My son is a 6’5" 300 lb OLineman with some interest from various NEASC schools. We are in NJ so the Princeton camp would work better for us with no overnight stay required. Is it better to go to each schools camp, or is the Princeton camp sufficient?
Also looking at the price tag is it realistic for them to get the cost down to an in state public level, we are by no means weathy, and not sure how realistic it is to go to Trinity or Wesleyan. Case Western, etc…
He has 94/100 gpa with honors and AP classes. Taking SAT tomorrow.
You will see coaches from most if not all of the NESCACs at the Princeton camp. You should also be aware that several NESCACs hold their own camps later in the summer. These are generally cheaper than the Ivy camps, and it might be worthwhile to invest in the Princeton camp, see where the interest in your son goes from there and then make some decisions on other camps from there.
When I did this with my son he did not camp at any school where he had not already received a fair amount of interest. Even then though, the fallout from the camps he did attend was very illuminating. Some schools really amped up their interest, others backed off a bit. So personally, I would try and stay flexible and kind of pick your spots if the money available for recruiting is tight.
As far as financial aid, some of the NESCACs are very generous. The Ivys, especially HYP, are extraordinarily generous. So I would not rule any school out until you at least run the financial aid estimators.
The way we handled those questions was at the very beginning of recruiting my wife and I told each of the kids we could afford x dollars per year, and more than that was on them. So when he started drawing interest from non scholarship schools, the first thing we did was run the financial aid estimators to see if the numbers would match (or be at least within spitting distance). Some times they did, sometimes they did not. It is a hard thing, and I remember my son really having a tough time cutting off Tufts (because he really liked the recruiting coach) but the numbers were not going to be something we could live with. Best to know that early than after investing money and time in camps, etc.
Thank you, I think we are going to hit the CT elite camp at Wesleyan now that it got pushed back to May and one of the Princeton Camps just to cover all the bases.
It sounds like, If he garners interest from certain school(s) we can circle back to that schools camp later in the summer if the numbers work.
Thanks again. I had no idea how this process worked, or what would be the best strategy.
I also said this on your other thread, but run the net price calculators on the schools under consideration…that will give you an idea of what you can expect to pay. A few NESCACs give merit aid, most do not. Be clear with your S what the budget is and stick to it.
Normally, NESCAC coaches will start doing academic pre-reads July 1. Getting a pre-read is a good sign that your S is under consideration. If your S gets a green light from the academic pre-read, many schools will also do a financial aid pre-read…just ask the coach.
Your S should be reaching out to all the coaches (head and assistants) now and also be filling out the online recruiting questionnaires. Cast a wide net…the funnel will begin dramatically narrowing starting in July and continue thru the fall.
Of course there is large uncertainly wrt this year’s recruiting timeline.
He has about 11 coaches he communicates with and has filled out all the questionaires for those 11 and many he doesnt communicate with. He appears to be slotted as a D3 low D2 ability level, so I am hoping to make some other contacts at these camps if he does well.
It depends…it is based on each school’s determination (they all have different formulas but with some commonalities) of the family’s need, not yours. Some schools meet full need, some don’t.
Do the net price calculators at his 11 schools…what are those estimates? Are they affordable? Are the parents divorced, or own a business, or have real estate holdings beyond a primary residence?..if so, the NPCs might not be accurate.
We are pretty ordinary, own a house, live paycheck to paycheck, minimal investments and stuff so they should be accurate. Daughter will be in grad school so I guess that helps me a little??
As mwfan says, just go to the NPC on each school’s website. They are set up right now for 2018 taxes but using your 2019 will get you an okay estimate in most cases. Or if things don’t change much from year to year for you, just use your 2018 taxes. The FAFSA isn’t particularly relevant at the generous schools so you don’t need to wait. As was mentioned, later in the recruiting process the coaches can run a financial aid preread which will give you a very accurate estimate.
Just remember that the NESCACs (along with most private schools) require the CSS Profile for financial aid purposes…that’s why you have to do each of the schools NPCs to get an estimate of your COA.
FAFSA just allows your S to access governmental fin aid, so think of the EFC as the minimum you would be expected to pay. At schools that don’t meet full need, you may be expected to pay much more.
I have to guestimate as after struggling for years my wife found a much better job…gross minus 24800 gets me close to agi irs withholding calc should be good for taxes paid going forward