FIRST!!! never before

man...First AND Second??

3rd

Thanks for your frequent updates. Are the MIT Scholarships automatically renewable for all four years, or do we run the chance of losing that grant in future years?

Thanks mom! They are renewable but do require a reapplication each year. And since all of our awards are based on need, you need to show the same need each year. If income or assets increase or decrease, the award will change as well.

The subsidized loans that are mentioned in the comMITment booklet, am I theory qualify and able to borrow the maximum because I am a US Citizen?

So if that was true, is it possible for me to borrow the max 4000 from the Perkins and the max 3500 from the Federal Direct to cover my self help, and some of my parent's EFC? Also, if I decide to get all loans for my self help, am I automatically disqualified from working on campus?

(Sorry, I'm just trying to figure out how I'm going to pay for MIT :/)

Back again. We reported some small external scholarships on the PROFILE, but they did not show up on the award letter. Should we include them on the Self-Help form again? (I don't want to see them double-counted!) Is MIT's assumption that we will use all of those external scholarship funds first year, or are they allocated over four years?

Thanks!

Thanks very much for the timely delivery of my financial aid materials! My parents were wondering if there was any way that we could set up a CPW Financial Aid appointment before they actually arrive in Boston, as they won't arrive until Friday morning and are concerned that they won't get an appointment.

mr barkowitz... on my award letter i have a student contribution listed for x dollars (don't wanna post the actual amount). but i read in the packet there is also a summer earnings expectation. is the summer earnings in addition to the x dollars i owe? or is that included.

and is my self help contribution = x dollars?

it's a little confusing
thanks!

Greetings Great Guru of the Green!

I was just curious about managing money for students at MIT. I know most students use TechCASH, but what about savings accounts and misc. money? I believe that the jobs on campus are direct-deposit only, which means students must have some kind of account.

Would you recommend a savings account? I've looked at numerous savings account options, especially the online banks.

And then I have a checking account already, but I don't know how available ATMs or my bank branch is in the Cambridge area. Or do I even really need the checking account? I may rely much more heavily on TechCASH...

Any thoughts or ideas on the whole money management tips for students would be extremely helpful and ridiculously appreciated.

Thanks!

PS- I've inquired under Matt's last admitted post about this topic, but that was more an appeal for a student blog entry. I'm hoping to get more of a "professional" response by asking you. :-)

Hi - I haven't received the "big package" in the mail yet, and I was wondering if it was already sent out and it got lost, or has the package not been sent yet because of financial aid? Just wanted to check. Thanks!

SF Bay Area, California

Nope, Sareena, all big packages were mailed out, some with award letters some without.

If your financial aid award was missing, it will follow in the mail once we have your complete file and have a chance to review it.

Rob, great post idea! I'll do one soon on the topic!

Karen, we are not taking appointments at this time. Usually we only take appointment requests actually at the CPW registration desk when you check in, but don't worry -- we never run out of appointment times!

MIT '12 the summer expectation and the student contribution are the same thing.

Inquiring Mom, do list them again. Not sure how we missed them, but you should include them. They will just reduce the self help awarded...

Will, you can always borrow more than your self-help, but we should speak so that you look at all of your options. Do you already have an award letter?

Dear Mr. Barkowitz,

Is there any kind of financial aid or travel reimbursement available for students wanting to come to CPW but unable to without financial assistance? I would really, really love to come but I live so far away (Oregon) that with my family already trying to save up for next year, extra plane fare is a pretty big impediment.

Thank you so much for all the work you do!

Mr. Barkowitz,
You are perhaps the most important person in my journey to MIT. Thank you for the work you do. I am incoming freshman, with a financial aid application, and I just have one questions: I wonder did MIT ever endorse the movie 21?

It is very important issue that conflicts for me as a person, so please let me know.

Thanks,

To James - I'm sure Mr. Barkowitz can answer your question better than I can, but I'm just curious, why is it important to you whether MIT endorsed 21? As far as I know they didn't really play a role in the making/publicizing of the movie - it was based on a book by MIT alums, but not directly affiliated with the school itself. I also think that MIT has a policy against movies being filmed on campus, except for scene-establishing shots like photos of the great dome (and I think Kresge is visible in the background of one scene in Good Will Hunting - but all of the lecture halls in that movie were filmed at another school). Hope this helps answer your question!

