<p>
[quote]
If I could pay for housing, everything would be fine.
[/quote]
Check local resources and listings or Craigslist -- you may be able to find an off-campus living situation that would be substantially less expensive than living in a dorm. Look for shared housing or work-in-exchange-for-rent type situations.</p>
<p>Acinva, you are right that Ashley may be better off applying for winter quarter or spring semester somewhere. But Boston U. is not a good option-- like NYU, they do not meet full financial need and base the amount of aid they provide on their assessment of where the student stands in their applicant pool -- so Ashley cannot reasonably expect more money from them.</p>
<p>I think the last thing Ashley needs is more disappointment. She either needs to be at an in-state public where overall tuition is low, or at a private college that will offer her good merit aid or promise to meet full financial need.</p>
<p>I put OSU's code on my FAFSA about a month ago. About two weeks ago they sent me a letter saying that I was still going to recieve the Trustees scholarship.</p>
<p>What upsets me is had I known this would happen, I could have been very happy at OSU. I was accepted to the Honors/Scholars program and I would have gotten a lot of money. I know, it's too late now...it just upsets me. </p>
<p>About BU, they are also not need blind so even if that was an option, I wouldn't get in as I cannot pay for it.</p>
<p>Oh Fordham got back to me. </p>
<p>Dear Ashley,</p>
<p>We have flexibility primarily for commuters at our Lincoln Center campus. I would entertain an application for other options but the reality is, at this time, most other possibilities are closed. Please let me know your interest in the LC option and perhaps we can reactivate your documentation.</p>
<p>Regards,
John Buckley </p>
<p>I would need on campus living so that wouldn't work. I was slightly hopeful for that one. Oh well.</p>
<p>Ashley:
Does this mean you can get a Trustees scholarship at OSU? It is far better than borrowing 30k per year for a two-year degree that will get you nowehere. As I said, Digmedia's S is very very happy at OSU.</p>
<p>I am recieving the Trustees scholarship but since it was so late in the game and I didn't get my FAFSA in, I'm getting left over funds...1100. Not much at all</p>
<p>Can you talk to OSU again? Even without a large scholarship, it is a much better deal than NYU. You would have to borrow less for tuition, and life in Athens, OH has got to be much cheaper than in NYC.</p>
<p>marite,
Digmedia's S goes to Ohio University in Athens, not Ohio State (OSU) in Columbus.</p>
<p>Ashley, I think your plan to meet face to face with the OSU financial aid office is the best one. I think you should explain to them the whole situation: your father's death; your not understanding until recently that the social security payments would stop when you turned 18; your difficult home situation; your mom's plans to move to a small apartment with no space for you; NYU's initial financial aid offer to you; the reduced financial aid aid from NYU in April(?); and also your work history (the job you have now, hours per week, jobs lined up for the summer, etc.). You don't want to come of as whiny or begging for sympathy -- but you do want to make it clear to them that you are a young person who is working hard and are in a tough situation -- it's possible that they have extra funds somewhere for "hardship" cases.</p>
<p>Some questions you should ask:</p>
<p>*Is there a possibility of more funds in subsequent quarters? Even if they are out of funds for the Trustees' scholarship now, will that scholarship be fully funded in the future?</p>
<p>*Can work-study be added to your package (to allow you to have a campus job)? If not, are jobs generally available on campus for students?</p>
<p>While you are on campus, stop by the housing office and the student employment office to check what listings they have. Again, you might be able to get a sense of what is available locally -- also, sometimes for housing in a community with a lot of students, spaces open up in the summer so it can be worth it to take a cheap room a month or so before school starts if overall that is less money than living in the dorms. You may be able to save considerably on housing.</p>
<p>Frankly, I would be surprised, if you reapplied to a broader range of schools, that you would have any trouble being accepted and offered substantial aid at many. You are obviously bright, motivated, have overcome hardship, show initiative...I am frankly surprised that NYU didn't offer you more aid, and still believe that there financial support out there for you at a different college.</p>
<p>In terms of the loan, I would never, EVER take what they offered..which sounds like they are taking you to the cleaners. I hope you have an adult at school or somewhere, who is offering you in-person advice and counsel.</p>
