My EFC is $0 and this is what i get. Need advices

Paying for College
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<p>I have to say, I am happy with my financial aid package.</p>

<p>I got 34000 dollars as merit scholarships and grant aids
and $8000 as loans, and $2100 from summer job (expected from me i guess)
But i think having an idea of starting my life after undergrad with 32k in debt is pretty bad. (and i heard 20k is avg. right?)</p>

<p>Yes my expected family contribution is Zero.
(and my parents wont pay a penny for me. I will have to take that loan.)</p>

<p>Also I got another financial aid package from other school, which is better (less loans).</p>

<p>I hear and read a lot that people do ask for reconsidering these packages
Can I or Should I do it??
How can I mention (or Should i even mention) about other school's (little better) financial aid???</p>

<p>If so, How can I do that politly but effectively??
(like email/phone are enough or Do i need write a letter?)</p>

<p>Any advices and comments would be helpful.</p>

<p>p,s : also if you are or have been in a similar situation, what kinda package did you get???</p>

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<p>Go to a state school for free</p>

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<p>what school is this that it will cost u 34k+8k+2k=44 grand a year? even including room and board</p>

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<p>Hmm... 44k isn't that unusual for a 'normal' private college. I have three schools that are al 40-45k.</p>

<p>Anyways, what schools did you get into? And did you get any other financial aid letters? Those two questions should be answered first.</p>

<p>Also, since I have an EFC pretty darn close to that, I have been learning a lot about the different kinds of loans. If your EFC really is 0, then you should be doing the same; financially, it is vital for ya. My research tells me Perkins holds over Stafford, for example. Most kids don't know what I'm talking about when I say that, so if that's you... research.</p>

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<p>gphoenix, i know that i will eventually have to take out loans,
what i wonder is if my financial aid package is "good" enough. (loan vs. grant wise)</p>

<p>princess, as gphoenix already said, it's not uncommon. and even further for most top colleges it's pretty normal.</p>

<p>BCgoUSC, i didnt even apply to a state school, so that's not an option for me.</p>

<p>gphoenix, could you tell me what you get from those three private schools??</p>

<p>I dont know whether i shall say names of schools (isnt that too private?) but i can say both are top tier schools (big and famous, if you want to know more) and very similar in terms of strength and recogniztion.</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

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<p>My suggestion is to say the names of the colleges so people can help you better. Lots of people have info based on their own experiences with various colleges.</p>

<p>It may be that the package that you got is the best that that college gives. If so, IMO the loan amount is still too high for most students to be able to comfortably handle after graduation.</p>

<p>You also can try using CC's search function to see if anyone has posted specifics about their financial aid with the colleges you're considering.</p>

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<p>In Northstarmom, we trust.</p>

<p>I am talking about Cornell University, and other school which give me a better financial aid ($4000 in loans) is Duke. (oh i forgot to mention $1800 as workstudy. so about $4000 from my job(s) throughout a school year and summer vacations)</p>

<p>Is Cornell one of those rich and generous school??</p>

<p>Again what is a good way to approach financial aid office and ask for reconsideration??
Please help me :D</p>

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<p>i feel a little weird about saying this, but the money that you guys are talking about in comparison to the names of those schools is nothing.....i really wouldnt worry about the money at all.....ull make it all back and them some especially if u are going to grad or professional school.....the average college grad makes $100,000 more in their lifetime....good luck....</p>

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<p>A heads up to gphoenix--Bush is close to axing the Perkins program, although the schools who participate are lobbying hard to keep it. You may not have a Perkins in the future.</p>

<p>dreaming, that's going to be a pretty heavy load burden when you graduate. Especially without the safety net of family resources. Given the high quality of Duke, their better package looks mighty good. </p>

<p>I think you should definitely discuss your concerns with Cornell (also a fine school!). At best, they can do something about it and change the balance of your package. At worst, they can't help you but they will have one more story to tell trustees and donors, how this great kid they really wanted may not enroll (or didn't enroll) because the loan burden was onerous. That might help other kids down the road.</p>

