<p>I'm a little confused about QB's regular decision option; what makes it different than applying RD directly to the colleges?</p>
<p>Also, it's incredibly unlikely that I would be admitted to most of the partner colleges. I only have interest in one of them anyway, which I was only ever going to apply RD for. Should I still bother with QB? I am in the lower financial bracket, so I'm likely to get a lot of need-based aid anyway, so would I be better off just applying to the individual college without bothering with QB?</p>
<p>The QB application is different and very extensive, letting colleges see more of you. It also links to other scholarship opportunities. QB, in my opinion, is most beneficial to those who really need financial aid. How low is your income bracket?</p>
<p>@d33d33 I have four people in my family and we’re under $30k (under $25k too, I believe, but I’m not entirely sure). I really wasn’t planning on doing it because getting into most of their partner schools would be very unlikely for me; the one school I’m considering is Notre Dame, but they cover 100% need anyway, so I don’t really know if QB would still be much of a benefit.</p>
<p>Being a QB finalist will not change the amount of FA you will receive, esp with your income, but it could improve your chances of being accepted. Being a QB finalist is a national award and carries an increasing amount of prestige as the % of finalists goes down every year. The QB application also shows a much more detailed picture of you and gives you more opportunities to tell your story. However, it is a lot of work and if you are really not interested in any school except ND, it may not be worth it for you. I never tell people not to apply to QB since I think it is such a boost, such a great resource, etc. but it sounds like for you, if you don’t need the fee waivers, you don’t care about the QB finalist status, you may just want to do whatever ED/EA ND offers and not put the time into the QB app. </p>