<p><<< i agree with some of the arguments here, but consider this: a kid from the ghetto who's parents do not actively support his or her education, who gets a 2000 on his SAT. no AP's, because the school has little funding. >>></p>
<p>kids who attend schools that do NOT offer AP courses are not penalized. When a school sends a transcript, it sends a list of offered classes. Top Colleges only expect kids to take AP classes IF their schools offer them. </p>
<p>If you are talking about a kid who can't afford to take the AP tests that are offered at their school, does College Board waive test fees to the poor?</p>
<p>jlauer95: couldn't agree more. we currently have a great combined income, but I worked only part time when kids were little, we live in very expensive area of the country, and husband lost his job 4 times in the last 4 years costing us thousands of dollars each time</p>
<p>"I agree that it is almost impossible for a middle class family to come up with $45K out of current income. However, a family with income in the $100K to $150K range SHOULD have been setting aside money every year to pay for college. Eighteen years of steadily increasing savings, combined with a frugal lifestyle, makes college affordable. I know a lot of familes in my area (Metro Boston) who felt that private schools, private summer camps, country club dues, golf vacations, ski homes, beach houses, boats, ski trips, latest model cars, etc., etc., were more important priorities for the last eighteen years than pre-funding their kid's college costs. I also know as many families that saved regularly, made hard choices about luxuries, and have a clear plan for funding college. People make their own decisions."</p>
<p>This can be said for all incomes. Need aid does not take into account what they could have saved or could have earned, but just what they are earning and have saved. My dad is an electrician and has always worked long hours to get overtime pay. My mother always worked long hours as a realtor. They did without and saved. They didn't have lots of kids because they didn't feel they could afford them. Now we don't qualify for financial aid. If my dad worked normal hours and my mom stayed home, we would qualify. Somehow I feel like they are being penalized for their hard work. I could wipe out their savings in a few years and they won't have the opportunity to save it for retirement because you know the time value of money thing. People are penalized for being responsible as well as not responsible.</p>
<p>Your story illustrates one of the many weaknesses of the FAFSA system. Many others have different stories with similar results -- current "good incomes" but a history of lower incomes.</p>
<p>It really does seem to be the people in the middle income brackets who get squeezed. You only have to read the CC headlines to see several colleges, including some of the very best ones in the country, that offer free tuition to qualified low income students. Similarly, there are federal programs that offer grants, aid, and scholarships to students that can't afford college because of their family's economic status. Add in the thousands of community colleges and you find that virtually all low-income students that want a college education can get one.</p>
<p>So it really is hard to see why people believe we should eliminate all merit scholarships. Do we really want to get to the point where the only students who can go to Harvard are the very rich, the poor, and a few in-betweens?</p>
<p>Sometimes I wish I was born in a country where attending college really wasn't about the money, like the Netherlands. A dutch friend of mine told me that university costs nothing over there.</p>
<p>lewis: I don't know about the Netherlands, but some countries "weed out" kids early on (by taking tests) and they never get the chance to even consider going to college.</p>
<p><<< They didn't have lots of kids because they didn't feel they could afford them. Now we don't qualify for financial aid. If my dad worked normal hours and my mom stayed home, we would qualify......People are penalized for being responsible as well as not responsible.>>></p>
<p>I hope that you aren't implying that families that have an "at home" mom and/or more than 2 kids are irresponsible.</p>
<p>No, not at all. The previous poster was talking about wealthy people spending all their money have to pay the price of being "fiscally irresponsbible". My point is that "fiscally responsible" parents are also penalized. My parents have drilled it in to me my whole life to be "fiscally responsible".</p>
<p>I don't have a problem with merit aid- I think merit aid is one way that families who aren't prepared to pay full costs of a university ( and don't qualify for need based aid) can get some assistance.</p>
<p>True some schools don't offer a lot of merit aid- but thanks to some of the intrepid parents on this site, we have threads of schools who offer free rides or otherwise very good merit aid packages</p>
<p>No you will not be able to get a merit scholarship from Harvard if your EFC is $99,999. HOwever, if your family has been making that kind of money, even for a few years, you undoubtably have been able to provide them with the sort of experiences that will enable them to have a good choice of colleges and to make the most of their opportunities once they step on campus.</p>
<p>I agree. And if I get accepted and really, really, really want to go to an Ivy, I can borrow the money. All about choices. I hope I have the option of merit though.</p>
<p>hmm ... It looks like I swim against the tide here because I'm not a big fan of merit aid and would like to move those funds to financial aid ... I guess I can agree to disagree.</p>
<p>But ...
