<p>also, if you do not check off work study on the FASFA, can you get more subsidized loans instead of the 2000 dollars or so that you would make from work study? or would you just have to take out unsubsidized loans such as the unsubsidized stafford loan?</p>
<p>and about the first question- I work a job in the summer and one during the year. I'd say that i make around 2000 dollars per year from both jobs. How much would I be expected to contribute to college tuition? I have other expenses too...</p>
<p>also, if your parents are in a lot, a lot of debt, is this factored into the family contribution?</p>
<p>
FAFSA does not take debt into consideration. The exception is if the debt is directly against a reportable asset. For instance if there is a second home with a mortgage against it then the reportable asset is the value of the house less the mortgage. Otherwise , No. </p>
<p>The maximum Stafford loan a freshman can get is $5500. Of that a maximum of $3500 may be subsidized if there is need (as determined by COA less EFC and less any other scholarships/grants etc). You cannot get more than $3500 as subsidized. It is impossible to tell whether what impact saying no to WS would have on your aid package as we don’t know what aid you would be eligible for. WS and subsidized Stafford are both need based - ie you must have need to be awarded them. If you have a lot of need then you may get a full WS award and the max sub Stafford in your award. In that case if you have said no to the WS you will not get any more subsidized Stafford because you already have the maximum allowed. My daughter’s first year she was awarded WS but did not want to take the full WS award as she had an outside job already. She was able to have part of the WS award converted into a subsidized loan as she had not been awarded the max allowed in subsidized Stafford. If she had already been awarded the max in subsidized then she could not have got more sub Stafford even if she turned down the WS.</p>
<p>Students have a certain amount of income protection in the FAFSA formula. For 2010-2011 I believe it is going to be about $4500. Income below that will not have any affect on the FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>However some schools do expect a student contribution whatever the EFC is. That is something you would have to check with individual schools.</p>