For example, lets pretend College A is my top choice and College B is my safety.
What if I got waitlisted at College A and accepted to College B and the May 1st deadline to accept college decisions is about to end? Moreover, what if I don’t hear back from College A about whether I will be accepted from waitlist or not? What should I do then?
Here’s the trick: Accept offer from college B and put down the $100+ deposit. You will lose this money most likely. You wait until after May 1, and many times colleges will call with offers to their school because many people just committed to other schools. You will then accept College A offer, and you lose a few hundred dollars. Compared to the cost of college however it is a small amount. If you don’t have a few hundred dollars to spend, then you might need to wait until April 31 to accept College B’s offer.
^ That’s pretty much it. An acceptance fee is just a down payment, and all down payments are is the money you’re willing to give up if you change your mind. Colleges know this. They know how many to expect in a typical year, and they plan accordingly.
So accept the offer from the best school that wants you. You’ll probably end up there anyway. If a WL opening appears, abandon your acceptance fee at the other school. It’ll sting, but not a lot. You’ll pay that much on 2-3 textbooks anyway. Chump change
Thank you so much guys! Now I understand the process 