Schools known for good merit aid

Parents Forum
1481

This is tough on both of you. We simply did not allow our S to apply to schools that would have been full freight. Sure, he was disappointed at first, particularly with Carleton off the table, but he came around to it and ultimately expressed agreement with our decision.

I think all of us work too hard for our money to spend it for something that seems overpriced, with a wonderful and more economical alternative available. Nothing about their other options will stop them from succeeding in life if they apply themselves–truly. It is up to them.

Hopefully, everyone is alive and well when they reach this point with their own children, and tuition is over $100K per year at the top schools. That will be interesting to observe play out
:slight_smile:

Good luck!

1482

Just one last thought - if you told D you would pay full price for an Ivy, then why not WUSTL? Just the name recognition? The education and overall experience must be just as wonderful there as at the Ivies. I mean, if you have the money and were prepared to pay full price for a top school? That makes it more difficult I would think, knowing that you would pay if it was Brown or whatever, but not WUSTL.

Sorry you guys have to deal with this. Like ColdinMinny, we did not allow D to apply to full-price schools. So we got the disappointment out of the way early on, and our D is totally on board and excited about her (not fancy, but still excellent) choice.

Best of luck to you all.

1483

We told our S that he could apply but he had to apply for a scholarship because we thought the school was too expensive. We hoped he would be awarded one and then the problem would have been solved. Other choices worked out as planned and we would be happy with any of his other great options.

1484

We recently came back from accepted student days at Case. They are generous and told us that the class of 2019 is their most accomplished class of students so far. The word is out in regards to their merit aid. The interesting part seems to be with two in college, others like Northeastern seem to catch up on overall grant money. It seems that Case stays relatively the same as their first aid offer. Have others seen when two are in college Case original merit aid increase? DS is between Case and Northeastern for Biomedical / Bioengineering.

1485

@4kids4colleges-yes we felt an ivy such as harvard or stanford would open doors for her in the future and would perhaps be worth paying full price. WUSTL is not as well known- they themselves admit that when you visit.

1486

I posted the note below on the Parents of the Class of 2016 thread (I also have an S14 who’s a freshman at Emory), but I thought it might be relevant to the current discussion here:

Below I’ve cut and pasted the first few paragraphs from a WSJ article (an interview with Mitch Daniels). Here’s a link to the whole article: http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-to-save-american-colleges-1429913861
There’s other interesting stuff in the interview, but I think that what’s pasted below is the biggest take-home point for us parents who have or will shortly have kids in college. Including (?and especially) the last sentence.

"With acceptance letters in hand, millions of high-schools seniors ruminating over where to attend college—and their parents who are panicked that their kid might pick the place with the best climbing wall—should all take a breath: It doesn’t much matter where you go to college.

What matters is “how you go,” says Purdue University President Mitch Daniels, the former governor of Indiana. He then lays out the results of the Gallup-Purdue Index, a national survey of 30,000 college graduates that was first released last year. The survey attempts to quantify not only what graduates earn but also how well they are navigating adult life.

A mere 39% of college graduates report feeling engaged with their work, and in that group as many hail from top-100 schools as don’t. The three most important contributions that college makes to a sense of workplace thriving after graduation: Having one professor who made you excited about learning, feeling as though teachers cared about you, and working with a mentor. Graduates who checked those boxes were more than twice as likely to sense they are flourishing at work.

But only 14% of those surveyed said they had hit that trifecta in college. Other positive factors from undergraduate experience: working on a long-term project, having an internship and participating in extracurricular activities. Where graduates went to college barely registered as a predictor of job satisfaction".

1487

but do they have more of an opportunity to receive those contributions at one college vs another? and thus in a sense have more of a chance to gain that job satisfaction down the road??

1488

@conpar39 – Point well-taken, as it might argue for smaller school vs. larger school, etc.

Another thought is that maybe it has more to do with the kid, i.e., that the kid who connects with a specific teacher/mentor would do it anywhere he/she went, and is more pre-disposed for success because of who he/she is (as opposed to the actual connection).

I thought it was relevant on this thread as some were debating whether to pay tens (or hundreds) of thousands more fo one school (without merit aid) vs. another school (with merit aid).

1489

@conpar39 - I cannot imagine any school where it is worth paying sticker price. If you do, then they have found a true suckered who thinks brand name must mean quality. When I look at the accomplishments of my class year peers from small regional LACs, I know anyone from any school can be successful. Sure an Ivy may open doors but they still have to perform/deliver.

