Daniel Barkowitz | March 18, 2009
"The letter is in the mail... (UPDATED)"
So, you logged into your decisions portal on Saturday (starting, no doubt, at 1:45 -- smiles), and you know you're admitted but now you are waiting for the financial aid information. Where is it?
Trust me, it is on its way to you!
We mailed early admission packets on Monday and the regular action packets hit the mail this morning. So you will soon be receiving a large folder at home with tons of information enclosed about lots of great things at MIT (including some information about affording the cost of your MIT education).
Some of you have been calling and asking if we can release a fax or email copy of your financial aid award. At this point, we are unable to do so. If you do not have your admissions packet by next Friday, please contact us and we can work on issuing you a replacement letter.
As a preview of coming attractions (so to speak) I will highlight what will be in the financial aid component of the mailing!
First, each of you will receive a copy of our financing guide entitled "ComMITment 2009-2010: MIT's Commitment to Access and Affordability for MIT Undergraduates and their Parents". The brochure highlights our costs as well as our billing, financial aid, loan and student employment policies and is a handy reference to share between parents and students.
Next, you will find a letter from our office (largely depending on your financial aid status).
Of the 1597 students who were admitted:
- 751 of you will receive a financial aid award letter. This letter will detail the financial aid funds you have been awarded (scholarships, grants, loan and work) as well as detail the next steps necessary to confirm your award (more on this later).
- 544 of you will receive a missing information letter. This letter indicates that there are still pieces of information which we need to determine your eligibility for financial aid. Please follow the instructions on the letter and, if you believe you have already sent in this information, check your My.MIT portal or contact us at 617-253-4971. Some of you have completed none of your financial aid paperwork; if you need assistance with this, please let us know. If you do not plan on completing your financial aid file, please also let us know so that we may close your application.
- 64 of you received a complete letter. This letter means that we received the information necessary for your financial aid award to be determined, but it came into our office in the last day or so and we were unable to prepare a financial aid award for you prior to the mailing. After this week, we will be preparing financial aid award packets twice weekly (Monday and Thursday) so your financial aid award will likely be in the next mailing.
- Finally, 238 of you will have no letter from us at all, other than a copy of the ComMITment booklet. This is because you indicated you would not be applying for financial aid. If your situation has changed, and you now feel the need to apply, please be in touch with us as soon as possible so that we may update your record and tell you what forms are required.
If you do receive a financial aid award, there are several forms which you will need to complete to affirm your financial aid award:
- First, if you have not already done so, you will need to complete any missing items for determining your financial aid (tax forms, W-2 forms, copies of 2008 taxes, etc.). If any of these forms are missing, your financial aid award is truly tentative as it was based on the information we had in hand when we reviewed your file, but it is likely to change once final verification information is provided.
- If you received MIT Scholarship, you will be required to complete a Student Information Review Form. This form, which we use to match your MIT Scholarship to particular funds established by MIT's generous alumni and friends, is required to be returned to us by May 1.
- If you will be receiving an outside scholarship from any private foundation, state agency, corporation or parent employer, we ask you to complete the Outside Award Reply Form. This form is used to adjust your loan and work award to accommodate your outside award, so it is critical that you return it to us once you have been awarded these scholarships, and that you update us later in the year if you receive any additional awards.
- We also ask that all domestic students complete a Credit Balance Authorization Form. While this form is required, your response on the form is completely your choice. On the form, you indicate whether you allow us at MIT to hold funds for you if those funds exceed the amount of your current balance, as well as authorize us to use your financial aid to pay non-standard charges (like library fines, MBTA passes, etc.). You must complete and return this form for your financial aid award to credit to your student account.
- You may see a document requested entitled "Pell Disbursement Record from COD". This is purely an internal document and as long as you complete all of your other forms, should not delay your receipt of funds. This document means that we need to obtain permission from the Common Origination and Disbursement system (COD -- what, you thought it was a New England fish?) before we can release your Pell, ACG or SMART Grant to you.
- Finally, you will NOT notice a form indicating your preference for loan vs. work. New this year, we have pre-assigned loans and work to students based on our own awarding priorities and (where available) your expressed preference as to work or borrowing. If we got it wrong, please be back in touch with us. We can switch loan to work, and vice versa, at your request. For families earning less than $75,000 we have only assigned work awards, but we understand that you may not want to work your Freshmen year and would rather borrow a student loan. We certainly can accommodate this request. For those of you from families earning more than $75,000, if you filled out the FAFSA (Federal Application for Federal Student Aid) we have your reply to a question which indicates your loan / work preference, and we awarded your self-help (what we call the combination of loan and work) based on your answer to this question. Again, if we have the balance wrong, let us know!
