College financing - two things I learned and our story

[Azalea]

Sorry for the rabbit trail but I don't know enough about the US system & want to ask about this. Aren't associates degrees 60 credits each? So she did 4 years of post secondary by the time she was 18? How does that work in your country? 

 

I talked to my daughter. Each degree was 90 credits. She earned a total of 136 credits, so there was a lot of overlap.

[hornblower]

I talked to my daughter. Each degree was 90 credits. She earned a total of 136 credits, so there was a lot of overlap.

ah, thanks for explaining. We're not allowed to double dip here. 

[goldberry]

BTW, our dd had fantastic stats - 34 ACT and 3.98 GPA, and she was a girl going into Computer Science.  I did hope that would make at least one of those private schools 'want' her more and at least get them down to EFC + standard loans for her - but nope.

 

 

 

That's the kicker I think.  When they do so well, you think, surely they will get something for that!  But often the colleges that WILL offer something are rare and not the ones on the list - for whatever reason.  Other colleges offer *some* but nowhere near enough.

 

We looked at some of the full-tuition automatic scholarships in Alabama and other places.  DD would rather just stay here than go to Alabama.  None of the other states she was interested in offer those kinds of scholarships.  

[Matryoshka]

Also I think some schools are giving a bit more aid to boys right now, to try to balance their numbers.  There seems to be more girls going than boys.  Some schools my kids friends are at have like 60/40 girls/boys.

 

That's very true that most universities enroll more women, but not at tech schools.  All the schools she applied to were very skewed male (most were 70/30 in favor of males), so I did hope maybe they'd want more girls...  Even the state school she ended up at (which has a strong tech focus, which besides finances is why it was a good fit) is 60/40 (more males).

[Matryoshka]

The state flagship, it's true, gave no aid at all but did come in about the same as the 'cheapest' privates - but another state school did give good merit aid and came in under our EFC.  And no loans and virtually no travel costs (it's very close to us).

 

Well, this article seems to explain the lack of merit aid from our state flagship!  Apparently they're giving it all to out-of-state students!

 

The campus she chose (that did give her merit aid) only has 13% out-of-state students, vs. 35% at the flagship  (and the flagship apparently had only 13% out-of-state in 2008, so that's a huge increase...)   I'm a big fan of diversity, but with college so unaffordable these days, the public universities need to be kept within reach for in-state students...

[Grantmom]

It's so unpredictable though.

Sometimes a college really wants a student for some reason, and offers more merit scholarship money than you might expect.  You really can't tell how much it's going to cost a student to go to a particular college until you are finished negotiating with them, and it can be difficult to do that and walk away if you or your child gets emotionally invested in the college during the process.

 

I think this is the hardest part.  It really seems like you can't know, until you get all the way to the very end, what your final cost will be, and by then you probably need to have an idea of what you really want.  But like so many have said here, there seem to be so many different possibilities.  For some, private, selective schools were cheaper, and for others, the local state U was cheaper.

[Grantmom]

 

However, the plan for me to go back to work this fall while my last high schooler takes math with dad, foreign language and literature with me, and we farm out the rest to online DE has been put on hold because it looks like we have three 4H kids to join ds on a Student Launch Initiative NASA project. If their proposal goes through so they get the grant from NASA, I will have to help dh mentor these high schoolers through a college level aerospace engineering project and assist with fundraising because the grant will not cover all their costs nor their travel to Marshall Space Flight in Huntsville next April. Ds is already slated to do the MOOC Robotics Engineering Course through UPenn with capstone project as well so he is going to need to do less DE from U of MI Flint and have most of his subjects with me in order to have the flexibility needed to do both projects. I have to admit to being a little worried about not earning next year. On the other hand, I can't bring myself to deny him the opportunity to do SLI so if you see me in 2018 panhandling on street corners in Mid-Michigan, you'll know we just bought three kids' college books and now have no food!  :D

 

I'm in a similar boat.  I was hoping to go back to work to help pay for oldest's college.  

 

Sorry to be OT, but about that robotics MOOC, that looks really awesome.  Are you counting that as just one credit?  Are you planning to do each of the sections in succession, or all at once.  I was looking at the start times, and it seemed like they all start this summer.  Will there be additional start times in the fall?  Thanks and sorry for being OT!

