As I depart MIT, I thought I would do a final post with my top 10 greatest hits (if you will), blog posts that are MUST READS from the 5 years of my blogging history. If you disagree with my picks (and comments on them) feel free to add your own below.

10. This post (or really series of posts) provides information on how we determine your family contribution. Before the recent introduction of our online calculator, this was the best way to find out information on the intricacies of our analysis. Even though these posts are over 4 years old, much of the information is still valid. Read the intro here, and parts 1, 2, and 3 follow.

9. My Random 10 Songs on iTunes post, back before everyone else did it (that would be in 2005). You can find it here. Unfortunately it is an old post from the old platform, so none of the original comments got ported over when we converted to the new format, but I had many people playing along!

8. While we are on the topic of music, a post which (humorously, I hope) explores why we ask for all of that information.

7. For those of you who may feel that your dream remains out of reach, a post about our appeal process.

6. A trip to the Galapagos Islands... over my lunch hour... Only at MIT!

5. Congratulations, you've just won $1,000,000 (or an introduction to the Time Value of Money).

4. In 2008, we announced significant financial aid enhancements. The post is here. The conversation was long, intense and all-in-all very respectful of each other and of the space we created on the Internet. As the moderator / guide to the discussion, I thought this post really showed how transparent MIT is (given that the conversation was occuring live on our own blog).

3. Sometimes in the admissions application process, you get an answer that you didn't think you wanted. I shared some health news, my own admissions story, and how the door that closes behind you sometimes represents another door opening.

2. Just because I can:

1. And staying on the Snively theme, my favorite post has to be when Snively and I liveblogged Ben's Info Session. Of course, Snively did a much better job than I did.

I'm sure there are a ton more posts I could quote from, but why not do yourself a favor and click on the link above and to the right for my blog and read through the posts yourself. Better yet, maybe I should publish a book with the best ones.... Hmmm.......

It has been truly a remarkable gift for me to work with you over these last seven years, and to be part of this virtual (but all too real) community since we launched in 2004. I leave with a sense of pride in all we have accomplished together, and an assurance that the future for all of us will be bright. May your heart always carry you down your path, may your burdens be light and your joys be plentiful, and may you know the pleasure of true friendship and love as I have. This place has been home for me, and while I am leaving home I know I will be able to come back and visit in the future.

All my best, now and always!

After much work, we in SFS launch our new online financial aid calculator today.

This new service allows families to estimate the cost and financial aid award at MIT based upon their individual income and assets. Using technology developed by our partner, Think Ahead LLC, families can now enter their information, see an estimated family contribution and financial aid award, and estimate the effect of various "what if" scenarios on their financial aid packages.

This new service allows both domestic and international students to receive information assisting them in determining whether they can afford the cost of an MIT education. MIT is the first college in the nation to provide a way for international students to estimate their awards, and we join a small (but growing) number of colleges to allow domestic students to see into our needs analysis formula.

There are some items and limitations to be aware of when using the calculator. As always, the information provided by the calculator will only be as good as the information you enter into it (i.e. "garbage in" equals "garbage out"). Also, MIT financial aid remains the final arbiter of your actual financial aid award; this calculator is meant to be an estimate only and your final financial aid award may differ from the sample provided (both due to professional judgments made by our financial aid officers and additional information provided by you). Last, the financial aid calculator is not intended for use by divorced / separated families (although you could have each parent complete the calculator separately and add the two results together to get a very rough approximation of a final result); our analysis for divorced / separated families looks very closely at each situation and as such cannot be approximated by the calculator.

We hope this tool will be very helpful for incoming, prospective and current students. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to comment below.

Not quite...

April is indeed lovely (I wish I were outside right now) but it is anything but relaxing. And with CPW about to begin, it seems appropriate not to forget one of our other financial aid populations, returning undergraduate students for 2009-10.

