Our EFC was through the roof, 45k, and closer to 50k if you factor in loan and work study. Our EFC represents more than a third of our annual gross income. It defies logic.
I'm guessing significant other assets? Home equity? Or, business owner/partner with non-cash deductions?
Dartmouth is very generous with need-based financial aid -- not as good as HYP, but better than nearly everyone else down the food chain.
@bluebayou: Nope...no significant assets to speak of beyond about 150k equity in a home worth about 200k, two modest cars (hondas) and a 401k. That's it. No business, no 2nd house...
Being asked to come up with 50k after paying Harvard on average 12k annually for the last 4 yrs for S1 is a shock to the system. It is especially surprising because our official EFC for Dartmouth was 10k more than their website net calculator came up with a few months ago. I called to ask if there was perhaps a mistake and was assured there was not. For middle-middle class folk such as ourselves I assume there is the expectation that you either dig into your house equity, your retirement or take on a heavy loan debt. None of which would be wise for us to do. So sadly Dartmouth is a no go for our son and we are deeply disappointed.
The good news is that one deserving sole who can afford to go can now come off the wait list!
Pardon the pity party....
Hello all,
As the parent of a newly admitted '16, I've appreciated reading current parents' perspectives on Dartmouth, and now I'm turning to your collective wisdom for some advice. My daughter will be traveling from the West Coast solo to attend the Dimensions program and then was planning to go to New York to meet her sister. I've managed to find her a flight to Manchester (the only place that Dimensions is running shuttles to) to arrive on Thursday, but I am having a hard time trying to figure out how to get her to NY on Saturday. The flights from Manchester to NY seem a little crazy and wildly expensive (no nonstops? going through Detroit?). Another option is to put her on the Dartmouth Coach (or another bus?) to Boston Logan and then on a flight to NY. The Dartmouth Coach has one bus to NY at 6:30 am so she would miss the end of Dimensions. It just all seems logistically difficult. Am I missing some other option(s)?
Thanks in advance!
^There are two options, one extremely pricy, one less so.
Amtrak has a train from White River Junction station to Penn Station leaving 11:05a, arriving 6:24p. Cost $50.
You can take a Cape Air flight from Lebanon airport to White Plains and a free shuttle run by Cape Air will take you to the city from the White Plains airport (there are three flights a day). This costs about $150.
You might also want to check with Dartmouth as they bring students up from NYC for Dimensions(sometimes providing transportation)...there may be additional runs of the Dartmouth Coach that are not listed.
Hopefully one of the options listed above works out for you, but if not, taking the Dartmouth coach early and missing the end of Dimensions is, while not preferable, doable. By then your D will have gotten a good idea of the college. My D (14) had to miss the end of Dimensions as prom was that same day, and the whole DM coach was full of kids that had to leave early for various reasons. Again, not ideal, but if nothing else works out for you or is too hard to manage, she won't be the only one.
Also, one other option is to take the DM coach to Boston, then take limo liner (Limoliner: New York, Boston | Home) to New York. It takes more time than going directly to NY, but it is very easy.
Thank you all for the suggestions -- something being easier is definitely a plus. She's a seasoned air traveller but bus/train trips will be new to her. I assumed that some students would be leaving early (in fact, it says on the schedule "departures 7am-12noon" on that day), but it seems like it might be annoying to her host to have someone up in the room at 5:30!
I will check if there are other Dartmouth shuttles. On the "getting to campus" section of Dimensions it says that shuttles will only be available from Manchester Airport, but I'll ask the admission office.
Thanks again!
calimom12, I promise that Dimensions will be worth the trip and extra hassle. Your daughter will fall in love with Dartmouth if she hasn't already. My D14 came home blown away by that weekend, and the the love affair has been ongoing since then!
Just came back from Dimensions 2016. My child loved Dimensions, lots to process and decisions to make. At the 'parental' side of the event, the questions that asked very often were related to Greek life, heavy drinking and safety on campus - many parents of 2016 prospects were concerned. Would love to hear from current student's parents about 'facts on the ground' (what have you) and how the situation is playing out for your child?
I am a parent of a '13 and could not be happier with Dartmouth. My S did not join a fraternity and has no interest in the Greek system but still has happy social life and is
thriving at Dartmouth. Couldn't ask for a better school. Lots of personalized attention from advisors. Can't say enough good things!!
Ditto to the sentiments above. My daughter often says that she loves Dartmouth so much that it hurts! The opportunities and experiences that she has had both academically and extra-curricularly have been outstanding. She did join a sorority (after swearing that she wouldn't when she arrived freshman year) and enjoys her frat friends, but I get the idea that she stays away from the crazy stuff for the most part (or maybe I'm naive!) She couldn't be happier.
Today's Boston Globe had another op ed piece, much tamer this time!
