Information, articles and resources about high school transcripts, college fairs, ACT SAT tests, letters of recommendation for college freshman applications and admissions to liberal arts colleges and universities for collegebound homeschool and high school students and their parents.

The college acceptance letter arrives. Joy and celebration ensue. To top it off there's a substantial merit scholarship included. Congratulations! Then cold, stark reality sets in. The numbers don't add up. You are still $5,000 to $20,000 dollars short. First, comes shock, then disbelief and tears as the numbers are calculated again.

Calls to the financial aid office can sometimes make a difference, but more often than not there's not much more the college can do. You simply can't afford to attend the college which just offered you admission. What happened?

Many people operate under the assumption that all you have to do is "get into" a college and the money will work itself out. After all, we've all been told there's lots of money out there for students in the form of scholarships to attend college.Scholarships are an integral part of affording a college education as is federal and state aid, grant awards and loans. But "getting in" is only a piece of the puzzle of finding the right college fit. 

There are those colleges which are need blind in admissions. They admit students without any reference to financial need, with their decisions based soley on academic credentials.They then follow up the process distributing financial aid as equally as possible as needed to accepted students. They are trying to be fair and reasonable in their admissions to qualified candidates but the truth is not all of the students will be able to afford to attend. They know this. So, the message they are sending is clear: you are someone who we believe would benefit our school and this is the best financial aid package we can offer you. Good luck.