Applying twice for a university

[andskia]

Hi guys, I'm a quite new member in this really helpful forum and I am honestly glad that I found it.

To introduce myself, I'm almost one year before graduating my undergraduate studies in Athens (NTUAthens) in the field of Civil Engineering (specialising in Structural Engineering).

 

After graduating I have 2 options.

The first one is to join military services which last one year.

The second is to continue my studies in America.

Because of all the uncertainties existing in Greece, Im not sure which of the 2 options to follow. So, my question is the following.

 

If I apply to some universities until Christmas and get accepted would it be a problem if I finally join military?

Can the offer be for one year open for me?

If the offer cannot be open for one year, would it be an obstacle for me to apply to the same university (that I may be accepted) one year after?

 

(I searched the forum if there is any similar topic and I couldnt find any. Admins, sorry in advance if I made something wrong)

[Nerd_For_Life]

If you apply to a University and are accepted, you can always decline the offer (for whatever reason - better offer somewhere else, different career/job path, personal, etc.). Offers are generally to start in the upcoming academic year and if you wanted to defer (start the following year) that is done on a case by case basis. If you are accepted and decline the offer, I see no reason why you couldn't apply again the following year. I doubt the previous year's application would be held against you. However, if you are accepted and you accept that offer and then decline it at a later date, that may be held against you if you apply the following year (again, depends on the school, the reason you give (if you give one) for declining after accepting, etc.).

[andskia]

Thank you so muck for the immediate and detailed answer!

I was also wondering whether there is any possibility for a student to receive an open offer for lets say one year.

[TakeruK]

Thank you so muck for the immediate and detailed answer!

I was also wondering whether there is any possibility for a student to receive an open offer for lets say one year.

 

Yes this is a possibility. One program in my current school offers this, with guaranteed funding, for a whole year (although if you defer your offer like this, you might not get the same funding package as before--i.e. you might have to TA a lot more instead of being a fellowship). The offer is actually valid to the student for an entire year, even if the student declined their offer! 

 

But you can't count on this always being an option. What you should do, as Nerd_For_Life suggests, is to apply for schools this season, and then before April 15 (or whatever decision deadline), you need to choose one of your two options. If you choose military service, you should let the school you want to attend know and ask if you can defer your admission for a year. If they say no, then maybe move onto the next school on your list. If none of the schools you want to attend will let you defer, then you just have to apply again one year later.

 

An important thing to do when asking for a deferral is to ask about the funding. Sometimes they will let you transfer your funding offer to the later year. But other times, you will be reconsidered for funding along with everyone else applying in the following year. This means your funding package might change.