tokenadult

Now that the admission decisions are rolling in, after several colleges announced new and improved financial aid plans, I'm wondering which colleges surprised you in a bad way this year by offering less financial aid than you thought you could expect. Does the college use the PROFILE methodology or only the FAFSA methodology? Had the college's publicity materials given you the impression you would get more aid than you were offered? Did you use an online calculator to estimate what the aid offer would be?

atrophicwhisper

UMich, but I wasn't all that surprised because it's a state school. Sure, I knew they'd accept me, but I was wondering about financial aid. They pretty much just gave me 1000 dollars a year in loans. I guess it's to be expected considering my parents make >120k.

caressemh

atrophicwhisper I'm in the exact situation, my parents make about the same, but they're only going to pay about 1/3 of my education. So I'm too "rich" to get financial aid but too poor to pay full tuition! lol! It's not funny but I can't do anything but laugh at the irony!

SAIC gave me $5,600, half of which was student loans.
Their tuition/room/board is like $45,000+...
I'm not terribly surprised; I knew it was a long shot since I'd have to get a full scholarship in order to go.

Luckily SCAD gave me enough to go there instead

atrophicwhisper

Honestly, I don't know how the federal government can determine that my parents have to pay >40k to my education even though they only make 120k.

My parents honestly can't give a third of their paycheck toward my education. No wait, there are taxes too, so probably more than half.

caressemh

My parents aren't giving a third of their paycheck, they're only paying a third of my tuition.

And my dad filed the fafsa wrong so it got their 401k mixed up with regular savings, so the feds told us they could afford over 70K a year!!! Hopefully he'll get it fixed, but I honestly don't think it will make much of a difference.

red remote

MIT, my parents are middle class and my expected STUDENT contribution is well over 10k, almost as much as my parents'. It's ridiculous.

tokenadult

Per year? At MIT? I wonder how commonplace that is.

Iron Maiden

You guys are missing the fact that the EFC assumes that your parents have been saving for college. The 1/3 of salary number includes supposed savings. If your family did not save then you have a big issue and your choices are to either take a lot of debt (don't) or go to a much cheaper school you can afford.

You were supposed to be working and saving money for college too. Welcome to the real world.

tokenadult

kimfred

Disappointed in financial need? Of course, but we knew where we were at . . . over $28,000 EFC. Disappointed in Merit aid? TREMENDOUS!! Looking at stats of people who were offered full rides and full tution at university my son desires to attend - none of the stats match my sons. That said, he is lacking in EC's . . . by cc standards. That said . . . colleges can give their $ to who they want. But why offer him a special program that only 10 students are invited to enroll in - said he was one of the best and brightest of his generation. He was offered good merit . . . but not enough. The merit put coa at . . . you guessed it . . . $28,000.

We have a current income of $100,000, of which I earned $45,000 . . . but in 2000 I earned $12,500. In 1999 my husbands income almost doubled due to a promotion. In September of 2001 I acquired a good job and my earnings have risen each year . . . but we did not have a $100,000 income to save for college until recently. Both myself and my husband have topped out at our jobs . . . only cost of living increases . . . which was 2% for us last year. We do not have any "toys", a second home or take wonderful vacations. We live paycheck to paycheck except for what we put into retirement and children's education fund. I will confess we go out to eat too much . . . sandwhich shops, birthdays may go to a regular restaurant.

Did we have an idea of the cost of education? NO!! Is that anyone else's problem? NO! Did we know we would have a high achieving son who for the first time felt like he was a part of a group and accepted when he went to a summer program at one of the top LAC's? (Scholarship!) No. My husband has a two year degree, I have a bachelors but we went to local college and lived at home. The local colleges will not challenge my son. Again, whose problem? OURS!! But it breaks my heart!!! Especially when college admission official basically said he would get a free tuition (different college) and that has not happened. Yes, he will be ok at the public LAC, will he be happy is another story . . . we searched long and hard for his financial safety . . . it is not the best fit for him . . . but the closest we could find in a public school.

My son had decided he would not go into huge debt to attend a private college but the special program he has been offered includes research opportunities, having a mentor and two summers of funded research with an adviser at the university with a good stipend, and enrollment in honors and graduate level courses, where available.

Is it worth it for my son to go into debt of $15,000 per year
for this type of opportunity?

We hope to pay $10,000 a year towards our two sons education. My son asked if we would be willing to take out retirement money and loan it to him, he would reimburse plus interest. My husband had a resounding NO.

grtskt89

Fordham U - probably the worst FA package 25K short (I have EFC of 0)and University of Michigan (and I live in GA) was the best - full pay between federal loans and scholarships. Syracuse U is about 9K short of what I need but I got into the magazine journalism program. Waiting on all the Questbridge RD schools and 3 of my deferral schools.

byan1007

UCSD. Besides Cal Grants, everything else is work-study, unsubsidized loans and a pityful 900 dollar Perkins Loan.

Ugh!! It no where covers my EFC.

Eravial08

My friend got a whopping $600 from Cornell. I haven't gotten any finaid info yet, except for a full tuition scholarship from Olin, which is awarded to everyone accepted.

Roger_Dooley

Although I'm specifically responding to kimfred, my comments might apply to some other "disappointed" aid recipients...

>>Is it worth it for my son to go into debt of $15,000 per year for this type of opportunity?

$60K is a hefty debt load. First, since it's a private college, they may have some negotiating room. I suggest you contact the financial aid office and request a review. It may not help, but you can point out that your family has only recently reached this income level and may not have the savings that families who have enjoyed similar income for a longer period. Point out the lack of luxury items and how much of your income goes to necessities (if you can make this case). Most importantly, explain that your son (who seems to be a desirable candidate) won't be able to attend without more aid. They may not care, but I wouldn't give up without trying.

Normally, for families that have recently hit a higher income plateau I'd suggest some parent loans (only if the educational opportunity justified it, of course) since future earnings would allow quick and comparatively painless payback. You say you are currently living paycheck-to-paycheck (despite your increased earnings in the last few years), and that future raises are unlikely. In that scenario, I can't recommend parent loans.

I definitely do not recommend cashing in retirement plan funds to pay for college (unless you are lucky enough to have already salted away more than adequate funds to guarantee a comfortable retirement).

I can understand your son's excitement about this program. Will his field of study qualify him for a high enough starting salary that he could justify carrying a fairly high debt load? Could he plan his schedule aggressively enough to graduate a semester or year early? Is there a grandparent or relative who might help out?

One other thought would be to try to find local scholarship funds. Work as many angles as possible, as it sounds like he's academically strong and might pick up some extra $$ that way. Employers are often good sources - not just the parents, but his too (if he works). Both my kids got funds from their high-school jobs, and in one case the scholarship exceeded the hourly earnings.

If no money materializes, then you and your son should know that the big majority of students who didn't attend their first-choice school end up happy at the school they attend and would choose NOT to transfer even if they had the opportunity.

Good luck, kimfred (& everyone with lower than expected aid)!

spkm

Northeastern was the most disappointing. EFC of 5,500 - single parent - would need to borrow $27,675.00 per year to attend (this is above the 5,500)