how to bargain or negotiate with top choice for better funding????

[wannaknow]

ok how do I go about trying to negotiate for better funding with my top choice "Penn". I have been accepted to 3 other schools and do not have FINAL word on funding from everyone but I wanted ot start thinking aboiut how this is done. I know people do it all the time so who do I talk to at the school? What do I try and bargain for?????? any advice???

[hullo]

Here's an old topic that talks about it a little:

But yeah, I'm also wondering about this...

Edited March 10, 2011 by hullo

[Curious12345]

Well, the thing you have to remember about these schools is that they are businesses. The product is education. They want to get off with providing you that product with the least amount spent on you.

So your objective is to get them to spend more, the boyscout way of doing things is to wait for all of your funding packages to come through and hit your top choice with your best funding package and say hey can you match that? If they say yes, then go back to the other and say that another program is offering the same thing and you really need more from them if they want you. If that works out, then go back to your first choice and have them try to up the ante. Its kind of like buying a car.

The other way of doing things is to make up an imaginary fellowship you got from a school saying that they are giving you a full ride plus X amount of dollars (Make it something reasonable like $15K first year and 10K second year with TAship), see what they say, they will probably lay all their cards out and give you the best they can possibly do.