Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
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Saturday, May 20, 2006
Playing bait and switch with colleges
For years, colleges have played the “wait list” game. Being wait-listed is to be banished to a netherworld where students must decide if it’s worth it to wait for that top choice college to see if it comes through, or cash in their chips, commit to a second choice school and make the best of it.
But now the the New York Times says some private college counselors are urging their clients to turn the tables and put the colleges in limbo. They’re advising kids to “double deposit” or send a commitment and deposit money to more than one college.
The advantage for the student is this — once a student commits to a college, schools usually are then willing to talk more specifically about financial aid and often sweeten the deal. So if a student commits to multiple colleges and keeps bargaining with all of them until he or she gets the best deal, it can push the negotiation well into the summer and perhaps squeeze out a few more bucks. Then at the end of the summer, the student can withdraw from the schools that offered aid packages that didn’t measure up.
There’s a small risk involved. Sometimes if colleges discover a student who has double deposited they will rescind the student’s admission. But that’s rare. Counselors say colleges have long held all the power in these negotiations and its only fair for students to play hardball too.
What do you think of this tactic? Is it low-down cheating, or is all fair in love, war and college admissions?
Permalink | Comments (4) | Categories: Colleges and Universities
