<p>SOG… he is fine with not applying. It is dad that is pushing. We are over the $150K so we would most likely be full pay and there is no way that is happening. Unless that money tree in the backyard starts growing in the spring :)</p>
<p>Tonight D finds out her first EA result. Keeping our fingers crossed. Good luck to anyone else awaiting results today. </p>
<p>Harvard has a simple financial aid calculator that you can use to see how the aid varies with your income. You can get aid over 150k, but it’s still a pretty big tuition bill.</p>
<p>We make just over 150K, and our EFC is around 35K per year using the government method. A nice chunk of change.</p>
<p>We live near NYC so 150K does not go as far as in other parts of the US. 10K difference per year in a college’s calculation of our EFC is significant.</p>
<p>I have discovered, over time, that people sometimes fudge the truth with these “full ride” stories.</p>
<p>@wrights1994 - first, kudos on his Northeastern Honors acceptance! Terrific school on a good trajectory.</p>
<p>WRT putting it on the back burner, $10k is a lot of money, for sure. But as a product of a co-op program (Drexel), will share a quick story in the hopes it might be helpful: I passed up a less expensive univ and made a deal with my parents to pay back the difference with my co-op earnings. My first two stints were not lucrative (gov’t research), but the 2nd two were (pharma co.). So, I fell short while I was in school and we covered the gap w/loans - $4ktotal, a lot in the '80s.</p>
<p>However, the payback on the investment straight out of school was huge. The research publications and the experience w/a top pharmaceutical company (much more so than my grades, which were good) got me a $40k job (plus a company car!) at a time when my HS friends from other colleges were bartending/waiters…and they had a year head start since Drexel is 5 years. I paid off the remaining difference year 1.</p>
<p>So, the total ROI might be something to think about when you’re doing the math if your DS is really keen on NEU. That said, if the safety gives yet more money, or if there is any kind of grad school in the future, or if the co-op isn’t a passion (or…and…or :-S) then it’s hard to justify. That said, could be worthwhile to evaluate some of the factors and the math? </p>
<p>I agree on the fudging. I have heard several fish stories about full rides (in a sport that rarely offers full rides unless you are serious Olympic material) that turned out not to be full rides at all.</p>
<p>The Harvard thing is weird. I don’t think they are that much better than other Ivies. I know Penn gives 100% of need, but would have left us with a few thousand more than our government EFC said. I cannot imagine Harvard giving more.</p>
<p>As for selling textbooks - you can sell them on eBay or in person at school. Some people are successful selling them at school. You might as well start now if you want to sell them online, because shipping can take time unless you want to pay/them to pay for quick shipping. Also take into account whether the book would be a good resource for an upper level class.</p>
<p>I didn’t sell any of my college textbooks, half of them I have referenced for jobs and the other half interested me enough that I read them on my own (history, psychology, etc.).</p>
<p>As for “full ride” to an Ivy, you are poor or you don’t know what a full ride is.</p>
<p>The Harvard thing is weird. I don’t think their aid is that much better than other Ivies (granted, not all because some have smaller endowments). I know Penn gives 100% of need in grant form, but would have left us with a few thousand more than our government EFC said. I cannot imagine Harvard giving more than 100% need.</p>
<p>I’ve heard many call full tuition a full ride and that’s not correct terminology.</p>
<p>D officially has options (plural). Acceptance #2 came in the mail this week. It’s to a school lower on the list and we’re still awaiting word from #1 and #2 choices. Combined with finals week and illness, we’ve got some stress in the house. </p>
<p>Congrats on all the good news everyone is receiving. Hoping that continues for all and the holidays will be much more enjoyable for our kiddos.</p>
<p>I’m way behind here but congratulations to all checking in with good news! @Cabbage1, that happy dance was a great mental image. Sorry to those who got deferrals. I’ll keep saying it: spring is a much happier season and it will feel all worthwhile at that point. The early news feels a little bit stale by then and having choices feels great and exciting. (Not that the early decision people should feel in any way diminished-enjoy that great feeling!)</p>
<p>I think Harvard’s reputation is that they are very generous with need based aid and define need more flexibly than other institutions. I don’t know if it comes out differently at other schools but I think they have a good track record for generous FA.</p>
<p>I have also heard people insist that they got merit and full rides to schools that don’t give merit. When I’ve questioned it, the person has insisted that they would not qualify for FA and it was merit. Some people are very stubborn and very misguided.</p>
<p>@cabbage1… we will definitely weigh all options when we have all the facts. He applied to 15 schools and we have only heard from 2 so we have a long way to go. Great advice! Thank you!</p>
<p>I have a S16 and will be applying next year. </p>
<p>I was wondering for students that attend a high school that does not use the 4.0 scale and only percentages, did you leave as is or did you do the conversation yourself on applications?</p>
<p>Wow, @wrights1994 that is a long way to go. But, as @3girls3cats says above, by spring you and most of the rest of the USS Indecision will be having an exciting time choosing from what will surely be good options for our dear sons and daughters. Meanwhile, I’ll be complaining about the financial limitations of ED and doing the opposite of the “happy dance”.</p>
<p>In the interim I’ll enjoy the holiday without another *#!?%@! essay conversation! </p>
<p>Whenever there is discussion about financial aid, people only talk about incomes but your total savings (minus retirement funds) are taken into consideration. Did we make a mistake by saving diligently for college? It’s our savings that take us out of financial aid - our family income is about $150.</p>
<p>@singermom4 - your savings are considered but not nearly as much as income. I think parental assets under the federal formula, after an allowance (and not including retirement accounts) is under 5%. Savings in the child’s own name are hit a lot harder, I forget the amount but like 20% or something?</p>
<p>@Cabbage1 - congrats on BOTH getting their EDs happily squared away! I read your story with interest because D was accepted to NEU’s PharmD program last night and it is one of her top 3 choices. The offer was pretty good but will involve some loans, plus it’s a 0-6 program so involves an additional year (5 year with co-ops is the norm at NEU as I assume it is at Drexel), and I don’t think she’d get any/much help for that 6th year, but I’ll have to check.</p>
<p>I’ve told her that she may be able to avoid, or pay back early, some of those loans with her co-op earnings. I’ll have to look more closely at what Pharm co-ops are getting these days…no clue where to ask that beyond NEU itself, maybe that CC-like medical student board?</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard and read, income is counted MUCH more heavily in FAFSA calculations than savings. I don’t recall what the number is, but there is a threshold at which savings is not counted, so saving money for college is still the right thing to do unless you did it at the expense of your retirement (WHOLE 'nother story there). Retirement savings are not counted at all.</p>
<p>@fflmaster You leave the GPA as is. The colleges can choose to recalculate if they want to. They will receive a sheet from the guidance office of the high school explaining the system used in that high school.</p>
<p>@fflmaster My school uses its own GPA system (neither 4.0 not percentage). I reported exactly as my school reports it unless the college specified otherwise (none did).</p>
<p>I think Harvard is one of the small number of schools that might be worth the financial sacrifice–if it is a sacrifice to pay the EFC. And that might depend on post-graduate plans. Goldman Sachs? No brainer. Med school after good grades at flagship state U versus Harvard, not as clear cut. And then you have to factor in that the EFC to Harvard will be unavailable for med school. </p>
<p>This us separate from putting a price on the intangibles of a Harvard education–whether they are quality of education, which may be real, or prestige. </p>