<p>@BBC How does race have anything to do with this? You are from a family of 6 and both parents are unemployed. Which means that you can apply for need based aid correct? Please explain how being any other race would help in this type of situation financially with the ivies.</p>
<p>@BBCUK4 i am very sorry for your family’s current financial situation. I know that financials stress permeates into other areas of your life. Why don’t you check out the Questbridge website? I think this might be a valuable resource to you. QB has nothing to do with race. How do I know? My son is a URM, very good stats, very good EC’s and he WAS NOT selected as a finalist even though I have had to work three jobs to support our family as my son’s dad provided no support. Furthermore, in addition to our financial situation, we also have undergone a very difficult family situation in the last three years. So, before you throw out the race card, I think that you should do a little more research.</p>
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<p>You might want to consider the schools with <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-16.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-16.html</a> .</p>
<p>@Barrons, “Phones” come with directions & manuals on how to use them, financial aid and college info does not. Unless you have someone in the know to guide you through which documents to fill out, WHERE to find the documents, and WHERE to find scholarships, it can be daunting. Some programs are not even LISTED on the websites of certain colleges and when the student “stumbles” upon the info, the college reps say the info is excluded from their websites on purpose so that they won’t get bombarded with students. That’s just a single example there, but to me, a student-especially a teen, needs guidance. Many guidance counselors at low income schools are disconnected/don’t really care/don’t guide their students. I went to a low income, horrible school and as a senior, I didn’t even know I HAD a guidance counselor! I didn’t even know what that was!</p>
<p>@NewHavenCtMom, I agree. And really, I’m not sure where the other commentor is going with this mysterious guidance counselor telling her that she is “white and poor,” but had she “been of another race…”. Well, she’s not LEGACY with these "ivies"either. Did the guidance tell her, “Had you been Legacy…”? No, just race, huh? I don’t believe the story. What I believe is that she may be blaming non-whites for her financial woes but is saying it here in an indirect manner. Race has nothing to do with her not being able to get into college. The majority of people in college are white. Even at Barnard, I think it’s something like 60% white, 17% asian, 8% hispanic, 7% black (and the rest are “other”). Same at most ivies. So how would being white keeping her out of these places? If anything, since most people are white there I would think her chances would be better, not worse. Don’t you?</p>
<p>Lana808-I went to college WAY before the days on online info access. Every library I have been to has at least a few books on fin aid and applying to college. I filled out the FAFSA for my parents because they did not understand why all that private info was needed. At 17 or so you have to be ready take charge of your own life a bit. Nobody in my family had even graduated HS yet so they were no help. I recall sending actual postcards to request info and apps from the colleges. In a month you got them in the mail.</p>
<p>@Lana</p>
<p>I’m not sure… all I know is this. There are so many students who blame “others” for their lack of college acceptances. I just don’t get the sense of entitlement and bitterness that flows through the college admissions process. Now that I think of it, they never discuss athletes either.</p>
<p>It is the job of parents to steer their kids first and foremost above all others.</p>
<p>It’s up to high schools to make opportunities and options known.</p>
<p>It is up to colleges interested in recruiting talented kids to market themselves to talented kids.</p>
<p>As far as any obligation to help poor kids - there is zero obligation to do anything except on the poor kid himself to take command of his own life.</p>
<p>It stings but its true.</p>
<p>That’s definitely his obligation to himself, but none of that means we don’t have any obligation to help him. None of that means we ought not love him as much as we love ourselves.</p>
<p>The points of view on this are so interesting. My 8th grader goes to a 6-12 school where they start talking college and careers that first year. At first, it’s more like, “College is an option for everyone, you just need to find the right place for you.” They talk about actual cost, EFC, offer parent workshops, and have people in interesting careers come speak to the kids. By 8th grade they’re researching the beginnings of a college list, exploring career requirements and going to local college fairs. In high school there is college planning built into the curriculum. Every kid unless there is a disability that prevents it, takes the PSAT. Every kid takes the SAT or ACT or both. There are free prep classes. </p>
<p>They do this in a public school fill of mostly poor, mostly minority students. They do this because the school’s founder was a token minority in the high tech world and she researched what it takes to get kids into college and becoming successful. And the school, and the kids, are thriving.</p>
<p>Philo-your philosophy is the founder’s. She feels as you do, and believe me, the kids take this help and run with it. A lot of the time the kids and families just need some direction to be pointed. We are blessed to be a part of it all.</p>