<p>I have been looking into Mt. Holyoke College, however, I noticed that it is a very steep price to pay @ 48,000 full price. Does anyone know Mt. Holyokes stance with financial aide, do they give out large amounts of money or not? Any advice would be appreciated! thank you!</p>
<p>hey u sud not worry about the "price tag"!! MHC is very generous with aid...it meets 100% of ur demonstrated need n if u are US citizen then ur fin need will not even affect ur application (if i am not wrong it is need blind for US citizens?)</p>
<p>yes, the meet 100% of need... except they use their definition of need. They felt my family could spend half of our income on mhc, which is farrrrr from true.</p>
<p>Meeting 100% of financial need will mean that a portion of it will be in the form of loans. Which, in my mind, is not really financial AID per se. So, be certain to read all of the policy, which is available on the web site.</p>
<p>Of all the schools DD was accepted at, Mount Holyoke was the most generous with its aid. They offered $2K above nearest competitor. Unfortunately for my pocketbook, DD chose Barnard anyway whose package was attractive, just not as attractive as Mount Holyoke's.</p>
<p>The loan portion is very minor until senior year because Stafford puts caps on loans. Let's see, first year about $1500, rest grants. Loan amount increases until senior year if you want the full loan it's about $5,000. </p>
<p>Only a handful of schools are no loan -- Ivies and few LAC's like Amherst, Williams, Davidson.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>My daughter is a senior at MHC. Loans have been a large part of her financial aid package every year. She will graduate with approx. $20,000 in loans both Stafford and MHC direct loans.</p>
<p>As of this year the current Stafford cap is $31,000 over 4 years.</p>
<p>Mount Holyoke is not need blind, it's need aware (from the web site):</p>
<p>What does it mean that Mount Holyoke College is need-aware?
Need-aware, also known as need-sensitive, is a policy in which students' financial resources are considered along with other traditional admission measures in making decisions. Mount Holyoke College employs this policy only for those students who fall at the margin of the admitted applicant pool.</p>
<p>MHC is need-conscious and they do increase your loan aid every year, but I've found that they really do make up for it through the other types of assistance available on campus. Our J-Term, for example, is totally covered and you can live on campus throughout that term without having to pay extra for courses or anything like that. A lot of study abroad aid travels. Students get money thrown at them all the time to attend student leadership conferences, go on special research trips, and the like. You can save on a vehicle and gas because of PVTA, which is free for all students. I feel like, in the long run, you pay less here because all of the "extras" are typically covered. Also, since so many of the alumnae have gone on to great success in life, they give a lot of their own scholarships through their local alumnae associations, so that's another option. Finally, unlike most colleges, you can actually petition to have your grant aid increased if there are special factors you think they didn't consider. Just the fact that they're even willing to do that shows how committed they are to making sure everyone can succeed here.</p>