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<p>Why does $32,000 sound so bad to so many of you? That's a very small amount of money in the long run, and an excellent investment when you consider the potential value of a prestigious diploma. Your monthly payment if you took 10 years to pay the loan off would be about the same as leasing a nice car, interest included.</p>

<p>Still, it never hurts to ask the school if more might be available. I think in general the only rules to such negotiation are to do it in writing and to be polite. I would recommend sending a letter explaining your extenuating circumstances, then calling the financial aid representative to discuss it. You also will want to let Cornell know about the Duke offer.</p>

<p>Whatever you do, it'd be a shame to make your final decision because of $4,000/year if you really prefer Cornell. If not though, the extra money can't hurt.</p>

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<p>$32,000 isn't a huge amount, true. </p>

<p>But it's a large enough amount to make future choices about graduate school or professional school more difficult. That likely means taking on more debt. </p>

<p>And most importantly, we're talking about a person with a efc of $0, which is different than a person with more family resources taking on that amount of debt. There's no safety net. No prospects for help during lean times--or to help with grad school. That can limit choices down the road. Heck, it can limit choices during undergraduate study.</p>

<p>It's a serious problem, which is why some schools are trying to cap loan amounts for the poorest students.</p>

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<p>hoedown, thanks for understanding and nice explanation.</p>

<p>i wont make that 4000 dollars/yr a big factor into my decision between two schools. (actually i have no idea where i should go, since both schools seem to be excellent and awesome. any comments on each schools would be nice :-)</p>

<p>it's just, i want to make that burden (which i will have in either way) light and low as possible. (and i think i will at least pursue Master degree)</p>

<p>So should I "write" something up for Cornell and also mentioning Duke??
Can anyone give me some advices on how to write a letter (ahh i feel dumb) and how to mention other school's financial aid package without insulting one school in anyway..??</p>

<p>Lastly, but i dont much care, should I still ask Duke to reconsider my financial aid package??</p>

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<p>It can't hurt to ask. I was seriously considering asking Duke to reconsider mine, but I know that I will be in a Ph.D. program eventually, so I'm sticking with a state honors college so I can wait to take out loans for grad school.</p>

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<p>Lots of meanings for "average" Numerical Mean, Statistical, Modal, etc. One of the problems of "average" is that it really doesn't represent anything unless you describe that parameters better. If you have not learned the politics of statistics in HS then strongly recommend that you take statistics in college but stress the social implications of the numbers. A facinating science. </p>

<p>"Average" for a career that has limited renumeration may be a tough bet.
"Average" for a career that pays initially well, may be a better call
"Average" for a career that makes BIG bucks, is the best call.</p>

<p>Work the numbers backwards, assuming that you have just graduated today. June 2005, and have a student loan program that is being consolidated:</p>

<p>For instance (all numbers are assumptions): A pretty good, newly minted, engineer earns $4000/mn, less taxes 30%, less car payment, less apartment and utilities expensed, less 15 year consolidated loan payment, less food budget, less car maintenance & fuel, less mad money, less emergency $ = your remaining living expenses. * Can you live on this ?? !!*</p>

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<p>true, itstoomuch</p>

<p>i guess that means i'll have to get a used plymouth minivan.. </p>

<p>true some people think well-known school graduates will make a big buck.
plus a trend, i read, is engineers do not make substantially more money as they get more years under their belt (imean they do but not a rate of lawyers or doctors i guess). competition, new techonologies, long hours of work.. arrr.. well ... Can I live on that?? i dunno.</p>

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<p>Remember, the reward that you get as merit aid/scholarship is taken from someone else. Do you remember that last scenes of "Saving Private Ryan?"</p>

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<p>"So should I "write" something up for Cornell and also mentioning Duke??
Can anyone give me some advices on how to write a letter (ahh i feel dumb) and how to mention other school's financial aid package without insulting one school in anyway..??"</p>

