<p>We have twins and we went through this process a year ago. At the time, we didn’t have the financial savvy some applicants have. Our kids simply applied to a good range of schools they were interested in and the need-based financial aid, within a range, wound up being more conservative than we really could afford with two in college simultaneously all four years. Fortunately, to our surprise, the two most generous gave them substantial scholarships/grants. Our daughter received a Smith STRIDE research scholarship (which she absolutely adores) and our son received a combination grant/need-based aid at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Momwaitingfornew has said on other posts that she figures that the STRIDE scholarships, up to about 50 per year, are given to those students whom Smith really wants but who probably don’t warrant much financial aid. If so, for us the STRIDE accomplished its purpose. Our daughter was really, really fortunate when you consider there are about 670 first-year students this year. So receiving merit aid/financial aid is a combination of the luck of the draw and giving yourself a range of choices, including finding merit-aid schools.</p>
<p>Go ahead and apply. I think you have a very good chance at being accepted but whether you receive any merit aid is up for grabs.</p>