What to Do When Your Child Wants to Defer College Admission Venice CA

What to Do When Your Child Wants to Defer College Admission

If your child is hesitating to pack up and head off to college right away, it's not unusual. Many students take a break for a year before enrolling because they aren't ready to go straight from high school to college for a variety of reasons. Some study abroad for a year after high school, some travel, some work, and others pursue art, a sport, or another skill or full-time hobby. Still others choose to use this time to take care of a health problem or to work on personal or family problems.

Have them apply anyway
If your child plans to take a year off before hitting the books, encourage him or her to apply to colleges during senior year, rather than waiting until their year off to do so. It's easier to get application materials together during high school and make the deadlines — and it's more reliable than counting on the local mail service when your child is abroad or trekking through some remote jungle. Most importantly, it facilitates last-minute enrollment in the event of a change of heart.

If your child is accepted to a school and then decides to defer admission, the reasons for doing so must be submitted in writing to the dean of admission, along with a deposit. All of this must be taken care of by the published deadline to reserve a place in the following year's freshman class.

Not all schools will approve a deferred admission, however. They vary in their policies about what is an appropria...

Author: Amy Ambler

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