MU Financial Aid

[MUEng92]

A girl in my daughter's junior class is interested in MU's PT program.  She has a 4.0 GPA with a few AP classes mixed in at one of the top ranked high schools in the state. 28ish on the ACT.  Need based aid is going to be zilch. 

Her parents want to get a vague idea of how much merit based aid she could possibly get. I have no idea what to tell them.  0%, 25%, 50%?

Anyone have a ballpark clue?

[Coleman]

My guess is they will give her the standard Ignatius, which is anywhere from $8k-$12kish a year (I had very similar GPA/ACT and that is what I got). No shame in a 28 on your ACT, but its not going to get you more than that. Gotta crack the 30s if you want elite-level funding from most schools.

There are some college-specific scholarships you can compete for, which may add a little to that. Not sure what the College of Health Sciences has.

Also worth applying for a Burke Scholarship if she is from Wisconsin, but its uber-competitive: http://www.marquette.edu/explore/scholarships-burke.php

Edit: Apparently the Ignatius Scholarship has been renamed the Pere Marquette Award: http://www.marquette.edu/explore/scholarships-ignatius.php

[GGGG]

Yeah, this is always a hard lesson for parents of kids like that, but there are A LOT of kids that fit that description.  I would agree with Bleuteaux on the amount.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

A girl in my daughter's junior class is interested in MU's PT program.  She has a 4.0 GPA with a few AP classes mixed in at one of the top ranked high schools in the state. 28ish on the ACT.  Need based aid is going to be zilch. 

Her parents want to get a vague idea of how much merit based aid she could possibly get. I have no idea what to tell them.  0%, 25%, 50%?

Anyone have a ballpark clue?

I had very similar stats. 30 ACT with a 4.2 weighted 3.3 unweighted GPA at a very good higj school. I got about half maybe a smidge more. If you need any more info feel free to pm me.

[ChuckyChip]

My daughter (class of 2014) had a 3.8 GPA with a 32 ACT - MU offered $10,000.

[mu_hilltopper]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X.. 

Does that process exist?

[Coleman]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X..  

Does that process exist?

In hindsight, I wish I would have tried that.

In 2004, MU offered me $9k a year, and St. Norbert offered me $15k, a pretty big difference. Tuition + room and board was about $30k at both schools in those days. An extra $6k a year would have made a big difference. I never had any real intention of attending St. Norbert though, so I didn't even think about that.

[GGGG]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X..  

Does that process exist?

Yes.  But you won't be getting $5,000 through that process.  Probably $1,000 at most.  A better idea would be to go to school X for a year, get good grades there, and try to transfer back.  MU will likely give you more money then.

[Coleman]

My daughter (class of 2014) had a 3.8 GPA with a 32 ACT - MU offered $10,000.

I get that MU has become more competitive, but this is disappointing. I would have hoped that the scholarships they were giving are at least keeping pace with inflation. Tuition is rising faster than inflation, and scholarships aren't rising at all.

MU was offering $10,000 in 2004 for students with similar GPAs/ACTs as your daughter. I had a 3.7 and a 29 and got $9k. Tuition plus room and board my freshman year was under $30k (about $28k if I recall correctly). Now it is approaching $50k (http://www.marquette.edu/about/tuition-costs.php). Doesn't seem right that they are only offering your daughter $10k 11 years later, when you consider how much tuition has gone up. If pegged to inflation, that $10k in 2004 is worth about $12,500 now. I would have hoped they were at least maintaining that, while tuition skyrockets.

My soon to be wife and I both make healthy middle class salaries and I don't think my kids will even have the option of attending MU. Which saddens me.  

[warriorchick]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X..  

Does that process exist?

She won't have much leverage to negotiate if she is wants PT.  I have been told is the toughest program to get into at Marquette.  As a matter of fact, I would encourage her to retake the ACT.  Not sure a 28 will get you in, at least as a direct admit.

[StillAWarrior]

My soon to be wife and I both make healthy middle class salaries and I don't think my kids will even have the option of attending MU. Which saddens me.  

