<p>So, I applied to 10 schools. 5 are public and I can't get aid from, one is private and gives merit scholarships so I'm fine on that one, and the other four are georgetown, Harvard, Princeton, and U Penn... all of which are way too expensive for me to pay without aid.</p>
<p>One main reason I even applied to Harvard and Princeton, both out of my affordable range, is cause they have such good financial programs.</p>
<p>All four of those schools had deadlines for FAFSA and CSS and some other thing on Fenruary 1st. Harvard even wanted Tax returns submitted by the 1st, and my parents usually don't do that until April 14th.</p>
<p>I submitted my FAFSA already, on February 15th for the federal priority deadline.</p>
<p>Should I call the schools? Should I submit everything now even though its late. ANY HELP IS MUCH APPRICIATED!!! </p>
<p>Is there some reason that your financial aid materials were held up? You and your parents want financial aid, right? In order to consider you for financial aid and give you an offer with your acceptance letter, the schools need certain materials and documents and time to process those, right? What has held up the CSS since Feb. 15? If I were you, I'd call each school, explain what you have and don't have available for submission, and beg their guidance in how you should proceed. The fact that your parents usually do their taxes April 14 is irrelevent. Usually they are not asking for several thousands of dollars in assistance from the colleges.</p>
<p>And I didn't even Realize that the deadline was that early, I thought most deadlines were in March. Had I known I would have done everything on time.</p>
<p>mcgmfc, you were not uninformed. All colleges post their deadlines on their website in full view and access for all students. Therefore, you were informed. You simply did not check their websites.</p>
<p>Get your applications done ASAP. Just remember when you GET to college...read your class requirements and MAKE NOTE of deadlines when things are due. Deadlines are something you should get in the habit of meeting. They are there for a reason. It's the 10th of March for heaven's sake. Schools are getting ready to mail their decisions and financial aid decisions within a couple of weeks. They NEED time to process applications.</p>
<p>I find it interesting that some posters here were able to figure out their admissions deadlines, but not their financial aid application deadlines. Next year...look in the fall. The schools typically post their deadlines for financial aid applications (yes, most returning students need to do them too) by the end of September.</p>
<p>I think the students that miss deadlines like this tend to be the ones trying to do everything on their own. Yeah, sure, the information is there if you look for it, but sometimes students don't even know what to look for. It's a shame that parents and counselors can occasionally be so unhelpful to students, but I have seen it happen. In fact, I volunteer at the high school helping kids with staying on track, meeting deadlines, navigating the admission and financial aid process. They have to get volunteers to do this because for many kids, if it's not a volunteer it's nobody.</p>
<p>Thumper1 is right. Just get everything in as soon as you can. Crack the whip on your parents to get their taxes done earlier this year. It is very important! It may be too late for you now, but all you can do is try. You might want to call the financial aid offices at your schools and ask them how to proceed at this point. That will alert them that information is on the way, but if they just say no,no,no,no way,no how, then you can save yourself the effort and direct it toward another school where they may be more open to evaluate your need at this late hour. Good luck!</p>
<p>I've gotten most thing in now, I just have one or two more forms I have to mail. Thanks for the help and for understanding, especialy 'rentof2 :) !!!</p>
<p>Rentof2 -- I agree wholeheartedly with you. While I maintain that it is the student's responsibility to investigate, vet, schedule, plan and navigate the college application process, I've noticed that among my s's friends many are without even the starting guidance and are working without a net. Many parents seem to think the process is somehow the school's responsibility, which just isn't realistic in the era of diminishing resources. Peer and parent mentoring of the process is an excellent idea and I think I will suggest it to our school's PTSA, where our gc ratio is 1:650 (believe it or not. And it's a g/t school. Apparently our board feels that talented kids require LESS guidance...yet of course those are the ones who are busiest with admission essays, auditions, fin aid etc.)
We have awesome teachers and a great gc, but it's often just not enough for the level of counseling required -- especially navigating FAFSA and CSS.
I am also wondering if we should start a Guidance Counseling section of cc (unless there is one) to assist school gc's in keeping abreast of real live instances in terms of admissions and awards...
Cheers,
K</p>
<p>Kmccringle, where I live there is a statewide program the enlists and trains volunteers for this. The students have to come in and specifically request a mentor (that's what they call the volunteers), and they make every effort to match them with one. There are always more students requesting mentors than there are available mentors, unfortunately. Virtually all kids get some kind of help if they ask for it, though, in their senior year. Many get mentors in their junior year which is, as you can imagine, MUCH better in terms to moving through the college search and selection process in an informed way.</p>
<p>Financial aid is the most confusing aspect though. There are so many bases to cover, most of them multi-step/multi-part processes, different sources for funds, and different ways and means to even track down those different sources for funds... and they all have their unique requirements, deadlines, and procedures... it's very confusing for even very quick students. These kids are 17 and 18 years old. Geesh, if it could be made any harder for them, I don't know how. The lucky ones have parents who are involved and get themselves up to speed on the process. It's easier when you have many years of experience working out budgets, taxes, applications for credit, mortgages, savings or investments, etc. For a 17 or 18 year old kid it's like looking point blank at a wall of gibberish. Some do fine with it, but many others can't quite get a grip without some help. It isn't because the latter are deficient in anyway, it's just a near impossible task without some adult support.</p>
<p>College Confidential is, I often see, the place where some kids get it. (Many more don't have a clue about College Confidential.) That's something I hope the many helpful adult posters here feel sufficiently appreciated for!</p>
<p>Thanks! Can you post a link to info about the state program or give me some search words? I'd like to look it up and discuss a trial in our district.
Cheers,
K</p>
<p>Here's a link, kmcrindle. It started very small and grew statewide. Wouldn't it be great to be the person who planted that first seed? That might be you in your state. :)</p>