Should I apply ED?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Northwestern University
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<p>My Stats: </p>

<p>3.7 UW GPA
ACT 31 (Will hopefully retake and be 33-34 range)
SAT I 630 Math 640 CR 660 Writing </p>

<p>Brief List of ECs that I expect to have:<br>
Varsity Football 3 years/3 Letters (Won't play a 4th due to injury, but would have been a captain)
Varsity Track 3 years/2 Letters
Mock Trial 3 years (will participate again)
Student Run Talent Show: Technician 1 yr. Technical Producer 1 yr. Executive Producer 1 yr.<br>
4 Years Theatre Technician
Minnesota Chapter American Association of Teachers of German Contest Top 20 (not exactly sure of rank) 10th Grade 2nd Place 11th Grade
2 Years Volunteer Youth Football Coach
2 Years International Student Mentor
Jr Class Secretary Treasurer
Student Body Vice President</p>

<p>1 rec. should be outstanding other 1 or 2 will be somewhere between very good to outstanding </p>

<p>Northwestern is clearly my top choice, however I'm afraid that the FAFSA will say that my family should receive no financial aid, I won't be able to afford it. Should I apply ED? Does applying ED significantly increase your chances of getting in? Are my stats good enough to get in RD? Thanks.</p>

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<p>If you are sure NU is where you want to spend your next four years, by all means apply ED. If they don't give you enough money you can withdraw your admission, that is the only way to get out of ED. So give it a shot and if it doesn't work out financially let NU know.</p>

3

<p>I'm not sure how the entire process will work. Northwestern makes sure that you're 100% taken care of in terms of aid, but if your parents can afford it and choose not to finance your education, you really don't have much of an argument to say you can't afford it because parents are supposed to be part of the college process.</p>

<p>Listen to all the largest pieces of advice you read in these threads when thinking of applying ED: don't apply unless 1. you're absolutely sure and 2. you can afford to do so.</p>

4

<p>NU is a competitive school, and although your stats look pretty good, nobody is a shoe-in. It looks like you'd have a shot at the RD round, but they don't go by numbers alone. Your essays and other factors could give you a huge boost, or not. ED at NU does give you an edge. If you are determined to attend NU, and can work it out, ED would be a good idea.</p>

<p>It's a big decision to apply ED if you need financial aid in order to attend. I don't recommend doing it lightly with a plan to withdraw your application if you don't like the results. It's not easy, and can only be done after negotiating with financial aid, and coming to an agreement with them that you can't afford it. Anything else would be considered a breach of the ED contract and could endanger your admissions at other schools.</p>

<p>That said, my daughter applied ED at NU for the class of '09, and was accepted. NU certainly came through for us with financial aid. We feel they did a very fair job of assessing what we could contribute. They didn't make it easy for us, but they certainly made it possible.</p>

<p>We did a lot of research into NU's reputation before allowing her to apply ED. I don't think you'll find a school with a more solid reputation for covering the three important ED points. First, they admit need blind. Second, they are committed to financing all enrolling students who need it. Third, they are committed to graduating students with a tolerable debt load of about $16,000.</p>

<p>You will hear some students complain that they can't attend because their parents can't pay their portion, but that's really something between the student and the parents. You need to get very clear with your parents ahead of time and know they are willing to pitch in. It's a tough thing to do when you don't know what the amount will be. The FAFSA won't give you any useful info about what to expect from NU, because they use a different method for determining need. (That's good news.)</p>

<p>Our daughter was fiercely determined to attend NU, and worked very hard for it, so we were willing to do all we could to help her get there. However, we knew she wouldn't be able to attend without massive assistance from NU. They were fair with us, and they didn't put us in a position where we have to mortgage the house or anything near that. </p>

<p>I started a thread</a> about ED in the parents forum quite a while ago, but I think most of what was said is still current. I</a> summarized much of it here.</p>

<p>And</a> here's a bit of info from NU about financial aid that might help.</p>

<p>To sum up, ED can work out very well for students who need financial aid at NU, but it's not a choice to make lightly. Let me know if you have more questions. You can PM me if you want.</p>

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<p>wow, that was really helpful!</p>

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<p>Thanks guys! If anyone else has anything to add feel free.</p>

7

<p>if you're positive that NU is your top choice, then i encourage you to apply ED.</p>

<p>applying ED was probably the best decision i made in all of high school. not only will you increase your chances, but your second semester will be much less stressful. i knew i was set on NU, and although i freaked out at the last minute and had to seriously reconsider, i'm glad i was pushed to apply early. i'm soooo excited to be attending next fall.</p>

<p>in terms of financial aid, i got about half in financial aid, which is much more than my family was expecting. i'm an only child, and both my parents have incomes, so we were expecting close to nothing, but i found that NU handled the aid really well.</p>

<p>when it comes down to your actual application, NU is huge on the essay portion, so spend a lot of time writing and perfecting them. you have a good diversity of activities, yet you've also shown a lot of commitment to a good portion of them. admissions are so wacky these days, you can't give anyone a clear on idea on where they stand.</p>

<p>good luck with your decision!</p>