I calculated my EFC through the calculator on Bowdoin’s website and they expect full tuition contribution. While my family’s income is in the upper middle class range, they can definitely not afford 70k/year. I know this is only an estimate, but I’m reconsidering my decision to apply there. I thought Bowdoin was supposed to give good financial aid? Could anyone give me more insight on this?
Have you run the Net Price Calculator on other similar schools’ websites? (other similarly ranked schools that promise to meet full financial need) - if so, are the results very different?
Schools that promise to meet full financial need use their own formula to determine your need. If other schools’ NPCs have vastly different results, then you might want to reach out to Bowdoin’s financial aid office to get a pre-read to see if it’s worth applying.
Unfortunately, if other NPC’s for schools that meet full financial need have similar results, you may need to take schools that only give need-based aid off your list, and focus on schools where you qualify for merit awards.