>Grandson #2 - a high school senior- has grades of 5 A+ and 1 A in advanced placement courses.
>When I was a student that would have made him a shoo-in for scholarship money.
>He has applied for financial aid at several colleges with no luck so far.
>
>Really? I am not much younger than you, but I was in the same situation back in 1970 and all the financial aid I could get was $130 per semester. They said that my parents made too much money for me to get any more aid (And believe me, they were not at all wealthy). And this was to a public school (Kent State). So maybe his parents are just too well off for him to get subsidized. You should feel proud that his parents are doing so well. Just curious: what colleges is he applying for? If they are private schools, maybe he should set his sights on something a little more affordable.

The irony is that his parents are doing well by US standards (not very high), but can't afford to send their kids to private schools.
Don't misunderstand. He's a lucky guy. He has two marvelous parents who provide for him lovingly.
Lots of kids his age don't have a place to sleep.


And this fella has big ideas - as he should at his age.
He's going for pre-med and he's applied to Princeton, U Penn and Rutgers.
Princeton, if he's accepted, would give the best financial aid but the odds for his acceptance are lower than winning the lotto. National scholars with high averages like his are commonplace, it seems.
Rutgers is a state school with the lowest total cost and seems to be the default choice.
However, this guy is full of surprises and I'm not ruling Princeton out.
If that means that Grandpa has to saddle up and write some more programs, then that will happen.