Deferred enrollment, commonly referred to as a “gap year,” is designed for first-year students who desire to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology but, for various reasons, wish to postpone their enrollment.
Students who are approved to defer their enrollment and who satisfy the requirements listed below do not have to file a new application and are guaranteed a spot in the following year's first-year class. Deferred students pay an enrollment deposit for the original term of entry, which will be credited to the new term of entry.
Defer Enrollment & COVID-19:
Some students may be considering a delay in enrollment due to uncertainty caused by COVID-19. Please note that our deadline to request a deferment has been extended to August 3, 2020. As noted in the Tech Moving Forward information, we aim to retain as much face-to-face interaction as possible in the fall term. While this term will feel quite different than a normal fall semester, we are confident in our ability to deliver the Georgia Tech education you expect.
With that in mind, deferral requests due to personal extenuating circumstances that will prevent you from enrolling in classes offered in one of the five models outlined here will be considered.
Georgia Tech is committed to providing information about class formats by July 20. We will review all deferral requests received by August 3 and contact students with term change details or follow up questions by August 7.
Additionally, if you have already requested a deferral and the class information provided on July 20 makes it possible for you to enroll, we will review requests for reinstatement to the Fall 2020 term through August 3. You should email admission@gatech.edu to request to cancel your deferral request.
Details for the Deferred Enrollment Program:
- Only first-year students who have paid an admission deposit are eligible to request an enrollment deferral.
- Students who wish to defer their enrollment must contact the admission office and request to have their enrollment deferred after they pay their deposit and by August 3, 2020.
- Students may request to defer their enrollment to the following spring, summer or fall term. Two year deferments are permissible, if they are mandated by government, military or religious service.
- The $250 enrollment deposit and $600 housing deposit will be deferred until the future enrollment term.
- Defer Enrollment approvals are final. Once we have approved the deferral and moved a students' entry term, we will not move the term again.
- Students may not defer their enrollment to attend other colleges and universities during their time away from Georgia Tech. Students who enroll in another college/university as full-time students after graduating from high school will not be able to enter Tech as a first-year student but would have the option to reapply as a transfer student.
- Students who are granted approval to defer their enrollment should understand that their approval is contingent upon successful completion of all high school courses. As the acceptance letter states, students who are admitted to Georgia Tech are expected to maintain the same level of academic excellence as was demonstrated at the time of acceptance. Failure to do so may result in revocation of the offer of admission. A final high school transcript indicating date of graduation must be forwarded to the Georgia Tech Office of Undergraduate Admission immediately upon graduation.
General Information
Communication with the Office of Undergraduate Admission
Students for whom enrollment deferral is approved will maintain access to their admission portal. It is your responsibility to check your portal and the email address provided on your application frequently to stay informed about information pertinent to your future enrollment at Georgia Tech. A new acceptance letter will not be issued, and a new admission deposit is not required.
Financial Aid & Scholarships
All Georgia Tech students must reapply for financial aid each year; therefore, your current financial aid package will not be deferred to a future enrollment term. Our ability to award financial aid varies from year to year, so there is no guarantee that your future offer will match the current one.
The deferral of academic/departmental scholarships is at the discretion of the awarding department. Any student granted an enrollment deferral should contact the appropriate department to determine whether or not their scholarship can be deferred.
Housing
The $600 housing deposit is transferrable to a future term if your defer request is approved.
