<p>I don't know if this has been discussed somewhere else before, so I apologize if I am replicating a topic.</p>
<p>That said...My D is very interested in attending a particular college, but will only be able to if she gets enough financial aid (just like so many of our sons & daughters). I don't think we will qualify for need based aid, based on those EFC estimating calculators on different sites. But, I keep reading that you never know and students should apply just to see. After all, every little bit helps and maybe those estimation calculators are wrong.</p>
<p>My question - D is very competitive for merit aid. If she submits the Profile and FAFSA, and we are deemed "too wealthy" (HA) to receive need based aid, can that hurt her chances for merit aid? I know it shouldn't, but ......</p>
<p>Does anyone have any thoughts or personal experiences?</p>
<p>If they are true merit scholarships (need is not stated as one of the selection factors), then I don't think it will matter if you apply for FA. Last year my D applied for FA at Rice & Emory and received merit scholarships from both even though she received no need based aid from them. WUSTL invited her to their scholarship interview weekend but she was unable to attend, I assume that they too do not base merit awards on financial need.</p>
<p>Be aware that, particularly with private schools that use the Profile, aid may vary quite a bit between schools. For instance, at need only schools (I don't want to clutter this with merit scholarship schools), our need ranged from zero (top LAC & an Ivy) to 15-20k/yr in grants (other Ivies). Other families have seen smaller differences between schools, but it just goes to show that even with the same financial information, your EFC can vary between colleges.</p>
<p>Well, they all ask different extra questions on the Profile. Only one school my D applied to asked about 529's in other people's names (her grandparents have 529 for her that doesn't count in our or her assets), so that would certainly cut their assessment of her need. We are in the same boat as the OP, will not qualify need-based aid, only looking for merit, but since this is our first child we went ahead and applied for aid anyway, to see how it would work out. There are only a few schools on her list that give merit aid, anyway.</p>
<p>Yes, I know they ask different questions in the Profile than FAFSA. What I'm saying is that how individual schools use the Profile information can vary widely.</p>
<p>I didn't say they asked different questions on the Profile vs the Fafsa. I said different colleges ask different questions on the Profile, thinking perhaps that is one way they come up with different expected contributions.</p>