Scholarship Evaluation Matrix (School A vs. B+$$)

I love it. As I go through my decision process (I’m applying for class of 2023) this is exactly what I needed. Thanks man!

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Is it based on percentage points?

For example if you needed 50% to drop a tier, what if the higher tier gave you like 25%, then would I need 75 from lower one.

And do colors in the curve mean anything?

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Thanks, this is helpful.
Although I am surprised to see Anderson below the other schools. Any comments on that?
For me at least, it is at the same level as Darden because I'm aiming for tech placements (PM? Start roles).

Actually, I think I answered you too hastily before ... the answer is 'not really' ...

Specifically ... let's say you got into four schools ... A, B, C and D ...

A = Tier 3 School ... full cost is $200,000 and you received $40,000 in total scholarship leaving you with $160,000 to pay (including room, board, books, required fees, etc.)
B = Tier 3 School ... full cost is $180,000 and you received no scholarship, leaving you with the entire $180,000 to pay
C = Tier 4 School ... full cost is $200,000 and you received $60,000 in total scholarship, leaving you with $140,000 to pay
D = Tier 6 School ... full cost is $210,000 and you received $130,000 in total scholarship, leaving you with $80,000 to pay

Comparisons:
B is the most expensive at $180,000; it's a Tier 3 School (per the GMATClub rankings)
A is $20,000 / $180,000 ... or 11% ... less expensive than B
C is $40,000 / $180,000 ... or 22% ... less expensive than B
D is $100,000 / $180,000 ... or 55% ... less expensive than B

Now, because A and B are on the same tier, and only making this a financial decision (not considering anything regarding placement statistics, where you want to live, etc.), the next step is to exclude B from our calculations because A and B are in the same tier, and A is a lower cost ... so, now we compare everything to A financially ... its the best deal ($$ wise) of all the schools you were admitted to in the highest tier.

So, Comparison #2:
A is the most expensive at $160,000
C is 12.5% less expensive (20/160)
D is 50.0% less expensive (80/160)

Now, looking at the target discounts required to drop from Tier 3 to Tier 4 would be around 20% ... and ... the target discount required to drop from Tier 3 to Tier 6 would be 100% ... so ... financially speaking (and only financially speaking), School A is your best deal.

Now, if you went back to School C and they increased their scholarship so they were 30% less expensive than A (i.e., they gave you an additional scholarship to get you to $88,000 of total scholarship, leaving a final price of $112,000 ... or $48,000 less expensive than the scholarship-adjusted cost of School A), then you could make a great argument that C would be the better overall deal.

Hopefully my initial response didn't mislead too many people ... I'm heading there to edit that response now.

are the 2021 GMAT Club rankings relevant after USNews released 2022 rankings? Just asking.

Updated rankings are being worked on currently.

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It's my plan to release an updated version of this sometime in the next week to reflect the updated rankings (which can be found here --> https://gmatclub.com/forum/gmat-club-mb ... 57142.html )

The updated Financial Aid Consideration Curve is here --> https://gmatclub.com/forum/picking-a-sc ... 58227.html