1490

For people curious about merit aid packages and comparing public state schools vs private schools, here is what our offered merit-aid packages for my daughter looked like this year. She has a 96.08 weighted average, Top 10% of class, 30 ACT, 1980 SAT, 7 AP classes, low to moderate extracurriculars (but a lot of stage shows), and is a National Hispanic Scholar (NHS). The schools with the Asterisks are the ones where the merit award was because of her NHS status, and is the same award they give to National Merit Finalists, and National Achievement Scholarship finalists. These schools also auto-accepted her into their Honors Colleges/Programs

School Total merit aid Cost of Attendance Net out of Pocket
*University of Kentucky $35,434 $40,300 $ 4,866
*University of Arizona $30,000 $43,800 $13,800
University of Georgia $ 9,950 $24,437 $14,487
*University of Cincinnati $23,340 $39,742 $16,402
Florida State University $21,902 $39,048 $17,146
*Arizona State University $25,803 $44,375 $18,572

The following included Scholarship AND grant money because we qualified for need based aid there. SMU offers merit based scholarships at the University level AND school level. CMU only does small merit aid packages after need based decisions are made.

School Merit Aid Work Study Grants Subsidized Loans Cost of Attendance Net out of Pocket
SMU $23,290 $4,000 $18,694 $3,500 $64,840 $15,356
CMU $ 2,500 $ 0 $46,441 $ 0 $66,198 $17,257

(apologize that this does not lay out properly)

An important note on these last two schools: One uses the FAFSA (SMU) and the other (CMU) uses the CSS profile. Their calculation on the CSS profile calculates a higher EFC because they include home equity, when the FAFSA does not.

As you can see, it is indeed doable to attend private schools for the same cost or a little more than state schools (even out of state).

1491

@asleepatthewheel - i agree with you- it may be the kid and not the school and that is what we have discussed with my D. That if she takes the initiative, professors even at the larger school can get to know her and she can find mentors. A friend recently sent me an article about a study done I believe at Indiana University,that measured student “engagement” at various universities on the top college lists from forbes, us news, etc. they found that student engagement did not correlate with the ranking of the university. - instead it was the student him/herself that mattered. A high US News ranking doesn't mean a college is actually good - Vox is the link.

@collegedadofTwo- I am fast coming to that same conclusion.

1492

@conpar39 Our deadline day. My son decided to accept his offer at Case Western. He will turn down WUSTL and his other schools. In the end he chose a school that offers him excellent opportunities for his interests - and they showed that they wanted him with great merit aid and other opportunities. He also genuinely liked the other students he met on campus.

Please share with your daughter. A good friend reminded me that her S turned down WUSTL (among other top schools) to pay full OOS tuition at U Michigan! He went on to a fabulous job on Wall St and then to Wharton. It is not the school but what you make of it! No doubt in my mind.

Thrilled to finalize the decision. I hope that your decision is as happy for everyone in your family. Best of luck to your D in college next year. It will be great no matter what she does.

1493

Good luck to your Son, @almostdonemom. I have the distinct impression that Case is on a major upswing, so hopefully he will receive not only an excellent education, but also a degree that ascends in value through the years.

1494

@ColdinMinny Thanks for the good wishes. I visited Case with my other S 9 years ago (too urban for him). The changes since that time are remarkable. For my S, it just offers the right combination of the things that are important to him. He will make the most of all the opportunities.

1495

Case has been very well known for great Merit awards. Best wishes to your S. almostdonemom!

1496

good information shared

1497

@almostdonemom- congratulations on your decision and good luck to your son at Case! My daughter is going to U of M. At first she was not that pleased with the decision, but now seems more excited- it helped that several of her friends made the same or similar decision- one turned down wash u also because of the tuition and the others similar schools due to high tuition and no merit or need based aid. so she is not the only one whose parents shared the financial implications with their child. I am sure a few months into their freshman years they will all be OK with their decisions! Thanks for your camaraderie during this trying time!

1498

@conpar39 - I am so glad to hear from you. I have been wondering
Congratulations to you and your daughter. We are more confident with every passing day that this was the right decision for my son and he is looking forward to the big adventure. It is more than the high tuition - this is just the best fit. My son is planning a dual major in engineering and music. He has been in contact with his music teacher at CIM (Cleveland Institute of Music) and we believe he will have wonderful music opportunities along with engineering. I found it so helpful to talk to you. Truly, wishing you only the best! Enjoy the remaining days of high school and summer. You will know so much more the next time around :-)!

1499

My daughter will be attending a smaller LAC with “sticker price” of $46k for just $15k. (3k is loans, the rest grants and scholarships.) But still, until our 3rd child we had no idea this could happen! DD loved the smaller LACs, but we made her apply to state schools anyway thinking we would not be able to afford. We did have to do an appeal, but because of a slightly better offer elsewhere we got an increase in scholarship. Don’t hold back on applying if there is an interest. If your child has great stats, has art, music, etc talent, you never know what kind of aid is available.

1500

^ Which LAC, if you are willing to share the info?