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Will not asking for financial aid help my son get into Tufts if his gpa and SATs are below their norm? urm & legacy (brother attending)
Does paying full price help that much?

By Rowan (Rowan) on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 11:40 am: Edit

Theoretically (and let me note this is in NO WAY based on any fact), if I were a "not-for-profit" business and I was comparing the difference between very similar applicants (key: deciding which one to admit, which would require they plan on it in the first place) where one was willing to pay sticker price, I would probably go for the chap willing to pay in full.

However, things don't always work logically (and they often don't -- does that mean logic shifts?). If you need the financial aid, apply for it. If you don't, don't. Don't let chances dictate how many loans you're going to end up with -- if he gets in, it'll be on his own standing more than likely.

By Mamadem (Mamadem) on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 02:08 pm: Edit

I don't need to ask for aid and I won't be taking out any loans. I am just curious if you think there is a chance that with those stats my son
could get in.

By Lhomme (Lhomme) on Saturday, June 14, 2003 - 09:08 pm: Edit

Doesn't Tufts have a need-blind policy? If so, your son would not have a significant difference in acceptance chance either way.

By Interesteddad (Interesteddad) on Sunday, June 15, 2003 - 03:01 pm: Edit

What they say they have and what they really have are usually two different things. To have a "need blind" admissions policy, you have to have "x" percentage of students who pay their own freight.

If they did not consider it as part of the admissions policy, they would not put the question on the application. Notwithstanding what they say, I would assume that question asked on the application may be considered in some fashion in the applications process.

By Mamadem (Mamadem) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 01:06 pm: Edit

my son 3.3 gpa uw, SAT 560 math, 550 verbal.
I have heard that colleges accept borderline candidates when no financial aid is being requested. Has brother currently attending with somewhat higher stats and is an urm. What chance is there?

By Medusa2003 (Medusa2003) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 02:53 pm: Edit

In 2001 Tufts accepted only 23% of its applicants.

College admissions is not an exact science and different schools place different weights on factors like SAT scores, enthusiasm for the attending the school, grades, difficulty of curriculum based on what is offered by the school, URM status, legacy status, artistic talent, sports ability, extracurricular achievement, and ability to pay.

Our daughter was waitlisted by Washington University which accepts a similar percentage of students as Tufts with a 3.95 gpa uw and 800 math/770 verbal SAT. Much of the college admission process is subjective and it's hard to predict where a student will be accepted.

Everything else being equal I would think that your ability to pay full tuition would give your
son an advantage over a student with similar status, grades, test scores, and achievements who required significant financial aid.

Why does your son want to attend Tufts? What other schools is he interested in? What factors are important to him in choosing a school?
Does he consider Tufts to be the best match for him? Will he feel challenged or intimidated being in an environment in which his high school grades and test scores will place him near the bottom of the incoming class?

Given your ability to pay full tuition he will have many more options than students for whom cost is a significant consideration.

The conventional wisdom concerning college admissions is that a student should apply to at least six schools - two reaches, two matches, and two safeties. Tufts is definitely a reach.

Best of luck.

By Mamadem (Mamadem) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 03:56 pm: Edit

I know that Tufts will be a reach for my son. He will try applying ED. We are hoping that with a brother attending, urm (puerto rican) and not asking for aid might help him despite his stats.
He is also interested in Brandeis and BU. He would really like to be in Boston. We will definitely have at least 8 schools to apply to with safeties included.

By Reidmc (Reidmc) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 06:02 pm: Edit

Medusa: I'm wondering if your daughter visited Washington University or indicated to them in any way her relative level of interest in the school.

By Medusa2003 (Medusa2003) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 09:42 pm: Edit

To Reidmc:

Actually we suggested that she apply to Washington U. because it has strong programs in her fields of interest and we live about 10 miles away which would save on travel time and costs.

We told her that most of the students would be out-of-state and if she lived on campus it would be a similar experience to going away to college. She didn't visit, didn't interview, and didn't apply for competitive scholarships because she really wanted to leave St. Louis for college and applied only because we asked her to.
We also recommended that she apply to the University of Chicago but she didn't want the big city environment and did not apply.

She will be attending her first choice school Grinnell College in rural Iowa with a substantial merit scholarship which she considers to be a better fit for her.

By Medusa2003 (Medusa2003) on Monday, June 16, 2003 - 09:54 pm: Edit

To Mamadem:

Good luck on your son's college search. It seems that the acceptance rate for ED is generally better than for regular decision so it makes sense to apply ED if Tufts is his first choice.

If he has already picked out a range of eight schools including reaches, matches, and safeties it is probably best just to send the applications during the first quarter of senior year, try to forget about them, and enjoy his senior year.