I completely agree that counting loans as “meeting full need” is misleading, but it is unfortunately the system at most colleges and universities making that claim. As many others have noted, that is simply how the financial aid system works, and the package you have been offered is actually quite a generous one. As a result, many students are in situation similar to yours, often with higher loans and lower grants that you are describing. And many of those, often excellent students sensibly choose to attend state universities to reduce their costs and avoid racking up debt. And they end up working hard and getting excellent educations, just as they would have at schools like BC. I don’t blame you in the least for being frustrated, but your insistence that “I certainly shouldn’t be grouped together with these people” attending state universities is arrogant and insulting. It does not reflect well on you.
Oh please. This student received $3500 in subsidized loans for the year. If she gets that for four years, she will have less than $12,000 in loans in her name for a $250,000 college education at BC.
@mg29409 is likely a teen and this is his first experience with loans, financial aid and perhaps huge disappointment. I think that it is therefore understandable that he might need a minute to digest and accept the choices.
I remember with our first child every acceptance got us all excited. Reality hit with FA packages. We’re far more savvy now. This is a learning process. With that comes frustration and some fear.
I think the ranting is a bit immature. I would hope this student will take advantage of the educational opportunities and have more gratitude of the opportunities in this first world country with excellent education available. Think about smiling every day and adjust your attitude. Try to develop yourself as a person with many good dimensions that any campus would want to have you as a student in all your behaviors and actions, 24/7.
I’m sorry…but what is the disappointment about? Can the parents pay the $7000 family contribution?
If not…this student can take an additional $2000 in unsubsidized direct loans…and also get a job.
Did this student exoect college to be free? Most schools expect a student contribution as well. What does BC expect the students to contribute?
And I’m sorry…but what is wrong with the second parent getting a job to help with college costs?
@mg29409 You may be able to make BC work, but you need to realign your thinking a bit. They’re a private institution, and they don’t have to give anyone anything, and they can calculate your need any way they want. If your parents are choosing to save money – good for them, by the way – it’s still money that they’ve received as part of their pay, even if it’s funneled directly to a retirement account. Most NPCs I’ve run (and I’ve run hundreds) reference funds contributed to retirement accounts.
I too hate the part where schools put loans as part of need-based aid, but you just have to create your own spreadsheet and compare actual costs. Can you afford BC with just the Fed loans of 27k over 4 years? Then you’re in much better shape than most people.
We’re in MA also, and my kids have a wealthy friend who got into BC with no need-based aid. I can assure you he worked just as hard as you, took more APs, and he had much better test scores. However, he’s being smart and going to the UMass Amherst honors program. There’s no shame in it, quite the contrary. Everyone’s complimenting him on not being an idiot.
It’s okay to be disappointed, but you’re angry at everyone, including BC, because you didn’t use the NPC properly. Let it go. Decide if you can and want to spend the money to go to BC, or go to another school. TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR CHOICE. Either way, give it a lot of thought and make the right decision for you and your family.
Give UMass Amherst another look. Most people who go there love it!
Some other things to keep in mind so you are not surprised later on. Outside scholarships may reduce your need based FA, if you mother gets a job your family’s increased income could reduce your need based aid and you may need to pay taxes on scholarship/grant money that is in excess of tuition, books and some fees. I don’t like loans either but that may be the best way to go in your situation.
And COA typically goes up annually , but aid does not necessarily .
Can you cover some of your shortfall with profit from your online ebay store?
In this thread, you say you got $50,000 a year in aid from both BU and Holy Cross.
So…what is the real story? Did you get that amount…or not from those two schools?
And you said this…about BU, BC and HC:
Wow, read this thread and can’t get over how entitled the OP is coming across. There is someone that I personally know that also did not get into any of their reach schools and felt entitled too. She’s refusing to go to UT CAP for one year and transferring into UT Austin because it’s beneath her. She told her mom that she worked harder than those “losers” in her school who also got CAPped. And that she deserves something better. Now she’s pressuring her parents into paying for the only “worthy” school of her presence- an expensive private.
How did these kids get so entitled? Maybe that’s also why they over reached and their essays may have reflected their attitude.
No school owes you anything. If the only reason you worked hard was to brag about the school that you thought you were going to get into then you wasted your time obviously.
Good luck. And listen to the people that are trying to help you here. They have a lot of experience and wisdom. Pay attention.
Am I the only one that doesn’t understand how this turns into an annual family cost of $25K?
Agree @mikemac
Must be fuzzy math.
Is BC [Boston College](http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/financial/finaid/undergrad/how_aid_works/cost_of_attendance.html)? Their COA is $68k. If OP got a $47k grant, then the gap is ~$21k. The $3500 loan brings it down to ~$17,500, and a summer job (~$3k) could bring it down to ~$14,500. The parents’ budget is $10k, so that makes the gap ~$4500. Can s/he take the $2k unsubsidized loan? That would bring it down to $2500, and OP has been granted $2400 in work study (some of which could be saved to help pay for spring). It seems like s/he is really close to making this work.
OMG , do NOT pay BC one dime. They are so mean to only give you $50 grand in absolutely free money and expect you to actually pay some money to go to school there. You are special and deserve a free education and I can’t believe people actual expect you to go to a college like UMASS Amherst, which is good enough for 20,000 other kids, many who pay full price for it but where you could go for free. That would be demeaning.
You show them and don’t go anywhere. Don’t take their measly $50k. You deserve more and I think you should hold out for a full ride.
I really don’t know what you want us to say. Even if we all agreed that you should get 100% paid by BC, which we as a group dont, it’s not our money to give, it’s BC’s money and BC has said they’ll give you $40k in grants, they’ll let you work for another $2500, and they’ll loan you the rest, some of that subsidized. You have a choice, take it or leave it and go to a UMASS school for a lot less. Your choice. If the UMASS schools were so horrible, why did you even apply? As a safety? Well, the Titanic is sinking and it’s time to decide if you want the lifeboat of UMASS or if your going to go down because you aren’t getting on the BC lifeboat where the ticket costs $20k.
Wait until this student gets into med school (if he does)…then he’ll find out that all his “hard work” means he’ll have $200k or more in LOANS
This OP also appealed his rejection to Brown, because he couldn’t understand why they didn’t accept him. UW GPA of 3.7 and ACT of 31 are clearly the lower percentiles for Brown. The OP is not operating in reality, but in an entitled mentality. I mean who appeals a college rejection??
Be happy you were accepted to BC and get a summer job.
It also indicates that BC expects a student contribution of $5,900. However, even if that is added to a family contribution of $10,000, that only comes up to $15,900 for a net price, so BC needs to own up to its net price calculator not matching its actual financial aid offer if it offered you a net price of $25,000. Of course, that assumes that there are not complicating factors, like divorced parents (particularly if you did not include the non-custodial parent’s income or assets in the net price calculator), or income and/or assets in small business, real estate, or other things besides W-2 income and typical amounts of investment income.
Also, those schools do expect a student contribution, usually in the $4,000 to $5,000 range, that is expected to come from the student’s work earnings (part time during the school year and/or summer job). For example, the lowest possible net price at Harvard is $4,600, according to https://college.harvard.edu/financial-aid/net-price-calculator .