My son received Stamps full-ride scholarship in a big public school. However, he also got admission into a couple of T10 private universities without any aid. We won’t be eligible for any need-based aid. My son is leaning towards picking one of the T10, provided if they can give him some based on the fact he has a full ride and had to lose all of that.
Any help on how to approach this would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
If a private T10 school only offers need based aid (as many do), they can’t and won’t match a merit scholarship. Harvard matches Princeton’s NEED BASED aid, but it doesn’t match and athletic scholarship from UCLA or a Regents scholarships from UCB.
I’d look to see if one of those schools has merit scholarships (and if so, did your son apply for one?) and try to work it on that basis. You say your won’t get any need based aid, but did you apply for it? Some of the top schools can be very generous.
We didn’t apply for the aid initially thinking that since fafsacaster shows we can afford more than the university total cost, there is no point in applying. However, we were told recently that school may use a different and it’s worth applying and see what they say. So, there is a glimmer of hope there but not much.
So, it appears we should reach out to admissions and ask them if there are any merit scholarships that they can suggest. But, some of these T10 schools say that they exclusively only give need based but no merit awards
Unless those T10 colleges state that they do offer merit scholarships, it is not worth the time to ask them if they will offer merit $$ to your DS.
T10 colleges will only consider meeting the FA awards of other private "peers’ colleges. And big public U’s are not considered to be their “peers”.
As a Stamps scholarship winner, he will have the BEST of both worlds- inclusion in a VERY prestigious program, access to the best his U can offer, and the blessings of knowing that you do not having to pay $$$$ for his UG education.
My DS was in a similar situation- offered a full tuition scholarship at a lg, less prestigious private U, or go to any of the 10 more “prestigious” Private colleges/ U’s that offered him admittance, but no FA.
He chose the $$, and never regretted it.
Just graduated last year with a PhD from Caltech.
The best will rise to the top, regardless of WHERE they get their UG degree.
Exactly, they only give need based aid and you are asking for merit, which they don’t give.
There are a lot of students from families with incomes of $200k who can’t really afford Harvard or Stanford full pay, so they ‘have’ to go to a school that gives merit because it is the difference of paying $75k per year or $20k or even $0. There are a lot of students in Florida and Georgia ‘forced’ to go to UF or UGA because they have full scholarships that can’t be used OOS.
There are a lot of benefits to the Stamps scholarships besides money with the support of fellowship of other Stamps recipients. For me it would be an easy choice to go with the Stamps.
I don’t know if this makes any difference though. My son got this Stamps from an out of state big school which i think is considerable achievement.
Listen again. If the T10 colleges do NOT give merit aid…and only give need based aid…they are not going to make an exception for your son and give him merit aid.
If you want need based aid…you need to qualify for it…and you need to apply for it…you have likely missed a lot,of deadlines for thes applications…but call the schools and see.
If any of them are need aware for admissions…you need to understand that your son might have been accepted as a full pay student…since you didn’t apply for aid.
In any event…you won’t get need based aid without applying…FAFSA, and Profile…call the colleges and see if there is a chance you can still apply for need based aid.
But you won’t be getting merit aid from schools that don’t give merit aid. Period.
And you won’t get need based aid unless you apply and qualify for it!
@thumper1 - Yes, i listened again but only trying to make sure i did provide all the information. Yes, we submitted all the FAFSA & CSS and million other supporting documents in to IDOC. Now, we have to call the universities and see if they can do anything about it.
The universities that do not give merit aid…won’t give merit aid. In addition, it’s unlikely that your merit aid at another school will sway them into giving you need based aid that they calculated you were not eligible to receive.
What is the matter with taking the Stamps award at the college that offered it…if finances are a significant consideration?
The matter is the other university where he wants to go is no 1 for years in BME. The university where he got stamps is not that great in that program but in top 10 in others. I would if i were him (may be) but he is not me.
BME…is this biomedical engineering or bachelors in Mechanical Engineering?
Please clarify.
If you have been deemed full pay at an elite private university, your income is somewhere near the $200,000 a year range. You didn’t qualify for need based aid. That being the case, if you need or want aid, merit (like the stamps) is what you needed to chase…and your kid got it.
If he is picking his college based solely on the ranking…I would want a better explanation.
These T10 colleges likely won’t care about a merit award from another school. They definitely won’t care if the T10 doesn’t give merit aid. You don’t qualify for need based aid.
But the only way to know…is to ask. Is he planning on asking all of his T10 colleges for reconsideration? Just contact them…and find out their process.
