ED and financial aid

Colleges and Universities A-Z Swarthmore College
1

<p>Some of you may remember my starry-eyed description of my Swarthmore visit in October. (I'd fallen in love. It was completely irrational.) Well, I finally had my first "official" meeting with my university counselor last Friday. I mentioned to her that I'd apply ED, no question about it, if it weren't for the issue of financial aid. As an "international student"* I didn't feel it would be wise to commit myself to a particular school without first comparing aid offers.</p>

<p>Her reply actually surprised me. She said that, if I really wanted to attend, I could schedule a meeting with a financial aid officer and explain my situation, in order to get an estimate of what an aid package might look like, and apply ED if it looks as if it'll work out. As much as I'd love to have the certainty of an acceptance (or rejection...) in December, I'm not entirely convinced. Even if the aid comes through in the ED round, my family's financial situation is precarious enough (diplomat's salaries and uncertain contracts; mortgages; no savings) that I'm not sure commitment is the way to go.</p>

<p>Rereading what I've written, it does sound as if I've already made a decision. I guess I'm just trying to do a sort of cost/benefit analysis. As an int'l, would ED significantly increase my chances of admissions (and if yes, of getting adequate aid)? Am I better off just waiting until the RD round and showing off in the "Why Swarthmore" essay?</p>

<p>My stats are strong enough that I'm competitive, but not a shoo-in (but then again, is anyone?). I'm just not sure whether my visa status would detract enough from my resume that I'd need the ED boost to get in at all. Chances are it doesn't matter and I'm overanalyzing... even so, I'd love to get someone's second (or third, or fourth) opinion.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance,
Elisabeth</p>

<p>*In quotes because I've lived in the US for longer than I've lived anywhere else, I'm 100% assimilated, and my English is near perfect; it's just my paperwork that doesn't line up. None of which matters to Swarthmore, obviously, but I need to make the distinction for my own sake.</p>

<p>ETA: Clearly I need to join a 12-step program for parenthesis abusers. (And that's not even mentioning the absurdity of footnoting a post on CC...) :D</p>

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<p>
[quote]
She said that, if I really wanted to attend, I could schedule a meeting with a financial aid officer and explain my situation, in order to get an estimate of what an aid package might look like, and apply ED if it looks as if it'll work out.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Sounds like a good plan to me. I'm guessing the time to do it would early next fall, after the financial aid people have gotten the current class enrolled and before the applications start rolling in. It could probably be done by phone or e-mail with your parents providing estimates of the relevant numbers.</p>

<p>None of us can advise you on ED viz-a-viz financial aid. The degree of price elasticity your folks can bear is something that only they can determine.</p>

<p>I've often felt that ED is a good option for people who are going to enroll even if the deal isn't exactly right or for people who defintely aren't going to enroll anywhere unless the deal is right.</p>

<p>The people who definitely should not apply ED are those who are setting up competitive financial aid bidding, especially merit aid, as the primary element of the college hunt.</p>

3

<p>It is, unfortunately, a gamble. Are there schools that you would be willing to attend where you might get a full ride or other significant merit aid?</p>

<p>Most kids that like school fall in love with whatever school they attend.</p>

4

<p>I think there is very little downside to having this kind of conversation with the Swarthmore FA office. You don't need to make this decision until next fall. If your feelings about Swarthmore are still as strong and positive at that time, the kind of discussion mentioned by your counselor and ID makes sense to me.</p>

<p>That said, I am not sure how much real advantage in getting an offer of admissions applying ED at Swarthmore is. Yes the statistical acceptance rate is higher, but is the ED applicant pool the same as the RD applicant pool? The Swarthmore admissions office says their ED pool is stronger, so that it is not "easier" to get admitted from the ED pool. Is this exactly true? I'm not sure. My guess is that applying ED does help, but I don't know if the help is very significant.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for your perspectives. :) I'm trying to consider all the factors involved, and what would be the best decision considering my particular circumstances. I do plan to visit again before making a decision, and it's true that talking to the FA office would probably be helpful no matter what I eventually choose to do.</p>

<p>1) Stats</p>

<p>GPA: 6.26/7 at a rigorous international private school
PSAT: 232 (78CR/74M/80W)
SAT: 2160 (800CR/650M/710W) - retaking
Course schedule: Bilingual (French/English) IB Diploma
IB Chemistry HL
IB English A1 HL
IB French A1 HL
IB Biology SL
IB Mathematics SL
IB History SL
Theory of Knowledge
Journalism</p>

<p>I've looked at Naviance graphs for my school, and the average GPA for Swarthmore acceptees is a 6.29. Assuming that my rising trend continues, my average will be somewhere between a 6.35 and a 6.4 by the first trimester of senior year. So far so good. My SAT I Math is pathetically low -- I'm actually not sure what happened. I'm retaking in May, and based on practice tests and PSAT scores I'm expecting a math score in the low 700's. The average M+V for my school is 1350.</p>

<p>So going by stats alone I should be competitive, assuming I get that math score up (which doesn't seem unreasonable). On the other hand, I'm guessing that admission for int'ls is much more competitive. The question is whether the ED "boost" cancels out the int'l disadvantage... and whether the int'l disadvantage is signficant enough that I would need ED to get in at all. Based on what I know about college admissions, though, chances are the relationship is much more nebulous than that.</p>

<p>I won't go into ECs here, because they'd take too long for me to list and for you to read through... suffice it to say that I haven't cured cancer, nor am I a recruitable athlete, but I'm not a couch potato either. In other words, they're good but not spectacular. Recs and essays shouldn't be a problem.</p>

<p>2) Money</p>

<ul>
<li>Swedish student support is $15,000/year, made up of a $13,000 loan and a $2,000 grant.</li>
<li>I'm not sure how much my parents can pay, but probably around $10,000-$20,000/year.</li>
</ul>

<p>So that's anywhere between $25,000/year and $35,000/year accounted for. In other words, I'd need at least a $10,000/year grant, but probably closer to $20,000.</p>

<p>The following numbers are all estimates. I've no real sense of how much my parents make, nor how much our property is worth.</p>

<p>Untaxed income: anywhere between $60,000 and 120,000/year.
My mom's contract with her employer expired in January, and she is currently unemployed. I know she's considering a few options, but I've no idea what the details are. </p>

<p>Assets: $300,000ish in property in Sweden. We don't own a house in the US (the Swedish gov't pays our rent).</p>

<p>Mortgages: Yes</p>

<p>Savings: None that I know of.</p>

<p>Taxes: Swedish (socialist) style...that is to say, very high</p>

<p>Siblings: one, in 8th grade (private school, but the Swedish gov't pays tuition)</p>

<hr>

<p>The main reason I'm hesitating is that a diplomatic lifestyle is an uncertain one, and I've no way to tell whether what looks like a reasonable aid package in October will still be workable in April. </p>

<p>There's also the fact that my parents have been on the verge of divorce for as long as I can remember, and now it looks as though they might actually go through with it--but then again maybe they won't, or they will, but not right now, or-- (repeat ad nauseam).</p>

<p>But if it's my only chance of getting into Swarthmore, then... would it be worth it, even if it'll take some effort to make it work? That's something I'll have to come to terms with for myself, I guess. Emotionally I want to say "yes, absolutely", but I need to be sure that I can justify it rationally.</p>

<p>Thanks again for your advice!</p>