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Health & Fitness

College Advising: Can You Get a "Full Ride" for Four Years?

There are lots of contingencies to getting even a little merit money and even more for a fully paid college ticket. The best plan is to study hard, save aggressively, and apply realistically.



This year we had more than one family with severe money concerns. These families each wanted their students to receive merit money or even win a “full ride” for four years. Though there is no easy money out there, starting early, working hard, and lowering your expectations are great ways to save on tuition. I'd like to share a few financial case studies on the money problems and solutions that some of our families have faced in recent years (while also protecting the privacy of our clients.)    

Here are a few Case Studies that illustrate a range of money struggles and solutions:  

1. A talented student from a financially stable family: Michelle’s dad saved for years and budgeted for $40k per year for college.  Michelle is a very gifted student and was accepted to all of her reach schools.  Her first choice was Georgetown, but as with most top tier schools, Georgetown does not offer merit money. The family doesn’t qualify for financial aid so if Michelle attends Georgetown, the family will be expected to pay $60k per year.  Because of the deal with her dad, Michelle would need to borrow $20k per year in order to attend. Michelle was also accepted to Occidental College where she was granted $15k per year in merit money. Her dad was delighted with this award and offered to pay the remaining $45k per year (even though it was over budget.) Michelle declined Georgetown in favor of her best target school, Occidental College.  Once enrolled, she earned the recognition of her biology professor and was offered a lucrative summer internship, which allowed her to save for medical school.  

2. An average student from a family that has saved almost nothing for college: This is a double whammy. Paul had a transcript full of C’s, but we could see that he had drive and ambition. He applied to target and safety schools only, but the results of his financial aid offers were not enough for his family.  He was disappointed, but decided to live at home, attend community college and transfer in two years.  In that time, he matured and became a motivated learner. His transcript from community college was stellar. In addition, he won numerous writing competitions and published several short stories.  He applied to transfer to Stanford and was accepted with a “full ride!”  

3. A talented student from a family that has not saved enough money for college: Dan’s family could only afford $15k per year.  Dan wanted to attend a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. He’s self-motivated and created a fund-raising project that not only raised money for his summer program, but endeared him to both the Admissions Office and Financial Aid Office of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. He received enough merit aid so that his loans will be very small. When he returned for summer vacation, he was able to get a great job in his field to offset his future debt.  

Conclusion: The most important piece of advice I can give to families with young students is that no matter how talented or brilliant your student is, don't start with the expectation that he/she will get a "full ride" to college. There are lots of contingencies to getting even a little merit money and even more for a fully paid college ticket.  The best plan is to study hard, save aggressively, and apply realistically. Call us, we can help.  

--Plan early with www.PerfectFitCollege.Net    


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