How to balance prestige, merit scholarship, and honor the student’s accomplishments – Cathy Copeland Titus
Parents looking at college for their child are often shocked with two key changes that have occurred since they attended: the cost has skyrocketed and top-tier colleges have become considerably more competitive. And yet they often fall into the trap of “making it work” financially if their student gets into a top-tier, brand name college. Often parents acknowledge that, along with straining their finances, their student may struggle in the beginning as they acclimate to a new social environment, class schedule, and work load. This is especially true when a student is at the bottom of the accepted candidate pool. Very often these students applying to Ivy League and top-tier colleges were toward the top of their class in high school, which creates an extra challenge when they realize they are far from special and need to put in the extra work to truly thrive.
As college advisors, we work with a student to be sure their college list represents a range of academic options and acceptance rates. The pressure many students feel to choose a major before applying has greatly impacted how they develop their lists. Although I would never discourage a student with a passion, I also firmly believe in a liberal arts education and the opportunity to have many options as a student matures and develops their interests.
So how do we provide a college list with options that have the right balance of academic options, challenge, and is mindful of the parents’ budget? The use of reach, target, and safety can be interpreted to also include the option of increased likelihood of merit award, and help bridge the gap between Cost of Attendance (COA) and what the FAFSA or CSS indicates a family should be able to pay. Adding the financial considerations of the family to the equation narrows the intersection of colleges, but for any given situation there is a set of great options.
As a contributor to Beth V. Walker ‘s most recent book, Buying College Better, I apply the phrase she coined, the “Academic FICO Score” to the equation. What this means in simple terms is using an evaluative metric of the students’ accomplishments to determine if they are close to the top of the accepted candidate pool. This is likely where the student will be awarded enough merit scholarship to make the college a real possibility. Many colleges will offer merit awards—regardless of any need-based eligibility—to students they find attractive and believe will thrive. This practice is known as tuition discounting and represents a solution for many families.
This information is publicly available. However, the most effective way to use this data to your advantage is with software created by Gage Mersereau , GradBetter, a professional software platform for college advisors. Advisors invite their families to calculate their own SAI and budget. After collecting a transcript and school profile, advisors develop a robust student evaluation with ListHERO, GradBetter’s list building tool. This determines the student’s competitive position at over 1,000 colleges. Creating a college list where the student is high in the competitive pool then lets advisors cross-check the list in Merit Insights and estimate the possible merit award. This makes adhering to the family budget within reach, without having to be a financial expert.
The system: Determine your family budget. Evaluate a student’s profile. Find options that work for both.