Hi! So I committed to a college last week and I’ve been feeling pretty grim about it. The last year has been extremely chaotic and multiple people in my family have passed away, one of which died the day after I heard back from the last school. I’ve been so overwhelmed with family issues that I feel like I neglected the college process… I ended up applying to schools that everyone told me they saw me at but not the schools I wish I had applied to. And now I’ve basically done the same thing and picked the school that everyone just kept telling me I should attend. I had a bad gut reaction when I visited (but I hated all the others except one that I kinda liked but my parents told me I was overqualified for). I don’t know what to do at this point. Is it even possible to defer for a year and then just apply to more schools or is that looked down upon? Or should I go and just transfer? What do I do?
Taking a gap year is better than planning to transfer. Your chance of qualifying for good financial aid is much better.
Take the time to get yourself together emotionally, and work on a new application list.
I’d also ask for a deferral to keep your options open for a year. That way you won’t have to re-apply.
I agree with happymomof1. You’ve just been through a tough year. Cut yourself some slack by giving yourself the gift of time and reflection. You do not get any kudos for finishing college on the same schedule as everyone else in your senior class at high school. You do not get a prize for ‘toughing it out.’ Get a copy of The Gap Year Advantage for ideas about how to make the most of your time off.
As for deferring, every school has it’s own policies. Call the one you committed to and ask. Why would you care if it’s ‘looked down on?’ Either it’s allowed or its not. If it’s not, you will have to decide if you are willing to give up the bird in the hand for the opportunity to find something that makes you feel better.
Ask for a deferral. I agree with the posters above: you need time to get better and recover from the difficult emotional times. Call your college and ask for a deferral.
If you had schools in mind you wanted to apply to but were too drained emotionally to take charge of the college application process, you can take a gap year and apply there. During your gap year, you CANNOT take any class (at a community college for example) as that’d disqualify you from being considered asa freshman and all the financial & merit aid that comes with this status.
Alternatively, there are some colleges that still have seats and that you could apply to (if you feel well enough to apply and think about college)
http://www.nacacnet.org/research/research-data/College-Openings/Pages/College-Openings-Results.aspx
Look into those and if some sound intriguing from their website, don’t hesitate to post here again as adults know many of these colleges.
I wonder before you make a decision about whether or not to defer, if you’d want to spend a little time with CC folks and tell us what school you picked, what was your gut reaction, what was the school you liked but were “overqualified” for and why you liked that one. Were you accepted at that school? If so, maybe they’d let you in now. It does happen sometimes.
It may be that you are questioning your school decision in part because it was made against the backdrop of very trying circumstances, and did not feel like “your” decision. So, just talking things through here with adults (and students) may help you get more perspective and make a good choice about how to spend your next year.
Taking a gap year can be an absolutely wonderful thing – but you also really need to think through how you’d expect to spend your time. So, really weigh the pros and cons and clearly think through ALL your options.