To enroll now or wait for something possibly better?

[IOaddict]

So, I applied to 7 schools for MA/MS programs. Accepted to 5 of them, wait-listed to the other 2. 

 

The problem comes in here. I always had 3 schools at the top of my list. I'm just going to go ahead and list the schools because it's easier than "school A" etc.  My top choice, Minnesota State University Mankato, and then two that were tied for "not my absolute 100% dream school, but fantastic program that I would be very happy in", University of Akron and St. Cloud State University.

 

St. Cloud accepted me outright. I've had great communication with professors and current students at this school. I think I would do absolutely great there. I have applied for a GA which would be 6 credits of classes covered, $5,000 stipend, and in-state tuition for the rest of my credits. This is not *guaranteed*, and I have no idea when they're making those decisions (I'm afraid of pestering/being obnoxious). There are 10 students a year in-coming and 6 GAs, so I have a 60% chance of getting an interdepartmental GA. If I don't get one of those, I can apply to GAs in other departments. Not ideal, but not the end of the world. 

 

 

Mankato has been obscenely frustrating for me. I have had absolutely no communication from Mankato, and I have tried. I have sent 3 emails over the past 2 months, and have gotten absolutely zero response. I finally called the department to figure out if I'd been wait-listed or just rejected and spoke with the secretary (who was an absolute peach) who apologized profusely for the lack of communication and told me that every year students have this problem and just can't get anyone to answer their questions. She did confirm that I have been wait-listed, but she has no way of knowing where I am on the wait-list or anything regarding funding. She told me that she would personally go down to the professor I've been trying to contact and ask her to please respond to me. This was Monday, and I heard nothing all week. This leaves me incredibly disheartened and frankly pissed off that she can't take 30 fucking seconds to reply to me. It leaves an extremely sour taste in my mouth about the program in general. 

 

 

Akron is nearly as frustrating. Their financial aid package is tuition remission, no stipend. Still great news. I've been in contact with the director of the program. She first contacted me to chat about my expectations of the program, and we chatted, and she told me she anticipated extending an offer within the next week. The week came and went. A week after that I emailed her and asked her for an update, and she got back to me three days later telling me I've been wait-listed (probably shouldn't have implied that I should expect an invitation, but whatever I'm over that), and she would definitely get back to me early next week after she talked to some people about if they'd be enrolling or not. This was a week and a half ago, and I've still heard nothing. Again this inconsistency and inconsideration has me not feeling great. 

 

 

My gut tells me to forget the other two and accept at St. Cloud, but I can't help wondering- what if I get a call on Monday saying I've been accepted to Mankato with a fantastic financial aid package? What if I enroll at St. Cloud and don't get any sort of GA and get stuck paying everything out of pocket? What if St. Cloud is waiting to decide who gets GAs based on who accepts? 

 

I'm just incredibly overwhelmed and frustrated and would really, really appreciate any feedback any of you wonderful people could give me. 

 

 

TLDR: Three schools, one acceptance with *possible* GA, not sure whether to wait or just go ahead and enroll. Help please. 

[muro0901]

I am an SCSU alum and would just like to say that I loved the school. That said, take your time. There is no sense accepting before you have all the required answers to make an informed decision.

[biogirl2013]

At the very least, I think it's reasonable to ask St. Cloud when they will be making decisions on GAs, and indicate that it is information you need to consider when making your final choice on a program. At least knowing that timeline will help you figure out where you stand with them, and if you'll be able to wait on hearing the GA decision or will need to move forward not knowing that for a while.