Hey guys, I have a few questions.
I recently found out I was admitted to the University of Chicago. Due to the location of my dad’s new job, my parents will be moving an hour away or so, and my mom will lose her job (for reference, ~40,000). My EFC is ~34,000. That was not reflected on our financial aid award. Is it likely that U of C will be willing to renegotiate? Would they be willing to renegotiate after I commit, or should I wait? I feel a lot of pressure to commit because of the way priority housing works – there are some dorms that I really, really want to get into, and they’re filling up.
What’s my play here? Also, sort of related, but when are National Merit scholarships awarded? UChicago automatically ups them to 4000, and they’d be a big help.
As for your mom’s job, UChi will likely wait until your mom looks for a new job in the new area. They’re not going to just assume that she won’t find another job.
When will your parents be moving? Will your dad be earning more at his new job?
You can tell UChi what will happen, but usually schools wait. They don’t want to award more aid in case your mom finds a job quickly after her current job ends.
Are you asking about the one time 2500 NMF award? That is only for ONE YEAR…and it’s only given to 2500 of the 15000 NMFs. Also, be aware that the money awarded will go towards your aid, it won’t reduce the amount that your parents have to pay.
Your financial aid for the 2016-2017 school year was based on your parents’s 2015 earnings.
Also, this job loss has not yet happened. Schools do not make financial aid adjustments based on future job loss.
Once your mom actually loses her job, you could ask the school if they would reconsider. You would need to show documentation that she no longer has a job. I’m not sure how this would work since this is a voluntary job loss…not a layoff.
You don’t mention whether your dad’s incime will increase at his new job. Is that possible?
In any event, mom2 is right…most colleges will not do a special circumstances consideration until a period of time after the job loss…because the parent could actually get a new job.
My parents really dont keep me informed on their finances. I imagine he will be making more. Everything you guys said about them holding off makes sense. Thanks!
@mom2collegekids here is UChicago’s page on scholarships: https://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/costs/scholarships. It looks like it’s a 4 year thing, but I can’t tell if it’s additional to my financial award for Chicago or cuts into it.
Ok, so for sure you’ll get a $4k per year award for being a NMF. You’ll need to ask how that will be applied. Generally it is applied to need, but that can either mean the school will reduce loans, work study or grants. You need to ask them.
what are your parents saying about how much they will pay for UChi now with their new situation? Will they pay the $34k per year? If not, how much will they pay per year?
IF the school reconsiders your financial aid, they will be reviewing your entire situation, including your dad’s new, and probably higher, income. They won’t just subtract your mom’s.
@mom2collegekids I think they can pay in the high 20s, low 30s. Hopefully I’ll get the scholarship. But they really don’t tell me and my siblings anything about their income.
Just to be clear, you meant the 50% of national merit finalists who get an award, right? Not just any NMF?
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Just to be clear, you meant the 50% of national merit finalists who get an award, right? Not just any NMF?
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I dont know what you’re asking.
2500 NMFs out of the 15,000 NMFS get a one time 2500 award from NMCorp.
It appears that UChi gives a NMF award to all their incoming freshmen who are NMFs. Is that true?
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think they can pay in the high 20s, low 30s.
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This in not the time to be “thinking.” This is the time to be “knowing.” Your parents do not have to tell you your income, but they do need to tell you if they can pay the $34k per year that UChi expects. If they say, “no, we can’t pay that much,” then you need to ask, “Can you pay $25k per year?” If they say, “no, we can’t pay $25k per year,” then ask them other amounts: $20k? $15? $10?
If they can’t pay at least $25k per year, then UChi likely will not be affordable.
Have you gotten your aid pkg? If so, what is the breakdown of the aid and amounts.
Roughly 7500 out of 15000 National Merit Finalists win an award. UChicago seems to be upping any of those awards to 4000 dollars per year. I’d imagine the other 7500 NMFs dont get the $4000 from UChicago, because they didn’t get the award in the first place.
UChicago gave 34.5k in grants, and roughly 4k is on me for work study/summer jobs. The cost is about 34k per year. Not including NMF money, should I get it.
I think my financial situation will be settled – my mom is definitely going to get a new job. Really grateful she’s going to sacrifice for a few more years for me.
I am still curious about whether or not I currently qualify for a merit award at UChicago though.
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Roughly 7500 out of 15000 National Merit Finalists win an award. UChicago seems to be upping any of those awards to 4000 dollars per year. I’d imagine the other 7500 NMFs dont get the $4000 from UChicago, because they didn’t get the award in the first place.
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No…you misunderstand.
IF you are a NMF you WILL get $ each year from U of Chicago. If it has been increased to $4000/ year then congrats. I thought it was $1000/yr- $4000 total.
what ever the annual amount , it will be split in 3rds, and credited to your college acct just before the start of each qtr.
. “If you are a finalist in this competition, simply report to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation that the University of Chicago is your first-choice school. National merit finalists will receive a minimum award of $4,000 per year renewable for four years from either UChicago or an outside source; in cases where a student receives a National Merit scholarship sponsored by an outside source that is less than $4,000, the University of Chicago will make up the difference between this award and our minimum National Merit award (for example, we would provide an additional $3,000 per year to a student who receives a $1,000 per year National Merit scholarship sponsored by a company or organization).”
https://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/costs/scholarships
@menloparkmom So I got it!! That’s great! I was just really confused because people throw around “National Merit Finalists” and “National Merit Scholars” all the time and often mean different things.
@mom2collegekids Where did I stumble? Is it in thinking that only 7500/15000 would get money at UChicago and that it’s actually apparently all 15000 NMFs?