My current choices and Appeal Letter for Financial Aid

Applying to College
1

Hi everyone,
I wanted to share my current results and ask for advice on financial aid appeals since cost is becoming a major factor for me.
Here are my decisions so far(Cost include housing):

Accepted:
Fordham — 68k/year
Bentley — 49k/year (I would be commuting, so no housing cost)
Loyola Chicago — 45k/year
Loyola Marymount — 65k/year

Waitlisted:
UMass Amherst, Tulane, University of Miami, IU Kelley, Bates, SMU

Rejected:
Bocconi, Boston College

Waiting on:
Villanova, Notre Dame, NYU, WashU, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, UCLA, Grinnell, Colby, Carleton, USC

At this point, I’m trying to be realistic and assume most of my remaining schools are not going to hit, especially since I was waitlisted at places like UMass, SMU, and IU Kelley where I thought I had a strong shot at getting in, but clearly I was too ambitious. I would like to state that I am still happy with my current choices
Right now my top choices are Fordham and LMU. Fordham seems like the better option for finance given its NYC location, but I also really like LMU and the idea of being in LA long-term. But if they remain outside of my cost range, I will probably resort to Bentley; however, I really do not want to stay at home.

Some context I didn’t fully explain in my original applications:

  • I was raised by a single mother for most of my life, and she accumulated upwards $20k in debt during that time
  • My biological father has never been present; however, I did submit a Non-Custodial Parent Waiver form to some colleges. I’ll have to check which ones.
  • She married my stepdad when I was 8, but my stepdad has not “legally” adopted me according to them.
  • He recently received an inheritance, which was stated in my CSS Profile for Bentley and Fordham, but it is not intended for my college expenses
  • My mom has said she does not want to rely on him to cover my tuition on top of household expenses
  • I also have a younger sibling (8 years old)

A few questions:

  • Is it worth explaining all of this in an appeal, or does parts of it not carry much weight?
  • Should I mention that I have significantly cheaper options (like Loyola Chicago or commuting to Bentley)? If so, should I include specific numbers or just keep it general?
  • Has anyone had success getting schools like Fordham or LMU to come down significantly (like $10–20k)?
  • Is there anything else I should be asking my parents for that could help strengthen an appeal?
  • Also, how much debt would be too much if I’m going for finance? I know ideally it should be as low as possible, but let’s say 10k per year. Would that be acceptable?

I’d really appreciate any advice — especially on how to word appeals in a way that actually makes a difference.
Thanks in advance

2

If you can afford $58,000 a year for Fordham and then $10,000 in loans, it doesn’t sound like you need significant need. Debt is not part of the equation, I think they might take your mom’s husband’s finances into consideration. We are a family of 7, one income, in the NYC metro area, never got a dime in FA, and there is no way we’d be able to afford $68,000 a year without a ton of loans. My recent finance graduate has significant loans, fortunately she’s living at home saving $, paying a lot every month, and has a good salary as an actuary.

3

I’m not sure I understand- Loyola Chicago is cheaper than Bentley and you would be living in a dorm/not commuting?

Why is that not at the top of your list??? It looks like your most affordable option, no?

And is your Fordham aid merit or need? And the prices you list are AFTER you take the federal loans or before???

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4

What matters is that they are married. It does not matter that he hasn’t legally adopted you…his finances (income and assets) have to be on FAFSA and CSS Profile. I am assuming your mom and step dad provided the most financial support for you as compared to your bio dad.

Is your bio dad paying any financial support for you? Did he complete his part of the CSS Profile? You need to get a handle on where you submitted NCP forms, which should have been to all schools if he’s not in your life/not paying child support. Does your bio dad have income and assets? Is he remarried?

Ask the schools for professional judgment on this. Your step dad should be the one speaking with the financial aid staffers when the inheritance comes up. You and your mom should also be a part of these calls.

You can try, they won’t be mad at you for trying.

IMO, neither is going to come down $20K on the merit side of things. If the schools agree to remove the impact of your step-dad’s inheritance, that could bring the cost down at schools that gave you less need based aid because of this money. (Impact of parental inheritance on FAFSA if it is sitting in a non-retirement account is 5.64% of its value. CSS profile schools might hit it for that amount, or more. Just ask.)

