Deferral Request Rejected

So, you got into your dream school. Congrats!  Then COVID-19 hit, and things changed drastically.  You have been reeling in the sorrow of the grief and loss of celebrations that were supposed to happen.  Now that we are in the throes of summer, a lot of students are changing their minds.  It is not that they don’t want to go to that dream school, it’s just that they didn’t sign up to “go” there when they’ll be taking the classes online from the comfort of their childhood home.  If you ask me, that is not a collegiate experience I would pay for.

To remain a student, you decide to defer.  You anticipate that it will be a non-issue and you will hear from the school soon that your request has been granted.  But then you find out you are, and the 4,999 other incoming students of class of 2024 all submitted the same request.  Triggering Admissions will do what they need to do to keep their institution open: they deny your request.  For the first 100 or so students back in March and April, their request was most likely granted.  In July, they are probably knee-deep in whatever alternative gap plans they were dreaming up, so they are moving forward knowing happily that they will be joining the rest of their college cohort in Spring 2021 or later.  But for the student now staring at the email stating the denial of their request to defer, you are stuck between a rock and a super hard place.  What do you do?

You can opt to take classes from said school remotely, which is what everyone else in the world will be doing come August.  Any college President that tells you that on-campus classes will resume has their head in the sand about the reality of Generation Z following public health orders.  It is college, for goodness sake.  Now you are left to decide what to do.  You may believe your options are:

1. Enroll.  If you do not will you have to reapply in the future?  And because you did not enroll the first time, will you end up being denied?  What happens when (not if) classes are officially announced as being all on-line for the fall?  Can I get my deposit back?  Does that mean I have to live at home and study?

2. Appeal the denial for the deferral request.  There is a chance they will say no again, and when that happens, then what?

3. Accept denial as a sign that this school only cares about your money and not about your mature wishes to defer to ensure you are successful on their campus.  In that case, throw a little party for the endless opportunities and knowing you just dodged a major bullet.

Realistically, there could be more choices and yet it can also be just this simple.  If you are one of the hundreds of students right now receiving these letters denying your request for deferment, know that it will be okay.  If you are wanting the full college experience, you will not get it this fall.  Period.  So why not wait until that is possible and then enroll?  For the time being, do something else.  Get a job, volunteer, intern, travel (safely), move, and learn adulting skills by some folks other than your parents.  Feeling paralyzed by the possibilities? Let a professional help you! College can wait, and there will still be a lot of college options after Fall 2020.  Enroll when you know what you want to study and when you know you can make use of all the resources on campus.  Right now, that is not possible.

You got denied, so what?  No need to fight it.  Do something else and wave to that university and say “your loss.”

For questions or comments contact Joanna.