Bargaining for College Scholarships & Grant Aid

All admitted college students, whether undergraduate or graduate, are considered for aid, both need-based and merit-based. While most need-based aid is determined by the school's Financial Aid office, and allotted based on the EFC (Expected Family Contribution) of the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), merit-based aid is determined by the admissions committee.

What does this mean to you?

As a college applicant, you are helpless to the whim of the college admissions committee. Of course, different schools have different admissions criteria and selectivity rates. However, this all changes once you are admitted to a school-suddenly, you are in the position of power and the admissions office is at your mercy.

As an admitted applicant, you are in the driver's seat, which gives you bargaining power over your aid package, both need-based and merit-based.

Bargaining for Aid

Primarily, be sure to complete all of the required applications for financial aid well before their deadlines. You want to ensure that you are not disqualified for aid due to a technicality.

Once you receive your award letter, give it some good thought. If you feel as if your award(s) are not appropriate to your level of need or numbers (GPA, SAT/GRE), then take the initiative to talk to the school about this. Many colleges are willing to work with the needs of their admitted students.

Merit Scholarship Bargaining

The merit scholarship is probably easier to bargain for because it is not solely based on your EFC, as need-based aid often is. Admissions offices are often wiling to work with admitted students to avoid dipping into their wait-lists too often.

If you received scholarship awards from other schools, consider using this as leverage to convince the admissions office that you deserve more merit-scholarship. Only use these scholarships as leverage if the schools are similarly ranked (aka you don't want to use a 30K scholarship from a state school to bargain with Harvard). Explain how it is financially impractical for you to attend the school in question when you have received a much more favorable scholarship offer from another school. Be honest with the admissions committee when you explain your situation; often times they are willing to consider you for a higher scholarship.

Need-Based Scholarship Bargaining

If you really feel as though the financial aid office did not take your financial need seriously enough, and your ability to attend the school in question hinges on your aid letter, consider bargaining. Bargaining with the financial aid office that determined the amount of need-based grant you were awarded can be difficult, but it can be done (with some persistence). You can try contacting the aid office directly and explain your personal circumstances; you can offer to send additional evidence of need, such as low paystubs, pre-existing educational or non-educational loan bills, and income tax returns. Explain to the aid office that you just cannot afford to attend the school because the award letter was not sufficient. You can also consider sending the aid office award letters you received from other schools.

End Note

Bargaining is a useful tool but it is usually dependent on the school's current need, availability of funds, and also your competitiveness in the school. If your numbers are incredibly high compared to the past year's admissions profile, you may have better luck bargaining a higher aid package.

Overall, bargaining is worth a try, as long as you remain courteous at all times. The more thoroughly you explain your situation, the more likely the admission office or financial aid office will respond positively to your request. Remember, during economically hard times, schools are pressed for money just as students are, so don't expect too much.

Lastly, I urge all students to apply for private scholarships. There are an abundance of private scholarships and grants available, and these funds are often under-applied for, so consider doing some research on your own.

Good luck!