<p>DS has been accepted at UR, Case WRU and CMU. She wants to major in Cognitive Science and minor in Music. U Rochester has offered a Dean's scholarship of $10K/yr for 4 years; Case has offered a Provost scholarship of $20K/yr. CMU fin aid has not yet been decided. We will visit all 3 schools in a couple of weeks.</p>
<p>We are already paying for her older sister is at Rice U without any financial aid. Our EFC for FAFSA as well as UR was calculated at $30K.</p>
<p>Questions re: appealing/negotiating a better package:
*Should we negotiate with UR by telling them that CWRU has offered a better scholarship? How do you do that tactfully?
*Should it be done by phone or by letter?
*Should DS do the appeal or a parent?</p>
<p>I think it’s absolutely appropriate to contact the admission counselor regarding the difference in merit aid between UR and Case. At this point, I’d say call them and offer to send them a copy of the Case letter. Many colleges will adjust aid for what they consider comparable colleges. As far as DD or parent, I’d say parent but I’d appreciate MConklin’s view on that (and the rest too!).</p>
<p>Most colleges say they don’t negotiate aid, but that they will take a second look at an applicant’s file, plus any new info. Whatever the case, it’s a good idea to contact the financial aid counselor.</p>
<p>Merit aid goes through the admissions office and need based aid goes through the financial aid office.
Some colleges have a bit more flexibility when it comes to the merit based aid.</p>
<p>My daughter is a graduating senior and U of R did bump her up a bit but did not match the $ she received from another school-in our case, it was enough to make the decision to go to U of R, along with a great visit on accepted students day. That compares to CMU which was rude and nasty when I called to see if there was a possibility as older d had merit money from every school she was accepted at except from CMU and Skidmore, including U of R.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your input. Any other ideas/experiences from others are also appreciated.
I (parent) will call the UoR fin aid office and convey the other offer(s). Will let you know what I find.</p>
<p>I recommend calling the office to speak with the counselor responsible for recruitment and application review in your territory. While scholarship appeals will be considered by the scholarship committee, it is certainly never guaranteed to result in additional merit-based aid, and a counselor can better guide you through that process over the phone.</p>
<p>In response to the question about whether or not it is appropriate to provide information regarding scholarship offers from other insitutions: the more information you provide, the more informed the review of your appeal will be. While Rochester does not “match” scholarship offers, it helps to understand what type of offers an individual student is recieving elsewhere. If our peer institutions are offering significantly higher merit-based aid, it may help us to make an adjustment. I should add, though, that there are many factors that we consider that other schools may not as much (i.e. fit, as I have mentioned in other posts).</p>
<p>In short - call the office and ask to speak with the counselor that reads applications from your high school. If nothing else a phone call lets us know that you are serious about attending Rochester.</p>
<p>If I might add an addendum to the original question, how best would one go about renegotiating need based aid, or is it possible? I know that it’s been said in the past that it’s doable, but how is the best way to approach it?</p>
<p>As the OP, I thought I would give an update. After visiting UR, CWRU and CMU, we eliminated CMU for 1) bad fit for DD (major reason), and 2) reduced grant amount after review of tax return. DD really loved UR (best fit) and really liked CWRU (a pretty good fit). After the visit, we sent an appeal letter to UR re merit scholarship. UR increased it by a small amount, but it was enough to convince us of their good faith and genuine interest in DD. So even though UR aid is less than CWRU, DD will go to UR. She is really excited! I guess we’ll be on a tight budget for 4 years. (Ketchup’s a vegetable, isn’t it? ) The deposit check will be in the mail tomorrow.<br>
Thanks to everyone who gave valuable advice, both on and off line. It really helped us in balancing what the heart/gut wanted and what wallet could afford.</p>
) The deposit check will be in the mail tomorrow.<br>