<p>I know it varies widely, but should we assume an award would be close? </p>
<p>Starting my part time stripper career shortly...</p>
<p>I envy u that u have the booty to be a stripper, but meth cook pays better ;)</p>
<p>Great storyline for Breaking Bad. Walt needs to pay for BS…</p>
<p>Please someone chime in and tell me they’ve had an award of more than their EFC. Just humor me.</p>
<p>More than the balance of their EFC, I meant. My brain is tired and having trouble making the think.</p>
<p>I think someone did say they were offered more than EFC, while other schools offered a lot less. My impression is the school was a Hidden Gem not one of the acronym schools, but good fit for the family.
So cast a wide net.</p>
<p>We were offered considerably more at one school, the exact EFC at another. I know neatoburrito’s kids got varying awards as well. I really think some of the schools just use the data from SSS and run their own formulas. There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to it anyway, so just ignore the EFC is my advice and panic/celebrate later as needed.</p>
<p>In our case our EFC was lower than what we said we could come up with. Some schools went with what we said we could pay, some what the EFC said (plus the amount they estimate you save by not feeding a teen for half the year) and still others more than either. I have seen a total of six awards from four schools. None “gapped” us.</p>
<p>“Panic/celebrate as needed” = prescription for March. :)</p>
<p>Can I just ask a quick question? Your son sounds absolutely perfect for BS ( and I know the school he’s applying to will think so, too). I understand he’s applying as a DS, but is it only this school or bust? The reason I ask is because it seems like a shame when such a strong candidate applies to only one school. I think there are many schools that would truly welcome his application.</p>
<p>Any chance you’d be open to a couple eleventh hour Skype interviews before the deadline arrives? Are you open to boarding?</p>
<p>Thanks, PMom, I think he’s pretty fab, too. :)</p>
<p>Boarding is off the table, for reasons I don’t want to go into here. Suffice it to say that we discussed the option ad nauseum when we discovered he was outside the day student area for his second choice school. He was on the fence but we ultimately all agreed it just wasn’t the right choice or the right time. (For him. No philosophical opposition to boarding or anything).</p>
<p>We did visit other schools in the area he could attend as a day student, but they just didn’t click for him. He is realistic about his odds, in applying only to one school (and this school in particular). His LPS is not a bad option, so he decided that if he is not admitted to Exeter he would reapply in a year. And that he preferred that idea to going to a school he wasn’t excited about. </p>
<p>Maybe if it doesn’t work out, he’d cast a wider net for 10th grade. :(</p>
<p>Boarding is not for everyone. You know your child and what will/won’t work for him. I do know some kids who applied as day students, even though they were outside the radius, then the family moved so they could attend as a day student. They made that clear on the during the application process. A thought, either for now or in the future.</p>
<p>I didn’t want to pry, but I truly understand. Be happy you didn’t open the boarding door just a little because we’d probably bombard you with suggestions and favorites- and trust me, you wouldn’t want that (even though everyone’s heart is in the right place. 
</p>
<p>You and your son have put so much energy into this application. Just know there will be a lot of people rooting for him M10.</p>
<p>Well, the good news is that if he does get into Exeter, you’ll probably pay less than the EFC–if only because of the additional, generous stipend for book and supplies, the grant for a computer, discounts on music lessons, etc. People talk about unexpected costs associated with boarding school but Exeter covers most of them. Travel has been the only exception (the shuttle prices kill me, not to mention the small window we have for flights each vacation), but those wouldn’t affect you at all. Well laundry, but I think even that is cheaper at Exeter than most schools–and again, not an expense you’d have.</p>
<p>@CM, that’s what I needed to hear! ;)</p>
<p>@photographermom, thanks again for the support. In some ways I am lucky to have a kid who is very in tune wih what he wants. It’s narrow, but at least we’re not wasting any effort on something that he won’t pursue?</p>
<p>Hey gang, follow-up question about the PFS…</p>
<p>DH and I were reviewing it last night (and you know, crying) and we realized that we hadn’t listed some medical costs associated with an emergency room visit this fall (out of pocket stuff). </p>
<p>It’s only a few hundred dollars. Worth adding in and editing the PFS or no? I have no idea how the math works for their formulas. </p>
<p>I can’t imagine it would reduce our EFC significantly. It just bugs me that it’s inaccurate. I’m a little OCD (hence, the library career).</p>
<p>I doubt it will change anything but put it in if it makes you feel better. I adjusted ours for something trivial, too. :-)</p>
<p>And I recommend making a statement if you feel that the EFC is out of your reach - explain any extenuating circumstances that may not be obvious in the numbers.</p>
<p>Yes to Mom of 7th grader. We always spend a lot of time succinctly outlining our particular financial situation in the comment section at the end of the PFS–I don’t think it made a bit of difference to SSS, but I’m guessing the school paid attention.</p>
<p>Here’s a new wrinkle - after completing our taxes, we realized that the minimal salary increases we both saw this year (like, not even really COLA they were so small), we have been bumped into a new tax bracket! SUPERYAY…This means that we are in that awesome place where the increased taxes far outweigh the salary increase. So we actually netted a lot less in 2013 after taxes than in 2012. Is this likely to help us or hurt us when it comes to FA? Our GA is up, but our take home is WAY down…</p>