How should I compare financial aid offers from Cornell and WashU?

Compare Cornell and WashU by the amount your family must actually pay over four years, not by tuition, total “aid,” or the size of a scholarship headline. Cornell’s cost can differ substantially by undergraduate college: New York residents enrolled in Cornell’s state-supported contract colleges may have a different tuition rate from students in Cornell’s privately endowed colleges.

For each offer, start with the school’s full cost of attendance, then subtract only gift aid: institutional grants, scholarships, and outside scholarships that will reduce your bill. Keep federal work-study separate because it is an opportunity to earn wages through a job, not money automatically credited toward tuition. Treat student loans and parent loans as borrowing, not discounts; list their annual amount, interest, and whether your family would need to borrow beyond what the package includes.

Then compare the costs that may not appear clearly on the first bill: housing and meal-plan differences, travel between home and campus, health insurance if you will not remain on a family plan, books, personal expenses, and program-specific charges. Cornell’s Ithaca location may create higher or less convenient travel costs for some families, while WashU’s St. Louis setting may be easier or harder to reach depending on where you live. Use the same realistic estimate for each school rather than accepting their personal-expense allowances uncritically.

Finally, check whether need-based grants are expected to remain similar if a sibling graduates, a parent’s income changes, or assets such as a business, home equity, or noncustodial-parent resources are assessed differently. If either package overlooks a documented change in circumstances, submit a concise aid reconsideration request with current income, major medical or caregiving costs, and any one-time financial events. The meaningful comparison is the lowest realistic family out-of-pocket cost, plus manageable borrowing, across all four years.