What percentage do you pay?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I pay about 1/3 of the listed tuition thanks to very generous financial aid. I work for a nonprofit and my spouse died in 2021, so single income family. But the school feels my child adds something to their community and has worked to make tuition, although still a good chunk of my income, affordable as a result.

This sentiment has always bothered me. Your child “adds something”? So, it’s not enough the school would be good for your child, your child has to justify their presence by being “good for other kids to be around”? I read a private school website once that said “we think our students benefit from being around kids from other backgrounds, so we provide financial support to their families”. It’s gross.

No private schools except one or two can afford to meet for need for every candidate they admit. Aid is limited, and so they only meet need for their favorite candidates who serve a purpose to the school in building the class.

I wish every qualified kid needing aid was admitted with full aid. But since that’s not reality, the school ends up being much choosier with kids in need of aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:What in fact the school calls financial aid is not really financial aid, it’s called Third-degree price discrimination. That is when a firm charges different prices to different groups of customers for the same or similar product, based on observable characteristics.

This is a strategy designed to maximize revenue since you are charging each customer according to their willingness to pay. The poorer families pay less, the richer families pay more through donations. Nothing well intentioned or good is attached to “financial aid”.

Nope. Wrong. They have more than enough full pay families due to very low admissions rates. This keeps getting debunked over and over again. Unless it is a failing school that can’t fill their seats, this doesn’t apply.

Im the DMV, financial aid is actually a form of charity to help the less fortunate get through hardship.

It’s “actually” not but I know this is your priority focus in life so there is no point in trying to convince you otherwise.

The schools actively fundraiser to fund financial aid. It is supported by philanthropy and aims to help the less fortunate. How is this not charity?

Philanthropy is for poor people. There are no poor families in our private school.

Let’s not forget that some of the most talented kids in a school are on financial aid. And some of the least talented kids are from full pay families.

Sure, and the opposite is always true. Some of the least talented kids are on financial aid. All kids are held to the same admissions standards however the admissions team can’t always get it right since they are trying to predict future performance. Mistakes happen.

The bolded is not true. Only a few schools in the area are need blind and meet full need. At other schools, financial aid is limited, and only the strongest candidates receive aid. Others are either not admitted or are admitted without aid so they don't actually come.

That is a misunderstanding.


The need aware process only offers admission if the school can meet the expected financial need of the family if they also applied for financial aid. However the standard for admission is the same whether they apply for financial aid or not. I hope that helps clear things up for you.

Please cite a source that applies to every DMV private. Would be much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

The people here are so weird. I would never give a thought to who is getting aid and who isn’t. Sounds like a lot of jealous middle class strivers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The people here are so weird. I would never give a thought to who is getting aid and who isn’t. Sounds like a lot of jealous middle class strivers.

Sure but take a step back and ask, what is the point? Everyone already has financial aid from the government with public school. If you can easily fill all your seats with competitive applicants, which is true at a lot of schools, what are we even doing here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The people here are so weird. I would never give a thought to who is getting aid and who isn’t. Sounds like a lot of jealous middle class strivers.

Sure but take a step back and ask, what is the point? Everyone already has financial aid from the government with public school. If you can easily fill all your seats with competitive applicants, which is true at a lot of schools, what are we even doing here?

Creating the best possible class environment for learning and that aligns with the school mission, which requires accepting some *gasp* people who can’t pay 60k per kid per year. The ability to pay isn’t the sole admissions criterion.

[Anonymous]

I’m thrilled I have the means enroll my child in whatever school is the best fit without regard to pay. These people hyper focused on whether someone else is sufficiently “deserving” of a non-transferable discount are pathetic. And I assure you, tuition isn’t going to go down because a school reduced or eliminated its aid program. Schools don’t operate like that. They’ll just start fundraising for something else, which may also not directly benefit your child (think: a new boathouse even though your kid doesn’t row or sail. The horror.).

[Anonymous]

Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

No, middle class families that pay full tuition don’t like financial aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

No, middle class families that pay full tuition don’t like financial aid.

Then don’t be merely middle class and seek out expensive private school education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

Considering they all have the same terse style and tone, i'd be surprised if it was even a handful

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

Considering they all have the same terse style and tone, i'd be surprised if it was even a handful

Think about. Which situation are you going to be more comfortable with: when your taxes help poor people, or when your taxes help affluent people that are homeowners with enough income to regularly go on vacation? Well, it shouldn’t be that different with financial aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jeff, can you tell if the complaints about financial aid are coming from the same handful of posters?

Considering they all have the same terse style and tone, i'd be surprised if it was even a handful

Think about. Which situation are you going to be more comfortable with: when your taxes help poor people, or when your taxes help affluent people that are homeowners with enough income to regularly go on vacation? Well, it shouldn’t be that different with financial aid.

Oooh boy tell me you’ve never heard of the tax code without telling me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The people here are so weird. I would never give a thought to who is getting aid and who isn’t. Sounds like a lot of jealous middle class strivers.

Sure but take a step back and ask, what is the point? Everyone already has financial aid from the government with public school. If you can easily fill all your seats with competitive applicants, which is true at a lot of schools, what are we even doing here?

I’m the person you were responding to. Your problem is that you keep saying “we.” There is no we. There is the school, which is deciding what to do with their aid budget. You are not a part of it in even the most remote sense.

[Anonymous]

We get a volume discount, and pay a bit over 3/4s. It's not a particularly expensive school, but we are up to our eyeballs in children and, while well off, are not *that* well off.

[Anonymous]

https://www.brearley.org/tuition-free/