<p>Sorry, the 30K included merit awards and grants and not just grants alone.</p>
<p>OP,</p>
<p>Ivies do not give merit. Only need-based aid.</p>
<p>It just strikes me as odd that you are willing to consider spending the time & money to sue the college- but are not spending the time and free process to appeal the FA.</p>
<p>“Uriah Heep - fictional character notable for his cloying humility, obsequiousness, and insincerity, making frequent references to his own humbleness.”</p>
<p>a well chosen alias . . . </p>
<p>“It is my sense of justice and my sense of helplessness as a parent seeing his daughter’s hope shattered . . . is it too much to expect that an obvious blunder, even after I showed them the proof, should be acknowledged and if possible, be rectified . . . Why would a middle class parent like me even think of applying to BU if they would clearly tell you that you should only be lucky and not anything else to get their grant . . . Imagine the psychological damage she must have gone through when she found that a few of her friends who didn’t deserve it . . . for a sense of elemental justice, the thought that I should sue them came to me.”</p>
<p>All instead of writing a simple appeal letter as suggested by the school . . .</p>
<p>I think the OP is mixed up. Ivies don’t give merit.</p>
<p>sounds like the ivies have determined that the family contribution should be about $30k per year and provided need-based aid for the rest (about $30k).</p>
<p>Frankly, the amount of time that was spent writing the posts, could have been spent just writing the appeal.</p>
<p>As for any psychological damage…oh my…if a student is so damaged, perhaps she’s too fragile to deal with life’s disappointments. If so, seek counseling.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Were you quoting something or did you mistype? Just for clarification for others (because I know M2CK knows this) Ivies only give need-based aid :).</p>
<p>
I dont think its the OP who is mixed up!!</p>
<p>Ahh, I see you fixed your boo boo.</p>
<p>Some parent’s position would be that they were screwed by the Ivies and their daughter has to settle for BU. This parent’s position is she was screwed by BU and her daughter has to settle for an Ivy.</p>
<p>Our civil legal system does not serve to make people feel better or fulfill some sort of quest for justice. You sue if you have monetary damages and you sue for those damages. If you don’t feel you are entitled to be made whole monetarily, don’t sue.</p>
<p>What other schools gave or how they gave is not relevant here. RPI gave her a good amount of assistance, which I expected BU to give at least a part of. I started this thread to just know if I can make BU know their mistake by suing them. Probably ‘suing’ is not a right term, probably there are other legal terms when you don’t take someone to a court for getting money from them. Anyway, I think, from what many have made a note here, I don’t see any point in taking them to court. Nor am I interested in appealing, since from what I understand from this process at this point of time, it doesn’t serve much purpose. And we have decided to forget BU as a bad dream, after all such bitter feelings. And of course she has much better institutions that she can better education from.</p>
<p>But I am definitely going to make a note of this issue to the Dean or whoever to whom this would matter, after finding out what such a person would be. For, it is a blunder they made and such blunders do make many students’ lives miserable.</p>
<p>BTW, someone made a sarcastic note on my screen-name. Well, it is also the name of a Rock music band that I was listening to when I had to create a screen-name and College confidential wouldn’t let me enter anything other than that that came to my mind (they were all taken!).</p>
<p>Seriously, people can be so mean on this forum. Why make fun of her screen name or say things like “if a student is so damaged, perhaps she’s too fragile to deal with life’s disappointments. If so, seek counseling”. WT F?? That is just very rude I’m sorry. </p>
<p>Not everyone is tough and ultra-realistic about the way bureaucracies sometimes handle things (especially not a child). I would have been outraged if I had been in this situation, as it is obviously the school’s fault and completely unfair to the student. I am not surprised that they wouldn’t do anything about it, because sadly bureaucracies don’t often deal with these types of issues with integrity, but it doesn’t mean we should just say “oh well deal with it that’s how it is”. I think the OP has the right to be outraged, and for those who feel differently, no need to be so damn condescending about it.</p>
<p>Uriah, absolutely let someone in the position of authority know what happened here. Also, only consulting with an attorney can you find out if it is possible and/or worthwhlie suing BU. We are really just spouting out opinions.</p>
<p>Personally, I believe admissions need to be more liable for their mistakes as they hold so many people liable for theirs and are often so holier and mightier than thou about it. It bugs the heck out of me and I wish there were recourse for students when mistakes like UCLA sending waitlisted kids mistaken admissions emails are made. Yeah, the first year this technology was being used, I could see that there are many things these schools needed to work out, but by now they should be so careful about letting out erroneous emails and noticies that it simply should not happen.</p>
<p>A few years ago, CMU found out that there was an error on someone’s app, either CMU’s mistake or one of those danged things–not the student’s mistake and they made good on it. So I know some colleges will do so.</p>
<p>OP, why would you not go through the appeal process? I think all it takes is to simply ask. If you are going to take the time to let the people higher up in the administration know about this, then why not ask for an appeal. It is ok to move on, but your situation and your affinity towards BU despite of various other offers are very compelling and should bode well for the school to reconsider as long as you communicate all of this to them.</p>
<p>OP, the dean will probably ask if you appealed. That is your recourse. If you choose not to, then you will never know if they would have made good on their mistake.</p>
<p>Absolutely go through the appeal process. That is what is in place for such mistakes. If you don’t, then you don’t really have reason to complain. If you were shut down with no recourse, it’s one thing, but schools have to have a system to deal with complaints, mistakes, appeals, and this is the way BU is handling. WIth the number of students and apps it processes and the number of issues likely at hand, it makes no sense to handle things on an ad hoc basis. Your DD may end up getting exactly what she wants here. THat she is soured at the process from an office that she won’t be needing once she is at the university, does not make sense. While applying, admissions is ALL. Once your in, it’s yesterday’s news and it’s unlikely a student has anything to do with the office or the people there.</p>
<p>uriah, you should go through the appeals process and try to firmly, and without too much anger, focus on the mistake by BU and how they had given you every indication that all your required paperwork was in order. </p>
<p>Or, you could send them an angry letter demanding the return of the money you spent on BU’s application fee and the money you spent sending them test scores. Throw in postage too. I agree that they screwed up and have compounded the error by blaming your D for “not being diligent enough”. </p>
<p>Sure, they are not obligated to offer merit aid and financial aid to every deserving applicant, but they are obligated to process all those applications with fairness and a minimum of competence. On both counts they failed.</p>
<p>gaiou quote:</p>
<p>* or say things like “if a student is so damaged, perhaps she’s too fragile to deal with life’s disappointments. If so, seek counseling”. WT F?? That is just very rude I’m sorry. *</p>
<p>Gaiou, I was responding to the OP’s words of:</p>
<p>Imagine the psychological damage she must have gone through when she found that a few of her friends who didn’t deserve it as much as her both in merit and financial background got a cake-walk while all her credentials were utterly useless for her!</p>
<p>Any student who is “psychologically damaged” because some “less worthy students” (according to mom/child) received more than the D did, needs more help than aid from BU. It wasn’t a comment on whether her D has the right to be disappointed or not. Of course she can be disappointed and upset. But, psychologically damaged over what others get???</p>
<p>(BTW…do I actually think the OP’s D is “psychologically damaged”? No, I don’t. I think she’s very disappointed and upset. There’s a lot of that going around these days for high school seniors.</p>
<p>Ok Mom2k, I understand the context now, and it makes more sense. I think the OP probably exaggerated when she said that her D was psychologically damaged, even though it is probably upsetting to see others with lower stats get more. As an adult, I do things for myself and I don’t look at what others get or don’t get, but when you’re a teenager it can be very different (I remember lol).</p>