Tax day is quickly approaching (tomorrow) -- the day by which US citizens and residents who've earned income in the last year must submit either a completed tax return or an extension. April 15 is also our priority deadline for upperclass (rising Sophomores - Seniors) financial aid applications. A copy of the email below was sent to students yesterday:

The April 15th 09-10 financial aid application deadline is near! We are writing to notify you that as of the date of this notice your aid application for the 2009-10 academic year remains incomplete. Note: If you have recently sent in application materials please allow for processing time before a “received” and “complete” status can be applied.

However, if you feel you will be unable to complete your aid application deadline by the April 15th deadline, please contact us prior to that date to request an extension.

Please e-mail the appropriate aid officer based on your last name.

A-Ch, Liz Barnes
Ci-G, Ryan Callahan
H-La, Maxence Metayer
Lb-O, Kenneth Hayes
P-Sr, Aimee Grandmaison
Ss-Z, Gary Ryan

Your request should include:

• The date by which you expect your application to be complete
• The reason for the delay
• The student’s name and MIT identification number

Without this information we cannot process your request.

You may check your file status on WEBSIS at any time.

It is not necessary to contact us to confirm the extension. We will notify you during the week following CPW once your request for an extension has been processed.

If you have already been granted an extension there is no need to contact us again with your request.

So, given the timing, and that CPW begins Thursday, I thought it would be appropriate to explain what we mean by priority deadline for upperclass students. If you are a domestic student and have submitted your FAFSA and Profile by the end of the day tomorrow, you are fine AS LONG AS you submit your IDOC materials by the end of next week. Remember that you can always log on to the IDOC web page to print out the instructions and cover sheet once your Profile has been completed, rather than waiting for an email to be sent to you from the College Board.

If you are an international student, as long as your material is received by us in the next week or so you also are fine. We will update your application with mail we receive once CPW is complete so there is no need to worry.

If you have not begun your application yet, or you are experiencing delays, it is critical that you request an extension to the deadline so that you are not penalized for missing our application date. We really will work with families who are experiencing delays, but we need to have a good sense of when to expect your complete application so please try to do your best job of estimating the length of time you need when you contact us to ask for an extension.

At present, 40% of those who we are expecting financial aid applications from have completed (bad sentence construction, but you know what I mean). We need the rest of you to complete or to be in touch with us to request an extension as soon as you can.

I thought I would spend a little time here highlighting what you should expect from Financial Aid and Student Financial Services during CPW since we will be there to assist you throughout the event.

First, though, a quick financial aid update.

At present we have produced financial aid awards for 1012 admitted students. We are still missing complete application files from another 240 of you. We are currently working on 68 applications for students who completed their application folders in the last few days.

If you are one of those people who just completed your financial aid application, you should be receiving a copy of your financial aid award inside your CPW registration packet when you check in. If you've brought your parents with you, don't wander off with the letter in your hands without sharing it with them (I saw this happen to many families last year).

There will be a financial aid registration table at the CPW headquarters so that families can schedule financial aid appointments (which will take place in Student Financial Services at 11-320) or meet on the spot with a financial aid counselor on duty. Our goal is to make sure that anyone who wants to meet with a financial aid counselor to discuss their financial aid award or to ask questions about next steps has that opportunity.

Note that there is no requirement to have a financial aid appointment. If you are just turning in a form, or simply wish to check to see if we have received something in the mail, this can be done at the Financial Aid registration table without relying on an appointmnet. But if you need to meet with a financial aid counselor, we will be scheduling 20 minute meetings with individual families throughout the day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

If your question is of a more general nature (or you simply want to hear the amazing MIT acapella group Techiya), come to my Financial Aid and Student Financial Services Session for Parents. Don't be put off by the fact that it says "for parents" -- students are welcome too!

If you need to meet with a counselor because you wish to appeal your financial aid award, you should expect that you will need to gather some information after your meeting and either email or fax us this information after your meeting at CPW. We are generally not able to provide an answer to an appeal on the spot as our process includes a review by the Financial Aid Committee to ensure equitable treatment. Due to the short turnaround time between CPW and May 1, though, it is important that you provide us any information we request as soon as possible so that we may respond to you in time to make your decision.

