Hi, I’m a senior from Iowa who was accepted into Brown ED. I’m fully aware that ED is binding, but I have been given an opportunity to withdraw from Brown since there is a clause in the agreement that ED can be broken if the finances cannot be worked out.
Basically, if I enrolled at Brown my family would be put under a lot of financial stress, and I would have to take out around $20k of loans. My family is willing to do this for me, although all of us (myself included) would have to make sacrifices and it is not going to be easy. Additionally, because of the nature of my situation, there is also a possibility that Brown may take away the small amount of grant money that it has already offered for the following years, which would make things difficult to the point of impossibility.
I have already applied RD to other schools, because I knew the possibility of me having to withdraw was very high. (Brown knows about this, I OK’d it with admissions.)
I have already been admitted into a state school and a few other safeties that are very affordable. Additionally, I am applying to Yale, Princeton, Amherst, Pomona, etc. There is no guarantee that they will provide me with adequate FA, because even though their net price calculators claim they will, so did Brown’s. On the other hand, because I will have multiple offers, it will be easier to get them to give me more money.
For context, the difference between what I got from Brown and what I should get from a needs blind school is 35k - 25k depending (of course) on the school we’re talking about.
I am wondering if anyone can give me any advice on this matter. Should I stick with Brown, or should I take my chances at other schools, knowing that at the very least I will have a fighting chance in admissions to these selective schools.
Did Brown give you what the Brown NPC indicated or not?
Are you saying Brown would enroll you but not give the same aid in soph-sr year? I have never heard of that happening so why would that happen to you?
You certainly are not remotely assured a spot at the other colleges you name. And to think that you can improve offers is really not something to take to the bank.
I am not an international. Like I said I’m from Iowa. Brown did not give me anywhere near the NPC figure. I have definitely heard of students being given a different aid amount their soph-senior year because colleges know it is no longer as easy to withdraw. I am especially concerned because what little I have been given took an appeal to get, and they may revert back to nothing next year.
Also I was not trying to say I am assured admission, but I am fairly certain I will get admission into one of the schools I have applied to, which is by no means contained to the list I gave.
If you think the appeal of aid was intended for one year only you can say no thanks. I have never heard of Brown operating that way but of course I don’t hear of all cases. You can ask for a ‘side letter’. They know what this means, this means they agree the amount stays the same all things else being equal. They can and should be able to do that.
Sorry I missed the Iowa mention. Brown * is* need blind for domestic students. It is tough to be in this position. I really dislike ED. We could not afford to risk it. So you thought the NPC amount was affordable. But you appealed the discrepancy and they did not make it whole for whatever reason (divorced parents, owning property, self employed can make the calculator not as good.) So what is the difference between the amount you were willing to pay and the offer? 5k a year and I would think about it. More perhaps not. You shouldn’t compare to the other schools because you already knew that when you ED’d that Yale would give more.
I think you should assume a reject from Princeton and Yale and a maybe from Amherst and Pomona and proceed from there.
If you don’t have work/study you can take a campus job there are plenty available. They are enjoyable, sometimes research positions with faculty, or calling alumni for donations (that pays well.) As long as it is 10 to 15 hours you will be fine. Even studies show that increases productivity. If you are a CS major with skills, or you develop them you can get jobs that pay more. You should be able to get a very well paying summer job after Jr year, 5k per month is possible, and maybe after sophomore year as well.
Also my dd saved money moving off campus Jr year. She was still a block away only with all students but did an off campus meal plan at a savings and rent at savings.
Can I ask, did you bring up the NPC difference and there was an explanation for it?
Feel free to private message me if you think I can be of any further help. She also had to pinch pennies, but she is really good about getting things cheap and even borrow and lend textbooks with friends and department members if it meant a few hundred bucks. My dd was a math/cs major I saw elsewhere you are looking at CS.
Brown IS a needs-blind school, and more importantly, a school that promises to meet 100% of financial need. Just like those other colleges you mention. Often NPCs are not accurate because of certain situations, such as parent owns a business, there is a noncustodial parent, etc. If that is true for you, then it is likely the other schools will offer you less than the calculator indicated. (Just to get terms correct, needs-blind is not the right term to use -- promises to meet 100% of need is what is relevant.)
Have you spoken to Brown about WHY its offer was so different from the NPC? I think that’s a crucial question. You need to understand why Brown offered you what it did.
Unless your situation changes, Brown will NOT reduce your amount of aid in future years. It does not entice you with one figure as a freshman and then raise the cost. Now, if you have a sibling in college, who is graduating, then yes, your aid will change -- but your parents won't be paying that sibling's college bills and should have more money for you.
Is the $20,000 in loans for one year or all 4? If for one year -- then are we talking about you taking out the maximum Stafford loan, and your parents doing about $15,000/year in PLUS loans? Or are you planning on taking out personal loans for the full amount?
Your situation is NOT unique. Unique means one of a kind. Trust me, you are far from the only student dealing with these issues.
Does your aid package include student employment? Can you reduce your loan amounts by working both during the school year and summers?
If the only way you can afford Brown is by you taking out $80,000 in loans for the four years, then you need to decline your acceptance immediately and move on. The only exception to this is if you will major in computer science and are OK working for a company like Google or Microsoft after graduating. If you’re a poli sci or English major; if you are thinking about going to a professional grad school (medical, law or business), then notify Brown ASAP that you are declining the offer of acceptance.
If your parents are planning on taking out a total of $60,000 or so in PLUS loans, and you will take out the maximum federal loans – then you need a heart-to-heart with mom and dad. If they are enthusiastic about doing this, have the cash flow to pay back the loans, feel comfortable with their retirement savings and don’t have other children’s college education to pay for – then you probably should stick to your commitment to Brown. Only your parents can tell you how they feel about this. There’s nothing wrong with sacrificing to send your kid to college, if that’s your value structure. We did it for our kid – but we didn’t risk our retirement to do so. But lots of parents don’t want to do that, which is fine, too.
For high school students reading this – This is why you should NOT apply ED unless you have a firm grasp on the financial situation. I feel uncomfortable about this situation – I feel like this student is trying to get the best of both worlds. S/he has gotten in ED, yet has applied RD to a bunch of similar schools and plans on comparing financial aid offers. That’s not the way ED is supposed to work.