<p>Allmusic, I think you are just unfamiliar with NYU financial aid practices -- I am sure Ashley's aid package is very similar to what most NYU students get. NYU only meets full need of the students at the very top of its applicant pool -- when NYU referred Ashley to their GSP program, that meant that clearly they didn't see her as being at the top.... GSP is essentially a program for applicants who they consider "not quite" strong enough for their regular 4-year-college offerings. </p>
<p>As I have noted, NYU has gotten so selective that most of the GSP students are students who would easily qualify for honors programs at most public universities, as well as win admission at many other highly selective colleges -- Ashley's experience with OSU proves that. I'd also like to say that Ashley's SAT scores are somewhat higher than my own daughter's scores; my daughter was admitted to NYU Gallatin, so I think the GSP referral partly is because CAS admissions is probably more numbers-based. However, our financial aid package was no better -- if you check discussions of financial aid in the NYU thread you will see that NYU is very stingy with aid for most students. </p>
<p>But the fact remains that NYU has been treating Ashley rather callously -- and it is probably a good indication of how she would continue to be treated if she attended school there. When my daughter spent time this spring talking to NYU students, many complained of long lines, large classes, and difficulty getting the classes they want. Although the financial aid staffer was very polite and efficient in dealings with my daughter, it is clear that NYU is not the sort of place where a student can expect a lot of personal attention. </p>
<p>I think this whole situation is so unfortunate. In another thread there has been a discussion of "helicopter parents" who do too much for their kids -- but Ashley's case is an illustration of what can happen to a bright and motivitated student who is operating without that parental support system in place. What frustrates me most is that I can see exactly why Ashley made the mistakes that she did -- how is a 17-year-old possibly supposed to know all of this stuff? I also overestimated and engaged in wishful thinking about NYU's financial aid, but I refused to allow my own daughter to even consider applying ED anywhere - and I did the FAFSA's myself, filling out two FAFSA's and two sets of corrections just to make sure the info got sent to all 12 of the schools my daughter applied to. That's one thing that maturity gives us older folks: most of us know from experience to plan for contingencies, to expect things to go wrong. Ashley just had a lot of dreams and glossy brochures from NYU, and an offer of admissions from what she thought was her dream school.</p>
<p>I didn't read all of the posts, but here is my two cents. I will be a Junior in the fall at Geneseo State University in New York. I went to NYU my freshman year - I was in the General Studies Program, but was accepted to the School of Education just before I transferred. I encountered many problems at NYU, and finally decided that it was simply not an education worth the amount of money being paid. I know that it is so prestigious (believe me, I was reminded by everyone I knew when I told them what I was considering), but I'd rather just apply to an excellent Graduate school than spend so much money for four entire years. By the way, if you didn't know, tuition increases every year - which is a huge deal when we're already talking about so much money. Geneseo is known as the best state school in New York, and I absolutely love it. The education is great, the staff is great (a big issue I had at NYU - I pretty much had to force my advisor to help me, and he was soon fired and not replaced until after the year had ended.. such experiences were common, and I was basically on my own with every problem I had). My best advice would be to go to a community college to take requirement classes and get them out of the way for cheaper than at a university. Then apply to a good state college not too far from home, and then apply to a prestigous grad school! Good luck!!</p>
<p>I was going to apply to NYU-ED, but I heard horror stories about NYU financial aid packages and decided to leave it for RD. My parents know absolutely nothing about college, since neither attended. It was not something that they really ever thought about. I sought advice from my peers and my college advisor. The former knew even less than I knew and the latter was very, very helpful. </p>
<p>I was advised not to apply ANYWERE ED, because it would be better to have options, and I needed to compare financial aid packages. NYU was my top choice. I've dreamt about it ever since I was very, very young. I got into the school and they asked me to accept or decline their offer of admission first; afterwards, they would provide me with a financial aid package. I'm not a sucker so I decided not to and instead am enrolled at a school I like just as much-- if not, more than NYU -- that has almost my full tuition covered and was nice enough to add 10,000 dollars to my financial aid package when I explained the sticky financial situation I was in. </p>
