EFC Differs By Schools?

<p>Very helpful. Thanks! Out of the non-HYP ivies, which is most likely to grant the most amount of aid?</p>

<p>As we have been saying, it is impossible to say without knowing each college’s methodology and the specifics of your family financial situation. There are some schools that really hit up a lot of things such as 401K sheltered money, but if you don’t have that, but, say have siblings in Catholic K-8, I know some schools that will take that into account in their formulas. You can look at the listings as to which schools are considered OVERALL the most generous but that does not mean it will be the most generous to you specifically.</p>

<p>Outside of HYP, it’s really hard to say.</p>

<p>There can be other factors other than just your income/assets and family contribution. Some schools include loans in their packages, some only put small loans, and some put no loans at all. Some schools cap how much of a family’s equity they will consider. And…Some schools are more generous if your stats are really high for their school. </p>

<p>But of your list, other than HYP, I would guess (and this is just a guess), that Amherst would be the most generous.</p>

<p>What are your stats?</p>

<p>2310 SAT (770M, 740 W, 800 CR), 3.98 UW GPA at Public MD School, Decent ECs, no subject tests yet.</p>

<p>Stanford has the most generous need based aid I’ve heard about.</p>

<p>This was very interesting to me. I plugged my numbers into the financial aid calculators located on both the websites of Stanford and Princeton. Stanford said that my EFC was about $23,000 whereas Princeton said that I would pay full tuition. Can anyone provide me with insight into this situation?</p>

<p>Hmmmm…</p>

<p>Are you saying that Princeton said that you’d get no aid at all? You said “full tuition” …did you mean full cost of attendance? Did it say that your family contribution would be about $55k?</p>

<p>Check your numbers. There may be a mistake. I didn’t think Stanford’s and Princeton’s aid would be so different. You may have inputted something wrong/different. Did you include all assets? Did you add back in any 401k contributions for the year?</p>

<p>*Stanford has the most generous need based aid I’ve heard about. *</p>

<p>That may be, but my cousin is going there in the fall and got nothing. One parent works - airline pilot. So good income, but not super high income.</p>

<p>Sorry yes. We would get nothing from Princeton. I’m 95% sure that the numbers are correct (I’ve triple checked them) - I’m going to assume that it’s a glitch in the calculator.</p>

<p>Also, one school that I’m strongly considering is Wharton (at UPenn). If I decide to apply ED to Penn, how close would the cost of it compare to Stanford? Also, if accepted early would I be forced to attend even if they offered me no aid? Thanks!</p>

<p>Do not apply ED to any school that you’re not sure that you can afford to attend. </p>

<p>How much will your parents pay each year? If that amount is not the same or similar to what your likely family contribution would be, then applying ED would be a mistake.</p>

<p>UPenn does NOT give generous aid like Stanford does. Not at all. It’s aid would be more like Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, and Columbia’s aid.</p>

<p>I think Dartmouth has a calculator…try it.</p>

<p>Thanks! Dartmouth’s is down at the moment, and none of the other non-HYPS schools seem to have them. My only concern is that I’m a legacy at UPenn, and I’ve been told that legacy admits are at a huge disadvantage by applying RD rather than ED.</p>

<p>^^^</p>

<p>That may be true…but what good will it do you to get admitted to UPenn if they expect your family to pay a lot more than they will? </p>

<p>Remember, if you get admitted, you have to withdraw your other apps. You won’t be able to compare offers. </p>

<p>Before applying ED to any school, you need to have a good idea of what they’ll expect your family to pay. you also need to know how much your family will pay.</p>

<p>I’ve forgotten if you’ve mentioned this…how much WILL your parents pay each year? if you don’t know, ask.</p>

<p>They’re willing to pay sticker price, but I would feel guilty by doing this to them.</p>

<p>Well, then, you don’t have to worry about an unaffordable family contribution.</p>

<p>However, you’re either going to have to get over “feeling guilty” or decide to attend a school that would be less expensive. You can’t have it both ways. :)</p>

<p>If your parents are willing to pay sticker price (about $55k per year) that could suggest that you wouldn’t qualify for any aid at UPenn. So, be prepared for that. :)</p>

<p>Penn’s aid is much less generous than that at HYPS. Dartmouth is the most generous after those 4, but HYPS are in a class of their own. I am surprised at your Princeton vs. Stanford results. From what I’ve seen, Stanford counts home equity while Stanford does not.</p>

<p>“So, the top 25% of their students have either an ACT 36 or a SAT 2390. Those in the mid-range have high stats, too. To have a decent chance (no guarantees of course), then you should have scores in the upper range.”</p>

<p>Princeton gets a lot of high stats kids, but of course this is a huge overstatement. For kids entering college in 2009, there were a total of 1019 who scored 2390 or 2400 on the SAT, or 36 composite on the ACT.</p>

<p>You can’t go by that since these schools “super score.”</p>

<p>RupertPupjin
Pomona is a rare full need with NO LOANS schools. They are not as generous as HYPS but take a look at their FA page
[Typical</a> Aid: What Can I Expect? - Pomona College](<a href=“http://www.pomona.edu/administration/financial-aid/faqs/typical-aid-packages.aspx]Typical”>http://www.pomona.edu/administration/financial-aid/faqs/typical-aid-packages.aspx)</p>

<p>Families at $160,000 are still eligible for aid (note caveat that most families above $140,000 receive aid due to multiple children in college). My DD got a great package from them - but did not choose to attend.</p>

<p>“You can’t go by that since these schools “super score.””</p>

<p>Yes, it’s true that Princeton super-scores for the SAT, although think that at the very top of the score range this has little impact on the number of people represented. There is no superscore of the ACT. </p>

<p>But the the part that makes your statement about the top 25% at Princeton being 2390 nonsensical is the presumption that the 790 CRs are the same group that are also getting an 800 M and 800 W. If that were the case, you’d have about the same number of people getting 2400s as you do 800s.</p>