<p>I have heard that applying for financial aid is a disadvantage while applying to a college?</p>
<p>Is that true? I was hoping that it wasn't and that I could atleast see what if any money I would receive.</p>
<p>Can I still apply to a college early decision?</p>
<p>depends on the college. I would not apply ED to a school like NYU that practices preferential financial aid packaging, but would have no qualms about no-loan Vandy and Dartmouth, or Brown or Columbia. i.e., top, well-endowed colleges…</p>
<p>For some colleges, yes, applying for financial aid is a disadvantage. For most college that is not the case. </p>
<p>Most of the advice about applying ED advises against doing so if you need financial aid. The reason is that you cannot compare offers if you do this, and have to take it upon faith that the amount offered is what you would get at other like colleges. Even more importantly, if the financial aid package is inadequate, you have to go through the pain in the neck of withdrawing from ED and making sure that your name does not end up on ED acceptance lists that colleges circulate which can get you dropped from consideration from other schools. </p>
<p>You should ask the colleges you are considering if applying for financial aid is a factor in their admissions in your case. I say that because the situation changes each year so that the list of need aware schools may not be what it was last year. Also, some schools are need aware under certain circumstance such as transfers, waitlist clearance and possibly ED.</p>
<p>A young lady we know was accepted at Dartmouth ED last year. She was not happy with the financial aid offer but she and her parents decided to go with it after discussions with the fin aid office did not result in any increases but just the offer to release her from the ED commitment. They figured, maybe rightfully, that they would probably get about the same from any of the other like colleges, and Dartmouth was very firm in telling them this.</p>
<p>Then a cousin of hers was accepted to Williams and a couple of like schools RD. Like Dartmouth, Williams gives 100% of need. THey also say that their method is very comparable to like schools. However, when it came down to it, they coughed up some more money after viewing some other financial aid packages that gave more. It turned out that several kids had the same experience. By having comparable schools offer more money, schools often will look over the offer and maybe throw in some more money. You lose that option with ED. You are stuck with throwing out your first choice school and taking the chance that the aid offered was truly what all other comparable schools would also offer or maybe was the best package.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse,</p>
<p>I totally agree with your assessment. My D was torn between Dartmouth and Williams so she applied RD to both schools. She was accepted to both schools and after visiting she felt that Dartmouth was the better fit. However, Williams offered the better FA package. We were able to ask Dartmouth for a financial review using the Williams package (they state that you can send them a package from another school). Dartmouth met the Williams FA package and kept the package in tact (with the exception nd the student’s EFC from summer contributions, which is the norm at Profile schools, the student contribution goes up each year().</p>
<p>She would not have had this opportunity if she had applied ED and did not have the opportunity to compare packages.</p>
<p>to the OP,</p>
<p>Keep in mind that there is an expectation that the family has done their due diligence especially where FA is concerned. When you sign up for ED you are saying in exchange for an early decision, you will attend if admitted regardless of the FA offered (because you should already have an idea as to how much it should cost your family).</p>
<p>I know a kid who was accepted ED at Northwestern, but they expected a hefty contribution from his father (never was married to his mother, wasn’t involved financially in his upbringing, refused to pay anything towards college), and NWU gave him a non-custodial parent waiver <em>after</em> his ED acceptance and his initial (un-doable) aid offer. </p>
<p>My son’s best friend applied ED to Carleton. He got an aid offer that reflected the salary and assets of his two professional parents, but wasn’t a sum that practically they could pay (maintaining two homes, etc.), and his aid award was substantially increased <em>after</em> his ED acceptance and initial aid offer, too.</p>
<p>Of course you can’t count on it, but it’s not as though it never happens that an ED offer will improve on appeal.</p>
<p>i would still attend this school, regardless whether they give me aid or not. but the simple fact that I apply for aid will not be a disadvantage at an ivy league school correct?</p>
<p>The majority of the Ivies are need blind to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. This means if you are a citizen or permanent resident, your ability to pay will not be an issue in admissions. Some schools (Columbia, Cornell and Penn of the top of my head) are not need blind to international students. If you are an international student, you ability to pay may be a factor in admissions.</p>