If you have not provided us a copy of your 2008 tax return, please note that CPW begins the day after the IRS tax deadline. As such, you may be tempted to bring your tax return with you. While you are welcome to provide a copy directly to us, please note that this does not absolve you of the need to send another copy off to the College Board's IDOC service.

I'm sure I missed something here, but feel free to post a comment and I will try to respond (in between phone calls, emails, and getting the campus ready for the biggest party of your life!).

Happy CPW!

New beginnings can be exciting – witness the return of spring to the Boston / Cambridge area in the last few days – but I, for one, also miss and take a moment to mourn the passing of the old ways. I enjoy winter -- its quiet tranquility, its inner reflection -– and I mourn its passing as I welcome the earth’s new birth.

With the themes of new beginning in mind, I write today to share some news of a new beginning of my own. On May 29th, I will be leaving MIT, a place where I have served for nearly the last seven years as Director of Financial Aid, and a place that I consider to be home. I will be starting my own new journey as Dean of Financial Aid / Associate Dean of Student Affairs at Columbia College and the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science effective June 1st.

In the past seven years I have built a network of colleagues and friends at the Institute, and I have grown to know a truly marvelous community, full of hope and bright promise for the future and constantly refreshed and reinvigorated by the spirit and energy of new birth brought by our entering students.

I have also had the opportunity to work with a wonderfully talented group of staff in Student Financial Services whose sole mission is to make the dream of an MIT education a reality for students who otherwise could not afford to avail themselves of the opportunities waiting for them.

The good work and energy of MIT and the staff of Financial Aid and Student Financial Services will continue strongly into the future under the capable leadership in place. I will miss the chance the see this journey forward. But I welcome the new challenges awaiting me and look forward to expanding my own network of colleagues and friends in the Big Apple.

We will have time at Campus Preview Weekend to visit with each other, and for you to meet some of the great staff members who truly personify MIT’s commitment to open access. While I may have been the public face of financial aid for these past several years, there is a robust and talented group of staff who are really responsible for administering our financial aid programs.

New beginnings await each of us as spring blossoms – no matter whether that new beginning comes about due to a transition to college, a change of seasons, or a change in employment. May we always be open to new possibilities and new realities while we celebrate and value the place that has nurtured and supported our growth.

Trust me, it is on its way to you!

We mailed early admission packets on Monday and the regular action packets hit the mail this morning. So you will soon be receiving a large folder at home with tons of information enclosed about lots of great things at MIT (including some information about affording the cost of your MIT education).

Some of you have been calling and asking if we can release a fax or email copy of your financial aid award. At this point, we are unable to do so. If you do not have your admissions packet by next Friday, please contact us and we can work on issuing you a replacement letter.

As a preview of coming attractions (so to speak) I will highlight what will be in the financial aid component of the mailing!

First, each of you will receive a copy of our financing guide entitled "ComMITment 2009-2010: MIT's Commitment to Access and Affordability for MIT Undergraduates and their Parents". The brochure highlights our costs as well as our billing, financial aid, loan and student employment policies and is a handy reference to share between parents and students.

Next, you will find a letter from our office (largely depending on your financial aid status).

Of the 1597 students who were admitted:

• 751 of you will receive a financial aid award letter. This letter will detail the financial aid funds you have been awarded (scholarships, grants, loan and work) as well as detail the next steps necessary to confirm your award (more on this later).
• 544 of you will receive a missing information letter. This letter indicates that there are still pieces of information which we need to determine your eligibility for financial aid. Please follow the instructions on the letter and, if you believe you have already sent in this information, check your My.MIT portal or contact us at 617-253-4971. Some of you have completed none of your financial aid paperwork; if you need assistance with this, please let us know. If you do not plan on completing your financial aid file, please also let us know so that we may close your application.
• 64 of you received a complete letter. This letter means that we received the information necessary for your financial aid award to be determined, but it came into our office in the last day or so and we were unable to prepare a financial aid award for you prior to the mailing. After this week, we will be preparing financial aid award packets twice weekly (Monday and Thursday) so your financial aid award will likely be in the next mailing.
• Finally, 238 of you will have no letter from us at all, other than a copy of the ComMITment booklet. This is because you indicated you would not be applying for financial aid. If your situation has changed, and you now feel the need to apply, please be in touch with us as soon as possible so that we may update your record and tell you what forms are required.

