<p>A LOT of kids from my school are applying?</p>
<p>That has got me worried, because my school is extremely competitive... over 10 kids go to Ivies.</p>
<p>Sorry, let me fix that number - it's probably more around 15-18 kids accepted to Ivies/Ivy-caliber schools (last year 2 Columbia, 2 Princeton, 1 Yale, 1 Harvard, 3 MIT, 2 Penn, 5 Cornell, 3 Duke... and 2 Tufts! And I'm sure I missed some).</p>
<p>Just wanted to clarify :)</p>
<p>This year I think about 5-10 kids are applying to Tufts. Sigh, I hope that doesn't affect my admission chance...</p>
<p>I'm in the same boat. I'm freaking out. I'm pretty sure my stats are better, but I think they have some great ECs, which I think I'm lacking. </p>
<p>And I don't wanna route against my peers either! It's so frustrating.</p>
<p>I know!</p>
<p>One of my best friends is applying. She wasn't even going to apply at first, but her stats are sooo amazing (and she's a minority) that Tufts offered her scholarship money (20k) through a letter... and so she decided to apply!</p>
<p>Sigh.</p>
<p>^Wow, that's aggravating.</p>
<p>My situation:
One girl in my grade- her dad is a prof
One guy in my grade- his grandfather had some big administrative position</p>
<p>Luckily, the guy applied ED somewhere else (but he'll stilll apply RD to Tufts he doesn't get in there)</p>
<p>I'm just wondering how many people actually wanna go to Tufts who are applying from my school.</p>
<p>Dude, that sucks... I hope that 2nd guy gets in ED. One of my friends ED'd to Williams, but she said if she doesn't get in, she wants to apply to Tufts.</p>
<p>@ the last comment: Me too.</p>
<p>I have a list of reasons that I'd like to go to Tufts for... one girl I know is applying because "the campus is pretty." I hope she has some other reasons, because otherwise I'm going to tell her to apply to Cornell or Wash U. or Middlebury or somewhere, anywhere else!</p>
<p>Just kidding :P But if she does get in, and I don't, I might get a little angry.</p>
<p>...just a little.</p>
<p>I don't know what's going to happen, I'm guessing you all are RD'ers. </p>
<p>I'm a prospective ED I'er, and I'll give you my two cents.</p>
<p>If Tufts is your #1, then you have the option of ED II -- if it is your number one. It is mine, and so I did ED I. I get that if you have great statistics and all you want to experiment and see what else is out there -- but then the risk is something you will have to take competing with students that go to your school. </p>
<p>I know, it can be frustrating that there are others out there. There are kids at my school who have better statistics than I do. It's just something we have to deal with as seniors in high school. We've done our work and there's nothing we can change about our resume but there is one thing that we can control -- something that is so important to TUFTS. You guessed it, the essays. </p>
<p>Again, Tufts stresses the essays. Show them who you are! You control your essays and they can balance out your weaknesses. Be genuine. Be yourself. Don't try to be what you think they want to see on paper, it won't work for you. In the beginning, when I started writing, I tried to be something I wasn't. It didn't work for me. When I got into it, I was myself. Sarcastic, interesting, and all these other adjectives. </p>
<p>I would love to give you more advice tomorrow as a Tufts student. Ha. I'm so excited to find out tomorrow. Then, I can tell you more from my experimental application to Tufts. I can tell you more about what I did so that you guys would have an idea. But I can't do that now because I don't want to give you advice that didn't work for me. </p>
<p>Good luck though guys!</p>
<p>I know about EDII - it's not even about trying to see what other options are out there, it's more the fact that I lack the financial means to really attend Tufts if I don't get at least a decent financial package. And if I ED, and don't get good financial aid... well, I'd be in big trouble.</p>
<p>Good point about the essays - I do hope those pull through for me.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info, abkid91!
