Georgetown financial aid was out best one so far. They covered completely the need and that too with scholarships and money that is not loan.
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agreed
Gotcha.
In that case, it is indeed a headscratcher when the two schools in question are known for providing need based aid. I guess this might not be a case of a 0 EFC, and is instead one where thereâs some gray area in the need calculation.
I hope your friendâs child gets the response they seek. The good news is he/she has two great options.
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Five years ago my older kidâs good friend got a very disappointing package from Vassar and the family was not affluent by any means. It would have been a top pick otherwise. The student has since graduated from a different school and on their way to med school. It all worked out in the end.
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I also think it depends on what kind of experience your child wants and how much do you value the intangibles, and how able are you to pay the difference? Aside from weather, sports, school spirit, acceptance rate, prestige, etc, how important is it to him that he be surrounded by intellectual peers? Overall at USC, he is likely to be surrounded by students that are more competitive academically but a scholars program at Del will also provide like-minded fellow travelers.
@Curiosa2 - I also just remembered that two years ago, my S19 got into Brown and their financial aid was less than some other schools, so we sent copies of FA from Vanderbilt and Colgate and Brown did reconsider and change the award.
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That never hurts and you were fortunate. What I have seen is that many people (canât say in this case) think that when a school says they meet unmet need that they wonât have to pay anything or hardly anything. Certain schools are way more generous than others as well. For instance, Vanderbilt is one of the most generous schools when it comes to need whereas CMU is one of the least. Cornell people think will cover 100% of unmet need, but itâs all relative and for this year parents got slammed and some had their EFC go up by as much as 30k. People also tend to not take all costs into consideration and only look at the name brand which can be a mistake. When everyone is out vacationing to Mexico or skiing at some fancy resort and your kid canât afford it because they already have so much debt already, what then? I would be real careful in trying to find a balance as far as what works and an environment where a kid will feel comfortable at both academically and financially.
My ex husband has a friend from medical school who had no $ and Iâm not joking here, lived on a sack of potatoes the entire first semester. The sad part of it was that his parents actually had $ to help him but refused. I never understood that and fortunately he went the MD/PHD track so he ultimately took out some loans and then was paid during his PhD years and had the last two years of medical school covered by his program as well, but living on a sack of potatoes because you didnât want to take out a few more loans and your parents wouldnât help you is no way to live.
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We have not toured Smith. We did tour Bryn Mawr. I love it so much. Soooo much. My daughter did not apply.
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Thatâs true. You can hang out in your dorm all day and play video games and flunk out just as easily and fast at an expensive private as a big public. Affluent privates may have more resources, but they donât ran a nanny state and donât do âin loco helicopter parentisâ
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I just did. The letter clearly says that (to take more time to consider them), and I must admit, it pulls at your heartstrings. 
My son has phenomenal options from which to choose, and after listening to the podcast, I can understand the reasoning behind the LL. Makes total sense. Thanks for sharing.
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Hey everyone, I wish I had enough time to read all the posts and congratulate each one of you individually for your childrenâs accomplishments. Not the case, so big congrats to all! Taking a few days off until Tuesday. Need to feed the soul! To those who celebrate Easter, Happy Easter! 
See you all on Tuesday. 
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Yes, we didnât expect the colleges to meet all unmet need and knew that each college determines need differently. So for both kids (in addition to our affordable in state options) I targeted colleges that were known to be generous with FA. Still, when acceptances came out and financial aid packages arrived, the amounts offered varied quite a bit among the 100% meets need schools. Thatâs why we tried negotiating and why I think it doesnât hurt to give it a shot (without any expectation).
Also, when my kidsâ friends go skiing or on fancy vacations and my kids canât go, itâs not because of debt. Itâs because we donât live that way (hence the need for some financial aid). I do agree it may be hard for some lower income students to be around a lot of wealthy peers, but my kids are happy with their schools and their education and the variety of students there. Iâm glad they donât have to live on a sack of potatoes though! 
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This really looks like heaven on earth.
I apologize, I wasnât really directing that at you and Iâm sorry it came out as such, but it was just a general comment based on what my kids have seen and comments from other parents in the parent groups that many think college at some elite schools is going to be free for their kids, when it isnât and they then have sticker shock. Some also believe the EFC and itâs way off. Youâre 100% smart to ask for more or a match as the worst they can do is say no. Afterall, we always teach our kids to advocate for themselves.
The biggest issue truly are the kids/families who are not looking at fit but go with name recognition and will take out debt at all costs whether they can afford it or not. I laughed at your line âItâs because we donât live that wayâŠâ because I say that to my kids ALL the time literally âBecause we donât live that wayâ. If they knew what records were they would say I sound like a broken one. Iâve always tried to keep my kids as grounded as can be and not to worry about what others have or donât have or what we have or donât have, treat everyone with respect, etc.
If I had to live on a sack of potatoes I donât think I could ever eat another one again!
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@srparent15 i gasp at someday when we canât say, âI sound like a broken record.â No one will understand our English!
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What is the name of the website that is useful in planning college road trips? I saw it in a prior posting but I canât find a search bar to search within a forum unless I am missing something.
Thanks in advance!
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And youâll probably have to explain to your grandchildren what a floppy disk was when they ask what that strange âSaveâ icon on your computer is supposed to represent.
On the other hand references like this may not go out of fashion. A phrase still widely used in the UK (and sometimes in the US legal world) is âHobsonâs choiceâ meaning âtake it or leave itâ which is even more ancient, it refers to a stable owner in the late 1500s who offered customers the choice of taking the horse nearest the door or none at all.
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If you click on the main search bar, it gives you a box you can check to search the topic youâre in.
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Can you list some schools that fit that criteria? Those are exactly the criteria my D#2 is looking for!