If you do receive a financial aid award, there are several forms which you will need to complete to affirm your financial aid award:

• First, if you have not already done so, you will need to complete any missing items for determining your financial aid (tax forms, W-2 forms, copies of 2008 taxes, etc.). If any of these forms are missing, your financial aid award is truly tentative as it was based on the information we had in hand when we reviewed your file, but it is likely to change once final verification information is provided.


• If you received MIT Scholarship, you will be required to complete a Student Information Review Form. This form, which we use to match your MIT Scholarship to particular funds established by MIT's generous alumni and friends, is required to be returned to us by May 1.


• If you will be receiving an outside scholarship from any private foundation, state agency, corporation or parent employer, we ask you to complete the Outside Award Reply Form. This form is used to adjust your loan and work award to accommodate your outside award, so it is critical that you return it to us once you have been awarded these scholarships, and that you update us later in the year if you receive any additional awards.


• We also ask that all domestic students complete a Credit Balance Authorization Form. While this form is required, your response on the form is completely your choice. On the form, you indicate whether you allow us at MIT to hold funds for you if those funds exceed the amount of your current balance, as well as authorize us to use your financial aid to pay non-standard charges (like library fines, MBTA passes, etc.). You must complete and return this form for your financial aid award to credit to your student account.


• You may see a document requested entitled "Pell Disbursement Record from COD". This is purely an internal document and as long as you complete all of your other forms, should not delay your receipt of funds. This document means that we need to obtain permission from the Common Origination and Disbursement system (COD -- what, you thought it was a New England fish?) before we can release your Pell, ACG or SMART Grant to you.


• Finally, you will NOT notice a form indicating your preference for loan vs. work. New this year, we have pre-assigned loans and work to students based on our own awarding priorities and (where available) your expressed preference as to work or borrowing. If we got it wrong, please be back in touch with us. We can switch loan to work, and vice versa, at your request. For families earning less than $75,000 we have only assigned work awards, but we understand that you may not want to work your Freshmen year and would rather borrow a student loan. We certainly can accommodate this request. For those of you from families earning more than $75,000, if you filled out the FAFSA (Federal Application for Federal Student Aid) we have your reply to a question which indicates your loan / work preference, and we awarded your self-help (what we call the combination of loan and work) based on your answer to this question. Again, if we have the balance wrong, let us know!

Also before any of you consider a parent loan or alternative loan (more about this later) you should make sure you maximize your eligibility for Federal Student Loans. We only award students loan amounts up to our self-help on the first pass, but if students need to access additional funds in the form of loans, we can certainly respond to these requests.

Lastly, if you feel the financial aid award we offered was insufficient for your needs, I will be addressing a future blog post to your concerns. In the meantime, you may want to review my previous post on this topic here.

Back to more financial aid files and reviews! Can't wait to see many of you at CPW!!!

As a result of being out of the office yesterday and today, it looks like I missed some excitement.

First of all, a status update:

We are still processing the deluge of email, phone calls, and documents we received in the last week as the deadline approached. So, be patient. We will not penalize anyone who turns in documents even now, so please know that we will get your documents settled out.

In the meantime, there have been two major announcements from MIT.

The first, President Hockfield's announcement, talks about our current financial situation and MIT's future plans. The second, our announcement of financial aid and tuition for the coming year, shows how our commitment to financial aid remains steadfast (and we are even expanding). I will include both announcements below for your reference.

If you have any questions, I'll try to answer them here (while we're coding documents, answering phone calls and replying to your email)... Sigh! Welcome to February! At least I can read your emails better now... Be patient, we'll get to your documents / email / phone call soon!

