i’m a little confused about need-based scholarships. when you apply for needbased scholarships, do they look at the adjusted gross income or the wages, salaries, tips number. for our family, the latter is about 97000 and the adjusted gross income is 16000. does that qualify me for need-based full scholarship? i don’t know if that 16000 is high or low. also, if the scholarships are based on the wages, salaries, etc number, is 97000 too high for need based scholarships? my father is the only significant income in the family (theres 6 of us) and there will be three of us in college in the fall of 2006 (me, one in undergrad going to med school, and another in med school). thanks for your replies
<p>You need to go to the FAFSA website and look over the form which both you and your parents will need to fill out to obtain most FA....it will help you understand.</p>
<p>There are two basic methods that schools use to calculate need-based aid. The first is called the "federal methodology" and is based essentially on the FAFSA's estimated family contribution. Most public universities use this method. The second is the "institutional methodology" and is based on both the FAFSA and something called the CSS PROFILE from the CollegeBoard. Most private schools use this method, which is more rigorous and includes home equity as well as some other things. In either case, there are several variables that include # of dependents, # in undergraduate school (I don't think graduate school counts, but check it out), amount of savings and other assets, etc. The federal methodology using the FAFSA is pretty straightforward, and there are online calculators (such as at <a href="http://www.finaid.com%5B/url%5D">www.finaid.com</a>) that you can use to get a pretty good idea of where you'll stand. The institutional methodology is much murkier; private schools can pretty much do what they want and tend to offer more money to more academically desirable candidates. Also remember that part of almost all financial aid packages include loans and work study; what percentage is loans etc. and what percentage is grants again resides with the individual colleges. It almost never hurts to apply; at the same time it is good to be reasonably realistic about what you can expect from various schools. Good luck.</p>