scared about ED

<p>I mailed in my application forms for ED and financial forms yesterday.
but now i'm hearing things about how applying to financial aid puts me at a disadvantage regarding ED admissions.</p>

<p>I am hearing things like how some universities are reluctant to admit ED students who need significant aid, because they don't want to accept those who might bail out saying 'the aid is not enough so i don't have enough money to attend the school'..</p>

<p>My family's income is very low, and i probaly will need quite a bit of aid.</p>

<p>I know cornell works under the need blind policy, do you think this will put me at a disadvantage?</p>

<p>I'm a little worried.</p>

<p>I must first say that I am only speaking from what I have heard from other people. That said, according to what I've been hearing, asking for financial aid can indeed reduce your chance of your acceptance into w/e college. Of course, it's probably not a MAJOR disadvantage, but even though they say they are need-blind, they tend to peak at those when they are making the ultimate decisions.</p>

<p>But let's just hope that this is just a false rumour... there's probably nothing you can do at this moment, and I am in a similar situation, so I will just have to wait...</p>

<p>wow now i am pretty much freaking out</p>

<p>so you're hearing all this stuff...what is the source?</p>

<p>i heard about it from a guidance counselor</p>

<p>if you look through the internet for articles and stuff, there are times when they have like case studies about 2 students... quite rare, and not from the New YOrk Times and such, but they are still out there.
One major topic that these articles talk about is if universities are truly need-blind.... idk. Honestly, I REALLY hope they are... and I got worried after reading these stuff (and I am hoping they are indeed just rumours)... so yeah... as I've said, it's what some people say.</p>

<p>yeah, and my school had this discussion last year as well...</p>

<p>I emailed financial aid office.
Here's the automatic reply:</p>

<p>Thank you for contacting the Office of Financial Aid and Student Employment. Due to the current high volume of incoming e-mails, we ask that you allow 4 business days for a response. Thank you.</p>

<p>This does not help at all with my anxiety.</p>

<p>From what I have heard, never ever ever apply ED anywhere unless:</p>

<p>1) You are absolutely 100% positive that you want to go there without a shred of doubt.
2) You have visited.
3) You are rich.</p>

<p>Cornell is officially has a need-blind admissions policy. It might be impossible to eliminate financial biases in admissions, but my thought is that being very high need in ED won't hurt you significantly. In fact, schools like Cornell aim to create a socioeconomically diverse class. Conventional CC wisdom says, for example, that first-generation students - often poor - are given a boost in admissions at top schools. Therefore, I think that being a poor ED applicant could go either way. My thought is that Cornell will admit you if you are qualified, and probably won't if you are not. In any event, it's pointless to worry now. </p>

<p>My family was fairly low income <40K when I applied ED. I knew that I wanted to go to Cornell. I did, however, take a leap of faith. ED really is a terrible option for low-income students. I was lucky to have received an aid package that made Cornell barely affordable for us. If you are truly low income, however, Cornell will probably give you decent aid.</p>