you have a child with a 34 ACT, first in class, that is a girl, that wants to study math. I’m thinking that she will find some great scholarships at some places-- places that want her will make it happen. But I agree that some schools might end up much more expensive than others, even with the same EFC and the same amount of “merit” scholarship. That is frustrating and I think it is tough to know in advance how it will turn out. We found this to be true in our child’s search…the least expensive option turned out to be the most expensive by May 1, given the policies with OOS, merit aid, our EFC, and the fact that they raised tuition significantly in the interim. Although frustrating, probably it can work out…but yes, that’s a lot of flexibility to expect a 17 year old to understand.
oh and i forgot, yes, ask about stacking…the most generous place for stacking that we encountered was the University of Pittsburgh which actually apparently accepts outside scholarships that come in over the amount due and then credits extra money back to the student account…so some smart kids pay less than zero.
According to some private college admissions directors, the term “merit aid” is a euphemism, even if some of the recipients are bright.
This is basically bribe money – trying to change students’ enrollment choices. I think we need to acknowledge up front that this is not money to reward students for excellent academic performance. It attempts to change enrollment decisions from institution A to institution B. It does nothing for access.
@ClarinetDad16 Of course, colleges and universities are businesses.
@Midwest67 - so the handful of large merit scholarships are leveraged to persuade the kids with a HYPS admit to go to a special program at insert private university name. And typically these schools are a step down in that mystical prestige.
These offers typically are going to someone in the top 1% of the applicant pool at say Vanderbilt, which is why that individual is also an HYPS admit as well.
As hard as it is to get into Vandy, Duke, Rice, Emory, USC, etc. - imagine how hard it is to be in the 99th percentile of their applicant pool?
Based on one’s stats that might be a 1:100 chance or 1:1000 shot. It’s like gambling $100 for a chance at $200,000. Or if your EFC is $34,000 and room and board is $14,000 your upshot is more like $80,000…
I am not even sure what it takes to be in the 99th percentile at Vandy. My kid graduated #1 with test scores in the 99th percentile. She also raised $30,000 as the president of an outside health organization. She was wait listed LOL.
FYI your 1040 statements from 2015 can be used for FAFSA this year and next year due to earlier deadline in October. /
The Dave Ramsey school of thought is to send your kids to in state to what they can afford so nobody goes into debt. Something strong to consider and take hold of.
With that being said there may be a specific school that you and your kid see the great potential given their academic and vocational goals that is worth the extra hassle and risk. Also the potential for spiritual, intellectual and social development has to be measured. Everybody has to be on board with that choice though.
Going for an underwater basket weaving degree isn’t worth going into debt over I agree!!
It’s not an earlier deadline, it’s earlier availability.
Nothing for access except for those top competitive students who have limited options bc they don’t have access to money. For them it isn’t a “bribe.” For them it opens up doors outside of the local CC or commuting school that may offer far less academically.
My D is very happy being able to attend the instate research university with a great merit scholarship. It has what she is looking for.
Look at the schools where you can afford to send her - $20K will pay room/board and some books etc. So looking where she can receive full four year tuition.
If she wants to consider engineering or CS along with the Math, she would also qualify at University of Alabama for an extra $2500/yr automatic eng dept scholarship (CS is in eng dept). She could declare eng or CS (after enrolled you can add a 2nd major during one’s first term) and if she doesn’t like eng or CS, can change out w/o penalty other than losing the future eng scholarship $$.
My DD is in engineering at UA and is loving it. Know math majors that love the school too. You need to visit. Lots of OOS high stat kids along with in-state kids; nice honors college opportunities. Mine is in STEM MBA, so is finishing 4 MBA classes during her UG (she has a MBA class each semester for 1 1/2 credits).
Will reiterate other poster’s support of Pitt. Get application in early - over the summer. Scholarships are awarded on a rolling basis. They used to have summer visit days where you could apply during the visit and have the app fee waived. If your daughter does that just be sure she emails optional essays and LOR to her admissions file soon thereafter.
Without this “bribe”, my full pay D would be stuck in state. This obviously would not be the end of the world, but she is really excited to try something new and different. Pitt, Truman State, West Virginia, Kansas–all of these are CHEAPER for her than our flagship. Some quite a bit cheaper! And she too is waiting/hoping Tulane will come through.
@Midwest67 I’ve often thought your D is having a similar ride to mine. Mine didn’t want a sorority-heavy school, so didn’t apply to Kentucky or Alabama, but I have those in mind for S18 to consider.
@Booajo I insisted our D2 apply to both UK and UA because those were our very best financial options. H & I have been working very hard, and we’ve been through some rough patches since the recession in 2008. I’m anxious to “catch-up” and replenish our safety net, fix neglected things about the house, as well as look ahead at retirement.
Even with full tuition awards at Fordham & Alabama (or lottery chance at Tulane), UK is making us an offer (full ride) we can’t easily refuse. I honestly don’t see it as a “lesser” choice. I see opportunity.
And, I can’t pretend that $10-20K per year is nothing (for us), or that she’ll be $40-$80K “happier” at those other schools.
I’m surprised your D went for TU if she wanted to avoid sorority-heavy! I wish Pitt was on our radar junior year! Missed that one!
@Midwest67, Pitt is still accepting applications! You can send transcript or self report grades. Quick online application. While automatically being reviewed for merit ended on Jan 15, exceptional students can still get scholarships. Might be worth applying to see what happens. Your D has some excellent choices already, but if you are wondering “what if” then what do you have to lose? About $12,000 for room, board, fees.
@Midwest67 I think she didn’t realize how much sorority life was a factor at Tulane. We haven’t visited yet, so we shall see. Of course, if she doesn’t get a DHS/PTA, we’ll probably have to take it off the table anyway.
She really wanted “urban” with a campus (think Columbia!), and it was hard to find places that met that and our cost concerns. Pitt seems a great option (she got full tuition there); Truman State is even better (she only has to pay to eat!) But Truman isn’t urban so I think is lower on her list right now. Plus it is less “well known”, at least around here, which does seem to sway her a bit. I think we are pretty much down to these 3 now, although she has 2 lottery type apps out still. I’m virtually positive they will be unaffordable but she wants to wait and see.
@mommdc Thank you for the info re: Pitt. I don’t think I could convince D to toss another application anywhere, and even with full tuition, UK is still a smart choice (well, in my opinion). She won’t even consider visiting UA.
@Booajo How well do you think your D will handle it if she gets accepted at a lottery school but it’s unaffordable? It’s been hard on our kid.
Michigan State and Indiana I see have open enrollment which is amazing. Is it true that $75K is the line in the sand between getting significant financial assistance and not getting hardly anything? Seems like that is the big cut off I see I net cost estimations on different websites.