Not really.
OP
In post #12, he clarifies that it was
^^^
And your point is…?
You recommended that he do something that in his original post he already said he did.
I was asking if all the ‘promised’ aid was to be a grant and not loans. He’s now clarified that the NPC says grants, but also clarified he’s not a freshman so the NPC might not be reliable.
(I’m female btw haha)
@romanigypsyeyes It actually asks me: Will you be entering this college as a first-year student or as a transfer student from another college?
The option I chose was, of course, transfer student. So technically that right there means that this calculator can be used by transfer students.
Oh my…
Of course EFC is not relevant, but the NPC it spits out should be in the ballpark! And they actually said the just ran out of aid $?
@HRSMom yes that was the reason…not enough funds 
Wait! You are a transfer student? Was this mentioned before?
The net price calculators are set up for first year students. MANY colleges give limited aid to transfer students.
To be honest, transfers are at the bottom and end of the food chain when it comes to need based aid at many schools.
aiming- transfer students are RARELY offered the same amount of FA as incoming Freshman.
There are few colleges that offer transfer students much money, if at all.
I really wish you had come here last year when you were thinking about transferring in the first place.
Well, that’s deceptive, if they specifically ask if you will be a transfer student and not change the estimate (or give a warning) if its real financial aid is different for transfer students.
Unless, of course, there is some other reason why the net price calculator may not reflect the real financial aid (e.g. divorced parents, unusual types of income and assets, etc.).
Is “RARELY” in the above statement actually true? Seems that the above would not be true for many public universities that actively promote transfer pathways for students from poor families (although those in places like PA would be poor for financial aid for both frosh and transfer students). Of course, merit scholarships do tend to be less common for transfers.
Of course, any generalization is not particularly relevant to a specific discussion about BU financial aid.
@ucbalumnus No, my parents are married, unemployed and working low pay job etc. The typical story. We have no assets or house or investments or inheritance. My FAFSA was actually very easy to fill out haha
OP, I know you’re really disappointed, but there’s nothing to be done. BU is known for not meeting full need–they don’t promise to by any means–and more over, they don’t offer generous aid to transfers. They have no incentive to. In my experience, BU sometimes is incredibly generous with high need applicants, but those applicants are incoming freshman with great academics and they applied early–before the money ran out. BU’s priority deadline for merit aid is December 1–BU often mixes merit grants in with need-based grants so it’s all coming from the same bucket, so later applicants very often miss out on the money. There are high need students getting generous aid from BU, but they practice preferential packaging, so it’s only going to the most attractive candidates they want to lure to campus.
I would focus on other schools or strategies for your transfer (can you stay where you are?).
@proudterrier very well said…which is why I have asked repeatedly when this student submitted their financial aid applications to BU…the completed ones with filed tax returns.
@thumper1 I wrote on the first page, “My FAFSA and CSS Profile were processed a couple days before the deadline, btw.”
But the deadline for transfers or new students? It appears that BU runs out of moneyso the early filers may get more than those filing before the deadline.
So…you submitted them really at the very last minute…right?
I think what folks are saying…schools have a limited lot of money…the ones that don’t guarantee to meet full need for all. It is too late for you now…but perhaps completing everything very early in the admissions cycle would have been better for you than doing so a couple of days before the deadline.
@proudterrier (cute picture btw!) Is December 1 the deadline for incoming freshmen? Because that sounds ridiculously early for transfers whose Common App and financial aid deadline was March 1…
I just get the feeling that their “funds” are quite arbitrarily given out, or they go by a first some first serve kind of basis.
I just wonder…how many transfer students do they accept? How many funds do they have? Clearly, my mind is too analytical and yearning for some receipts!
I will certainly try to find out some more details, if only to come back here and write down what happened so future students curious about BU can see this. Frankly, it may not be worth the time and energy put into applying if you get so little even as a need based candidate (never mind merit).
Contact BU…and ask. I doubt that you will get $50,000 in additional aid…but you might get something.
@thumper1 It honestly did not occur to me that they would give preferential treatment to students who applied a month or so earlier (or however early). That’s something I wish I had thought of then. Honestly, I figured that they would have made it clear if that were the case, or perhaps they did and I didn’t see it.
I would think that you have until the deadline, and then you’re good. Do they even review applications before that date? I have no idea.
I had to do some long thinking about which schools to apply too, especially because of the application fees. I couldn’t afford them so I had to wait a bit too (three fees are around $180 at least if each is $60). Also, it was about 6 days before the due date; frankly, that is on time. That is not “last minute”. I’m a punctual person, what can I say lol
@SeekingPam it is ALL over the financial aid section of the BU website that the school does NOT guarantee to meet full need for all.
@thumper1 not full need but as a high need you’d think they’d be so kind as to give you at least $20,000 off of the $50,000 price tag.