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<p>If they wanted to sweeten the financial aid package to make it more doable, they could package the student with no loans or work study. Then the student would be able to use (unsubsidized) federal loans and on-campus employment to help meet EFC rather than to meet “need”.</p>
<p>The estimate you received IS your financial aid estimate that schools give with the ED package. It’s based on what the financial info you gave them, and really, they are often not able to do anything on that end. DId you tell him that you have merit money of $X from a number of schools and that without a like award , if not from financial aid, then from Merit for M, that you cannot go there? You don’t have that much time, so you need to be direct at this point. You have acceptances right now at a bunch of schools and they aren’t going to take that away. What you need is the money, unless you and your parents are going to bite the bullet and come up with what M costs. </p>
<p>As for sweetening the package, I dont think the OP is looking at delaying the payment (loans) or working for the money (WS). She has offers of CASH from the other schools. And the comparison come down to bottom line Cash that has to be paid to the school whether it is borrowed or worked for. Unless Muhlenberg comes up with merit money, the OP is either going to have to pay what they have down there for her, or ask to be released from ED.</p>
<p>But often when you get a cash scholarship award, they just reduce your financial aid grants, leaving no difference in out-of-pocket cost, especially if they don’t think they “gapped” the OP. Unless the merit awards the OP has from peer schools are substantially higher than the amount of need-based grant aid the M offered, all this could be for naught if M antes up and gives a merit award, and then reduced the need award accordingly. The best hope is if they give additional cash (grants or scholarships) and take out the loans and WS that are probably already in the package.</p>
<p>Kittycat - Make some notes of what you want to talk to him about, and then call back and tell him that you’ve received some early merit offers from other schools that make those schools more affordable than Muhlenberg, but Muhlenberg is still your first choice and you’d like to attend if he could increase the offer so as to make it affordable for you (or adjust it, as suggested above, to eliminate loans & work study).</p>
<p>If you’re too nervous to do this, perhaps one of your parents can make the call.</p>
<p>Okay. I called before I read all of your posts, so I’m going to tell you guys what happened with the second phone call. (I had to do it right then because I had work in 20 minutes).</p>
<p>I called the same man again and asked if I could know what the school decided my EFC was. I was redirected to the FA office, and the girl there said that there was a whole big process and they couldn’t tell me my EFC. I’m hoping that’s not just their method of masking the fact that they gapped me or something… </p>
<p>But anyway, I explained how my parents decided the net price we were left with wouldn’t be affordable and that I was wondering if there were any errors in the calculation and if not if they could somehow increase my financial aid. Then I was told a completely different story from what I was told from the Dean.</p>
<p>I was told that once I sent in my financial aid application (Muhlenberg has a separate application-- I faxed it in weeks ago, but I guess they didn’t get it…) and signed copies of my parents’ tax returns that the official financial aid package would come out. The lady said it is subject to change. I then expressed my grief on the fact that I would have to pay $400 for the deposit by Wednesday without knowing if I could afford it! She then tracked down someone who I’m guessing is the big guy in the financial aid office, and 3 minutes later she came back on the phone and told me my deadline was extended until March 8th… </p>
<p>So, my objective right now is to re-fax over the application they never received and fax over the tax-return forms as soon as possible in hopes that they can make a final offer before the 8th. I feel like that’s completely unrealistic, though.</p>
<p>As for merit— I never mentioned this because it never seemed important, but my mother did call a few days after I received my estimate in order to inquire about merit scholarships. She mentioned that I got huge ones elsewhere. It’s confusing because most of the other schools I applied to are on-par with (or slightly sub-par to) Muhlenberg. My SAT scores are abysmal in comparison to the rest of my profile, so I didn’t expect merit scholarships anywhere. When I saw that I could still get awesome merit scholarships elsewhere despite my misleading SAT scores, I was confused as to why I wasn’t going to get one at Muhlenberg when I got a $19,000 one at a school with pretty much the same (if not better) stats (like SAT scores & GPAs). I realize now that CPofthehouse is probably right. They don’t need to convince me because they already have me.</p>
<p>I feel like the whole merit scholarship thing is a lost cause. I’m going to see if my parents want to make one more phone call on the issue I guess (although my mom just got out of the hospital and my dad really has no involvement in anything college-related), because I don’t think I could do it without bursting into tears. If not, I will probably just say a regretful goodbye to Muhlenberg, because the gap they left me with cannot possibly be paid by a family that will have three kids in college at the same time, and I can’t possibly live with myself if I had to take out such a huge loan.
