Hi all, I am asking on behalf of a friend that applied to SCU early action and was not offered a spot.
He chose not to apply Early Decision because his family decided that paying for SCU if he got in was not reasonable. During the time in which he had submitted his application and the decisions were being made, he had a tough time with family and now is essentially financially independent.
Had he been independent and able to decide for himself while applying, he would have applied ED instead of EA and taken out a loan to pay if he got in.
He believes that he would have gotten in if he applied ED; I think a SCU AO told him this. He wants to tell SCU about the extenuating circumstances that have changed his outlook on college and ask if they can reconsider him like an ED candidate.
What is the best way for him to go about doing something like this? I know this seems like a long shot, but it means the world to him and I would like to try to help.
He is most likely mistaken on what is involved in becoming financially independent for the purpose of college financial aid. https://www.scu.edu/financialaid/faq/
Regardless, he cannot borrow, by himself, more than the federal student loan limits of 5,500 for freshman year and a total of 27,000 over four years. Larger loans require a cosigner.
If he thinks he can resolve the financial issue (which is doubtful), he could call his regional admission officer to discuss his situation.
Instead, he should find a more affordable college, such as a college that would offer large automatic merit (perhaps someplace like ASU, UAH, etc.). He can check their websites for scholarship amounts.