<p>So I got into Rice on the ED plan but when I received my financial aid decision they said I was not elgible. My parents are above the cutoff by 4000 dollars. Understandable. However they cannot pay the full amount. I'll need to take out a bunch of loans</p>
<p>We filled out the FAFSA recently and our EFC was considerably lower than what Rice is saying we can pay (40,000 pretty much). Shouldn't our need be the 40k minus the EFC? </p>
<p>Well the question is, are they at fault or anything because the government is saying we can pay 20k but Rice is saying we can pay 40k which we cant?</p>
<p>Lastly, after filling out the FAFSA, how do we actually go about taking out student loans? How does the FAFSA come into play.</p>
<p>What is happening is that Rice and the FAFSA are using different formulae to calculate need, which is not unusual. FAFSA calculates you have a need of 20K but does not look at everything in the interest of simplicitiy. Rice gives a more thorough look, and calculates your need is 0.</p>
<p>Your award letter should have all you need to know about loans. With FAFSA need of 20K you should have been awarded subsidized loans. I don't know what happens for the remainder, but there should be specific information in the letter or surely specific info you should get from Rice.</p>
<p>Rice is using different information to compute your family's contributions. They do not just use the FAFSA but also use the Profile (I believe...I'm pretty sure they do). The Profile has more information about your home values and assets than the FAFSA does. Schools using the Profile take these things into consideration. The FAFSA EFC is only a small part of what Rice uses. The information on the Profile is somehow used to calculate your family's contribution and Rice's distribution of institutional aid (their money). They are not wrong...the two calculations are often different (FAFSA vs. Profile) because they use different information.</p>
<p>I called Rice and they said that they have teired financial aid and that the income bracket my parents falls into automatically disqualifies me from aid. We barely miss the cutoff. They said that they didn't even need to regard the other things. However the FAFSA has more detailed information on the expenses my parents have. The CSS is all about what you get and doesn't consider expenses. There's got to be some type of discrepancy because they went off my Profile alone but the FAFSA is more detailed. They didn't even offer me any loans. My parents have found a way to do year one but after that my college education is in question because of the money.</p>
<p>what expenses are you referring to that are on the fafsa?</p>
<p>Consumer debt is irrelevant, but if you are paying high medical costs, that is another story. Neither of those things are mentioned on the fafsa though.</p>
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<p>The CSS is all about what you get and doesn't consider expenses.>></p>
</blockquote>
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<p>What expenses are on the FAFSA that you think Rice is considering? I just completed TWO FAFSA forms, one for each of my kids...NO EXPENSES are outlined on the FAFSA...NONE.</p>
<p>Everyone has living expenses, mortgages or rent, transportation, clothing, food, etc. Those don't count a lick in the financial aid equation. And consumer debt (credit card debt, car loans, etc) is viewed as a choice. None of these things are noted on the FAFSA AT ALL!!</p>
<p>Remember (and this has been noted again and again), private schools distributing THEIR funds can use the information on the Profile any way they choose to. They set up their own formulas, their own distribution formulas, and choose to use the information any way THEY choose to use it. And the school determines your financial need, not the family.</p>
<p>My guess is that the Profile indicated your family either had significant home equity (something not mentioned at all on the FAFSA) or significant holdings in a business they own. </p>
<p>I'm sorry to say...Rice can make the determination to award aid or not to award aid. They are a private university using private endowment funds to award financial aid. It is THEIR decision.</p>
<p>Conventional wisdom says that if financial aid is a significant consideration, do NOT apply early decision. Of course, it's too late for you to do that now.</p>
<p>Now...if you REALLY can't afford Rice and their finaid package is REALLY not meeting your need (as defined by Rice...not your family)....then you can ask to be released from your ED contract (yes, it was a contract) to attend a public university within your own state which is less costly. These schools typically have rolling admissions and you can apply once you have been released from your ED contract.</p>
<p>I still don't understand why if there is FAFSA need of 20K the OP was not offered subsidized loans and subsidized work-study. Does Rice have the discretion to deny those?</p>
<p>It sounds like the FAFSA EFC was 20k-ish. FAFSA doesn't consider the COA to schools, just what they figure you can pay to any school. So 20K would probably mean eligibility for unsubsidized loans and PLUS loans, but not for subsidized.</p>
<p>Will FAFSA send me something saying which loans I get. Or will the school do it? They have received my materials, however they already sent me financial aid stuff back in December.</p>