I'm in the same boat as neethus1 though... it's all about the fin aid. I know that finances is the one escape from the binding decision, but my parents have blatantly told me that I'm going wherever I get the most money (which I'm assuming is gonna be UMass Amherst). Hopefully, I'll be able to convince them otherwise. Luckily, I have an uncle that's been knocking some common sense into them, pointing out that it's rather difficult to get into the colleges to which I'm applying... so if I get in, I should definitely take advantage of it, lol.</p>
<p>I'm looking forward to writing my Tufts essays (I know! I should have already finished all this!). They seem kinda fun :)</p>
<p>Well, to tell you the truth, if Tufts is your #1 who cares about $$$? Sorry, it's morning and my jokes are bad, not that they are any good later on in the day. Ok well this is what you need to do -- or this is what I have heard people should do in your situation. Mention it in the commonapp's additional information argea saying "I would have done ED II but your parents wanted to compare packages. Think about it though. You don't want to seem desperate for money but you do want them to see that Tufts is your number one. I don't know how gold this advice is -- anyone else have an opinion?</p>
<p>I would agree to part of what abkid said. Tufts has (according to an admissions officer that I spoke to) been need-blind this year and they guarantee to give you 100% of your demonstrated need. So in my opinion, Tufts has guaranteed to give you as much financial aid any school out there. Some schools might give you more scholarships and whatnot, but it is very unlikely that Tufts would give a family a financial aid package they couldn't afford.</p>
<p>I'm also applying to Georgetown and they are NOT need blind and they do NOT guarantee to meet all demonstrated need, so I could really get screwed by them, but not by Tufts.</p>
<p>But in the grand scheme of things, ED isn't a good thing because it limits where people can apply. I would still encourage you to go to the school that you love the most, and if that school is Tufts you can do so without worrying you won't be able to afford it.</p>
<p>-ben</p>
<p>To answer the original question:</p>
<p>It doesn't matter at all.</p>
<p>Not to splash the cold water of reality in anyone's face, but "need blind" and meeting "100% demonstrated need" is not a guarantee of financing a Tufts education (or more accurately, any education). It is all about how fi-aid calculates the demonstrated need part and what they assume should and can be the student and family contribution. I don't agree that it doesn't matter how much it costs and for people to sink themselves into incredible debt just to attend a certain school may not be the best thing to do for the student or the family. </p>
<p>We made a "deal" with our children that education is our priority as a family. We send them to a great school and have told them they can attend any school that accepts them. This does not mean we are rolling in it, quite the contrary. It just means that we don't drive fancy cars or take vacations or send the kids on "mission" trips to mexico that are more party than participation. So, what concerns me is not that other kids from our son's school would be applying to these great schools, but that others who went on Swiss Semester or Sierra leon will be deemed more "involved" or worldly. On the other hand, my sister has taken both the kids on some awesome trips, including Africa and Japan but its not like you can list these experiences because it then might appear a very different reality than it is. </p>
<p>Anyway..all one can hope is that the whole person comes through via the application process and mostly that admissions pulls together a great class of all types to build one awesome group of Jumbos.</p>
<p>I agree with you -- finances limit a lot of experiences for some and then the other applicants to indeed seem more "worldly."</p>
<p>Thank you Modadunn - you are absolutely right. Just because Tufts may offer me 5k/yr in grants because of calculated need, doesn't mean I will be able to afford it. Calculated need is a formula... it does not include job instability, or the recent stock market crash (or multiple crashes). Besides, part of guaranteeing to meet need means offers of loans...</p>
<p>And abkid, I'm shocked at your insensitivity. Isn't it obvious that I'M not the one paying for my education? My parents are. Although I'd like to tell them what they can and can't do with their money, I can't. I can only offer to pay with my own money - and I'm not exactly that rich right now, as a 17 year old. I would mention it on the commonapp, but that gets sent to every school.</p>
<p>Thanks Dan for your answer! I was really worried about this for awhile.</p>
<p>Neethus,</p>
<p>Actually, you can have your aid award recalculated at least once a year. So if your family suffers a job loss, or other circumstances impact on your family's ability to pay, the aid award can (would) be changed in accordance. </p>
<p>The bigger problem lies not in changes with family circumstances - that's relatively easy to accomodate - but in the way the federal government dictates need calculations in the first place. We use the CSS Profile in addition to the FAFSA (the CSS is a more nuanced form), and that provides us with a fair amount of flexibility, but there are still limits. </p>
<p>Modadunn's general assertions are correct - "demonstrated need" is a reflection of financial aid calculations. However, the majority of families (though not all) that go through our financial aid process would describe our estimates as sensible for their needs.</p>
<p>I was not being insensitive, and I am sorry if you got that from me-- I was being sarcastic! I was just kidding. I know you're not paying and you're parents are and I know that you can't dictate to your parents where you should go for college because $ should calculate into your final decision.</p>
<p>That's why said, in the common app's additional info section you should mention that you might have done ED II but you wanted to compare packages. That's what I was advised.</p>
<p>Once again, I am sorry that you thought I was being insensitive! Sorry..</p>
<p>Ohhh - that sounds great actually, thanks Dan! I sent an e-mail over to Isabel Bober a few days ago and I just got a reply. She said that you can ween out of an ED in the case of Financial Aid... now I may just consider applying EDII to Tufts!!!!</p>
<p>Abkid - oh, now I see why you made that remark about jokes hahaha. I didn't get it the first time and was confused, and a bit offended by the first sentence. A lot of people (friends) make the comment that I should ED and forget about money, so that's probably why I jumped on that comment so quickly. I do agree with you... thank you for your NOT insensitive response ;).</p>
<p>I'm nervous about competition too. My school is RIDICULOUS, we've gotten in at least, this year: 4 Brown, 5 Columbia, 6 Penn, 3 Cornell, 4 Duke, >4 Northwestern, >4 Emory... there's this one girl who applied EA to a whole mess of schools and got into all of them (MIT, Caltech, UChicago)...</p>
<p>Bestwhit: </p>
<p>If your scores are competitive, like theirs, and your grades and extra-cirriculars are great then you should not worry about the competition. Many schools will accept you if they want you for what they have to offer. In terms of Tufts, Dan said that it does not matter at all how many apply from one school. So, if you’re going to get into Tufts you will regardless of how many apply from your school. So try not to worry about it. Good luck.</p>