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7. News
The Blog is Dead. Long Live the Blog.
This blog is officially closed and will now only exist as an archive of past posts. Please visit the new blog at  http://daniel.mitblogs.com. Read More

posted Thursday, June 30, 2005 7:22 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Sometimes You Get What You Don't Pay For...
What a warm weekend in Boston -- humid, hot and sticky.  It's nice that summer has arrived, but I would prefer to have my heat without humidity!  This weekend was my choir's end of year performance.  We were in a room with no A/C; and I had six or so Read More

posted Tuesday, June 14, 2005 11:56 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Waive and Cosign (or is it Wave and Cosine)?
Hey all!  Several items of update. First off, I am back in Cambridge, having arrived during an eventful Wednesday evening thunderstorm.  It was great to be in Aspen, but it is even greater to be home.  The presentation in Aspen was a great success, Read More

posted Friday, June 10, 2005 12:07 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Departing for "Bluer Skies"
Tomorrow morning, I will be jet setting across the continent as I make my way to Aspen, Colorado for the bi-annual (in this case, every other year) COFHE Financial Aid Director's Retreat.  For those of you who do not know, COFHE is the Consortium on Financing Read More

posted Saturday, June 04, 2005 10:12 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Con-GRAD-ulations!
To all this year's MIT graduates... My hat's off to you... For those of you who want to watch graduation live today, log on here. Read More

posted Friday, June 03, 2005 3:38 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Is there Merit in Merit?
Interesting article in the Washington Post on the pros and cons of merit-based scholarships (as you know, MIT does not offter merit-based funding). Thoughts? Read More

posted Thursday, June 02, 2005 11:10 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Freshmen housing lottery begins today!
In case you didn't already know!  -- See here... Read More

posted Wednesday, June 01, 2005 5:35 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Preparation for graduation!
Some great photos of Killian Court as MIT gets ready for commencement on Friday. See here for the pics! Photos were taken by David J. Broderick, Audio Visual Project Technician, MIT AV. Read More

posted Wednesday, June 01, 2005 3:37 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

It's STILL not too late to consolidate (although it almost is) / New loan interest rates for 05-06.
Today is the last day on which 91-Day Treasury Bills can be auctioned prior to June 1.  Why is this so important?  Because the interest rates for Stafford and PLUS loans are based on this rate.  So with the information available now, it appears that Read More

posted Tuesday, May 31, 2005 4:00 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Update on the Federal Budget process for Financial Aid
Here is an update to where things stand on the Federal Budget end.  This also updates you all as to the status of the Perkins Loan action which I know many of you participated in previously (and I thank you for your help there). This note comes to you Read More

posted Thursday, May 26, 2005 1:02 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Another call to action... Be a STAR supporter!
As you undoubtedly know, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a Direct Lending institution, allowing you to borrow your student loans directly from the federal government, without the complicated involvement of banks and other lenders.  Congress Read More

posted Thursday, May 26, 2005 12:40 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

And sometimes the changes you make can have great meaning...
I just finished dinner with the kids, and am getting ready to watch the last regular episode of Survivor, but before I do, I thought I needed to post a little more on the subject of corrections. This is me on my soapbox, so if you don't want the preaching, Read More

posted Thursday, May 12, 2005 8:14 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Sometimes change is meaningless...
If you are an incoming Freshman student, this message is for you! No grandiose ideas in the title.  I know that change is meaningful and that you will be undertaking major changes soon as you close the book on your high school life and prepare to enter Read More

posted Thursday, May 12, 2005 11:38 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Brief update - Award Letters Mailing for International Upperclass Students
Just wanted to post a brief update for you all! Today we mailed 112 award letters to International students who are rising Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors.  Since we mailed these before the end of the term, the award notices were sent to on campus addresses. Read More

posted Tuesday, May 10, 2005 5:23 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Update on what we're up to...
It's May 3rd and hopefully all of you who are planning on attending (new Freshmen, that is) have sent your reply form in.  As my friends in Admissions close out their books on the class of 2009, we over here in Student Financial Services are still going Read More

posted Tuesday, May 03, 2005 2:20 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Phase Doubt? Look at Interphase...
So, I recognize that you may think that all of your applications are done, you've made your decision, you've committed to MIT,  sent in your response form, and you're done.  But you may not be... We have a terrific opportunity for incoming freshmen students Read More

