<p>I just received a likely letter from Cornell Engineering.<br>
Quick stats: Asian female from Montgomery County, MD
Applied to civil/env engineering
3.93/4.59 gpa
2070 SAT
32 ACT
Lots of leadership + environment-related EC's, competitive piano</p>
<p>My EFC is about 36k and we just bought a 690k house. However my parents can realistically afford about 20k a year. I read on Cornell's website that all aid is need based, not merit or athletic. </p>
<p>Can anyone give some insight into how financially needy you must be to actually receive money from Cornell? Also any comments about going to a safety/state college w/merit aid vs. an Ivy League with little to none? I got into American w/a 22k scholarship a year (safety).</p>
<p>i have a similar question. how does aid compare with new york state residents to the contract colleges? is it 100% need met, similar to the endowed colleges? thanks</p>
<p>Mellow: With a FAFSA EFC of 36K I would not expect much at all in the way of need money from Cornell. Their EFC based on the Profile will most likely be even higher. The first part of your package will be a Stafford LOAN of $3500/year. Maybe work-study and you're getting close to the COA. It will be hard to believe that having the ability to qualify for a mortgage to purchase a house for 690K would allow only 20k for college. You must know that Cornell or any other private school does not care how much your mortgage is. That's your choice. In fact, owning an expensive home with losts of equity can work against you since it is a source of borrowing power.</p>
<p>On another note, does American have engineering?</p>
<p>hmm
i read on the yale thread, that you can use your finaid package from another uni to "bargain" with the university giving little aid.
could that work with cornell?
like, if i received generous aid from another uni, but crappy aid from cornell, but i really want to go to cornell, is it possible to negotiate with the finaid dept?</p>
<p>though i didn't ask cornell this cuz i didn't go up with my parents, i've had two other schools tell me that i should bargain with my financial aid no matter where i want to go. so yea i believe that though many schools don't officially say you can, it does happen.</p>
<p>Bluejay - no they don't offer engineering. When I applied I was totally unsure of what I wanted to major in and applied there because it was a free application and I have some family members who went there. But after receiving 22k, I have been into their international service school...</p>
<p>Yeah, I know that our house price will work against us. Funny thing is that my parents felt that we could buy the house because they were counting on me getting merit scholarships for college. And then I see that Cornell doesn't give merit out (doh!)... <em>sigh</em></p>