Any parents/students here who is accepted to Case BSMD (8 yr med school ) program. Looking to connect.
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Can anyone clarify if CWRU allows for âstackingâ of outside scholarships? I was a little confused but when I asked I think they said they could stack up to a certain point (maybe $5k) then they would start deducting off any FA, starting with federal loans, work study then grants. Does that sound right?
This is what Case has on their website:
Additional Scholarship Opportunities
The Office of University Financial Aid encourages students to seek scholarship support from all sources. Outside scholarships first reduce self-help (loan and work) to the extent previously awarded. When you notify the Office of University Financial Aid of any outside funding, please indicate if you prefer to retain the maximum student loan and work available to you.
The proceeds are applied in equal installments across the fall and spring semesters unless the documentation from the sponsor specifies a different distribution.
Outside scholarships may reduce need-based grant as well, if need-based student loans and/or employment have been eliminated, to ensure students do not receive need-based aid greater than their documented financial need. The combination of aid from all sources cannot exceed a studentâs cost of attendance for a particular academic year. Support or benefits specifically designated for tuition cannot be combined for any amount over the cost of tuition for a particular academic year.
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Congrats on landing at a great school that obviously loves him back 
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Yes Iâve triple checked all the ins and outs. Financial aid must be sick of hearing from me! We donât like their outside scholarship policy at all. Itâs great for those who get merit only, stacks on nicely. But they just take away loans and financial aid for people like us (although next year we will have less financial aid and departments do send out scholarship opportunities throughout the year.) He hasnât heard from the outside scholarships he applied for yet but I donât think it will be more than $3500 and this would knock off some of his loan amount so itâs still a good thing. They also treat RA positions as income so those âreduce needâ (most schools just donât charge for the room, sometimes even room AND board) so this was another annoyance but still works out and, if nothing else, reduces the need for extra federal loans. Our 3rd annoyance with Case was that they only take 18-21 of his 36 college credits. They wonât take Spanish CLEP at all which would be 9-12 credits at a SUNY, depending on how he does on the essay. But it DOES check all the boxes for what my son wants and they did give him an amazing package and showed ALOT of love so a CWRU decision has our blessing.
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My son is excited to start at Case Western in the Fall. But we have been disappointed with their policy regarding transfer credit. They wonât take:
-his Spanish CLEP credits (other colleges would have given him up to 12 credits)
-his AP Computer Science (even if itâs a 5)
-his two SUPA classes (Syracuse University) because they count towards his high school grad requirements and were taught by high school teachers, even though they were fully trained and accredited
So 21 college credits down the drain. He may only come in with 9-12 credits. He will be majoring in Psychology, Cognitive Science & Music. Many classes double count for Psych & Cog. Science so it only requires 18 extra credits for a Cog. Science major.
My question is: can a student graduate in 3.5 or 4 years with 3 majors at CWRU with only 9 credits coming in? He is fine with doing 18 credits per semester. I just wasnât sure if he still only needs 120 total credits or would 3 majors mean that he needs 130-150 credits to graduate? Any guidance is appreciated. Thank you!
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I wouldnât do 18 credits a semester. Especially first.
My daughter was similar at her school with credits that worked.
Hope you get the answer you are looking for.
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I advised him against the 18 credits but it is very common at Case and he might try to start with 15 first semester and then bump it up to 18 after that if it seems do-able. CWRU does let classes âdouble countâ so I think thatâs why double and triple majors are so popular. But sometimes you have to petition for a class to double count. A student we know took music therapy and was able to get it to count for music and psychology, for example. They do give students an advisor AND a ânavigator.â I believe the navigator helps to map out the 4 years. So my son should probably start there. He wants to pursue a PhD in clinical psych so wanted to finish early to begin the doctoral program right away or gain some experience in the field. I know the music ensembles will give credit towards the music major so that should help.
Aww Iâm sorry to hear it. That was one of my daughterâs deciding factors in choosing another school, we got the impression that Case didnât accept many credits. I hope they work with you a bit.
Thank you! I donât think they will honor appeals for more credit and we are going to expect the worst case scenario: theyâll only take 9 out of 30 possible college credits. My son did call them today to ask specifically about the SUPA classes, and they said someone would call him back. But not expecting miracles. Itâs very disappointing (especially since his 2nd choice school-U Albany-would have given all 30 credits!) but people keep telling me this is normal for top tier schools and many students only get 3-12 credits at Ivyâs & other highly ranked schools. The good thing is they do allow classes to double count (making it easier to double & triple major) and they can take summer classes at community college as long as they get pre-approval. My son mapped things out, using only 9 credits of transfer and 3.5 years IS still possible (especially if he takes a few summer classes at our local CC) so he is still determined and has no regrets about his choice to attend Case. The policy is definitely annoying but have to focus on what is in his control I guess.