According to my ex the process takes a week. Presently she is leaning toward NFC. She has also decided to remain on Wellesley’s waitlist as that was also a top choice going in. She really wants a small all-women’s LAC.
Mount Holyoke has adjusted the family contribution by $21,000 so now it is $22,900. Much better, but still too much . Even with the added work study it is still beyond what I have budgeted. Every school uses a different formula, Mount Holyoke definitely uses the amount the custodial parent states on C6b. This makes it really difficult for custodial parents as we have know idea what the ex-spouse is claiming. Unfortunately mine is not very good with money, forms or technology. There is other information on his Profile that is wrong and may have effected the financial aid. Unfortunately I saw a copy after the appeal was sent in. One thing that is especially troublesome is that he entered $12074 as other income for 2013 AND 2014 because he took a distribution from his meager 401(k) to buy a car. (He is over 60). Now it looks like he gets a $12074 payment every year. He didn’t take one in 2014. No letter explaining this to the colleges. Now I am wondering if it effected Cornell’s award and I am wondering if I should call and ask.
Yes, if there are additional errors on the Profile (in this case, an omitted explanation), that should be corrected. Your daughter can simply send an email providing the omitted information, and she can ask, at the same time, they they let her know if this results in a change in her award. If the school needs confirmation of the change from Dad, they’ll let her know.
Won’t hurt to ask Cornell once they get the fixed forms.
Hope for the best for you and your twins. Divorce is hard enough without all this…
This is a tough situation. We have found MHC’s financial aid office generally easy to deal with so keep plugging away. Remember too when reviewing your financial aid packages that with your income levels you may also be eligible to receive the $2500 American Opportunity Tax credit (not deduction but real money) annually for each twin (through at least 2017 at this point) if you spend $4000 of your own money for each of them toward eligible college expenses.
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One thing that is especially troublesome is that he entered $12074 as other income for 2013 AND 2014 because he took a distribution from his meager 401(k) to buy a car. (He is over 60). Now it looks like he gets a $12074 payment every year. He didn’t take one in 2014. No letter explaining this to the colleges. Now I am wondering if it effected Cornell’s award and I am wondering if I should call and ask.
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Can you ask your ex to correct this with both schools? You are right, this is misleading. {[ hugs }} to you having to deal with all of this.
Here’s the thing and maybe I am different, but I don’t even care about the money. We aren’t saving for a next life. I want my daughter to have the best experience possible. That is MHC. I’ll dip into my retirement if I have to…my daughter(s) mean everything to me.
My ex made a mistake too for the my Ds top choice. I was in tears. I was going to wait to appeal but I poured my heart out to the financial aid office. It was my mistake in jot checking his paperwork.
My D and her dad sent in something to find aid that they didn’t ask for and it sent a red flag.
It was a mess to fix but it came back better then johns hopkins.
Keep trying. It’s worth it to just try and at least she has two other great options.
But the better the school is endowed the more they can give to your child. MHC is not Cornell.
My ex called MHC and the corrected the information brought my daughter’s COA down to $20,000, which is generous. However, as a result of this, it has become clear to me that my ex has exaggerated his ability to pay for the kids college. So $15,000 for my son and $20,000 for my daughter is a bit scary for me. We could get through the first year for sure. The rest would depend on my ability to land a well-paying job in either my previous career or be successful in a new one. As far as dipping into my savings and my retirement – that is partially what I am living on now, along with some freelance work and child support which ends in July. If I take too much out of the retirement account, it will have negative affect on the financial aid. I have equity in my house so I would prefer to borrow against the house if I could but I do not have steady income right now. Perhaps I should see a financial planner before May 1. Or maybe a New College education is just as good as a Mount Holyoke education.
Does that net cost at MHC include the Direct Loan which your daughter can take?
Actually I misstated earlier: COA is 26,100. Family contribution is $20,500. Direct loan is 3,500 and work study is 2100.
Your daughter can also take $2000 in unsubsidized loans for her freshman year. That would lessen the shortfall. Any chance she can work now and during the summer?
Only your family can decide if MHC is affordable, but gee…she is awfully close!
My D got accepted to MHC too and received little aid which surprised us. It came in $20K+ more than Bryn Mawr which was her top choice.
You will have to pay $15800 for your son for Cornell, and $20000 for your d for MHC? What would be your cost for her to attend the New School? Does your S also have a cheaper alternative than Cornell?
With the current job situation, could they both stay in Florida?
You’re partially living on your savings, and you hope to get more work in the future, and your ex can’t contribute much.
You don’t want to hear this, but I don’t think Cornell, as great as it may be, is even affordable, let alone MH.
Maybe both your kids need to reconsider their top choices.
With my 529 plan and the ex’s contribution, which I believe will be at least the amount of the child support he will no longer be paying me, Cornell and New College is within our financial reach. Hopefully, things will be different next year as I am actively pursuing a career change. I am confident but not confident enough to take a risk with Mount Holyoke which would put me over my budget. My daughter and I had some long discussions about this. My greatest fear was that she may feel she was making a sacrifice for her brother. But she doesn’t. I do expect them to contribute by working. My son tutors but my daughter hasn’t started working yet. My son got accepted to UF but we decided that Cornell is the way to go for him. What we save by sending my daughter to New College will be spent on her graduate/professional degree. Or maybe spend it on a car for her. That way, I will be able to satisfy my neurotic need to keep things even between the twins. It was a tough decision because I hear a lot of great things about Mount Holyoke. But I hear some great things about New College too.
@Aussiemom That is a big difference between the 2 packages. The most frustrating part of this college application process is having absolutely no idea what these colleges are going to cost before you apply. The online calculators are not even remotely helpful especially for divorced parents. And apparently the “demonstrated need” is pretty subjective and changes drastically from one college to another. For example one college may count the full value of the equity in your house another may count only a percentage depending on your income and still another will not count it at all. Do any of these colleges publish their formula?
@bonsaiBaby As long as your daughter is happy enough with the Cornell/New College plan and isn’t feeling resentment towards her parents or her brother, that seems like a good solution.
Very scared for your family @bonsaibaby but glad you are thinking with restraint on the true budget limits as you tread the financial sacrifices and trying to improve on the career for yourself. One doesn’t have to have twins to want to have things equal with how one provides for the children. Honestly if the numbers were reversed (so if MHC had family contribution of $15,800) you would have your son look at a lesser cost alternative if Cornell didn’t fall within what your budget could stand. DD and DS both have opportunities to mature with the opportunities and doors open for them.
Continue to do the best you can while also keeping the doses of reality, as you have to live within your budget.
One has to find happiness within - and that is a lesson many adults even have much difficulty learning. And sometimes one has to act happy for a while and then they eventually realize they are happy. That something was weighed way out of perspective and one had to see all the good in their life.
Good luck.
I have two in school and I don’t think things have to be equal to be fair. Each child got to go to the school she wanted but the costs aren’t the same and the one whose is cheaper is not getting the difference in cash. She may get to graduate debt free and her sister may have to take loans but I don’t feel guilty that things aren’t exactly the same. Actually, not really close. The one at the private school is almost entirely paid with grants and scholarships, while the one at a state school is about $15k per year. Just how it worked out.