This list will likely grow, and quickly…it’s a google doc so I can’t link. Check websites and/or email each of your kid’s schools to see what they are doing.
Augustana College (IL)
Bishop’s University (QC)
Bradley University (IL)
Clarkson University (NY)
College of Idaho (ID)
College of Saint Benedict (MN) and Saint John’s University (MN)
Columbia College (IL)
Creighton University (NE)
Defiance College (OH)
Ithaca College (NY)
IUPUI (IN)
Lebanon Valley College ¶
Lycoming College ¶
Northern Arizona University (AZ)
Ohio University (OH)
Ohio Wesleyan (OH)
Oregon State University (OR)
Roger Williams University (RI)
Saint Michael’s College (VT)
Saint Peter’s University (NJ)
Shenandoah University (VA)
Southwestern University (TX)
SUNY, Geneseo (NY)
U of Akron (OH)
U of Arizona (AZ)
U of Illinois, Chicago (IL)
U of New England (ME)
U of St. Thomas (MN)
U of Virginia, Wise (VA)
Ursinus College ¶
Utica College (NY)
I don’t know. If my child was a 2020 and was accepted to a great school she wanted to go to just one month ago before this happened, I don’t see us forcing a gap year on her even if she had to start remotely. And I do not think colleges are all of a sudden going to allow gap years for a significant percentage of their incoming class. Now, maybe kids won’t choose their reach school acceptance this spring and will be cautious and decide to stay closer to home.
I just don’t think the class of 2020’s decisions are going to affect the class of 2021. What will be interesting, though, is to see if waitlists end up being used more this spring when maybe yields aren’t as high as usual and colleges have to dip into their waitlists more.
While 2020’s might have to make decisions on where to go to school without visiting, 2021’s might have to decide where to apply without visiting.
Again I just hope everyone will stay put and let’s hope this is over sooner rather than later.
I agree that yields be lower at some schools, but doubt the elites will suffer much. Definitely should be more waitlist action.
On our HS parents’ facebook page, there is an increasing number of 2020s talking about taking gap years. People are shook…not able to visit, stock market declines, etc.
@Mwfan1921 i bet they WANT to take gap years but I also bet colleges won’t care. Or at least the top 100 schools won’t care since they could fill their class using the waitlist if they had to. I don’t think students have a leg to stand on if they insist on gap years. It sucks but, again, if D21 was accepted to a schools we couldn’t see, we would figure it out. Colleges are getting ready to provide virtual admitted student days. Lots of kids in the country go to schools that haven’t visited.
We might even have D21 apply ED to a school she doesn’t see and I never thought I’d say that!
@KnightsRidge so those kids would accept a spot and then take a gap year? Schools can’t let many kids do that. They will say no and then just take kids from the waitlist. I would never suggest kids not take any offers and take a gap year and reapply. No promise they will get back into the schools they turned down
Agree with all of that, it will be interesting to see how things play out.
The real hurt is going to happen to DI/II spring sport athletes starting with the 2021s. NCAA already granted an extra year for every current spring sport athlete. Some will take that extra year, some won’t, but in the end there will be somewhere between 4 and 5 years of athletes (so greater than normal) for each spring sport team…and that bolus will take 4 years to fully work thru the system. Still lots of details not clarified by the NCAA, for example…are they going to increase the number of scholarships per team given the situation.
Some of the more competitive colleges have openly encouraged gap years in the past including the Ivys and some NESCACs though I’m sure none plan for large numbers to take them up on it.
