How should I compare Northeastern and Princeton financial aid offers?

Start by comparing each school’s net cost, not the headline cost of attendance: add the amount your family must pay, any required student contribution, and any loans, then subtract only grants and scholarships that do not need repayment. Princeton’s aid package is designed to meet demonstrated financial need with grant aid rather than required student loans, while Northeastern packages can vary more in the mix of need-based grant, merit scholarship, work-study, and possible borrowing. For a family that cannot absorb a large annual bill, a Princeton offer with a low calculated family contribution is often the more predictable starting point.

Make a four-year worksheet for each offer. Include tuition, housing and food, fees, books, travel, health insurance if applicable, and personal expenses; then list grants, scholarships, work-study, federal loans, and parent loans separately. Do not treat work-study as an automatic tuition discount: it is money the student must earn through a job, and its availability and actual earnings can differ from the award amount.

For Princeton, confirm the annual family payment shown in the offer and ask how a stable income, a sibling entering or leaving college, home equity, or changes in assets could affect future need-based aid.

For Northeastern, identify whether each grant is need-based or merit-based and read every renewal condition. A merit scholarship may be renewable only if the student maintains specified enrollment or academic requirements; need-based aid can also change when financial information changes.

Finally, compare the realistic cash burden each year. A package that looks larger but relies on loans, work earnings, or a parent loan may be less affordable than a smaller-looking package made mostly of renewable grants. If the offers leave a genuine gap, submit an appeal with documentation of any current financial circumstances that the FAFSA or CSS Profile did not capture.