Should I even bother with FinAid?

Parents Forum
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could be wrong, but if your family economic has changed, schools will allow you to apply for financial aid late if you didn't apply for financial aid freshman year. However, they will not award you any aid later if your situation didn't change, but need the aid, and chose not apply the first year.

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<p>Not exactly true. For example, at Vassar if you donot apply for FA as an entering freshman, if you need aid in subsequent years, you are at the end of the line when it comes to receiving aid.</p>

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Q: If I have enough money in savings to pay for the first year of college, should I wait until sophomore year to apply for financial aid?</p>

<p>A: No. Students and their families who feel that they will need financial assistance, especially during their first two years at Vassar, are strongly encouraged to apply for financial aid. Some families do not apply for financial aid as entering freshmen, choosing instead to exhaust family resources that first year and apply for financial aid as returning sophomores. This is not a very prudent financing strategy. In awarding its resources the college has established priorities. First priority: students who received scholarship assistance when they entered Vassar and continue to demonstrate need as determined by the Office of Financial Aid. Second priority: freshmen and transfer applicant pools, with a portion of the available scholarship resources allocated to insure that we reach our enrollment targets. Third priority: returning students applying for financial aid for the first time, or demonstrating need for scholarship assistance for the first time.</p>

<p>Within this third group priority is given to seniors, juniors and sophomores - in that order. In most years we are able to help all returning students who demonstrate need for Vassar Scholarship. In instances where we cannot meet the need of all returning students we follow the priorities listed above.</p>

<p>Within the sophomore pool of first-time applicants, priority is given to families who have experienced a significant change in their financial situation, such as loss of employment, death of a wage earner, high medical expenses or an increase in the number of dependents enrolled in post-secondary programs leading to a degree.</p>

<p>Vassar</a> College Admissions

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<p>Brown states:</p>

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<p>Applying after admission to the University: *Students who did not apply for financial aid at the same time they applied for admission to the University may have limitations. Students should first read the information provided on our web site regarding Brown's Need-Blind policy, which will provide details regarding eligibility for students who did not apply for financial aid at the time of application for admission. *
<a href="http://financialaid.brown.edu/Cmx_Content.aspx?cpId=58%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://financialaid.brown.edu/Cmx_Content.aspx?cpId=58&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Need-blind admission has not changed the financial aid policies for those admitted prior to the Class of 2007. For returning students who did not apply for financial aid at the time of application for admission, you must complete two on-time applications before you may be considered for University Scholarship assistance. However, students may apply for federal assistance, consisting of loans and work-study, at any time regardless of their financial aid status upon admission. Returning foreign students, who were admitted without financial aid, are not eligible to receive financial aid during their time at Brown. </p>

<p><a href="http://financialaid.brown.edu/Cmx_Content.aspx?cpId=53%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://financialaid.brown.edu/Cmx_Content.aspx?cpId=53&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>Sybbie - As stated by Vassar:</p>

<p>First priority: students who received scholarship assistance when they entered Vassar and continue to demonstrate need as determined by the Office of Financial Aid. Second priority: freshmen and transfer applicant pools, with a portion of the available scholarship resources allocated to insure that we reach our enrollment targets. Third priority: returning students applying for financial aid for the first time, or demonstrating need for scholarship assistance for the first time.</p>

<p>If your EFC is $60,000, by applying for financial aid first year is not going to help you to aid later if you should need it. You would still be in the third priority, not the first, because you were not eligible the first year.</p>

<p>This from Brown's website:</p>

<p>Q. Will I be considered for scholarship assistance during my first-year if I failed to apply on time, but my family has experienced a sudden change in financial circumstances? </p>

<p>A. Yes. If you experience a significant and unexpected change in circumstances after the application deadline, you may complete the financial aid application process at any point during the academic year. If the change is considered significant and unexpected, your case will be assessed based on the information you provide to our office according to the same guidelines we would use for an on time application. For example, we would consider a parent's loss of job, an involuntary decrease in parent income of 20% or more, or the death of a parent a significant and unexpected change in circumstances. We suggest that all families who believe they may have experienced a qualifying change in circumstances contact our office and speak with a counselor</p>

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<p>
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If your EFC is $60,000, by applying for financial aid first year is not going to help you to aid later if you should need it. You would still be in the third priority, not the first, because you were not eligible the first year.

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<p>This may be true, however you never know where life is going to take you. If you were to have a change of circumstance happens during that first
school year (similar what you presented in the Brown scenario) since you have already applied for aid, you will still have the option of asking the school for a financial review and not having to wait to apply the next year and being pushed back to the end of the line.</p>

<p>While it is always a family's choice whether or not to apply, I think that the one time $23 is a small price to pay (even if the school deems you are not eligible) to have a safety net should a situation leading to a financial set back should occur.</p>

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<p>I'm with Sybbie. The school will want verification of your former income (prior to job loss, or other significant financial loss) via filed finaid forms AND updated information reflecting the change. The last thing a family will want to do in a situation of financial trauma is fill document the information from when they HAD the higher income. Do it now...it's worth it. Then if you have an issue, this document will already be on file with the school and you will need to only send a letter of special circumstances, and contact the finaid office for reconsideration. Otherwise you are starting at the beginning.</p>

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<p>I'm convinced to file for finaid based on the posts above. Our family also discussed the Stafford Loans last night, and S was more than willing to take on $xxx amount of loan. This past year, we went through an unforeseen event that could have resulted in significant financial losses had it not been for smart financial decisions made years ago. My intuition tells me to make the decision that is right for my family; in this case, I will go ahead and apply for finaid. Thanks a lot for all the replies.</p>

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The school will want verification of your former income (prior to job loss, or other significant financial loss) via filed finaid forms AND updated information reflecting the change. The last thing a family will want to do in a situation of financial trauma is fill document the information from when they HAD the higher income.

