<p>Good advice Cpt…</p>
<p>Apply to willamette! The deadline is Feb 1st and I am sure you would get 22k in aid.</p>
<p>isaiahstock - are you from Wisconsin?</p>
<p>The OP is from MN. He has already been accepted at U of W - Madison under the reciprocity agreement between the two states.</p>
<p>dogersmomin post #40 said "
“How? The financial situation described in that post has nothing to do with the OP.”</p>
<p>Sorry I wasn’t clearer . . . the thread is bigger than the OP’s specific situation, is all: some Schools do and can count large home equity as a tappable resource.</p>
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<p>To the OP…I’m so sorry you were sucked into the twilight zone of CSS-PROFILE interpretation. We too are business owners…LLC’d. And as stated above if monies are taken out of the business, the business would no longer spin off the income…which initially made the OP ineligible for FA…but if the subsequent business value and income goes kerfluk…THEN the OP might qualify for FA. Alice…meet the Rabbit…</p>
<p>In our case, part of the business includes partners who would never agree to a refi or equity loan. Nor would they agree to decrease the account which holds the repair and maintenance funds…which is the reason certain business structures have depreciation write-offs…so you can MAINTAIN the business. </p>
<p>The OP seems to have been caught in an ugly reality…if you are wealthy…ie - should we spend 60K this year on replacing the 2 year old status vehicle or should we pay for skippy to go to the school of his dreams rich…then the college world is open to you. If your parents have not done well on the material side of things…you can get GREAT FREE MONEY from plenty of places. If you are stuck in between, it is often viewed that you should be willing to go through pain and financial hardship in order to experience the ‘one and only exceptional experience we have to offer’.</p>
<p>Many posters here have given great recommendations for other schools. You are obviously a well thought out, mature individual who - even in a state of shock - is able to move forward. Swat is losing a great asset…and frankly (IMHO and not trying to start a fight) no place is worth 60K for undergrad.</p>
<p>Suggestion to OP: Attend a world-class institution (UW-Madison), live in Chadbourne Residential College, participate in a Freshman FIG and save your money for graduate school.</p>
<p>Thank you all so much, truly. Not only has your advice been directly beneficial, but your generosity has made me feel much better about this whole scenario. I wouldn’t have imagined that so many would rush to help my family and me so quickly. </p>
<p>On the other hand, it is unfortunate to hear that other people are experiencing similar problems with ED and the CSS profile and whatnot. But dietz, I’m not entirely sure what you’re talking about the quote, “should we spend 60K this year on replacing the 2 year old status vehicle…” While my family has been very blessed, we are nowhere near the “wealthy” that has the ability to replace a two year old car, or something of the sort. I’m not sure what you were getting at with that.</p>
<p>A little update–we have received an email from Swarthmore and very thoroughly went through aspects of the FA application that may have caused some troubles with the ultimate award given. My mother has contacted our accountant, for the questions were very extensive about all sorts of finances with my family and the business, and we plan to make sure that everything was consistent and accurate. In the meantime, I will fill out the FAFSA form for the schools I’m waiting on, UMinn, Carleton, Grinnell, CWRU, and Kenyon. </p>
<p>The email from Swarthmore showing that there were some discrepancies gives me hope, but I am, in the end, continuing to convince myself that I will be happy and successful wherever I end up. And honestly, I think I’m starting to believe it. </p>
<p>THANKS AGAIN! I’ll keep y’all posted.</p>
<p>Isaiah, I don’t think Dietz was saying your family spends 60K to replace a 2 year old car… I think they are implying that some families do that, and they can easily afford a 60K a year school as well. But I think Dietz is saying your family is like Dietz’s – caught in a bad spot in the financial aid system where it looks like there are assets due to a business, but those assets realistically can’t be liquidated or leveraged for tuition purposes.</p>
<p>I hope your FA appeal works out, but it seems to me that you will be successful no matter where you end up. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!</p>
<p>I wish we could clone your positive way of dealing with this, Isiahstock – you demonstrate a lot of resiliency, and I bet that will serve you well wherever you go to college.</p>
<p>intparent–thanks for the clarification! Sorry dietz, haha, I just didn’t follow what you were saying exactly.</p>
<p>arabrab, thanks! Like I said, a lot of it comes down how helpful this board has been. And the other part of it has to do with trying really hard not to think about it. Repression, despite its harmful nature in some cases, is how I deal with things a lot haha.</p>
<p>Intparent: thanks for clarifying my rant. Obviously a sore subject with yours truly. The silliness of the whole CSS-PROFILE ‘value of business’ calculation would be funny if it did so adversely affect real people.</p>
<p>Hello everyone!</p>
<p>First and foremost, I want to thank you all once again for being so supportive. I don’t think my family would’ve been able to as smoothly through this whole experience without all of your advice and emotional support.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, after sending in additional information to Swarthmore, they were unable to provide anymore aid. As of January 23rd, I was released from the Early Decision contract, meaning I will for sure be going somewhere else next year. </p>
<p>THANK YOU!</p>
<p>Please come back and tell us all where you choose to go to college! We will all cheer you on!</p>
<p>You have just survived your first college crisis. After this, there is nothing you can’t handle! What a growth experience for you!</p>
<p>I am so sorry it didn’t end up working out . . . but I will be looking forward to hearing what you decide in May! Best of luck - and don’t forget to come back and share the news with us!!!</p>
<p>So sorry it didn’t work out. I am surprised that the estimator was so wrong.</p>
<p>Did you get off the other applications in time? Let us know where you land.</p>
<p>out. I am surprised that the estimator was so wrong.</p>
<p>NPC’s for schools using Profile and NCP info usually state something that they can’t calculate very well for special circumstances, such as family owned business and divorced parents.</p>
<p>I, too, am sorry. Make sure you are not on the ED accept list that is being circulated. You do not want to be flushed from consideration by schools who subscribe to it. Talk directly to Admissions and have them verify that our name is not on that list.</p>
<p>I think the Scholarship application for UW-Madison is still open for a few more days. Hard to keep these threads straight without re-reading. Weren’t you accepted to UW-Madison?</p>