All I can do then is hope that one of my other schools will give me a decent package. </p>
<p>Thanks for all of your help, everyone. I really hope it’ll somehow work out.</p>
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<p>On another note, how did you know that Allegheny was one of my other choices?</p>
<p>They would be my second (possibly first if I got to visit them before Muhlenberg) choice if they weren’t so far into Pennsylvania! Most Pennsylvania schools are around 2-2 and a half hours from me, but they’re a whopping 6-7 hours away! It’s a pity, really. I would do it if it weren’t for gas being so expensive and the fact that I won’t be having my own car.</p>
<p>First, if they don’t have your financial aid figured out by the 8th, ask for another extension. I’m guessing they said the 8th because they anticipated having everything completed by then. If they don’t they shouldn’t have any problem giving you an extension until they do.</p>
<p>Second, don’t give up on merit aid! Once you know the FA award, go back to the head honcho and tell him about the other offers you’ve received, explain that Muhlenberg is still your first choice, but it’s just unaffordable . . . and ask if he can do anything to help. Keep in mind that they accepted you ED because they wanted you as a student. They still do. The only question is how far they’re willing to go to keep you . . .</p>
<p>P.S. You mentioned Allegheny in prior posts.</p>
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It may be worth asking how your package would change when your family has 2 or 3 kids in college.</p>
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Well, it says it on the Profile and the FAFSA. I’m guessing it was taken into consideration. I have a twin, so I’ll always have a sister simultaneously in college with me. I have an older sister who will be a junior when I’m a freshman.</p>
<p>Ah, for some reason I was thinking you were the first, but had two more coming up behind you, in which case you’d have a package that didn’t reflect 3 in college yet, but it would change when they got there. Not relevant in your case.</p>
<p>The problem with the way financial aid works at most schools that do not guarantee to meet need is that they often won’t make a commensurate increase in aid when you get another in college later on. Several folks on this board with kids at highly reputable school that tend to give decent fin aid when applying as a freshman have refused to up it more than a token amount when that next kid went to college. This was a subject of discussion not too long ago.</p>
<p>So You can ask for some assurance that would happen from M, while you have the Fin AId person on the phone, but M does not make that guarantee and is unlikely to do so for you. Your FAFSA EFC for your parents will be cut by a third instead of the half that it now is, but unless that brings you into PELL range it is unlikely to do more than to maybe make more of your Stafford loans subsidized if the max already isn’t in your package. </p>
<p>What is your EFC, by the way, and how close has M come to meeting it?</p>
<p>cpt, turns out that’s not relevant for the OP because there will be 3 in college right from the start. (The more relevant issue, then, is what happens to her aid when her older sister graduates.)</p>
<p>That’s true, Mathmomvt. I misread that. </p>
<p>However, it also means that any financial aid given now can drop drastically when the oldest student is out. But I have a feeling that the fin aid is close to need. Most schools do pretty well in meeting need for ED candidates as they do want 100% with those they accept, and will meet full need for those applying ED even if they do not guarantee it. They also do not have as much leeway with need unless there are quirky financials in place. Where they can really give money as they feel fit is with merit and the OP should make sure any merit awards are guaranteed for 4 years, subject to reasonable performance in school.</p>
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Well, we will be getting the PELL grant. It’s included as a part of my estimated Muhlenberg package, along with another estimate (I just got it today). My older sister has been getting it, too.</p>
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<p>I’m actually not quite sure what my EFC is, to be honest. I don’t know how to get it, and I don’t even think my parents know. That’s something I need to find out.</p>
<p>I think you had better get your EFC, and find out how close M is to meeting it. You also better have a sit down with your parents and figure out how much they are going to be able to contribute. You truly may not be able to afford M.</p>
<p>Whew. I got this all wrong. Kitty, you need to get your EFC. You also need to look at M’s award and see if it meets your EFC, and how far off it is. Do you have a situation where you have a non custodial parent, or do your parents own a business? </p>
<p>I am now concerned because you appled ED to a school that does not tend to meet need. Though most schools do give ED students their best packages as they do want 100% acceptances, when a student is PELL eligible, how that need is met is very important since there simply is not much leeway in the family situation. If your Stafford loans and work study are part of your award, you cannot use them to meet your part of the EFC. </p>
<p>As I made it clear, I hate ED. Yes, when it works, it’s beautiful, but when it does not it can really hurt someone. I firmly believe that PELL eligbile, low EFC students should not apply ED for the very reason that you are finding. Yes, at the very top,most generous schools, this may not happen but when a school can use PELL, Stafford and Workstudy as part of a package, or not, for those students who truly can use every penny, this can make as much as a $15K difference a year in a package. There is also the student contribution component that can vary so much from school to school. What is a good package to someone who has financial leeway can be onerous to those families who do not.</p>
