<p>Two quick points:</p>
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<li><p>The list that I put up in post 17 is not ALL schools. They are a special subset that US News calls the Top Schools. On their website they have a second list with all schools. Frankly, there are some institutions that have a much higher percent of Pell Grants than Smith. Nonetheless, Smith's numbers are impressive, and much better than comparable colleges.</p></li>
<li><p>As an economist, I am disturbed by how many people on the CC discussion board use the term "middle class" to describe families earning in excess of $100,000. This is a good time for a reality check. I understand that paying $50,000 plus a year with little or no aid is often very difficult or impossible for those in the $100,000 to $150,000 (or more) income range, but that doesn't change the fact that we (and I do mean we) are the privileged in society. This may be the first time that we have encountered the frustration of not being able to afford something that our children have worked very hard to achieve, and that we think we have a right to expect. Perhaps we should temper our use of the term middle class, and focus instead on the government's mismanagement of our tax dollars. Further, if everyone could afford these elite schools, yields would invariably be higher, and acceptance rates would have to drop. The ugly truth is that there aren't enough spots for those who are deserving, so college's use, in part, ability to pay as a filter. </p></li>
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<p>I might also add that it discourages me to read those who are unsympathetic to the plight of the over $100,000 income group by arguing that elite colleges are overrated and large state institutions are just as good. This same group, when they think we aren't reading, often defend the Harvard, Princeton, and Yales as being better based on the increased opportunities that their graduates have experienced, particularly in the business world. They seem to want to have it both ways.</p>
<p>Anyway, my family got very, very lucky. Like Citrusbelt, our financial aid offers were all over the place. Looking at the list in post 36, my daughter was accepted to three of these schools, and there was an almost $10,000 difference in financial aid offers. Thankfully, her top choice, Carleton, worked with us on appeal, and it became affordable. </p>
<p>On the other hand, I have a second daughter who is a h.s. sophomore interested in engineering, and she is very interested in Smith. If we have the same experience as Citrusbelt, we are pretty much up the creek without a paddle. The other women's colleges don't have engineering departments, and in that respect, Bryn Mawr and Smith are not the same.</p>
<p>Just my 2 cents ....</p>