Oh Really, when you submit the Common App, you check a box before signing that agrees you will not double deposit. The only time it is acceptable is if you get off a waitlist after May 1 — then you deposit at the new school and immediately notify the old school that you aren’t coming after all. It is dishonest to do otherwise.
If you are caught, you may lose both acceptances. GCs have to provide final transcripts, too — and if the GC finds out they will be very unhappy because your bad behavior reflects on your whole HS, and could affect future applicants.
You may think it is cool to “play”’schools. I assure you it is not. And playing fast and loose with your word (as you gave when you signed the Common App) shows poor character and will come back to bite you.
My kids never submitted a common app. Only on CC have I ever read it was an issue.
I don’t see how the OP’s plan to deposit at one school by May 1 and later withdraw and go to a different school is any different than getting off a waitlist and switching schools, or deciding in July that you’d rather go to community college and withdrawing from a committed school.
Schools expect some melt, but a school that is encouraging this behavior outside the waitlist process is cutting it close ethically. I’d be wary of dealing with them for 4 years.
As long as the school that’s causing the delay is not expecting a deposit by May 1 and is holding a spot for OP’s kid until the FA is sorted out then it should be ok.
Most GCs, if they are doing their jobs, will only submit the final transcript to one school, and a student’s acceptance is guaranteed until the final transcript is in.
Not prohibited by law does not mean allowed by the school. The school can set the rule for rescind. The law also not prohibit a student to get a few D grades in classes in senior year after admitted to a college.
Contact the school that is delaying the FA and ask if they are extending your offer past May 1st, get it in writing and then deposit at other school. If the school that gave you the extension comes back with an offer you want then put down deposit there and notify the other school you are withdrawing…and losing your deposit.
Not sure where the OP is from but I think that final transcripts, at least in my neck of the woods, don’t get sent until late June/early July due to school not finishing up until late June. I guess that depends on where you are from…I think southern schools are done late May/early June?
That said, if you double deposit and they find out they can rescind the offer. Not sure how they would find out in early/mid May but if your school doesn’t send the final transcript until summer then I guess you roll the dice if you double deposit and by the time you request which school to send the final transcript to you are only sending to one.
Agree that the one that won’t give you the information until after May 1st is odd.
I don’t think colleges are randomly sending their deposited student lists around and not sure how school A would even know you applied to school B. I am not encouraging any underhanded activity but I don’t think any school knows what other schools kids applied to let alone were accepted at unless they are told. There is no “master list” of the thousands and thousands of kids that deposit that is sent around to every college in the country to compare notes.
If this school is really dragging out the information until after May 1st they should have no problem giving a written statement securing the students spot. You have 2 choices. Accept and deposit the offer of school A without the FA info if you want to/can afford to attend regardless of the $ and just wait to see what they give you but go either way. Or you ask for the written extension and deposit to the other school…school B is not going to give you an extension so you can go to another school if the offer is better, that ain’t gonna happen at school B but you assume the risk losing the deposit if the first school makes you a better deal you want to take.
Regardless of the newness of the program there is no reason they can’t give you an answer before May 1st. it is odd.
As a side note, I would not name these schools on a public forum since there might just be someone else who does want one of these schools and didn’t get the ‘admit’ or is waitlisted and in that case would be more than happy to report you and or the situation of a double deposit to each school…that is the only way I can see either school would know and might look into it.
While schools may or may not have a master list of excepted/deposited students, that doesn’t mean that the head of admissions doesn’t know the head of admissions from multiple other schools. Also some applications have a section for you to fill in the other schools that you applied to. It comes down to a matter of ethics. Is this the lesson that you want to teach your child? Are you willing to except that your child might get rescinded at both school and end up with no college? One thing that you might try is to get an exact date of notification from school B and once you have that, ask school A for an acceptance extension. This way you are not double dipping.
The tricky thing is the situation is created by the department/college (who is handling the scholarship) not the admission office/financial aid office who is handling regular admission/FA. You would think they should coordinate, but the realty is they didn’t, at least this time. Anyway, maybe the best practice is to ask for an extension from them admission office anyway.
Is the scholarship through the second school? (vs a 3rd party). Ask them if they can “hold” your admission until the scholarship notifications come out? If they can, then good. If not, then you may be stuck with the first school.
Because then you can put down the deposit on the first school, then if the school gives you the scholarship and keeps your admission, then you coudl withdraw from the first school (and maybe lose your deposit) and then accept the second.