<p>You only applied to one school that guarantees to meet need, and that is probably the one school that has not yet answered you. Though you have gotten merit money from the other schools, my guess is that they do not fully meet your need and you don’t have financial aid estimates from anyone yet, other than M, and their package is insufficient.</p>
<p>A major problem with ED is that you gave up the privilege to compare financial aid packages. So you now have Mulhlenberg’s package without anything to compare. So far you have merit money to compare, and if those awards are more than M’s package and M won’t ante up more, I think you know what you have to do. But be aware that those schools can give you a big fat zero in financial aid when they calculate up their packages, other than the PELL which you would also have in that M estimated package and the $5500 in Stafford loans. That’ s all that you are guaranteed. Everything else is up to the schools and other than Gettysburg, which probably has not yet responded, none of these schools guarantee squat. And Gettysburg is not need blind in admissions so you may not even get in there. </p>
<p>At this point, you either can afford M or not, with whatever more they are willing to give you. If they won’t budge and you can’t pay it, that is it. You then have to wait and see what the other schools will offer. I hope you have some safety school in the mix, and I mean safety in terms of being able to pay for it, like a local state school or maybe you can commute to one of the schools that has given you merit and with PELL and Staffords, you can make it work.</p>
<p>Kittycat, if you’re willing, instead of us all guessing and assuming things, it would be helpful if you posted the details of your Muhlenberg package here, along with the amount of your best merit awards. That will help us give you more accurate and helpful advice.</p>
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There’s Gettysburg, but there’s also Albright. I think it’s a very recent change, but they do promise to meet need now. </p>
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Very well, then.</p>
<p>** Muhlenberg College: ** Estimate is 36,395 for grants/work study (things that I don’t have to pay back) and 7,500 for loans. Together, the estimate reads 43,895. The estimated cost of everything PLUS an extra 2,000 for books, travel, etc. is 54,385. This leaves me with a net price of 10,490.</p>
<p>** Ursinus College: ** There is no official estimate available yet. I received a $19,000 annual merit scholarship (with some requirements for renewal that I will have no problem meeting). As of right now, it is my second choice. If I back out of Muhlenberg ED, I would most like to go here. It would all depend on my financial aid package, though.</p>
<p>** Arcadia University: ** I received a merit scholarship of $16,500. I actually just received a financial aid estimate today (I didn’t request one… They sent one to my sister, too! They just received our FAFSAs, so I guess that’s why.) According to the estimate, my net price after grants and loans and such would still be 14,275… There is a payment plan they have that can divide the remaining cost into 10 monthly payments, but it’s still a lot. So far, Muhlenberg beats them.</p>
<p>** Allegheny College: ** I believe I submitted a request for an estimate before I even applied. The estimate said I would get 33,615 in Scholarships and grants (including 2,000 for work-study) and 7,000 in loans, with a total of 40,615. The estimated cost is 49,000, leaving me with a net price of 8,385. (This was all estimated before I submitted my FAFSA and my application, so I don’t expect it to be extremely accurate.) After my acceptance, I was informed of a 16,000 merit scholarship (I think… I can’t find the paper, but it was one of my lower ones.) I’m guessing that was included in the section of the estimate with “Scholarships and Grants”. So far, Allegheny is the most affordable choice. Plus, they also have a 10 month payment plan, and we would have to pay $838.5 per month if we did that. The only problem I have is that they are 6-7 hours away, which would cost a lot in order to travel home for holidays. Plus, I kind of like being 2 hours away as I would with all of the other schools (besides Gettysburg) so I could come home for a weekend every once in a while. However, if Allegheny turns out to be the most affordable option, I would gladly go there. It’s an awesome school.</p>
<p>** Albright College: ** I don’t have any sort of estimate yet. I received a $17,500 per year scholarship (again, with requirements for renewal that I don’t expect to have a problem achieving). PLUS, I get an additional $1,000 annually for being a part of the National Honor Society. (This sort of scholarship is new to me, but I’ll take it!) Altogether, I have $18,500 annually there. This school promises to meet 100% of need, so let’s hope they do just that! (I was actually visiting with my sister, who also got accepted, a week ago. I asked about how need was met, and I was told it was done with grants. If that’s true, that’s awesome, and they could very well be an affordable option.)</p>
<p>I got merit scholarships from Rider University (I only applied because I had a free application & it’s in my home state) and Washington College (once again, I got a free application, so I applied-- it’s kind of far, though.) The programs they have for what I am interested in aren’t exactly made to cope with what I want to do, so they’re not really in the running as of right now.</p>
<p>Gettysburg has not answered me yet. If I get accepted, I don’t really expect a merit scholarship (although I could be wrong-- I was wrong with 6 other colleges!). However, they do promise to meet need.</p>
<p>^^ In addition to the $19,000 from Ursinus cited above, I am applying for the “Ursinus Bonner Leader Program”. If accepted to the program, I would receive an additional $4,000 annual scholarship.</p>
<p>Do not count additional loans as financial aid. For example, the Muhlenberg offer is $36,395 for non-loan aid (assuming that the work-study amount is reasonable); deducted from the list price of $54,385 leaves $18,990 per year, or about $75,960 for four years. Do you really want to graduate with student loan debt of perhaps twice the annual pay you are likely to get at your first job out of college?</p>