Four years ago, when Madisen Keavy of Visalia, California, heard from her dream college — the University of Southern California — she was “devastated.” She’d been admitted, but wouldn’t have a spot until spring. After careful thought, Keavy passed up her other offers and said “yes” to USC, swayed by her interest in its journalism program.
All fall, she lived at home, took a full load of community college classes that would transfer, drove three hours some weekends to attend USC home football games, and joined a Facebook group of other spring admits. She had to do some adjusting.
“When my friends drove away in August, I felt I was at a standstill. My parents and brother became my new best friends. But my semester at home was a maturing process,” says Keavy, 22, who graduated this year.
[Get tips and advice on applying to college.]
More families may find themselves facing a decision like Keavy’s. While there is no definitive list of schools offering spring admission, “it’s a growing phenomenon,” says Jonathan Burdick, vice provost and dean of financial aid at the University of Rochester in New York, which has long had a spring program.
Middlebury College in Vermont, a pioneer, has been offering spring admission for 40 years and this year enrolled 102 “Febs.” Cornell University took its first bunch of 125 second-semester entrants this past January.
Some colleges ask applicants to check a preference; others, like USC, simply relegate applicants to the spring pool without asking. At York College of Pennsylvania, it’s always up to the student.
While spring admissions may look like an extra shot at entry, admissions experts don’t advise counting on it as a reach-school strategy. Many schools offering these programs are selective or highly selective, and they generally have way more qualified applicants than they can take; the standards for spring, deans at such schools say, are not different.
“There really isn’t a distinction. It just allows us to admit more students,” says Jennifer Frey, senior assistant director of the program at USC, which uses spring admissions in place of a waiting list. “It’s not easier to get in here for the spring,” says Burdick.
Why do colleges do it? For them, it’s always a win. The school can collect additional tuitions and fill the empty dorm rooms of students who study abroad second semester, transfer or drop out.
[Determine how a gap year can make a student successful.]
But plenty of questions arise for students and parents. “Will coming late impede my adjustment? What if the other freshmen are already bonded and I don’t make friends? Am I going to get decent housing? Will it affect the classes I can get into?”
These are the possibilities that worry people, says Cyndy McDonald, a college and financial aid consultant in Visalia who helped Keavy. In fact, many schools strive to make the spring admits feel connected.
They keep in touch with them before they arrive on campus, through Facebook groups, and by dispensing free sports tickets. They guide them through what courses to take during the fall to get credit when they arrive. They offer orientation programs before classes start and house them with or near other spring admits.
Latecomers may also worry that their peers will look down on them. “I felt a stigma, but it was in my own head. No one else was ever negative,” says Keavy. “I plunged into campus life, and within two weeks I was hosting my own morning talk show.”
One potential catch with these programs: While spring admits are certainly eligible for financial aid, “we specify that aid might be constrained” and that it may be harder to land a work-study job midyear, says Burdick.
McDonald advises looking closely at your package . “If your package is for half a year,” she says, “ask what it will be for a full year” so you can try and avoid finding yourself in a difficult situation later.
[Discover these four incorrect reasons students don’t apply for financial aid.]
It is always up to the spring admit to choose how to spend the fall term. “We don’t have a preference. They can go to a community college, or work, or travel, or go on one of our partner study abroad programs in Paris, London, Rome or Switzerland,” says USC’s Frey.
It’s a good idea to check with the college beforehand about what courses will transfer for credit and can be applied to graduation requirements.
At the University of Maryland–College Park , spring students have the option of taking classes in the fall through the office of extended studies, and they can even live on campus if they want to. The idea is to keep spring admits from “taking fall admission elsewhere,” says Terrie Hruzd, director of programs in the office of extended studies.
A late start doesn’t have to result in a delayed graduation. With so many options available to get course credits ahead of time, including Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate credits, many spring admits graduate in seven semesters instead of eight, which can be a significant cost savings.
“If you love a school or a major, don’t say no over a four-month wait,” advises Keavy, the USC grad . “You’re not being demoted. There’s no scarlet letter on your chest. You have accomplished getting in.”
This story is excerpted from the U.S. News “Best Colleges 2017” guidebook, which features in-depth articles, rankings and data.
More from U.S. News
High Schoolers Have a New College Application Tool
Students Share Strategies for Making College Affordable
A Spring College Admissions Offer May Be Worth Accepting originally appeared on usnews.com
