Northern Woman Getting Bids at an SEC School

[KillarneyRose]

My sister went to an Ivy League university and, things may be different now but back then if you were granted admission, the school made sure you were given enough in grants and scholarships to get through. I understand that it also helped that our family was spectacularly poor.

So she got through college with very little debt but her debt from medical school? YIKES

[MSKKG]

My son was interested in Princeton. A representative came down for a presentation, and we found out that Princeton doesn't give any merit-based scholarships. He decided not to apply. He did apply to Dartmouth though and was accepted. Over half of what they offered in scholarships was what he brought to the table. A friend told me how well-endowed the Ivies were, too. That was just not our experience.

He was also accepted at Duke. They offered more than Dartmouth, but not enough for us to consider it. My son wants to be a doctor, so we just couldn't justify that kind of expense for his undergrad when we'd have med school to look forward to.

My son is a freshman in the Honors College at Clemson. He got all the in-state scholarships for his good grades plus other scholarships and a Clemson scholarship. We got a refund that basically will pay for his PC. He has been a Clemson fan for as long as we can remember, and I think he is very happy. He'll be even happier when he isn't ten zillion dollars in debt!

My son is smart enough and driven enough to make the most of his education, wherever that may be. I'm just glad he is not that far from home!!!

[hmd1014]

This past year the valedictorian and salutitorian did not get into UF however they did get into FSU. The sad thing is that they both had like 4.5's and over 1400 on their SATS as well as tons of volunteering and extracirriculars.

This just blows my mind.

[Sailboat Sis]

One of the girls I went to high school with got a bid at USC, from her first choice & I understand that it's a top house... without a rec.

[AnchorAlumna]

Originally Posted by Sailboat Sis

One of the girls I went to high school with got a bid at USC, from her first choice & I understand that it's a top house... without a rec.

OK, did you mean for this to go in a different thread?
On your subject...don't be so sure she didn't have a rec. PNMs really shouldn't have to get their own recs. The sororities contact their alumnae asking for recs on girls going through. The PNMs might not even be aware that alumnae are recommending them (or not).

[Drolefille]

Is that really the same kind of rec though? If it's not written by someone who actually knows (or met) the PNM, I don't consider it the same thing as a rec obtained by the sorority (due to their own requirements.)

[AnchorAlumna]

Originally Posted by Drolefille

Is that really the same kind of rec though? If it's not written by someone who actually knows (or met) the PNM, I don't consider it the same thing as a rec obtained by the sorority (due to their own requirements.)

Collegiate chapter contacts hometown alum...alum knows girl...or finds a fellow alum or friend who knows girl...alum writes rec and sends back. Whether requested or volunteered, it's the same thing.

[alum]

The top LACs and national universities don't supply merit-based scholarships because they don't need to attract candidates. They are already getting 10 applications for every spot. Duke is a notable exception with the generous Robertson Scholarship.

What these top schools do however, is to make sure much of the financial aid package for need-based candidates is in the form of a grant. So if a kid has an EFC of $30,000 and he's going to HYP that has a COA of $48K, the majority if not all of his financial aid package will be grant. A school with a smaller endowment may be able only able to provide 5K in grant and give out guaranteed loans and w/s to cover the rest. Some schools don't promise to entirely cover need and there may be a gap between their FA package of grant/GSL/ws and the net amount of COA minus the EFC.

The problem arises when a family's Estimated Family Contribution as calculated by FAFSA and the CSS Profile may be different than what the family thinks it can afford or is willing to pay: especially if there is future education planned immediately after the BS/BA degree.

Every year my friends and I laugh together (and probably cry in secret) about the official EFC number. My friend with 5 kids who is a SAHM and her H works for the gov't has an EFC of $40K. A military officer down the street whose W is a substitute teacher has an EFC of $50K. These are ordinary, middle-class people. We were stunned in disbelief at our FAFSA figure.

If you want merit-aid, you have to look at schools where 1. your class rank, GPA and SAT/ACT scores are MUCH higher than the 75% ranking, 2. they actually have merit-aid listed on their FA or admissions webpage.

And yes, when you have an outside scholarship from a local source, it is subtracted from your FA package. Again, unfair in my eyes, but that's the way it is.

----

Every family has to decide what's important to them. Quite frankly, going to the big flagship school in many states is a better way to have professional connections than going to an Ivy.

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally Posted by alum

The top LACs and national universities don't supply merit-based scholarships because they don't need to attract candidates. They are already getting 10 applications for every spot. Duke is a notable exception with the generous Robertson Scholarship.

What these top schools do however, is to make sure much of the financial aid package for need-based candidates is in the form of a grant. So if a kid has an EFC of $30,000 and he's going to HYP that has a COA of $48K, the majority if not all of his financial aid package will be grant. A school with a smaller endowment may be able only able to provide 5K in grant and give out guaranteed loans and w/s to cover the rest. Some schools don't promise to entirely cover need and there may be a gap between their FA package of grant/GSL/ws and the net amount of COA minus the EFC.

The problem arises when a family's Estimated Family Contribution as calculated by FAFSA and the CSS Profile may be different than what the family thinks it can afford or is willing to pay: especially if there is future education planned immediately after the BS/BA degree.

Every year my friends and I laugh together (and probably cry in secret) about the official EFC number. My friend with 5 kids who is a SAHM and her H works for the gov't has an EFC of $40K. A military officer down the street whose W is a substitute teacher has an EFC of $50K. These are ordinary, middle-class people. We were stunned in disbelief at our FAFSA figure.

If you want merit-aid, you have to look at schools where 1. your class rank, GPA and SAT/ACT scores are MUCH higher than the 75% ranking, 2. they actually have merit-aid listed on their FA or admissions webpage.

And yes, when you have an outside scholarship from a local source, it is subtracted from your FA package. Again, unfair in my eyes, but that's the way it is.

----

Every family has to decide what's important to them. Quite frankly, going to the big flagship school in many states is a better way to have professional connections than going to an Ivy.

My EFC was ridiculous in college - when I went to a state school the first two years, our EFC was more than 10x the tuition and my parents really don't make that much money. Luckily when I transferred to a Jesuit school I got a ton of grant money thrown at me - it only cost $2,000 more to attend that school once I got all my grants and scholarships.

I only like the EFC now that I am in grad school and independent - it went from being over $40,000 to being $63 last year.

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by GeekyPenguin

My EFC was ridiculous in college - when I went to a state school the first two years, our EFC was more than 10x the tuition and my parents really don't make that much money.

Yeah, having to deal with parental income stuff is terrible. Grad school was really nice in that I got a few merit scholarships and assistantships to lessen the blow.

[UF56]

Originally Posted by hmd1014

This just blows my mind.

Tell me about it...granted if they would have applied for Summer B or Early Admissions and not just the General Fall semester they would have gotten in. They even filled out appeal packages. I am not sure if anything came of it because at graduation they were still waiting to hear if their appeals went through.