caitmcguire

I have decided to attend Columbia! I had a very hard time with the decision as well and basically waited as long as possible to make it. For me, it came down to choosing the program I felt was the best fit for me. Now that I've made the decision, I feel really great about it knowing that I am going to the school that is right for me, personally. Good luck to you in your decision making!

I've decided to attend Columbia's 2 year program! Very excited to begin this new chapter and to be done with the grad school process!

Hey! So, my meeting with the director of admissions went well, I think. I have to wait about a week to hear if I will receive any more money--I received half tuition in scholarship from another school and I presented that information in my meeting. She basically said she couldn't guarantee anything but she would see what she could do. She also gave me an extension on submitting my intent to enroll because I won't hear about scholarship info from another school until mid-April. Overall, she was incredibly nice and helpful and even if Columbia doesn't work out for me, I have nothing but wonderful things to say about their admissions department!

Thanks! I definitely agree about Columbia's Admissions Office. I have been so impressed with them throughout this whole process. Even if I don't end up attending I definitely will still have a great impression of the program and the school because of them!

I will definitely let you know how it goes! My meeting is this Friday. I totally feel you about the loans...hopefully we are both able to get at least a little more money!

Thanks! I am not sure yet! I really want to but I didn't receive that much more aid from my appeal. I have a meeting next week with the director of admissions to discuss my situation and see if there is any way we can work past some of the financial barriers so I can attend. I am trying to be optimistic but also don't want to get my hopes up! If I don't end up going to Columbia then I will go to UNC which I would be very happy with as well.

No problem! I hope you get some good news

Mine took a week from the time I appealed to when I received my updated package.

I initially emailed the financial aid office and they directed me to the director of admissions, Debbie Lesperance. I basically stated that Columbia was my number one choice and that I was grateful for the initial scholarship offer but was still concerned about the cost due to the fact that I am coming straight out of undergrad and will be relocating from out of state. I also mentioned that I had been accepted to my state school which would be much more affordable due to in-state tuition.

I had one very minor scholarship offer from Fordham but was also admitted to my state school where I would receive in-state tuition, so I used that to leverage. I didn't even mention Fordham's scholarship because it was so minor. I think as long as you express your concerns and make it known that you really want to come to Columbia they should consider awarding you at least a little more money.

My appeal was granted today and I was given $2,000 more per semester, making my total award $22,000 per year (including $4,000 of work study per year). I'm still very hesitant due to the cost of living in NY...I'm not sure if I should try to appeal a second time or not. Columbia is my first choice but the price tag and the cost of living is just so daunting!

How long did it take to hear back from them about your appeal? I appealed and the last thing I heard from them was that it was under review last Thursday. Not sure if it's good or bad that I haven't heard anything :/ sorry you won't be attending Columbia but good luck to you!

Just got my acceptance letter! Will have to wait to see how the financial aid package looks before I can make a decision but am still very pleased.

This is the package I received as well. I reached out to the school to see if they could offer me any more so I am waiting on that. I was lucky enough to come out of undergrad without any debt, so I am considering taking out the loans to afford Columbia, though it is very daunting. I'll wait until I hear back about my appeal to make my decision.

I just received my financial aid package via email (I was accepted last week to the regular 2-year program). It was much better than I was expecting but I am still hesitant about the cost of attendance even after the scholarship...I will definitely be appealing for more. Fingers crossed it works! Congrats to everyone who was accepted today!

I was not Advanced Standing but I did apply by the priority deadline. I wouldn't worry!

My letter said this: "Information about scholarships and funding will be sent to you via email from the Office of Financial Aid within the coming weeks."

Just got my acceptance! I'm not optimistic about financial aid (that information is to follow in the coming weeks) but still very happy!

Hi Opt, long story short, I was not able to secure additional funding, which was the driving factor in my decision to turn down Fordham. I ended up having to call the financial aid office after not hearing anything and they said they never got my email, so I basically re-stated everything I had said in my email over the phone. They were very nice but I got the feeling that they really don't have a ton of funding to give out. The woman I spoke to kept directing me to apply for outside scholarships, which I have considered...but even if I won every scholarship I applied to I would still have to take out more loans than I'm comfortable with. It was basically a straight "no" but they seem very dedicated to helping students find additional funding from outside sources, which I thought was nice.

Thank you! My longterm goal is to end up in NYC so hopefully that happens eventually!

My residency status was "undetermined" as well. I am a North Carolinian born and bred but have been out of state for undergrad. I'm still claimed as a dependent on my parents' taxes so that alone makes me eligible for residency status. I think the residency application should be pretty straightforward, as long as you can prove at least one of the residency requirements with documentation.

Congrats, @Opt4theBest! I just got off the phone with Fordham and unfortunately, it doesn't look like I will be attending due to financial reasons. I really love the program but the cost of attendance and relocating from out of state is just more than I'm willing to take on in loans straight out of undergrad. Luckily I have another great (and affordable!) option with UNC! Right now it looks like that's where I'll be attending, but I am waiting to hear back from Columbia and Boston College to decide for sure. Good luck to everyone still waiting to hear from Fordham and congrats to everyone who's gotten in!

Ah, didn't even think of that--thanks! I will call on Tuesday.

This is the scholarship I received from them too--it's much too low for me to even consider attending, unfortunately. I asked for a reconsideration of my financial package but haven't heard back. I'm going to call them tomorrow to see if I can find out anything or at least get an extension on putting down the deposit. I really love Fordham but I have a much more affordable option that will be really difficult to pass up if Fordham doesn't offer me any more money.

I'm feeling very torn right now over this very thing. I was accepted to my top two choice schools and one is much more affordable (in-state tuition, I could live with family) but I feel that the other is a better fit program-wise and is in the state where I want to settle eventually. Unfortunately the better fit school is very expensive and I did not receive much in terms of financial aid. I know that the state school makes more sense financially (especially since it is a very good program) but I am concerned about my networking and job prospects if I am planning to work and live in a completely different state down the line. I'm just not sure if $50k+ of debt is worth it. I have asked the financial aid department at my first choice to re-evaluate my award package in hopes that they might give me more money, but I am not that optimistic.