Hang in there @XxMU51CxX – you may get something good from SMTD because their scholarships are “need informed.”
@brantly oh wow I had no idea! Okay okay now I know that thanks! I thought that was okay to use since my cousin who went to Yale but got accepted to Harvard literally told me they negotiated with Yale to lower their tuition since Harvard was offering more finaid.
@choirsandstages I really hope so! crosses fingers Between this week and next I will know for sure, the wait is killing me! D:
On my wolverine access portal, I have a tab that says accept/decline financial aid. Since the aid notice I received earlier this month was just an estimate, I would like to wait until I get my official aid award notice before I accept anything. Does anyone know when the official award notice will be received? Also will waiting to see if there are any changes to my aid package result in any negative consequences? Thanks.
I got my estimated award notice and my official was sent the week later. If my case is anything like yours, it will come very soon.
@XxMU51CxX He might have use the word “negotiate” as a short cut when retelling the story, but that doesn’t mean he used that language when he spoke to the FA office. Basically, they do not negotiate. They will however take a second, closer look if you point out certain things to them. The exact phrase is “professional judgment,” meaning they can decide – outside of any preset formulas – whether they think you are in need of greater FA. But they do not consider it a negotiation.
Has anyone gotten their financial aid estimate after sending in the additional documents that they requested on the portal a week ago? Kind of anxious because without the aid, umich can be a really tough choice to make…
@collegefan909124 The official one should be sent in May, however, it may or may not be final. My D received 3 more revisions afterward 2 years ago. It will be updated once they have fixed the new tuition rate, R&B cost, or any scholarship reported. The final version came in July when everything settled.
@PShuan My aid estimate came roughly a week after all of my documents had been processed. Good luck 
@billcsho what about music? I know they are on their own timeline…I’m just wondering if we will get the full picture of the financial aid package from them all at once, or will the merit info come first (and separately from any awards based on need)?
@choirsandstages Hi again. If it helps you at all, my need-based financial aid summary came first, separate from merit. My merit scholarship from STAMPS will come this week. I also haven’t received an official letter yet via snail mail so I guess STAMPS notified the office of fin aid of the incoming money.
My financial aid information was updated this morning. How do I know if it’s an estimate or the official notice?
Click the tab that says Award Notices. The link that you click to see your award will say either Estimated Award Notice or Official Award Notice.
@StillWaitingHere
Unexpectedly grand FA for OOS! Provosts Award and all need met. And unlike other universities, no unsubsidized loans or PLUS loans.
@choirsandstages Music school merit aid may show up anytime. I know a music performance major got admitted on April 30 with the scholarship notice the same day. It may be a back up plan though (perhaps someone declined the offer). In most cases, the large scholarship award notice should come before the estimated FA package and it should be included in the package, however, they may still throw in additional grant/scholarship in the official FA package later on. They did replace all loan and workstudy with grant on my D’s freshmen official FA package two years ago.
ok thanks! it’s currently not showing up in my awards notices yet, it’s only in awards summary.
@billcsho Thank you! Do you remember approx when your daughter’s merit offer came from SMTD? I just hope to hear of an earlier example than April 30th… 
My daughter received her acceptance on Feb 19, so we’ve been waiting awhile. Also, did the replacement of loans and work study with grants occur without you asking them for it?
@choirsandstages My D is in CoE, not SMTD. I do know some students in Music school though. As I said, the timing for merit scholarship there very a lot. It is less predictable than LSA or CoE.
As for the grant. Yes, they replaced the loan and workstudy in the official aid package voluntarily. After that, my D got a couple more external scholarships and they simply offset the amount by reducing the grant (as there was no loan or workstudy left).
Thank you @billcsho ! I appreciate your input.
My d was also accepted to SMTD and we have nothing on financial aid yet. It’s hard to make decisions without knowing the bottom line.
One of my friends checked his “official financial aid award” notice from last year. It was dated March 27, 2015. The may or may not be an indication of when they will be issued last year. He was admitted EA to LSA in December.