It would be helpful if you share how much of your aid packages is need based and how much is merit based.

Generally it’s best not to take out more than federal student loans, that’s $27K over the 4 years of undergrad. $5.5K the first year, then $6.5K/$7.5K/$7.5K. Your parents will need to take out loans above and beyond that, or cosign loans for you.

Here is a loan calculator for you to model the impact of different amounts: Student Loan Calculator - Estimate Your Loan Payment

And federal interest rates along with fees: Federal Student Aid

Again, it is appropriate for you parents to call the financial aid offices. Are they willing to do that, along with you? Based on what facts you’ve shared, the only thing the schools might consider as extenuating circumstances is your step-dad’s inheritance. All you can do is ask.

Talk with your parents before the calls…I would encourage you to have a COA amount in mind when you call each school. Tell them you will commit if they can get to $X. Don’t waste their time by saying I have to talk to more schools, or going back and forth between schools trying to play them off each other and ‘negotiate’. Good luck and keep us updated.

ETA: I know it’s too late for OP, but for other people reading this later…huge caution about remarrying until all kids are out of college!

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5

Remember that the UC’s are public colleges intended for state residents. As a nonresident you don’t qualify for the funding California gives to their students.

You’re looking at upwards of $90k a year, no matter which UCs accept you. If you qualify for federal aid, like loans, that’s what your financial aid package would look like.

I don’t see you qualifying for anything in the way of scholarships because they just have so many good students.

Most scholarships in the UC and Cal State system run about $2000 a year. That’s chump change.

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6

My stepdad did complete his section of the CSS Profile and he does help support our household, but my mom has been pretty clear that she doesn’t want to rely on him to pay for my college on top of everything else. I understand that schools will still consider his finances though, but I know this is not a good argument.
As for my biological dad, he has never been present in my life and has never contributed financially at all. I’ve never met him and don’t really have any information about his income or assets. He did not complete any forms.
For financial aid, here’s what I received so far:

Loyola Chicago: $24,900 in grants and $1,500 merit
Fordham: $19,000 in grants and $10,000 merit

I was originally planning to just send an email to the financial aid offices, but based on what you said I’m now considering having my parents join a call with me as well.

Also, do you think it’s also worth reaching out to admissions to ask for additional merit, or is that generally not realistic at this point?

7

Yeah I realized that after applying which was completely due to my ignorance, and I understand now that those are no longer really in the picture. At this point I’m only focusing on the 4 schools I’ve been accepted to and not really banking on anything else.

8

For Loyola Chicago, I don’t really have much intention of attending right now because it’s the weakest for finance out of my options, and I feel like Bentley is a lot better even with the slightly higher cost. I did get about 36k per year in total aid from Loyola though, so I may reconsider it later.
Also, all the prices I listed are the straight tuition numbers as stated, not after loans or anything.
For Fordham, it’s about 19k in need-based aid and 10k in merit.

9

I asked if your bio dad completed his portion of CSS Profile. Your step-dad has to be on both FAFSA and CSS Profile. It doesn’t matter that your mom doesn’t want him to pay for college. His income and assets are part of what the college will assess when calculating your family’s ability to pay for college. The only thing they might listen to is an appeal to exclude his inheritance. Obviously the larger that is, the more impact it has on the financial calculations.

Make sure to get a NCP waiver in to all the schools on your list that are CSS Profile schools. If you haven’t done that, do it ASAP.

That is fine. Again, I would tell them you need $X more merit. You can also tell them you are talking with the financial aid people about the need based aid, as applicable.

Are the grants based on need or merit or need, can you tell? Do the net costs on the financial aid package include the $5.5K student loan?

Correct. Some schools might have a professional judgment/appeal form online, complete that and ask for an appointment to speak with someone…a Director level financial aid staff person.

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10

To compare your college costs, build a spreadsheet in google docs or excel.

Include direct costs for each college from the financial aid offers: tuition, fees, room and board (make sure to use costs for 2026-27 school year. If you don’t have that add 5% to 2025-26 costs.) Subtract the financial aid…need based aid/grants/merit, loans. That is your net cost that you can compare across colleges. This is the number I am talking about when I say tell X school you need the net COA to be $X and you will enroll. You can share the total grants/merit/need based aid other schools gave you, but schools mostly just care about peer schools when they evaluate this, if they care at all.