<p>I'd say you're better off going to a junior/community college or finding another school to take you. Apply to a SUNY. They have rolling admission and you could easily get in as honors student at one. Stay there for a semester or a year and transfer out. I really don't think $30,000 is worth it. I, too, am handling my college costs on my own. My parents said that "if" (yeah, IF) I continued past high school, I was on my own, because they never did it, and they don't find it necessary for them to handle my college education. The only thing my parents are doing for me is buying my stuff (to move in with), getting me a cell phone / plan that's good on campus, and picking me up when it's vacation time. Yeah. </p>
<p>I have loans I am taking out, but I have made sure that if I find that the costs outweigh the benefits, I will be transferrfing to a state school (probably Binghamton). Of course, my loans aren't as huge as yours, but any loan can cause problems. I'd rather be comfortable knowing I carry no debt. </p>
<p>My friend said "okay" to NYU before seeing a financial aid package. She has a 3,000 dollar EFC and the school is making her pay 25,000 dollars a year. Yikes! She has gone through hell trying to get out of it. </p>
<p>Please make a wise choice! I know you love NYU, but is it really worth taking out 30,000 dollars a year? I don't think anything is worth that much money. My English teacher said, "It is okay to go into debt for two things, and only two things-- your education and a house. But even then, make sure your debt is not higher than half of your income." I doubted her at first, but now that I've seen what debt can do to people, I agree.</p>
<p>Try applying somewhere else in New York! Eugene Lang is a good college; it's not well known, but I've heard that it is excellent. If that doesn't work either, maybe you can check if you can apply to a CUNY and get housing at one of them (CCNY, Hunter, & Lehman now have housing). </p>
<p>Good luck!!!!! :)</p>
<p>To add to that: </p>
<p>I just read the entire thread and I agree with the people who are advising you to go to one of the sisters. A friend of mine is going to Barnard, I am going to Mt. Holyoke, another friend is going to Smith, and we all had good times trying to fix our financial aid problems with our respective institutions. I got my financial aid package upped $10,000, which leaves me with a very small difference. My friends also got their financial aid packages changed. All they did was talk to the people at their colleges and it went well. I was seconds away from depositing at Binghamton, because neither NYU nor Mt. Holyoke originally gave me what I needed. Heck, NYU NEVER gave me what I needed. I got a letter from the Mt. Holyoke financial aid office in late April (they cut it close)-- and voici, a decision change! </p>
<p>I think you might find a year with AmeriCorps extremely rewarding. I just don't think that NYU is worth the debt-- rather, I don't think going into too much debt is every worth it. </p>
<p>Please do not worry about prestige. Really, it's not something to think about. Base your decisions on how well the school <em>fits</em>. Mt. Holyoke fit for me. NYU - Gallatin fit. I always had the intention of transferring out of Binghamton if I decided to attend, because it's just not for me. Eugene Lang would fit for me. Prestige means nothing, and it's really all relative. </p>
<p>I've had SEVERAL people tell me, "OMG! You turned down NYU for a no name school in Massachusetts?!" Let's avoid talking about their ignorance and just continue by discussing the relativity of prestige. My school's valedictorian actually said, "Oh! Umm, Mount Holyoke. ...umm.. but I thought you were... I mean, I guess that's not bad, after all, you do get a Fordham degree." (She was thinking about Marymount.) </p>
<p>When I went to Massachusetts, though, most knew about Mt. Holyoke and what it offered. I, personally, do not think most schools at NYU are worth attending (CAS being one of them), and while I love Mt. Holyoke, I really do not think that I could manage a yearly 30,000 debt. I'd rather just go to Queens College (while it has no prestige, I would feel comfortable there-- and at ease, because I could probably snatch a scholarship to cover the costs). Even if I couldn't get a scholarship, tuition is cheap enough for me to handle. :) </p>
<p>Please do not worry about prestige!! It's really not a very good way to choose colleges. </p>
<p>Oh! I think you would be doing yourself a favor if you applied to St. John's University in Queens. You could probably get a pretty big scholarship. You would definitely get a full tuition scholarship from St. Francis in Brooklyn. You still have time to apply, so take advantage! </p>
<p>Good luck and please don't consider prestige when making decisions!! :)</p>
<p>Ashley, are you doing o.k., and, did you set your appointment yet with OSU financial aid?</p>