Do you accept a place in a school which is not your first choice and where your child might not go??

[Anonymous]

We have an acceptance to a great school which is not our #1 pick. The acceptances to our #1 pick will not be known for quite some time. Do we accept this one now and pay the fee to hold the place, knowing that we hope we are going to go elsewhere? We chose this current school which accepted us as a "back-up" in case the top pick does not pan out. Do we pay the fee and then just swallow it if we get in to the other school?? Do a lot of people do this??? Sorry i'm new to all of this! thanks!!

[Anonymous]

I am risk adverse. I'd assume that my child might not be accepted elsewhere, so I'd pay the fee and accept unless it was financially untenable. That is assuming, of course, that you wouldn't prefer you child go to public school, in which case I'd of course decline the private school acceptance.

[Anonymous]

I am a little confused. Usually all the schools will send out acceptance/rejection letters within a similar timeline. Deposits are also due around the same time. Why would you not hear for some time? If you got wait listed from the first choice then yes accept.

If it is really a school that is not right for your child, then don't go. But you shouldn't apply to a school unless you think your kids would be okay there.

[Anonymous]

OP,
People do this. Just don't lock into the contract. This is why schools keep waitlists. I agree, the time horizon is funky. But so be it.

[Anonymous]

probably a parish school some of them have sent out acceptances.

[Anonymous]

The question is the other school, "quite some time" is vague.

[Anonymous]

I wonder if this is an acceptance to a sibling.

I think people do accept schools they may not end up attending. Just be sure, as somebody else already pointed out, not to lock yourself into a contract. The contracts are extremely difficult to get out of, and you may in the worst case have to pay tuition for a year to a school your kid won't be attending.

[Anonymous]

1) Call the school and explain your situation. See what can be done.

2) If the school is an outlier in terms of early notification, what is the reason for this? So that it can make money off from holding spots? This seems unethical. Most of the top private schools in DC coordinate their admissions so that parents will receive their notices at around the same time.

[Anonymous]

Nope, everyone does this. Our school's deposit ($500) is due March 1 if we want a place for next year. We've have applied out for a school that starts where ours leaves off (PK/K). Those schools don't let us know until March 4th and then I would have lost the $500...if I'm lucky!

And its only fair since our current school needs to know how many realistic places they have to work with since they send out letters to people March 4ish too.

Anyway, very common. Its not like you are forgoing the entire year of tuition, which some people have to do. This happens if you get off the waitlist at the last minute and you opt to leave after you have committed to another school

[Anonymous]

23:57

The reason everyone is confused is the poster said they got an acceptance to one school, the other would not be known for some time. They are not at a school currently.

You are correct in your case that being at one school and applying out you do have to decide whether to put a deposit down before you know any results. Some schools are good about doing this, others you will lose your deposit.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like Franklin

[Anonymous]

If the deposit deadline for the school you have been accepted to occurs before you find out from other schools, then you have no choice unless you want to risk being shut out of all private options. But if you have time to wait for the #1 school to come back before your deadline, then wait.

There will be many situations like this...there are families applying out of a current school to another - where renewal deposit is due at current school before admissions letters from new schools are sent. And there will be families that get waitlisted at their first choice and need to put down a deposit elsewhere before getting official news of the waitlist outcome.

[Anonymous]

I would definitely pay the fee for the school especially if you actually want your child there should you not get into the first choice. You would be so upset if you lost the place in this school if your child doesn't make it into the first choice. On the other hand if your child does make it into the first choice school you will probably forget about the lost deposit pretty quickly.