<p>So, I was admitted to my dream school and some other top choices. I have received very generous financial aid packages from my other top choices, but my dream school has been constantly asking for more and more paperwork and documents, which other schools did not ask for (it's an Ivy). I still have not received a package from them, and the deposit deadline is days away. Is there anything I can do to help speed up the process? I'm just afraid of getting less financial aid, due to the amount of supplementary paperwork they're asking for. Do you think it would be too late to negotiate with the school (showing them how much other schools are offering?). Should I go ahead and commit to my dream school, even though I'm risking getting less aid? I'm just freaking out and would like some advice. Thank you. </p>
<p>Do not commit until you see their financial aid package. You need to call someone in their financial aid office and find out when you can expect to see your financial aid package. They understand that you need to know by May 1, but if you submitted items late or were missing items, that can delay your package. You can ask for an estimate if they won’t have your final package ready in time, but that can still be risky.</p>
<p>The ivies whose policies I know won’t consider packages from non-ivies except for a few select elite schools (MIT, Stanford). So you can’t negotiate with them based on packages at other schools unless the Ivy considers them peers. </p>
<p>It is not May 1 yet, there is no need to commit. I agree call them, they know you need to know but tell them you’d like to be able to reply asap and would like to know what you could supply to finalize your numbers. But so what if they are asking for paperwork–you are asking for their money.</p>