<p>i heard that BC is usually, to put it nicely, economical with their funds when giving out financial aid. however, i received an amazing financial aid package when i checked my agora portal acct after admitted eagle day. im keeping in mind that it is a conditional offer, and that my 2009 tax returns may change things. but has anyone else received a conditional/final financial aid package? and if so, we you satisfied or dissatisfied with it?</p>
<p>I’m sure you will find your final financial aid package quite agreeable. Please keep in mind, however, that financial assistance tends to decrease with the length of your tenure at Boston College. Between tuition hikes and other factors, you will end up paying more out of pocket, or borrowing more, your senior year than you did your freshman year.</p>
<p>^^^ Not necessarily. Need-based aid is dependent upon family income/assets and other factors (e.g., number of siblings in college at the same time), which are updated annually, so your aid package may go up or down each year – depending upon any changes in your family’s financial situation. Since BC promises to meet 100% of demonstrated need, any tuition/fee increases over the next few years will also be taken into account.</p>
<p>I got mine yesterday and received no money. So as you can imagine I was very dissatisfied.</p>
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<p>Unfortunately it is necessarily true. The financial aid program at Boston College is need-based insofar as the financial aid fund is not depleted. The school is not obligated to meet 100% of your financial needs. My personal and family situation did not change from freshman to senior year, yet I borrowed less than $2,000 year my first year and more than $10,000 my last year. In that same time period, the cost of tuition, room and board and their various other fees also increased significantly.</p>
<p>BC’s guide to finaid states that: family contribution will not change dramatically unless there is a change in income, family size, number children enrolled in college…</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/meta-elements/pdf/awardinfocurrent.pdf[/url]”>http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/meta-elements/pdf/awardinfocurrent.pdf</a></p>
<p>Of course, “dramatically” could mean different things to different people!</p>
<p>And, unless it is a no-loan school, practically everyone else increases the student loan every year (based on federal Stafford increases).</p>
<p>we got very little $5700.00 The $2200 max work study and 2 stafford loans. The estimated cost for next year is close to 55,000. We went to Eagle Day yesterday and I did speak to Financial Aid. There is really no room for discussion. It is what they consider need based. They use a different EFC than the FAFSA (forget what they called it). We enjoyed Eagle Day and although my son would love to attend I do not believe that we will be able to swing this kind of money. The only plus is that he has a brother right behind him and that would give us more financial aid next year although they were reluctant to tell me how much of a factor that would be. So now being very happy that he was accepted we are on the wait and see for other schools. He did get offered a Presidential Scholarship (1/2 tuition) and Honors at a lesser known school so we will have to weigh all our options in April. It will be interesting to see how the Financial Aid varies from different schools. We have our Villanova early admittance day in Feb. so I will be speaking with their Financial Aid dept. Well I always said in this process what is meant to be is meant to be. Again a little depressed going up there this weekend as we had checked the Portal on Thursday and it had been posted. I almost wish we had attended without knowing because it really put a damper on our impression. Good luck to all.</p>
<p>Looks like I won’t be going to BC then… College ******* estimated that I’d get quite a bit of financial aid, but it looks like I won’t, based on this…
And they still didn’t get my CSS Profile even though I sent it in 2 months ago.</p>
<p>buffalo:</p>
<p>with two kids in college, your efc is essentially cut in half. Of course, a private school like BC uses the family contribution calculated by CSS Profile. You can kinda back into your profile efc…take the $55k cost of attendance and subtract the aid you were given: work study, stafford loans, etc. That will approximate your family efc. Divide by two and you will get an rough estimate for year 2 if everything else remains the same, i.e., income, assets, taxes, etc.</p>
<p>We thought it may work that way but I guess they don’t want to promise anything. So it may still be an option for him to go to BC. I know it is his first choice. Again we will put everything on the table in April and we feel it really needs to be his decision and then we will do everything we can to help him get him to where he chooses. He has worked so hard for 4 years I want him to be happy.
