Of course budgets are a "thing" at every organization. But that has nothing to do with whether the few need blind schools are lying about being need blind across their admissions as you suggest. |
If you are poor you should apply for financial aid. No one disputes that. Don’t apply for aid if you know you aren’t getting any. Our private counselor also suggested not to apply for scholarships where DC is not likely to get them. Including at places like Vanderbilt, WashU or Emory. If you’re not competitive for HYPSM, you were never going to get those scholarships anyway and applying for them can weaken your RD candidacy (by making it look like you were looking for the best financial offer before accepting). Remember in RD it’s all about optimizing yield /enrollment management. They are trying to determine if you will come if given an offer. If it seems like you would only come if the math works, you’re less likely to get the offer. Do some 1-on-1 meetings with former T20 AO on this topic. There are well intended but clueless parents commenting here. |
Then I apologize for not making myself clear. They are not lying about being need-blind - that is not my contention. Apps are read without regard for financial need and with no consideration of the financial aid application. Financial need comes into play later, at the back end of the process, in the aggregate, at the margins, and by proxy, during the shaping of the class between the admissions director and the enrollment management consultant. The issue comes down to how "need-blind" is defined, as was a key point in the lawsuit mentioned by a PP upthread. |
Dumbest advice I've ever heard. If the scholarship matters financially to your family at all, then apply for it. |
Answer this question, yes or no please: For a standard applicant, will applying for financial aid affect their admissions decision in ED or RD at a need blind college? |
For the purposes of this forum, and for the benefit of 99% of the participants therein who are not development applicants, I suggest the definition of "need blind" mean "ability to pay will not affect your admissions decision". |
Ok, but that's not how colleges use the term. |
Yes, it exactly is. It's not how the judge used the term. Same as before: Answer this question, yes or no please: For a standard applicant, will applying for financial aid affect their admissions decision in ED or RD at a need blind college? |
Applying for aid? No, because admissions officers do not see the financial aid docs or know that the applicant applied for aid. Ability to pay as indicated by proxy variables? Maybe, during the shaping of the class on the back end via yield algorithm score. |
Forgive me, I must have been unclear: Answer this question, yes or no please: For a standard applicant, will applying for financial aid affect their admissions decision in ED or RD at a need blind college? |
A few schools require FAFSA for merit. Most do not. So check the schools your kid is applying to. Between my 2 kids, they applied to 25 schools, got merit at 18 and never did a FAFSA. |
First, most schools that cost $90K+ are PRIVATE. So they can choose who to admit accordingly. |
At a state school, yes it is an issue. For private universities, nope, that is up to the school. However, even for state U, accepting more OOS/Foreign students means In-state costs stay lower. If they admit more instate kids, the $$ has to come from somewhere (and hint: it will come from higher tuition across the board, including in state students) |
That was your second question, to which the answer is no. However, you first said:
In contrast to "applying for financial aid," which will not affect your admission decision, "ability to pay" can, sometimes, affect your admission decision. |
| You think you can buy anything eh? |