I have decided that I want to stay for a fifth year of high school. I contacted millennium and asked to see if i could defer my scholarship for next year and the contact person said that they cannot say for certain whether that is possible until late summer. She said that I made a good case but I don't think she's allowed to say whether they can grant the deferral until they make the decisions in the summer so its definitely not set in stone (and I've also got to keep in mind that their mandate coming to an end next year may play a very important factor)

so. i have to make a decision and i have to make it quickly. I want to go to UWO (and i cannot defer the scholar's electives module) but my parents would really prefer me to stay that extra year if i'm moving away, along with a whole host of other reasons (financial, personal, etc.) that are compelling me to stay for one more year.

there are four situations regarding the scholarship

1) They notify me in late summer that I can defer the scholarship.

1A--I have deferred my university admissions already, so this works out fine (and i just reapply for SE next year)

1B---I had not deferred the university admission, have to relinquish the 600 $ residence deposit and write extensive letters of apology to the professor mentor and the coordinators explaining why i won't be there next year.

2) They notify me in late summer that I cannot defer the scholarship

2A---I have lost a scholarship and deferred a university admission and in the process have lost a very valuable 16 000 $ scholarship. Ouch. I will kick myself forever over this

2B----I have lost a scholarship and not deferred the university admission. I either go to uni with 16 000 dollars less in my pocket or I defer the admission, write those letters of apology, apply again next year, and still kick myself.

2C (I just thought of a new option)---they notify me that i'll only be eligible for the $4000 (and will have lost 12 000)---not as painful as the previous two but still, 12 000 could have gone to a lot of good things.

Basically, i don't want to go to UW or Laurier next year so i'm not really going to rule those in the process. While UW offers a couple of programs that really capture my interest (KI, biochem co op) I just have become immensely frustrated and unimpressed with the lack of attention students in the Science and ES faculty get there (particularly compared to the CS, Software Eng, and general Eng and math students)---in terms of awards, etc. They also have offered me the least amount of money for my average (2000, one time only. and there really aren't many upper year scholarships i'd be eligible for so this is basically it). I'm not particularly certain i want to attend a university that has been so neglectful of my discipline and would rather go to a university that gives more attention to what I want to study (and has a better reputation and facilities in that field).

As for laurier, while they've got good business programs, my arts and science focus really wouldn't be served well there. They've given me the most generous scholarship offer (potentially 18 000 plus 3000, but the 18 000 is subject to renewal every year and i'd need to maintain something like an 88 average to keep that and with a rigourous program like the Math business double degree with waterloo that i currently have admission for there I'm not sure how feasible that is). The fact that i get tuition cuts because of my dad being part of the faculty there makes the option the best choice financially but i'm just not that interested in business (only really economics...and that's more from the social science and perhaps mathematical side of it). So it's not really an option either.

As for the Mac artsci program I don't like the fact that the courses are so determined for you and I just generally would much rather go to western than there, so Mac is ruled out as well.

so i'm in a dilemma. Fifth year, or not fifth year? Accept UWO now, or don't accept it? Defer, or not defer?

Life would be so much easier if I was a billionaire. Or, if I failed some courses and set my future in stone. Ugh.

I welcome any comments, suggestions, logical ways of thinking, or proposals. No 'haha you're screwed' comments please or "you're a loser for staying an extra year of highschool" because i'm dealing with that attitude extensively from other people as it is. And, for the record, my average is in the low to mid 90s (in difficult math, science, AP social science courses and i haven't taken a bird or M course since grade ten anyway (with the exception of one in grade eleven that was m level)) so my average is one that i've worked hard for and my reasons for staying another year are not because 'i'm not good enough' or 'couldn't get into good universities' so please don't say those either because that would be incorrect.

Huge waste of what?

And what program in UWO? Couldnt find it.

i'd be in the Scholar's electives module which is a sort of additional thing on top of the regular program of entry (sciences or economics, etc.)

