One of the schools I applied to emailed me with an informal offer today. The professor said he would call in the next day or two to talk to me about the department, the program, etc. I have a feeling that one of the the questions that will come up would be how likely it is that I end up attending the program.
This is my first acceptance, and I'm super excited about it. I use "safety" to describe this school only for the lack of a better word, this school isn't one of my "top 3" choices, but they have made a generous offer and I can see myself being happy and doing good work there. I would have no regrets attending this school, and I'm really grateful for their offer.
On the other hand, I'm still expecting a lot of decisions to come within the next week or two, and if I get an offer from one of my "top 3" schools, I probably won't end up attending this school. The email mentioned that they are nominating me for a fellowship, and I think the deal with fellowships is that if I am nominated and awarded, but don't attend, then the department will lose that fellowship.
Are their etiquettes for these kind of things? Would it be ok if I just told her that I will need more time to hear back from other programs before I can make a decision? What if she presses me for a more specific answer? Any advice appreciated.
