<p>My daughter has tentatively decided on a college. There is a small financial incentive to putting down a housing deposit by December 1st, as well as priority in selecting a dormitory. The college makes its scholarship offers in February. The offers are not coordinated between departments (honors, alumni society, etc.) Is there much of a possibility that those who decide on the scholarships will see that she has put down a housing deposit and decide they don't have to offer her a scholarship to get her to enroll? It''s a $100 deposit and she can get it back if she decides to go elsewhere. She is applying to another school and would reconsider if they offer her a full ride or close to it.</p>
<p>The college is not a flagship, is a public regional, and she's probably in the top 5-10 percent of students test score and gpa wise. They are known for having a decent number of scholarships available.</p>
<p><strong>.<em>,</em>.</strong>_</p>
<p>No, $100 isn’t going to make a difference. Probably most students waiting for a scholarships will put down the $100. </p>
<p>My daughter tried out for a scholarship in her department. The audition was submitted in Jan., and we were told it would be really helpful if she tried out in person, not by submitting online. Well, it would have cost probably $1000 to travel, stay overnight, eat, etc. so she submitted online (the most the scholarship can be is $3000, so spending $1000 to get maybe $3000 wasn’t worth it). She had also only applied to this school, had already accepted, had already put her deposits down (admission and housing), so she was a sure thing. She was notified that she was not selected for a scholarship in mid-Feb. Oh well, she was still going. Then about a week later, she was awarded a scholarship! She also got one from the alum association in April, and she was still a sure thing. </p>
<p>It is very possible that the school and housing offices do not communicate with each other on this. In fact, she may need to notify both housing and the school if she needs a refund of any deposits to both. Just notifying one will not be sufficient for the other to get the message.</p>
<p>I doubt the scholarship folks know what’s going on in housing.</p>
<p>Lots of kids put down multiple housing deposits because they want housing priority so it probably won’t negate her scholarship. If the college doesn’t guarantee decent housing to all freshmen, definitely put down the deposit. It can really make a difference starting college if you have a large double close to classes as opposed to a forced triple a mile from campus.</p>