Letter to the Community from President Hockfield

February 19, 2009

To the Members of the MIT Community:

We begin the spring semester knowing that challenging work and hard decisions lie ahead, as we determine how to strengthen our education and research mission with diminished resources. But we also know that MIT’s work matters very much in the world, from shaping the World Wide Web to advancing the frontiers of research in cancer, AIDS and infectious disease; from creating low-carbon energy technologies to designing sustainable buildings; from launching technology start-ups to assisting entrepreneurs in developing nations; from influencing American economic policy in a time of crisis to educating our extraordinary students. By extension, as we respond to the pressure of economic contraction, it matters very much how we shape the future of MIT.

Today, I want to provide an update on our revenue sources and on immediate steps we are taking to cut costs to meet our fiscal challenges, while sustaining our excellence in research, teaching and service.

Monitoring our resources

We continue to anticipate declines in most sources of support, coupled with an increasing need for student financial aid. To briefly review the current conditions:

Endowment: Like virtually all major institutional endowments this year, MIT’s endowment has lost significant value. On June 30, 2008, our endowment stood at close to $10 billion; by December 30th, the value had dropped approximately 20-25%. If recent trends do not dramatically worsen or improve, we anticipate that the total annual endowment decline could approach 30% by the end of this fiscal year. Assuming 5% endowment payout, a 30% decline translates into an eventual $150 million reduction in funds to the Institute’s operating budget.

Gifts: Despite these very difficult financial times, our donors have continued their generous support. As of January 1, 2009, cash gifts received align with the average over the past three years. I have been heartened by gifts from several donors who contributed more this year than in the past, demonstrating how much they value MIT’s role in the world. However, as economic uncertainty makes future commitments difficult for many, pledges for future gifts have fallen by more than 40%.

Financial aid and tuition: By this point in a typical year, 10-20 student families would have asked us to reconsider their financial aid standing because of a lost job or other change in circumstances. This year, we have already approved more than 40 such requests, and we can expect that the downturn’s impact on MIT families will grow. As we have stated before, we will retain our commitment to need-blind admission and need-based undergraduate financial aid. Taking into account increased need, particularly among middle-income families, and decreased Institute revenues, MIT’s budget for next year includes a substantial increase for financial aid and only a modest increase in tuition.

Research funding: Reversing a three-year trend of very little growth, over the past seven months our campus research volume has increased 10% compared with the previous year. In addition, the provisions for research funding in the just-passed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act put the nation back on track for the doubling of research and development budgets at key physical science agencies over the next decade. Many federal agencies that fund work at MIT received additional allocations for research projects and infrastructure, including $1 billion for NASA, $2 billion for DOE Office of Science, $580 million for NIST, $350 million for DOD, $10 billion for NIH and $3 billion for NSF.

Cutting budgets, creating value

The marked decline in our endowment and in projections for future gifts, together with the expected increase in need for undergraduate financial aid, require that we make substantial budget reductions across the Institute. In this effort, the Administration must lead. We have made immediate cuts across the Office of the President and of the VP for Institute Affairs, planning for a 10% reduction for FY10. Achieving cuts on this scale requires more than simple belt-tightening; it demands new ways of thinking about how we can work more effectively at lower cost. One example is our recent move to combine some functions of the MIT News Office and Technology Review, which will produce both substantial savings and more effective ways of bringing MIT’s story to the world.

As you know from previous letters in November and December, we have asked all units to make budget reductions, with the goal of achieving an Institute-wide savings of at least $50 million in next year’s budget. We have asked academic units, in aggregate, to reduce their base budgets by 4.9% and administrative units by 8.7%.

In our effort to control spending, the members of Academic Council, senior administrators and department heads will forgo salary increases next year. I have declined any salary increase for the current academic year and will do so for the next. In the same spirit, senior faculty have overwhelmingly requested that we direct available salary funds to those members of our community with lower compensation. Accordingly, a small pool for salary increases will be available for faculty members earning less than $125,000 a year and for full-time staff earning less than $75,000 a year. With these salary thresholds, approximately 40% of faculty, 50% of administrative staff and an overwhelming majority of support staff will be eligible for modest raises for the coming year. Service staff will receive increases based on their three-year negotiated contract.

