To: Ronald Ramsdell's Prospective Clients
RE: Personal Reference
Dear Prospective Clients,
What a difference a year makes!
Today our oldest daughter, Jessica, is a freshman at the University of Puget Sound - The college of her dreams. One year ago, we were thinking the only realistic college choice would be a local public university. We were under the impression that we would not qualify for financial aid and the prospect of filling out forms seemed intimidating if not futile. Meanwhile, Jessica had other plans. She hoped to attend an academically challenging private college, preferably out of state and of course the expense would be challenging too.
Our "miracle" was a direct result from working with Ronald Ramsdell of College Aid Consulting Services. Our financial planner gave us his name via several of her clients who had highly recommended him. After an exchange of information over the phone, he assured us we would see substantial savings in college costs with his help. Needless to say, we signed on the dotted line.
Immediately my husband and I were impressed with Ronald's service - always returning our calls promptly and doling out calming advice. He assisted us with college applications, financial aid forms, and other related documents. The most exciting time in this process was near the decision deadline. Even though we had received a generous financial package, our expected family contribution was higher than anticipated. With Ronald's insistence and editing, we drafted a letter of appeal which resulted in an additional annual grant of $3,000.00!
Now that the dust has settled, we realize with another daughter being a high school junior, this process will soon start up again. Knowing that Ronald will be able to guide us, makes this a worry free experience. We could not be happier with all of his help.
Sincerely,
Dana J. Lowell
Dear Ron-
We want to thank you for your assistance and services this past year. Alec is excited about attending Gustavus next fall, and Dean and I are very pleased with his financial awards!
Your expertise and advice are a valuable service- we look forward to working with you again for Drew in 2006.
Sincerely,
S.H.
Dear Ron-
A note of thanks for taking time to visit with Laurel. Dean and I REALLY appreciate it!
It seems, as her parents, that we don't carry weight when we share our viewpoints. You defiantly made an impression as the expert. It is our hope that she continues at St. Thomas, but it must be her choice.
Thanks for your input, and for staying in this with her.
Sharon
Dear Ron:
We have talked and corresponded frequently over the past 4 years relative to the financial aid help you have given me with my two daughters and their college careers... I wanted to formally thank you for the help you have been, your professionalism and the vast amount of dollars you have saved me by steering me through the Financial Aid process. The process is truly at least as difficult and cumbersome as Income Tax filing. Your fee was well worth the investment...
Regards,
David
Dear Ron:
I wanted to write and thank you for the excellent services you provided to our family as we tried to decipher how to make Molly's college experience more affordable. Your assistance with the Profile and the FAFSA forms and your tips about issues that impact our family contribution were extremely valuable. There is no doubt that arranging for your assistance was a wise move for our family. As we look forward to taking Molly to Grinnell next month we are feeling very pleased to be able to afford to send her to an excellent school. It is a school with a tuition that would have been out of our reach financially without their specific assistance.
Thank you again Ron for your prompt and valuable assistance. I will certainly be glad to endorse your services and I look forward to staying in touch with you.
Sincerely,
Mark
Dear Ron:
I wanted to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of your efforts that resulted in our receiving a substantially better financial package for our son, Josh.
As you know, we went through the financial aid process five times without any assistance. I try not to think of how much aid we lost out on because of our lack of knowledge on how the system really works. I wish we had met you sooner!
Feel free to share this letter with any of your prospective clients. I can assure them that, based on our experience, you will do everything possible on their behalf to provide them with sound advice in this confusing situation called "student financial aid".
Very Sincerely,
T.W.B., CPA
Financial aid award letter from Boston University stating the initial award for of one of our clients:
After reviewing the initial award we had determined that a large portion of the need was not met for our client. We then utilized appropriate strategies to petition the university for further aid and were able to increase the total award from $10,125 to $22,025.
