@angie106 Merit scholarships were specified in the acceptance letter
To help future applicants, I was accepted with $18k/year in merit aid:
CA applicant
1570 SAT
5s on all AP exams (5 of them)
800 Math level 2 SAT
~4.2 weighted GPA
DS was admitted. He got a Founders Scholarship (not sure what that means) plus a named scholarship. He also got into Williams, Wesleyan, Amherst, F&M, Trinity, Oberlin + one OOS State school. Denied at Swarthmore and waiting for one Ivy. Loved Grinnell, but we are east coasters and itās hard to get there. Still, my favorite visit.
Has anyone received any information regarding any online or virtual tours or sessions they will be having for admitted students? My son has already received information from other colleges in lieu of them not being able to visit, but I just wanted to make sure that we havenāt missed anything from Grinnell.
@spachen We havenāt had the opportunity to visit the campus, and making a decision without visiting is a hard one. Would you mind sharing what you loved about your visit?
@safiastyle I agree. Itās so hard to pick a school without a visit. Even a tour isnāt the same as an admitted studentsā weekend, and weāre really sad those wonāt be an option this year. We are so glad we drove for an overnight visit in the Fall. What I loved about Grinnell is that it had the best of the East Coast LACs, but without the sense of elitism. It was also one of the few colleges/universities that emphasized the humanities/social sciences and not just the hard sciences/STEM. They had a new building dedicated to the humanities, and that was really impressive. My son loved the First Year Tutorial options and the classes he sat in on during the two-day visit. During a parentsā reception, the faculty and administration was amazing. I had a long conversation with the head of athletics even though my sonās sport (heās a high school varsity captain) isnāt even offered there. I just wanted to get a sense of what kind of outdoors clubs and options he had and she spent a lot of time chatting with me. Also, there are literally 10 students already there from his Mid-Atlantic high school, and they all LOVE it.
@spachen Congratulations to your son on his fantastic acceptances. Iāll be interested to hear where he ends up.
Thanks for posting about your visit. We never had a chance to get to campus. It sounds like we would have loved Grinnell. The unpretentious vibe and strong humanities focus are both top priorities for her.
My daughter is still strongly considering Grinnell, but like you, weāre on the East Coast, so the location is an issue. Sheās also been accepted to Williams, Haverford, and Middlebury, and with everything going on in the world, going to a school thatās driving distance has gone up on her priority list.
@gotham_mom is your daughter waiting to hear from any other schools? Sounds like she too has wonderful options. My son loved Williams, but they strangely gave us considerably less money than Amherst. We never visited Middlebury, so he didnāt end up applying there. He liked Haverford too, but chose to apply to Swarthmore instead (oh well!).
She heard from her last school tonight, an acceptance at Vassar. Itās always been one of her favorite schools. I have no idea where sheāll end up, but am grateful for the terrific options.
If your son prefers Williams to Amherst, you should consider appealing their aid offer. They are certainly peer institutions. Good luck!
@spachen @gotham_mom I totally agree that an Admitted Student day would have been fabulous and assumably would make this decision easier for all of our kiddos. Have either of you heard anything from Grinnell about any online or virtual discussions they are having during this time for Admitted students? I know a lot of other schools are sending out quite a few Zoom calls to reach out to students, but we havenāt heard anything from Grinnell. Just curious.
Good luck to both of you!
We havenāt heard anything about virtual events from Grinnell either. Weāve been impressed by the virtual events and communications that weāve gotten from other schools.
@gotham_mom I know it said in the acceptance letters/packets that they will be reaching out soon, virtually for admitted students, but I havenāt seen anything from Grinnell like some of the other colleges on social media or emails. Iām hoping that this will start soon because it would make a great impression, especially when other colleges are sending out many messages/week. Grinnell is one of the top choices for my son.
Hey everyone! Iām a current Grinnell student. I will say that the true difference between all the SLACs you mention is the personality of the student body at each institution. Grinnell and Haverford are probably most comparable in this sense with Grinnell students being perhaps a little more politically involved due to the Iowa caucuses. Please see my post here for my Grinnell take: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/22753100#Comment_22753100
Hopefully, one of yāall on the waitlist gets a spot. International students, unless youāre full pay, be a little cautious and explore Grinnellās financial aid policies for internationals;
Their study abroad policies only allow gift aid to be carried over, not loans.
The cost of attendance goes up approximately by 2500 most likely. Their policy is to share that 50-50 with students. So add 1250 every year.
As an international, you will not be re-evaluated for aid yearly. Even if your circumstances change. This is in the written text, but I was told that, if something catastrophic happens, then they may consider, but that is not in the written policy, so thatās up to their discretion.
Their aid has loans and work-study.
Their aid is calculated on a comprehensive fee, not the total cost of attendance. So books, transport, health insurance, add this to the comprehensive fee on the website, and you have to add them to the cost they gave you in the accepted financial aid package. I didnāt like this because those are real costs, and I donāt understand why they donāt cover these.
Overall, I think their aid for internationals is quite stringent compared to domestic students. Just take some caution internationals, for those who will be applying in the future, or those who are on the waitlist.
Iāll be most-likely denying my admission. Iām international. I had a change in circumstance, they couldnāt meet it. My other options did, so finances was the reason.
Grinnell is a terrific school! An incredible option for grad-school applicants. Good Luck people!
Rejected my spot at Grinnell last night! Good luck to those on the waitlist. 
Has anyone heard back from the waitlist?
I havenāt heard back yet
I havenāt heard back either
well today was the last day to hear back 
good luck to you guys wherever youāre going!!
Got contacted today about a Wait List survey if I want to be prioritized for the waitlist. Final decisions will be released by next week as per the emailās statement.