Anyone know the process? The wait feels like forever and I’d to know what happens as we wait. For example, is there usually more than one person reading your app? When is the decision made by the Admissions Office and passed to the Financial Aid office (if applicable)? Timeline?
Depends on the college.
The process is the same as the college RD process, except for timing. It varies by college. Most highly ranked schools have more than one reader per application. Often the ones above a certain cutoff level after those readings are discussed in a committee. If the school is not need blind, they take FA info into account. FA often works in parallel with admissions – they aren’t waiting to see what admissions decides.
It varies depending on the school.
Thank you, @intparent . This school is highly selective and says they are need-blind. I was hoping that more than one person views the applications to make it equitable for all applicants.
In a need blind, selective school, would you assume the apps are read as you describe and then a block of the admitted student apps are sent over to the Financial Aid dept? This school releases your FA package with your admission decision (mid Dec).
I have the same question - does Financial Aid process everyone who applies ED, or just those that Admissions deem as likely to be admitted?
That depends on the school as well. You can’t assume, though, if you get any questions or reminders from the FA office that it means anything for admission. And all top colleges have more than one reader. But that doesn’t necessarily improve your chances.
You should go exercise, read, have ice cream, or watch a movie. Speculation on the processis useless. Distract yourself for now. Or finish your other apps. I’ve seen plenty of students who were down after ED rejections and had a hard time completing their other apps.
some people applying ED are not applying for FA, as a gentle reminder.
I’m not sure why that matters for this thread, though. Obviously there is no coordination needed with the FA office in that case.
“Or finish your other apps. I’ve seen plenty of students who were down after ED rejections and had a hard time completing their other apps.”
That is a really great point. Thank you.
I think @Dustyfeathers was responding to @filmandhistory 's question. I actually appreciated the reminder b/c the Financial Aid advisor assigned to my D18’s file (per alphabetical listing on the website) is “away for training” this week. The timing made me assume that must be feasible timing for a FA rep assigned to ED students at this particular school (decisions not yet made on admissions I guess?).
That made me further wonder about the process. If they accept roughly 500-600 kids ED and have about ten FA officers listed on the website, it seemed as though 50-60 caseloads is a lot in a small time period (mid-Dec decision release).
I would love to hear people chime in who have worked in or have inside knowledge about how this works because I’m curious about it. I understand it’s different everywhere and that speculation is fruitless, but any examples are still of interest to me from a learning standpoint.
FA is probably initially done by a computer program that calculates FA for simple situations and flags the smaller number of complex situations for human review. This can be in process while the admission readings are being done, so there need not be any delay from admission decision to do FA, unless additional preferential packaging review is done.
@ucbalumnus , very interesting. I guess I should have added that our case is one of those “more complex” situations (family business) that doesn’t calculate properly with the NPCs for the schools. Envisioning all of the cases being complicated like that made me uneasy about the time frame, but you make good points. Many who need FA probably have very straightforward cases, unlike myself. And then there are those who don’t qualify for it as @Dustyfeathers mentioned. So the FA officers probably have enough time to sort through it.
I can’t help but wonder if there is such a thing as truly “need blind” or if complicated cases like mine make a kid’s app more likely to end up in the Denial bin (which, if I’m being honest, wouldn’t surprise me). Who needs the headache? 8-|
There are schools that are still truly “need blind” though over recent years many moved to “need aware” simply because they ran out of money.
As @intparent though… Analyse paralysis doesn’t help at this point. The dice have been rolled…
“That made me further wonder about the process. If they accept roughly 500-600 kids ED and have about ten FA officers listed on the website, it seemed as though 50-60 caseloads is a lot in a small time period (mid-Dec decision release).”
There will be a lot of ED applicants that won’t apply for FA as someone noted earlier, also athletes apply ED and those who get scholarships (non-Ivys typically) won’t be going through FA. So it’s a lot less.
Need blind should be taken with a grain of salt, adcoms know the family wealth without needing to consult FA. If you attended a boarding school in New England where the tuition is similar to the college tuition, they know that applicant won’t be needing any FA. Out here in the bay area if one parent works for Google, the other for Apple, that applicant will also not be needing FA. I’m exaggerating a little for effect, but you get the idea.
@theloniusmonk , Interesting points. I really do hope that the FA Office doesn’t tip off the Admissions Office that our FA situation is complicated. At this point I’m fine with a rejection (most of us should expect a rejection when applying to reaches with no hook). I’d just prefer to trust that the process is as fair as is reasonable.
In other words, I hope that if a college claims to be need blind, they try in good faith to be need blind. Otherwise don’t claim to be, right?
Most decisions are probably underway now and the rest should wrap by 7 days before notices go out. That’s no help to you, unless you know the notice date.
Need blind is need blind. Without a view of the FA app, you can only speculate. Pricey boarding schools, who knows? They offer a lot of fin aid. Just as we (hopefully) choose our friends based on their merits, not income, it’s possible for colleges, too. Not all rich kids are automatically worthier.
OP, don’t forget, those FA officers have teams supporring them.
Regarding “need blind”, generally this means that the college does not look at financial need when evaluating individual applicants.
However, a “need blind” college can still be aware of the level of financial need it is willing to cover for its expected class of students. So it may emphasize or de-emphasize applicant characteristics that correlate with applicants from higher or lower income families (e.g. expensive extracurriculars versus working to earn money, or whether SAT subject tests are required or recommended, or whether CSS Noncustodial Profile is required) in order to adjust the expected result that it gets for the overall class.
We debate this all the time out here. I tend to be a cynic about the college admissions process (they ARE businesses), but I think need blind pretty much does mean need blind. That in NO WAY means they will meet your need, especially as you define it.
Yeah, I think there is pretty much zero chance they will meet our need as we define it (if she is accepted) and we will be taking some loans… which leads me to a separate frustration: colleges claiming to meet need but when you look closer that includes $6,000 in “loans and work study” (on top of the loans you were already anticipating). How is a hidden loan meeting your need? Parents have to be very careful when reading these FA “awards.”
I am, however, pleased to hear that need-blind could be true from an acceptance standpoint.