NU tuition

So I’m a junior and I’m really interested in NU but I am very concerned over financial aid. I completed their net price calculator and I received a good amount of aid for one year but I’m wondering how close this is to the actual price and how much I should expect the tuition to increase over 4 years from the initial net price for one year.

If you read any financial prospectus, it will always say “Past performance is not an indicator of future results”. The Roman’s expressed it as “Caveat Emptor”…

However, I think it is worth pointing out that as the father of 2 recent NU alums, I wrote several “Special Circumstance” letters that resulted in a lowering of yearly attendance cost.

So, IMHO - You should contact Fin Aid Office. https://offices.northwestern.edu/detail/195 Good Luck!

Would you mind disclosing what the net price of NU was for 4 years for your children as well as the household income that they reported those 4 years?

@MarcoContreras - I am not going to reveal specifics without a court order :)… but I will tell you that our income is considered “middle class”, and the EFC was @ $5k - $20k per year. The $5k was from one year where we had 2 kids in college at the same time.

Were your children in a significant amount of debt upon graduation? Also, what majors did your children go into?

Marco - 1 kid paid all student loans @ 1 1/2 years, the other has more debt - but makes more money per year than me and wife added together. Student loans should be paid off @ 2 - 2 1/2 years. Both were engineering majors (McCormick) and had jobs before graduating.

Would you argue that the NU’s engineering program is just as good if not better than that of Illinois?

Marco - Simple answer yes… the “real” answer as to which is “better” has too many variables IMHO to say that in all cases, and for all people, NU is better - but for my kids the answer was yes - and NU cost less out of pocket thanks to grants from NU and not much money available from UIUC.

My older NU alum had narrowed down the college choices between NU and UIUC. So she talked to a Prof at NU - who is now a Dept Chair - & he said that he went to UIUC for undergrad and NU for grad school - and liked the NU atmosphere better, with smaller class size and lower prof to student ratio. She decided that was right for her too, and her brother followed along 5 years later…

But what really separates NU from most other engineering schools is the Engineering First program: http://www.mccormick.northwestern.edu/academics/undergraduate/core-curriculum/engineering-first.html

It’s an opportunity for all NU engineering freshmen to help solve real world problems - for real people. Me and wife were fortunate to see our kids - and all the other freshman projects - and were completely impressed by the products and presentations of all the students.

Wow that was a very helpful and insightful response. I’m sorry to get off topic but I realize you’re highly knowledgeable when it comes to NU and I was wondering what your children’s admissions stats were and whether they applied ED or not

@marcoContreras - One was ED, one was RD. Both were 4.0 unweighted GPA, and @ 5.0 weighted. One scored @ 30 on ACT the other a 34. One of them won art awards, the other had poetry published in an anthology. One took 12 AP tests and scored all 5’s, other took 8 AP’s and scored seven 5’s, one 4. They both played varsity sports in HS, were in Honor Society and a bunch of other ECs, and no leadership positions. No time for jobs, soup kitchens or other charity work, and neither interviewed.

So the grants and aid that your children received for their yearly tuition remained largely the same for all 4 years? Also, Do you think their tuition and cost would have drastically increased if you had not written the letters of special circumstance?

The grants went up for student 1 over the years. Grants for student 2 were @ the same. I wrote letters for both students that did lower the out of pocket costs for both. “Drastically increase”? IMO, no.

BTW - based on your questions, you should have a serious conversation with a Fin Aid Rep, and discuss your particular circumstances. What occurred with my kids may not in fact be applicable to you, so if this is important to you, make the call(s) and have numbers in front of you when you do. Good Luck!

Did either of your children go into biomedical engineering? If so, was it easy for them to find a job after graduation?

Marco - No. Neither kid was biomedical, and as I posted earlier, they both had jobs before they graduated.

@nugraddad Is it possible to try to increase your financial aid package even though I don’t really have a “special circumstance”? I feel like with the current package I was offered, it’ll be hard to pay, and I expect the package to decrease in future years as my siblings will graduate from college. Also, I’m not sure if your kids did internships/co-ops or not while they were in school, but do you know how much internships/co-ops affect financial aid? I’m afraid that if I do an internship, the money gained from it will be insignificant because it’ll lower my FA packages.

@idahopho - My Co-Op kid did not lose any Fin Aid. Actually, it turned out great - they paid off some previous loans, and after graduation paid off all student loans within a year and a half.

re: Increasing Financial Aid without special circumstance - I can’t speak to your specific circumstance - BUT - Write the letter! If you do you MIGHT get an adjustment. if you do NOT write the letter, you will NOT get an adjustment.

Good Luck!

Northwestern no longer gives loans as part of their financial aid plans. Debt won’t be an issue unless you take out private loans. Any internships you do will have a negligible impact on your financial aid. You won’t be making that much money, if anything at all. Once your sibling is out of college, your EFC will double and you will be expected to pay twice as much. I encountered that same issue. You can look through my previous threads if you need any advice. I was also in the same situation. Sibling in college with a high EFC. Sibling no longer in college and my EFC doubled. My parents thankfully were willing to make the adjustments to their spending so that I can countinue to be here.

Do dependent siblings in grad school count?

IMO - Call Fin Aid Office - They should know the answer.

I just got my results back from the ACT and I scored a 30 overall. I am interested in engineering at Northwestern and I am wondering if I could realistically get into the school if I applied ED. I have pretty strong extracurruculars and multiple leadership positions. I am also top 5% of my class, with a 4.1 weighted GPA and 4.0 as of now, give or take. I scored a 34 on the math and english section of the test and I have scored higher on science and english on my previous attempts. I realize it may be a reach but I love the school and I know acceptance is much higher through ED. How good are my chances? And what is your advice/ evaluation?