Prepare to be sad.  My son is graduating in a couple months.  He's been an outstanding student with great grades and test scores.  He's been offered a lot of money at a lot of schools.  But none of the Jesuit schools he applied to offered enough to be truly competitive with other schools that he's looking at.  And one of those Jesuit schools offered him $25k+ per year in scholarship money.  I have a good job, and consider us very fortunate.  But honestly, we do not believe that any of the Jesuit (or Catholic) schools that my son applied to would be a good financial decision for our son or our family and they've all been eliminated from consideration (he didn't apply to Marquette).  His list is down to two schools:  a great public school in our state and a private school in North Carolina that has kept its costs down and also offered him a great academic scholarship.

I've been saddened by the process.  We have four kids, and made the decision to invest in private elementary and high school.  I don't regret that decision that we made.  But that obviously leaves less for college and, frankly, we cannot afford most private colleges.  But, the two colleges that he's narrowed it down to were his top two pick anyway, so we're very fortunate.  Both are very good schools, and we're looking forward to deciding between the two this month.


Edited:  Thinking a little more about this, I think the original post came off more negative than intended.  We're thrilled with the two schools my son is considering, and are really looking forward to sending him off to one of them this fall.  One is a bit more than the other (the one he prefers, of course), but we'll be able to swing it.  There are many, many great schools out there at various price points.  College is expensive.  For some families, certain colleges may be out of their price range.  Sure, it saddens me a bit that Marquette might be one of those, but there are some really great options out there.

[chapman]

MU was offering $10,000 in 2004 for students with similar GPAs/ACTs as your daughter. I had a 3.7 and a 29 and got $9k. Tuition plus room and board my freshman year was under $30k (about $28k if I recall correctly). Now it is approaching $50k (http://www.marquette.edu/about/tuition-costs.php). Doesn't seem right that they are only offering your daughter $10k 11 years later, when you consider how much tuition has gone up. If pegged to inflation, that $10k in 2004 is worth about $12,500 now. I would have hoped they were at least maintaining that, while tuition skyrockets.

Similar here, had a 4.0 / 29 and was given the $9k a decade ago.  The CoB also funneled ~$1k scholarships to me in the spring of each year to add a little.  So the cost side has gotten worse.  I only have limited information, but given the turnover in professors in the CoB and that they still have the same inadequate facilities, I can't see how the return would have kept pace with investment.

[GGGG]

Prepare to be sad.  My son is graduating in a couple months.  He's been an outstanding student with great grades and test scores.  He's been offered a lot of money at a lot of schools.  But none of the Jesuit schools he applied to offered enough to be truly competitive with other schools that he's looking at.  And one of those Jesuit schools offered him $25k+ per year in scholarship money.  I have a good job, and consider us very fortunate.  But honestly, we do not believe that any of the Jesuit (or Catholic) schools that my son applied to would be a good financial decision for our son or our family and they've all been eliminated from consideration (he didn't apply to Marquette).  His list is down to two schools:  a great public school in our state and a private school in North Carolina that has kept its costs down and also offered him a great academic scholarship.

This is exactly why having a larger endowment is such a huge priority for Marquette.  Many Catholic schools have fallen behind in that area which is why Marquette can't be more generous with its scholarships.  One of my kids went through the exact same process, and it was sad that even though he really likes Marquette, it couldn't be realistic option for him given the quality of the other schools and what they were offering. 

[jsglow]

She won't have much leverage to negotiate if she is wants PT.  I have been told is the toughest program to get into at Marquette.  As a matter of fact, I would encourage her to retake the ACT.  Not sure a 28 will get you in, at least as a direct admit.

