<p>I’ve heard that CMU’s School of Drama will do the best it can to make CMU a financial possibility for students and their families. If parents or students of the class of 2017, or even from previous years could chime in, that would be greatly helpful. How affordable was CMU for you?</p>
<p>They also have a version of the Net Price Calculator and will send you an “estimate”. Of course the calculator did not ask many specific questions that will probably be in the official financial aid form.</p>
<p>I have also heard this. I’ve even heard they will look at any other offers and come as close to them if they can. Its one of the many reasons CMU is on my S’s list. </p>
<p>I think we only had one CMU acceptance here last year for MT. I think it greyhairedmom’s son, you may want to send her a message.</p>
<p>“CMU came back with some money but not as much as we needed.” - grayhairedman, April 20, 2013. </p>
<p>CMU “…will do their best…” or “…come as close…” to other schools on cost falls into the Rainbows and Unicorns category for me. This is a Tier I school and the MT program is consistently acknowledged as one of the top three in the country. The demand far outstrips the supply thus be ready to pay half-a-hundred ($61,042 to be exact, per the Common Data Set for 2013-14 school year) for this one.</p>
<p>My child is a current MT major at CMU. We were blessed to receive a substantial financial package which was the only way we could have afforded to do it. The biggest hurdle for any prospective student tho, is getting that acceptance. It’s premature at this point to be estimating finances. One has to get the proverbial “golden ticket” first. I recall greyhairedman’s struggle with this decision last year and his son ended up accepting at one of the least expensive schools in the country (albeit an up & coming and very good one.) He couldn’t justify spending more than what that school came in at (in the $ teens…). CMU may not have offered him “enough” but that was only when compared to what he had been offered by others. He chose the less expensive school as a better fit for him and his family. We each ultimately have to do what’s right for our budgets but one honestly can’t compare until the offers are in. For us, some out of state school tuition ended up being significantly higher than several of the private schools, and frankly, the state schools had much less scholarship money to offer. (We did not qualify for ‘need based’ scholarships). I am aware that many of my child’s contemporaries are also receiving decent scholarship/grant money (some more than us, some less). My child was accepted to 12 of the 14 schools auditioned for and when we factored everything in CMU was the second cheapest for us (there was one that would have been less, and it was very tough to decline, but CMU was (and still is) my students “dream school”).</p>
<p>I didn’t receive my information from a unicorn lol! but from a very close friend of my S’s that was accepted. She ended us choosing another school, the decision wasn’t based on cost.</p>
<p>Thanks catchstar for an “insiders” prospective.</p>
<p>catchastar - thx for sharing.
MTMC - no disrespect intended (and hopefully none taken)</p>
<p>Thank you for sharing this information, catchastar, and for starting the thread, Alistaire. It’s good to know there is at least some grant/scholarship money available at CMU.</p>
<p>catchastar, you have great insight on this, and the “wait until you get in and then wait until you see all the offers” advice is key. I would add that even after seeing the offers, call the schools and appeal and ask for more (non-loan) money in the package. All they can do is say no, and that goes for CMU or any other school. Sometimes they will surprise you. And it is early, so don’t worry about things that haven’t happened yet.</p>
<p>But from many things I’ve read on this forum and have heard here in Pittsburgh from a few people very close to the school, what was true even three years ago about CMU meeting an accepted student’s best offer is no longer the case. Perhaps the hit CMU took in their endowment in the economic downturn took some time to trickle down, but they are no longer offering the same type of Drama/MT financial aid packages that they did even a couple of years ago. Their sticker price is climbing and the fin aid packages are not. The gap is widening. And as one of the most expensive schools in the country, this is not a good trend. </p>
<p>1stTimeLongTime, “the demand outstrips the supply” even has a boiling point, especially with more and more legitimate programs growing out there. Last year was really the first year “well if your kid gets accepted at CMU, you just find a way to make it work” was replaced (in a least a few instances) with “my kid got accepted at CMU, but the package is not doable, so getting accepted at CMU is a great notch in the belt, but going to another very good program is going to be the route.” People NEVER used to have to make that choice. Now it is a reality.</p>
<p>That said, the tide could turn again quickly. You never know. Especially if the powers that be in the drama school are rattling cages with the financial aid office because they are losing accepted students to rival programs. </p>
<p>CMU is still, as catchastar said “the goldenticket” and it is in large part due to name brand and alumni network. That’s why “get in, see the package, appeal it, then see what works best for your family” is the best advice.</p>
<p>Does anyone know which school greyhairedman’s son went to?</p>
<p>Texas State</p>
<p>Last year my D was first on the priority waitlist (not bragging just telling our story) and they explicitly state in the waitlist letter that taking students off the waitlist is not need blind. This school was the most expensive one my D applied to, and we would have definitely needed financial aid to make this work. They also explained that if someone who received an offer from them also recieved a scholarship, but that person chooses not to accept their spot at CMU, it doesn’t mean that their money is then offered to the waitlist person who moves up to take their spot. My D did not come off the waitlist (my understanding was that they took 5 girls total and no one off the waitlist) but is very happy at Ithaca.</p>
<p>Thanks momarmarino for the added insight.</p>
<p>Can anyone explaine what Grayhairddman meant by this post last year? do odds work against you if you apply for financial aide?
CMU requires more information than most schools for financial aid. With the odds against my son, we did not file the information until he was accepted and it took collegeboard a little time to process the CSS profile and the tax returns/W-2’s</p>
<p>@thewait22, if you used estimated 2013 tax info to prepare your CSS (like most most of us who didn’t have their 2013 return completed by the CSS deadline), CMU requires that you submit your updated info, specifically hard copies of your final 2013 tax return and related documents like W-2’s, through the College Board’s “IDOC” (Institutional Documentation) service. If you applied to CMU for financial aid, you would have received an email from College Board with the Subject line “IDOC Notification - Your Next Step for Financial Aid” shortly after submitting your CSS/PROFILE with instructions about how to submit the IDOC materials.</p>
<p>So if one needs the financial aid and all documents have been submitted, including the IDOC documentation,would this jeopardize your changes for being accepted… I’m a little confused</p>
<p>No, I think (correct me grayhairedman if I am wrong) that when he said knowing his son’s chances were slim gettting into the school (knowing the Odds) Why bother giving them all the extra information CMU requests unless you get in? But his son DID get in to CMU, so he sent in the information and when CMU returned with the financial aide offer- he chose to go to Texas state which was financially way more appealing. If your out there Grayhairedman, amd I right? Omg, I think this process is making me go insane! </p>
<p>Thanks dreamatinydream … I hope thats correct and yes the odds are very slim in getting accepted, just wanted to make sure this was not an added obstacle :"> </p>
<p>I think I am hearing two things:
First, if they want you, money doesn’t matter.<br>
Second, if they see you as needing a lot of financial help, it may effect their decision to admit you ( at least off the wait list)</p>
<p>I strongly doubt that financial need will affect their decision either way. I assume that need-based scholarships (based on the FAFSA) are processed by the University’s admissions/financial aid office, completely separate from the MT department.</p>
<p>That having been said, the anecdotal evidence I have seen leads me to believe that the department is able to offer talent-based scholarships to sweeten the pot for the people they really want. I also believe that they are very unlikely to offer talent-based money to people they take off of the wait list.</p>
<p>But I think you’re getting ahead of yourself… Let’s see about getting in first!</p>