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<p>Can DD still fill this form out if DD did not check yes? I guess I might have to call the specific school she applied to and get the exact story. But in the meantime, DD still has a chance to mark yes or no in one application. I was wondering if this is considered lying if DD marks yes when we know we don't need financial aid unless circumstances change drastically.</p>

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<p>We knew we would NOT qualify for need based aid. We checked the "yes" box anyway. First of all....you never know. They are not asking you if you NEED finaid, they are only asking if you are applying.</p>

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<p>I'm so surprised at the responses! Does no one else find it odd that these schools come up with the same percentage of kids on aid each year? </p>

<p>I would not check the aid box if I didn't qualify when applying. If anyone you know got into a top school ED ask to see the addresses and schools of admits. They read like a high society roll call. Money clearly still talks despite all the attention financial aid initiatives that help a few hundred students gets.</p>

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<p>From CC "Ask the Dean" :

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Question: Is it true that highly selective need-blind schools can “tweak” their financial aid packages if they want an applicant who is desirable for the usual merit things (athletic abilitity, URM status, musical talent, etc.)?</p>

<p>Different colleges have varying policies, and we can’t speak for all of them, but this “tweaking,” as you aptly name it, is not uncommon. Among themselves, admission and finaid folks often use the term “sweetening the pot.” What this means is that they skew the balance of grant and loan in a financial aid package so that the more sought-after students get a bigger chunk of the former and less of the latter. </p>

<p>However, when the time comes, if your child receives an aid package that seems “untweaked,” don’t assume that he or she is not a highly desirable applicant. While this could be the case, it may also have more to do with the institution’s aid practices. Regardless of the award, it rarely hurts to appeal it, if you feel you can–or must–do better. Just make sure that in doing so you act appreciative for what you’ve received already and not merely entitled to more.

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<p>And another one that supports what Chedva and thumper1 were stating:

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Question: When my husband filled out financial aid forms, our EFC turned out to be more than $50,000. As a result, our daughter–who will be a college freshman in the fall–did not apply for any financial aid. Does failing to apply this year hurt us if we need to apply in future years?</p>

<p>Colleges often do have policies that restrict aid applications from students who did not initially apply for financial aid. Most commonly, if a student did not ask for aid as an entering freshman, you may find that he or she can’t reapply for aid until junior year.</p>

<p>What you might want to do at this point is to contact the financial aid offices at the colleges on your daughter’s list and ask:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>If they impose such restrictions (and for how long)</p></li>
<li><p>If so, is it too late to complete a FAFSA (and other required aid forms) with the understanding that you are NOT expecting aid for this coming September?</p></li>
<li><p>If you can’t apply for grant aid (the good stuff you don’t have to pay back) next year (or in other years) will you still be able to seek loans through the college? (Likely)</p></li>
<li><p>Are there any other suggestions they can offer, should your family require financial aid in the future?</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Once your daughter’s admission verdicts have rolled in, if she has several attractive choices, you may want (or need) to consider financial aid policies as she makes her final choice.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, don’t hesitate to call or e-mail financial aid offices and find out what each college’s policy is because they are likely to vary.

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<p>Here's the link:
Financial</a> Aid - Ask The Dean</p>

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<p>And of course, here's another one from "Ask the Dean" - from another angle: </p>

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Question: The Common Application asks you to indicate on Page 1 whether you will be seeking financial aid. So do the Form 1’s for some colleges that I thought were need blind. This means that admissions committees have access to this information when they make decisions (although they don’t know how much you’ll need). Does this suggest that colleges may not be as “need blind” as they claim to be?</p>

<p>This information is typically not used by admission evaluators in any significant way. Occasionally, it may make admission officers curious. That is, they see an applicant who had two parents in snazzy-sounding corporate jobs who check that “yes” box, and ponder what mysterious truths lurk below the surface; while the daughter of a single-mom/nurse’s aide might indicate “no.” (Adcom members might fleetingly wonder if the latter was an error or if the young woman had a special source of assistance—a kindly maiden aunt or Sugar Daddy, perhaps?). Seriously, though, once evaluators get past that page one, there’s not much thought given to how the aid question was answered.</p>

