<p>Adding my congrats, rocket!! You deserve it!</p>
<p>R6L, big congratulations on your new and improved FA package. I am so glad that you did not take someone’s suggestion
</p>
<p>Dad II-Thanks!!! just as note, this is not a “new and improved FA package” this is just a package from Smith, the other package I got was from Union :). I alerted Smith to my family’s circumstances back in November. There was no need “go back and beg for more”…I got what I needed the first time.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I don’t know who wrote this, but I don’t think it’s true at all! Appealing =/= begging, firstly. And secondly, it’s not ungracious, petty, or selfish to try to work out a plan that meets a family’s needs.</p>
<p>Rocket, you have gone about this whole process in a very level headed mature way.
Congratulations on great results.</p>
<p>applicantnot-</p>
<p>That qote was taken out of context. You are correct-- it is perfectly fine to ask for a reconsideration when there is need. Rocket6’s circumstances certainly warranted a reconsideration. Her situation is VERY different fromsome other posters. And it is also fine to ask comparable colleges to compare competing offers. What is different, IMO, is if a person has want, not need, and wants the school to pay more (more grants $) and the student/parent to pay less (less loans, etc). If the school made an error calculating need, sure its fine to ask for a reconsideration. Sure I’d love for someone else to pay my bills too. But some posters here have more means than others to pay their EFC. Just sayin’</p>
<p>DadII #21 post…THANK YOU FOR YOUR POST! I am having HUGE issues with these universities that my son has applied to for FA! It is crazy. My EFC is so darn high, it is unbelievable. My son’s ex#1 choice college “gave” him 5500 in loans, that’s it. The college costs $57K a year and the college expects us to come up with 52K per year. CRAZY for undergraduate education! We are shocked.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I apologize. I didn’t look for the original post.</p>
<p>On the other hand, you’d probably think me selfish. WashU offered me a need-based stipend whereas Stanford did not; I intend to appeal that.</p>
<p>^applicannot, I’m sure jym would not think you were selfish</p>
<p>The original quote refers to the fact that I WAS satisfied with my finaid from Union, but DadII suggested I appeal it…if you are not happy with/do not think your finaid is all that it could be, by all means appeal.
I felt lucky to get my full need and then some met by a school that often “gaps”</p>
<p>Thank you for clarifying, rocket. Your observation is correct. The full quotation, in post #24 (which contained a shout out to you, applicannot) was:
</p>
<p>Thanks, too, for your post above, applicannot. It was most gracious. But no, I would not consider you selfish at all. A zero EFC student certainly has need, and going back to ask Stanford to review their FA in light of your wonderful offer from WUSTL is totally appropriate and understandable. Good luck. Stanford is known to be a very generous institution. I hope they revisit your FA reward favorably. Good luck!</p>
<p>An admissions counselor once told me that discussing the financial aid was a lot like car shopping (done more subtly). Several of the schools my son was accepted too wanted to see the offers that other schools had given him and, one on particular (College of Wooster) has an appeal form where you are asked to send copies of the aid offers from other schools. We have had very good success with the comparison shopping, and, if done in a non-offensive manner, is not rude or crass. I have actually enjoyed this process with the admissions counselors and financial aid folks. We joke, banter, discuss schools. The attitude going into this process is important-don’t take the offerings personally, always be polite and gracious (I sound like my southern Mom) and offer lots of appreciation for their efforts. If nothing works out in you favor, thank them and move on.</p>
<p>*always be polite and gracious (I sound like my southern Mom) *</p>
<p>Hey, good manners and a nice demeanor can go a long way in the appeal process for more money.</p>
<p>This probably goes without saying, but I assume that there’s no risk in appealing your award? You never hear, “well, if you’re not satisfied with our award, we’ll cut it down and give some of it to someone who appreciates it more,” or polite bureaucratese to that effect, right? </p>
<p>Silly question, I know, but paranoia strikes deep…</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Thanks for interpreting that post fairly. I just re-read it and realize it could have really been seen as hostile, given the wording. Certainly not my intent, jym.</p>
<p>Not undergrad and not need-based aid, but…</p>
<p>Received a fellowship offer from a PhD program today! That means I have two guaranteed offers to choose from! Yay!</p>
<p>Great news, psych! Congrats.</p>
<p>
No worries applicannot. Understood what you meant. Was very appreciative that you understood, when that portion of a quote was taken out of context that it was not what I said or meant, and you graciously apologized. Thank you again. </p>
<p>The poster did the same thing (took that same quote out of context) and posted it in another thread as well, again with the intent to twist my words to imply something that was not said or intended.</p>
<p>OOHH!! And congrats psych!! You now have 3 acceptances with $$?? Thats incredible for grad psych programs!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well, the UF money isn’t guaranteed, just likely, but I know I’m guaranteed funding at other programs… It’s a wonderful feeling to have options! :)</p>
<p>And thanks (to you, too, marite!)–it’s been a long process, and I can’t wait to be done (should decide sometime next week, after I get the final funding details from my TX option). :)</p>
<p>In my experience, the undergrad application process was so much easier then the PhD go-around (no interviews!).</p>
<p>Breathing a big sigh of relief today! D got a really nice FA package from NC State that covers all tuition, fees, housing and dining. Most of it is need-based grants with the typical loans thrown in, but she is also waiting on two merit scholarships there. She is also applying for some outside scholarships to see if she can cover the loan amounts. All-in-all, I think NC State has been very generous. We are crossing our fingers for the one scholarship that covers tuition and fees. She also has a savings plan that she can use to cover much of the expenses not covered by FA, so we are very happy right now. It’s great to live in a state that has such great, affordable schools!</p>
<p>mamagx3,Congrats and will cross fingers for your D and the Goodnight scholarship. If you haven’t already, be sure to check into scholarships in the dept. of her major. S1 (NCSU '09)found one on the departmental webpage of his major. It was under a small “scholarships” link on the page. Would have been very easy to miss. He applied and got it. It turned out to be worth the cost of tuition and was renewable for four years…Go Wolfpack.</p>