I agree. Plenty of kids on the waitlist would be happy to have those spots. I can understand if there’s financial hardship. But not being able to visit a school? Back in my day, this was not a thing. Yes, it’s unfortunate, but demanding the schools keep your spot open for a year because you were unable to visit when everyone else is trying to do the same thing? I can’t see that happening. The only thing that might complicate all of this going forward is the international student situation. Soooo many schools rely on Chinese students to fill their rosters and if those kids either aren’t allowed to travel here or are unable to take the required tests to apply, that will significantly affect yield at those schools…
@homerdog My S was contemplating taking a gap year even before the coronavirus hit. He had spoken to an admissions rep before he applied and was told that Davidson genuinely encourages productive gap years: https://www.davidson.edu/admission-and-financial-aid/frequently-asked-questions. However, as stated by previous posters and inferred in their FAQ, I’m certain Davidson does not plan for more than a handful of admitted students who have submitted deposits to take them up on their offer. [As an aside, I hope your D decides to apply to Davidson. I’ve been especially impressed by how the entire Davidson community (students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni) has pulled together the last few weeks. As a future Wildcat parent, I especially appreciate how Davidson’s President Quillen has guided the college through these difficult and surreal times with not only strong leadership but with compassion and grace towards those affected that is missing from how some other institutions have handled matters.]
I personally think that if colleges can’t bring back students next semester, they would most likely just wait to open back up for in-person classes rather than doing online classes (meaning, they don’t do classes at all until it blows over). They sort of have to do online classes now since we are halfway through the semester, but if it extends into next semester (highly doubtful), they would most likely wait to start classes again until this is all over. There is no way we will be shut down for the second semester next year, because once the virus is slowed down to an optimal rate, this would still all blow over by the end of the year (my dad is an M.D. with a Ph.D. in biology, and he says most of the people in the country will get it in the next six months; the goal now is to delay the spread so the healthcare system doesn’t get overwhelmed by a billion sick people at once so those who need spots in a hospital to survive coronavirus can get it). But I really think this will be over by fall semester.
@Conformist1688 Hotels and tourist attractions are screwed, yeah. But restaurants can survive by creating delivery systems; since the virus cannot be spread by food (even if you swallowed something contaminated by coronavirus, you still not would be affected unless you inhaled the pathogen into your lungs) and doesn’t linger in the air for long enough, there is no reason (except a terrified and misinformed public) that restaurants would have to shut down. They would just have to adjust their business models.
@ChemAM ,
I do not think colleges will take the approach you mentioned. College is about money and if they skip a semester they will not have any. There is no chance they will do this if they have a choice, a case could be made that schools may make more money on online classes. Not to mention what a PITA it would be to get everyone back on track to graduate.
I agree. Six months will take us to the end of summer. I think we should be good to have students back on campus in the Fall. The peak or surge of cases will long have passed by then. Will people still be getting infected in the Fall? Probably. But the point of social distancing, school closures, event cancellations, etc. is to prevent people from getting sick ALL at the same time and overwhelm the medical community/hospitals. The economic implications of having everything shut down that long are not sustainable or realistic. I think once our hospitals survive the upcoming peak or surge, we will have to get back to business in this country. And let’s face it, colleges are no different. It will just be a new normal.
@ChemAM, so if colleges don’t open for awhile, they will lay off all their tenured professors? Will these professors be expected to wait around, unemployed and unpaid, until the college reopens? Or do you think the colleges will be able to afford to pay professors and other people employed by the school during the time that no income is being received? A few elites may have those deep pockets, but not many…
My D is another who has planned to take a gap year all along- she’s been open with all her possible schools about that all along, and they’ve all been supportive. I just hope that their position doesn’t change after she commits to one.
@BookLvr@homerdog@Mwfan1921@Empireapple I do believe this crisis will absolutely come into play for the class of 20’s decision on which school to attend. My S20 is in this class. They basically have 4-6 weeks to see this whole process through a different lens than even a month ago and make a huge decision. Some, maybe most will stick with their original game plan. However, for the rest, fear creeps in. I know it is for us and for S20’s friends. We probably will not have any good answers by May 1st. Decisions will be made out of fear and uncertainty. Making a 75K/yr commitment for 4 years looks completely different during an economic downturn. And making these commitments to a school that has not been visited, or that is far away, or that is not offering financial aid, or if you just are not sure… looks very different now. I agree that the highly ranked schools will not be effected. However I do think community colleges, public instate options, as well as the private merit options further down the list will be the beneficiaries here.