<p>I was accepted into CAS at BU, but I received NO financial aid whatsoever. My high school GPA is a 4.02 (at an academically tough school), 2230 SAT, 5s on two English AP tests and a national writing award, plus I’m cross-country captain at my school. The school told me that although I had demonstrated more need than what they gave me, they couldn’t give me any more money because they had given money to “more qualified” students. My parents only make $100,000 a year, and my twin sister will be attending BU with me, bringing our cost up to $90,000 a year. Does this seem weird to anyone? I received almost $30,000 (not including loans) in aid from Brandeis University and $20,000 from NYU.</p>
<p>wow ....i commented on this on another thread..but looking at it again..that def is weird...lol i have a twin sis too..but im a guy...umm yeah well did you show BU the aid packages you got from NYU and Brandeis?..that might have helped....anyhow...90k a year is rediculous..i misread your post from before... honestly id go to either brandeis or NYU...but you may have already sent in your deposit..i dunno</p>
<p>You should call the folks in merit aid to double check that there isn't an error since without need you should still have qualified for at least a Dean's if not a University Scholarship of half tuition. Send an urgent email and call first thing Monday morning and ask to speak to whomever runs the merit aid and explain that you will accept the admission if you can get merit aid and are wondering if a mistake was made and you didn't receive the letter stating it.</p>
<p>Good luck..the Fin Aid and the Merit Aid award people wouldn't budge for my daughter (though I think they did mess up in your case for sure). They were polite but cold: "just take out loans." Thanks, but no thanks. Mom will be scrambling to get a job and my daughter will have to work throughout school. </p>
<p>IF they don't give you anything, $90 K a year is ludicrous. Check out the payback period on your education, and consider whether it is worth it to you and your parents to sink in that much debt.</p>
<p>when i talked to one of their fin aid officers, they told me the most they can give in an appeal is between 7-9k
it's not going to make a big difference</p>
<p>That seems like a huge mistake on BU's part. The school is so huge I suppose its impossible to manage all that goes on this time of year. I am in disbelief since your stats would suggest you would receive merit aid and Honors. Our s did and his SAT scores are well below your score. Did you or your parent specifically call and ask to speak to the person in charge of merit aid? Let him know that you can fax the offers from Brandeis and NYU and that you want so much to attend BU that you are holding off for a few hours to place your acceptance to the other school in the mail so you can give this one last shot. Get your SAT score out there right at the beginning of the conversation.</p>
<p>I'd definitely go to one of the schools giving substantial merit aid--BU isn't worth going into the kind of debt you're talking about. You're a great student and can get a good education at the schools who have offered you substantial merit aid.</p>
<p>My S was also accepted to BU as a NMF & got $0 in merit aid because he didn't name them as his #1 school by 2/1. He was fine with that & is going to a school which awarded him substantial merit aid (we don't qualify for need-based).
$90,000/year in college costs is WAY too much unless your family has substantial savings--time for family to regroup & go to plan B.</p>
<p>Agree with HIMOM unless you totally love BU and feel the BU experience is a superb fit for you. Both Brandeis and NYU are top schools. I'd say give BU one last chance. Maybe first fax them the two offers then call and explain the situation. Is your twin going regardless of your aid? Somehow BU must have gotten the impression they were not your top choice otherwise I cannot see how it is that you didn't get a half scholarship. If you don't make one last try first thing in the morning you will always wonder if that could have worked.
Did your parents save for this? can they pay half and you pay back the rest in loans?
If BU says no and the money is too big a deal then let go of it and be happy with your other choice since you can't really go wrong with any of these colleges you mentioned.</p>
<p>Also, it sounds like you are asking about need so if BU hase made it clear that its a NO--forget that department and just go ahead and ask to speak to the person in charge of merit aid and ask if there is any chance you were overlooked because they thought you'd get need aid since the merit schiolarships are mostly for kids that do not qualify for financial aid.</p>
<p>Its possible that by now some kids that they offered merit aid to are not choosing BU so maybe they have more merit funds availbale now.</p>
<p>One of the things that irked me when I asked about merit aid (since my daughter's "stats" definitely fit or exceeded the stats posted on the BU site for certain merit scholarships) is that they told me when I asked:
that they would not redistribute merit funds after the original recipients had declined them for other schools. They say that they keep the money and that they know a lot of it will be awarded to students who ultimately go elsewhere. </p>
<p>I came away with the impression that much of the money never really gets used because the top students that they offer it to end up at Ivy league schools or other places they choose over BU. I don't know how that compares with other schools, but it may mean that my daughter has to take a leave of absense and work full time until she can earn the money for the rest. In part, it is her choice because we've saved for her education and she could have gotten a full tuition scholarship to a state school and had money to spare...but I still feel like BU and the circumstances have dealt her an unnecessary blow.</p>
<p>Our S chose BU over supposedly more competetive schools, Tufts, NYU, because of the merit aid since we do not qualify for financial aid. So in his case it tipped the scales toward BU and I would imagine that is one of the points, to lure kids from other schools. Since he is thinking of law school it really helped to go to an undergrad school with merit aid. It does seem arbitrary but I hear that is the case with merit aid at most colleges. It saddens me to see kids on this board with the stats not getting any aid and for some of them paying full tuition is a genuine hardship. Particularly the twin's story which really makes no sense at all. I'm sure they will do well no matter where they attend college.</p>
<p>To the parent above, I think we all go back and forth trying to decide if private tuition is worth it when there are many fine public schools. We too saved and lived below our means so this wouldn't be an issue. Ultimately,since we alll value education, we come to terms with the cost. I just wish more kids had the choice.</p>
<p>I think one's perspective on BU's generosity and its "value" for the money is necessarily different depending on the amount of aid the student receives. If we pay $200,000 over four years --i.e. no aid and an almost impossible feat for us-- our payback period is considerably longer than the families whose children received $140,000 in merit or financial aid ($35,000/annum). Their BU education only costs $60,000. Likewise, those students "forced" into taking large loans --the worst situation of all in my opinion--will find that it affects their lifestyle and freedom of choice in terms of jobs, etc well into their 20's, possibly later. They may be much better off at a state institution where they will could excel and graduate without a mountain of debt to pay off. </p>
<p>Since many students awarded merit aid do choose other more competitive schools, it would help a little if BU would redistribute some of the money they now know they will not use for these students. Especially since they claim it was ultra competitive this year, etc.</p>