Thanks for your input.</p>
<p>LadyX:</p>
<p>I can assure you that Richmond is much more generous with need-based aid than is BC. Of course, Richmond merit aid is even better!</p>
<p>We also got ZERO aid. I cannot afford $55,000 out of pocket each year for 4 years. I cannot understand how this is calculated! When you consider that between federal, state and local taxes, 1/2 of one’s income is gone before any expenses. Then there are expenses like the mortgage, gas, utilities, insurance and food. For us, even if we could pay $55,000/year , that doesn’t leave anything! We live humbly, drive really old cars and have no car payments. We live within our means. I guess they expect us to borrow a bunch of money for college. In this economy I don’t think that is wise.</p>
<p>My kid loved BC but won’t be attending unless a lot of other scholarships come through.</p>
<p>Question to the group. Our CSS profile did not show an EFC. I heard that it used to but they stopped displaying it at the end of the form. How do I find out what my EFC is on that form. </p>
<p>We are just doing the FAFSA now and I hear that we will see an EFC on that one.</p>
<p>I hope other schools are more generous.</p>
<p>Dear buffalowings24, his mom, TKsmom, and All : One of the harsh realities about Boston College is the manner in which aid is calculated against that $50,000+ per year bill. You should each contact your child’s financial officer for more details, but let’s share some data with you all. </p>
<p>Last academic year, Boston College cut budgets across the board by 3% - this money was used to augment the financial aid pool. Now, the initial reaction from everyone will naturally be “great, more money is available”. The truth is that the reality is far from that.</p>
<p>First, a non-trivial number of Boston College students’ parents were caught up in the job losses that mounted in the financial services and parallel industries. Many students whose families were paying full-freight were suddenly in need of help to continue with a Boston College education. To be honest, helping students who were already part of the campus fabric was a priority. [None the less, my oldest knows three students in their junior year who had to leave the campus because their families could no longer shoulder the costs.]</p>
<p>Second, Boston College calculates their financial aid slightly different than the government calculation as BC adds the value of your home and properties into their calculations. About two years back, using the Princeton financial aid calculator, I came up with some metrics that showed where financial aid “kicked in” there - it was about $130,000 in annual family income with $100,000 in total savings (non-401(k)). Using that as a starting point, add in your house value, and you start to see the Boston College picture emerge.</p>
<p>Third, Boston College’s approach to the Presidential Scholars program at the expense of all other merit programs just simply has to change to broaden the financial relief to middle class families. I have been outspoken about the negative impacts of the Presidential program, but that view is often cast aside while parents/students are still “in the chase” for the full academic ride. Everyone wants the big prize without understanding the impact on the whole Boston College community.</p>
<p>Fourth, there is an element in this discussion where too many families do not recognize the cost up front. $50,000 per year is not going to just disappear with financial aid … if you read some of the chance-me threads, there are some applicants with absolutely nothing from a financial means perspective. To those harmed by this system, this is what need-blind means in terms of accepting students. Harsh financial words, but true.</p>
<p>Many of you in this thread have personally corresponded with me over the last several months and I was personally thrilled when you made the choice to apply early – and then overjoyed at your acceptances. Before you throw in the towel based purely on the financial aspects, please do contact your financial aid officer and discuss your circumstances. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.</p>
<p>TKsmom:</p>
<p>Unlike fafsa, the CSS Profile does not spit out a calculated efc. But, you can estimate it pretty well by using CB’s online calculator. Or, if your kid applied to George Washington, you can contact them and ask their calculation worksheets. Less fun than a 1040, but it shows exactly how a college – in this case, GW, comes up with the expected family contribution.</p>
<p>That being said, BC is just not as generous as other schools in need-based aid, even tho BC meets 100% of need – as BC calculates it. Indeed, based on my extremely limited experience, BC’s calculations were no better than some schools that do not meet 100% of need.</p>
<p>Definitely call your finaid counselor as scott suggests. The worse they can say is no more $.</p>
<p>Thank you for the suggestions and information. We plan to contribute significantly to our child’s college education. I know many families are hurting and many are in much worse shape than mine. I think your points are all excellent. I think this explains a lot why upper middle class kids are disappearing from private college campuses. I think many colleges should consider ways to hold tuition costs down because they have increased so much more rapidly than inflation, when incomes have not. Also, when one combines that fact with the devastating losses in savings due to the recession, many families just cannot afford 55K per year for a bachelor’s degree. </p>
<p>I did not realize that the value of my house is figured in, that helps explain a bit. My house was purchased when 2 of us were working not just one as is the case now. I don’t understand why they add it in as I am not going to sell my house so that my kid can attend college.</p>
<p>We were never expecting a full ride, even if a PSP had been a possibility. But I do agree that some merit aid would be helpful because few families can afford to part with $55,000 every year for 4 years! And borrowing by the student can be risky in this job market. Most graduates in 4 years will be lucky to make $60,000/yr. They can have a lot of debt by the time graduation occurs. </p>
<p>Its just very depressing. So much of what we had saved for college is now gone and college costs just keep rising faster than expected.</p>
<p>As always you offer wonderful advice. Now that the disappointment has worn off a bit we have brought BC back into the picture. We certainly won’t throw in the hat. As TKSmom said it is hard to think of how we are going to pay the price tag and I certainly don’t want my son starting his new life with so much debt. We also have 2 other kids that will be starting college in the next couple of years. The financial aid will be better but it is still more tuition that we will need to come up with. I will keep you posted as we continue this journey. Again thanks for offering your thoughts as I value them very much.
buffalowings mom</p>
<p>I’ve heard that BC expects you to draw down your savings and borrow against your assets before offering substantial aid (assets include home and collectables, etc). Aid being the last resort. Most other schools don’t factor assets in as much, and also offer merit aid. Of the five or six schools I applied too, BC was the least generous with aid, although Cornel was not much better. </p>
<p>You have to think hard about your end goals, if you intend to go onto med school you really don’t want to take on undergrad debt. I know perhaps 50 students and none receive financial aid. In fact most don’t even borrow money.</p>
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<p>Sure they do, they ALL do. One big difference is how a college treats home equity, and whether a college caps home equity; some may cap at a multiple of income, say 2x income, for example. Others use the full value of the equity regardless of family income. Other than assets, finaid counselors also use professional judgment on the treatment of certain expenses, such as high medical, or private school for sibling.</p>
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<p>Well sure, but that is comparing apples and oranges. With the exception of a ~handful of Presidential Scholarships, BC offers only need-based aid. Schools like Tulane, George Washington, & Miami, among others, offer merit aid to lotsa of students. Then there are schools like USC which offer automatic discounts to NMSF’s.</p>
<p>From a current student to prospective students: It’s always worth it to discuss your financial aid package with your BC financial aid advisor. Including myself, I know of at least a dozen kids that got their aid package bumped up once they contacted BC to reassure them you are seriously interested in attending. I definitely would not have considered BC with my initial package, but I eventually received a very generous aid package.</p>
<p>Eagle,</p>
<p>Thanks for the info. We will definitely contact the FA office. It can’t hurt to ask. Now that we have completed the FAFSA, I feel better about going back to BC and asking them to reconsider. According to the FAFSA our EFC is significanltly less than the cost of attendance.</p>