<p>I just talked to my parents and they were okay with helping pay the 9k. Is it still a bad idea to switch? Since the deadline isn’t until tomorrow will they still look at me as having “commitment issues”?</p>
<p>The $9K is just an estimate. Be aware of that. You are getting an average base on how Vanderbilt calculates aid, and an average is just that. In the case of a school like Vandy which does meet need, the averages are closer than those that don’t, but you cannot be sure until your actual financial statements are received. </p>
<p>Also, there are schools out there where you could probably get a full ride merit wise having stats making you in the zone for Vandy. </p>
<p>You need to talk to your parents and get some idea what their limit is in terms of what they can afford and are willing to pay for college. Don’t get them too comfortable with that $9K estimate.</p>
<p>There is a portion of your EFC that is called “student contribution.” This is the amount Vanderbilt expects students to contribute without the help of their parents (in an ideal world). The first 2000 of outside scholarships first go directly into this fund and reduce it to zero.</p>
<p>that may be so.</p>
<p>But on this student’s estimate, there wasn’t a “student contribution”. This is one reason why this student can’t get too confident about this estimate of $9k. It’s possible that a student contribution of about $2k will be expected (like work study or summer work) and maybe ONLY THEN would a $2k outside scholarship cancel that out. The student can’t count on any of this at this point. He shouldn’t assume that any outside money will reduce anything.</p>
<p>To be completely honest, I just don’t think it would look good to switch your application on the actual deadline. I’m a student, so this is just a feeling. I don’t know how the committee makes their decisions or what factors into it, but if you we’re going to go ED2, you should’ve known that awhile ago, not at the last minute. Plus, just because your EFC is 9200 doesn’t mean that’s what you actually get. Every year kids turn down Vandy because they aren’t offered enough aid, even when they were expecting a great package based on their EFC. Last year someone posted on another thread that they got in ED but weren’t offered enough money so they weren’t enrolling and people got really angry about it. Vandy is an amazing school, just exercise caution!</p>
<p>Vandy pads their cost of attendance a lot. Look at actual tuition, fees, room, and board right now, then bump it up about 6% (estimated increase in costs for next year). You can cut the cost of books by buying them used or renting them. You can cut your miscellaneous personal expenses by not spending a lot. I can tell you that my D’s actual cost of attendance was quite a bit lower than the published COA.</p>