The College Conspiracy

[Nathan_Mates]

To make a long story short, being financially irresponsible pays off when it comes to receiving grants and scholarships from private universities.

I believe your annual income has a larger ruling factor when it comes to how much financial aid you will receive from FAFSA, whether it would be in the form of grants, loans, or work study, as opposed to one's total savings and assets. Also, for grants from either the government or the university you plan to attend to, public or private, I'm quite certain the amount you receive is based on your GPA. Obviously, the higher your GPA, the more you will receive. That is, of course, if you apply for FAFSA regardless of your financial situation in order to be recognized.

Academics alone is what they can hope for on any scholarship, and that hasnt helped even though they get 3.4 thru 4.0.

Eh, if only that were the case nowadays. It's quite easy (well, that depends on one's work ethic) to main a GPA well above a 3.0 due to grade inflation over the years. While one's GPA might help, scholarships mainly look at extracurricular activities and such.

[kjeopardy]

Do you know what I've begun to wonder? Why do parent's bother saving money for their child's education? Do they realize that the saved money will only hurt them by taking away from the financial aid offered to them? My parents didn't save a dime for me to go to college, and my university was very generous with financial aid. However, I have friends whose parents saved a sickening amount of money just for their child's education, which simple screwed them over on the FAFSA. To make a long story short, being financially irresponsible pays off when it comes to receiving grants and scholarships from private universities.

Not true actually. I have 3 girls in college, a huge mortgage and many other expenses. To invest and save for your kids early on is a must, because I make good money, and that alone screws my kids out of a lot of scholarships. Academics alone is what they can hope for on any scholarship, and that hasnt helped even though they get 3.4 thru 4.0.

I agree with WD-40. You do need to save, although I think it depends on the particular college you are planning to go to.

State schools, I would assume, don't give subjective scholarship money: you either qualify based on grades, test scores, geographic location, and so on. Private colleges obviously award scholarship money for subjective reasons and arbitrary qualities that they look for.
. I believe that the Ivy Leagues are generous in their awarding of money, and are committed to enabling everyone who gets in to attend.

Other universities are known to be money-hungry, like NYU (not that there is anything wrong with NYU, simply that they are money-grubbers). They seem to be interested in opening foreign campuses and extracting money out of oil-rich Arabs and the burgeoning Chinese industrialist class.


In conclusion, WD-40 is correct: it is risky to not save money for college and rely on a university's generosity. I think you are better off saving whatever you can, and if that isn't enough, go to a university that will be generous. If you live in a state with a good state school, like California (UC Berkley), then you are lucky. If not, and you have a very smart kid, try to encourage him to do well and get into one of the big ones.

Regards

[WD-40]

Academics alone is what they can hope for on any scholarship, and that hasnt helped even though they get 3.4 thru 4.0.

Eh, if only that were the case nowadays. It's quite easy (well, that depends on one's work ethic) to main a GPA well above a 3.0 due to grade inflation over the years. While one's GPA might help, scholarships mainly look at extracurricular activities and such.

[kjeopardy]

Eh, if only that were the case nowadays. It's quite easy (well, that depends on one's work ethic) to main a GPA well above a 3.0 due to grade inflation over the years. While one's GPA might help, scholarships mainly look at extracurricular activities and such.

That is untrue: colleges first and foremost look at your academic credentials. Only after they have deemed them acceptable will they consider subjective factors, such as extracurricular, work experience, volunteer work, etc.

[Nathan_Mates]

Well, it also depends on the high school you went to, especially its quality. You could easily maintain a 4.0 GPA by taking, says, only non-honors or non-AP classes. I guess my point is, if all you have is a good GPA and nothing else, then your chances of receiving the scholarship (or getting into a school) won't be very good.

[(=DK=)Samonuh]

I'm quite certain the amount you receive is based on your GPA. Obviously, the higher your GPA, the more you will receive.

COMPLETELY untrue. Financial aid is based off your parents' income. I have a friend attending Pomona College who was less qualified than me but received a full-ride since he's living in virtual poverty.

[Nathan_Mates]

I think you took that out of context. I was referring to grants. I do realize that financial aid factors in one's household income greatly. As I have mentioned earlier, financial aid takes the form of grants, loans, and work study. Perhaps this friend's of yours family annual income in addition to his GPA set the necessary conditions for him to receive free money. It all varies from person to person.

[WD-40]

Academics alone is what they can hope for on any scholarship, and that hasnt helped even though they get 3.4 thru 4.0.

Eh, if only that were the case nowadays. It's quite easy (well, that depends on one's work ethic) to main a GPA well above a 3.0 due to grade inflation over the years. While one's GPA might help, scholarships mainly look at extracurricular activities and such.

Sorry, I thought I ereased this post from earlier, but got sidetracked before I could respond. I got a Naval scolarship and spent 8 years serving as a Navy Pilot in return. It was well worth it, as I presently fly Gulfstream 5 Jets as a 'side' perk today. Regular scholarships take in to consideration many things...the two biggies are income and grades. My income hurts me, whereas my 3 Daughter's grades help. It's a Catch 22. We are a 'white' family, so minority status is a no-go, and FAFSA looks at all this, plus how many are in college within the family. My wife is getting further education, so I now have 4 tuitions to pay for. But like I said, my income hurts me here. They don't care about the massive expenses you have, just the income. Oh well. What's surprising, is how many millions in scholarships go unclaimed or not even competed for due to a lack of knowledge about them. I heavily recommend saving for kids college. You just can't prepare enough for the uncertainty of college assistance.

[Mandalore]

Save? Blah, just work your 40 hours and be a full time student on the side.

[NiteRunner81]

Oh the lie that almost ruined my marriage before it started.

So, my in-laws tried to convince my hubby that if you're married you get absolutely NO financial aid for college... ROFLMAO.. Biggest lie ever.... Being married puts you in another category so that you are based of your and your spouse's income... which was $580 a month at the time (I was working a pt job and taking care of a sick family member during my off hours.).... hubby got grants, and extras galore.....

luckily a good Samaritan and friend of my hubby's dad outted the lie.