Peer school = at the same level of rankings/selectivity.
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3 posts were split to a new topic: FA Appeal Letter Questions
Re: other school merit awards. Every college has its own criteria for awarding merit aid money. This school might not care one bit that your kids gets more merit money at another college. The criteria at THEIR college is what matters.
In terms of need based aidâŠsome schools have much deeper pockets and more generous need based awards than others. If Iâm reading this correctly, you do not even have a need based award from this school. Does this school guarantee to meet full need for all? Some colleges will review their need based awards and look at awards from peer schools. But you donât even have that now.
Does this current college offer merit awards that are automatic based on certain criteria? If so, does your daughter actually qualify for additional need based aid from this school.
Certainly you can inquire. But it doesnât sound like you have all the info you need. Adding ECs and projects wonât matter unless there are scholarship awards that specifically are based on these things.
I would contact financial aid if your financial situation as presented on your FAFSA has changed. Inquire about what you can do because your income is significantly less, if that is the case. They will give you their process for doing this, what you need to send, and the timeline for doing so.
You just might have to be patient until your final package comes in MarchâŠand your daughter receives additional acceptances and aid packages.
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The only thing she doesnât have is the other merit offers from all the schools. She was accepted into 12 and out of those 9 have notified her of merit. Waiting on three more. As mentioned for my older child we did tell her school that we got more money from another school and they gave her more money. So in that case it did matter so will be doing that this time as well.
And as I stated above, mine got in without test scores and none of her schools were clear on how merit is determined. Or at least itâs not on their site.
We did a merit appeal because we werenât eligible for need-based aid. We included latest grades (gpa had gone up), a letter of recc from a EC mentor, and a higher merit award from a peer institution. We received an increase in merit of $6k. We did not ask for a specific amount or say heâd commit, but we did say it was his first choice school. Doesnât hurt to ask.
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6 posts were split to a new topic: FA Appeals Process
I donât think you can look at getting appeals in school year 2020-2021 the same way that your other children may have gotten appeals and increased aid in the past.
Many colleges have taken a major financial hit due to COVID-19 and students not attending school. State budgets have been gutted to the extent that they cannot promise state aid for their taxpayer base. It is going to be hard for a student attending a OOS public university to get additional money at the expense of in-state students.
I know that I was at a meeting at one of the CC faves, and they announced that they took a $350 million loss during the fall term, which was going to affect course offerings and teaching loads.
I know another school in NYC, where they had to lay off 80% of the res life due to a lack of students living in on-campus housing.
I think that families need to have a 4 year plan to pay for college.
If you are attending a deep pocket/healthy endowment school that meets 100% demonstrated need, then I am not talking to you. But the reality is that the overwhelming majority of colleges in the US are not deep pocket/healthy endowment, meet 100% demonstrated need schools.
Some schools, Wesleyan off the top of my head tells you straight, no chaser that it does not matter whose award you present to them that they do not consider financial aid packages from other schools. If the school only gives need based aid, you are wasting your time presenting a merit offer from another school.
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That, and hopefully a more direct âfrenemyâ rivalry.
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Ha I was thinking who they rival in football lol. Just kidding
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No need for kidding, that works! Harvard and Yale (for example) football rivals in âThe Gameâ since about 1875 are delighted to try and beat each other out on dual admits with dueling finaid offer upgrades.