<p>DD's writing her letter to withdraw her other apps after ED acceptance. I told her to print the letters and sign them and I would mail them tomorrow, because I want to make copies at work, also copies for the college counselor. Here comes the paranoia - what happens if one gets lost in the mail or in the admissions office - has that ever happened to anyone? I really need to chill, time for some eggnog!</p>
<p>You can mail them return receipt requested if you really feel a need for complete coverage. And congratulations to your daughter on er admission to Dartmouth.</p>
<p>It just occurred to me that you could also fax them rather than mail them, and then print out the fax confirmation.</p>
<p>you could also e-mail (use return receipt on the e-mail setup) and follow-up with snail mail.</p>
<p>Cangel, I must have missed the news. Congratulations to your daughter on Dartmouth!</p>
<p>Thanks carolyn and Mattmom, and thanks for the responses - she may E-mail, I'll get her to ask the GC.</p>
<p>Help me out here. I understand her ED acceptance is binding, and she should withdraw any outstanding apps. But what is the problem if an outstanding app is not withdrawn? Is there a penalty? :confused:</p>
<p>ED regulations make it very clear that if a student is admitted, s/he must withdraw all other apps. If students fail to do so, the acceptance can be withdrawn and other schools will blacklist them. Of course, there's always a chance that the student will not be caught, but the risk is too great.</p>
<p>Does this have to be done for ALL schools (such as safeties?) and does it have to be done if the student has already been accepted at the other schools?</p>
<p>I got the advice from this board. Send in a self addressed stamped post card with the letter. We got them back from all schools (for the teacher and counselor recs) except one prestigious university on the east coast. You can get those post cards from the post office.</p>
<p>Also, some schools prefer you not send return receipt thing - some one has to sign. Instead, what we have done is send in by priority mail with 'delivery tracking' thing (65 cents). No one has to sign and you can track the status on-line.</p>
<p>Don't be paranoid, Cangel. It is not a big deal thing. Just sending the post card is fine. Most colleges just drop the kid from admissions if there is a correlation between the master ED list and their acceptees. They may or may not go further. Where the real trouble comes is when a kid slips through the cracks sometimes, and it does happen, and accepts another school IN ADDITION to his ED school because he has changed his mind. When that happens and he is discovered all Hades breaks loose, and too often the kid and parent sit there wondering what the fuss is all about; after all, he changed his mind, and no one can MAKE you go to a school you don't want to attend. Yes, I have heard that one. Every single time I have seen this ugly scenario, both schools drop the kid like a hot potato. </p>
<p>Especially if you are giving the GC a copy of the withdrawals, you are very much covered. Many kids do not bother to withdraw their apps, even more do not bother to notify any schools where they are accepted that they are not coming. A sad state of manners.</p>
<p>I have a question - </p>
<p>my son applied to a school early decision and two schools early action. he was just accepted to his early decision school, and has been notified that he was not allowed to apply anywhere EA. he is very confused because his guidance counselor signed off on this, and he doesn't want to "get in trouble". should he call his EA schools? should he just let it go? i suppose we will wait for the ea decisions...but i'm concerned. do colleges share lists? (one ivy, two non ivys)</p>
<p>I would immediately have him withdraw all apps to all of his schools and leave it at that. I would talk to his counselor about this, however, as he should have known better. As your son also should have known. At the present, I do not believe EA lists are shared. I have seen several kids doing this--applying to Harvard SCEA and then to Boston EA. Many are second kids in a family where a sibling may have done this in earlier years when this was permitted. The rules change every years so everyone does have to read carefully what is permitted and what is not. I do not answer any questions about anything even when I know a school well and worked closely with its admissions policies the prior year until I refamiliarize myself with the current year rules because of this situation. There are schools that were EA going ED, schools are adopting SCEA, new ED2s, it is really difficult to keep up.</p>
<p>Jamimom-</p>
<p>My hope would be that his early decision school would be more accepting of the fact that the two others were early action. Its one thing when a kid does two early decisions, but I think that because the other two schools were EA, it should be alright. Neither me or my son are very good with this college stuff, I guess we relied on the guidance counselor too much.</p>
<p>The fact that you arent very good at this college stuff is hardly an excuse. The reality is, you probably won't have a problem with the ED school, if the ED school's policy was mostly likely that you must not apply early decision anywhere else and it didn't take a stance on EA. Odds are your child will be enrolled in the ED school next fall without issue.</p>
<p>The EA school could have any policy from you couldn't apply anywhere else ED or EA, or you were allowed to apply to another school ED but not a second EA, etc.</p>
<p>Still, it bothers me when I hear parents and/or high school seniors throw their hands up because they declare themselves incapable of understanding directions, following directions, or asking questions on their own. Saying one relied on a counselor is the equivalent of laziness in a process where its the student and parent that ultimately must read the directions.</p>
<p>I agree with Jamimom's assessment, Cangel. Your ED school could hardly contradict you if you claimed you'd sent the card in; that's all that's required of you. The conflict would be if you ACCEPTED one of the other schools after they accepted you. I don't think the level of concern is otherwise warranted.</p>
<p>Last year, my S was accepted to one school before his ED decision. As soon as he got it, he sent his decision card marked "no" to the first school. Despite that, a month later they sent him a huge scholarship offer. It seems the University wasn't communicating with the specific school within it (which is where the offer originated from). Eventually, they sorted themselves out, and he stopped getting info from them.</p>
