A few questions :D

<p>So.. some schools say that parents' combined incomes of under $60,000 have no EFC.</p>

<p>Who are the parents? Custodial + Non?
Hypothetically, what if the Custodials have a 50k income and the noncustodial a 12k income? Will they just add those even though the 12k one obviously can't afford anything?</p>

<p>Can stafford loans be used for the EFC?</p>

<p>Also.. will the CSS Profile grant very low income noncustodial parents a waiver for the application fee?</p>

<p>Still unanswered,</p>

<p>the answer to the very last question is yes, apparently.</p>

<p>Profile schools do whatever they want with your info - so it's hard to give you a definitive answer. I suspect that colleges would treat a two-parent family a bit differently than two one-parent families (although I don't know this for a fact). The reason I say this is that many costs are doubled with two households to take care of vs. a single household. Again, though, I can't say for sure.</p>

<p>Hang in there ... you'll get your award letters & be able to see which schools give you the best packages soon enough.</p>

<p>Unsub loans can be used for EFC, if your need is met without using up all your unsub eligibility. If a school meets need without loans, as a freshman you'd be able to borrow $5500 in unsub Stafford loans. However, if you add up all of your aid, you can't exceed your Cost of Attendance. So if your need is met & your EFC is less than $5500, you'd only be able to borrow the amount of your EFC.</p>

<p>
[quote]
So.. some schools say that parents' combined incomes of under $60,000 have no EFC.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Harvard has a program where if the family's income is $60,000 or less, then there is no family contribution. Purely voluntary on Harvard's part.</p>

<p>Harvard</a> University Gazette: Harvard expands financial aid for low- and middle-income families</p>