For students at NYU, financial aid has been a common complaint.

In the most recent Princeton Review list entitled "Students Dissatisfied with Financial Aid," NYU is ranked No. 1. Schools were graded on a scale of 60-99 for abundance of financial aid awards and student satisfaction. With 60 as the lowest possible rating, NYU gets a 74.

"NYU's financial aid is bullshit," said Tisch sophomore Chris Neubauer.

SCPS junior Patrick Liu added, "It operates on an individual basis."

In the eyes of Gallatin freshman Jesse O'Connell, the majority of students enrolled at NYU are those "who can afford to pay everything, or who are in debt for years."

Neubauer said he feels deceived by NYU regarding his financial aid package. He was led to believe his scholarship was a merit-based one when it was actually need-based; once his stepfather received a bonus, NYU rescinded the scholarship. Neubauer's primary complaint is that NYU didn't explicitly explain the terms and conditions of the scholarship.

According to the NYU Admissions website, the average financial aid package for a student is $20,000 per year. These aid packages might be composed solely of scholarships, or a combination of scholarships, loans and work study. Barbara Hall, the associate provost for enrollment management, said students should note a few facts.

"First, this 'average' is anything but - consider how many students receive much more than $20,000 a year, and how many receive much less," she said. "Second, this number is from 2006 and won't be updated until the end of October, when the Financial Aid Office performs a census in which it checks if all students have registered for classes; if certain students haven't for whatever reason, the university withdraws whatever package it might have promised that student."

Hall also emphasized that only a portion of the university's operating budget goes to financial aid; more scholarship money comes from endowments. The latter includes donations, as well as a 5 percent earning from the principal, the university's invested money which totals far less than the operating budget.

Many students' ire lies with how NYU determines need, however. CAS alumnus Josh Namm said although his parents' combined income was too high for FAFSA's standards for financial aid, his family still carried the burden of two other sons' educations - one is enrolled at a private high school because the public schools in his area are deplorable, and the other is a college freshman.

"NYU doesn't take these things into account," Namm said.

According to Hall, NYU does take certain factors into account; financial aid awards are "based on parameters established within the schools, based on [the schools'] goals and student pools."

She said NYU awards financial aid by subtracting the Expected Family Contribution (calculated by FAFSA forms) from the total cost of attendance, then work to make up the difference, if any. The formula: Cost of attendance - EFC - NYU financial aid package = "gap," or the remaining amount of money the student's family must provide. The neediest students have the smallest gaps. While many students' gaps may seem too large, this is because NYU aims to give at least a little aid to many students, Hall said.

Gallatin junior Emma Gordon's primary complaint about the financial aid system is how impersonal it is; every time she tried to call the office to inquire about loans, she was put on hold for an hour or more. Gordon has been challenging her financial aid since receiving her "awful" first package when she was admitted to NYU. In the two years that she's been enrolled at the university, Gordon gained scholarships through New York state and Gallatin, but only after contesting. The rest of her tuition is made up of loans.

"On the whole," Gordon said, "it hasn't been a great experience."

Hall receives complaints like Gordon's frequently.

"I can understand students' frustration," she said. "The university is concerned about [objections to the amount of awards]. We're doing the best that we can with the money available. But, if there are service problems, students need to go to the Director of Financial Aid [Lynn Higinbotham] to communicate their concerns. She's very responsive."

Many students have had to investigate their own ways to get the money they need. SCPS senior Christine Howe wasn't offered any financial aid when she originally applied to NYU. She worked for Goldman Sachs for four years before reapplying; even on her second try, her best offer consisted of student loans. She turned these, as well as the interest they would invariably accrue, down in favor of a plan with her employer - that each semester she would be reimbursed for her tuition through her salary. If Howe hadn't received that first reimbursement through Goldman Sachs, she wouldn't be attending NYU right now.

However, Howe's story also highlights some positive aspects of NYU's financial aid system: Once she was enrolled at NYU, she received $2,000 each semester in SCPS scholarships. Additionally, she is part of the university's deferred payment plan, in which she pays 50 percent of her tuition up front and the other half a few months later.

Many NYU students assume the university has a huge endowment, but Hall insisted, "We don't have the endowment we'd like."

Students also have a tendency to compare NYU to schools like Sarah Lawrence and Reed colleges, but Hall says the best comparisons would be Northwestern University, the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis - schools that, like NYU, don't meet students' full needs.

"I don't think there's anyone in this place who wouldn't love to meet the full need," Hall said. "John Sexton would. But there just aren't enough dollars."

Natalie Zutter is a contributing writer. E-mail her at features@nyunews.com.