Hey-
I have received an acceptance from the University of Miami for screenwriting, but am still waiting on decisions from the other schools that I applied to. Miami wants a response from me with a deposit by Feb 1st. I am not sure what to do. Any advice? Does anyone know how soon Texas, NYU, UCLA, Northwestern, AFI, inform about their decisions?

I know that UCLA, NYU and AFI don't send out notices until March, though they typically do interviews beginning in late February.

How much is the deposit? You can always pay the deposit and then decline to attend if you get in somewhere else. You'd lose your deposit, though.

How much is Univ. of Miami's deposit? If it isn't that much you could always pay it and change your mind if you get a better offer. I know some schools deposits range from 800-1,000.

First of all, congratulations! You're going to film school!

If I were in your shoes I'd put down the deposit, just in case. You can always bow out if you get into a school you want to go to more.

It's very strange of them to require that you make a decision long before most of the other schools even start sending out responses, though.

A former roommate of mine got into Chapman and they wanted to know before her scheduled interview with AFI, which is where she ended up. They granted her extensions until the decision came down.

Any school worth its salt should do the same. They know you are talented, if they want you to be there, they should respect that you can't make a decision until you have all of the information.