<p>Only a handful of universities can afford to offer “need”-based financial aid to families with incomes approaching $200K per year, as Harvard’s new policy does. Harvard has an endowment of nearly $35 billion, or nearly six times the Notre Dame endowment. And Harvard’s decision was triggered, in substantial part, by increasing congressional scrutiny of what it regards as miserly spending from sizable university endowments. </p>
<p>My guess is that so long as Notre Dame continues to attract plenty of well-qualified applicants who are willing to pay full price (or close to full-price), the University will have no reason to consider awarding the sort of merit scholarship that your son received at Washington and Lee. </p>
<p>Ultimately, you’ll have to decide whether Notre Dame is worth the $140K extra it will cost. If you have to borrow to meet those costs, that would be a hefty loan hanging over your son’s head when he graduates, and would all but rule out any expensive professional school in the future. On the other hand, Notre Dame is a very special place, and many families are willing to make enormous sacrifices to make it possible for their children to attend. Any possibility of getting an ROTC scholarship next year? And when your daughter is also in college, you may find that your expected family contribution is greatly reduced, giving you more financial aid from ND.</p>