It’s biomedical eng.
Yes, we are planning to reach out to his t10 universities to consider for some aid. I wpould be happy if they at least bring it down to typical public university tuition.
Any suggestions on how to approach t10 regarding this is greatly appreciated
So checking for clarity… you are hoping a school that costs about $70,000 a year…where you qualified for NO need based aid…will give your son $30,000 in some kind of financial aid?
Good luck…but don’t hold your breath.
Did your son get the Stamps at GA Tech? If so…that is a fabulous offer.
JHU gives need based aid only. Don’t count on getting merit aid from them…and you have already been told…you aren’t eligible for need based aid.
Ditto CalTech.
If he wants to go to CalTech or Hopkins, you are going to have to pay for it.
As I said above, there is a lot more to the Stamps than just the money. There is mentoring and research opportunities, support for applying to additional awards, a pipeline to internships. A women was just named a Rhodes scholar from the University of Colorado. She also won a Truman prize. At CU she was a Boettcher scholar and had all the benefits of that designation, including the support of the program. These people know what they are doing, and it’s not that people at CalTech and other t=10 schools don’t, but Stamps and Boettcher and other programs focus on their students
“My son got this Stamps from an out of state big school”
@judgegreg
my congratulations!!
However, a big state school is NOT considered a “peer” to top 10 private schools.
that may be hard to swallow, but it is the truth.
My DS was offered a Trustees Scholarship by a private U- USC, 13 years ago, LONG before Stamps Scholarships even existed. And he did apply for FA at all the colleges he applied to.
He was accepted by Chicago, Pomona, Dartmouth, Brown, Carleton, Wash U and 5 more private colleges.
NONE would “up” their FA awards because he won a "merit " award AND because they were not “peers” of USC.
You are grasping for straws here. Which I understand.
But as I have tried to tell you, your DS WILL be able to rise to the top of his graduating class, AND, will be able to list on his CV that he was a Stamps Scholar, which WILL set him apart from ALL other graduates in the US.
Rejoice in that!
Considering several of your threads: if this is about Ga Tech vs Caltech or JHU, GaTech is a fine program. Enviable.
Sure, big state colleges need to be aware of the needs of state kids, but your son would be going into a top program within the U, and as Stamps, to boot. One of the top engineering colleges out there. Hs own skills will be tested, among highly able, highly competitive engineering peers. He won’t be forced to rub shoulders with kids with lesser math or physics skills. If there was this concern from the beginning, have to wonder why he applied there.
No, a college that gives need-based aid only will not match a merit scholarship, even a prestigious one. If you ran the forecaster (or did submit a FAFSA via the right channels) and/or ran the NPC and saw your EFC (or SAR) is so high- and had concerns about actually paying full freight- then the logical solution is seeking merit. And you (he) got a substantial merit award.
So, this comes down to what you’re willing to pay. And if you want to forego the Stamps based on concerns GaTech is a public U.
Not sure, at all, that I’d base this decision on BME. Every other engineering kid says BME, many don’t know yet what it’s about. The point is the solid basis in enginering, first.
We don’t know your income/assets. If there’s a chance you made a mistake on the FAFSA, go back over it. But it seems to state you don’t qualify for need-based aid.
In order for JHU or Caltech to meet the cost of GT they would have to give you somewhere in the neighborhood of $25,000. That’s not happening…they will not give your son merit and you don’t qualify for FA. I agree…do not hold your breath.
I would celebrate the Stamps award at GT…that’s an unbelievable offer. My friend’s son has this award at a different school and he receives all kinds of awesome opportunities, including 100% fully funded ( plus a paycheck) research opportunities during summers to Australia and places in South America. He has many other opportunities on campus.
Why does your son prefer the other schools? To me …this decision is very obvious.
If that’s the case why would they give you $120k or more over the next four years for your son to attend? They might reevaluate your financial aid if you’ve had unexpected medical expenses or a major change in income, but if your need hasn’t changed then I wouldn’t expect them to reevaluate need based aid.
Since you filed the FAFSA and CSS Profile and didn’t get any aid at the private schools your son’s choices seem to be the free ride at the OOS public or full pay at a private. He has a little over a month to decide. If you’re not willing to be full pay I’d watch what you say about the public. If you make him think it’s beneath him he won’t want to go there. If it’s not that great a school for the program he wants I don’t know why you’d let him apply unless you’re concerned about finances. If you’re not willing to be full pay you need to let him know.