[MarkT]

Well, this article seems to explain the lack of merit aid from our state flagship!  Apparently they're giving it all to out-of-state students!

 

The campus she chose (that did give her merit aid) only has 13% out-of-state students, vs. 35% at the flagship  (and the flagship apparently had only 13% out-of-state in 2008, so that's a huge increase...)   I'm a big fan of diversity, but with college so unaffordable these days, the public universities need to be kept within reach for in-state students...

Yes my smart nephew (from upstate NY) received a decent merit scholarship from UMass Amherst and that is the primary reason he is going there next year. Hey I paid taxes in MA for 19 years when I lived there so I don't feel bad about that.

[Matryoshka]

Yes my smart nephew (from upstate NY) received a decent merit scholarship from UMass Amherst and that is the primary reason he is going there next year. Hey I paid taxes in MA for 19 years when I lived there so I don't feel bad about that.

 

And ironically dd's biggest merit award was from a SUNY school (Stony Brook).  She ended up deciding not to go there, but it does seem harder to get the love in one's own state!

 

(Although she also applied to SUNY Binghamton, which gave her the same as UMass Amherst - nothing...)  It really is a crap shoot...

[shawthorne44]

ah, thanks for explaining. We're not allowed to double dip here. 

 

In the U.S. every degree has probably a year's worth of identical Gen Ed. requirements.   Two or three English classes, two History classes, some foreign language and some math.   My personal theory is that U.S. Universities can't assume students have enough gen ed. to not embarrass the school. 

[GoodGrief]

I learned the value of casting a wide net during the application season after watching my oldest daughter's experience in college admissions. The process is not entirely unpredictable, but there are twists and turns that one doesn't always see coming.

 

My just-graduated senior's best offer by far was from a prestigious public out-of-state university; she seemed an extreme long shot for the scholarship she was ultimately offered, but, indeed, it became an option. On the other hand, she was turned down for less prestigious scholarships at other schools, for which one would think she would be a shoe-in. The most generous need-based aid came from a highly prestigious private university; at most places, our family just qualifies for loans. Sometimes there are departmental scholarships which are not obvious on the web page, and not apparent in the cost calculations on those web calculators.

 

Our state universities are a good deal if they have your program, but they were missing academic elements of both my older daughters' preferred programs of study. They are also currently plagued by cost-cutting measures, so it's hard to predict if certain programs will remain in place in the present budget climate. We are in an isolated, low-population state, so our situation is relatively unusual though.

 

The wide net approach to applications is expensive initially though, with application fees, College Board fees for sending scores, transcript fees for sending those reports (if one has dual enrollment classes.) There's a time cost too, of course, for the student. In our case, the investment was worth it, but it may not be for everyone.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Gr8lander

[hopskipjump]

Well, this article seems to explain the lack of merit aid from our state flagship! Apparently they're giving it all to out-of-state students!

 

The campus she chose (that did give her merit aid) only has 13% out-of-state students, vs. 35% at the flagship (and the flagship apparently had only 13% out-of-state in 2008, so that's a huge increase...) I'm a big fan of diversity, but with college so unaffordable these days, the public universities need to be kept within reach for in-state students...

And ironically dd's biggest merit award was from a SUNY school (Stony Brook). She ended up deciding not to go there, but it does seem harder to get the love in one's own state!

 

(Although she also applied to SUNY Binghamton, which gave her the same as UMass Amherst - nothing...) It really is a crap shoot...

Yup - dd has pretty-much same stats as your dd and got around $15k from UMass Amherst (plus a substantial athletic offer on top of that). I did read that their scholarships for in-state students aren't very generous. Our in-state public? She got $3k. ummmm. No.

 

I learned the value of casting a wide net during the application season after watching my oldest daughter's experience in college admissions. The process is not entirely unpredictable, but there are twists and turns that one doesn't always see coming.

 

My just-graduated senior's best offer by far was from a prestigious public out-of-state university; she seemed an extreme long shot for the scholarship she was ultimately offered, but, indeed, it became an option. On the other hand, she was turned down for less prestigious scholarships at other schools, for which one would think she would be a shoe-in. The most generous need-based aid came from a highly prestigious private university; at most places, our family just qualifies for loans. Sometimes there are departmental scholarships which are not obvious on the web page, and not apparent in the cost calculations on those web calculators.