<p>Fax them a letter asking them to "reconsider" your aid offer in light of what Duke offered. Along with the letter, send a copy of your Duke offer.</p>

<p>Emphasize that Cornell is your first choice college, and you are grateful for their offer, but you come from a very low income family with a 0 EFC so the $4,000 a year difference is a substantial burden fro you and you are concerned it will restrict your post college options.</p>

<p>Follow up with a phone call. Be appreciative about what they offered, but at the same time ask gently if there's anything they can do to lower your loan burden.</p>

<p>"emember, the reward that you get as merit aid/scholarship is taken from someone else. Do you remember that last scenes of "Saving Private Ryan?"</p>

<p>Not true! They are not going to snatch money away from others to give it to this one.</p>

<p>Good luck to you! Colleges do consider the kind of factors that I have mentioned. Colleges like the Ivies also very much want to attract low-income students, so are trying hard to give aid packages that the students find affordable.</p>

<p>My thoughts are that unless you have some major reason to select Cornell over Duke, if Cornell doesn't improve the aid package, for financial reasons, I suggest choosing Duke. Both are excellent colleges, and $32 k in loans is a lot of money, and would restrict your options a lot after graduation.</p>

<p>Since, Duke is rated higher than is Cornell in things like US News' ratings, that will work to your advantage. It's easier to get a reconsideration if one has a better offer from a college that is equivalent or better than the one that you'd prefer going to. The fact that Duke obviously values you so much should encourage Cornell to raise their ante to get you to come.</p>

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<p>Hi Dreaming ... congrats on your admissions ... and good luck with the FA hunt. One more suggestion ... I believe your expected contribution was $2100 for a summer job ... it did not look like your package included work study. If you work 8-10 hours a week (a couple shifts per week) you can make a pretty good dent in that $8000 loan (I'd guess at least 25%).</p>

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<p>[q]Not true! They are not going to snatch money away from others to give it to this one. [/q]</p>

<p>I personally believe that college admissions and grants/scholarships can be seen as negotiating for a car, a used car, sight unseen. And the buyer is the uninformed party. </p>

<p>I would *ass*ume that a school has many criterias for a grant. But overall there must be a limit on how much money the school can give out and what type of student they want. Our kid got a reconsideration grant and I can't help but feel that this money was denied to someone else who was in greater need. But at the same time I'm not going say,"No", to tax free money!</p>

<p>Please illuminate. Perhaps on a new thread, because the responses we all need to hear. I am not sure if this particular aspect has been discussed.
Thx.</p>

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<p>" personally believe that college admissions and grants/scholarships can be seen as negotiating for a car, a used car, sight unseen. And the buyer is the uninformed party. </p>

<p>I would assume that a school has many criterias for a grant. But overall there must be a limit on how much money the school can give out and what type of student they want. Our kid got a reconsideration grant and I can't help but feel that this money was denied to someone else who was in greater need. But at the same time I'm not going say,"No", to tax free money!"</p>

<p>When it comes to most colleges, I think you are right: money that goes to one student will not go to another student who may be equally needy. This certainly has to be true for the colleges that are not need-blind in admissions and that don't promise to meet 100% of students' documented financial need.</p>

<p>I used to teach at a public university that had large numbers of low income first generation college students. I do know that our scholarship money was limited, and if one student got money, that definitely did mean that another student would get less or no money. The college did not promise to meet 100% of students' need. Need was met given first come, first served, and the desireability of the student also played a part in how much financial need was met and what the aid package looked like.</p>

<p>The relatively few colleges that are need blind in admissions and guarantee 100% of documented financial need have some deep pockets. I don't know how they do it, but I do not think that they would be denying one needy student to give money to another needy student. I believe that both Duke and Cornell fall into this rare category of meeting 100% of the documented financial need of all students who get in.</p>