<p>I am very surprised by how little financial aid I got from American. When I told my mom this she said that unless I get more, there is no way I can go. Can I email them asking for a reassessment? There was one problem with my FAFSA where my dad should have put something under his retirement fund, but instead put it under savings. Plus, my brother might be taking additional classes at his university next year which, as of when we filled out the FAFSA, he was not planning on doing. Would this be enough to account for a possible change in aid?</p>
<p>Curious- did anyone else get offered a lot less than they were expecting? Also, the majority of mine was in loans.</p>
<p>Putting retirement fund into savings is a potentially huge mistake. You should go back to your FAFSA and fix it. You will then get a new EFC. If it is significantly different than what was previously reported, contact AU immediately.</p>
<p>I’d also recommend submitting an appeal stating the problem with your FAFSA, and then re-submitting it to get a new (and hopefully better) EFC. Good luck!</p>
<p>I was extremely surprised at the financial aid package they gave me. I have a very low EFC and I was not even given 10% of the cost of attendence. American was one of my top choices! It’s unfortunate I will be unable to attend.</p>
<p>@ahans93
I’m very surprised too as American was one of my top choices. I also have a very low EFC (less than 7k) and American offered me a package that would require me to pay 29k per year (not counting 6k in loans). Not possible. Hopefully an appeal could change things, but I doubt it.</p>
<p>So I’m guessing if you didn’t receive any merit aid and you have a low efc than its pretty much a guarantee you won’t be attending AU in the fall? Sad as AU was my top choice.</p>
<p>Oh well I got into Penn State and U of Pitt which are my state schools and I was also accepted to George Washington U which I hear is more generous than AU. We’ll see how things pan out. I really wanna go to school in DC</p>
<p>D got in today. Dean’s 10k per year. Less than many schools gave her ( Vermont, DePaul, Loyola-Chicago, Ohio U…). A bit surprised for a 32 ACT and a fabulous resume. Many people led me to believe they’d be more generous.</p>
<p>Yes, if there was something incorrect in your fafsa, then you have grounds to ask for a revision. Document it as best you can, as soon as you can. Including retirement income in reported savings is a common mistake, but it could have a major impact in financial aid. Hopefully, they still have some aid left to distribute.</p>
<p>same here jmay! I got a $10,000 dean’s scholarship and another $7,500 or so and that’s it…and my efc was only $13,000…i don’t know where they expect me to come up with $23,000. I was definitely thinking it would be more, but my family and I are waiting to compare numbers from all my schools before we start crunching numbers.</p>
<p>I applied RD from Ohio and received my acceptance letter yesterday. My parents filed FAFSA/CSS and I received a separate sheet of paper with my acceptance letter that details each award, what amount they total for fall/spring semester, and there is a box to accept and decline each award individually. The back of the page details the different types of awards that AU offers and when you create an Admitted Students account, the details are online regarding the requirements to renew the scholarships each year. Online, you then have the ability to electronically accept and decline awards if you do not choose to do so on the hard copy which would have to be sent back into American. I would call American and ask. I called yesterday and my parent called today to clarify any questions we had about financial aid, and if you give them your AU ID, they are very helpful at helping you understand everything on the letter and answering any questions.</p>
<p>I’m in the same boat. AU was my 1st choice, but now I definitely can’t go. </p>
<p>I’m actually really depressed about it… It seems as if they’ve given most financial aid to merit-based stuff. Hmm the only thing I can do is look to alternatives, then!</p>
<p>Aj1410, you (more like your parents) should call the financial aid office. It won’t hurt either way, and they are very nice and eager to help. My financial aid package was HORRIBLE, the amount I have to pay is 3x as much as my efc so my mom called and they explained it. </p>
<p>I didn’t get any more money, but they explained the issue to me - it turns out that they got the noncustodial parent form from CSS, and my dad makes a bunch more then my mom…even though he doesn’t plan on paying much…but ANYWAYS, at least now I know why I didn’t get much, and American was very sympathetic and nice and gave my mom tips on how to get more aid next year if I go.</p>
<p>So, to appeal, or ask about your aid amount, just call the financial aid office (the number should be in one of the packets you received), and they’ll help you out. Good luck!</p>
<p>Last year, the financial aid office told us that unless there is a change in financial circumstances from when you filed the FAFSA/CSS (such as loss of job, major illness, etc.) then they will not reconsider your FA package. You will need to submit documentation.</p>
<p>That being said, I know that at some other colleges, you can call/write to the admissions office and show them merit aid offers from your other accepted colleges and they may try to match them. I think this only works if you have VERY high stats, or you are an athlete, or performer, etc. But remember, admissions office determines merit aid, financial aid office determines need based aid.</p>
Sad as AU was my top choice.</p>