Congrats @FourStars to you and your daughter! You must be so happy that you have reached a decision. Good luck to your daughter. I am sure she will love it at UNCSA! I am looking forward to reaching a desicion here as well!
@daughtersreams thank you for caring. Just found out another girl who was admitted after mine with a MUCH higher EFC got a FAR larger grant and subsidized loan --actually the very sum that was Promised to us but then taken away. This person also was given a Pres. Scholarship/merit award. Her scores were better so thatās fair. But I guess in this personās case getting the other scholarship did not reduce her need based aid, but only increased it!
My D was admitted early action, auditioned first weekend, and accepted early. Our FA papers in by mid January (yeh they recommend mid October but my accountant messed that up), so here we are. My d posted that she feels broken. Rug pulled out from under her. A year of dreaming about this school comes down to this last minute. The theater department said they gave her the most they could give her and their second highest award and would try to find her more money bec they really wanted her but they donāt have much (2k was highest award there) but the University FA office is seriously Fāed up.
My H will call tomorrow bec right now I would just curse and yell but it wonāt matter. The official letter came today and theyāve decided to give the money to someone else who doesnāt need it as badly.
Bitterness and brokenness was not the experience I was looking for right now.
Iāve been a silent member of late but Iām starting a separate thread for NYU Tisch Studios. I notice last year after the placements were released the NYU questions took over the thread. Thank you all for the information you have already given about the studio system, Iāll try to summarize it there as well. Iām hoping the placement news comes out within the next few days.
@Noreplays2018 , I am heartbroken and furious on behalf of your D. She loves the program, the program loves HER and wants her and gave her the most talent money they couldā¦but now she canāt go because the financial aid office is screwing up left and right and doesnāt care! Itās NOT fair and NOT right that they told you one thing, then changed it for no reason with no warning, then gave someone else MORE money when that person has less financial need!
Itās one thing when a program serms good but then theyāre rude at the audition, or it turns out the program doesnāt have some element thatās important to you, so itās off the table. Or itās a dream school, but then youāre not accepted.
But it kills me that here, everything about the program is RIGHT! She loves it and THEY want HER! Itās not fair for another department to be screwing this up for her!
Iām sorry I donāt have advice - just wanted you to know Iām fuming on your behalf and feel for you and your D. I hope your husband can talk some sense into them! Keep us posted.
@123Mimi and all. Great idea to start an NYU Studio thread. Could you just paste in the link to this board?
@123Mimi - thanks! I will āseeā you there! The Tisch website is really hard to navigate- so thank you.
Financial aid just as random as admissionsā¦
I thought it might be helpful for parents jumping into this process to know how the financial aid side of things shook out. We reviewed financial aid and net price (excluding loans) offers from 2 in-state schools, 3 out-of-state public schools, and 7 private schools. What I have learned is:
1 - GIVE YOURSELF AN IN-STATE OPTION. We ultimately selected a private school in another state, but the two in-state programs are really tough to beat financially, even with good aid at private or out-of-state schools.The difference between the net price (excluding loans) of the two in-state programs and the least costly public out-of-state and private schools was around $10,000 to $12,000. Both these in-state schools (JMU,VCU) have solid theatre programs, in my opinion, so I believe it was definitely worthwhile to have these in the mix given their programs and their cost advantage.
2 - PRIVATE SCHOOLS MAY BE LESS THAN PUBLIC OUT-OF-STATE SCHOOLS. The out-of-state public schools had lower sticker prices, but they did not give anything beyond what was necessary to get us down to our expected family contribution (EFC). Private schools generally did more. We received offers from 3 out-of-state public schools. Three private schools ended up with a net price that was lower than two of the public schools. The range was almost $20,000 between least expensive private school and most expensive public out-of-state (OOS) school. At least one of these private schools has a reputation for being a very expensive school, but it ended up with a net price (excluding loans) that was right in the middle of the pack for us which made it a very compelling option. The 3rd out-of-state public school was our lowest price of any out-of-state option (public or private), but only slightly lower in cost than our least expensive private school. In total, 5 private schools (out of 7) gave us aid such that our cost of attendance would be below our EFC, including the school we ultimately selected.
3 - ACADEMICS MATTER. It appears that we tended to get more merit aid from schools where our sonās grades and test scores were at the higher end relative to the schoolās ranges - his academic safeties. We got the least aid from schools that were reaches. This was true whether the school was audition-based or not.
4 - STICKER PRICE SHOCK SHOULD NOT DETER - USE THE NET PRICE CALCULATOR. The most expensive school based on sticker price was a private school in NYC. However, after non-loan aid, its net price was lower than the sticker price for 5 other schools scattered around the country, and it nearly matched the sticker price of the most expensive OOS public school. So, while still expensive, it was not nearly as expensive as the headline number suggested. We found that aid awards were generally in line with or better than the net price calculators suggested.
