<p>jnsq</p>
<p>Glad to hear that the sting has eased a little. Better days are ahead!</p>
<p>I’m sad to say (sad for me) that DS can sing the words to every single Dylan song and every single Beatles song, including “I Am the Walrus.”</p>
<p>He has also sung Carmina Burana, and unlike me, is a Latin scholar.</p>
<p>We did sing a lot of Mozart arias, primarily from “The Marriage of Figaro.”</p>
<p>wow, and I was so proud when my 4th grader answered the question ‘what famous person would you like to have lunch with’, by responding ‘the guy who wrote The Angels Want To Wear My Red Shoes’.</p>
<p>:: sets up coffee and muffins ::</p>
<p>:: starts her own coffee IV ::</p>
<p>Morning, all!</p>
<p>Good morning! Thanks for the coffee.</p>
<p>Well, the FA package from the LAC was better than other FA packages from LACs, but it couldn’t hold a candle to some of S’s other offers. This school was one of his top choices so it was sad. S pretty much expected it, but I know there was that spark of hope.</p>
<p>2blue - have you thought about trying to get them to match some of the other offers? We are still waiting on one FA - and I already am planning on discussing, if need be, some comparable school’s offers.</p>
<p>Well, I called and they said to send his other offers with a cover letter. Thanks for the encouragement to call, kitkat.</p>
<p>A question: if you are negotiating with FA people now, are you also telling them your student will attend if FA is sweetened, or are you leaving the door open? I was thinking that we should wait to negiotiate until S has a decision, but that doesn’t seem to be the stance everyone else is taking, so perhaps I need to reconsider.</p>
<p>It’s not like we are getting a lot of FA, but every penny would help.</p>
<p>We are not making any promises to anyone. Since my son hasn’t visited, we don’t want to lock him in to something. If someone’s kid had visited and had a clearcut favorite, they may want to make a promise to attend. For the LAC, I did tell them S is extremely interested in attending, but there was no way we could swing it as is. The other schools are Ivies with their new FA policies, so I just asked if they could review his package in light of those offers, or would that just be out of the question, given the other schools’ resources. It was a very friendly conversation, with both of us understanding where the other was coming from. I really liked the guy I talked with. I did go ahead and call another school which hadn’t given us quite as good an offer as the best two. With them I just asked if they would review their offer in light of offers from __ & __, and they said sure, just fax their offers in with a cover letter. </p>
<p>I was nervous about making the calls, but no one was surprised at the other end of the line. I think there’s a lot of this going on right now.</p>
<p>CountingDown, Last year after the visits when DD did have a clear favorite, we let them know they were low on the offer. We did not promise to attend but did tell them that they were her first choice. Although not matching the second contender, they did increase the offer and made the total feasible. It is worth exploring when your number 1 is not quite there on finances. I would not drag schools through it, though, if they are not really a favorite.</p>
<p>At this point we are dealing with favorites only, and there is really only one school where we could ask for more. School A gave merit > need, B gave FA within a few thousand of merit, and C is less than both but is the most generous in terms of how S applies scholarships to meeting the student portion.</p>
<p>Thanks, all – guess that’s the next project!</p>
<p>There are some schools we aren’t going to contact either. The two I have contacted are definite prospects.</p>
<p>The “We could love each other, but can we afford each other?” letters have been faxed. Whew. I’m glad that’s done.</p>
<p>There is only one school where I would anticipate going back and asking for more money if need be. That is the one where I don’t have FA yet, and arguably the favorite. At full freight, it is simply not an option for my son. Not playing games, not trying to save a few bucks - its just a hard cold reality. If the numbers don’t come in, he will need to re-evaluate. </p>
<p>I am a little nervous about having to do this - because I view it as “confrontation” and I am sooooooooooooooooo bad about that…but will definitely do it if need be.</p>
<p>kitkat</p>
<p>I ran for office several years ago and after some emotional tough sledding around trying to “sell myself”, I realized I was offering people a choice. Your son would be offering his favorite the choice of him if they could give him more $$. Without that, they’d lose the choice. I know it’s hard to bargain when it goes against the grain, but there’s nothing really to lose here.</p>
<p>Thats how I feel. We have nothing to lose. #2 choice is a great choice too. </p>
<p>Nonetheless I do get nervous about stuff like this!</p>
<p>Our FA package is complete but not yet available online. I am sure I will be refreshing a zillion times today!</p>
<p>This is a must read post - I’ve printed a copy to share with my son. Unbelievably amazing …</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/491200-seniors-2008-a.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/491200-seniors-2008-a.html</a></p>
<p>Thanks, for making this more visible. How lovely and meaningful.</p>
<p>Ok - got our last FA offer - it was disappointing to say the least - so I am about to make my phone call. Wish me luck!</p>
<p>Good luck! Let us know how it goes. </p>
<p>This morning I got my son off to the airport for his first college visit. I hope he is able to get a realistic view of the school in the time there.</p>
<p>Have you heard back from the schools with whom you followed up???</p>