<p>Hi, colgate is my top choice school and I applied early decision. I'm just a bit worried about the financial aid. My family is under the $50,000 mark, so I would need a lot of aid to be able to go there. Anyone have any suggestions or know anything about the aid at Colgate?</p>
<p>While Colgate is not need blind, they claim to fully meet the financial needs of admitted students. So if they accept you ED they would meet their perception of your full financial need. Or stated differently if they cannot meet your full financial need they won’t accept you regardless of your qualifications.</p>
<p>Run the net price calculator, OP. Go to Colgate’s Financial Aid web page, click on the net price calculator, plug in your parents’ and your financial info, and receive the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). That will estimate what Colgate expects your family to pay each year (EFC = total costs of attendance minus estimated Colgate allowance of PELL grant, work study, need-based aid, and federal student loan [usu. 5500/yr]). This is what you have to do at any school to estimate your family’s costs. </p>
<p>Holy Cross meets 100% demonstrated financial aid and HC is similar to Colgate.</p>
<p>Schools determine what they consider your “full need”, not you, so there can be vast differences between schools. I know of one student who was accepted at both Colgate and Hamilton, but got vastly different “full need” FA packages.</p>
<p>My advice if you want to stay in the ED pool is if you are accepted to not withdraw any applications until the FA question is settled to you and your parents satisfaction. You could even file an ED2 application if things aren’t looking good. Your other option is to move to RD and shop FA packages among schools.</p>
<p>Par72,</p>
<p>I find jkeil911’s and MrMom62’s content helpful given the context because they are helping the applicant understand this topic better.</p>
<p>Then there is your assertion which has no obvious bearing on the matter and offer no traction,</p>
<p>So…HOW is it similar- financial aid or otherwise?</p>
<p>Over to you.</p>
<p>In the absence of a response to my questions above, and in light of some new published information, I thought I would bring some statistics to light about top LAC financial aid and other matters.</p>
<p>If you look at Kiplinger’s Best College Values 2014 at Kiplinger.com and then Liberal Arts Colleges you will see Colgate at number 11 and its average student indebtedness. You will also see colleges with different ranks, much higher average indebtedness- including those that “meet 100% demonstrated need” and whose boosters claim are “similar” to Colgate.</p>
<p>Kiplinger’s offers some context which is helpful and therefore useful to applicants and parents, as I am sure you will agree.</p>
<p>Good luck with your college search!</p>
Here is the link to Kiplinger’s article re financial aid at US liberal arts colleges, for good measure.
You will see Colgate as number 11 in terms of “Best College Values” overall but number 7 in terms of “Ave Debt at Graduation”.
I hope that this article helps frame the issue for everyone.
Good luck with your college applications!
Add to the above as a point of correction and clarification regarding ave debt at graduation: Colgate is number 7 of the top 11 LACs in the US.
Within the top 20 LACs on this list you will see that Middlebury and Grinnell have slightly lower ave debt at graduation.
Go 'gate!