Will it be Harvard, Yale, Princeton or the University of Virginia?

        Just one day remains before 17-year-old senior Tracy Moore will have to decide.

        For Mr. Moore and other high school seniors applying to college programs, Wednesday is the nationally recognized deadline for students to postmark their college acceptance replies.

        Mr. Moore, a student at Summit Country Day School in Hyde Park, returned Monday from a three-day visit to Harvard University. Yet, he's still undecided.

        “It will come to down to which environment is best for me,” he said. “But I don't think I can go wrong.”

        Although some Tristate schools offer admittance and scholarships after then, May 1 is emphasized as the final day for students in competitive programs to make their picks.

        “We wait out that date, so to speak,” said Marc Camille, dean of admissions at Xavier University. “We anxiously await the mail a few days after that date.

        “The general consensus out there may be that this is one of the years where we've never seen so many students waiting until the end.”

        Once the letters come in, processing will begin. And soon the institutions will have a feel for the number and types of students who will be on campuses in the fall.

        It's also a time for students who are on waiting lists to find out whether an offer will be extended to them.

        “It's an emotional roller coaster in admissions here,” said Paul Hillner, assistant dean for admissions and student services at UC's College-Conservatory of Music.

        “They'll call almost daily to see if there's any change or movement. I'll say, "Hang with us until May 1 if you can.' We can't move on that wait list until we hear from the other students.”

        For some students, the decision is complicated by how family will be affected.

        Denzel Davis, a Walnut Hills High School senior, intended to mail his acceptance letter Monday to the University of Michigan. But he was still torn on whether to opt for the University of Cincinnati so he could continue to help his mother, a flight attendant, care for his 4-year-old sister, Nikita Green.

        “Every time I think about it, my sister's face appears,” he said. “It's hard.”

       E-mail kgoetz@enquirer.com and jmrozowski@enquirer.com.

Cinergy could blast into past
Race redrew district, tape says
Officers in cruiser shot at on Winton Terrace street
Party's over? Derby security to clamp down
Fr. Hopp out of ministry
Hospital offers quick service - or lunch
Hypnosis provides valuable police tool
Man indicted on drug charges
PULFER: Olympian is back on her feet
RADEL: High school discipline not easy as pie
Some Good News
Field narrows for Loveland position
Kilburn foes lag in funds for primary
Last call at Tag's Tap Room?
Vandals deface airport curbs
Warren deputy accused in school sex case quits
Awaiting trial, girl out of jail
Cincinnati loses OTR case in U.S. Supreme Court
Dozens arrested in drug sweep
Former police officer says he'll repay misappropriated funds
Growth plan divides council
Late state budget forces layoffs at schools
Next 4 years come down to 1 day
Parishioners meet to discuss abuse allegation
Speaker Richards eyes governor's job
Trial opens in Craven case
Wyoming says school levy a necessity
Bush calls for mental health coverage
Stratton: Some don't get justice
Tristate A.M. report