<p>Does anyone know Barnard’s policy about offering financial aid to students coming off the waitlist?</p>
<p>In general, colleges are NOT need-blind when it comes to their waitlist – so their policy about financial aid probably depends on the status of the financial aid budget. If the financial aid department reports that it is in good shape and has funds to offer, then waitlisted students may be offered a spot, with the same financial aid as any other student. But if money is tight, then you could expect the financial aid department to tell admission that they are not able to subsidize any more students – and then the admissions department would probably look to ability to pay before inviting any students from the waitlist. </p>
<p>In general, if you need financial aid and are waitlisted, it’s best to assume the worst – and make your choice among the colleges that have admitted you. No harm in leaving your name on the waitlist – but the odds are against you in that situation.</p>
<p>I don’t have personal knowledge of Barnard’s policies – but if you think about it, the procedure I outlined above is the only one that makes financial sense for a college with limited funds to offer students. Barnard gives fairly good aid to its students, but it has a relatively small endowment and not a lot of extra funds to spare.</p>
<p>I second calmom’s opinion, but why not just ask Barnard admissions? Some schools are very frank in saying there is no money for students coming off he wait list. We encountered that three years ago. Only about 50% of Barnard students even apply for financial aid, so Barnard has a pretty rich pool to choose from when going to the wait list.</p>