Can I withdraw my commitment?

[Sayantan Mitra]

I had received a PhD offer from a university and I took it, now I have got a better offer. Will I be facing any issues if I withdraw my acceptance form the former offer, now?

[anthropologygeek]

Well legally you are obligated to go to the school. You need to email and ask for your release and most likely they will grant it. They could go after you if you just don't show up for the first year of tuition but I highly doubt they would

[cyberwulf]

If the schools involved abide by the Council of Graduate Schools' resolution, then you should be able to switch without any repercussions prior to April 15.

[juilletmercredi]

You're not legally obligated to go. Accepting offers is not like signing a contract; even after the April 15 deadline you are not obligated and the school will not go after you for the first year of tuition, although it is considered bad form to withdraw. (Even if you dropped out on the first day of classes, the school is very unlikely to go after you for the first year of tuition.)

However, before the April 15 deadline for CGS schools (and many others) it's fair game. You can withdraw and accept a better offer.

[joefc]

do it. just withdraw from the other one asap, like now

[thakchi]

DO IT NOW (before April 15th for sure). like juilletmercredi said, they probably won't go after you, but it will certainly be frowned upon if you withdraw after April 15th.

[TakeruK]

If you are 100% sure you want to be in the other program, then you should withdraw from the first school and accept the other school's offer. If you do it before April 15, it's a lot easier for you because you don't need to get a "release" from your first school before the second school accepts your acceptance. But as others said, you can still do it after April 15. There is never a legal obligation to stick with whatever program you're in. However, if you withdraw from a program after you already received financial support for it, you may have to pay some or all of it back.

Withdrawing now will also minimize impact on other students -- the school will be able to offer your spot to another student on the waitlist. If you wait too long, your spot might not be filled and you could end up causing a student in the waitlist to not be able to attend the school of their choice.

[Sayantan Mitra]

Thanks for the info everyone

[nimo6211]

Oh dear! Didn't realize there was even bureaucracy involved in withdrawing a committment. I was told that even if you withdraw, they have a list of students on waitlist, they would just pick from. I do remember however, when accepting UChicago's offer, there was a clause that said once I accepted this offer, I would not pursue any other offers. If you had one of those, I suggest you seek legal advice before you withdraw. BTW, I am considering the same option

[Kingkong]

I haven't accepted an offer yet, but I am deciding between two schools and have to commit within the next week to one of the two, the other one still has quote a bit of time. Now I am contemplating to just accept the offer from school number 1, and give myself a bit more time to think. But it also seems wrong to do that. Plus i need a visa which they will start preparing forms for etc. So difficult!