Controlling hiring

To preserve flexibility, we have chosen not to impose a blanket hiring freeze across the Institute. However, we will sharply slow hiring and will reserve it for core Institute needs. Some units have already decided to suspend hiring. Going forward, all hiring that impacts the General Institute Budget will require approval by the Provost, for academic units, or the EVP, for administrative units.

Institute-wide Planning Task Force

As announced last week, we have launched an Institute-wide Planning Task Force to identify strategies for trimming costs while serving our mission. The Task Force includes nearly 200 faculty, students and staff. Even as the Task Force carries out its work this spring, all of MIT’s units, departments, labs and centers must seek similarly creative, practical ways to sharpen our focus, strengthen our most critical activities and eliminate those that may have served us well, but may no longer build momentum for the future. We also encourage members of the community to suggest cost-cutting ideas through the new MIT Idea Bank.

Brighter news

As sobering as the current economic trends, brighter news in several realms shines through:

National Academy of Engineering (NAE): Professors Yet-Ming Chiang, Mark Drela, Ned Thomas and Jack Dennis were among the 65 new members newly elected to the NAE. Reflecting the strength of MIT’s School of Engineering, 20% of nominated MIT faculty were elected, compared to 10% of all nominees.

Admissions: After three straight years of 8% increases, applications for undergraduate study accelerated further still, with a 17% increase over last year. Of the 5,019 students who applied for early action, we admitted 10.8%. We already anticipate an extremely strong Class of 2013.

Building projects: All of our major building projects – the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, the extension for the School of Architecture and Planning and the Media Lab, the new building for MIT Sloan, and the improvements to Vassar Street – continue on schedule and on budget. Last fall we decided to delay the W1 residence hall renovation; however, thanks to an anonymous donor’s recent targeted gift, we will move forward with the repair of the building’s exterior. Securing the building’s envelope will save money by protecting the structure from further deterioration until we can proceed with the full renovation.

Faculty renewal: In response to the faculty renewal program we announced a year ago, an unusually high number of our more senior faculty members have chosen to move to emeritus status, even while continuing to serve the Institute through research or teaching. Just as we value their lasting intellectual contributions, we also value their willingness to help the Institute open the door to the next generation of faculty stars. Fostering this process of renewal is absolutely central to the long-term health of MIT.

# # #

Almost 70 years ago, in the midst of another national economic downturn and on the eve of the nation’s entry into WWII, then-MIT President Karl Taylor Compton framed MIT’s role and captured our enduring purpose and aspirations:

“To make democratic government workable [our forefathers] established a great system of education. We of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are a part of this system. While our immediate objectives are to discover and to teach the truth, especially in the realm of the physical world and man's adjustment to it, our ultimate objectives are those of our nation: to promote freedom and opportunity ... For truth, in the form of exact knowledge, brings freedom and opportunity to those who gain it. Our task is to implement this vision on a global scale.”

I am more convinced than ever of the profound importance of MIT’s mission in education and research. These are difficult times, times that call for leadership in values, integrity and aspirations. It is a kind of leadership that MIT can and will provide, both here on our campus and in building a network of global engagements in service to the world.

Sincerely,

Susan Hockfield

And our announcement on financial aid and tuition:

MIT to increase financial aid to middle-income families

Enhancements aimed at keeping MIT affordable

February 18, 2009

MIT has set tuition and fees for 2009-2010 and has budgeted an additional $7.6 million for financial aid enhancements, including an expansion in aid to middle-income families that will ensure even more students have access to an affordable education.

While tuition and fees will increase 3.8 percent to $37,782, the smallest increase in eight years, the total undergraduate financial aid budget will rise more than 10 percent to $81.6 million. That marks the 10th straight year in which MIT's financial aid enhancements have outpaced rising tuition. This year, understanding that college costs can also present challenges for middle-income families, MIT's financial aid budget includes an additional $1.4 million to help families earning more than $75,000 a year.

