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Negotiating up from a scholarship that has already been increased?

Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 10:01 am
by carasrook
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Re: Negotiating up from a scholarship that has already been increased?

Posted: Fri Feb 24, 2017 12:31 pm
by TomGrizz
I have a couple years of work experience as a college financial aid administrator, and have read more appeals for aid than I care to remember.

I don't think there's anything wrong with asking again, given that you have new information pertinent to your decision about which law school to attend. I would never have thought less of a student who appeals for a second time under your circumstances. The key is to be appreciative of both the original offer and the initial increase, while also stating frankly that minimizing law school debt is a serious priority for you, and total cost of attendance is absolutely going to figure prominently in where you commit to attend.

That being said, sometimes, increasing money on appeal has less to do with the merit of the student or validity of their request than it does with how much money is in the budget. The worst part of my job as a finaid admin was telling some student "We know we're not meeting 100% of your financial need, we know you're an excellent student and great person, and we know by any fair standard you deserve more money...that being said, the budget is dry and you're SOL."

(I never put it in quite those terms, of course, but that was the gist). So, if you appeal and don't get any more, it's probably not because you struck some minor functionary as ungrateful. On the other hand, telling them you're grateful, providing supporting documentation for the similarly-ranked full tuition scholarship, and stressing your interest in their school with the need to minimize debt isn't going to hurt you, either.

Best of luck!

Re: Negotiating up from a scholarship that has already been increased?

Posted: Thu Mar 02, 2017 5:35 pm
by potus
Would anyone suggest waiting for the week of when deposits are due to (re)negotiate for a higher scholarship? I'd imagine that would be the prime time to negotiate and I don't see any penalties for waiting that long since your seat is technically already secure.

The only fallback that I see is if you're negotiating for a higher scholarship for the first time during the week when deposits are due, and it might take longer than the deadline.