E-mail from seminary

↑ chestnut ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 6:49 pm

amother Burntblack wrote:

As noted above, every girl who applied to seminary X got this email. Seminary X is a very popular, very competitive seminary in Eretz Yisrael.
If you didn't get the email, it's not at all relevant to your daughter and she didn't apply there.

If it's so popular and competitive, why are they doing it? Surely, they'll have no problem filling all their spots with great girls

amother

Linen

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 6:51 pm

UQT wrote:

So unfair to the girls. Imagine this is your daughters second choice. She’s hoping to get into her first but is now worried that if she doesn’t reply to this she’s getting bumped down to her third choice. The girls are stressed enough as it is.
This is basically making acceptance easy for them. No trying to figure out who they want. No going through multiple rounds. Take who wants to come if we liked them enough and done.

To be fair, it actually makes sense that they prefer to take girls who really want to go there. Why would they rather take someone who is going there begrudgingly because their first choice didn't work out?

amother

↑ Burntblack ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 6:56 pm

chestnut wrote:

If it's so popular and competitive, why are they doing it? Surely, they'll have no problem filling all their spots with great girls

It helps them choose among the many great girls. Since they are all great girls, the ones who are ready to commit are the ones to accept.

amother

↑ Lightgray ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 6:59 pm

amother Linen wrote:

Obviously, but that's life. You get to choose who you think is a good fit and hope they think it's that same good fit. Sometimes that doesn't happen and you'll have to dip into your waitlist.

amother

↑ Lightgray ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 6:59 pm

amother Burntblack wrote:

It helps them choose among the many great girls. Since they are all great girls, the ones who are ready to commit are the ones to accept.

You mean the ones who have an extra 4500 laying around.

amother

Crystal

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 7:03 pm

We had 48 hours last year to provide a similar size deposit for acceptance to ensure the spot year before some parents hesitated, trying to get the money together and definitely lost their spots. If you want her to go there just do this. Philosophical decisions about whether their seminaries are making money or whether or not your daughter must go were for prior to the application process not now.

amother

↑ Burntblack ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 7:12 pm

We are waiting for an answer also. The seminary that is DD's first choice said they will have a $6500 deposit if she is accepted.
Speaking of having money laying around.....

amother

↑ Diamond ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 7:12 pm

I’m happy we didn’t get that email. This seminary sounds way too materialistic. Why are they so concerned about the money? Something sounds way off. It’s not the place I’d want to send my daughter, it sounds like their hashkafas are all messed up.

↑ UQT

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 7:29 pm

You need to give a couple of thousand dollars hours after being accepted to any seminary. The problem isn’t with the money - it’s being forced to make the choice before seeing all your options.

amother

Trillium

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 7:59 pm

amother Begonia wrote:

I'm also feeling very funny about this email. Is this how these seminaries operate? Holding our daughters' happiness hostage for $4,500 on the spot?

On acceptance day, they also require a similar deposit. The amount of the deposit isnt the issue.

↑ chestnut ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 8:59 pm

amother Burntblack wrote:

It helps them choose among the many great girls. Since they are all great girls, the ones who are ready to commit are the ones to accept.

Next level crazy and has nothing to do with the war/financial part

↑ chestnut ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 9:01 pm

amother Lightgray wrote:

You mean the ones who have an extra 4500 laying around.

Each seminary has a deposit to be paid shortly after they sent you an acceptance letter. Usually it's around 6K.

↑ chestnut

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 9:03 pm

amother Diamond wrote:

Sounds like their issue is different than being materialistic. Money is just something people value, so once commit with it, will definitely follow thru.

Elfrida ↓

Tue, Feb 20 2024, 9:10 pm

amother Diamond wrote:

All seminaries require a non-refundable deposit on acceptance, and some are larger than this. You can call it materialistic, but they also have to pay the bills. The issue here that they are trying to snag their girls in advance.

amother

Candycane

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 2:09 am

It is definitely against the Vaad, and so is "We did have another seminary reach out to us privately but they were much more nuanced and mentchlich in tone." - Mentchlich or not - they are not supposed to contact any student before the agreed upon acceptance date which I believe is Sunday March 3rd this year. The Vaad is made up of HS and Seminary principals and represents the high schools and seminaries which agree to be part of the Vaad (mainly the BY schools). They agree together about a date when the acceptances go out and when the answers need to be received. They clearly state that no one should give answers earlier than that time in order that girls can make their decisions in an objective way, and so that all schools are represented equally.

↑ Elfrida ↓

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 3:00 am

So it sounds,like the va'ad is an optional organisation, if this seminary has chosen not to be part of it, they haven't technically done anything wrong, though its still mot nice. If they are part of it, does the va'ad actually have any sanctions they can impose?

lucky14

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 3:52 am

amother Diamond wrote:

Seminaries are all businesses. And not just this place. They are all concerned about money.

amother

↑ Diamond

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 4:09 am

Elfrida wrote:

Pay the bills? Are you serious? If this seminary is open this year, and is charging $30,000, and gets other money like masa, they’re making a massive profit. Most Israelis don’t make this salary. Don’t tell me they need it for security costs or whatever. The Israeli government pays for some of the security costs. Plus they just got a to. Of money from application fees. They’re trying to get feelers for who has the money and then accept the girls who have no problem giving out credit cards or checks for thousands of dollars.

↑ Elfrida ↓

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 4:15 am

amother Diamond wrote:

I wasn't saying security costs. How about food, salaries, rent, electricity, water, arnona, equipment, and so on? Girls who get MASA pay less tuition. The students gain from it, not the seminary.

The deposit would be the same, whether it is paid early, as this seminary is asking, or on time, on the day set by the va'ad. Does the seminary your daughter applied to not ask for any deposit? That is probably unique.

amother

Mintcream

Wed, Feb 21 2024, 4:42 am

Seminaries this year have a lot of costs they don't usually have. They had to run multiple in Shabboses in a row, all of which cost money. They are hiring all sorts of entertainment and last minute trips to replace the tiyulim they would normally take that involve just a bus and possibly a tour guide. A lot of the staff has put in and is still putting in extra time because of various changes. Their airline tickets for getting to and from the US for interviews were more expensive. And I'm sure there are many more, including security.