Also before any of you consider a parent loan or alternative loan (more about this later) you should make sure you maximize your eligibility for Federal Student Loans. We only award students loan amounts up to our self-help on the first pass, but if students need to access additional funds in the form of loans, we can certainly respond to these requests.
Lastly, if you feel the financial aid award we offered was insufficient for your needs, I will be addressing a future blog post to your concerns. In the meantime, you may want to review my previous post on this topic here.
Back to more financial aid files and reviews! Can't wait to see many of you at CPW!!!
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The author has filed this entry in the "Financial Aid" , "MISC" section; check it out for further reading on this topic. |
Responses To This Entry:
(Please note that comments are closed after 30 days to reduce spam.)
FIRST!
Thanks for all the aid!
Posted by: Maria '13 on March 18, 2009 07:36 PM
Thanks for all of your hard work, getting all of these FA decisions out so quickly! A few questions: how long will you be accepting the components of the FA application? I've still only turned in the FAFSA and CSS Profile - my parents are still working on their tax returns and NCP Profile. Would it even be beneficial for them to turn in the 2007 tax returns when the 2008 ones are close to being finished? Sorry for all the questions!
Posted by: Kim '13 on March 18, 2009 08:12 PM
so, just curious...
how are the loans going to work?
because there isnt really anything listed on the financial aid letter letting me know what kind of loan i qualify for
Posted by: 13er on March 18, 2009 08:33 PM
Dear Daniel,
last years you said (regarding a sneak peak at what the financial aid letter will say base on the MY MIT portal),
"If we are missing the Student Information Review Form, then you are receiving MIT scholarship. If we are missing the Self-Help form, you have a Self-Help award. If we are only missing loan paperwork, then you will not be receiving grant assistance from MIT."
What if MY MIT portal only shows:
* Pell Disbursement Record from COD
* Credit Balance Authorization Form
????
just curious.... thanks!
Posted by: Carlos '13 on March 18, 2009 10:16 PM
Thank you
Posted by: shuo on March 19, 2009 12:27 AM
Thank you so much, to all of the admissions staff, for working so hard for us!
I can't wait to get my official letter and all the great stuff that will come along with it. :) (hopefully in tubular form?)
Posted by: Christine on March 19, 2009 01:54 AM
Sorry to say that the only thing that has ever come in a tube from MIT, iirc, is the EA acceptance stuff.
Posted by: Narce on March 19, 2009 02:36 AM
Dear Daniel,
I need some help with applying for financial aid. Could I please get your email id? Couldn't find it..
Posted by: Aakriti Shroff on March 19, 2009 01:07 PM
Daniel said: check your My.MIT portal or contact us at 617-253-4971.
6+1 7-2 5+3-4+9-7+1 i have trvly fovnd heaven
Posted by: comboy on March 19, 2009 02:14 PM
two heaven no eight
Dan counts from one to nine
Dan loves heaven more than eight
He likes sentences with six words
fall seven times stand up eight
i love heaven more than fall
six sentences with six words each
Posted by: comboy on March 19, 2009 02:24 PM
DANIEL BARKOWITZ and the finaid office,
THANK YOU! for making MIT possible for me and my family. I was dreading a hefty price tag and were seriously considering state school, but your offer is very reasonable for our finances.
See you next year,
Tim
Posted by: Tim '13 on March 19, 2009 02:49 PM
@ Aakriti Shroff answer is here
Posted by: comboy on March 19, 2009 03:28 PM
Speaking of financial aid, is the admissions committee for questbridge applicants the same as the committee that accepts/denies regular applicants? Thanks.
Posted by: Tim on March 19, 2009 04:10 PM
Thanks you so much! I thought we wouldn't get those until after CPW (hence the finaid presentations...).
Time to stalk the mailbox once again :)
Posted by: Masha on March 19, 2009 04:30 PM
MIT, I can not thank you enough for your generosity. The opportunity you have extended will impact a family that has not had college success for generations. We will always know that it was through 1 child at a time that you have helped to make our society better. From a family of 100's of extened members, Thamk You !!!
Posted by: mom on March 19, 2009 09:35 PM
THANK YOU!
I just received my financial aid letter today, and it is more than I could have ever wished for. Thank you for your generosity, and making MIT a true possibility for my family.
Now comes the tough decision making...
Posted by: Saskia '13 on March 19, 2009 10:02 PM
MIT,
I can't say that the offer was the least bit generous--in fact it was very much as expected.
I'm not sure that MIT will be any different than the other schools (which have yet to report their aid offer) but we will see.