[quote]
People who object to it are confused on a number of issues
[/quote]
... thanks for letting me know I am confused I thought I just disagreed ... or ...
[quote]
Those who are against spending money for merit scholarships because they think that the money should go to the "poor," might also argue that companies shouldn't spend money on advertising because then the poor have to pay more for their product. That argument only reveals one's ignorance of the market system.
[/quote]
and now I'm ignorant ... actually I pretty sure of my non-merit sponsored education and experience and that I'm not ignorant or confused but that I just disagree.</p>
<p>My confused and ignorant belief is that merit-aid helps individual applicants and individual schools while lowering the overall benefits those funds could have on all college applicants (and that expecting any change to the current system is unrealistic).</p>
<p>I hope you aren't going to borrow the entire costs- IMO Ivy colleges are not worth it, if that means you will have debt of $160,000 upon graduation.
Many schools to choose from, and some may even offer a very affordable package.
also I posted this elsewhere but these schools dont' place as high an emphasis on equity as some other PROFILE colleges
<a href="http://568group.org/%5B/url%5D">http://568group.org/</a>
Amherst College
Boston College
Brown University
Claremont-McKenna College
Columbia University
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Davidson College
Duke University
Emory University
Georgetown University
Grinnell College
Haverford College
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Middlebury College
Northwestern University
Pomona College
Rice University
Swarthmore College
University of Chicago
University of Notre Dame
University of Pennsylvania
Vanderbilt University
Wake Forest University
Wellesley College
Wesleyan University
Williams College
Yale University</p>
<p>Kids who excel deserve to be rewarded with merit aid, regardless of their parents' income. Students need to look for the colleges who give merit $. Also what's wrong with student loans? My husband and I borrowed our way thru state universities in PA and CA, plus we rec'd some merit money. Any student can do the same w/o bankrupting his/her parents.</p>
<p>merit aid helps "individual applicants" just like FA helps "individual applicants." FA does not help all applicants.</p>
<p>Also, some merit scholarships are from donations from private persons who have specified the merit qualifications. Those $$$ can't be moved to FA no matter what anyone else thinks.</p>
<p>I'm not against merit aid, and if my son was going to a college that offered merit aid, I would have be thrilled, before I became more informed of this issue, based on stories I've read here over the last year. </p>
<p>My husband and I started off at a community college, and we went on to graduate from a third tier university, where I received some merit aid. </p>
<p>I feel very thankful that we can afford to send our children to any school they want to go without financial concerns, and after reading about so many kids who've had to make tough financial choices and parents who are willing to sacrifice so much for their kid's dreams, we could never accept merit aid. </p>
<p>Although there were many different scholarships that hour son might have had the opportunity to win, we asked him not to apply. I think merit aid is a very good thing to help out those in between students, but I cringe at the thought of some of my wealthy friends who seek out and accept scholarships, without regard to who might really need it. I'm glad I've become more informed from this forum.</p>
<p>coronax: <<< I think merit aid is a very good thing to help out those in between students,>>>></p>
<p>yes. And many of those that end up getting merit aid, do so because they had to seek out colleges that offered it. What I mean is that many kids fall "in between" and don't qualify for any/much FA. On the other hand, we all know people who did qualify for FA but did so because only the "custodial parent's income" was considered while the wealthier non-custodial dad got off "scot-free". Those who think that merit aid "steals" from the "poor" need to understand that that is not often the case. I have yet to meet a person who took merit money that didn't really need it. I'm not saying that it never happens, I'm sure it does -- just like I'm sure that there are people who get FA that shouldn't be getting it.</p>