<p>Repeat of a link posted above in the thread, for the LONG story about financial aid methodology: </p>
<p>Indiana University Bloomington, My EFC was 6,000 and they only gave me 5,000 worth of loans. I am going to be in hella debt when I graduate!</p>
<p>With an EFC of zero: Trinity: free ride
Union: free ride
Lafayette: wave a magic wand and make $18,000 come out of nowhere. </p>
<p>I've spoken to others who have also had to toss their Lafayette acceptance because their need-based aid is a joke.</p>
<p>northeastern-- got about 22,000 for a school that is 48,000+ with very low efc</p>
<p>Freakin Duke.</p>
<p>I second (third, fourth, fifth?) Northeastern. I really liked the school and was heavily considering it before I realized I would have to take out 30K in loans. I received a sizeable merit-based scholarship but in addition to that, only work study and loans, no grants at all. I realize that my EFC is quite high but my parents make around 70K a year, not 120K+ like others. I dunno, I think it really stinks when my parents ability to save hard-earned money (not for my college) is held against me. I can get 5k a year help from them, but that's not even close to what I'll need to pay for a school out of state. But i'm just disappointed, oh well.</p>
<p>One of my safeties, where I was expecting a lot of money in case, UMass Amherst, gave me 5k. It costs 30K for me, something that won't work for my family.</p>
<p>Santa Clara---$3000....that's it for a school that costs $45,000.</p>
<p>DUKE: Their financial "aid" was $4500 in loans; therefore Duke expects our family to pay the remaining $49,800/year.
Are they serious?? :eek:</p>
<p>I think if you can scrape enough money together pay for first year, and if you can excel academically, in a school with a high graduation rate (93+%) and a large endowment, it should be possible to get more financial aid than was originally offered. Basically, once you're in you're a member of the community, and if you show exemplary commitment to your studies, they'll try to help you stay in. It's a risk gambit, so you have to weigh whether you think you have the ability and drive to excel, if given a chance. </p>
<p>For reducing expenses, one Duke econ major I met came home his first two summers and took local state-university courses, having gotten an assurance a priori that Duke would credit them, which it did, so he was able to graduate in 3.5 years. This saved about $20,000. He didn't get a full Duke education, but he got a Duke degree, and went to his home state's flagship law school.</p>
<p>Ithaca had a gap on our bill of about $15K (including Fed Loans, work study makes it $18K). Our EFC was $1049. At that rate ALL Of our savings (including retirement) would be dried up in 2 years leaving nothing for our other 2 children. Best of all my D applied w/ fee waivers so they know we have a lower income.</p>
<p>I filed the optional CSS Profile (waste of money) bc I wanted to show that my DH had been in an accident last June and had been out of work (he is self employed) for over 5 months. Apparently that means nothing as most everyone on the Ithaca board is reporting similar gaps of $10-20K. In my area IDK anyone that can feasibly write a check like that every year for the next 4 and as my D is planning on becoming a teacher I just don't think a $60K debt upon graduation is feasible.</p>
<p>We had similar gaps at Ithaca. Do you think at certain colleges that the money goes to certain majors? I had a discussion with one of our music teachers who graduated from Ithaca, and gives money every year to the music scholarship endowment. She posed that question - if so many kids (especially music majors, or maybe that is just what I am paying attention to) are gapped so much, where is the money going?</p>
<p>2 years ago, we got a reasonable financial aid package from Ithaca. We are a middle class/upper middle class family and definitely could not afford their sticker price. It would have been a big stretch for us to pay for that school, but I do think it was doable. It would have been more uncomfortable than the school my son chose to attend.</p>
<p>Dlbarber: This is one of my issues, Ithaca has quite a large amount of Park Scholars (communications school) who are awarded full tuition, full room and board, books, AND money for a new computer. I am sure the Park Scholars are endowed by a certain group or whatever but I feel it is a slap in the face that the music school, which is a huge draw to the college, does not have a similar program.</p>
<p>Our music teacher said that those Park Scholars go on to make huge bucks, much more than music teachers. Those alumni give back big bucks...to the Park School. This is probably true of most schools, you give back to the program you were in - maybe that is why certain majors are lacking funds?</p>
<p>My DH contends that almost all the colleges determine a "figure" that most middle class families might be willing to pay - say $10,000 in loans, or in savings, per year toward their childrens' education. For our family that figure has been right on. Of course, Penn State had the worst financial aid of all (expected, but still a shock). It would have cost them almost $75K out of pocket, even with Schreyers Honors college) over four years. AT PENN STATE - and we're in-state. Ouch.</p>
<p>fencermother, your H is right. There is the whole business of enrollment management which tries to figure out the least number of dollars it will take to get a particular student to enroll. </p>
<p>I was just looking at an LAC which offers very nice diversity scholarships (for racial, geographic, religious, first generation or any combination of those) to enroll. I was very attracted because the bottom line with this award made the school exactly 1k less expensive than our instate flagship. Then I looked at airfare. When one considers the high airfare cost, one would need to budget 4k/year for airfare to be safe. There goes the big bargain. It is so well figured out! The incentive is just enough to look at the school, but not enough to make one jump either. Our son could attend equally good schools which are not as far away for just 2k more/year. Is that savings worth the distance, airport hassles, culture shock (another region of our country)? Nothing wrong with going to school in another region of the country from where one grew up, but this school would definitely mean culture shock, and one could feel out of place (which is why they are offering this scholarship in the first place, LOL).</p>
<p>Twin 2 was offered a very nice full tuition to a little LAC which is well of the beaten path. We figured that by the time we paid for the shuttle service to the bus station, then the bus ticket to the airport, all that time, etc., we'd be out $4K (right on with you Northeastmom) just in travel expenses. Forget that. Besides everything else, with a five-day Thanksgiving holiday, 2 of the days would be spent in travel. </p>
<p>But back to FinAid, does anyone know when Financial Aid became such a huge business? I remember talking to my dad once and he claimed that there was not a financial aid department at all at Iowa State before World War II. You just paid the tuition (which was $35 for him; I have the bill!) and took the classes. In his second year, he got free tuition because he agreed to proctor a chemistry lab. Boy howdy!</p>
<p>I forgot to add that my husband and I discovered an additional expense for some of these tiny LAC's which are literally in the middle of nowhere: there is a UPS and FedEx surcharge for rural areas. Sometimes it's $5/package, sometimes more, and sometimes, they deliver only on certain days. ARGH! My valentines cost extra and arrived late.</p>
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Twin 2 was offered a very nice full tuition to a little LAC which is well of the beaten path. We figured that by the time we paid for the shuttle service to the bus station, then the bus ticket to the airport, all that time, etc., we'd be out $4K (right on with you Northeastmom) just in travel expenses.
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<p>This is exacly what I was referring to. It is so methodically calculated. I would send my kid to the LAC which is geographically remote if my son were enthusiastic, but it would need to be worth our while. 2k is not worth our while for the inconvenience. We are not even ahead if we add in time lost from work, gas, wear and tear on our car, plus hotel, to drive his things (12 hours each way minimum) to and from the school (at least freshman year).</p>