Need Blind Admissions - The Definitive Guide
Undergraduate and Graduate Admissions Insights provided by admissionsdecisions.com
Welcome! For the month of December, we will be bringing several posts focused on understanding financial aid as it pertains to undergraduate admissions. From the conversations we have with parents and educators, the financial impact of a college decision can often be as important as the academic preparation necessary to be admitted.
You want to arm yourself with all of the financial aid information you can. In our experience, many parents have similar views on college:
We can’t afford that! - These are typically parents who look at the “sticker” price of a college and assume they have to pay the entire cost of attendance. They usually defer to in-state tuition for public schools and hope for scholarships to limit their out of pocket expenditures.
We didn’t expect that! - These are typically parents who did not consider the cost of colleges and financial aid until applications have been submitted and financial aid awards are made. Parents then begin to panic and wonder how they will pay for colleges after college applications have already been submitted.
No matter the circumstance you are in, understanding financial aid will help you make informed decisions and prepare as best you can.
On to today’s topic: Need-blind admissions.
Part 1: What are need-blind admissions?
When applying to colleges, one of the considerations you need to be aware of are whether a college considers financial need in their admissions decisions.
Need-blind admissions means that for the purpose of admissions, the college will not consider an applicant’s ability to pay tuition. Whether your family makes $60,000 a year or $60,000,000 a year has no impact on the admissions decision.
College and universities that are need-blind will be explicit in their website, such as the below from Brown University:
Note: if you are an international applicant, confirm that admissions will be need-blind for you as well. In most cases, college admissions is not need-blind for non-US citizens/permanent residents.
Need-blind decisioning helps admissions with selecting the best applicants without concern for pay, but the reality is that most schools cannot afford to be truly need blind. In our estimates, there are approximately 100 colleges and universities that explicitly state they utilize need-blind admissions.
But what does need-blind admissions mean for financial aid?
Part 2: Need-Blind Financial Aid Policies
For the colleges that do participate in need-blind admissions, it is important to understand that need-blind does not mean free college. Although the exact terms will vary from college to college, there are typically three kinds of financial aid policies at need-blind institutions.
Policy #1 - All demonstrated need met, no loans as a part of financial aid
Although we will get to a discussion on “ demonstrated need” in another post, demonstrated need is the difference between the “sticker price” (i.e., the cost of attendance) and the expected family contribution (i.e., your out of pocket contribution). This demonstrated need is then addressed through a combination of grants, scholarships, loans, or work-study options.
For colleges that offer no-loan, all need met policies, the financial aid package will:
Meet the full value of the demonstrated need
Will not include loans as a part of the financial aid package
This most often means that you will graduate debt free. As an example, let’s assume a student is applying to the University of Florida as an out-of-state student.
University of Florida Out-Of-State Cost of Attendance ~ $45,000
The student’s family makes approximately $75,000 a year. Based on a hypothetical FAFSA submission, the estimated expected family contribution is $5,000 a year.
University of Florida Out-Of-State Cost of Attendance ~ $45,000
Expected Family Contribution - $5,000
Demonstrated Financial Need - ~$40,000
In that scenario, the University of Florida would meet all of the demonstrated need ($40,000) and all of that need would be met by a form of financial aid other than loans (e.g., scholarships). The family would need to figure out how to meet that $5,000 contribution piece.
Policy #2 - Full Need with Loans
These schools are similar to those in Policy #1, but they are willing to use loans as a component of the financial aid package. For simplicity, sake, let’s use the exact example as above with the University of Florida:
University of Florida Out-Of-State Cost of Attendance ~ $45,000
Expected Family Contribution - $5,000
Demonstrated Financial Need - ~$40,000
Scholarship: - $20,000
Work-Study - $7,500
Loan - $12,500
In this scenario, the university is willing to meet all of the financial aid, but it will be met in part with loans. Obviously not as good as policy #1, but all of the financial need is met in some way. Understand in this scenario, the entire amount of demonstrated financial need could be met with a loan.
Policy #3 - No Guarantee of Financial Aid
Some universities will guarantee need-blind admissions but not guarantee they can provide you financial aid to meet your demonstrated need. Using the University of Florida example:
University of Florida Out-Of-State Cost of Attendance ~ $45,000
Expected Family Contribution - $5,000
Demonstrated Financial Need - ~$40,000
Financial Aid Offered - $30,000
Grant: $10,000
Work-Study: $7,500
Loan: $12,500
Remaining Financial Need: $10,000
This scenario is a little more complicated. Based on financial aid calculations, the demonstrated need is $40,000. But the university is only offering financial aid up to that amount. In this situation, the financial aid offered is $30,000. The remaining $10,000 has to be made up by the applicant/their family. So instead of the $5,000 expected family contribution, they will need to find an additional $10,000 to meet that obligation through either private loans, outside employment, or some other contribution.
Conclusion:
If you have not begun applying to colleges yet, you will need to ask questions for any school you are considering applying to. Usually, colleges and universities will provide this information on their websites, but it may not always be easily or readily available. When in doubt, email an admissions officer to understand if the college is:
Need-Blind in admissions
Meets full demonstrated need
If it does, does it meet full demonstrated need with loans
FAFSA and demonstrated need isn’t perfect, but many colleges and universities also provide calculators online to help you determine an estimated out of pocket cost to you. Use the tools and information above to determine if the college or university is a real possibility for you.
If you have already applied to college, you have limited your options but you can still use this information to get a preview on what the financial options may be for the schools, particularly if you have applied Early Action and need to make some estimates on what financial aid options may be available to you.
Hopefully this was helpful to you. If so, feel free to share it with anyone you believe could use this insight.