<p>Reader13, excuse me, but we are HISPANIC, over 2000 SAT/31 ACT, all Honors/AP classes. Trilingual, leadership, NHS, 4 year varsity sport for nationally recognized team, etc., etc., etc. NO FULL RIDE HERE!!! Not even close. So, please watch those comments. If you have been reading CC for Ivy schools, the accepted Hispanic scores are essentially the same as non-Hispanic ones. Other URMs may have a different story? Check it our for yourself. Anyway, hope you get the merit aid you deserve, as a 3.6 is hard to achieve. Congrats and keep up the good work.</p>
<p>qwertyzxc: no IB career goals over here, so that would not be an issue. Going the international route, using three languages (working on 4th). Full confidence in ability to score a good internship. Not your average kid, by far, especially since seeking internships all over world, not limited to NYC banking. </p>
<p>@mexusa Sorry. Just that the kids who got a full ride in my school were Hispanic and I do know there is a scholarship for it. It’s unfornate that you didn’t get it, as from your stats you seem to be a shoe in for it. But as it has been stated here, FA is odd. Again I’m sorry. I should I have thought before I posted that.
I don’t look at the Ivy stuff, because I was never even close for Ivy, so I don’t know the scores and stats. Also, thank you for the well wishes. My GPA is 3.3 right now. so I don’t think I’m getting a 3.6 this year. I know I’m only a freshman, but the pressuring is being put on me. :/</p>
<p>Reader13: no problem. The Hispanic Scholarship is only 10K and it is for National Hispanic Recognition. It is a misnomer, as it is not NATIONAL, as the PSAT scores needed are determined by each state. The score was quite high, but 2 points below OUR state level. Had we lived in ANY other state, would have gotten it. Oh, well. This is a policy that needs better consistency. Good luck on your finals. </p>
<p>My daughter was fortunate to receive a decent merit scholarship, and we are not Catholic, and she attended a public High School. We are not wealthy, have no Fordham connections, and she is white. We really loved the school and she is considering attending. It started out more on the “safety school” side, but has moved up to one of her top choices. The merit was not based on race, simply from hard work and good Stats. If they eliminated Merit aid she wouldn’t have been able to attend since we didn’t qualify for financial aid. I wish everyone luck in their choices, all of our experiences with Fordham have been positive. </p>
<p>VIrginiaDare, is she going to attend? Mine is. We are happy about it and the package was decent, considering we did not qualify for aid either. (although we do have that circumstance previously mentioned). Best of luck!</p>
<p>Still not positive, but maybe after the open house she’ll make a decision. She just declined Villanova and George Washington, so it’s between Fordham and 2 schools in Boston. The process has been a lot if fun, but hopefully there will be a decision within the week. Congratulations on your offer. I’ll post her decision when she makes it. </p>
<p>I really don’t understand how the financial aid is being awarded. I’m white, with a twin sister who will be attending college this fall. My highschool average is 3.8, and I have a 2050 on my SATs. Fordham is giving me 6,000 in merit aid. I’ve taken 8 AP classes, 1 dual credit class, and played varsity sports for four years. Granted my ecs could have been better, but I spent a lot of time with sports and studying. My grades weren’t good enough for the ivys, so fordham, boston, syracuse, university of rochester were schools I was considering. Fordham gave me the least. We don’t qualify for financial aid, but with two of us in school, we really can’t afford the tuition. I appealed and got a snarky officer who told me that too bad, there are plenty of people willing to pay to go to fordham. I’ll see the campus on Sunday, but as a future finance major, I question if this place is worth it. I may just go to syracuse which is half the cost for me.</p>
<p>I also attend a not very well know school in upstate New York with a </p>
<p>an economically and ethnically diverse student body.</p>
<p>I know my daughter had to write an essay with her app three years ago. Did they do away with that? I had been thinking that your essay might be the thing that pushes you over the edge with the admissions office. Or if it underwhelms them, less financial aid? </p>
<p>For the general common app? As far as I know, it’s still there. Unless you’re talking about the Fordham app, which does not have an essay. </p>
<p>I think the essay can make or break the chance of getting in. I don’t think it affects any FA decisions though. I could be wrong.</p>
<p>The Fordham app uses the essay from the common app. Even on the modified fee-waivered version of the Fordham app, the essay is included, as well as SAT/ACT scores, one teacher rec, and full transcript.</p>
<p>In addition, my student sent a resume, a college transcript from an Ivy summer program, AP results, and 4 subject tests results.</p>
<p>I do think the essay can sway FA as it highlights your ability to add to the school’s diversity (in perspective, culture, life experience, academic goals, etc.) and can make your case more compelling. Bottom line, the more a school wants you, the bigger the carrot. We had another FA package from a more prestigious school, much higher ranked, that was less than half the merit of Fordham. They obviously are not that interested.</p>
<p>I think we are going with Fordham. Final decision will be made this weekend…</p>
<p>@John9915 The best way to appeal is to write an appeal letter explaining your situation. That’s how we appealed. Don’t call, since as you found out, you get a snarky reply.</p>
<p>If you can get to the Spring Previews this weekend you can speak to FA reps in person regarding your situation. Before we enrolled my S, we sat with someone who went over our package in detail and answered all our questions. If I recall correctly, we signed up for an appointment time right after the Welcome address by Fr. McShane, SJ. </p>
<p>So I’m in town for the Admitted Students Spring preview on Sunday and I am in a similar situation as John9915, needing about 5-10K in additional aid to be able to lock it in. Would it be better to do an in person appeal this weekend or should I write a letter after? Would I be subjected to the possibility of snark like John received?</p>
<p>I would say write a letter now, but since the event is this weekend, try to get an in person appeal done. Having a letter handy may help you. When I went to accepted students day, we already sent the letter and knew the officer who would be helping us. So, we met with them at a set time during the day we were at Fordham. She went over everything we needed to do and all that. Also, Mom snuck right after Fr. McShane’s talk in order to confirm an appointment time. ;)</p>
<p>Honestly, I think you’re only really subject to the snark if you call. I was talking to my mom about this and she said if you call, then you’re one of many who have the same problem. Also, having a letter shows you put more thought into the appeal. Calling kind of makes it look like you looked at the package, didn’t like it, and instantly want more without figuring out alternatives. Mom’s words, not mine.</p>
<p>I think they would not be snarky in a face to face. An Admitted Students Preview is designed to get you to commit to the school, not turn you off. I can say, however, that the NYU FA officers were, indeed, snarky to my face. I would be surprised to hear that of Fordham. On another note, the cafeteria food has improved greatly compared to three years ago, when my student stayed for a two week leadership camp. Went to lunch there today and was pleasantly surprised! </p>
<p>Er, quick correction. Mom originally thought we had written the letter first, but remembered that we made an appointment first to speak with am FA officer on accepted students day. Basically call and just ask for an appointment with an officer, don’t say anything else. If that does not work, you can still get an appointment on the day. Just make sure you do it as soon as you get there.</p>
<p>How should I preface everything? The fact of the matter is right now that I got into St. John’s honors college and they gave me 29K gift out of 57K cost of attendance. I can realistically do that without taking out a loan. Now, I’m willing to take out loans to go to Fordham, and I really really want to be there, but my offer from them right now is 23K gift out of 65K cost of attendance. I’m aware Fordham is a better school, but it is the honors college at St. John’s. I guess what I’m asking is just how do I put all of this into words in a way that would make whoever I’m speaking with more likely to help me out and what not.</p>
<p>Might be a strange question but I could really use the advice as I’d really rather be at Fordham and I don’t want to mess this up.</p>