We were just told today that we should not expect to get off any waitlist due to financial need. I know getting off any wait list is almost impossible anyway but what is your opinion/experience regarding this sort of situation. I know some schools such as Bowdoin change from need blind to need aware when it applies to waitlist candidates while other schools like BU are notorious for only taking full pay. Are there any schools that truly remain need blind for wait list candidates?
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The only people who can answer that are staff at each school, if it’s not clearly denoted on their website. Whether some will directly answer that question I don’t know. But if they don’t/can’t answer, that’s probably your answer.
With that said I expect HYP stay need blind for all students (including internationals) in the waitlist process, but I don’t know that for sure.
D23 came off Villanova’s wait list this week with lots of need, but cost was still prohibitive.
yeah it sucks. I’m on barnards waitlist and they say that they’re need aware for transfers and waitlists. everyone who’s gotten off (at least from the college confidential thread) is full pay and didn’t apply for aid. apparently their endowment is small and I guess they can’t afford to give financial aid to their waitlists.
it’s especially sad too because I need financial aid but I loveeee barnard 
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I posted about this yesterday in the Class of 23 message board. It’s so icky that everyone that Barnard seems to be letting in off the waitlist can pay in full. I guess it’s not surprising, but you think they’d be a little more covert about it.
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Mostly full pay is an approach for many colleges. Even many public will prefer to take full pay OOS from the waitlist unless they are under some mandate to fill that many instate student spots. But in that case, they can take full-pay in-state students or students with state scholarships not paid by the college.
Colleges need to balance their books, they do it with full-pay students. They cannot fill all spots with smart but FA needed students. Someone has to pay… In the case of public schools, taxpayer pay. In the case of private - who will pay?
I’m sure you will end up somewhere fantastic-- keep us posted.
If I am not mistaken the @iseeusee is going to UMD CP but is interested to come of Barnard waitlist with FA.
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We have friends with a daughter with significant financial need who was waitlisted at Occidental and was worried about the same thing. She ended up getting off the waitlist this week and was awarded aid. The first round wasn’t sufficient, but she appealed and already received an updated offer that was much more attractive
Oxy is obviously not as selective as Bowdoin and while it meets full need, it’s need aware (at all stages of process), so we were surprised that she got off the list at all
On the other hand, it it’s also not right that some colleges are not open about the fact, that they need to make sure that anyone they admit from the waitlist can actually be awarded the necessary aid to afford attending!
While it is a harsh reality of this country’s secondary education system, maybe it’s better for people to know their lesser odds and the understand the need to embrace other colleges they were accepted into, and that it’s not for the (perceived lack of) strength of their application?