Hi Daniel,
I did not get any MIT Scholarship. I reported my external scholarships (more than four year's self help and summer job) on my CSS profile, but they did not show up on the award letter. Since I do not need to file the Self-Help form, could you tell me how MIT will allocate the money?

Thanks!

I've gotten my award letter, it's just that the EFC isn't really doable for my parents. So, we'll need to take out some loans to cover some of it. I'd personally like to take the loans out in my name so that my parents don't suffer as much from it.

Hi!
Um.. I still haven't received my acceptance letter yet - or my FinAid letter. What should I do? Is this normal [I live in New Jersey]. Should it take this long to get here? Or hasn't it been sent out yet? I'm tired of running to check the mail and finding nothing! *pout* [I'm sooo sorry if I sound whiny.. but I'm sure you understand.. I just want to see it.. hold it in my hand... ^_^]Also, does the housing stuff come at the same time [I've already accepted the enrollment online - I just couldn't wait! =)]
Please Respond. Thanks so much!
Cheers,
Roshan

Hi, I have the same problem; my MIT mail package hasn't arrived yet (SF Bay Area, California). Should I check with the sorting offices of USPS? It seems like many have already gotten it in the mail already.

Thanks!

Sareena '12

if you dont get any financial aid and you talk to the finaid people at cpw, is there any chance that they can change their mind and give you finaid?

Mr. Barkowitz,
I noticed that my myMIT page said that I need to fill out the Loan Entrance Counseling form. However, when I click the link and then click on WebSIS, it says that I need a certificate. After I accept the certificate there is an error. Is there anything that I'm doing wrong?

Thanks!

Although my kid's "my.mit" financial aid portal says she will qualify for both financial aid and some self help, we haven't received paperwork of any kind. We live in an urban area which isn't well known for accurate mail delivery. How long do we wait before we get worried? Thanks!

Amy, we will take your request into consideration and I will speak to my admissions colleagues to see if there is anything available.

James! HAH! If I were those students I would have been laughing all the way to the bank! Don't think MIT ever endorsed it, but if they would like to turn over their royalties on the book and movie into an MIT scholarship, I am sure we wouldn't mind!

Nicole, you are correct in that the movie was not filmed on campus. They did do some filming on the street outside MIT, and closed the Smoot bridge one weekend to film a scene, but MIT did not give them permission to film on the campus itself.

Anonymous (boy it is awfully hard to help people who leave Anonymous as their tag since I don't know who you are), sorry if we missed that! Send me an email and I will correct. If you are no-need (and it sounds like you are), the scholarships will go first to reduce any federal need you may have (and therefore may change your subsidized loans to unsubsidized ones) and then will go to reduce your parent contribution (this is only because you are no need and there is no need-based money to be impacted).

Will, I'll do a post on this soon, I promise. In the meantime, if your parents feel the PC is not affordable and you think we missed something, give us a call and speak to your financial aid officer to see if an appeal is appropriate.

Roshan, your financial aid award was part of the package that was mailed last Monday. Give it another couple of days. If it is not there by the end of this week, then call our office for a duplicate. As for housing, that information will be forthcoming in the mid-May mailing. In the meantime, if you can't wait you can explore the residences by clicking here.

Sareena, see my answer above.

Elizabeth, it is unlikely that we would just "change our mind" at CPW, but we will meet with you and review your award if you wish. at that time, the counselor can review with you how we calculated your award and discuss with you if there are any grounds for a possible appeal of our financial aid determination. Once we have a written appeal from you, we do meet daily during the month of April to review these (however, not during CPW). Of course, you do not have to wait until CPW to talk to someone. Call our office now and speak to your financial aid officer to review your case if you are surprised by our letter.

Celena, you have to have a kerberos id to access this page and one will not be coming to you until mid-May, so no worries!

A Parent, give it a few more days. If you don't have it by this Friday, call our office and request a duplicate award letter (also, I do not know when your award was sent as you did not indicate your son or daughter's name, so it may be that we just sent your letter). Give it a little time!