<p>Hi parents, I am not a parent but I am posting this thread for my father. I got accepted to my top choice school. I was so excited and grateful and I thank you all for the incredible information that you have shared with me.
As we looked through the packet we found the FA information, and my father’s face…well he just looked so broken. He wants this for me and he loves the school (he went there!) People on here have said that yu can call and ask for more money but I highly doubt that we are going to get enough to make this feasible. I mean we need like 5 times the current amaount…
Does anyone on herehave experience with asking for A LOT more FA</p>
<p>(excuse my many typos!)</p>
<p>Thank you so so much!</p>
<p>I am one of those who has successfully asked for more money. There is no “trick”, you simply have to write to the financial aid director, tell them how grateful you are for the acceptance and their generosity, and how very much you love the school and want to go. THEN, give them a compelling (and true) financial reason that you won’t be able swing it at that cost. They need information that they can bring back to their appeals committee. For us, when we filled out the FA application, we had to estimate our income because we didn’t have our W2s yet. Well, our estimate was off a bit and I used that to ask for more.
Basically, have your dad scrutinize his finances and look for some loophole that he overlooked…medical bills, unexpected other expenses… Look closely!
Lastly, I would say do not do this at more than one school. Be sincere.
Oh, and congrats to you on your acceptance!
zp</p>
<p>No personal experience - not yet anyway. But what I’ve learned on CC and from private conversations with members of this forum is . . .</p>
<p>(1) You should always ask! Schools will do what they can to help. Parents have certainly reported here in the past that they were able to get increased awards after presenting their case to the school. How significant were the increases? I don’t know. But there’s no way to get any increase at all if you don’t ask!</p>
<p>(2) You never know what might be possible. Someone told me recently about one well known school that came up with a private donor who was willing to meet a family’s significant unmet FA need. Is that an everyday occurrence? Probably not . . . but you only need it to happen once! Again, it can’t happen if you don’t ask.</p>
<p>So, talk to the school, talk to your father, find out if there are any significant financial issues that weren’t properly presented in your family’s financial aid statement. My guess is that it will ultimately be your father who will have to plead your case to the school . . . is he prepared to do that? You can certainly start the ball rolling, though. Talk to your father, talk to the school, and get the conversation started.</p>
<p>Congratulations on your admissions decision . . . Now use the same initiative that got you in to help you find a way to surmount this new hurdle!!!</p>
<p>Post script: my aid doubled after our appeal. But again, we had compelling and concrete reasons to ask for more. Like Dodgersmom said, ASK!</p>
<p>Agreed (or I should say “ditto”). FA people are human and they want to help. They’re also separate from Adcoms so they only have the SSS information to go on. It could be something as simple as a mistake on the FA forms (I know in this household we have 4 degrees and we were still trying to figure out what goes where.)</p>
<p>Be humble. But be honest. Above all explain you love the school but need more help to enroll. You have nothing to lose. And know what you can afford. It may be a squeeze (it is for most of us) but do stretch what you’re willing to pay so you can make a reasonable counter offer if asked.</p>
<p>Parents thank you so much!!! Honestly I think all of you have helped me before and I am so grateful for your kind words and support! I will be showing Papa Polodolly this thread when he gets home!</p>