NESCAC

[GreatWhiteNorth]

There seems to be a great deal of experience here with DIII so I have a couple of questions regarding the NESCAC.

1) Are the schools able to show flexibility on the "needs" of a student or do they strictly follow guidelines?

2) If a student has brilliant grades but under performs on the ACT/SAT, do they still have a shot?

GWN

[jonriv]

There are many combinations of need based and merit scholarships, financial aid etc availbale at these schools. Most will follow the "usual" guidelines, but don't get discouraged. Case in point, my son(not a colege athletic recruit) was recently accepted to a highly competitive school here in the Northeast, despite not qualifying for aid following the usual citeria- a wll crafted letter from Dad was able to get him $7 thousand in "merit" scholarship money- sometimes it just takes asking

As far as the NESCAC and SAT/ACT score- talk to the coach- they are allowed to "expand the box" for athlets, but not by much. The coaches usually know exactly what it will take (grades/tests) I know when my DD was recruiting the Tufts coach was very clear wht the minimums would be.

Good luck in your hunt- the schols in the NESCAC are all excellent schools

[Crankymom]

I'm a little confused by the first question. Does the student have an LD? If so, I understand that accommodations vary greatly from school to school - you really need to look at each school's website and maybe ask some questions on College Confidential in the specific school forums.

Without knowing more about the second part, it is tough to know if she has a shot. Is the brilliant GPA earned by taking AP and Honors courses? Does she have academic awards - debate team, Model UN, AIME qualifier, etc? If so, then the rigorous schedule and awards might make up for the SAT/ACT score.

Is her SAT/ACT score 25th percentile for these schools? If so, being a recruited athlete could be her ticket into these schools. 25th percentile would be around 2050/30 for the most elite NESCAC schools, though not all are that high (look at Trinity).

Could she go SAT/ACT optional or test flexible? A few of these schools fall into those categories. SAT/ACT optional will only work if she has some excellent academic achievements. Test flexible would be substituting something such as SAT Subject Tests or AP scores for the SAT/ACT.

Good luck in your college search.

[PDad]

1) Are the schools able to show flexibility on the "needs" of a student or do they strictly follow guidelines?

Are you asking about relaxed financial aid criteria for student-athletes? If so, athletically influenced aid is prohibited in several rules. The following one pretty well sums it up.

15.01.7 Eligibility of Student-Athletes for Institutional Financial Aid. A student-athlete must meet institutional regulations applicable to the general student body to be eligible for institutional financial aid. (Revised: 1/12/99 effective 8/1/99)

[jonriv]

PDad makes a good point. Don't look fo special financial treatment based on being an athlete- however there is always money availbale based on needs or merit(athlete or not)

[exD1dad]

There are 3 possible "exceptions" looked at by admissions for students on the cusp academically
1)Legacy
2)minority
3)athlete

[GreatWhiteNorth]

Thank you all for the responses.

My apologies as my question regarding the flexibility on the "needs" financially obviously wasn't clear enough.

I'm wondering if it is cut and dry and solely based on a family's income? In other words, there is an income but there are also expenses and debt.

[jonriv]

The financial forms are pretty cut and dry- they actually either have a direct transfer from your 1040 or a submission of various line number from your 1040 The Financial aid office also asked for 1040s and w2s from you, your spouse and the student- there are also questions on assets, investments etc...

All schools also have an appeal process where other info can be preseneted as well

Have you spoken with the coach at all?

[GreatWhiteNorth]

Thanks. Have follow up meeting with coach at Pennsbury and just trying to gather as much knowledge as possible.

GWN

[hit4power]

DD at one of the NESCAC schools. The big picture is that financial aid is generally in line with family financial situation which includes both income and expenses. So, for example, even if you have a strong income situation but also have 3 other kids in college, you will be looked at differently than the family with the same income and just one kid. As others have said, the financial aid application process will allow you to put your full situation on the table. Our experience, which may or may not have been typical, was that the coach was reluctant to engage in any detailed discussions about possible financial aid until DD was admitted. At that point, we found it helpful to keep the coach in the loop on the back and forth with the financial aid office. Again, as others said, do not be afraid to engage in a dialogue with the financial aid office once they have put their "offer" on the table. You may be able to improve the offer, or not, but it doesn't hurt to have a conversation and explain your situation if you think they have not fully understood.