posted Wednesday, April 27, 2005 4:13 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Hey, Graduating College Seniors (and Graduating Graduate Students): It's Not Too Late to Consolidate!
Something you should know if you will be finishing your undergraduate or graduate education in the next several weeks:  you may want to consider consolidating your Federal student loans now instead of waiting until after you graduate. What is consolidation? Read More

posted Sunday, April 24, 2005 8:41 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Clearing the Decks (or the Desk) -- The Return of the Return of More Questions Answered.
Sorry all, between dealing with emails (over 200 a day), phone calls (don't even ask), questions from my staff, and just trying to spend a little time with my family, the last two weeks have been INSANE!!!  So, I haven't been blogging... Bad me! But, Read More

posted Friday, April 22, 2005 9:01 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Presenting my CPW Presentation
Hi there. Probably many of you regular blog readers are on your way here to MIT by now, either winging your way in the friendly skies, catching the Greyhound, or riding the rails.  For those of you who want a head start on CPW (or for the many of you Read More

posted Tuesday, April 05, 2005 2:04 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

More News IS Good News... And a Logic Problem to boot... (updated 03/30/05 - 5:00 PM)
First the news: Autumn was down over the weekend. It appears to be back up now! We mailed 100 awards today, bringing us to files that completed as of last Friday.  We still have many of you we would like to award.  GET YOUR FORMS IN!!! We will Read More

posted Tuesday, March 29, 2005 5:09 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Satisfying Your Self Help Supplications (you try finding an "S" word that means questions).
So sorry for the sibilant subject line, but down to business. Many of you have had questions about how to satisfy your self help.  I invite your questions here as comments to this post, and would also urge current students reading this post to offer Read More

posted Monday, March 28, 2005 11:09 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

C U @ CPW
Hey all! Before I take off for the weekend, I wanted to give a brief description and highlight of what SFS will be doing during CPW (to translate, what those of us who work in “Student Financial Services” will be doing during “Campus Preview Weekend”). Read More

posted Friday, March 25, 2005 6:44 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

More awards in the mail. More to come on Thursday.
Sorry I have been an absent partner... We have been VERY busy trying to keep up with the submission of new documents for people who have not yet received their financial aid award. So, some quick news: We are now mailing financial aid award letters Read More

posted Wednesday, March 23, 2005 5:28 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Congratulations - We Made the Boston Globe
Today's Boston Globe has a special section on financing your education, and in one article is a blurb about the blog.  So, we've made the news! The article, entitled “Aid offices shed cold image for games, personal approach” reads in part like this: Read More

posted Sunday, March 20, 2005 9:51 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

The Letters are Out the Door
We just delivered the last letter to Mail Services and to our International carrier (the one with the yellow envelopes) and the letters are gone!!! Many pictures to share. First, some blog news.  A little ways back, we passed the 15,000 hit mark, and Read More

posted Friday, March 18, 2005 4:51 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

The Letters are Coming, the Letters are Coming
I guess in honor of Paul Revere (and by extension, in honor of Evacuation Day), I was put in mind of his hallmark expression during his midnight ride. My usage in this blog post's title, though, refers to a much more mundane topic:  WE MAIL TOMORROW! Read More

posted Thursday, March 17, 2005 10:53 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

The IDOCs of March
Happy March 15th!  What an exciting week, Pi Day yesterday, the Ides of March today, and St. Patty's day on Thursday (by the way, here in Boston, the local folks get to take the day off on Thursday -- something about an Evacuation Day? -- I don't know, Read More

posted Tuesday, March 15, 2005 5:17 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Day (and Latkes and Hamentashen)
Happy Day to all!  (And take a look at today's home page for a visual description of ). I haven't seen anyone wandering down the hall dressed as a this morning (or any other reasonable facsimile), but that is not to say that won't be served at lunch, Read More

posted Monday, March 14, 2005 11:01 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Once you have your letter...
If the letter from us is an incomplete letter, there may be some forms or requests which we want but with which you aren't familiar.  Let's keep this post as a place for questions about what we are asking.  Post your questions here, and I will try to Read More

posted Saturday, March 12, 2005 11:10 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

And they're off...
What can I add (to this and this)? Not much. Except to say “Stay Tuned”.  Much more to come from “moneyman.” And for those of you who will be getting a large packet with a letter from me explaining what you are missing on your financial aid application, Read More

posted Friday, March 11, 2005 10:17 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

The Best Laid Plans...
So, this morning we delivered all of your financial aid letters to Admissions.  Some of them are letters identifying what still needs to be completed in order for us to assist you in providing a financial aid award, and some of them are letters letting Read More

posted Thursday, March 10, 2005 12:25 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

