<p>Can anyone give me an insight into how FA works for WL students? I know that schools admit more students than they can actually take - and they base on that number on their yields in previous years.</p>
<p>My question is, does it work the same way with FA? That is, do they award more FA than they actually have because they know that a certain % of accepted students who were awarded FA will decline? Or do they only offer the amount in their budget for the year - so that if any FA student declines their offer, some FA is opened up? If the second scenario is true, is that FA then available to students who come off the WL (if any come off)?</p>
<p>None of us know for sure, but I’m betting the answer is both 1 and 2, depending on the school and the year. I do know that the yield rate for FA students is higher than the yield rate for FP. I don’t think it’s impossible to come off the waitlist if you need FA, but I do think it’s another hurdle in the way.</p>
<p>It’s hard at most schools to get much aid coming off a WL.</p>
<p>It is, but it has happened for several CC parents. Not many, but it does mean to not lose hope if you’re waiting. At this point there’s little to lose by staying on the list and maintaining contact with the school.</p>
<p>I know this is a bit unrelated to the thread, but does anybody know what the chances are of coming off a wait list if you are FP?</p>
<p>massmom - I have been told by numerous directors (both last year and this year) that needing FA makes it “very difficult” to come off a waitlist. The director of FA at a school with an extremely large endowment put it this way, “historically, it doesn’t happen often.”</p>
<p>On the other hand, the last thing a school wants to do is underspend its FA budget. So let’s say that a FA kid bails, gets kicked out, whatever. There will be both a space and money. However, they could fill the space with a FP student and then reallocate the funds to existing FA acceptees who are petitioning for more. It really just depends on so many things.</p>
<p>When one considers how few kids come off waitlists at all, the odds of coming off a WL with FA are staggeringly low. This is why my daughter is, in her words, trying to “cobble something together that passes for high school” next year. Would she be eternally grateful to get a call? Of course! We just aren’t counting on it happening. Sometimes it just doesn’t matter how qualified or even what a great fit a student is. The school has to want them enough to pay for them. Do I think my daughter is worth the tuition? Absolutely! I’d pay it in a heartbeat if I could. But apparently, none of the schools think she is. Wow, that sounds really harsh, but it’s the really what it boils down to.</p>
<p>I’m grumpy today. (still) I probably shouldn’t post when I’m grumpy. :)</p>
<p>My advice to anyone on a waitlist (FP or otherwise) is to make other plans. Personally, I think my daughter has about the same chance of coming off a waitlist as she does of winning the lottery. No one called last year and I don’t expect anyone will this year either. </p>
<p>To her credit, when I apologized for not having the means to pay, she said that if I had dedicated her early childhood to pursuing the career that would pay for it, she may not be the same person. So while I can bemoan the fact that I can’t give her an appropriate education, I can take pride that I did give her the good sense to put things into perspective and realize that she has many things for which to be thankful.</p>
<p>Neato,
You have given your child so much and she deserves the best education; I suspect she is already getting it through you. Life is not always fair and it pains us parents to see our kids learn painful lessons at such a youthful age. I pray something opens for her. GL</p>
<p>Really, I’ve said it before… I’m essentially thinking of the WLs as soft rejects. I’m making plans for next year, trying to be optimistic about staying here… because I needed FA too. That just makes it that much harder to get off the waitlist. Good luck, neatoburrito!</p>