<p>Lehigh met my EFC on the dot, but some of it is work-study. No loans. I'm not complaining, I wasn't expecting anything, but I got a MUCH better package from another school of the same caliber, so no Lehigh for me.</p>
<p>How did everybody else's financial aid turn out?</p>
<p>I've received a $3500 unsubsidized Stafford loan to every school do far. Thats it. No other financial aid. Some scholarships to other school, don't know about Lehigh though. Yeah, my parents make good money, and my mom is remarried now so I guess I have three sources of money, but it's still a hell of a lot of money :(</p>
<p>I guess what I expected was that I would do well in high school and reap the benefits of grueling hours of AP, honors and college credit courses through my college financial awards. What I have learned is that most money goes to need based students and those who do well are accepted but are not rewarded financially. It's a little frustrating....</p>
<p>I got about 40 grand a year....34 of it was from the Lehigh grant, 2 from work study, some 2g loan, and some 1g loan reduction grant </p>
<p>My parents joint income is only around 50 grand so i guess thats why i got so much...</p>
<p>Snell 64,
I understand your frustration. And I know you are so right about the grueling hours of AP/honors/college courses to do well in high school - I've seen the same thing in my s. Be proud of your hard work. I hope it pays off for you in more ways than one in the future. (Just wanted to send you some words of encouragement!)</p>
<p>Thanks Janlake, I really need those words now. I am so excited to be excepted but then realize that financially I don't know if I can afford to go to some of the schools I applied to. I wish I could do the admission process over again and perhaps apply to different schools where I had a chance to receive more money. This whole process was an education for my family and me and they have been so supportive.</p>
<p>Thanks again for your encouragement!</p>
<p>I got 20k in grant, 3.5k in loan, 1.5k in work study. I'm on the border between Lehigh and my state school. I'm probably gonna wait for some other colleges.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that what you receive this year may not be what you receive next year. While very generous the first year (get you in the door) each subsequent year my son's aid decreased but his GPA did not.
Just a heads up when deciding if you will attend Lehigh or not.</p>
<p>I got 8K in grants, and some other amount in loans. I feel the exact same as you snell64. I received my letter, and after dinner my mom suggested I go relax, so I rode my bike into the woods and freaked out by myself for a little bit.</p>
<p>Laxmom,
Would you say that is typical of most colleges or do you think this is specific to Lehigh? Does Lehigh have a "reputation" for doing that?</p>
<p>Laxmom I was just looking at that! A web site my school offers has information about each college. I was looking at Lehigh's FA stuff and First year students received more money overall then returning students. I thought it was a fluke or something. Very interesting. This will play a big factor in my decisions.</p>
<p>I think it's typical of many schools. They get you to commit with a very generous package hoping you like it which would make it harder to transfer out when the smaller packages are offered in years 2 - 3 and 4.
It happened with my oldest son too - he went to a small LAC in PA.</p>
<p>Off to grad school now and we won't have to worry about it anymore :)</p>
<p>Good luck to all who've been admitted and decide to attend. We've had a great 4 years at Lehigh and I would recommend it to anyone.</p>
<p>shortlived: Did you feel any better? Maybe I'll try that too!! My intention is not to bring the board down, I'm venting my frustration! My parents make a decent salary combined, nothing extravagant, but yet the government seems to know better then us how much we can afford!!</p>
<p>Laxmom: Does that mean my grant could go even lower next year?!</p>
<p>"I wish I could do the admission process over again and perhaps apply to different schools where I had a chance to receive more money. This whole process was an education for my family and me and they have been so supportive."</p>
<p>Ditto snell64. Couldn't agree more. Honestly, the first time the phrase 'financial safety' sunk in, was at a financial aid seminar at my high school, after all the apps were done. Beware class of 2013....plan ahead...and perhaps even pay for an advisor to help guide you in the process. It's all such a game, which stinks because I too focused my whole academic life on making my way to the top to gain more opportunities, thinking there were only certain schools that could provide that. Learning curve indeed. My Lehigh package seemed pretty good compared to the first 3 I received recently, until a classmate shared with me his package award yesterday. So much for scholarly distinction.</p>
<p>.."Laxmom: Does that mean my grant could go even lower next year?!.."</p>
<p>It could. That's why each year you have to fill out financial aid forms. Your parents' income/assets could change, your income/assets could change, your GPA could drop, which will affect certain grants...It's not exclusive to Lehigh.</p>
<p>snell64, a felt a little better. Ranting is good, and I completely agree. Middle class all the way!</p>