 

Our state universities are a good deal if they have your program, but they were missing academic elements of both my older daughters' preferred programs of study. They are also currently plagued by cost-cutting measures, so it's hard to predict if certain programs will remain in place in the present budget climate. We are in an isolated, low-population state, so our situation is relatively unusual though.

 

The wide net approach to applications is expensive initially though, with application fees, College Board fees for sending scores, transcript fees for sending those reports (if one has dual enrollment classes.) There's a time cost too, of course, for the student. In our case, the investment was worth it, but it may not be for everyone.

That first child! lol My poor daughter. We learned so much, but truly at her expense in our situation, I'm afraid. :/ We had too many variances and wild-cards that made stability hard to come by (due to several factors - mainly... her relatively late standardized testing, her being a late-comer to her sport, but very talented at said sport...)

 

We cast a wide, but wildly-varying net. Once we realized that in-state schools were not going to be in her best interest, we were scrambling to find schools that would be a good fit for her, but really had very little idea of what was important to dd - and were only JUST beginning to learn the costs of everything and seeing that it's somewhat a "game" and that we needed a crash course in the rules to play effectively!

 

For kids 2 & 3, we're going to do things SO differently. DD2 is going to take another year for high school (she's very young for her grade, so it's always been an option & after watching what dd1 went through... dd2 wants to prepare differently), so for her 10th grade year (this coming year), we are planning at least two cross-country trips to visit colleges she's interested in. When DD1 was 14/15, she hadn't even LOOKED at colleges. Other kids her age were already dreaming of this-or-that school, and she barely knew they existed. My fault, for not making it a thing we talked about... not making that mistake with the next two.

Edited May 31, 2016 by hopskipjump

[GoodGrief]

I was SO hands-off with my first child! Big mistake for us financially, but I was clueless, lol.

[creekland]

In the U.S. every degree has probably a year's worth of identical Gen Ed. requirements.   Two or three English classes, two History classes, some foreign language and some math.   My personal theory is that U.S. Universities can't assume students have enough gen ed. to not embarrass the school. 

 

Not every school does this.  U Rochester does not.  Middle son has both a double major and a double minor since it's relatively easy to just take the courses that he likes.  It's one of the things that drew him to the school.  Their high emphasis on undergrad research was another.  Their decent financial offering was the final step needed.  (They beat U Alabama's offer.)  

 

I'm glad it all worked out, because he has totally thrived there.  Well, I'm convinced he would have thrived at any school, but what they have/offer there is so much more at his ability than many other schools and it helped him fly higher than he could have gone from elsewhere.

 

My other two are thriving (or thrived) at their colleges too and would not have done so well at URoc, so it's important to match the school to the student IME.

Edited May 31, 2016 by creekland

[swimmermom3]

Can I ask where her GPA/ACT put her in comparison to the student profiles at the colleges where she applied? We're focusing on schools where my daughter's stats put her in the top 5-10% for the school in hopes of decent merit aid and it would be helpful to see if that might be at all realistic.

 

This can be a tricky balance.

 

Ds has an ACT score of 31and an unweighted GPA of 3.7, but a fairly tough course load. He applied to eight schools where he was at the 75th percentile, maybe slightly lower for two of the schools. He was accepted to all 8 schools with varying combinations of merit aid and grant money. Merit ranged from $10,000 - $30,000 per year.

 

I saw several students and met one here in at a dinner for the school ds ultimately chose, who had higher stats than ds, but were wait listed at ds's top two choices.  Those particular schools have a reputation for not liking to be considered "safeties" for a certain level of student.  They want students who really want to be there.

 

Does that make sense?

 

 

[KarenNC]

This can be a tricky balance.

 

Ds has an ACT score of 31and an unweighted GPA of 3.7, but a fairly tough course load. He applied to eight schools where he was at the 75th percentile, maybe slightly lower for two of the schools. He was accepted to all 8 schools with varying combinations of merit aid and grant money. Merit ranged from $10,000 - $30,000 per year.

