College Deposit Rules After May 1: What Happens If Your Student Changes Their Mind

May 1 is National Decision Day. Your student pays a deposit, which is typically between $200 and $1,000 depending on the school, to reserve their spot in the incoming class. But May 1 is not always the end of the decision process. Waitlists are still moving. Financial aid can be renegotiated. And sometimes a senior just changes their mind in the weeks after committing.

Understanding the rules around what happens after the deposit is important for navigating those situations without making a preventable mistake. The short version: deposits are almost always nonrefundable. Double depositing is an ethical violation with real consequences. And there are right ways to handle a change of plans that do not close doors unnecessarily.

Is the Enrollment Deposit Refundable?

In most cases, enrollment deposits are nonrefundable. The deposit secures your student’s spot in the incoming class, and if your student does not enroll, the school keeps it. This is standard practice at nearly all colleges and universities.

There are limited exceptions. Some schools refund deposits if the student provides documentation of a significant change in family circumstances before a specific date, typically before a certain point in the summer. Military service, documented family financial hardship, or medical situations are sometimes accepted as grounds for refund consideration.

The practical planning implication: when you pay a deposit at a school while waiting on a waitlist or a better financial aid offer elsewhere, that deposit money is gone if the other offer comes through. This is the expected cost of keeping your options open, and it is a reasonable investment when the stakes are high. Plan for it financially.

Double Depositing: What It Is and Why It Matters

Double depositing means paying an enrollment deposit at two or more colleges simultaneously, with the intent to decide between them later. This is considered an ethical violation in college admissions and is explicitly prohibited by the National Association for College Admission Counseling’s Statement of Principles of Good Practice, to which most colleges subscribe.

Why does it matter? When a student double deposits, they hold two spots in two incoming classes. One of those spots is unavailable to another applicant on a waitlist who might have a genuine commitment to attend. Colleges plan class sizes and housing based on committed deposits, and double depositing disrupts that planning.

Colleges do share information. There are mechanisms by which institutions can identify students who have committed to multiple schools. If a double deposit is discovered, both commitments can be rescinded, leaving the student with no enrolled spot. The risk is real. Do not double deposit.

The correct approach if your student is genuinely unsure between two schools and may receive a waitlist offer: commit to one school by May 1. Pay one deposit. If a waitlist offer comes through, withdraw from the first school before accepting the waitlist offer and paying a deposit at the second school.

What to Do If a Waitlist Offer Arrives After May 1

Waitlist offers can arrive any time from April through late summer as enrolled students decline offers and space opens. If your student receives a waitlist admission offer after they have already deposited somewhere, the process is: first, confirm the new offer is genuine and get the acceptance and deposit deadline for the waitlist school. Second, if your student wants to accept the waitlist offer, notify the first school immediately that they are withdrawing. Do this before paying any deposit to the waitlist school. Third, pay the deposit to the waitlist school by their deadline.

You will lose the first deposit. That is expected and acceptable. You will not lose the first school’s admission by withdrawing politely. You will have a clean commitment at the waitlist school. The withdrawal from the first school should be a brief, professional email thanking the admissions office and notifying them of your decision. Nothing more is required.

What If Your Student Changes Their Mind Without a Waitlist

Students do genuinely change their minds after May 1 without a waitlist offer as the catalyst. Maybe the admitted student day changed everything. Maybe a family conversation shifted priorities. Maybe a scholarship offer came through from a school they had not originally committed to.

The process is the same: notify the current school in writing before accepting any other offer. If no new deposit has been paid, your student is not double depositing. If they want to accept a spot at a school they previously declined, contact that admissions office directly and ask if the spot is still available. In some cases it will be. In others it will not. Asking is always appropriate.

Do not assume that a school you declined will hold a spot or that withdrawing from one guarantees acceptance at another. The admissions office at the school you want to join second will make that decision based on available space in the class.

What About Housing, Orientation, and Other Deadlines

Many schools have housing application deadlines within two to three weeks of May 1. If your student changes their commitment after paying a deposit, the housing and orientation registrations at the original school will need to be cancelled. The new school’s housing and orientation deadlines may have already passed, which can affect freshman housing priority.

Contact the housing and orientation offices at the new school as soon as the commitment changes to understand what options are still available. Late housing assignments happen. It is better to know the situation clearly and plan accordingly than to assume the same options that were available in April are still available in June.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the college enrollment deposit refundable?

Almost never. Enrollment deposits are almost universally nonrefundable. They secure the student’s spot in the class and are forfeited if the student does not enroll. A small number of schools allow refund requests for documented extenuating circumstances before a certain date. Check the specific school’s enrollment terms before submitting the deposit.

What is double depositing and why is it a problem?

Double depositing means paying enrollment deposits at two schools at the same time with the intention of deciding later. It is prohibited by NACAC guidelines that most colleges follow, it holds spots that could go to waitlisted students, and if discovered, it can result in both acceptances being rescinded. The correct approach is to commit to one school and manage waitlist situations sequentially.

Can my student still get off a waitlist after May 1?

Yes. Waitlist activity continues well past May 1 at many schools, sometimes through June and July as enrolled students’ plans change. Your student should have actively confirmed their waitlist position before May 1 if they want to be considered. If a waitlist offer comes through after your student has already committed elsewhere, contact the new school with a deposit deadline and withdraw from the first school first.

What if my student wants to switch schools after paying the deposit?

Notify the current school in writing before accepting any other offer. Losing the deposit at the first school is expected and acceptable. Contact the school you now want to attend to ask if a spot is still available. Admissions offices handle these situations regularly and will tell you directly whether there is space.

What happens to housing if a student switches schools after May 1?

Cancel the housing registration at the first school immediately upon switching. Contact the new school’s housing office to understand what options remain. Late commitments often result in less preferred housing assignments, but guaranteed housing is sometimes still possible. Call rather than email for the fastest answer.