<p>If a school is not need-blind, and you can kinda afford it, is it a good idea not to ask for aid? Will the fact that you're not asking for money help with your chances of admission in any significant way?</p>
<p>What school do you have in mind? I thought that most schools were in fact need-blind...in any case, if a school is not need-blind for whatever reason, then obviously you would not want to apply with an EFC of $0 or something. "Need-blind" really just means that schools aren't taking into account your financial need when deciding whether or not to admit you, so the opposite would probably mean that yes, having significant need may affect chances of admission. However, since you say that you can only "kinda" afford it, then it's probably better for you to ask for aid or better yet, look elsewhere. Just my two cents...^^</p>
<p>By not asking for aid, you are guaranteeing that you will not get it. The need aware schools are often the most generous with aid. They try to give those they accept what they need to come there. They can't do that and also give money to everyone, and their experience has been that those who do not get enough money will not be able to come, or come and have all kinds of trouble, namely paying for the education. So in order to keep their yield up there, they practice what is called "enrollment management", taking those who they most want and paying for what they need, and then using need as a basis for the border line candidates. These schools also sometimes give merit money, but if you are in the category to get this money, you don't have to be worried about your need status since the top kids get this loot.<br>
So unless you are at the borderline of admissions and have a very low EFC, the need aware policies are not likely to affect you. If you are in that category, I would absolutely not advise applying to such a school without asking for money since it is not YOU alone that is going to literally pay the price. If you are not in that category, your need is not going to affect the admissions decision, and since these schools are usually also very strict about not giving money to those who did not apply for aid freshman year, you and your family are going to be strugging with these bills for 4 years, when you could have gotten aid.</p>
<p>The school I am considering is need-blind for most students, just not for transfers, which I will be. Correspondingly, they have practically no money to give the trasnfers, because they've given most of it away to the freshmen. So my question was whether I could hurt myself by asking for money that more likely than not, I will not get. Unlike freshman admission, I cannot afford to take a chance that I will not be admitted or will receive a better offer elsewhere; that is simply not an option. And when I say I can kinda afford, I mean that I can afford to pay the tuition, but it would mean me taking out student loans. Unpleasant, but certainly not unfeasible.</p>
<p>What do you think?</p>
<p>Most students do take out some loans- along with work study, income from summer jobs and working for scholarships, student loans are a reasonable committment towards the expenses of their education
Taking out maximum Stafford and a Perkins loan everyyear is reasonable.
Applying for outside loans of $20K+ every year is not.</p>
<p>Eponymous, in a situation like that, only you and your family can make the determination. It is true that transfers are not accepted on a need blind at many schools. If that is indeed the case at that school, and you want to make the trade off of a greater acceptance chance over possible money, that is not a choice anyone can advise for you. You can get as much info as possible from the school and ask how many transfers were accepted last year, and how many of them did get aid. You can even ask directly how much admissions decisions are biased towards non need transfers. But the ultimate choice is yours, since the private workings of your family and your situation are simply not available, and because there is no right answer.</p>
<p>My thinking so far has been that since my father makes so much money on paper (but not in reality) and since colleges don't have that much money left to give to transfers, it would be better not to ask for aid, especially now that I am submitting what many consider to be a very high-risk essay. I guess, given my financial situation, it might be best not to ask for money.</p>