@Noreplays2018 - I am sorry you are going through this right now. We are right there with you. I wish I could go back 10 years and say to myself, āI know we are living paycheck to paycheck - but we have to save $50 a pay - no matter how much it hurts!ā I had no idea how quickly the years would go ā¦ or how astronomical the costs would be!
@Fergie978 I honestly donāt believe that anyone wouldāve anticipated for colleges to be That expensive. Weāve put back $$ for college but even in the late 90ās, I would never had imagined that tuition would be upwards of almost 80k. Just the thought of a college education being almost $285,000.00 really makes my head hurt. BAD. I donāt care if I had that much $$ just sitting around waiting for these moments. Itās ridiculous. I guess some pay it by any means necessary. This is for once is a wish to be able to drive the prices down lol. We pay a lot of tax in my state that not only does our public but our private institutions here benefit from. Iām sure this is all across the USā¦ We deserve breaks! 
@Fergie978 & @actingdreams You are not alone! Honestly, every school my child applied to was first āpre-screenedā through the Net Price calculator by me. We allowed him to apply to a couple of reach/pricey schools because we knew the odds are not in any of these kids favor. Now, for some reason, some of the schools he has gotten into are not aligned with the net price calculator projection at all. And, my child has gotten into one of the pricey āreachā schools and naturally that is where he is desperate to attend. Sadly, at 18 and without a fully developed frontal lobe, he just doesnāt understand the gigantic debt we/he will have when he is out in a quick 4 years. We have two other kids right behind him. This is just nuts and the cost of education has spun so far out of control that I am speechlessā¦and struggling right along a lot of you!
@frontrowmama LMBO- You are so right. Net price calculator says we are getting so much more. And its the NPC right on their own site!! I am in the same boat - two other kids right behind D1. We are going to have to say what my parents said to meā¦ I love you - you are on your own!
@Fergie978 Sadly, we are right about there as well!! Hope they all make it big!
@frontrowmama @Fergie978 My S received a full talent $$ at our local university here (I didnāt think it was so bad but my Son rolls his eyes and almost stops himself from saying Heā¦l NO!). So I finally receive the financial aid package (prior to the scholarship) they have the GALLS to want almost $33k and all I can think of is āFOR WHAT!!!ā like what happened to the 14k -15k Good Local college tuition? Iām floored.
My bet is that 1/2 of the parents will be on some type of stress medications by the time this is all over with.
^^^wine!
Glad I live 30 minutes from the Napa Valley!~
We are right there with so many of you. Our EFC is double what we can actually afford to pay. The college savings we have are not even close to what schools cost now. This is our last child. The other 2 got enough scholarship money that we could afford to pay the difference. This time around we are not getting much help from schools - small merit amounts and tons of loans. D has very good grades & scores. One school gave her a much smaller amount than she probably should have gotten because her school doesnāt rank! We have emailed asking for more money, but that hasnāt helped. One school offered to show her how to set up a monthly payment plan - hahaha! D didnāt apply to the schools that were super expensive/known for not giving aid. We donāt have in-state schools where we live that were an option. The net-price calculators were not accurate for us either. D may be looking at a gap year. My heart is breaking that itās come down to this.
Just venting (while I drink my wine).
Always amusing when colleges show:
Sticker price
- $ scholarship
- $$$ Parent Plus Loan
= a great COA.
REALLY! ~X(
@MTmom2017 Oh No! After all the tension, and auditions, and waitingā¦and getting so many acceptances? Have you tried calling financial aid and telling them your story? Showing them the aid of the other schools to try to get it up by a few $$$? I am sure you have, but I am just frustrated that we canāt get help for these colleges.
How did it come to this? When did college become so unaffordable except to the wealthy? When are we going to have our own march on Washington and say College Education Should Be Affordable!
The financial aid aspect is very emotional. I have to remind myself that S can make the most of any college experience with hard work, persistence, getting his hands dirty, forming relationships with the staff. Heāll be fine no matter where he goes, because none of top 3 load up on debt. @actingdreams that local school is actually in the list of the top 3 because of the low cost, he hasnāt ruled it out. Of course, he needs to get his butt to a class, and ask himself if he can really handle the stripped down, bare bones aspect. Thereās a scrappy underdog feel at that school, and maybe thatās not a bad thing to get used toā¦ Itās a very different experience than the other 2 LAC that have floated to the top, which heāll have to take on loans, just the federal limit. Time is tickingā¦
@DoinResearch ahh I know that feeling! He did not decline yet because of me saying that the scholarship is great (and just in case). He will decline by friday so hopefully you can ask for the $$ that will be lingering (if its still a top choice) I also think alot of it was for dorms (but his own bedroom is a few min away) Another confirmation of NO this AM so its off of his list. Maybe you can use his scholarship as leverage when asking for a bit more $$