Your ultimate negotiating weapon is provided to you free of
charge by the college’s Financial Aid Office, sometimes called
the Office of Financial Planning or Financial Planning Office.
That weapon is the Financial Aid Award Letter. It is a letter
or form from the college, which states by line item what finan-
cial aid awards, grants, loans, work study, etc. you are being
offered. See sample Financial Aid Award Letter on page 107.
As you can see, the form is structured in such a way that
you can indicate whether you accept or decline each item in
the financial aid award package. The form identifies a date by
which the completed form must be returned. If the financial
aid offered on the Financial Aid Award Letter is not acceptable,
or not what you agreed to with the coach, admissions coun-
selor, or financial aid officer, you must return it.
But first send a photocopied form to the coach with a note
indicating why you’ve returned the letter or form and ask him/
her to help you get what you want and deserve. If the coach
wants you on the team, it is highly likely that someone from
the institution’s Financial Aid Office will be contacting you
shortly to review your financial aid package. Probably they will
“modify” the financial aid award to better meet your needs.
This is typically the type of situation for serious negotiation.
chapter 23
The Ultimate
Negotiating Weapon