<p>"Transfers get worse need-based financial aid" seems to be a common blanket assumption around here.</p>
<p>But how true is it really? It does appear to be very dependent on the school.</p>
<p>For example, a trivial example where that claim is not true is the University of Alabama. It gives no need-based financial aid of its own to any student (frosh or transfer, in-state or out-of-state), only passing through federal aid. (The well known scholarships are purely merit-based, and are much more available to frosh than transfers. But they do not count as need-based financial aid.) The same applies to all other schools which do not give any need-based financial aid.</p>
<p>Another example where the claim does not appear to be true is the California State University system, where the net price calculator gives the same net price for frosh and transfers with full Cal Grant eligibility, although a higher net price can result from not having full Cal Grant eligibility (there is some merit component involved, based in high school or prior college GPA, although these GPA thresholds are not super-high).</p>
<p>Where the claim is true is Columbia University in the City of New York, which claims to meet 100% of demonstrated need for frosh, but says that it does not for transfers. While "meet 100% of demonstrated need" does not necessarily mean good financial aid (due to variations in the definition of "need" and expected student contribution), it does mean that a school claiming to do so for frosh but not transfers gives worse financial aid for transfers.</p>
<p>So, rather than making blanket assumptions, perhaps it would be better to list what specific schools the claim is true or not true for.</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s that they get worse need-based aid, it’s that they give worse aid in general. </p>
<p>Also, every rule has exceptions. That’s why most people say “In general, transfers don’t get as good aid.” </p>
<p>I understand that it’s your style to look for the exception in every rule, but there are thousands of colleges in this country. You have to generalize for your own sanity. If you want to go through all those schools and decide whether or not the claim is true, you are more than welcome to :). Most of us don’t have time for that so we just say “In general… but check with your specific school” </p>
<p>UCB…even if a school gives no need-based aid of its own, the fact that an aid pkg (need, merit, or a mix) can be better for incoming frosh than transfers is real.</p>
<p>You use Alabama as an example, but think about it…an incoming frosh is more likely going to get a more favorable pkg with maybe some combo of SEOG grants, work-study, and Perkins loans.</p>
<p>So even if a school only gives fed need-based aid, a transfer student may only get the aid that the school has to give…Pell and stafford loans. A school gets to choose who gets SEOG, work-study and Perkins loans. Those optional aids can mean $7k more aid in the pkg.</p>
<p>Transfers do little/nothing to help a school’s profile. Schools get rated by the strength of their incoming frosh classes. Nobody is looking at the strength of its incoming transfer students. </p>
<p>I wouldn’t be so quick to blast publics that don’t have aid to give. They all can’t be like the UCs who have tax-funded Cal Grants and who practically doubled their tuition/fees (to rob Peter to pay Paul) so that the more affluent students could help fund UC grants.</p>
<p>You are correct in that it does depend upon the college and if it is not outright stated on the web site or other materials with the info for the college, a student can simply call the financial aid office and outright ask. </p>
<p>The way it usually works for colleges is that the schools try to keep enough money aside to meet the upperclassmen financial need based on the numbers from the prior year. There usually is some guideline as to how they do this, as most schools do expect more in a student contribution from upperclassmen. But they do make an effort to keep the financial aid about the same for students already there, if their info remains the same. The big push to get the best new incoming class possible, so the schools tend to then address those students, and it’s a known fact in financial aid that the sooner you get your stuff in to the fin aid office, the better off you are. Any of the fin aid officers, and materials about fin aid will tell you this right out. Certain funds run out and those at the tail end don’t get those goodies. Even federal goodies like Perkins, and SEOG is limited and once it’s gone, that is it. Most colleges don’t have unlimited pots of money to give out. Things get tight at the tail end of the process. The NPC may show students getting funds that are flat out gone, and if the school does not guarantee to meet need, that is where it will often occur heavily.</p>
<p>Transfers are often processed LAST. After all the aid to the new students have been offered, and after the returning students get their packages. So right there, you can see what the priority is for them. Some schools may have some funds allocated to transfers, but often it’s not all that generous. Schools that meet full need for all students, including transfers, like Cornell, don’t fall into this category, but that is a rare things. Even schools that don’t have any policy or formula of giving transfers less money, often end up doing so, simply because of how their process works. Early bird gets the worm, and too often not many worms left by the time attention is given to the transfers. And often, schools won’t even look at transfers until they get an idea of who is coming back on the aid front. </p>
<p>But absolutely transfers should ask the colleges outright. Anyone with specific questions should ask the fin aid offices how the situation is treated. They won’t give out general formulas or address certain issues, but they are very good in coming right out in answering certain things. I’ve noted a lot of specific questions so answered, not just from transfers. It’s the fin aid office that one often has to ask to get a clear answer.</p>
<p>I don’t recall the comment being used relating to need based aid. It’s usually stated aid is best for freshman because that’s where most of the merit $ go.</p>
<p>Yes, that phrase mainly applies to merit aid. After all, many colleges use merit aid to raise their median SAT score and other data for the US News rankings. US News doesn’t rank based on transfer students, so the colleges don’t feel any need to incentivize transfers for their stats. </p>
<p>The phrase is very relevant because most middle of the road colleges emphasize merit aid. It is only the richest 100 or so colleges that are able to meet 100% of need for all US students. </p>
<p>Also, some expensive colleges probably feel that the students who paid 4 years of their tuition and housing and ran up debt deserve the most aid, vs. someone who saved a fortune going to a cheap college for the first 2 years. After all, most colleges make huge profits off their freshmen, particularly if they pack them into large lecture halls.</p>
<p>At a college that emphasizes merit aid for freshmen, it is possible that a student could end up paying more total tuition if they transfer into the expensive college. The question is: would the money they save in their first year or two equal the merit aid that they may have missed in their last years of college (after they transfer)? For example, if a student saves $10,000 a year for the first 2 years of college by going to a cheaper school, but misses out on $12,000 a year in merit aid in their last 2 years of college because they transferred and had to pay the full list price, they have a net loss of $4,000 for the degree. </p>
<p>For that reason, high school seniors should also apply to a couple colleges where they have reason to believe they may be eligible for good aid, instead of ONLY applying to cheap colleges. </p>
<p>Merit is a whole other story. There simply are not that many merit awards at most schools for any upperclassmen looking for scholarships not obtained as freshmen. There may be some departmental awards, but at most schools the merit money tends to be used as lures to bring in the most desired students. </p>
<p>There are departments, however, at schools that have awards that go to those majoring in that particular subject. My son got a major award that was for research in a specified field. It is possible there are departments that need more students majoring in that field and offering incentives for the such. One does have to look hard to find them. </p>