Hi all,
so. I'm in the humanities, hoping to start an M.A. this fall. I live and study in Canada (as that might be relevant?).
I applied to 3 schools, and have been accepted to one, with funding. The problem is, the deadline to accept this offer is SOON (ie. tomorrow), but I haven't heard back from either of the other 2 schools. Both of them are preferable, for practical reasons.
I requested the deadline be extended while I wait for the other schools, but was told it's not possible. I reached out to the other 2 schools to see if I can get an update on my applications; they will both be sending out acceptances this week (one as early as Wednesday), is all I was told. But I can't wait that long, since I can't extend the deadline for this one school.
The school I've been accepted to now knows that I'm holding off to hear from the other 2 schools, so if I back out later, they'll know why, obviously (and they'll also know that I basically just accepted them as a placeholder?).
I'm just not too sure what to do here. I want to accept in case I don't get into the other two - plus this offer is very attractive! But if I do get accepted elsewhere, I'm most likely going to have to come back to these guys and decline. I also don't know if there are any legal repercussions or anything to be aware of (especially as there's funding involved) - what is binding? I know that one reason accepting and declining later is a big no-no is because it can mess up other students' chances. But at most, I see myself having to wait 1-2 weeks before coming back and declining this offer, so I don't think it would mess up anyone's chances too much?
Yeah. I could just really use some advice/thoughts from others. How bad would it be to accept this offer and later decline?
Any and all feedback greatly appreciated!