<p>I've spoken with a few people and they constantly tell me the same thing: </p>
<p>Applying ED to a school can be harmful because, if the school chooses to admit you, they get to outline very strict financial aid plans and don't allow you to bargain as much as you could potentially bargain upon applying regular decision.</p>
<p>Any thoughts on whether or not this is true?</p>
<p>Do schools set up their own "need-based calculations" or do they use the FAFSA/CSS profiles to universally determine how much $ someone with X income gets?</p>
<p>I'd like to apply to Columbia ED this fall, and I'm kind of right in the middle with financial aid--I need just enough $ to allow me to go there.</p>
<p>How do you prove that the financial aid packages they offer aren't sufficient to unbind you from the ED agreement?</p>
<p>A school like Columbia will offer you the SAME need based aid if you apply ED as if you apply RD. They use a formula based on your information on the Profile (which will be filed very early…October or so of your senior year of high school) and Fafsa (filed ASAP after Jan 1 of your senior year of high school). BUT the difference is that you will NOT be able to compare offers from Columbia to other schools to which you apply. If you are accepted ED to Columbia, you will be required to withdraw ALL of your other pending applications. Therefore, you won’t have any other acceptances or financial aid packages to compare to the one Columbia offers you. What if YOU don’t think Columbia has given you enough aid, but they have met your financial need? That can happen. The SCHOOL determines your financial need, not you. SO if they determine that they HAVE met your need then you would have a hard time convincing them otherwise. They have a formula they use based on the information given to them on the Profile and FAFSA. </p>
<p>There have been reports of students who received very different need based packages from peer schools (Ivy to Ivy for example) and were able to show those higher offers to the lower offer school and were able to increase their aid offer. BUT you can’t apply to two schools ED…only one. So you would not be able to do this if you were accepted ED.</p>
<p>Look…if you really have financial constaints, don’t apply ED. Apply RD and apply to a variety of schools so that you will have some options when the time comes. You may find that your overall costs with aid are less at some schools than at others. But you won’t even be able to find this out if you apply ED.</p>
<p>Another thing…if you decide that you cannot accept your ED acceptance due to the financial aid being limited, you cannot then go to another Ivy school. You options would be your own public instate university.</p>
<p>I think it’s fine to apply to a school like Columbia that meets 100% of need if you interpret their financial aid policies correctly and determine that you can afford the EFC as they will calculate it. If there are any doubts about affording your EFC or you’re hoping they’ll somehow ask you to pay less than the EFC as they, using their institutional methodology, calculate it, than don’t apply ED. If you have any questions about how they calculate EFC, ask before applying.</p>
<p>Also, understand what their packages look like in terms of loans and work study.</p>
<p>Recognize this is just a single data point, but S was accepted ED this year (different school) and the financial aid package was as expected based on estimates we made using online calculators, etc. </p>
<p>I know there’s a concern that the colleges have all the leverage in ED cases and that they will use this leverage to low-ball accepted students. Our own experience does not bear this out. I’m sure there are a few exceptions out there. Bottom line, I don’t think the universities want a lot of disappointed, frustrated, students in their freshman class. So ED fin aid packages are consistent with RD fin aid packages. </p>
<p>That said, as others have said, only go the ED route if you’re sure you want to attend. If you want to compare packages, go RD.</p>
<p>I’ll supply another data point. D applied and was accepted to 3 schools all of which claimed to meet 100% of need. The FA packages for these three schools differed by almost $20K … one at about our FAFSA EFC, one which required us to contribute about $10K more, and one which required us to contribute about $10K less. I would be very hesitant to apply to a school ED if financing is a concern; much better to compare the offers, and have some potential bargaining leverage.</p>
<p>I used Institutional/Fed Methodology calculators, and they were right on the nose with what Columbia gave us. Again, a data point of one, but I think their methodology does follow the online calculators. If you can live with that number, I’d say it’s possible to go ED.</p>
<p>Data point… the financial aid package you get with your ED decision will be based on the estimated information you supply on the Profile or school financial aid form which you will file when you file your application for ED admission or shortly thereafter. Your FINALIZED award will not be made until you have amended the FAFSA, Profile and school forms to reflect what is on your completed tax returns (which won’t be until after Feb 1). IF there is a significant change in your income from the estimate to the final form, you could be looking at a reduced award. SO…KEEP EXCELLENT INCOME RECORDS and make your estimates as realistic as possible.</p>
<p>It is not advisable under most circumstances to apply ED when cost is an important factor for college choice. The thing is, you cannot compare packages when you apply ED. You really have nothing to compare your financial aid awards. </p>
<p>More seriously, most schools that have ED do use PROFILE or their own apps, and it is their institutional definition of need that is met, not your definition or what FAFSA defines. Although you can back out of ED if you cannot reach an agreement on aid, the repercussions can be painful. It is risky.</p>
