<p>Hi all! My D got accepted to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute They want to give her 2k leaving me 46k to come up with!!! I sent them an appeal letter, but I can't imagine they will be as generous as I need them to be. My worry is that she will leave college with well over 100k in loans. Any ideas? She has her heart set on the school even though she has been accepted to others who will give more.</p>
<p>Ouch! What is you FAFSA EFC?</p>
<p>I see you posted that it's 32k. RPI doesn't promise to meet need, so you may or may not get more. It never hurts to ask!</p>
<p>I assume when you say they gave $2k, you are saying they offered a $2k grant (because they would have had to offer $5500 in Stafford loans). Please remember that loans are part of most college aid packages.</p>
<p>There is a possibility that your daughter might be offered a merit scholarship. Many schools offer them later - if you start talking to admissions now, maybe it will help. Many times, showing that you really want to come can help - if you can't come without the money, it's not going to hurt.</p>
<p>Did this student get accepted ED?</p>
<p>I had a similar issue with RPI - I received a scholarship but no other aid. I appealed too - they never got back to me. I transferred. I think your daughter might want to seriously consider other colleges. RPIs a strong school academically but that's all its really got going for it. The campus is fair but the surrounding city is not so nice - I live in Troy. Hate it. Sure, there are an overwhleming majority of guys there but alot of them are very "nerdy" - perhaps thats not a bad thing but socially it can present problems. Alot of students find that theres not much to do there too. Best of luck.</p>