<p>He also began an application to another school--he filled out part one (name/address, etc.) and his SATs were sent. He also interviewed there while we were visiting much earlier. But he never filled out the main application, sent an essay, recs, GC report, or transcripts. In our eyes, he hadn't applied, so he didn't withdraw it. Comes april, they rejected him. Guess it boosted their stats.</p>
<p>I dn't feel either of these in any way threatened his ED commitment, which never wavered.</p>
<p>Massguy is correct in saying that it possibly can be fixed, but it has to be done actively, I would say.</p>
<p>You could "run for luck" and hope that you are rejected at the EA schools. That might help a little. However, many of the colleges share lists. They don't regard this as a "goof".</p>
<p>If your counselor signed off on this, he has made a serious mistake. </p>
<p>No one can judge the best course of action with certainty, but if it were a friend of mine asking, I would suggest that he make certain to get busy on some regular decision applications to other schools [to be submitted if you lose your ED because of this], and to immediately actively contact the ED accepting school .......and the others (EA) he has not heard from before the notification dates for the other EA schools. Waiting "to see what they are going to say" is what sinks you and removes any pity or forebearance.</p>
<p>You can give yourself all the excuses you like. The only forebearance that counts is from the schools. My other advice is that I would be absolutely silent about the results and the situation around people from your school.</p>
<p>As far as the OP fear goes, send an email too, and ask for a confirming reply. You'll have an accurate record that notice was sent in addition to the other withdrawals. You can also call. I agree with your paranoia. It seems every year we have the "Bess Myersons" and "Winona Ryders" of the early admissions process who seem to believe that they can play by different rules. They always feign ignorance or mistakes. Virtually no one has any sympathy for them when they end up in the soup.</p>
<p>From above by futureadcom: "My son applied to a school early decision and two schools early action. he was just accepted to his early decision school, and has been notified that he was not allowed to apply anywhere EA."</p>
<p>I am not sure whether you are saying the ED college prohibited any EA apps elsewhere or just prohibits doing an app after you learn of the ED decision. There are a few colleges (Harvard/Yale/Stanford) that have EA and prohibit you from applying ED or EA elsewhere. There are also some EA colleges that prohibit you from applying ED elsewhere, but allow other EA applications. However, as far as I am aware there is no ED college that prohibits you from applying EA elsewhere before you get the ED decision. Once you have that decision, you are required by all ED colleges to withdraw any other apps (and not send new ones). In other words, as long as he withdraws those EA apps (and does not, like you mention, "wait for the ea decisions"), he should be fine.</p>
<p>There are schools such as Princeton that not only prohibit other binding ED applications(which all binding ED programs do), but they also prohibit ANY EA apps as well with the only exception being rolling admissions schools. On the other hand, Duke does permit students to apply EA at schools as they apply ED to Duke permitting kids to apply EA to say BC, Tulane and any number of schools that have EA along with rolling admissions schools. Then within the EA programs, you have the single choice EA, like Harvard, Yale and any number of others where the acceptance is not binding but you are not supposed to be applying to any other EA or ED schools even if those other schools have no restrictions. So you do have to be careful. And, yes, there are a number of binding ED schools where you were not supposed to have applied to any EA colleges. Then you have some school that have policies that are neither fish nor fowl, in that they call them names like "interim " such as Rice, and they too may have rule associated with them. You NEED to read every one of the rules associated with these applications because it is easy to go astray on them. But there is really no mechanism as yet to track and enforce these rules that I am aware of. The exception is when you are accepted to binding ED, there is a list circulated by a number of the selective schools, and many schools do cross check that list. If you are caught having applied ED to two schools, you will be dropped from consideration from both schools and may have your name and ssn circulated at large so that your status at any of your schools is jeopardized. Schools do take the binding ED very seriously.</p>
<p>My advice to the OP stands. I also recommend telling your student to keep his mouth shut about the situation, and that you also remain mum. This is not fodder for "****tail party talk". I don't like to get paranoid, but many times these situations do leak out when someone connected to admissions, someone jealous , or just by sheer coincidence the wrong (or right) person finds out and then someone has to take action that may not be favorable to your student. You and your student were careless in not reading the application rules, so you do run the risk of some penalities if it comes in front of someone's face whose job it is to enforce these rules.</p>
<p>Jamimom-- agree with your approach, but don't think keeping quiet is paranoia-- it is the only decent thing to do until this mess is cleared up. The schools do a reasonable job of outlining their rules (paper application, website, some of the admissions offices have a hand-out with the rules highlighted, all of the traveling adcom shows have the rules clearly spelled out). If the kid, GC or parent has trouble understanding the rules, every presentation I've attended has made it clear, "please call us if you don't understand". I've heard of EA schools who have made exceptions for state schools, rolling schools, special "honors" type programs with huge scholarships... they are not unreasonable. However, in every instance, the kid and GC actually spoke with the regional rep or the head of admissions who told them "we are allowing you to violate rule X of our handbook in this instance and this instance only. Should you be admitted there, you need to do Y. Should you be admitted here, you need to do Z".</p>
<p>I think schools are within their right to enforce their rules with the only tool at their disposal... denying the application. It is really irritating to the 10's of thousands of kids out there who reluctantly have to play by the rules to hear of people who don't follow the rules and then get bent out of shape that there may be consequences.</p>