<p>Hello there! I LOVE Swarthmore, and in an ideal world, that's where I would go. However, money is a concern. I just wanted to ask around and see if you guys were satisfied with the amount of financial aid you received. If not, do you intend to appeal, or have you known anyone who has done the same? And has it made a difference?</p>
<p>Thank you very much. I'd appreciate any sort of response, especially advice on how to approach the subject with the Financial Aid Office.</p>
<p>Mine is a bit lower than I expected, so my parents and I have been negotiating with them for weeks, and it's gotten a little better, certainly. I haven't gotten much more money but they've helped with extra no-interest or very low-interest loans. :]</p>
<p>Basically, it can't hurt to talk to them. If you really want to go to Swat, they will work as hard as they can to accomodate you. If you applied to another school on the same level as Swat that gave you a better package, you can always use that to negotiate. You might want to talk to a counselor about it first though. Good luck!! :]</p>
<p>Before calling the financial aid office, you should put together:</p>
<p>a) a list of need-based aid offers from other schools.</p>
<p>b) any additional information that Swat may have missed in calculating your aid (for example, a father who provides no support, etc.). If you have a significantly higher need-based package, you might be asked to fax the details so Swat can see how it was calculated.</p>
<p>Remember that Swarthmore aid is need-based. So, throwing merit aid packages at them probably isn't going to generate much response.</p>