 

I saw several students and met one here in at a dinner for the school ds ultimately chose, who had higher stats than ds, but were wait listed at ds's top two choices.  Those particular schools have a reputation for not liking to be considered "safeties" for a certain level of student.  They want students who really want to be there.

 

Does that make sense?

 

 

Yes, I can certainly see schools not wanting to be the "back up plan." She's really not looking at these schools in quite that way. Her only true "safety" is to live at home and do community college then transfer to the local public university, which isn't high on her wish list. :) Everything else is a reach financially to varying extents.

 

Her current ACT is 30 (from freshman year, she takes it again next week) and her unweighted GPA through the fall semester of sophomore year is 3.85, but we'll see what things look like when the time comes to fill out applications. Luckily she's currently in the top 2-10% for  ACT scores at all the schools in which she is currently enthusiastically interested and they all seem to have good merit aid possibilities. They aren't the schools that would generally be automatic suggestions in our area for her score profile because they are less prestigious and smaller, but I can see them as good fits for her personality/goals. I've been surprised and impressed on tours, though I honestly didn't initially consider a couple of them as likely options but she insisted on visiting. I think she will do well in any of their honors programs. So far we've been on general tours or open houses and the goal for junior year is to do more focused visits where she gets to sit in on classes and talk to the departments. She starts DE next semester as well so that will give her some basis for comparison. One of her choices is out of state (barely), but she hasn't looked very far afield (about 2 hours away is the max so far). She may do so this coming year, we'll see (but she *really* doesn't want to go to Alabama!),

 

We've talked about and visited some of the "better" or more typical schools where she falls more into the 50-75% for scores, but she hasn't been interested for one reason or another. We haven't bothered to visit some of the ones that have reps for not giving much merit aid. I suppose it will be up to her via essays and interviews to convince her final school choices that she really wants to attend.

Edited June 1, 2016 by KarenNC

[wapiti]

I saw several students and met one here in at a dinner for the school ds ultimately chose, who had higher stats than ds, but were wait listed at ds's top two choices.  Those particular schools have a reputation for not liking to be considered "safeties" for a certain level of student.  They want students who really want to be there.

 

For anyone wanting to search College Confidential on yield protection, IIRC this is sometimes referred to as "Tufts Syndrome."

[creekland]

A huge clue as to whether a lesser known school is worth the lower cost or not is seeing where recent grads in the desired field or major have gone.  I've seen too many graduate with diplomas, but unable to find jobs using their major to always recommend the least expensive option.

 

Many lesser known schools are good or a good student can do well even if not-so-good students do not (networking, etc).  But some really talented kids lose options if money is the sole factor.

 

As always.  Do research into schools that one likes.

[swimmermom3]

Yes, I can certainly see schools not wanting to be the "back up plan." She's really not looking at these schools in quite that way. Her only true "safety" is to live at home and do community college then transfer to the local public university, which isn't high on her wish list. :) Everything else is a reach financially to varying extents.

 

Her current ACT is 30 (from freshman year, she takes it again next week) and her unweighted GPA through the fall semester of sophomore year is 3.85, but we'll see what things look like when the time comes to fill out applications. Luckily she's currently in the top 2-10% for  ACT scores at all the schools in which she is currently enthusiastically interested and they all seem to have good merit aid possibilities. They aren't the schools that would generally be automatic suggestions in our area for her score profile because they are less prestigious and smaller, but I can see them as good fits for her personality/goals. I've been surprised and impressed on tours, though I honestly didn't initially consider a couple of them as likely options but she insisted on visiting. I think she will do well in any of their honors programs. So far we've been on general tours or open houses and the goal for junior year is to do more focused visits where she gets to sit in on classes and talk to the departments. She starts DE next semester as well so that will give her some basis for comparison. One of her choices is out of state (barely), but she hasn't looked very far afield (about 2 hours away is the max so far). She may do so this coming year, we'll see (but she *really* doesn't want to go to Alabama!),

 

We've talked about and visited some of the "better" or more typical schools where she falls more into the 50-75% for scores, but she hasn't been interested for one reason or another. We haven't bothered to visit some of the ones that have reps for not giving much merit aid. I suppose it will be up to her via essays and interviews to convince her final school choices that she really wants to attend.

