<p>I am applying early decision to Vanderbilt this year. My family income has been very low. Do I have a chance of getting a good financial aid package or is it going to be less because I am applying early and am already sold on the school?</p>
<p>You need to call Vandy and ask how they handle home equity.</p>
<p>I remember that your family has a home worth about $400k with no mortgage and an income of about $10k per year.</p>
<p>Vandy may wonder how your family lives on such a low income, pays property taxes, food, utilities, etc on such a low income. They may suspect that your family has hidden income/assets.</p>
<p>How do you live on such a low income?</p>
<p>what? if my family has an average income of about $60,000 how will that come into play?</p>
<p>From here: [Project</a> on Student Debt: Institution Details](<a href=“http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_view.php?idx=62]Project”>http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_view.php?idx=62)</p>
<p>Vanderbilt University
For all students, after the family covers any EFC, the program covers the remaining student budget with work-study and grant aid.
For all students. . . 2009-10 Estimated Student Budget
After the family covers any EFC, the program provides enough work-study and grant aid to cover these expenses<br>
Tuition & Fees $39,228
Books & Supplies $1,292
Room & Board $12,650
Transportation & Personal Expenses $2,198
Total Expenses: $55,368 </p>
<p>About the Financial Aid Pledge (2009-10):
Who qualifies for the pledge (in addition to common requirements)?
All students.</p>
<p>How is EFC determined and used?
Institutional methodology. The family is expected to cover any EFC, including a minimum student contribution from summer earnings of $1,200 for freshmen.</p>
<p>How much academic year work and/or need-based loans are included?
Freshmen typically receive $2,000 in work-study and returning students, $2,300. No loans.</p>
<p>Does the offer account for the full student budget?
Yes.</p>
<p>How are outside scholarships handled?
Outside scholarships reduce the work expectation.</p>
<p>For more information:
Vanderbilt Expanded Aid Program</p>
<p>About the Institution (2007-08):
Location: Nashville, TN
Type: Private 4-year
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,688
Pell Grant recipients (a measure of low-income enrollment): 12%
Proportion of graduating seniors with student debt: 38%
Average debt: $19,839</p>
<p>(this is an interesting link too: [Project</a> on Student Debt: What’s the Bottom Line?](<a href=“http://www.projectonstudentdebt.org/ncoa_chart.php]Project”>http://www.projectonstudentdebt.org/ncoa_chart.php)).</p>
<p>Vanderbilt claims to meet full need. They determine your “need” by institutional methodology. You may be out of luck if your parents can’t afford to pay their EFC. It is possible that another school would define your need differently (and offer a more generous aid package), but you wouldn’t find this out if you applied and were accepted ED.</p>
<p>thank you! that was very helpful</p>
<p>what? if my family has an average income of about $60,000 how will that come into play?</p>
<p>Do I have you confused with another student? I thought you were the student who recently wrote that you have a very low income and high equity. But that may be another student. Sorry. :(</p>
<p><a href=“I%20fall%20in%20the%20range%20for%20ACT%20scores%20and%20GPA”>I</a>.*</p>
<p>What do you mean by this? Do you mean that you fall within the mid 50 range of students?</p>
<pre><code>Middle 50% of First-Year Students
</code></pre>
<p>SAT Critical Reading: 660 - 750
SAT Math: 690 - 770<br>
SAT Writing: 660 - 750<br>
ACT Composite: 30 - 34</p>
<p>If your family has run the financial aid calulators (institutional and FAFSA) and their financials don’t fluxuate form year to year and they dont have a personal business that can be valued differently by different colleges…and they are comfortable paying the amount they are seeing on the calculators then there shouldn’t be any huge surprises outside of an acceptance or a rejection. Are you sensing they are concerned or were they reluctant to sign the ED agreement?</p>
<ol>
<li>I scored a 32 on the ACT.</li>
<li>They are concerned that I may not get as much financial aid here as other places and were hesitant because we can’t compare packages. However they did sign the agreement, so at this point what happens happens</li>
</ol>
<p>Yes you do give up that ability to compare. Make sure you have a plan B in place in case Vandy doesn’t pan out or you have to pull the trigger on other applications. Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>Vandy absolutely meets need. I know this because my D attends Vandy & we receive excellent aid, with no loans. The cost of attendance is well-padded, meaning that those who are financially conservative will find that their actual costs are lower than the estimated costs (which makes it even more affordable). Vandy does use Profile, so those who have a lot of assets or who have businesses may not be as happy with their aid as we are. </p>
<p>The hard part is getting in. Once you are in, it really is affordable. Since there are no loans, if your parents have trouble affording the amount they are expected to pay (because it probably will not be “free”), you will be able to borrow unsubsidized student loans to assist ($5500 freshman year).</p>
<p>Run your family’s financial information through the College Board’s IM calculator. Another post-er told me that Vandy’s aid office told her that this will give you a close estimate of your EFC for Vandy.</p>
<p>Everyone’s situation is different, so I can’t say that you will for sure be happy with your aid package. As ED goes, though, I would think that Vandy is one of the safer bets from a financial aid standpoint.</p>
<p>Kelsmom, you’ll start a stampede to Vandy!</p>
<p>Remember … ivy financial aid is even better! :)</p>
<p>Makes me wish I would have ridden herd on the kids alittle more :-)</p>
<p>Once you are in, it really is affordable. Since there are no loans, if your parents have trouble affording the amount they are expected to pay (because it probably will not be “free”), **you will be able to borrow unsubsidized student loans to assist<a href=“$5500%20freshman%20year”>/B</a>.</p>
<p>As long as your parents are reasonably sure that they can afford whatever Vandy determines their “family contribution” to be, it’s affordable. If not, it isn’t.</p>
<p>Obviously, if your family can only afford $20k per year, and Vandy thinks they can afford $35k, then it will be a problem because a $5500 student loan won’t fill that $15k per year gap.</p>
<p>Do you know what your likely family contribution will be using institutional methodology?</p>
<p>@OP, "Do I have a chance of getting a good financial aid package or is it going to be less because I am applying early and am already sold on the school? "</p>
<p>Of the schools I applied to last year, Vandy was in the middle of the pack as far as total aid. They provided almost exactly what my FAFSA EFC predicted. However, since Vanderbilt would NOT negotiate (as several other schools DID) you probably will get ostensibly the same mediocre FA package ED or RD. Also, with a 32 ACT, it is possible you will be deferred, so make sure you send out plenty of other apps so that you can get the best FA deal. If you have the stats and you liked Vandy, you will probably like Duke and Washington University also … (maybe Wake Forest as a safety),
Good luck,</p>
<p>Also, with a 32 ACT, it is possible you will be deferred, so make sure you send out plenty of other apps so that you can get the best FA deal.</p>
<p>I agree…and also apply to some financial safety schools that will give assured merit for stats.</p>
<p>They provided almost exactly what my FAFSA EFC predicted.</p>
<hr>
<p>And here is where you will have to decide for yourself if ED makes sense. I think that a school that provides almost exactly what the FAFSA EFC predicted is a safe bet for ED. However, that is because I am willing/able to pay that EFC. If your parents are not willing/able to pay that EFC, then NO … do NOT apply ED. </p>
<p>When we took only tuition/room/board and only grants/scholarships and compared aid packages, we found Vandy to be the best. The merit scholarships stay static (unless tied to “tuition” rather than being a set amount), but the need based aid will increase with tuition/room/board increases (assuming EFC does not rise). In addition, merit scholarships often have a GPA requirement, while need based aid does not (other than satisfactory academic progress requirements).</p>