The middle class is screwed in this country.
But more than that, those of us who save, live within our means, work hard to perform in our jobs, put everything into raising our children, and plan for the future, are PAYING THE BILL for everyone else in this country (rich and poor).
I guess we should have bought the ovesized house, "invested" in the boat, paved the driveway, built the addition and painted the rest of the house, bought the new car and the HDTV, taken some trips, heck even gambled some of it way, and THEN applied for financial aid.
We would have more to show for it in the end, and maybe we would have had more fun along the way.
Posted by: Anonymous on March 19, 2009 10:16 PM
@ Anonymous
That seems to be the case. Sigh ... I'm still hoping for a generous offer.
Posted by: Carlos Emilio '13 on March 19, 2009 11:12 PM
I'm still waiting for my letter. *sigh*
@Carlos Emilio:
Agreed. I'm still hoping for a generous offer.
Posted by: Anonymous on March 19, 2009 11:44 PM
Thanks for considering me Sire...
Posted by: Colton '13 on March 19, 2009 11:55 PM
@ Carlos Emilio '13
You have also gotten accepted to Caltech, right? Haven't they already made a financial aid offer? I received mine last week and I'm all the way in Ethiopia. Hey, you can use the financial aid offer difference between the two schools to pick between them, if there is a significant gap that is (that's what I'm doing!) If not, then you and I are back in square one.
Posted by: Rediet '13 on March 20, 2009 01:02 AM
Thank you MIT! I got the letter today and am thrilled about the aid package!
Posted by: Anonymous on March 20, 2009 02:54 AM
@ Anonymous
Yeah, middle class got screwed.
Oh well, time to figure out how to get some loans. or something.
MIT, I'm curious why outside scholarships must first go through the "demonstrated need" instead of lessening the burden on the family? I guess it's just a little disheartening. I still love MIT, just trying to figure out a way that I can say YES!...
Posted by: Avo '13 on March 20, 2009 11:12 AM
MIT,
I haven't received my financial offer yet. I just hope its because I live in an isolated place in the planet, Santiago, Chile.
Posted by: Jose De La Llera on March 20, 2009 04:12 PM
@ Anonymous
I could not agree more with you.
We are middle class professional, and worked 50+ hours a week regularly without any additional pay. Salary person. We sent first child to school last year, and second one will go to school this fall. Both of our children got almost nothing for financial aid, around $1000 work-study and $2000 high interest load yearly. We like MIT very much and MIT would be first choice if we could get some financial help. Now we have to select other school for financial reason. We are waiting for the financial information from Caltech; it might be same as MIT. Some schools offered our child full scholarship, including full tuition, room and board. We may have to consider these schools. I am wondering if it is good decision to spend $220,000+ for MIT. The fact is that the middle class has to work hard and pay taxis, and get no help.
Posted by: MiddleClass on March 20, 2009 07:53 PM
@ Anonymous, MiddleClass
Thank you, thank you for sharing your voices. I strongly believe that the government and institutions should reward those who work hard and save up for their children's education; they are, after all, our future. It is incredibly unfair that the majority of the academic financial burden must fall on the middle class's shoulders. They do not qualify for much (if any) financial aid, yet they cannot comfortably shell out over $200,000 for a great education (and that is just for one child). The huge hurdle of getting into such a wonderful university might be over, but the mountain of tuition has yet to be climbed. I cannot put my frustration into strong enough words when I see students who have gained admission into the colleges of their dreams but who cannot attend because of staggering costs. Yes, MIT has amazing financial aid, but only for certain income levels.
If you took the time to read this, I thank you, and ask you to give the middle class situation another thought.
Posted by: Anonymous2 on March 20, 2009 11:53 PM
Thanks so much! I got my letter and I couldn't be happier.
Posted by: Kristina '13 on March 21, 2009 01:18 AM
there is absolutely no way i can go to mit because i do not qualify for aid... getting my admission letter was unbearably sad because the there is no way i can afford my dream school. what can i do?
Posted by: s '13 on March 21, 2009 11:24 AM
I am still waiting for my package including financial aid materials. I 'm also curious about how much money i will receive from MIT. In the accordance of MIT's website of finance, MIT will meet full financial- need of all admitted students. So, is that truthful or not ?
Posted by: thai pham on March 21, 2009 11:46 AM
i love donald sadoway when he says: they didn't name it after a baseball player, isn't this nice
most baseball players and other sportmen from different countries own square meters of land and numerous recently designed fast cars, same time their nose is running and they use color theory to excuse their fatness (fitness)
MIT stewdents worth more than passing their time looking forward for money-aid. if you gimme some money i would make paperplanes with that.
