<p>Hi guys, I'm applying to a bunch of universities on the East Coast (eg. Boston University, Fordham University, NYU, etc.) I live with a single parent whose AGI is $32,000, which is our only source of income aside from my minimum wage job. I also have a younger sibling. I am also Puerto Rican/Mexican.</p>
<p>Let's say I have great chances of being admitted to these universities without the need for financial aid in mind. The basic question is this: Will my chances of being admitted be affected by my family income? If so, by how much?</p>
<p>Yes. None of these schools meet 100% of need and reserve their money for their most desirable candidates. You may get in but may not get the money you need. Being gaped–being given some aid but not enough to attend-is very common at all 3. If you have good stats, you should focus on schools that meet 100% of need.</p>
<p>I do have a question for the OP…If you need financial aid to attend…what good would it do for you to be accepted without it?</p>
<p>I believe the schools you have listed are need blind for admissions…meaning your finances are not taken into consideration when they decide admissions. BUT none of these schools guarantees to meet the full financial need of accepted students. As pointed out above, you may find yourself with a “gap” between what the school gives you for aid, and what it will cost you to attend.</p>
<p>These are fine schools. I do hope you have additional schools on your list that are financially reachable for your family.</p>
<p>I will have some local scholarships, an AFROTC scholarship, and I will be working during most of my free time. The question is not whether I will end up paying for tuition - it is whether or not my family income will affect my admission decision.</p>
<p>If the schools are need blind for admissions…that means that they will NOT be looking at your financial aid situation when making admissions decisions. The only place where the schools see your family income is ON the financial aid forms. For need blind schools…the look at this separately from admissions.</p>
<p>If you have an AFROTC scholarship, I’d make sure these schools know. Several school have suddenly stopped being need blind give their financial woes. Letting them know you have the money can help.</p>
<p>Very few schools are need-blind and I’m not sure if these are. If they are not need-blind, your chances of being admitted will be affected by your ability to pay.</p>
<p>Please do NOT say you don’t need FA and then try to get it after the fact. You may increase your chances of being admitted but you will get no aid and then you will be frustrated that you got in but couldn’t afford it (or worse, tried to take out loans to afford it). Be honest in the application process.</p>
<p>What if a candidate’s financial situation changes? For example, what if I were admitted ED without applying for any aid because my dad is rich. Let’s then assume he loses his job and can’t find another one for a while. Can a sophomore apply for financial aid on grounds that didn’t exist when he or she applied as a freshman?</p>
<p>“Hi guys, I’m applying to a bunch of universities on the East Coast (eg. Boston University, Fordham University, NYU, etc.) I live with a single parent whose AGI is $32,000, which is our only source of income aside from my minimum wage job. I also have a younger sibling. I am also Puerto Rican/Mexican.”</p>
<p>OP, what’s more important than admission is whether if admitted, you’d get the aid you need to attend the college. While some colleges do reject high need students, it’s still very possible to get admitted, but not to get the large amount of financial aid that you’d need. </p>
<p>I hope you’re also applying to in state public universities that you know you can afford. Very few colleges are able to meet the full financial need of all students they accept, and most of those colleges are places like Stanford and Harvard, which are among the country’s most difficult to gain acceptance to. The only public universities promising to meet full financial need are UVA, UNC and perhaps William and Mary.</p>
<p>The greater your financial need, the less the possibility that colleges will be able to meet your full need. Some colleges that meet full need do so by offering unrealistically large loans such as $20 k a year in loans.</p>
<p>NYU is notorious for not being able to meet students’ financial need. I am not sure, but I don’t think that the other schools you mention are able to meet the full need of all students that they accept. I know, for instance, a student who needed about $35 k a year in aid (and got that aid from a top 10 university), but was offered only $3,000 in aid from NYU.</p>
<p>Most students in the U.S. attend public colleges within 250 miles of their home. That’s because doing so is the most affordable option.</p>