<p>Nonetheless, we advise Common App candidates to make two sets of copies of that first page: one with the “yes” or “no” box marked for the colleges that are not need-blind, and one that leaves it blank for those that are. However, when it comes to allegedly need-blind institutions asking on their own applications, you should do their bidding and respond. Chances are, the question is asked for processing purposes in order to be sure that appropriate forms have been filed in the financial aid office. </p>

<p>Thus, when such an institution insists they are “need blind,” what they are really saying is, “Even though we know you are asking for money, it isn’t going to influence our decision.” Most of the time this is true, though there is undoubtedly a bit of tweaking (and peeking) going on at some schools, especially during that difficult period when the very final decisions are made and borderline candidates are tipped in or out of the admit pile. </p>

<p>One might argue, of course, that those finaid “yes” or “no” responses might influence admission officials at least subconsciously. While we can’t deny the possibility, the question this raises is “In what direction will they be swayed?” If you’ve read A is For Admission, Michele Hernandez’s account of her four years as a Dartmouth admissions pro, you can’t have missed her repeated insistence that admission folks tend to scorn those applicants who’ve had an easy life and a silver spoon, while they applaud the similar successes of the less advantaged candidates. While Hernandez may belabor that point excessively (and perhaps not fully accurately) there is at least a grain of truth in the fact that, for every admission official who may think, “Gee, this kid looks pretty strong and won’t cost us a nickel because he’s a no-need. I like that,” there’s another bleeding heart who’s saying, “Wow. This guy comes from a family that requires aid, but he’s still managed to climb to the top of his class and does hours and hours of community service, to boot.” </p>

<p>In other words, the pros and cons of checking those aid boxes will work out to a wash, more or less. With all the things there are to worry about on the admissions roller-coaster ride, this isn’t one of them.

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<p>mountains, apply anyway. I heard a case from mf, like you they run EFC, diddn't bother with FA application, while his friend family at the same income level, apply anyway. Guess what the family applied got the FA package.</p>

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<p>anotherNHmom, I will. I figured S has checked the "yes" and if I apply for finaid in need-blind schools, I would have to complete the CSS Profile/FAFSA anyway, so I might as well send it to all the schools - need-blind or not.</p>

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<p>I'm a big fan of Michelle Hernandez which is why seeing Dartmouth's list of ED acceptees was so shocking to me. They have a new admissions director and maybe things have changed. Their list is filled with top prep school types, three and four from schools with under 100 graduating,the very richest public schools (half dozen from Greenwich High alone!) and then kids from strong athletic schools with less recognizable last names. Yale and Penn the same.</p>

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<p>Where can you find lists of ED acceptees?</p>

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<p>ceebrown - I think that is the strategy. Those schools fill up EDs with atheletes, legacies, full fare students and some top students that may end up at other schools otherwise. During the RD round, with a larger pool of candidates they would figure out how many students they could afford to take that need financial aid. One school stated that before they were need blind (2007), they would turn down students that they knew they couldn't meet their needs. It is especially the case when it comes to waitlist (that's from my personal experience). </p>

<p>If you are a top student, then schools will take you whether you need financial aid or not. If you are a borderline student for a school, then whether you need financial aid could tip you over one way or another.</p>

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<p>If the applicant checked NO when asked if they would need financial aid, does that preclude you from filing a FAFSA anyway?</p>

<p>My son applied to all OOS publics and has been accepted to all but one so far (they release decisions in February). I know our EFC will be higher than the cost of attendance, so I was not planning to file a FAFSA. After reading some comments here on CC and elsewhere, I think I ought to file one just in case. Again, we're not expecting to receive aid. Is it OK to file it even though he checked NO on the original applications?</p>

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<p>No, it doesn't. You can file one even if you checked No.</p>

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<p>^^Thanks Chevda!</p>

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<p>I also wonder if a college..seeing your financials...will somehow use that against you in giving out merit aid. One of the schools my D is applying for is requiring we submit a CSS/Profile to be considered for merit aid. Why do they need this info if they don't somehow use it? I'm afraid of the following scenario: Equal candidates being considered for merit aid. Neither qualify for finaid. Hmm...who should we award this nice merit aid package to? The child with the EFC of $40,000 or the one with the EFC of $70,000? </p>

<p>Also, I called up some of my daughter's colleges today re: how not filing for financial aid as a freshman effects your chances in the future. GW, Muhlenberg, and American all said that there would be no difference and that each student is reviewed every year. As long as you would get your finaid applications in by the annual deadline, you would be considered for finaid that year, even if you did not apply earlier.</p>

<p>I'm not sure about Barnard. NYU is another matter though. I think they make it very difficult to get aid in subsequent years if you do not file as a freshman. I plan to get more specific details on Jan 2! However, I still worry about the merit aid scenario above, so I don't know what I plan to do.</p>

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If you are a borderline student for a school, then whether you need financial aid could tip you over one way or another.

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<p>Does anyone know if the admissions committee makes a decision based on just whether they check "yes" or "no" on finaid, or would the admissions committee actually confer with the finaid office to determine if such a borderline student actually needs finaid? It would seem there would be some "peeking" as previous posters suspect (myself included). On the other hand, would they bother considering they have a ton of applicants? As for most students, they are "borderline" in their reach schools.</p>