The latest initiatives build on MIT's long tradition of ensuring that it remains affordable to talented students from a full range of economic backgrounds. The Institute's student population is already among the most economically diverse of America's top-ranked universities, partly as a result of MIT's commitment to "need-blind" admissions and to meeting the full need of all undergraduates it admits. Moreover, MIT doubled its undergraduate financial aid budget between 2001 and 2008.

"In these tough financial times, MIT recognizes that students and their families need our help more than ever. That's why we are pleased to be able to not only maintain our commitment to need-based aid but to be able to allot more funds to financial aid overall," said Dean for Undergraduate Education Daniel Hastings.

"We want all students to be able to afford to attend and not worry about finances," Hastings added, "so they can get the maximum educational benefit from their time at MIT."

To increase support for students, MIT in October 2008 launched the Campaign for Students with the goal of raising $500 million or more for undergraduate scholarships, graduate fellowships, educational innovation and student life. This support is vitally important to sustaining need-blind admissions and educational excellence at MIT.

No!

First an update:

Over the last few days we've sent out several email correspondences about financial aid status, one email to all financial aid applicants who were listed as Early Admits and another to all applied domestic financial aid applicants. This letter (delivered to your email address provided in your admissions record) details forms received, forms missing, and how to complete those we have not received. If you are an international student applciant, we have not sent you a letter by email.

These letters were produced PRIOR TO the delivery of our first IDOC update, so any forms you sent through to the College Board will not yet be reflected on them. As of last night, we have begun receiving updates from IDOC so please check My.MIT (which we update nightly) to see if your information has been received.

But perhaps most importantly -- WHAT HAPPENS IF I MISS THE DEADLINE?

The short answer is nothing... We do not have an arbitrary cut off date for financial aid eligibility at MIT. In fact, we continue to review Freshmen applications through the summer before the year begins, so it is not too late to begin applying for aid.

However, we do read applications in the order they complete, so the earlier you get your application in to us, the better the likelihood you will have your financial aid award with your admissions packet or by the time you need to make an enrollment decision (May 1).

So, should you panic if your information won't be in today? No... Should you be following up over the next several weeks to make sure what we need we have received? Yes...

I am now going to go back to my last entry and answer the backlog of questions there. Once I do that, I will close comments on that entry and invite you to continue adding your questions and concerns here. I'll try to get to them as best I can!

Two final notes:

Remember that Monday is a holiday (President's Day) so we will not be in the office (although some of us may be working anyway), so don't expect to reach us by phone or email that day!

Also we have been hit with a rather large backlog of email. If we do not reply immediately, please do NOT send another email. We will reply as soon as possible. If your issue is urgent, you can call us at our main phone number -- 617-253-4971.

Be well!!

Smith Magazine has an activity they call "Six Word Memoirs". Loosely patterned after Hemingway's famous (really) short story, "For sale: baby shoes, never worn,” the six word memoir allows authors to tell their life story in brief.

So, here is the challenge for you! Write a six word memoir about your life, your dreams, your hopes, your fears. If it is relevant to MIT, even better, but anything is good! Don't explain your entry. Keep them to six words!

Mine:

"Feeling overwhelmed. Need help giving aid!"

Speaking of winding-up, some exciting news:

The financial aid application portlet on My.Mit is live. You can track whether or not we have received your financial aid application materials by logging into the My.Mit portal and viewing the portlet. Also you can link to the websites of any missing financial aid documentation and complete it as necessary. At this point, we remain about three days behind in processing mail received so if you have sent your materials in the past week, please be patient with us.

Any questions about the FAFSA, PROFILE or ISFAA (International Student Financial Aid Application)? Remember that our priority deadline for Freshmen is February 15th, so please be sure to get working on whatever financial aid materials we are missing!

Also please note that if you have not completed your 2008 tax returns, we need a copy of your 2007 returns in order to consider your application for financial aid compelte. You can mail the 2007 form to our office directly (Building 11-320). If you have your 2008 form ready and you are a US Citizen or Permanent Resident you can submit your forms via the College Board's IDOC service when it launches later this month.