Should we send deposits to 3 schools?

<p>My S has been accepted to 3 schools, and needs overnight visits before making a final decision. He visited one school last weekend (came back generally positive) and we have plans to visit the other 2 later in Feb (President's Day week). I figured we would wait until a final decision towards the end of Feb and send a deposit to one school. Would it be wrong to send a deposit to all 3 to secure housing? I have been operating under the assumption that a deposit means you intend to go there and you should only do that once. However, the deposits are all refundable until I believe May 1.</p>

<p>Initially, I had that same question early in the admissions process, but my son had a clear favorite and that was that. But since the earlier the deposit is in, the higher you are on the priority list (I think), then I would do it, especially if it is refundable until May 1. The normal process is for you to let a school know your decision to attend or not by May 1st. I'm not sure what the mechanism is for ED, EA, or rolling admissions.</p>

<p>But while we're talking about this, I need to ask a similar question: How do you let a school know that you're NOT coming (didn't get any return cards or anything with the acceptance letter)? Do you just not send any deposits in, or should you actually contact the school?</p>

<p>I would re-read what your agreeing to by sending in a deposit. Is there a chance that you'd be obligated to pay the year's tuition? I've never heard of a school doing that, but make sure you understand what you're agreeing to.</p>

<p>Personally, I think it's bad form to send in multiple deposits. It makes planning difficult for schools and feeds into the whole college admissions frenzy. Everyone has until May 1st to make a choice. I've not heard of schools granting better housing options to those who deposit earlier than that, but could be I just haven't dealt with that type of school (maybe large university?) It also sends a message to the student that I would not want to support - you've gone through this long process, now make a final choice. You can get so caught up in the 'covering all your bases' approach throughout the senior year that you lose sight of things. This is not the time to 'cover a base' and keep options open. You've done all the work, make your final visits and make ONE choice. The only legit. time I think a student should back out of a deposit is for personal crisis (health, extraordinary and new financial circumstances) or if a student has been waitlisted at a first choice school. I think colleges understand there will be 'summer melt'. For people to scatter deposits about to ensure better housing options sounds like you've got money to burn and aren't thinking too clearly. Don't mean to sound judgmental, it just would never occur to me to do that, so maybe I'm missing something. I'd also check - you might be mistaken that it has any impact at all on housing.</p>

<p>I recently read an article on this, but I can't remember where, but I know it said that early deposits DO NOT help in reserving housing. The reason is schools do NOT want people to multiple deposit - it screws up way too many things (chances for kids on the waiting list, etc.). This is true at the Ivy where I interview as well - early deposits are not related to housing.</p>

<p>Maybe I had the wrong impression as well, but I thought you could send in multiple deposits for housing for rolling admit type schools - not an EA or ED school, but a school where housing could be a real issue. My understanding was that it was bad form for the selective schools to pressure you for housing money prior to May 1, but these other schools you can back out of. Now the point about committing to tuition, I would be careful of that, especially dealing with a large bureaucracy. I know my daughter's rolling admit schools had sent her housing forms with in a week or so of acceptance, and we just sat on them until the ED decisions came out.</p>

<p>Our high school says not to send in more than one deposit but it may not be thinking so much of rolling admission schools as ED/RD-single-notification-date schools. I have the impression that sending in a deposit to more than one school is one of those things that you aren't supposed to do. Our high school also strongly suggests that students send brief notes to schools to which they have been accepted if they do not plan to attend. (Some schools, in my experience, include a response postcard or specifically ask for a response either way, so it is quite easy to be polite and let them know you're not coming.)</p>

<p>I just re-read your question, and I think that there is a distinction between an enrollment deposit, saying that you will attend, and a housing deposit that holds your place in housing only. The forms I'm speaking of are just housing forms, they don't come through admissions. I guess those folks that really know are on their way to work.</p>

<p>Digi: Last year our son got some "no" response cards with the financial aid packages, and others sent surveys asking him to compare the college of his choice with theirs and one other on cost, activities, etc....The surveys came right after May 1.</p>

<p>The school my son is going to attend (Rensselaer Polytech, for which he was admitted early Action) specifically says that the earlier you send in the deposit and acceptance papers, the higher you go up on the housing list for dorm preference (which is why, although he is sure he is going there, we sent the deposit NOW--to secure him a good dorm).</p>

<p>I do have a question, though about the other schools you turn down--when you send them a short note thanking them for the opportunity and turning them down, should you tell them where your child IS going?</p>

<p>Often students will send in housing deposits at large state schools to reserve housing in case students were to attend, if you wait until May at some of these schools you cannot get a dorm or at least not a decent one. These deposits are never refundable at least in our state. I would not do that at a small liberal arts school however. I think it was actually recommended by guidance counselors possibly even the school itself to do so. This is NOT an enrollment deposit and does not obligate you or hold a spot in the school for you.</p>

<p>Lighthouse, often after the colleges recieve the card turning them down, they will send out a survey sheet asking many questions such as where else you applie, where you went, what made the difference,factors in your decision, how much aid you recieved, if that was a factor etc, It is not neccesary on the card to put that info.</p>

