The answer is no. In
fact colleges ask students to certify a deposit has been rendered to no other
school. The consequence of double depositing may be rescinded admission for
both schools.
Also committing to one school frees up space at the other college
for waitlisted students. Do the right thing—choose one by May 1st
and let all other schools know your final decision.
Read why wait lists are so long here.
With National Decision Day, May 1st a month away, it's time for high school seniors to accept a college offer. Before choosing a school and sending a deposit, I recommend families take steps to negotiate with colleges on funding 100% of their financial need.
Back in February when the FAFSA form was completed, the U.S. State Department of Education provided the family with an index called the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). This amount tells colleges how much a family can afford to pay for the cost of attendance--tuition, room, board, and fees. With this information, colleges formulated a financial aid package comprised of scholarships, grants, work-study, and loans, to come as close to meeting this need as possible.
To illustrate, for a family with an EFC of $2,000, the college offers the family a combination of aid resources to meet this need, withstanding $2,000 in the most ideal scenario. Some colleges are able to meet 100% of financial need, while others do a poor job. A competitive financial aid package is one that covers at least 90% of the family's financial need. When college aid offers are below this range, I advise families to begin the negotiation process.
For help comparing aid packages, visit HESC's College Financial Aid Award Letter Comparison Tool .
Negotiating a better financial aid deal is as simple as drafting a letter to colleges explaining why the student is deserving of more financial aid. This may seem like an outrageous concept to some, but for excellent students with many school offers, colleges will be willing to work out a better package.
The most effective letters are one guided by these strategies --