I love this nice Donald Sadoway
Posted by: comboy on March 21, 2009 02:13 PM
Dear Mr. Barkowitz,
In reference to outside awards (I understand their application toward reducing work award figures) but wonder... should the outside award monies be significant, are we able to apply any of that money toward the general bill to reduce the amount of parental contribution? Our daughter continues to work diligently applying for outside scholarships,as she will be our third full-time college student for the 09-10 year. Thank you,.....this is a very exciting time.
Posted by: grateful '13 parent on March 21, 2009 11:32 PM
I am unsure why there are postings about outside money being applied to reduce MIT scholarships. The ComMITment book states: "OUTSIDE AWARDS are scholarships, grants or benefits from private sources other than MIT. If you receive an outside scholarship for $1,500, we use it to offset your self-help. So if your self-help is $4,750, an outside award of $1,500 would reduce your self-help to $3,250 for that year. If your outside award is greater than your self-help, we then reduce your summer earnings expectation rather than your MIT scholarships. That’s because a scholarship is the best kind of financial aid. Once your self-help and summer earnings expectation have been met by outside awards, we do have to offset your MIT scholarship because we can’t award you total funds beyond your need."
If my child gets enough money to offset self-help and summer earnings, my child will work and send her family most of that money to apply for the family's contribution. There will be sacrifices from all of us, and my student does not have any intention of keeping any money that will make the MIT life-style easier than the struggling family's.
My student has not received the FA letter yet, but we are hopeful it will be reasonable. We plan on cutting back to the bare bone to try to afford this. In the end, if MIT cannot come up with enough help, and we've already cut back all discretionary expenses (other than retirment) as far as humanly possible, our student will also attend one of the full-scholarship-offer-schools. It would be a shame as that would not be first choice, but who ever guaranteed we will all be able to get our first choice? It's a lesson that is hard to learn, but our students will learn it. And if it makes a significant impact on the number of admits who actually enroll at MIT, MIT will also learn from it.
Finally, for those of you (us) who have scrimped and saved for college expenses over the years, that is what you were doing! You were paving a road so that this might be possible for your student. Despite your disappointment with MIT, your family is in far better shape than those who were irresponsible, or those whose families never had enough to eat, let alone to save for college.
Posted by: Hopeful on March 22, 2009 03:16 AM
Don't hide your mistakes share them
Posted by: comboy on March 22, 2009 07:59 AM
@ s'13 you are absolutely
right
Posted by: comboy on March 22, 2009 08:15 AM
Posted by: comboy on March 22, 2009 08:56 AM
s13:
Call MIT and ask what you can do. Maybe you can defer for a year and sock away some money. I wouldn't give up yet.
Posted by: Reply on March 22, 2009 02:33 PM
yeah defer like she did didfair
Posted by: comboy on March 22, 2009 07:46 PM
Daniel, our family is renting, and we have been saving aggressively for the house for a long time. Therefore, we have substantial savings. The question is: in assessing expected family contribution, does it make a difference to have equity in the house or cash in the bank?
Thank you.
Posted by: Proud father on March 22, 2009 08:23 PM
Dear Financial Services,
Thank you for making an MIT education affordable to my family.
Posted by: jose on March 23, 2009 08:03 PM
This offer for financial aid is difficult to understand. The world's financial/economic crisis makes it clear we have been doing the right thing by not going into debt, and funding our retirement, but you do not seem to want us to put one penny in our retirement for the next four years. There is no other way you could expect us to come up with that sort of EFC! We have ONE ten year old car, and some equity in the house, and that's it. Even if we wanted to use a home equity loan to help pay MIT, we could not get one. Pray for admission to Harvard, which appears to give more financial aid. If not Harvard, we'll have to consider the two other schools whose offers make EFC under $15 per year, not the more than double that amount MIT "calculates". (Could I borrow that caluculator to figure out what my job should pay me?) Sorry, but this just doesn't seem right.
Posted by: Penseur on March 25, 2009 05:31 AM
does anyone know when the next mailing of the financial aid package is going to be? I'm one of those ppl that submitted the last pieces of forms couple of days before they mailed the first set of letters
Posted by: Anonymous on March 25, 2009 07:00 PM
Daniel,
When the next mailing of the financial aid package is going to be?
(a financial aid update would be most appreciated!)
:-)
Posted by: Carlos '13 on March 26, 2009 03:49 AM
Posted by: comboy on March 30, 2009 08:54 PM
comboy Posted today 08:31PM snively blog
Posted by: comboy on March 30, 2009 08:56 PM
