Should I Send My Enrollment Deposit Before I Receive My Financial Aid Award?

[CCEdit_Torrey]

Find out whether to send an enrollment deposit to your top-choice school as soon as you’re accepted, or if you should wait for the financial aid package. https://www.collegeconfidential.com/articles/should-i-send-my-enrollment-deposit-before-i-receive-my-financial-aid-award/

[OHMomof2]

@Sally_Rubenstone

Typically, housing deposits are not accepted until the enrollment deposit has arrived. So if your college is pressuring you to send a housing deposit now, and you were to send both an enrollment deposit and a housing deposit, it’s unlikely that the latter will be returned if you change your mind.

If the college is a member of NACAC, this is against the rules they agreed to, no?

Colleges must not use on-campus housing assignments to manipulate enrollment commitments prior to May 1. The only exception occurs when colleges are unable to house all their first-year students. In that case, they may assign housing on a first-come, first-served basis and alert candidates that on-campus housing is not guaranteed if they wait until May 1 to submit their housing deposits. In such situations, colleges must refund their enrollment and housing deposits if students cancel their admission by May 1.

https://www.nacacnet.org/globalassets/documents/advocacy-and-ethics/statement-of-principles-of-good-practice/nacacs-code-of-ethics–professional-practices.pdf

[Sally_Rubenstone]

@OHMomof2 -In theory all deposits should be refunded before May 1 but In reality, colleges sometimes make it so tough for families to get housing money back that they give up.

[OHMomof2]

From the article -

…although enrollment deposits will typically be refunded before May 1, housing deposits are not governed by the same rules.

–

Typically, housing deposits are not accepted until the enrollment deposit has arrived.

If an enrollment deposit is required to make a non-refundable housing deposit, the school really is cheating. I guess I feel such unethical practices should not be rewarded. The schools should be reported. IMO.

[Sally_Rubenstone]

@OHMomof2 -I actually did report a university to NACAC’s Best Practices committee several years ago when a famiily was dealing with a deposit issue. And what I learned is that there’s a fair amount of gray area here. Regardless of what the NACAC “rules” may proclaim, NACAC is an admissions organization. So at some institutions, administrators in other departments (e.g., Housing) don’t feel that they fall under the admissions jurisdiction and thus shouldn’t be required to abide by policies that they haven’t been involved in making.

I don’t know all the ins and outs of this, but I DO know that there are many situations in life where what SHOULD happen and what WILL happen are not congruent!

[OHMomof2]

True/ And I imagine it’s hard for a family to not say OK and just do it, given that pressure. But I hate it

[Sally_Rubenstone]

@OHMomof2 --There’s SO much about the admission process to hate. Where do we even begin?