Then you can consider indirect costs. These are things like travel, incidentals, spending money, and the like. Do not use the numbers that the schools give you for these line items, they are usually to high…estimate what you and your parents think it will be.

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11

He received an inheritance. People don’t get to choose what to spend money on. The college “assumes” they will invest in the student. If the parent chooses not to, the college will not want them.. People have choices - the fact they are deciding not to use the money on you is not reason for an appeal to be approved – so not it’s not ok for you to use this. That’s like saying I want to eat at Flemings, I can afford Flemings, but I’m only willing to pay you an Outback price. Then go to outback.

Should you mention cheaper options - sure, but they won’t care.

How much debt for going into finance? $0

If you must, you can borrow $27K - but going into finance - if you still choose to in four years - then you have to get a job - and there are many in finance not Wall Street. You can borrow $27K but you shouldn’t.

You don’t want to hear it but you should go to Loyola Chicago.

What happened to the UMASS Charles River with assured transfer to Isenberg option?

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12

Follow @Mwfan1921 ’s advice. I would add that you might want to contact your first choice first, and follow @Mwfan1921 ‘s guidance. Have a figure (number) that, with all costs (direct and indirect costs to attend) calculated, you need in order to attend, and if they can meet it, you can accept the offer. Unlikely they will be able to give you an answer during your phonecall, but you never know.

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Agree that figuring out if the U Mass option is still open to you is a great idea. I don’t know why you have the perception that Bentley is so much better than your other choices– but you have to be there every day, not me, so I leave that to you to evaluate.

The strongest appeal letters have three things:

1- A commitment- “If you can increase my aid by $7500 I’m prepared to accept today”. That sort of wording.

2- Humility- “I am excited and honored to be admitted to XYZ college and am prepared to work hard and get involved in campus life and contribute in any way I can.”

3-A fact with data. “My mom’s husbands assets include 100K in a money market account that he inherited from his dad. He intends to gradually move all of it into his IRA (subject to the annual limits) but was not able to make the maximum contribution last year due to the timing of the payout from the estate. I respectfully ask that this asset be removed from consideration since it is intended for his retirement account, but because of factors beyond his control was not able to transfer it on a timely basis. Thank you for your consideration”.

Give the financial aid folks something concrete to work with. Not “We want more money”, but an explanation as to why your financial picture is more nuanced than it may appear.

Good luck!

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14

What are you talking about? Of course it’s ok for a step-parent to ask for an inheritance (or a portion thereof) to not be taken into account for financial aid purposes. There is literally no downside risk. There are schools that will honor that request, full stop, I’ve directly seen that happen. And some schools won’t honor it…OP applied to some schools that won’t give them need based aid no matter their financial situation. Note we don’t even know how much, if at all, the inheritance is impacting need based aid at any of these schools.

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15

Agree 100%. We can’t predict how a financial aid office will evaluate the OP’s situation, but providing them with a data point (how much money, where it came from, where it is sitting now) is perfectly legit.

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It’s part of the assets. The schools will want them to use it. In my opinion, they won’t accept that. OP can try - the worst they can say is no.

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Yet I just posted that I’ve seen schools adjust assets using their professional judgment.

Then why did you say the following, and tell OP it’s not ok for them to use this?

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I noted that when a school sees $$, they expect them to be spent. You don’t get to say - I don’t want to spend on this so give me more.

That’s not an appeal I would make.

I stand by that. If OP makes it, it’s fine. I don’t believe it passes the credibility test.

19

Costs aside…I think you need to take a deeper dive into what Loyola Chicago and its great location so near Chicago might do to benefit you.

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20

My DIL got her graduate degree from Loyola Chicago.

I don’t know if the calculations you showed earlier in the thread include travel to and from Chicago, but if you live close enough to Bentley to commute there, you would be flying in and out of Logan. Do you have health insurance that will cover you in college or do you have to take the college’s insurance? If for any reason you don’t have health insurance outside of Massachusetts, that’s an additional cost you need to consider.

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