<p>Anyone have insights into the implications of not accepting an Early Decision acceptance? I ask this because my son was looking into, and fairly serious about, applying ED to Duke, but his commitment would have to be contingent upon financial aid and scholarship--as determined by US, the payers, not THEM, FAFSA, Duke, CSS Profile, etc. </p>
<p>Feedback?</p>
<p>Mods, could you move this to the general financial aid forum? It’s not a NM issue.</p>
<p>RickUW, you should first run a FAFSA estimator, and then take a look at a private school institutional aid estimator (Princeton has a good one; they are more generous than most, and therefore give you an upper limit of how much a school might give you in need-based aid). Compare those numbers with what your family can afford to pay for college. And do a little research, if you haven’t already, on the Duke website and CC forum to see how much FA you can expect Duke to give you.</p>
<p>If your FAFSA EFC or the institutional exceeds the COA at Duke, and you’re not willing to commit to paying that, then your son should not apply ED to Duke. He will not receive a financial aid package that will make the school affordable for you. You the parents are required to sign the ED agreement. If you are not willing to pay the estimated costs, then simply don’t sign the agreement. Your son can apply RD and see at that point if Duke will make any funds available. </p>
<p>If your family can meet the EFC, but would require need-based aid to meet the rest of the COA, it may be worth applying to Duke ED. You are then rolling the dice, because you will not be able to compare Duke’s ED FA award with awards from other schools during the RD period. The Duke offer could end up being the best, but if you turn it down during ED, you won’t be able to reconsider accepting it in April. If need-based or merit aid are going to be important in the final decision, your son should wait and apply RD.</p>
<p>The Financial Aid, Duke, and College Admissions forums also have threads on this subject.</p>
<p>IMHO, ED should be used only at that one dream school above all others, where the only question is: can I afford it? It’s a looooong time from November to September to make such a commitment to a school that one only “likes” at the moment; there’s plenty of time to regret the decision. </p>
<p>OTOH, there is no danger in declining an ED acceptance if the aid offered still makes it unaffordable; no school can or will try to force you to attend.</p>
<p>Thanks to both of you for the sage advice. My son’s interest in Duke is not strong enough to warrant ED application. Frankly, if my conversation with the Admissions rep is any indication, I hope he doesn’t apply at all. Perhaps he was just having a bad day (too many calls from parents like me?), but his attitude translated to me was “Well, we’re Duke–if you really want to be here, you’re fortunate if we admit you!” I know I’m not being fair to the institution, but it only takes one experience like mine to sour you on a place. Just goes to show, I guess, that we’re not all that serious about the school to begin with, and perhaps that came through in my inquiry!</p>
<p>SlitheyTove: Thanks for the suggestion about the Princeton Financial estimator. It was extremely helpful, and I did feel that the financial aid would be sufficient (based on our financial status) for our son to attend if admitted.</p>