<p>My experience has been that at all the schools she was offered admission, the family contribution amount deemed affordable by the SSS was what was used to determine the FA package. EVERY school offered at minimum the exact amount, if not more, the difference between what the cost to go to the school was minus what the family contribution was calculated to be. They met the entire difference in FA.</p>
<p>Who else has read the news/article in question on Exonian? We haven't had any details of this report other one person's briefing. Any current exonian's parents can verify the source with their S/D?</p>
<p>Yeah I'm continuing to reserve judgement until I read it...</p>
<p>I think it's great Exeter accepted a single mom with FA ( per momgeh50), and I hope that she taught the kids there how not to go through their teenage years.</p>
<p>Sarum- that the accepted student was not a single mom, the accepted student lived with only her mother (single parent household).</p>
<p>Sarum - you got a beef with single parents?</p>
<p>No TTC I do not. I misread the article. Thanks PA-C for the correction.</p>
<p>I would like to reiterate the idea that it would be bad for the schools to go back on their financial aid policy, or any advertised policy, for that matter, this close to to the end of the process. I understand that schools feel their purses getting smaller, but the overall integrity of their institution should also be important to them and their actions at this time will have a lasting imprint. Of course, financial decisions now also will shape the future of the school, but integrity is so pressing as well. </p>
<p>As well, I must comment on the whole "need-blind" policy for a moment. It seems like a good policy, and it is...in theory. However, for student who require FA, it doesn't make a difference whether you got in or not when they can't give you the money you need. This has happened to me, and it feels more cruel than anything.</p>
<p>I'd ratgher know I was accepted than get waitlisted because of the money. They need to stop worry about protecting their yield.</p>
<p>If your parent's suddenly lose a lot of money in a crisis and can no longer buy you the Christmas present they promised, is their integrity involved?</p>
<p>Should kid's be angry at parent's who can no longer afford to send them, or worse yet have to pull them out of schools?</p>
<p>This is a genuine crisis, and people and institutions are having to do thing they never dreamed of.</p>
<p>This is not a matter of failed integrity on anyone's part.</p>
<p>Here is the text from the article in the Exonian, dated March 5, 2009.</p>
<p>PEA Cuts Spending for Aid</p>
<p>The Academy will offer admission to more students who can pay full tuition when decision letters are sent out next week, according to Paul R. Mahoney, the director of financial aid.</p>
<p>"Not more" than one-third of the class of 2013 will be offered financial aid, compared to roughly 50 percent of the class of 2012, Mahoney said. This is the first time in recent years the Academy has not been effectively need blind.</p>
<p>Mahoney estimates 30 or 40 fewer students will be on financial aid next year. Admissions decisions are to be released on Tuesday.</p>
<p>The proportion of applicants applying for financial aid is also up. Nearly two-thirds of applicants applied for financial aid this year, compared to 50 percent last year, Mahoney said, noting that this year's applicant pool is the largest ever. Admissions received more than 2,300 applications, up from roughly 1,900 last year.</p>
<p>"In recent years we didn't have to segregate financial aid kids from non-financial aid kids in making decisions, we just chose," Mahoney said. "This year the Admissions Committee had to take into account whether an applicant was also a candidate for financial aid."</p>
<p>That meant decisions to admit were based on a family's ability to pay full tuition.</p>
<p>"Lots of highly qualified candidates could not be offered positions because they needed financial aid dollars that we simply did not have," math instructor Joseph Wolfson, part of the Admissions Committee, said.</p>
<p>This... is... depressing.</p>
<p>"Lots of highly qualified candidates could not be offered positions because they needed financial aid dollars that we simply did not have,"</p>
<p>WOW! I don't get why they don't offer the student the spot anyway in case you can get the money from a grandparent or something before they just deny the kid.</p>
<p>I feel the same way, Mackenzie.</p>
<p>TT_TT</p>
<p>This... depresses me so much. Even though I am lucky (I guess you can say that?) enough to not need any aid. </p>
<p>I have been following the boarding school scene carefully for the latter few years and I had a hunch this would happen. As a Hotchkiss student once pointed out to me, not even the Warren Buffet's of schools can keep this up. </p>
<p>The "need blind" policy has been a huge investment that the economy had allowed until this October, and I think we need to face that until the situation is over schools will have to take a more realistic approach.</p>
<p>Schools will have to prioritize on a few things: </p>
<p>-The 40k they make each year (think about it as an extra income, and as the "need blind" policy providing a free education..., to a certain extent, not everyone will ask) per full pay student.</p>
<p>-They WILL prioritize students who have already been offered aid, even if it is unimaginable. They have to commit to their scholarship students who have already been offered aid.</p>
<p>-Facilities, if they invest too much of their capital in financial aid it will significantly lower the facilities.</p>
<p>I think a reality we all need to face is that even after an economic boom happens such a liberal financial aid policy will be hard to find. Such a model is unsustainable, instead people will have to take loans if they want a private education.</p>
<p>I am playing devil's advocate here but there are some facts that we may need to face, I am angry that I, and those like me, will have higher chances. </p>
<p>I also think there will be more magnet schools and people like us who cannot/will not afford 40k a year will pay that 5k to get into schools like Thomas Jefferson.</p>
<p>And to the credit of Exeter, Andover, St. Pauls, and to a degree the other HADES schools... At most schools, the ones considerably easier to get into, FA was an option far in the depths of hell. </p>
<p>Schools such as Exeter are defined by their ability to draw diversity regardless of financial , ethnic, or racial structure... The financial aspect may be changed, but I think we will all find that these schools will have great financial diversity.</p>
<p>Principalviola,
You are actually "angry" that your chances are improved????? The ultimate altruist!!! Come on, be real. This is the best news for you! Please be honest with us!!!!</p>
<p>Well... I am glad that my chances are heightened but I truly am sad that less qualified people may be able to go.</p>
<p>That is illogical. Your chances are only heightened to the same extent that someone else's are lowered. Without lowering someone else's chances you cannot heighten yours. Zero sum. So you are glad and sad over the same thing?</p>
<p>Look... I don't know what you are trying to aim at. I know it is zero sum in that case, but that does not have to change my emotion.</p>
<p>In all honesty I would rather that FA had no impact, seeing your (somewhat badgering) posts you will not believe me. I truly wish that people had an equal chance, and I feel lucky that I was able to go through this amazing process. </p>
<p>Maybe it is just the dopamine kicking in knowing that there are just two days before my destiny is revealed.</p>