shifting from US to UK university after 15th April.

[Chasso]

sorry for cross posting, but i really need help on this one, and wasn't getting any responses on my earlier post at another part of this site..

hi!

After having accepted a fully funded offer from a top tier US university well in time for the 15th april deadline, I heard that i have been short-listed for a full scholarship at a UK university ( which is one of the best in the country). In the event of me getting the award, can I withdraw, after having sent in my formal acceptance, from the U.S. school?-- also, what would the process be, and the repercussions.. as in .. I understand they might be highly irritated, but can I be held legally accountable? or made to pay a years fees or something? I am an international applicant and have no clue about how this works. I know this is a little premature, because I still need to get the award, but I wont have much time post the interview and hence need as much information as i can get at this point..

[lyonessrampant]

This is tricky because it will be well past the deadline. Each institution has different policies about someone changing their mind. For the week or so after April 15th, schools expect some people to change their mind and that usually isn't really a problem. However, if you're talking the middle of the summer, there likely will be a financial penalty, not getting back a $500 deposit or something. However, there won't be legal penalties or anything like that. It will burn some bridges at that university (especially if the decision is really late), and they will want to know why. You can lie and say personal circumstances have come up that prevent you from going to grad school this year, or you can tell them the truth, apologize, and thank them for your interest in you. I'd probably go the truth route myself, but I include the lying option just to illustrate that you can handle the situation in a variety of ways. You should contact the UK scholarship about your situation and get as much information about a time frame as possible.