There are some questions that make me cringe. “Can applying for financial aid hurt your chances of admission?” is one of them. I cringe because people never seem to believe the answer, whether or not paying for college is high on their list of concerns.
Here’s the best way I can explain it:
Can applying for financial aid hurt your chances of admission? No.
Can needing (a lot of) financial aid hurt your chances of admission? Yes, sometimes it can if the school is one where the admissions office knows your financial need.
Needing aid doesn’t automatically count against you at those schools. But if you’re a borderline admit or the admissions office has concerns about you, needing a lot of aid can work against you.
Submitting an application for financial aid is not the same thing as actually needing a lot of financial aid. Don’t confuse one with the other.
Here are a few past posts with more information here, here, and here.