For example, Fordham emailed my friends free applications, and I have a better ACT score and GPA than both of them, so why are they getting this type of stuff and I’m not? Same with another friend for Brandeis!
They do not even want to go to these schools, and I am actually wanting to go to them!
If you email a college and tell them that you can’t afford the application fee, most of them will let you apply for free. If you just email the college and ask, you should get a free application too.
Forreal?? Are you sure they didn’t ask for a fee waiver?
I personally do not qualify for waivers, and I certainly know they don’t either. But colleges are just emailing them out…?
My son has been offered quite a few free apps . . . maybe it is something he checked on the ACT profile? I.e., that it was OK to contact him? He has very good stats but he’s not a composite 36 or anything close to that. We do not qualify for fee waivers.
I would not tell the schools that you can’t afford the fee (see reply #1) as there is no reason to start off with a lie. I would email the admissions department with a few of your relevant stats and ask if you might qualify for the no-fee application. You can mention that some friends received that application and you are very interested in (fill in the name) college. My guess is that most schools will be happy to send a free application your way.
@happy1 Thank you so much for the idea! And of course, I could never lie like that; especially since there are people who actually need those application waivers. However, will I seem pushy to email them about that? I do not want to come off in a negative way!
A lot of schools offer fee waivers to increase the number of applications they receive, so they can look more selective, as they will then reject more.
I have seen colleges give out fee waiver codes at open houses/tours. They often do so via email which is connected to what boxes you checked when you signed up for ACT/SAT
My daughter got some free apps by either visiting schools last year and this past summer; or by requesting information from the school, via their website. Most of the free apps sent were by small private schools, but a couple of larger publics - Ohio U and U of Minnesota - also sent her a free app.
My son has received several free applications. All of the free applications are from private schools.
D has received some random free app offers. All but one are from schools that she has not contacted in any way. Most are from private schools but she did get two from OOS public schools. We are a bit puzzled by these random letters that show up offering to let her apply for free. I wish we would get more from the schools that she is actually planning to apply to. School quality is all over the place. She has had two from very reachy schools, some from safeties, some from matches. We figure the reach ones just want her to apply so they can say “no”. She did get the one from Fordham which would be a match/low match for her. Fordham had been on her list way back but then was taken off. Getting the letter for the free app put it back on her list, so maybe that was their goal. She has not been in touch with Fordham at all and we have not visited.
Personally, I think excellent students should start asking for fee waivers on a routine basis regardless of whether they can afford to apply.
It is wrong for top colleges to charge such high fees just for the privilege of applying wih such a high likelihood of rejection.
@aznboi4981 As long as your polite and dont keep emailing them regarding the free app, you won’t come off as negative.