How should I compare Brown and Amherst financial aid offers to decide which is the better value?

Compare the offers by calculating each school’s true annual net cost, not by comparing the grant totals or headline cost of attendance. Start with charges you will actually owe Brown or Amherst: tuition, housing, food, and required fees, then subtract only grants and scholarships that do not need to be repaid. Treat work-study as an opportunity to earn money during the year, not as an automatic discount, and treat any loan as a cost that must be repaid.

For a student who wants the lowest predictable family bill, make a side-by-side worksheet using the same categories for both colleges. Include estimated books, travel from home, personal expenses, health-insurance charges if applicable, and any one-time items such as a laptop or orientation fees. Check whether either package assumes an outside scholarship, a parent contribution that is unrealistic for your family, or enrollment in a particular housing or meal-plan arrangement.

For a student weighing long-term value, project costs for all four years. Ask each financial-aid office whether the grant is expected to renew at a similar level, how aid changes if a sibling leaves college or family income changes, and whether tuition, housing, and travel estimates are likely to rise. Also compare work-study expectations: a modest job can be useful, but a larger expected earnings amount may affect how much free time you have for research, campus work, or other opportunities.

If the totals are close, give real weight to the academic and campus experience you would actually use. Amherst may appeal to someone seeking a small liberal-arts setting and access to the Five College Consortium; Brown may make more sense for someone drawn to its open curriculum, larger university resources, and Providence location. A modest cost difference can be worth it only if the more expensive option offers a clearly better educational fit without forcing burdensome borrowing.