 

Karen, she'll convince them.  Have you checked out some of the schools in "Colleges the Change Lives" book ?  Four of the schools ds applied to were on that list. We visited three of them and were really impressed on so many levels.  If ds hadn't changed from an economics major to international studies and foreign policy somewhat late in the game, I think one of them in particular would have been an amazing fit. Her numbers should allow her to have many options. 

 

Our only safety was similar to yours - state university with ds living at home.  The usual choices for our state universities actually came in more expensive on the bottom line than a couple of the LACs whose tuition was double, but who offered great merit and/or grants.

 

 

[KarenNC]

A huge clue as to whether a lesser known school is worth the lower cost or not is seeing where recent grads in the desired field or major have gone.  I've seen too many graduate with diplomas, but unable to find jobs using their major to always recommend the least expensive option.

 

Many lesser known schools are good or a good student can do well even if not-so-good students do not (networking, etc).  But some really talented kids lose options if money is the sole factor.

 

As always.  Do research into schools that one likes.

 

I learned about the "Educate to Career" website yesterday that looks at salaries for recent grads by major at various colleges https://www.jobsearchintelligence.com/colleges-counselors-etc  Not quite the same as learning where the kids go in terms of jobs and grad school, but potentially useful.

[KarenNC]

Karen, she'll convince them.  Have you checked out some of the schools in "Colleges the Change Lives" book ?  Four of the schools ds applied to were on that list. We visited three of them and were really impressed on so many levels.  If ds hadn't changed from an economics major to international studies and foreign policy somewhat late in the game, I think one of them in particular would have been an amazing fit. Her numbers should allow her to have many options. 

 

Our only safety was similar to yours - state university with ds living at home.  The usual choices for our state universities actually came in more expensive on the bottom line than a couple of the LACs whose tuition was double, but who offered great merit and/or grants.

 

 

 

Yes, we've been to one and were impressed, but that was prior to her realization of the role she wants tech theatre to play in her college life (possible major, minor, or at least heavy involvement). It's on the list of "need to go back and look at their theatre program" this coming year. I'm considering driving her up to CTCL's closest college fair this summer (about 3 hours away)--just wish it were closer or that I knew they would hit closer to home next school year!

 

We've spent a lot of time this year visiting all sorts of schools---small, medium (haven't gotten to any really large ones yet), public, private, urban, rural, etc--and she's beginning to get a better feel for what she wants. Of course, at 15, it's all still evolving, and will continue. :) Our reality is that none of the things that look likely for her in terms of major are going to be high salary out of the gate (theatre, English, history, women's/gender studies), so finances are going to be a big part of it. Unfortunately, her realization about theatre has knocked one school out of the running that she had really liked previously, and that seemed to really like her (with great merit potential).

[Kim in SouthGa]

I haven't read all this, but I wanted to share our experience.  My dd knew she wanted to go to a private liberal arts college, preferably Christian.  I did some research to find where she had the best chance of getting aid -look at the stats for a college, see what the avg. test score and GPA is- we picked  a few that she had a good chance of getting aid to.  She also had a 30 ACT, graduated with 29 college credits, very active in community service and leadership roles.  She received full tuition to Mercer, with an added Tift scholarship of $1000 per year.  She also applied to Sanford - but decided she didn't want to go there before she go into the scholarship process.  She really loved The King's College in NYC, and put her focus there.  She applied for the full tuition scholarship, but just got an honorable mention.  But this is her dream school.  She has worked hard finding scholarships, both through the college and locally, and she almost has her entire first year paid for.  She will have to take out the $5500 Stafford Loan, but aside from that is $5500 for the year away from having it all paid for- a pretty big feat, considering it is a $48,000 a year school!!  She has several scholarship applications still out there, so we are hoping she will get more, but if not, we can handle $2250 a semester.  We don't qualify for any federal grants either, but are in that gap of not really being able to afford to help with college. 

 

So my point to all this is that private schools often offer way more aid than public schools (at least in our case as my son who is attending public college received no aid and is going to have more debt than his sister when he graduates). And if your child is motivated and willing to work for it, there are a lot of scholarships out there.  She has won about $4200 just from local organizations, and could have gotten more but missed some deadlines.  Do some research.  I found a list of scholarships on the local high school's website.  Talk to your financial aid counselor at the college.  Ours has been very helpful! 

