The Changing Landscape 0

The relationship between the financial aid and admissions offices has changed over the years. Only a few colleges are still NOT need sensitive and are genuinely need blind when making their admissions decisions.

Unfortunately for the vast majority of college bound high school students, those are private schools that are extremely competitive such as Harvard, Yale and Princeton. There are about 50 colleges that still have enough cash in their budgets to fill a student’s need 100%.

Of course, the definition of need is the individual school’s (not your) interpretation of need. That is why we recommend every family complete a money-saving Dry Run years before a student even applies to a college. It is not necessary to have a final, or even preliminary list to do this exercise.

One of the first questions families used to ask when looking at a college was, “What are our chances for acceptance? (That was always an interesting way to ask it because one would think that the parent was also applying.) With the ever increasing cost of colleges that use government loans and grants to fill their aid packages, more parents are concerned about the cost and the first questions include Can I afford it?”

While admissions officers are well versed in SAT-score and GPA requirements for their institutions, it is now crucial that they know how to answer questions about eligibility for financial aid and merit scholarships. Although many admissions deans say they have always worked in close collaboration with their financial-aid offices, such efforts are becoming more critical as colleges tweak their aid policies and packaging to attract accepted students.

Various surveys and my conversations with admissions officers reveal that monetary issues weigh heavily on their minds. That concern is not shared with prospective students during the college tour. When asked which activities were most time-consuming, admissions officers ranked “communicating with other campus offices,” particularly the financial-aid office, the highest, with 70 percent reporting that they spend a “high” or “very high” amount of time on that activity. More than a dozen admissions deans interviewed by The Chronicle of Higher Education affirmed that statistic, saying they were in daily contact with their financial-aid colleagues.

To ensure that both admissions staffers and financial-aid professionals have the same understanding of their college’s enrollment goals, many institutions have enlisted enrollment managers to oversee both offices and act as a liaison between the two. At smaller colleges, where adding more staff members might not be feasible, it has become more common for the role of admissions dean and financial-aid director

As we enter the second half of the school year and high school sophomores, juniors and some seniors schedule April visits, find out a prospective colleges financial aid methodologies. In fact, ask us for the 7 Questions to ask Financial Aid Administrators. This will smooth the way to that conversation. Having a congenial Q & A with the FAO now, could pay off in the end. Remember, most financial aid officers have your best interests in mind, but they are also subject to the school’s policies. We can help you learn what they are beforehand. Call us today.