<p>What about EA (Early Action) which is non-binding? Are there any disadvantages? There are 3 schools my dd is applying to that offer EA and since she hates to wait she is considering applying this way. We are very concered about finances and will have to see all the offers before making a decision.</p>
<p>My kid applied ED (different college), and like others have said, the school’s online calculator gave us a very accurate estimate of what his ultimate aid turned out to be. In fact, it turned out to even be slightly better than the calculator estimate.</p>
<p>See if Columbia has something like that. It all depends on how much information you can get prior to applying as to what kind of aid you can expect. But, yeah, as stated in other posts… if you want to be able to compare offers, then no.</p>
<p>EA is good for the kids as it relieves their stress a bit once that first fat envelope hits the mailbox. She’ll still have to wait for her FA awards though! D had 3 EA acceptances this year and, oddly, they were the last schools to mail FA info!</p>
<p>We were at an information session last night for Northwestern and this question came up. They answered it the same way every other Admissions Rep has answered this question in the past…“if financial aid is a concern, don’t apply early decision.” I really don’t like that answer and here’s why. There are very few people out there I am assuming where finances are not an issue when planning for college. My D really wants to go to NU and as her parents we want to make this happen for her if it is anywhere near the realm of possibility for us. We’ve done the online calculation and if we are awarded that, then we want her to be able to attend the college of her choice. It doesn’t matter if another school offers her a better deal or even if another school offered her a full scholarship, she wants NU. If you read the fine print (at least the fine print in all of the financial aid booklets we’ve picked up) it says that ED is binding except for financial reasons. To me that says: “If admitted I will go! The only reason I would not, is if you don’t come anywhere near the EFC that was calculated on your website.” To me, that is operating in good faith.</p>
<p>I don’t think telling kids with financial need that ED is out of the question for every school is correct. As Terig says, finances are a concern for most.</p>
<p>At schools that meet 100% of need, if the family has a full understanding of what their need is as seen by the specific school, applying ED is fine. Yes other schools might give better packages if you’re not dealing with Harvard and Yale, but if you’ve done your homework, used the calculator, talked to the school for any needed clarification and are comfortable with your EFC, by all means you should feel free to apply ED.</p>
<p>It really depends on what is meant by “financial aid is a concern”. </p>
<p>If your definition is that there will be some way to pay the bill, and a school that meets 100% of need, and provides an online calculator for the school, and that you don’t care what other schools may offer, then it may be worthwhile to gain the admissions advantage of ED. I doubt that is the situation for most for whom “financial aid is a concern”, so that accounts for the generic warning about not applying ED. It’s a lot easier than explaining all of the intricacies.</p>
<p>And is it really the situation for you? For example, would you consider your need met if they offered only loans for the gap between EFC and COA?</p>
<p>I’m really torn about this, also. The school my son is most interested in will do an “early determination of financial aid” if you supply them with certain information (outside the formal Profile and FAFSA). This seems like it would be pretty straightforward and if the result was reasonable then we would feel comfortable with an ED II type situation or ED I if the determination came before the deadline. However, I would be afraid like tjd, that the “meeting need” portion would be all parent loans and I’m just not comfortable with that situation. However, I would think that this would, in fact, be grounds for breaking an ED agreement (loans not grants.) As I roll this around in my head, my son’s #2 choice is a state school which causes me to tilt toward allowing him to get the perceived “bump” from an ED application as technically he would be following through on what one can do if they break an ED by going to the state school. What to do, what to do…I think many of us are in the same boat.</p>
<p>And is it really the situation for you? For example, would you consider your need met if they offered only loans for the gap between EFC and COA? </p>
<p>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So, if your EFC is $15,000 and the COA is $50,000, they might consider your need met if they offered a $35,000 loan per year?! I guess it is always best to talk directly to the financial aid office if you are considering ED to find out best, worst and probable scenarios.</p>
<p>No, loans are not financial aid…loans are loans. To me, if you are willing to mortgage a college education and the question is only how much loans can you get by with, then there would be no question about applying ED since ultimately you full pay the full price…and then some on the loan interest if you don’t care about debt and that sort of thing. I’m more interested in what is the actual cost in today’s dollars going to be. And I think it’s only fair that the price be on the table before the kids are committing. In that case an estimate of financial aid, early in the process is just fine. One of the schools that my oldest applied to operated in that manner but had EA and not ED and I fet it was a very fair way to operate, I’m alittle leery of ED. But loans are loans and if “aid” to a particular schools means loans, then you have to be prepared to walk away because really you’re not getting “aid” and you could end up paying a whole lot more than the sticker price in the long run.</p>
<p>A school which is one of the commonly accepted “meets full needs” schools does not meet need with loans only (except if the need is very small.) Stafford and sometimes Perkins loans only. There are schools which fill the gap with all loans, but they are not “meets full need” schools.</p>