Hi! I was wondering how good financial aid can be for in-state students going to Cornell CALS (NY Residents). While I’m not currently a student, I plan to apply ED to Cornell CALS, but cost may be a barrier despite Cornell claiming to meet 100% of all demonstrated financial need. I specifically want to know about average EFCs for certain household salaries, how much grant $$ is given, and what kind of scholarships I can potentially earn. Any thoughts or words of advice are greatly appreciated!
Run the Net Price Calculator on the school’s web site.
Averages are not going to help you at all here. They will not tell you about YOUR specific financial situation. If you plan to apply ED, and finances are a significant consideration, contact the financial aid department at Cornell and see if they will do an early read for you.
You can also run the net price calculator on the Cornell website using YOUR family financials from 2015 taxes, and current assets.
Does your family own a business, are your parents self employed? Do you own real,estate other than your primary residence? Are your parents divorced? If so…the NPC might not be as accurate.
My parents have had to pay for a different Ivy League education and a Duke education for my two older siblings. The Ivy League one received good aid, but the Duke one received almost no aid. My parents also have to pay for expenses for my family (about 15 people) in Asia. My household income is roughly 200k annually.
As for using the NPC, I have tried it before, but I simply don’t know enough about my parent’s finances to make a conclusion. However, my parents have told me they are only able to pay 20k per year for me due to spending much savings on my two elder siblings.
This is why I’m also very interested in scholarships and grants, especially for NY residents attending in-state schools like Cornell CALS.
The colleges are not going to take into consideration that your parents are paying for relatives in Asia. The colleges also will not consider older siblings who are not in college when you are. Will any of your siblings be in college while you are?
As you know…Cornell does not give merit aid. Need based only.
What are your SAT or ACT scores, and your GPA? Perhaps you should be looking at schools where you can garner a full tuition merit award. Then that $20,000 will cover the remaining costs easily.
If you are the ONLY sibling in college…with a $200,000 income, you won’t get need based aid…anywhere.
If you are in the top 10% of your class, and are majoring in STEM, apply to SUNY, apply for a Stem scholarship. This along with the 20k that your parents are willing to spend should cover your expenses.
Thumper is correct, with a 200K family income, you are not going to receive any need based aid from Cornell. They are not going to take in to consideration that your family is choosing to support relatives in Asia and not use this money to pay for you to attend college.
Make sure you craft a list with affordable choices and places where you stand a chance of getting merit money.
What are your stats? Perhaps we can recommend some schools.
@sybbie719 does Cornell give merit awards to NY residents accepted to Cornell CALS?
I will be taking the SAT this December so I don’t have an idea yet. However, I scored a 1370 (750 M 620 CR) on the PSAT last year with legit zero prep. I am aiming for a 1550+ SAT score (800 M 750+ CR/W idk about essay score) this December. I currently have a ~3.9 unweighted GPA.
@thumper1 My eldest sibling was part of the college class of 2014 while my 2nd eldest sibling is part of the college class of 2018. This means I will have 1 sibling who’s in college when I apply, but my sibling won’t be in college (maybe medical school) if I attend as a freshman. Also, I thought Cornell had some sort of merit aid not given by the fin aid office, but it was given by Cornell alum. I also remember hearing about some scholarships for NY residents attending NY universities (is CALS SUNY?).
@sybbie719 Isn’t CALS a SUNY land grant school as well as a private Ivy school? I don’t know the exacts, but I’m hoping it is lol.
My eldest sibling got into Cornell (he was the only one in college at the time) in 2010, and he received a stellar package that also included school supplies that were paid for and everything. I think he only would’ve had to paid 20k annually had he gone there. My family has multiple hidden costs (not just my fam in Asian) so that’s why financial aid is very important.
Are you currently a HS Junior?
yeah lol. I understand I’m not applying to college until next year, but I’m really interested in applying to Cornell. My family has visited numerous times, and I am almost certain to be applying there next fall.
Why are you applying ED if finances are a significant consideration?
I am truly impressed by Cornell and all the resources available at Cornell. I’m also more of an outdoors guy so I love nature trails, waterfalls, and scenic views. Cornell also has a great engineering program. Ik I’m talking about CALS, but the environmental engineering degree is obtained from both CALS and CoE if I am accepted into CALS for EnvE.
I have also talked over with my family this situation and my future plans. They’ve told me that they’d be thrilled with me going to Cornell for EnvE.
While they would be thrilled with you attending Cornell, will they be thrilled and willing to pay full freight (which is what they will be doing)
If yes, game on. If no, you need some affordable options and remove Cornell from your list
They told me they’d take out even more loans than they already have (and they have MULTIPLE loans on MULTIPLE things) in order to give me the best education possible. However, I wish for my parents to not be financially stressed for the rest of their lives. Therefore, I will still be able to apply Cornell CALS ED. However, I am just interested in learning about financial aid opportunities at Cornell. I also know that the CALS tuition for in-state students is 15k less per year (so ~50k annually instead of ~65k).
@sybbie719 I take your above response to mean that Cornell does not give merit awards to NY resident CALS accepted students?
@thumper1 This is the link to Cornell’s page on grants and endowed scholarships: https://finaid.cornell.edu/types-aid/grants-and-scholarships/cornell-grants-scholarships
I don’t think Cornell explicitly gives scholarship money. Rather, Cornell alum that wish to be donors may provide some sort of aid in the form of an endowed scholarship. But, I’m not 100% sure.
You need to read this link carefully,
First line clearly states that students who are eligible for Cornell University Grants, maybe be eligible for these scholarships. So…first step…you have to have financial need…and be eligible for Cornell grants. This is highly unlikely with your family income.
Second…read carefully. “A named scholarship does not change the total amount of financial,aid offered.” That’s what is says.
So…if you have no financial need…you won’t be getting these endowed scholarships. Period.