<p>Lighthouse--congratulations on your S attending RPI. D withdrew her apps by e-mail but did not specify which school she had chosen to attend (with the exception of one institution where the admissions dean is a personal friend of mine).</p>

<p>As someone who does research on these types of things, I think it's good to let the school know where you're going instead. Some of them may record it formally, and some won't, but it's a nice courtesy.</p>

<p>Colleges expect some "melt" over the summer, because they know that some students will double-deposit, but I think many people believe it is bad form. It would serious undermine planning if the general trend changed, and many students started doing so.</p>

<p>Check out the forms carefully...if it is a refundable deposit (sometimes split between a housing deposit & a tuition deposit), then it may not matter. You can always request your deposit back from the other two schools before May 1.</p>

<p>At our college, the earlier the deposit, the greater priority you will have in the processing of housing preferences. Residence life will process housing based on date of deposit - they don't even mail housing forms until after May 1 deadline, so they know who is planning on attending. But those who have a dep. date of Feb. will be handled before those who deposited in late April.</p>

<p>If you plan to commute, obviously, then no need to rush a deposit in!
RE: concern for double depositing...for most colleges that would refer to any deposits at more than one school after May 1, i.e. the student is still not sure of where to attend & is trying to hold two places until they figure it out. That's the kind of multiple deposits colleges will frown upon.</p>

<p>I am not sure I agree. The housing deposit is different from the enrollment deposit, and while it may be okay to send in 2 housing deposits in February, it's not okay to send in 2 enrollment deposits in May.</p>

<p>This whole deposit timing wrt housing is new to me. Qx:[ul][<em>]How does one find out if this applies in a given school?[</em>]Is this so student *gets*housing at all, so wouldn't be relevant where housing is guaranteed? Or is it so they get closer to first choice dorm?[<em>]I'm getting further confused, as more folks post, between enrollment deposit and housing deposit (have to check if S schools have both). Does enrollment deposit ever figure into housing? [</em>]S' EA school hasn't even mentioned housing deposit to my (failing) memory. Does that only come after you've sent in enrollment deposit?[/ul]</p>

<p>jmmom - you need to look at the EA school's website or whatever they sent when he was accepted. There is no one way every school handles this. I know at at least one small LAC, the tuition deposit secures housing, since housing is guaranteed all four years. You really have to go by what a specific school is telling you.</p>

<p>We just pitched some of DD's papers, so I cannot double check, but this is my recollection. She was admitted to 2 rolling admission schools, both with substantial scholarships, one large state uni, the other a small LAC, but with essentially open admissions. The small LAC sent housing forms with enrollment forms, several different pieces of paper, all from the admissions office. The state uni sent a separarte form from housing only, requesting a deposit, that seemed to be just for housing. We were conserned, because if she ended up there, we wanted her to be in the honors dorm, and the scholarship award didnot automatically put her into the honors dorm - (this was Alabama, and it was very confusing, because they have those tiered scholarships plus special competitive scholarships plus "competitive" in-state scholarships based not so much on academics as on what county you live in, part of the honors program is automatic with a given SAT, some of it is very competitive). It just did not appear that the housing committed you to anything other than she had a shot at a room if she decided to come.</p>

<p>Our school's college counselor told all the junior parents last spring, if their student wanted Auburn, and the parent wanted the child to be in the dorm, they need to get the ACTs done, request an officail transcript at the end of the junior year, and send in the application over the summer, that frosh dorms were not at all a guarantee after early fall of the senior year - lots of people I know, buy their kids a "family trailer", see we really are trailer trash ;), and pass it down. i know if that was your safety, you would definitely send in the deposit.</p>

<p>jm mom: Check with each school's admission office, if it is not clear in the papers you have received.
If you are a resident student, your initial enrollment deposit, say it's $400 may be split between a tuition deposit & a housing/security deposit. Whereas the commuting student might only have to send in a deposit of $200 or some smaller amt.
With some schools, as was stated, the timing of sending in this student enrollment deposit CAN have bearing on future processing of housing for resident students, even if no housing or residence life forms have been mailed yet. Most admissions offices will be processing the initial enrollment form & entering on the data base that a student is deposited. From this, data is rolled over to appropriate offices (at our college) after May 1 deadline date. Then any other offices from University will contact enrolled students with the necessary forms, e.g. housing preference/contracts, orientation information, class schedules, bills!</p>

<p>Ask admissions and residence life at each of your schools so you understand how the flow of information & forms is handled.</p>

<p>Another P.S. regarding letting a school know that you are NOT attending: check the enrollment form carefully...some will provide a space at the top where you check, NO, I am not attending, and a space where you can write in your other college choice.</p>

<p>As was noted, colleges do like to have this information for understanding which schools they have greatest competition with. A longer survey asking about your college decision process (for both enrolled & students who declined enrollment) may also be sent later in the summer if the college is so inclined.</p>