<p>I guess you’re right, c-mama (sounds like a rapper 
) “hooks” are overrated.</p>
<p>Neato: no doubt your son is an exceptional candidate. That said, there have been several posts on CC citing stats about the differences in acceptance rates between full pay and FA. One report was something like ~46% full pay acceptance vs ~3% for FA. Since private schools are not obligated to fully disclose their stats, it’s hard to quantify this stuff. But I’ve seen some schools count families who full pay in monthly installments (as opposed to lump sum) as FA. I’m sure the interpretations vary on many counts.</p>
<p>wcmom-- I think it depends on the school. My son was also accepted to two schools with great FA, and waitlisted at 2, possibly in part because of FA, but who knows. He was waitlisted at the school where he had the strongest hook. </p>
<p>Some schools are genuinely more need-blind than others. I really don’t get the sense from posts here or from our experience, for example, that need affects admission into Exeter. The differences you suggest seem very high–Groton, for example, says on their website that their admit rate for FP is higher than for FA, but the difference is not nearly the one you post (can’t remember the exact figure off the top of my head, and I’m too rushed to check). </p>
<p>Over and over, schools emphasized to us that they are building a diverse class. So a hook for one school could well be run-of-the-mill for another. This is why it makes more sense to me to focus on fit and to search widely–the right school, in our experience at least, will present itself, and both student and school will be “hooked”!</p>
<p>Fit is so much more important than anything, absolutely. But anecdotal evidence aside, it’s important to be realistic. No matter how you measure FP vs FA acceptance rates, it is ultimately more competitive for FA applicants and it’s important to be realistic about it. Students who are already enrolled in boarding schools are requesting more financial aid, leaving less for those applying. This means that FA applicants need to be even more outstanding - and yes, I would hope that “outstanding” varies according to the school. It is this definition of “outstanding” that is the “hook.” So finding the school that will value your “hook” is all about fit. When my daughter was waitlisted by her top choice (before visiting) I kept saying “rejection is protection” (while secretly heaving huge sighs of relief) and she would look at me with pure venom in her eyes. But after visiting her first choice we realized that she rec’d her best offer from the school that is absolutely the best for her, though not her first choice initially. So sometimes “fit” is not what the applicant thinks it is, it’s what the universe thinks it is :).</p>