<p>Is anyone else here extremely concerned about the kind of financial aid packet they get from penn? I’m just afraid that since both of my parents work, we’ll fall into an income range where we won’t get any money, yet we can’t afford that. My mom took her job specifically to help pay for college, and now we realize that it might have pushed us out of the financial aid bracket. If money is a problem, what would the process be for negotiating with the Financial Aid office, or if worse comes to worse, asking to get out of the ED contract? How early do we have to rescind our applications to other schools if we find out that we get in?</p>
<p>I am concerned about GETTING IN right now...</p>
<p>Financial aid is another chapter in the book.</p>
<p>Well, of course there's the concern about getting in, but truthfully, getting in won't be good if my parents can't afford it. That creates a whole new nest of problems.</p>
<p>I think getting the chance to go to Penn would be worth being in debt for life. Besides, if you graduate from Penn, would you really have trouble paying off debt that you might incur from going there in the first place?</p>
<p>agree with ^</p>
<p>but u can get great opportunities from state schools too, u just have to work twice as hard to get on the same status as a Penn Grad...</p>
<p>what I mean is that many companies come to recruit u at Penn, whereas at another school, u have to go out and seek those offers</p>
<p>$160,000 is NOT an easy debt to pay off. Of course, I could hope of winning the regional scholarship in my area that's a full ride to any school of my choice, but that's just dreaming.</p>
<p>what? there is no way u will pay 160,000, u will get some form of aid. maybe some grants (albeit small amount from the govt, u will get some if u qualify). Penn also awards financial aid to many people making over 90K</p>
<p>Wasn't the whole, Harvard doing away w/ early admission thing so that people like you (bad financial situation) wouldn't be in a predicament ? Why did you apply ED if you had doubts about paying... If you get accepted, and get out of your ED, that'd be messed up... Kids (including me) would kill for that spot.</p>
<p>also, 160thou isnt a HUGE sum of money to pay off in the long run.</p>
<p>it can easily be done.</p>
<p>I'm not necessarily in a bad financial position, I just don't want to overly burden my parents. Chances are though, we'll qualify for something and I'll be good :).</p>
<p>tussin are you KIDDING!?!?!</p>
<p>Either you're from an incredibly rich family or you don't understand interest at all. </p>
<p>Assuming a modest (read: unlikely) interest rate of 5%, it would take the average person 10 years to pay off a debt of 160k dollars, assuming most spare money from earnings goes directly to pay off debt. 10 years with no cash to spend on nonessential things...yeah, THAT'S not a big deal.</p>
<p>dopamine, you should check one of the online financial aid calculators...that'll be close to what you'll be expected to pay. I don't know whether the financial aid info is negotiable or not, but you could always try. I hope that all works out for you.</p>
<p>Thanks JYankees, you seem to be one of the few understanding people here.</p>
<p>I believe the current interest rate on a penn loan is somewhere around 7.9%. This is a HUGE burden for anyone - if you think you're gonna go to penn and come out as an ibanker making 500k a year and can pay off your debt in one year, you're mistaken. I'm just trying to plan for the future. Hopefully though, this won't be a problem. My parents have a good annual income, but not much savings, and we still have alot to pay off on our house. Hopefully, that'll prompt Penn to give us some grant based aid in the event of an acceptance.</p>
<p><em>edit</em>
I believe financial aid is negotiable.</p>
<p>Financial aid is negotiable, and unless your parents make over $250K, you'll get some need-based aid.</p>
<p>again...</p>
<p>if you really want to go somewhere. you will make the according sacrifices. 160K is not a huge sum of money to pay off...especially if you graduate with a Penn degree. you will of course need to make sacrifices, but it isn't an overbearing situation.</p>
<p>"Financial aid is negotiable, and unless your parents make over $250K, you'll get some need-based aid."</p>
<p>Um, no. That is not necessarily true. You applied ED, so they have no incentive to give you more aid than your demonstrated aid because ED is binding. Also, by applying ED, you made it clear that you have looked over your financial situation, calculated your financial aid, and made the decision that is best for your family. </p>
<p>"if you really want to go somewhere. you will make the according sacrifices. 160K is not a huge sum of money to pay off...especially if you graduate with a Penn degree. you will of course need to make sacrifices, but it isn't an overbearing situation."</p>
<p>No college is worth that much debt. First, 40k a year is a very low estimate because transportation, food, essential/nonessential items, and emergencies go towards paying for college too. Also, I doubt the average Penn graduate (even Wharton graduate) makes enough after taxes to pay back 160k (may even be 200k) in 10 years and live modestly. </p>
<p>Also, if you plan on going to grad school, those costs will add to your debt. Just something to think about.</p>
<p>But your fin aid package will not differ that much from what you are actually able to conribute. Maybe by a few K but not the full cost of attendance.</p>
<p>Not ture. My family can only contribute 30-35k as it stands now. We do not qualify for any aid. I take 10-15k in loans each year. Your EFC will determine how much aid you get. Penn recalculates your aid, so maybe you will get a little more. However, do not count on getting more aid than determined by your EFC when deciding to apply ED to a college. Penn has some incentive to attract top applicants by offering them a little more aid than they would normally be getting, but there is less incentive for a college to give extra money to an ED applicant because he will have to marticulate.</p>
<p>By the way, did anybody get notified by Penn for missing financial aid documents?</p>
<p>I didn't but I should have been. I haven't submitted the International Student Certification of Finances but I was told last week that Penn doesn't need any more fin aid forms from me. (I didn't know until last week that I should have submitted the ISCF at all)
I guess that means I'm rejected... =(((</p>
<p>never mind, I cant read....goodbye Penn, hello Community College</p>