EMILY SCHMITT KNIGHTLIFE EDITOR
Housing deposits for incoming students are down from last year, but Todd Coleman, assistant vice president for admissions, said he’s not alarmed.
Admissions did not release specific numbers, but Coleman said he expects the number of deposits to increase to the level they were at last year in the coming months.
Coleman said the slower rate of deposits this year is due to delay of Iowa Tuition Grants, extensions on taxes due to flooding and the economy.
“I think it’s pretty much what we are seeing industry-wide, at all colleges,” Coleman said. “People are just being more discerning this year. There are so many factors that have gone into delaying the process.”
Housing deposits are used to gauge the size of the incoming class.
“In past years, by May or June, we might have had our class for the fall. This year, it’s going to be a summer-long process,” he said.
In addition, Coleman said financial aid letters were postponed two to three weeks because of a delay in awarding Iowa Tuition Grants. He said this affected all private institutions in Iowa.
Iowa Tuition Grants are given to Iowa residents enrolled at a private college or university in Iowa and are based on financial need.
Coleman said many people were granted extensions on filing taxes because of flooding last year. He said they are waiting to get their tax returns back before filling out financial aid forms, delaying the process four to six weeks.
Coleman thinks the economy is causing people to wait longer to deposit as well.
“Because of the economy, people are not depositing at multiple institutions this year. Last year, it was very common for a student to tell us they had deposited at three different schools,” he said.
Wartburg requires a $100 deposit. Since deposits are typically non-refundable, students seem to be waiting until they are sure which school they will attend, Coleman said.
Incoming student Shea Kruger considered depositing at Luther and Augstana, but decided not to.
“Wartburg was my first choice and I didn’t want to waste the money,” Kruger said.
Coleman said he expected the number of deposits to increase.
“I think the positive thing right now is that application numbers are still right where they were in the last couple years,” he said.