 

 

[8filltheheart]

Yes, we've been to one and were impressed, but that was prior to her realization of the role she wants tech theatre to play in her college life (possible major, minor, or at least heavy involvement). It's on the list of "need to go back and look at their theatre program" this coming year.

I have spent untold hrs researching school options in effort to try to find affordable programs for our dd. One thing I have learned is that I really have to follow every lead I come across before we eliminate any school. For example, one that my dd is currently researching is one I had never even heard of before, Truman State, but it came up in a Google search for universities with strong foreign language depts. It is a low cost school to begin with and is generous with merit $$.

 

Your post about theater made me want to post bc when I read their website, both their theater and jazz programs were highlighted. http://www.truman.edu/majors-programs/majors-minors/theatre-major/

 

Also, since your dd is a rising Jr, work on PSAT prep. That one test alone can open up tens of thousands of dollars in scholarship $$.

 

Fwiw, with high test scores, awards, and strong transcripts, by stepping down in the school rankings, our kids have managed to get large dollar scholarships. We can only afford a fraction of what NPCs say we are supposed to pay. Searching for schools with large merit awards has worked out positively for our kids. But it does take a lot of searching to find schools that actually match their goals.

Edited June 1, 2016 by 8FillTheHeart

[teachermom2834]

I have spent untold hrs researching school options in effort to try and find affordable programs for our dd. One thing I have learned is that I really have to follow every lead I come across before we eliminate the school. For example, one that my dd is currently researching is one I had never even heard of before, Truman State, but it came up in a Google search for universities with strong foreign language depts. It is a low cost school to begin with and is generous with merit $$.

 

Your post about theater made me want to post bc when I read their website, both their theater and jazz programs were highlighted. http://www.truman.edu/majors-programs/majors-minors/theatre-major/

 

Also, since your dd is a rising Jr, work on PSAT prep. That one test alone can open up tens of thousands of dollars in scholarship $$.

 

Fwiw, with high test scores, awards, and strong transcripts, by stepping down in the school rankings, our kids have managed to get large dollar scholarships. We can only afford a fraction of what NPCs say we are supposed to pay. Searching for schools with large merit awards has worked out positively for our kids. But it does take a lot of searching to find schools that actually match their goals.

This is my takeaway from our first go round with college admissions. Lots of hours researching affordable options and an open mind. In the case of ds our hours of research and an open mind to a school we had never heard of has put ds in a great position. He will be taking the basic $5500 loan and paying for his college with summer earnings. We expect to help with books and incidentals.

 

It actually looks to be a good fit for ds and he is excited about going. Although not highly ranked or well known, graduates in his major do very well regionally. So, he has compromised some going down in ranking from what his stats would indicate was possible for him. He would also have been able to afford our state flagship and one of the Colleges That Change Lives with similar costs. He had three good choices but only because I left no stone unturned looking. If I hadn't identified these private schools he would have thought big state U was his only option.

 

We are happy with his outcome and the choices he had but the truth is he had these three good options but hundreds of schools probably unaffordable even with a 31 ACT and nice extracurriculars.

[JanetC]

 She applied for the full tuition scholarship, but just got an honorable mention.  But this is her dream school.  She has worked hard finding scholarships, both through the college and locally, and she almost has her entire first year paid for.  She will have to take out the $5500 Stafford Loan, but aside from that is $5500 for the year away from having it all paid for- a pretty big feat, considering it is a $48,000 a year school!!  She has several scholarship applications still out there, so we are hoping she will get more, but if not, we can handle $2250 a semester.  We don't qualify for any federal grants either, but are in that gap of not really being able to afford to help with college. 

 

Wow! That is an impressive success rate with the scholarships! Congratulations to her!

[KarenNC]

I have spent untold hrs researching school options in effort to try to find affordable programs for our dd. One thing I have learned is that I really have to follow every lead I come across before we eliminate any school. For example, one that my dd is currently researching is one I had never even heard of before, Truman State, but it came up in a Google search for universities with strong foreign language depts. It is a low cost school to begin with and is generous with merit $$.

