Boston University LEAP Program

[leappho2012]

You got your advisor already?

since you have "pho" in your username I am guessing you are trying to get in photonics? If so, are you doing EE? Prof. Nawab is the adviser for EE and he is amazing. One of the best profs I have ever had in my academic career.

Ooo nice. My advisor is actually Prof Hubbard of ECE. In my SOP I applied to EE with EMAG track, because I was nervous about over-specializing. Long story short, though, my love of partial differential equations and the quantum formalism led me to "follow my heart" and switch to the photonics track, which is essentially exactly the same for me with a couple convenient differences.

I will look up Nawab though! I want to leverage my maths to get into a lab soon (as a volunteer) so that I stand a chance of getting the research fellowship for Phase II, after this apparent Phase I financial raping...

[leappho2012]

You got your advisor already?

Sorry I forgot to add that I found this out via the letter of acceptance, specifically the attachment that calls for our FAFSA completion and lists Phase 1 requirements.. Actually Helaine told me prior to this, but everyone should have it there. Second paragraph.

[StaNg72]

Yeah, my advisor hasn't responded to any of my e-mails yet...the first one sent over a month ago. ::shrug::

[CMC_Kid]

Sorry I forgot to add that I found this out via the letter of acceptance, specifically the attachment that calls for our FAFSA completion and lists Phase 1 requirements.. Actually Helaine told me prior to this, but everyone should have it there. Second paragraph.

Whaaaaaa..

Edited April 17, 2012 by CMC_Kid

[jqvu]

hmm... interesting. my advisor is very quick with email, but I have not been able to get a hold of Helaine yet.

[jqvu]

I was really looking forward to LEAP but with no finaid, i cant afford to attend. I guess I would have to look for a secondary plan in life. At least, I'm grateful that I still have options.

[CMC_Kid]

I suppose it is time to initiate plan B: regroup and come up with plan C.

[jqvu]

are any of you fresh out of college? class of 2012?

[StaNg72]

Close, c/o 2011. I took a year off.

And what gives? My advisor could at least send an e-mail saying "I'll get back to you later." Nothin'. Anyone else have Prof. Attaway?

Edited April 18, 2012 by StaNg72

[leappho2012]

Close, c/o 2011. I took a year off.

And what gives? My advisor could at least send an e-mail saying "I'll get back to you later." Nothin'. Anyone else have Prof. Attaway?

I had her for EK127 (MATLAB) while an undergrad... I'll just say, does not surprise me. The one time I emailed her I never got a response, as a student! She has a rep for loving LEAP students though (and she was always nice in person), so is surprising.

[jjng]

Close, c/o 2011. I took a year off.

And what gives? My advisor could at least send an e-mail saying "I'll get back to you later." Nothin'. Anyone else have Prof. Attaway?

She responded to my email but it took her quite some time to respond.

[v834]

Seems like they've decided they can't afford to fund the program any more so it will have to become a cash cow masters (where people pay out of pocket) or die off. It really is a pity, since it seems to be one of a kind.

[CMC_Kid]

Seems like they've decided they can't afford to fund the program any more so it will have to become a cash cow masters (where people pay out of pocket) or die off. It really is a pity, since it seems to be one of a kind.

seems that way. i am curious as to what else is being lost in this program... i mean, what more could they get rid of at this point?

[StaNg72]

Seems like they've decided they can't afford to fund the program any more so it will have to become a cash cow masters (where people pay out of pocket) or die off. It really is a pity, since it seems to be one of a kind.

This kind of brings me back to my confusion. Although we won't be receiving any LEAP scholarship (that's clear), will we still be presented with information about Perkins and Stafford Loans? Isn't that kind of how it works? We send them our SARs and they respond with student loan options? Or are we now left to go fishing on our own?

[ghanada]

just so you all know, you CAN'T reach Helaine anymore...they cut her off from e-mail. All your inquiries should go through Steve Doherty. I think because all of us current LEAPers are putting up such a big stink they are trying to cut her off from being able to communicate with us. It is also not clear how much longer she will be around. So basically, count Helaine out, and assume you won't be able to speak to her anymore.

We have also been reassured by the Dean of Engineering that they are fully supporting LEAP and that they are going to continue to offer the same service and care as before. Whether or not this is true I don't know, but you should all operate under the impression that everything will carry on just as before and that you will be taken care of at BU. I do think there are a good number of people that did receive LEAP scholarship, I just don't know where they are or how they got it. I do know that the reason for a lot of you not getting the scholarship is because the LEAP program is operating under the same funding since it basically started when it was funding like 20-30 people. Now that there are about 100 LEAPers and I hear your incoming class will add another 30-40, there just isn't enough money to go around for everyone. So essentially it is a tradeoff for allowing more people the LEAP opportunity but not being able to financially support many deserving people.

Edited April 18, 2012 by ghanada

[cookiemon90]

hi everyone. i feel like i'm about to be lynched once i say this, but i actually did get the LEAP scholarship. I received an email a long time ago (last week of march) about it. I'm not sure what everyone else's situation is, or how i got the scholarship, but i'm coming straight from undergrad an i have no income/assets of my own (so i'm guessing it's need-based?). i accepted the offer and the scholarship last week, but i haven't heard anything back yet. when i talked to helaine about 3 or 4 weeks ago, she said that class registration starts on the 11th of april, so it would be best to get in before then so we can sign up and get the classes we need. i was going to call her tmr to see what the deal was since i haven't heard back about anything after accepting the offers, but i guess that might prove futile.

