@NicoleGreen thanks for laying out your process. It sounds quite thorough and like it will have good results! We will be in the deciding process in the next couple of weeks and I will keep all of this in mind; I had made a list off the top of my head but yours is much more academic focused, which is obviously important!
Congratulations on all the recent acceptances! So glad to see all the wonderful schools the kids in this stats-range are getting.
We are still waiting on two schools, one of which is the school S19 signed a NLI to play his sport. S19and Dh donāt seem worried but I just want the official acceptance in hand! He did get a weird mailer last week from the schoolās IT department saying ācongratulations on your acceptanceā then information on how to set up his email account, but it must have been mistakenly mailed in advance of the official package. But knowing colleges sometimes mail things in error, I wonāt trust that he is in until we get the official package. His coach said they were mailing them a week ago yesterday and Iāve seen on CC that kids were getting them this past week, but so far nothing for S19. I did make a hotel reservation for the Accepted Students day in April so fingers crossed!
He applied to eight schools total, two were test optional and those are the two we have yet to hear from. He applied to two in state publics (admitted to both, but one to spring semester), one in-state private where he is wait listed. I mistakenly sent his scores there not realizing they were test optional. I definitely think he would have gotten in w/o his scores but in the end it doesnāt matter. He applied there w/o telling me; it wasnāt on our list otherwise I would have had it marked as test optional and known not to send the scores. Also applied to three OOS publics - UMaine, UNH and URI and got in all three. The remaining two are OOS private schools, applied RD.
I canāt wait for this to be over! Iām taking a much needed mini-vacation over spring break with D23 in April. Weāre going to visit D17 in southern CA since her university gave students a few days off for Easter that coincide with my younger kidsā spring break. S19 has lacrosse so Dh is staying home with him.
We had a couple of expected rejections from reach schools - but also a painful rejection from one where S19ās stats were well above their average. It seems quite a crapshoot in some ways. I know it all shakes out and they end up where theyāre meant to be - but that one stung!
ācrapshootā is the most on point description I"ve heard yet :))))
@Britmom5 Sorry about the painful rejection. Yes, it truly is a crapshoot. The son of a couple I am close to was off the charts smart, talented, great kid. Ended up at Princeton. But when you look at where he was accepted and where he was rejectedā¦there was no rhyme or reason. I feel so bad for these kidsā¦and yes, I know it works out in the end as you saidā¦but gosh it feels like it shouldnāt be quite so painful!
I am not a parent but all of you are parents so you may be more qualified to answer this question.
So my parents have told me that they wonāt be able to take out any loans to help with my college education. I know that most loans you have to cosign but are there any that the parents donāt have to cosign, or that they donāt look at your parentsā history and the number of loans and mortgages they have. Like my parents canāt afford the school I want to go to but I am okay with taking out the loan to attend the school. If there are any parents that could give me your input?advice on my situation, I would greatly appreciate it
@collegeughhh , as far as I know there is a limit to how much you can borrow on your own, without a cosigner. As a freshman you can only borrow $5,500, then 6,500 the next year etc. There is also a total maximum of I think $31000.
I think your parents are being very responsible for your future by not letting you get big loans - that is a huge burden on young graduates.
One possibility you might want to consider, if your parents agree, is to get a deferral, take a gap year to work and save that money for tuition.
@collegeughhh Reach out to the school ASAP and explain the situation and see if they can help. Be vulnerableā¦tell your situation and say they are where you want to go but your parents are unable to take loans. Best of luckā¦and feel free to come back hereā¦there are lots of adults willing to help and guide.
This sounds like so much fun! I wish D19 school did something similar. I think sheād actually enjoy post-prom games more than the actual prom. Pretty sure all she likes about prom is getting dressed up.
Yes, academics definitely played a huge role in our decision. D19 has a very specific career path in mind right now, so making sure the school she chose would provide her the opportunity to work toward that was really important. We both are completely aware she may change her mind, but we wanted to be sure that if she didnāt, those doors would be open to her.
Something we discussed a lot during the entire process was that the point of college is to get a good job. The ECs, the college experience, the fun, that is all great, but it was always secondary for us on the priority list. In my experience, what Iāve found that really ends up making a difference is the quality of the Career Services office. Itās the old catch 22. You canāt get a job without experience, and you canāt get experience without a job. Two schools can be completely equal as far as quality of education, but the one offering internships, industry connections, and overall great career readiness services will make all the difference in the world in the end in landing the job. Those kids have a distinct advantage over the other school because they already have work experience and are prepared for the job search process. One school we looked at, actually offered a Work Orientation class for seniors. Similar to a Freshman Orientation class, but focused on landing a job and then being successful in it. I thought it was kind of a cool idea. The school she ended up choosing requires a similar class during sophomore year for all students wishing to do internships.
