Sorry that was from our conversation on another thread! You can answer the film program question on the BU Film thread if you like
@purplepug13 , BU does offer need based aid, but they do not guarantee to meet demonstrated need. However, you may get some need based aid if you qualify. I hope you do. Best of luck. And apply for those scholarships! Will show demonstrated interest, and will make it easier for an admissions rep go to bat for you. And may get you some $ even if you don’t get the actual scholarships.
@Winky1
Thank you so much! Yes I am aware of the aid policy,my father filled out both FAFSA and CSS Profile, but I doubt we’ll get a huge amount-NPC only predicted moderate aid. As far as scholarships, I was automatically applied to the Presidential Scholarship, as are most applicants, but I chose not to apply for the Trustee Scholarship. Although I would have liked to, my family decided it would be for the best if I did not spend the time completing the required questions. You are 100% correct about demonstrated interest, but prior to submitting my application, I was extremely busy with academics, music and sports, and simply did not have the time to sit down and craft two 300+ word essays, much less high-quality ones. I have visited, spoke with BU staff on multiple occasions, and sent emails/handwritten letters to Admissions, so hopefully they can identify a high level of interest through those mediums.
Hi everyone, so my ED application was sent in several weeks ago, but I just had a quick question for any other BU applicants, past or present.
I did not apply for the optional Trustee Scholarship, but was automatically entered into the Presidential Scholarship, similar to all other applicants. BU initially appeared to be out of reach financially, but after completing the NPC and CSS Profile, my father determined that we would receive enough “awarded merit aid” to lower the cost to a reasonable amount.
I would appreciate if any other past applicants (or present applicants with knowledge) would be able to shed some light on how much additional aid BU gave outside of their two primary scholarships, and what exactly they gave it for (music or athletics, for instance). Although I am committed financially through ED, it would be helpful to be aware of what kind of aid I may be looking at. Thank you, and any information would be much appreciated.
Hi @purplepug13 , what are the 2 primary BU scholarships you reference? Presidential and Trustees? I believe the Presidential is awarded to the top 5% of their applicant pool and there are only 20 Trustees Scholars named each year. This is on the website with the descriptions of the scholarships. Outside of those, I have heard of BU being very generous and conversely, I’ve heard of people being stunned at having nothing offered to them. When I ran the npc for my D, we were full pay, and I can tell you that our efc came in at under $20,000! So clearly, their npc is not acurate at all for our situation.
Thanks for the response, @Winky1
Yes, those are the two scholarships I was referencing. I’ve also heard about the sharp and occasionally unfair aid contrast at BU. Your story is thankfully one of the more fortunate ones I have heard, and I am hoping for a similar result. 
I assume your daughter is a current student?
I am sorry to have confused you, @purplepug13. My D will be applying to BU as RD if she is deferred or denied at her ED school. What I am trying to say is that the BU npc says we would pay full price! How can that be when our efc from the fafsa is under $20,000!!!?? Being that they do not guarantee to meet demonstrated need, my D knew this would only be an RD application for her. Sorry to have confused you. Her ED school guarantees to meet demonstrated need if she’s accepted.
Bu decides aid by essentially ranking students on how much they want them. Unless you are an athlete/cfa kid/boston high school grad, pretty much the only merit aid they would likely consider you for is the two scholarships you list which are not easy to get. If you qualify for need based, that is also where the ranking comes in. BU does not meet full need for all students, however the more they like you the more aid you will receive. For example, a kid that does not really meet criteria with and efc of 0 might get nothing, while a kid with much better stats but an efc of 15k might get 20 grand (I’m just spitballing numbers here, but you probably get the point). In addition, ED applicants tend to get slightly more aid than RD because the funds havent been used up yet, and they know you will be guaranteed (unless you fall under the need based clause on the ED contract) to attend the school. That’s why you get such stark contrast in stories from people on both sides of finaid pool; for instance my efc was 0 and BU gave me enough money to cover my tuition but not housing. So they liked me well enough, but I was not the perfect applicant. I still end up having to take out 18k a year in loans to attend, but this is actually the same amount I would be paying for my state school while living at home, so I really didnt have any cheaper options.
@Winky1 BU is CSS profile school. Do you own property other than your home? Do you have substantial investments? That would make the FAFSA EFC meaningless.
@TomSrOfBoston , No, we don’t own a second home or have investments or have a hug nest egg saved for college. Quite the opposite. 4 kids, 1 is a sophomore in college. I have sent BU and my D’s other schools both the FAFSA and CSS Profile when required. Nothing to hide - just let the chips fall where they may because the facts and figures in our case are not complicated. I have no idea why we come out as full pay on BU’s npc. My D has a 1500 SAT, 3.8 uw, 5.0 w, lots of 5 AP’s probably 10+ Honors, varsity athlete, lots of interesting extracurriculars and volunteering. She is applying RD and also is finishing up her Kilachand Honors College Essay. Has finished the essays for Trustees Scholarship. Will probably get it all sent in next week (due by Dec. 1).
@Winky1
@AwesomeAxolotl
Thank you both for your responses!
AwesomeAxolotl, I appreciate your answer, it did help to clarify some questions for me. Did you apply ED to Boston? From your comments, I am assuming you are either a graduate or an experienced current student.
Winky1, thanks for the explanation. Do you mind me asking what your daughter’s top choice school was? Best of luck to her as well as your family, she appears to be an extremely qualified student for whatever school she chooses to attend.
@purplepug13, my D has applied ED to Wash U. If she’s deferred or denied, I know she can get genuinely excited about the other schools on her list.
Yes, I am a current junior and applied ED. When I applied there was only 1 type of ED, (not 1 and 2) so I cant say how each round is different, but I imagine they are fairly similar in that you are committed and have first round dibs in some money (if the financial gods deem you worthy, that is)
@Winky1 That’s wonderful! Best of luck to her, and it’s nice when you can have that reassurance. I wish I could say the same, but due to my specific major and other factors, BU has become my absolute top school, there are no others on my list I can really get super excited about. That’s why I am really hoping for some good news on December 15th!
And @AwesomeAxolotl, Thank you for the clarification, I was kind of assuming you were a current student. Do you enjoy BU? I’d love to hear some insight from an actual student. And also, I applied ED 1, so hopefully that will help in the financial department as you suggested.
@purplepug13 , thank you for your kind words. I will be reassured once we get the real financial aid offer! Even though they meet demonstrated need, schools often have their own institutional factoring that they do. I do hope you get the $ you need/want.
I do enjoy BU, and feel free to pm anytime if you have any specific questions or just want to chat.
Thank you @Winky1, I am hoping for the same Hopefully everything works out well with Washington U as well
And @AwesomeAxolotl, That’s good to hear, and thank you, I would definitely like to chat, especially if it turns out that I will be attending BU!
@purplepug13, hoping you got in with financial aid…