Reply to How to deal with Deposits May 1st if you are still on a waitlist elsewhere?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]So many college consultants who blog claim it's unethical to "double deposit," that is, make two deposits at two colleges by the May 1 deadline when all colleges want 18-year-olds to make the most momentous decision of their lives, even if they are not sure which of two colleges to attend.

Colleges which scream "unethical" demonstrate an astonishing hypocrisy. These are the same people who get away with admitting students based solely on race, religion, sex and economic status. They were awarded these goodies from the Supreme Court and its interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause, an interpretation that is beginning to go in the opposite direction.

Then there's a dean's article from Brandeis U which states: "I know I’ll catch a lot (A LOT) of flack for this, but it isn’t unethical, it’s a purchasing decision (let the flack begin!). You can place deposits on any number of items (say a car, just to draw the comparison most likely to inflame my colleagues), and decide NOT to make that purchase without being in the least unethical, can’t you?"

I say, "Of course!"

What raises my suspicions in all these articles is the total lack of documentation to prove their points. You won't find a single college consultant blogger who

can tell you what percentage of applicants are double-depositing,
can provide one - just ONE! - example of a college (out of 2500+ 4-year colleges) which actually counted how many wait-listed students had double-deposited, or
can cite just ONE college which rescinded a student's application. None. 
They can't prove any of their claims. It's all smoke and mirrors, but these same bloggers act much like mindless cheerleaders, not for the students, but for the colleges.

They are telling which side they are on.

This scenario gets uglier.

To the horror of one of my clients, he discovered something in this year’s Common Application that could intimidate any 18-year-old.

Here's the statement (obscenities are allowed here) at the very bottom of the Signature page of the Common Application:

Required: I affirm that I will send an enrollment deposit (or equivalent) to only one institution; sending multiple deposits (or equivalent) may result in the withdrawal of my admission offers from all institutions. [Note: students may send an enrollment deposit (or equivalent) to a second institution where they have been admitted from the waitlist, provided that they inform the first institution that they will no longer be enrolling.]

I have a client who’s an attorney with a large national company. I called him and asked what he thought of this statement. This is what he wrote back:

Hi Paul. Following up on our call today, I did some research and consulted with a few of my colleagues. I confirmed that colleges are not exempt from the antitrust laws. My initial thought is that courts conceivably could find the sharing of “deposit” information of accepted applicants to be collusive and illegal.

In effect, the language says that you cannot do business with any of our competitors – only us (read: you can only make one deposit). How would you react if you left a deposit on a new car and the dealer proceeded to warn you that the deposit means you cannot shop and deposit at any of its competitors? Would car dealers everywhere scream that double-depositing is unethical?

In the anti-trust case of United States vs Brown University, it was determined that the Ivy League colleges actually shared info about applying students. They were legally forced to stop this practice. But this hasn't stopped colleges from their on-going practice of intimidating students. That's because intimidation doesn't mean violation of the law, just an obnoxious violation of a student's peace of mind.

Here’s why the Common App people are using this language: colleges are their clients, and the colleges loathe the fact that parents make multiple deposits to colleges to hedge their bets in making their final decision. So the language is in there deliberately.

My response? The colleges carefully and painstakingly designed their requirements for admission, and now they don't want to live with the unintended consequences of their design. But why should a student care? Multiple deposits give the student an extra three months of undistracted time to decide on the right college. And the results make for a far better college choice.

That's the conclusion of many of my past clients who, on my strong recommendation, made double deposits. It's perfectly ethical to make two deposits, just as it's ethical to make two deposits to hold two cars before you decide whether you want the Ferrari or the Lamborghini.

Point: the last statement in the Common App is nothing more than an implied threat, pure and simple. It is pure intimidation with no teeth, and college bloggers will state that colleges "reserve the right" to rescind an admission. But the fact is, colleges don't DARE to rescind. The negative publicity that would follow (read: Goliath wants to KILL little David!") would cost the colleges a lot of money in the form of reduced applications, future donations, and alumni backlash.

They don't dare to rescind. Period. They could take a positive view about double-depositing, that is, they can keep the deposits of those who don't show up and treat the deposits as another revenue stream. Colleges are always looking for additional revenue streams, and this one appears to be hidden in plain sight. Is my cynicism showing yet?

The intimidation is an inexcusable and disgusting tactic, and the community of college consultants, particularly those who subscribe to the principles of the National Association of College Admission Counselors (NACAC), should speak out against it. Instead they are supporting it.

The language clearly serves the colleges, not the students. But since when has the student's concerns been supported by most colleges or by so many college bloggers and national organizations who pretend to?

In the meantime, as I have been doing for the past 17 years, I will continue to vigorously recommend that all my clients make multiple deposits when it's necessary. My proven admissions strategy (Can't you smell the shameless plug coming?!) makes it easy for them to have at least two colleges that get their deposits. It's a whole lot easier to choose the right college, be able to sleep nights, and motivate me more to use double-depositing as part of a very successful admission strategy.

By the way, I do tell my double-depositing clients that once a decision has been made, contact the other school immediately so that a wait-listed student can have that slot. Like double-depositing, it's the right thing to do.[/quote]

Very interesting take. Good to see there are some counselors out there how have not yet sold their souls to NACAC.[/quote]

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