<p>Smith is my number one choice for next fall, but I am worried about the financial aid. I have heard that loans go up every year. Can anyone tell me their experience with aid at Smith?</p>
<p>Also, what is the level of acidemic rigor at Smith?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, because each aid package is tailored to each family's individual circumstances, it's hard to really predict much about your aid package except that it will be a mix of grants, loans, and work study. Often, the percentage of the package that is made up by loans will increase from year to year, but that's not always the case. Your aid gets re-evaluated every year to reflect your family's changing circumstances. This can be tricky in some ways, because the aid package you get as a first year probably won't be hte package you get as a senior, but it's unlikely the swing will be so great as to make it impossible for you to keep attending. Basically, I wouldn't worry about it, just apply for financial aid and go from there. Don't borrow trouble about something you can't control. </p>
<p>Smith is very academically rigorous, but it's do-able. You have to be willing to work hard, keep up with your reading, and if you're a strong writer that's going to be a big, big help. But it's NOT one of those schools where you will only be studying all the time. Almost everyone works, and/or has extracurriclar activities and a social life, and basically tries to be well-rounded, and Smith encourages that. </p>
<p>Again, I wouldn't worry about the academic rigor. If you get accepted, you should take that as a sign that Smith thinks you can handle the work load, so you just have to believe in yourself and go for it.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info! The reason I'm concerned is that the other college I am mainly concidering has just switched to a no loan policy. I am trying to figure out if it would be worth it to go into debt to attend Smith.</p>