Can I trust financial aid calculators?

College Search & Lists
1

<p>The financial aid calculators have been a major part of my college search. I look a little bit at a college to see if it has any interest to me. Then, if it does, I run the financial aid calculator, and print off the results, which I am saving in a folder. Then, if the numbers are doable, I then look a lot closer. I also look at the merit aid and see if there is much of a chance.</p>

<p>Based on these calculators, I have excluded schools like UT Austin, Baylor University, U of Minnesota. I left a couple on where the financial aid calculator was a little short, but it appears I might be able to earn some merit aid anyway, such as St Olaf and Austin College. And then I left schools where I can get doable aid, according to the calculators, on, such as Carleton, Rice, Swarthmore, and Haverford.</p>

<p>Am I doing the right thing here? Would it be fine to apply ED based on the financial aid calculators?</p>

2

<p>Only apply ED if you don’t need to compare FA offers. It sounds like you do so I don’t recommend it.</p>

3

<p>Baylor offers merit money, too.</p>

<p>Are you self-employed? That makes the calculators tough to rely upon.</p>