 

Your post about theater made me want to post bc when I read their website, both their theater and jazz programs were highlighted. http://www.truman.edu/majors-programs/majors-minors/theatre-major/

 

Also, since your dd is a rising Jr, work on PSAT prep. That one test alone can open up tens of thousands of dollars in scholarship $$.

 

Fwiw, with high test scores, awards, and strong transcripts, by stepping down in the school rankings, our kids have managed to get large dollar scholarships. We can only afford a fraction of what NPCs say we are supposed to pay. Searching for schools with large merit awards has worked out positively for our kids. But it does take a lot of searching to find schools that actually match their goals.

 

Yes, I'm spending lots of time researching! :) 

 

She took the PSAT last fall and did well, but with the changes in numbers this year for commended, not quite as well as I'd hoped on the NM index (204). I'm hoping that will improve now that she's had algebra 2. Math is her weak area, so this summer is all about math prep for the test. If she can make even semifinalist, that should open a very good scholarship at her current first choice school.

[GoodGrief]

We did not run into yield protection at all as far as admissions, but it did seem to possibly be a factor in a few scholarship decisions. No way to know for sure, of course, but she tended to do better at more prestigious schools. She began to answer the "What other colleges are you considering?" question very carefully during scholarship interviews for that reason.

[swimmermom3]

Fwiw, with high test scores, awards, and strong transcripts, by stepping down in the school rankings, our kids have managed to get large dollar scholarships. We can only afford a fraction of what NPCs say we are supposed to pay. Searching for schools with large merit awards has worked out positively for our kids. But it does take a lot of searching to find schools that actually match their goals.

 

Sometimes the finances and the goals can match, but the school itself is not a great fit. 

 

One of the schools that ds seriously considered had an international studies program that was considerably pared down from his final choice, but the program was there. A fifth year master's program tied into another school that is well respected in the field. The financials were the very best of the bunch which meant we could actually swing it with one income and some belt-tightening.  He could sail and the campus is 30 minutes from a major urban area.

 

His campus host was charming and ds enjoyed his company, but he came away after the visit saying it wasn't the school for him. I think our family would definitely have been on the lower if not lowest rung financially for students at this school.  Last summer, ds sailed in a regatta where he and his crew sailed boats that were family heirlooms and worth as much as our home.  He stayed in a guest house with 9 bedrooms and a two-lane bowling alley.  It was a lot of fun for a couple of days, but ds said the atmosphere between that and the school we were looking at was similar and he couldn't imagine going to school with that kind of environment.  He felt that "finding his tribe" could be difficult.

 

It was all I could do not to push for the school due to the financial piece.

 

[Pegasus]

She has worked hard finding scholarships, both through the college and locally, and she almost has her entire first year paid for.   

 

Congrats to your daughter!  That is quite an achievement.  How many of the scholarships are renewable after freshman year?  Will the balance still be affordable for your family?  I only bring this up because I've read heartbreaking stories on College Confidential from students who are able to swing the first year at their dream school with scholarships/savings/loans and then have to transfer to a less expensive school because the scholarships were one-year only.

[katilac]

 

When compared to Alabama (where she received their automatic full-tuition scholarship), it would have cost more $$ for her to go to the local state U. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that could be true. (assuming she lived on campus, or out-of-the-home, in both cases). INCLUDING travel costs to get her to Alabama and home again!

 

 

 She will be at U of A in Tuscaloosa? My dd will be at UAH (Huntsville, about 2 hours away from UA). The Alabama schools made her great offers, and recruited her much harder than our state schools.  

 

 Where will she be traveling from? We are in the New Orleans area, so about 4 1/2 hours from Tuscaloosa and 6 1/2 hours from Huntsville. 

[FaithManor]

Ds has another outside scholarship he just earned, and another we are still waiting on. This new one, combined with his scholarship money from the rocket team, lowers our contribution enough for this year that any money he earns over the course of the year working in the lab as a lab assistant plus whatever he can earn next summer, will all go to his sophomore year bill. This is allowing us to "get ahead of the game" so to speak which is going to make it a lot easier to figure out in the future despite the fact that the rocket team money is a one time thing.

 

I am very thankful for these first year scholarships so we have time to plan. His institutional scholarships is renewable so at least we always have that.