URGENT! We Need Your Help... Help Save the Federal Perkins Program.
Hey, we need your help to save the Perkins Loan program.  Based on the most recent Federal budget negotiations (proposed from President Bush and heading into the Budget Conference committees for both the House and the Senate), it looks like the Perkins Read More

posted Tuesday, March 08, 2005 2:00 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Decisions Mailed, Tuition Announced, The Return of More Questions Answered, and Opening and Closing Doors
So, it has been incredibly busy in my office.  As you now know, decisions will be mailed by the Admissions office on March 11.  We hope to have financial aid decisions in those envelopes for those of you (EAs, RDs, Internationals) who have provided us Read More

posted Tuesday, March 08, 2005 12:26 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

We're not Big Brother (we're more like a friendly cousin).
Jason Hernandez recently posted on one of my previous blog entries that: “I recently called into the MIT Financial Aid office about the status of my aid application because the documents I submitted were not acknowledged online or in the letters from Read More

posted Friday, February 25, 2005 9:40 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Mitra's Blog and an interesting question
In her blog, Mitra addressed a question from Changelingpiper about the dilemma in whether to choose a full ride offer from another school over acceptance to MIT.  Changelingpiper asked Mitra to share her perspective, and Mitra in fact went farther and Read More

posted Thursday, February 24, 2005 1:29 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Reading, Reading and more Reading
While my colleagues in the Admissions office continue their Selection process, we in the Financial Aid area have begun our annual reading process.  We technically started reading applications on Friday the 11th, but since I have been so busy updating Read More

posted Tuesday, February 22, 2005 2:31 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Another article worth reading
http://www.newhousenews.com/archive/obrien020705.html Questions?  Comments?  Have you followed these suggestions? Read More

posted Tuesday, February 08, 2005 11:54 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Early Admits? There's a letter in the mail to you... And some more of your questions answered.
Hi all.  Some of you may be hitting this blog for the first time due to a caption on a letter that just got sent to you.  On Friday we dropped in the email and regular mail our first communication to early admits, informing you what forms we have received Read More

posted Saturday, January 29, 2005 7:05 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Interesting article from CNN on the 4 myths
More coming on this later, but here is the url for the article: http://money.cnn.com/2005/01/20/pf/college/myths_0502/index.htm Read More

posted Friday, January 21, 2005 12:05 AM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

And even more answers (plus some IAP info)!
First catch-up on some questions you may not have seen but have been asked and answered on the feedback pages: Jessica asked: as a question, if i am a student who has not worked through high school or over the summer between years in high school, but Read More

posted Tuesday, January 11, 2005 8:22 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Some more answers to your questions...
More answers to some of your questions: Carlos asks "Also, besides the College Board form we (international [prospective] students) need to fill, what other information is required (I know about the Tax Form [my country has one so I am sending that translated Read More

posted Monday, January 03, 2005 11:47 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Is your PIN broken? How do you fix it?
So, as of December 26th, the Federal government added some new complexities to the PIN.  Now the PIN has challenge questions and a notification not to share your PIN with anyone.  If you created your PIN very recently, this is a no-brainer since you took Read More

posted Wednesday, December 29, 2004 5:01 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Take a look at the MIT home page
Today's home page features a profile of scholarship recipients at MIT and what a difference the generosity of our alumni and donors makes for our current students.  The feature story can be found here.  There is also a letter from President (Emeritus) Read More

posted Monday, December 27, 2004 2:51 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Answering some questions... Commenting on comments... Questioning some answers...
So a bit of long overdue answers to your questions. Chetan's question was the following:  “I recently came across a scholarship offered at nsa.gov where, if accepted, nsa would cover my full tuition in exchange for working over the summer and for 1.5*# Read More

posted Friday, December 10, 2004 4:32 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

The History and Mystery of / Financial Aid / Is It What You Need?
Hello all. Well, it is a Friday night and Boston is experiencing its first snowfall of the year.  Early in anyone's book, but gorgeous.  I am thoroughly enjoying watching the first flakes fall, even as it puts me in mind of my first year in Boston for Read More

posted Friday, November 12, 2004 8:25 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)

Can you really go to college for free?
Can anyone go to college for free?  Is such a thing even possible?  We’ve all heard the story of students who have gotten a “free ride” at X, Y or Z college or university, but is that really the case?  Can you get a free ride anywhere?  Are there free Read More

posted Tuesday, October 26, 2004 7:19 PM by barkowitz (Comments Off)