Holding and offer from a UK and US university.

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>My friend has just asked me a question on behalf of her friend in America, but I'm not sure of the answer:</p>

<p>"My friend has a conditional offer to Cambridge and an unconditional offer to St.Andrews. Is it possible for her to hold an offer to both Cambridge and the US, in case she doesn't make the grades for Cambridge? If yes, at what point would they be required to start paying the fees for the US school?"</p>

<p>I don't think this is possible - she'd have to accept one or the other, surely? - but when trying to answer the question I struggled to work out how they would find out - I may be missing something very obvious.</p>

<p>Thanks a lot!</p>

<p>Graphix</p>

<p>I don’t see why she wouldn’t be able to put a deposit down on a US school and then when the offer to Cambridge becomes unconditional accept the offer and lose the deposit to the US school. I don’t see it as any different than a waitlist situation, but I’m not positive.</p>

<p>^ I would think it would be treated like a waitlist.</p>

<p>What do you mean “treated like a waitlist?”</p>

<p>So, she can accept both and then wait for her grades? For example, I’ve got an Oxford offer and am waiting on Harvard, Yale and Princeton.
If I get one of the US schools, can I accept it and accept Oxford. Then, say I make my grades, can I then reject the US school? When do US schools normally ask for a deposit - and what happens in the case of financial aid?</p>

<p>Thanks a lot!</p>

<p>US schools normally ask for a deposit by May 1. However, occasionally you will get “waitlisted” at a school, which means that they may offer you admission some time after the normal notification date if a spot opens up. In the event that happens, you are allowed to then withdraw from the school you sent a deposit to and enroll in the other. Now, whether or not your situation would be treated as equivalent I don’t actually know.</p>

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<p>So can you only withdraw from one US school to go to another? Can you not withdraw from a US school that you’ve paid the deposit for in order to go to a uni in the UK/</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

<p>The thing is, once you’ve paid the deposit you CAN’T just withdraw at will. There are conditions you have to meet, and I can’t find any information on whether or not meeting an offer of admission at a foreign school counts. The best thing you could do is contact the US schools you applied to and ask.</p>

<p>

Thanks a lot! You’ve been very helpful!</p>

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<p>Not true. You can withdraw at any time, you just won’t get your deposit back.</p>