Tell her to take the ACT again.  The direct admit PT program is extremely difficult to get into.  I would guess that her current stats would put her in the bottom quartile, if admitted at all.  I don't want to be discouraging at all but I suspect few of the chosen will have written a 28.  I do not know about those who start outside PT and then join at a later date or if she considers that a non-starter.  I also don't know if there has been any increases in the direct admit class size that could impact admission thresholds.  For example, Nursing has been able to go from 100 up to 150 Frosh annually via fundraising and partnership efforts.  That's provided opportunities for highly qualified candidates that MU had to pass over in the past.  Nursing remains the toughest college to get into by a significant margin.  Recall that direct admit PT is a small, highly selective subset of the larger Health Sciences College so apples to oranges.

As to Iggy money, her grade point and ACT would likely put her in the 25%-50% scholly range (tuition only).  Marquette will absolutely lag the competition so please be prepared for that.

Hope that helps.  Good luck.  

[ZiggysFryBoy]

ZFB got a $12k iggy in 1996 with a 27 on my act and a 3.0 in high school.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Actually I lied. I only got a 29 on my ACT but I was a direct admit PT student. However, I will say I had the advantage of putting hispanic on my application form. (thanks mom) Didnt realize direct admit PT was such a big deal at MU until people around me said so.

[reinko]

Reinko was just a janitor @ MU, pushing a mop a broom, and solved the occasional equation that a math professor put on a chalkboard.  Eventually got in a bit of trouble after getting in a fight down in South Milwaukee, but thank God, this guy showed up to bail me out.  http://www.marquette.edu/mscs/facstaff-moyer.shtml

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Reinko was just a janitor @ MU, pushing a mop a broom, and solved the occasional equation that a math professor put on a chalkboard.  Eventually got in a bit of trouble after getting in a fight down in South Milwaukee, but thank God, this guy showed up to bail me out.  http://www.marquette.edu/mscs/facstaff-moyer.shtml

RIP Robin 

[Galway Eagle]

Regaurding the financial aspect there's an app that lists every scholarship that you're eligible for. Thousands of scholarships go unused every year so if I were that girl if be researching all those.

[jsglow]

Actually I lied. I only got a 29 on my ACT but I was a direct admit PT student. However, I will say I had the advantage of putting hispanic on my application form. (thanks mom) Didnt realize direct admit PT was such a big deal at MU until people around me said so.

Wow.  Standards have really skyrocketed since they let you in!  (Teasing you young fella.  Crappy day don't you know.)

[314warrior]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X.. 

Does that process exist?

I asked MU to reconsider what they offered me (wrote a letter explaining why I thought I was a good fit for one of the other awards).  They added another $1k/yr.  Positive result, but really just a drop in the bucket.  It made me feel better about it though.

[🏀]

Wow, a John Moyer reference.

[RideMyBuycks]

Curious for anyone who knows .. is there a negotiation at all?

I mean .. if you went back to MU and said, Sorry, $10k is not enough, we have $15k from school X.. 

Does that process exist?

This was ~8 years ago, but merely showing up to campus and showing interest got me an extra 3k a year in merit-based scholarship. After my need-based scholarship, MU ended up being cheaper than every public school I toured including Iowa State, Kansas, Wisco and Indiana. Indiana wanted ~40k out of pocket and had no intention of working with my family--dohkay.

[RideMyBuycks]

I should add this was undergrad.

[rocket surgeon]

if it makes any difference, the marquette name does carry, i believe, a little more swagger in these areas.  not sure how far of a radius away from milwaukee, but if it makes a difference for anyone who's trying to decide on where to send their sons or daughters, both my sons each got very nice starting opportunities in their respective choices of work.  one is a manager of one of the top banks in the nation and could very well be promoted again to a district manager(4 years out),  the other, is marketing for a major local company with an international reputation who is also about to get promoted to a regional position(1 year out).   one other note of interest, my banking son started out in freshman frontier as he had a little too much fun in high school, but the h.s we sent him to is probably ranked in the top 5 here in wisconsin.  we of course, did not receive any financial aid, but i believe the marquette name may have helped them get in the door over others?  hard to put a value on that.  i know some within their ranges of graduation from other schools struggled to find employment and opportunity within their 1st and 2nd choices of fields of interest, location etc.