From NJ and son deciding between the three. This is our first time going through the process and need guidance. Son is interested in psych undergrad and will likely (if he doesn’t change majors) will need graduate degree. Likes small environment, and all three schools with aid are over 40, but less than 50, with HC being most expensive.
Aid appears as grants/merit in FinAid document. Big financial concern is that letters mention aid as “first year grants” instead of a fixed amount over 4 years? Has anyone had experience with this? What is likelihood that grant expires years 2, 3 or 4 and stuck with full price tuition. Also, any insight on schools greatly appreciated.
Son got accepted and trying to decide if HC is best option, since it is the most expensive at 50. Aid is mentioned as “first year” grants/merit and this makes us very nervous. Will he not get aid year 2, 3, 4? Unlike other letters that mention X amount over 4 years, the FinAid package did not clarify.
Overall feeling nervous about HC, although son loves it. Our finaid appeal was rejected in seconds, leading me to believe they hold tight onto those pursestrings.
Three really fine LACs - so congrats on the acceptances.
If you are unsure about the grants, I would clarify with the Office of Financial Aid directly.
FWIW my D graduated from Lafayette as a psych major and had a wonderful experience at the college in every respect. She did go to grad school after undergrad.
I know happy and successful grads from all three schools so at this point it is about affordability and personal preference.
You should discuss your questions with the colleges.
Be aware, however, that if there’s need-based aid in the mix, that could be recalculated each year based on changes in family income and/or assets. If there’s merit aid, it could be contingent on maintaining certain credit hour or GPA requirements. Everything is contingent, typically.
Thank you! You confirmed my need for additional clarification on whether the grants are need based or merit. Just wondering if anyone has had similar experience where $ gets reduced, outside of the normal parameters of gpa, courseload, etc.
The grants are related to your income, so they reevaluate every year (should you lose your job or get a big promotion…) Hence the wording “1st year grant”. If your income doesn’t change, your grants shouldn’t.
As for the 3 colleges: TrinityCT is preppier with a more central Greek life; Lafayette is probably the strongest academically for psychology, less Greek, a bit nerdier; Holy Cross offers a Jesuit education which guarantees a strong general culture. All 3 are excellent preparation for grad school but have solid career centers for internships.
Most colleges that offer need-based financial aid will have you apply for financial aid each year and determine each year’s need-based grants based on that year’s financial aid application.
Obviously, if your income level and asset values fluctuate greatly from year to year, that makes predicting future year need-based grants more difficult.
Merit scholarships may be contingent on attaining a specified college GPA each semester or year, or sometimes other conditions.
Is your son interested more in the clinical and human-services side of psychology, or in the academic/research side?
Holy Cross is very well-networked in the local area and has a strong commitment to serving the community. Their Academic Internship Program includes both class work and field work, and the list of local organizations and institutions that have offered psychology-related internships in recent years is long and varied. (They also have a clinical psychology track within the major.) If this kind of community engagement is what your son is looking for, then HC might be the best of the three. (Trinity also says they provide opportunities in the Hartford community, but the info is a lot less specific. Lafayette is in a more remote area, so the opportunities for off-campus involvement may be more constrained, although of course summer internships can be anywhere.) I would lean toward HC for a kid who wanted a strong community-engagement component, whereas for undergraduate research and pre-PhD, Lafayette might have the edge, although I’m sure all three have plenty of strength.
I have to say that I cringed a little at Trinity’s psych-department page where they brag that “In 2015, Trinity’s Psychology Department was ranked number 7 out of 50 great small colleges for a bachelor’s in Psychology.” The source for this is a website called “The Online Psychology Degree Guide.” Seriously? A decade-old listicle from site for marketing online programs is the best and only accolade you want to highlight? I’m sure it’s a fine and reputable department, but that isn’t a great look IMHO.
A lot of schools are quick to shut down financial aid appeals, unless there has been a dramatic change in circumstances. That isn’t an indication that the level of aid will be at risk in subsequent years. They just really aren’t interested in making aid a negotiation. It sounds like what you got was this: “Holy Cross Grant: Eligibility for a Holy Cross Grant is determined based on financial need as demonstrated through the financial aid application process. Nearly 450 first-year students are awarded Holy Cross Grant funding each year. Amounts range from $2,500 to more than $60,000, depending on financial need. Students must reapply each year for a Holy Cross Grant. Our goal is to renew this grant each year, although it is subject to change based on demonstrated need. The level of financial assistance in future years will be impacted by income and asset fluctuations as well as changes in the number of dependent family members enrolled as undergraduate students in a college or university. Eligibility for all Holy Cross funded grant and scholarship assistance is limited to eight semesters.” So basically, this is normal, need-based aid. If your grant aid was consistent with what the Net Price Calculator predicted, I would expect that to be the case in subsequent years as well.
If you look at the financial aid section of a school’s Common Data Set, you can see how first-year aid compares to the aid given to all undergraduates. At Holy Cross, as at many schools, the need-based loan and work-study amounts go up slightly after the first year, and the grant amounts go down by a corresponding amount. https://www.holycross.edu/sites/default/files/2023-03/CDS_2022-2023%20(FINAL).pdf But there’s no pattern of the total amount of aid dropping. They guarantee that they will meet need.
Does the aid package at all three schools include loans and work-study?
My D is trying to decide between Trinity and Lafayette as well! I found Trinity’s financial aid package a little hard to understand. I did write their office and received a lot of good information within 24 hours of writing, so I encourage you to reach out.
We’re visiting Lafayette tomorrow (hasn’t seen it since sophomore year in HS–applied on a whim.) Trinity will be next week. We’ve visited Trinity as a athletic recruit. Ended up not getting the spot on the team, and now feel like need more information about life there outside of athletics.