Please be aware there is a difference between canāt co-sign and refuse to co-sign. Many parents feel that they cannot financially assist, but that doesnāt mean that they would actually be refused a loan.
If your parents genuinely cannot co-sign. For instance, if they are rejected for loans because of bad credit, the government will increase the amount of loan you can receive by $4,500. This means you would be eligible to get $9,500 your first year. But that is the absolute max, you will be able to get on your own. To do this, your parents will need to apply for a Parent Plus Loan and then be rejected for you to qualify for the extra money. Itās not something I would recommend lightly. $10,000 a year is a lot of debt.
@collegeughhh
As others have said, do reach out to financial aid. Ask about Federal Work Study. Ask if there are any other scholarships you can apply for. Ask if thereās anything they can do or recommend. Ask about taking a Gap year and how that would effect your aid. Have you gotten a better option, more aid, from a different school? Sometimes schools are willing to match aid.
In the end, though, Iād be prepared for them to tell you there isnāt anything they can do. Financially, this is very late in the game. Most schools have already finalized financial aid and discretionary money has already been handed out. It never hurts to ask, so definitely set up a meeting, just donāt be too devastated if they canāt help.
@Britmom5
So sorry. Iām sure it was really upsetting for your daughter. Iād just try to remind her to try not to take it too personally, especially if she applied RD. Schools need so many kids to fill this quota or that quota. Great kids get passed over all the time because they just arenāt what the school is looking for at this moment. Also, when youāve got 100 identical performing applicants and only 10 spots, lots of amazing kids get cut. Sometimes, I think schools resort to picking names from hats for all the sense it makes.
@collegeughhh - there is a financial aid/scholarship section of these forums and there are some amazing experts there who have given wonderful, useful, and accurate advice. I suggest posting your exact situation there - with more detail than youāve given us. They will be able to help you figure out a plan. Good luck!
Thanks @NicoleGreen ! I probably typed the wrong abbreviation, but I have twin sons who are graduating this year - not a daughter - but thanks for the support!! :))
No, you put son. Sorry. Totally my fault. No idea if I read it wrong or just had own daughter on my mind when I was responding. But either way, totally agree. Itās a crapshoot, and sometimes it seems like thereās no rhyme or reason why.
I am so sorry for the Hampshire applicants. Youād think they had an inkling. Is there a chance to apply for spring entry at the new faves?
Iām just here flipping between panic and deep breathing. From two to zero will be crazy hard. I regret letting them choose schools that are 20 mins. away. 
I wish mine was going 20 minutes away. I keep kicking myself for letting her go 2.5 hours away. My friends are laughing at me. :))
We are on spring break in Miami. We have a tour planned for Thursday at UMiami. D19 applied EA and was deferred. Sounds like RD results may come out the night after our tour. Since we were here in Miami (from Boston area), we thought we should do the visit just in case. Besides, we also have D20 who may consider it for next year.
Hello All,
My D was one of the Hampshire EDās and now has an acceptance to Sarah Lawrence which seems to be the closest to Hampshireās academic model and even more prestigious (I think?? -tho prestige is not really our main concern. Fit is paramount for us.) Anyway, Sarah Lawrence only has a 100 million endowment - the lowest of any of Dās other options and now that makes of nervous after Hampshire. Do any of you think that should be an important factor when comparing options? 100 million seems a little low. I did ask this in a SLC thread and no one would address it which is a bit concerning in itself.
@rfm512 I think the endowment vs. student population is okay and Pres. Judd is pretty savvy. I wouldnāt hesitate to send my daughter there if she had wanted to be in that area. Congratulations!
@rfm512 I have to say - I was completely blindsided by the Hampshire decision. I was on a first name basis with someone in the financial aid office, due to frequent interactions, and Admissions contacted me on the Saturday - reminding me to submit my essay on one of the twins, which I did on the Sunday. They announced the possibility of not taking a class this year on that Tuesday and, of course, the rest was history. I have to say that I have checked the endowment of every other college to which we applied - and will continue to monitor. I know āMimā talks as though Hampshireās struggles were known for some time - but I donāt know that anyone outside of her immediate circle knew. We visited, interviewed and were wined and dined etc - and the talk was all of their accomplishments and the new Kern building etc. I had NO idea that they would all but fold. I would be VERY leery of a small endowment here on out, especially once the drop in birth rate from 2008 recession catches up with schools. I think there will be many small college closures over the next few years, sadly. Kind of like the death of āMom and Popā stores in favor of more generic ābig boxā schoolsā¦
@rfm512, $100M is somewhat low for current times, but as I see it probably safe, absent a heavy debt load.
As far as I can tell, Sweet Briar with its (at the time) $84M endowment is the highest-endowed college to announce a closure (thought they did, of course, end up not actually closing down).