<p>Calmom,</p>
<p>As I said, financial aid is an imperfect process, and that holds true for determining need, assembling types/amounts of financial aid, and executing the process for each student. Therein lies the reason for different 568 group schools presenting packages that can vary considerably. This is why theres value to doing a lot of research to know your financial aid chances as well as you know your admissions chances. Id wager that most students and many parents do not perform this due diligence.</p>
<p>It appears as if you and I agree on something that I repeat ad infinitum, which is, do NOT apply ED unless that school is clearly ones No. 1 choice AND financial consideration is not a significant factor. This is a personal judgment that each student/family must make based on specific circumstances. </p>
<p>First of all, Bruce Poch is Dean of Admissions he is not head of their Office of Financial Aid. Still, he presents a consistent picture of what is manifested regarding financial aid at Pomona. Speaking about ED/EA programs, Bruce Pochs quote on discriminating is as follows:</p>
<p>
[quote]
Here, I firmly believe it does not discriminate in the way they think that it does at Harvard. I just dont believe it. Weve got pretty much the same number of kids on financial aid in the early decision group as we do overall.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Youll note that he doesnt speak for all ED/EA programs, but rather speaks about Pomona in specific. The numbers are telltale that they are doing something right that does not discriminate. In actuality, Early programs are not intrinsically discriminating; however, its true that disadvantaged students who lack access to good counseling, college-educated parents who can advocate on their behalf, and resources to admissions/test preparation suffer from apparent barriers that translate into real obstacles. I defend Bruce Poch and Pomona because Poch is a proponent of true educational values and dismantling the framework of frenzy that we see in todays college admissions. I think you have a reason to feel frustrations, but taking them out on Bruce Poch and Pomona is misplaced.</p>
<p>Regarding my daughter, I am uncertain how youve come to your conclusions about my daughter, but your assumptions are incorrect. In fact, my daughter did apply ED to Emory University, where she was accepted and attends. We did something that I would not advise most students. She applied ED and was still able to get a great financial aid package. It was a calculated risk, but in my case, I calculated well. I did more research than anybody else I know, and I allowed my daughter to apply ED only after I was confident that my research was well-founded. We did this because she knew that Emory was the school for her, for many reasons, and I was certain that I could make things work. Subsequent to her acceptance, I still had to negotiate with Emorys Office of Financial Aid, but those negotiations proved successful. I dont discount general practices and policies, but I like to be treated as an individual and also have my daughter dealt with as an individual. To Emorys credit, thats what they did but I also knew that they have one of the largest endowments in the country and could afford to hear about my daughters special circumstances. In short, everything worked out, and as a gesture, I took the Emory Financial Advisor who assisted me through the process out to lunch when I was in Atlanta last month. In a sense, I was able to compare packages by comparing numbers and practices revealed through research. I didnt have a problem contacting Financial Aid offices and speaking with the Director of Financial Aid to get answers to my questions, hypothetical as they were. Would this work for everybody? I dont know, but it worked for us. Incidentally, although my daughter eventually withdrew all her other applications, UC Berkeley did send her an acceptance, which we kindly declined.</p>
<p>Regarding single parents and ex-spouses, I know this well. I have been a full-time single parent to my daughter since she was 3 years old her mother moved out of state at that point in her life and has not been back since. She has not provided any financial support since then, and neither did I expect any. And yes, dealing with the non-custodial parent issues is not fun, but I just deal with them.</p>
<p>Ill end with a quote from Bruce Poch in his article, and Im willing to believe him:<br>
[quote]
Still, Poch maintained that Pomonas admission process is fair to all parties.
I dont see early decisionat least at PomonaI dont see that as any obstacle to diversity, Poch said. And Id love for somebody to show me how it is. Because if it was, we wouldnt be doing it.
[/quote]
Reference: The Student Life Pomona College: Article:<br>
<a href="http://www.tsl.pomona.edu/index.php?article=1769%5B/url%5D">http://www.tsl.pomona.edu/index.php?article=1769</a></p>