My D is waiting on one more college decision, but won’t know till February. She has been accepted to South Carolina and it is a top contender … should I encourage her to apply for housing now? I know she’ll lose a part of her deposit if she doesn’t attend, but I don’t want her to have limited choices if she waits too long.
Thanks
@houndmom We are in the same boat with my daughter. We expected this and knew we would lose money. We have already made deposits at other Universities knowing this was a possibility. Better safe than sorry I guess.
The practice used to be that housing priority was based on the date of application to the university. You might call them to see if that’s still the case; if it is, the housing deposit date won’t matter and you can wait until she hears from the other school in February.
Last year housing priority was based on application date if I remember correctly. The deposit date didn’t matter and students didn’t know their housing assignments until July. Housing will ask for your student’s top 5 dorm choices, but if you have a roommate preference, that takes priority over dorm choice. My son was accepted in early November last year, but because he prioritized a roommate (who didn’t apply EA), he wound up in an apartment that wasn’t one of his 5 choices.
Agree with above–my daughter applied in August of 2017, accepted first week in November that year, but was waiting on Honors/Capstone/scholarship notifications to finalize and then went through the process to find a roommate before sending in her housing deposit, which didn’t end up being until April, I believe. She got the roommate she wanted and her first choice dorm (although it was Capstone which is easy to get if you are a Capstone scholar, which she is). I wouldn’t feel rushed to do it.
Thanks - this is helpful. D applied end of August or early September and was accepted before Thanksgiving so that should put her in a decent spot. I have no idea if she will request a roommate - we are from PA and I think she wants to put herself out there to meet new people.
@LuckyCharms913 Just occurred to me that I’ve probably missed my window to call until January!
@houndmom you still have time. Exams end on Monday.
So that I have a better idea of what to expect in the even the letter we are expecting any day now is a deferral and she gets accepted in March, is her chance at getting the dorm she wants slimmer because she was deferred? She applied ED with an application date either the last week of August or first week of September (can’t remember).
My daughter got accepted ED but her preferred roommate, who also applied ED, got deferred. Should she wait until March to see if her roommate choice gets accepted or apply for housing earlier?
@RJ1123 my son was accepted early but his roommate was accepted RD. He didn’t get any of his choices for housing because he made roommate choice his most important consideration. I’m not sure it always works that way but that’s how the cards fell for him. Just food for thought.
Does she enjoy living at the Capstone Dorm?
@KLC2019 not sure if this question was for me but YES YES YES my D loves the Capstone dorm. This is her fourth year in a dorm (spent three years in boarding school) and she was REALLY not wanting to be in a dorm again but her experience in that dorm has been so much fun. Got her roommate through the RoomSync app, and her floor is super tight. They hang out all the time, go to games together, etc. She said she is looking forward to apartment living next year and finally having her own room but says she’s going to cry when she moves out of Capstone. If your student gets into the Capstone program, it’s pretty much a given that they’ll get that dorm if they choose it. It’s an older dorm and a little off the main area of campus but the rooms are huge–largest of all the dorms–and from what I understand it’s always been a great place to live, socially.
Does anyone have experience with other Living Learning Communities? D has been looking at a few online. She won’t be in Honors, not sure about Capstone. Thanks.
I currently live in Preston’s learning community and I love it! It’s super affordable and is in the literal center of campus (right across from the library, horseshoe, and Russell house) so you’re about a 5-10 minute walk from the furthest parts. They are very community oriented at first but after that it’s like any other dorm where you can be as involved as you want without being forced. You get a few perks of being in a residential college like taking classes within the building, your own dining hall, and being able to have your own clubs and events within the hall. The rooms are also HUGE and pretty nice too