Accepting an offer before receiving funding info

[Phyl]

I was accepted to my top choice program. Yay! However there was no financial aid/funding info and all the acceptance letter said was that "registration and billing info will be sent separately." Since it's a Masters program I don't really expect anything other than federal loans. I know this is the school I want to go to, and it's the cheapest out of all the schools I applied to by a lot. I know I'm going to accept the offer.

But just in case there is some free money floating around should I wait to send in the forms? I don't want to get passed over for funding for being a sure thing.

I never thought applying to grad school would be so much like dating.

[joro]

Grad school like dating?

We present ourselves detailing every good quality we have and how we would make a good couple. Then we wait for a response to see if they would like to start dating. In your case, you're responded with an acceptance to start dating and you happily replied stating that you will date her exclusively.

Now I'm not sure how funding goes into dating, but maybe here are a few options:

-You're waiting to see how much she will put out.

-You're waiting to see if she prefers to take care of you, pay half, or have you pay for everything.

[fuzzylogician]

There's a catch-22-like complication here. There are two possible funding-decisions-scenarios:

- find funding for those who will be coming for sure first; (take care of your own type decision)

- find funding for the undecided first (reel them in with the promise of money type decision).

Point being, either is possible. Do you have information from previous years about how funding decision were made?

[Phyl]

Mom always said not to give it away for free.

I'm willing to do so since Rutgers is so damn sexy but if I can get something out of it, that would be an added bonus.

[someDay]

Funding (for men) = she pays the dinner, invites you over to her place, introduces you to her very hot flatmate and you have amazing sex. The next morning she gets up early to prepare breakfast for you.

More on topic - there's no reason to rush your decision! Visit the schools (perhaps they fly you out), talk to profs, look at their placement record, etc.

sD.

Edited March 17, 2010 by someDay

[Phyl]

There's a catch-22-like complication here. There are two possible funding-decisions-scenarios:

- find funding for those who will be coming for sure first; (take care of your own type decision)

- find funding for the undecided first (reel them in with the promise of money type decision).

Point being, either is possible. Do you have information from previous years about how funding decision were made?

ooh I didn't even think about that first possibility. I know nothing about previous decisions. I suppose I could call and see when to expect any financial information and make a guess off of that.

[fuzzylogician]

ooh I didn't even think about that first possibility. I know nothing about previous decisions. I suppose I could call and see when to expect any financial information and make a guess off of that.

Two pointers: make sure the department knows they're your top choice and you're inclined to go there. Say you're just waiting on the funding decisions before you make your final choice. Then ask if they can give you an estimate of when that will be.

Contact current students and ask them if they know how decisions were made in previous years. They might have some insight.