[CMC_Kid]

hi everyone. i feel like i'm about to be lynched once i say this, but i actually did get the LEAP scholarship. I received an email a long time ago (last week of march) about it. I'm not sure what everyone else's situation is, or how i got the scholarship, but i'm coming straight from undergrad an i have no income/assets of my own (so i'm guessing it's need-based?). i accepted the offer and the scholarship last week, but i haven't heard anything back yet. when i talked to helaine about 3 or 4 weeks ago, she said that class registration starts on the 11th of april, so it would be best to get in before then so we can sign up and get the classes we need. i was going to call her tmr to see what the deal was since i haven't heard back about anything after accepting the offers, but i guess that might prove futile.

from what i understand, it was need-based AND ranked, so you earned it, cookie.

i'm gonna try and get in contact with Stephen Doherty, cause i think i may be missing some emails that other people have gotten. i'll try to gather as much info as possible on what the next steps are and i'll post back here.

[StaNg72]

hi everyone. i feel like i'm about to be lynched once i say this, but i actually did get the LEAP scholarship. I received an email a long time ago (last week of march) about it. I'm not sure what everyone else's situation is, or how i got the scholarship, but i'm coming straight from undergrad an i have no income/assets of my own (so i'm guessing it's need-based?). i accepted the offer and the scholarship last week, but i haven't heard anything back yet. when i talked to helaine about 3 or 4 weeks ago, she said that class registration starts on the 11th of april, so it would be best to get in before then so we can sign up and get the classes we need. i was going to call her tmr to see what the deal was since i haven't heard back about anything after accepting the offers, but i guess that might prove futile.

Haha, we don't lynch here. Congrats And as for registering, it'd be great if my advisor would actually respond to get the process going. I've e-mailed Stephen Doherty as well, asking him to advise. Hopefully I'll get a response today.

[CMC_Kid]

Haha, we don't lynch here. Congrats And as for registering, it'd be great if my advisor would actually respond to get the process going. I've e-mailed Stephen Doherty as well, asking him to advise. Hopefully I'll get a response today.

in case you haven't heard back from doherty yet: just spoke with him. he confirms that we will definitely be getting help from BU in acquiring "need-based" funding (federal loans, etc). we should be hearing from bu about it "within the next week or so."

[StaNg72]

Perfect, thanks.

[leappho2012]

hi everyone. i feel like i'm about to be lynched once i say this, but i actually did get the LEAP scholarship. I received an email a long time ago (last week of march) about it. I'm not sure what everyone else's situation is, or how i got the scholarship, but i'm coming straight from undergrad an i have no income/assets of my own (so i'm guessing it's need-based?). i accepted the offer and the scholarship last week, but i haven't heard anything back yet. when i talked to helaine about 3 or 4 weeks ago, she said that class registration starts on the 11th of april, so it would be best to get in before then so we can sign up and get the classes we need. i was going to call her tmr to see what the deal was since i haven't heard back about anything after accepting the offers, but i guess that might prove futile.

Hey, thanks for the response! At this point it is nice to know that SOMEONE got something - ZERO hard feeling to a future classmate. I've actually come to peace with the situation.

I ran some numbers and it turns out that, for me at least (needing only 8 classes to complete photonics Phase 1), part-time no scholarship is financially equivalent to full-time FULL scholarship. So I'm not really losing much...

Hoping to use the extra time towards lab training!

[leappho2012]

in case you haven't heard back from doherty yet: just spoke with him. he confirms that we will definitely be getting help from BU in acquiring "need-based" funding (federal loans, etc). we should be hearing from bu about it "within the next week or so."

The need-based process is not hard at all. Once BU has your SAR you fill out a one page form with about 10 lines of information, sign it, send it back. Then about a week later it shows up in your "student account inquiry" at the student link (get to know it well, www.bu.edu/studenlink ... for some reason it's super retro html looking). Anyways, beyond that you just need to fill out the entrance counseling and master promissory note on the federal website (doing this once will last you the entire program). You can do these things before registering, while you have to wait until you know how much you will need to fill out the one page grad plus need-based federal loan application document I mentioned before.

I've already done all of this for the summer term and my student account is paid for and settled. So if you have any questions throughout the process I may be able to respond faster than office-folk.

[FreeRider14]

For those taking summer courses at BU, I was told by Helaine that the financial aid support is $4,250 (not sure if this is based on my financial app) if you're taking at least 6 credits at BU. However, this hasn't been confirmed with me yet, since I originally applied for the Fall. Has anyone else received this kind of information or fin. aid?

[ghanada]

The need-based process is not hard at all. Once BU has your SAR you fill out a one page form with about 10 lines of information, sign it, send it back. Then about a week later it shows up in your "student account inquiry" at the student link (get to know it well, www.bu.edu/studenlink ... for some reason it's super retro html looking). Anyways, beyond that you just need to fill out the entrance counseling and master promissory note on the federal website (doing this once will last you the entire program). You can do these things before registering, while you have to wait until you know how much you will need to fill out the one page grad plus need-based federal loan application document I mentioned before.

I've already done all of this for the summer term and my student account is paid for and settled. So if you have any questions throughout the process I may be able to respond faster than office-folk.

Yep, that is exactly correct. What BU does is they set a budget for you, around like $2000/month for living and however much you need for tuition. You are allowed to take out loans up to that full amount. Some of it might be government subsidized, but most will be through like Direct Loans or another lender.

[leappho2012]

Yep, that is exactly correct. What BU does is they set a budget for you, around like $2000/month for living and however much you need for tuition. You are allowed to take out loans up to that full amount. Some of it might be government subsidized, but most will be through like Direct Loans or another lender.

ghanada, off the top of your head, what percentage of LEAP Phase2ers lock down a research or teaching fellowship, and completely free themselves from loan-based funding?