Can I accept, then decline acceptance at safety school?

[selfmadeslp]

I received an early acceptance letter at my safety school, and although I am very grateful, I applied to 11 schools and would like to see if I get into an online program or somewhere closer to home. I am planning to accept this offer and pay the deposit (which I am willing to lose in the event I get accepted elsewhere) to secure my seat. Can I accept the offer now and then later decline it if I get into any of the other schools? Is this frown upon in graduate school? Could this affect me as a professional in any way down the road? Or am I overthinking this? The deadline is January 27th (not April 15th like most programs).

[meadymalarkey]

It is possible to accept and then change your mind, but you may lose deposit money doing it. I'd check with the school's policies if that's information you don't already have. 

[jomyers.online]

Hello @selfmadeslp!

In short, yes, but you should expect to lose your deposit. I don't believe you are overthinking it, this could be a tough decision to make. Don't be hard on yourself! Some considerations:

• If you're going to rescind your acceptance, do so as quickly as possible. Universities, at least at the MA level, still function more or less as a business entity. They'll want to fill your spot.
• You gave them your word, but ultimately they want students who want to be there. You need to make the decision that is best for you and your future.
• I only recently felt that any advice I had to offer would be worth anything, so I finally made an account. But from my relentless snooping over the years, those schools with early decisions deal with this quite a bit. You're not alone!
• I'm not going to claim that I'm going through the same thing, but you might want to find others that are, or have in the past. Some keywords to search for: Click search, select the speech pathology forum, and then you could try "after admission" (exact phrase) "after I've been admitted" (exact phrase) "after accepting their offer" (exact phrase), "rescinding admission" (exact phrase), "rescind" or "rescinding"
• You should write to inform them of your decision, should it change: Thank them for the opportunity, stay professional, and keep in mind that this is a small field. You will likely see them again at a convention, or you might have the opportunity to work with them in the future. 
• Speaking of this being a small field, the professors at the school you end up at will likely know the professors at the school you decided against. Keep it polite, and do not speak negatively of that program. 

 

*I wanted to add, make sure that you read any acceptance materials that you are given and understand them fully. Schools have been known to put in clauses like this in the past:  "a student must obtain a written release from the school to which they previously committed, if they wish to accept another offer." (see cgsnet.org for more info on acceptable practices as far as that goes)

Edited January 19, 2021 by jomyers.online