainly can’t do that to UPenn or MIT.</p>
<p>The real conclusion one can draw from the endless back and forth in this thread is that there are a significant number of people here, primarily adults, who find (right or wrong) her actions (right or wrong), well, regrettable, which indicates the likelihood of the reactions at the admissions offices of UPenn and MIT.</p>
<p>I only hope that BlueRedBeaver has not painted herself into a corner and has completely blown her chances at any good college. Admissions officers remember such things.</p>
<p>Through ED, selective schools want to lock in not only money from full payers, but also top students, including the needy. But in order to encourage needy students to apply to their one dream school and remove the fear of an unaffordable commitment, the schools provide this way out, making it clear that it’s the family’s decision, and that no one will force them to accept an untenable offer. This can clearly open the door to abuse, but it’s necessary to encourage needy students to apply ED.</p>
<p>As specified in your Early Decision (ED) application, as an accepted applicant under the ED plan, you must promptly withdraw the applications submitted to other colleges and universities and make no additional applications. </p>
<h2>If you are an early decision candidate and are seeking financial aid, you need not withdraw other applications until you have received notification about financial aid.</h2>
<p>Implication of second paragraph is that Penn recognizes FA plays crucial role in decision-making.
I don’t think it makes sense to cast aspersions on OP’s ethics. I think the ethical thing to do is to contact Penn AdCom and FAOffice and be honest with them. As others have said, I suspect they will either revisit their FA numbers or else release OP from ED commitment without prejudice.</p>
<p>Sure jesse10 but what does the OP do about the MIT EA app?</p>
<p>I don’t know where people are getting the idea that colleges are misleading students about the nature of ED. I’ve sat through many info sessions (mostly LACs), the the message is always the same: if you need to compare FA packages, DON’T apply ED. </p>
<p>I’m not a fan of ED, but to say colleges are misleading about it is absurd.</p>
<p>It’s not only students applying ED who may not like the FA package they receive. It’s students applying EA and RD as well. Old-timers like myself remember the case of Evil Robot who had to choose between Yale (to which he applied SCEA) and Vandy where he got a better FA package. I was not among those who believe in Ivy or bust and I told him to go to Vandy. He could have attended Yale, but would have had significant debt. He chose Vandy. His was an entirely ethical choice since he had not committed to attend Yale (which offered him FA, but not as much as Vandy).
The OP’s situation is different. I am not concerned about the “binding” part of the issue, as the contract is probably not enforceable. I’m concerned about the ethical one.</p>
<p>“Sure jesse10 but what does the OP do about the MIT EA app?”</p>
<p>Just being devil’s advocate here (yeah, more slippery slope stuff):
“Hey, no way I’m withdrawing my other apps until I’m sure I’m sure I’ve gotten the BEST FA package I can from UPenn. FIRST offer is obviously not the BEST offer, so I don’t think I’m violating anything by not withdrawing my MIT app.”</p>
<p>For some ED applicants, the OP not among them, there may be some FA line below which the school may be impossible to afford. But for a student for which is truly is possible to attend (like the OP), it’s more than a little disingenuous to say “Well I was able to afford UPenn … until I got the full-ride offer from the other school.”</p>
<p>Sure, but OP’s not going to know about MIT FA til April (which may be worse than UPenn’s), at which point Penn is long gone, and she may be locked into that state scholarship, assuming she doesn’t have to commit to it sooner. She may wind up having fewer choices at the end of the day.</p>
<p>Was never clear to me if OP’s parents already have significant debt (about which noone in FA will give a hoot) or if they have reconsidered their willingness to go into significant educational debt for the OP.</p>
<p>
She’s posted on the MIT board about how she has a job interview with a MIT alum the same day she finds out if she got into MIT. For someone who just got accepted to her first choice school ED, she doesn’t seem that interested in going there! Interestingly, she doesn’t tell anyone on the MIT boards that she got into UPenn ED. </p>
<p>If one reads through her posts, they surely do not put her in a very good light in this matter. I wonder what her GC in her “crappy” (her word!) school has to say about all of this?</p>
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<p>As a ‘fob’ (her word) 1st gen Asian immigrants, isn’t this a point of honor? 
I am speaking as one who is a member of that group and quite pickled in the culture of the same.</p>
<p>According to a post on a different thread, the OP is first generation, Asian, and goes to a “crappy” school in the Midwest. She has been in this country only 2 years.</p>
<p>Based on that, I would assume that the OP is low income, and probably got a good need-based financial aid package from Penn., which as is the case for Ivies, tends to give good need-based aid.</p>
<p>From her other posts, it seems the OP now would prefer to go to MIT – her EA school – and would also like to be able to get a full ride, something she was offered from a public school .</p>
<p>There’s no indication that the parents can’t afford whatever financial aid package Penn offered her. </p>
<p>To me, it seems that the OP has done very well to get an ED offer from Penn., and she may be burning bridges by attempting to back out of Penn’s offer.</p>
<p>OP’s name seems to summarize her dilemma: redblue (Penn’s colors) Beaver (MIT mascot).</p>
<p>CD: Ah, maybe a case of split personality?</p>
<p>“What took you guys so long?” said momofthreeboys affectionately. I figured this all out last night.</p>
<p>OP is probably laughing at all of this; an entire Sunday of posts while he/she is watching football…we’re all insane (myself included), you do know that?</p>