<p>“Brown meets the full demonstrated need of accepted freshman applicants who meet all published financial aid deadlines. Depending on the student’s demonstrated need, financial aid is then awarded sequentially to meet the need. Loans are awarded first. If the loan threshold is met and student still demonstrates need, then student employment is awarded. Beyond this threshold, any remaining need is met with scholarship and/or grant aid.”</p>
<p>Okay, so Brown is definitely my top choice and I’d like to apply early decision. However, I’m uncertain on whether I can afford the school. Brown says they meet all your need but then says that loans are awarded first. Do you think if financial aid is of very high concern to me that I should apply RD instead to avoid a contract? Or do I hurt my chances of getting into my top choice this way? And could someone help clarify Brown’s language in the above statement?</p>
<p>no they're not, but if you make under 100k, i think you don't get loans. Instead you get all scholarship money. My family makes more than that so I'm not sure if i'm getting good financial aid but i'm applying early anyway</p>
<p>A lot of this depends entirely on your family circumstances. Have you run an EFC calculator? Brown gave my daughter something close to that and a no loan package as well. There is an EFC calculator on this site.</p>
<p>Brown will basically fill in the blank to your EFC. Whether you'll get some of that money in federal loans or not is Brown specific and the numbers above are correct.</p>
<p>"if your family makes less than $250,000 you will probably be in good shape for financial aid at brown"</p>
<p>Dcircle has said ridiculous things like this before, even to me personally.. I have tried to explain to him/her that this is not the case as s/he is clearly misunderstanding data released this year about the new financial aid policy at Brown, but it doens't seem to make a difference.</p>
<p>Brown is definetly my top choice. However, I did not get fantastic grades in 9th and 10th grade, therefore my GPA/rank isn't as high as it could be at a very competititve public high school. This is why I want to apply ED, to enhance my chances, is this bad logic?</p>
<p>Also, financial aid is a very big concern of mine. My family makes less much less than $60,000 a year however, my father owns two houses (one bought a little less than two years ago), so that might offset our "assets" or whatever. </p>
<p>ethician, you need to complete the online financial aid calculators, using the institutional method, and see what the numbers look like. You can also call the financial aid office and ask them. If your family income is under $60,000, then you qualify for lots of financial aid and no loans. Assets might complicate that -- but we can't help you on that since we don't know all the specifics.</p>
<p>The paragraph in your OP seems outdated. As franglish said, look at the new policy. </p>
<p>Brown does not accept students ED using lower standards than RD. So if your grades are not strong, then applying ED is not going to help you there. Remember that many of the ED acceptances go to athletes and legacies and development cases.</p>
<p>Plainsman - I can answer your question. My family is in the same situation. My parents bought our primary house 20+ years ago and have payed off the mortage completely, and my grandmother 20+ years ago bought a beach house. Up until a few years ago, our extended family shared the beach house (rotated weekends), but everyone but my family used it less and less. For some complicated tax/ financial paperwork reason that I still don't understand, my grandmother gifted the beach house to us, so it's in our name even though we didn't buy it. Alright, that's the first part. The second is that my father left his well paying job for a multitude of reasons and is now a self-employed luthier (makes acoustic guitars), hence, a significant income drop.</p>
<p>I personally think it would be irresponsible for a family earning less than 60k a year to keep buying up houses (unless their in the buying and selling real estate market, or have very strange life long dreams of making "Monopoly" a real life game), but sometimes, it just works out that you're a low income family with muptiple houses.</p>
<p>alfredeneuman-- I happen to be looking for a new acoustic right now. Does your dad have a webpage or some information on his work? Prices on what he does? Etc. PM me.</p>
<p>obstinate: development cases are people with lots of money, who could donate enough to fund a new building. </p>
<p>As to how a family could own 2 houses on a moderate income: I know 3 families faced with this issue, all of whom inherited houses from family members or share vacation homes with family members. The situation for all 3 resulted in either no or limited financial aid.</p>
<p>However, like everyone in this thread said, plug it into the EFC calculator. That'll get you pretty close. It may be that Brown considers the second house a luxury, unlike a first house, and would consider the equity of the home as it does savings and expect a percentage of that value to go towards college. Quite frankly, if you can afford to get some money from the bank by mortgaging the second house and having monthly payments that are affordable, then you have the money to pay for college, it would just suck.</p>
<p>Brown's policies in general are designed to make it possible to pay for college, not necessarily easy.</p>