As long as you're sure that you can get in/not suddenly hate the program, I say go for it.
The peer pressure might not be nice either, but at least your parents seem to be accepting it pretty well.

You're pretty much determined to stay right?
Yes i mean stay. As long as you've got the right reasons to...not just because you wanna stay with your parents for 1 more year.

The money shouldn't be that big of a deal...in the long run anyways.
As for the distinction, I dont know. You know you earned it though, right?

I don't really understand why you are talking about spending an extra year in high school when you don't need it for the marks. I can see taking a year off of school, working, maybe travelling, etc. but what's the point of spending more time in high school to take fluff courses that won't do you any good in the long run? If you are going to take an extra year before university, do something useful with it, and I don't think high school classes are going to be of any use to you, other than perhaps AP credits.

One of your objections to going to a local school for a year is loosing out on future renewals of Millennium. If you do do a year at Laurier and then transfer, from the sounds of it you've got more scholarships from them, and a tuition discount, and you wouldn't be paying for res, etc. - it seems like the financial difference would be minimal at best (it sounds like with all the scholarships you'd have money in the bank at the end of the year); particularly since you can't count on future years of the Millennium award.

In terms of longer term financial considerations - if you take a year now to take more high school classes, maybe work a bit part time, you wind up delaying your graduation from university by a year, which is going to delay your first "real" job by a year. Ultimately that can cost a fair bit (particularly once you incorporate the wonders of compound interest). If you don't feel ready for university yet, working full time somewhere, hopefully moving up a touch from the front line, etc. will be of far more benefit to you than taking an extra year of high school.

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Remember that it often takes just as long to do a search or two on Google to try and find the answer to your question as it takes to type it in a post here, let alone the time waiting for a reply.
If your question is "What mark does it take to get into University X", or "What are the requirements to get into University X", it's on their website and/or electronicinfo.ca (for Ontario schools). Particularly for Ontario schools, those ranges are a pretty good picture of what kind of mark will get you into the program, and if you're more than a couple percent higher it's practically guaranteed unless it requires a supplementary form.

This might be a stupid question but why did you apply to universities you don't want to go to?

Also, I don't see why delaying your university graduation would result in it being more expensive.

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I AM OFFERING FREE DATES, WOMEN APPLY WITHIN.

i do plan on getting a job and have had ones in the past. As for the personal issues I'd rather not discuss my family dynamic or the other factors that I have to take into consideration because there really is no need to divulge that to strangers (however nice they might be) on a forum. Let's just say that there are strong reasons for me to stay home for the next year (be it while going to a local unviersity or staying for a fifth year). I personally wouldn't mind the extra time to decide and research more what I want to do either so the biggest consideration for me is the potential loss of a really important scholarship for me.

my question was directed more so at suggestions as to what steps i should take with regards to staying for a fifth year and potentially losing the scholarship. When I mentioned that there were personal and familial issues behind part of my decision to stay for the extra year, it was to give context to the fact that it is a multi-faceted decision propelling me in that direction (and not one simply based on marks or finances or applications).

I think I'm going to read this thread tomorrow and realize how indiscernible I am apparently because all day the only thing i've been doing is stressing myself out about what to do, and what not to do. I've honestly gotten to the point where i'm thinking so much about this and not getting anywhere that I'm beginnign to neglect my homework. This is just too much stress for me right now, I apologize if what i've been writing has been unclear rambling because for someone who has had all these discussions and debates with herself (and others) seemingly non stop for the last week, i tend to forget that others have not been subjected to the same thing and just unconsciously omit details that I realize are necessary to fully understand.

Honestly (and this does sound bad, i realize that) I feel like i'm beginning to lose my sanity. You have no idea how much these decisions are frustrating and stressing and bothering me. I'm just running in circles at this point.

Do you know what would be ironic? If i ended up losing the scholarships because my marks have suffered from too much self-debate and pondering. Heh.
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