Hello everyone, I’m starting to receive acceptances and financial aid packages from my schools. One of my top choice schools, Quinnipiac University, is as follows:
$61,000 year COA + room/board, $13,000/year scholarship, and $5500 in loans. While this is near my FAFSA EFC of $34,500, my parents think that we need to ask the college for more. Only my father’s income was recorded on the FAFSA, however he is only 2 years away from his forced retirement age, and has also had 3 injuries over the past 2 years, putting him out of work for 1-2 months at a time. Because of this, and his inevitable retirement, his income will soon drop to about 1/3 of what it is currently. Although there was no way to explain this on the FAFSA, I was wondering how understanding most schools are about increasing the scholarships/aid they give. We will obviously approach this by showing that it is my top choice school, and by explaining the circumstance in more detail. Should it be handled by the student or the parents? Would it be best to visit the office in person, or write a letter?
If anybody has gone this route, please let me know of your experience and how you went about it! Thank you!
You can ask the school…but really…your family contribution for this year was based on 2015 tax year information. It is NOT likely that the school will give younadditional aod because of your dad’s FUTURE retirement. The reality is…he is being forced to retire from THIS job…but who is to say he won’t pick up other work?
Your 2018-2019 fafsa will be based on 2016 tax year.
Your 2019-2020 fafsa will be based on 2017 tax year.
And your 2020-2021 fafsa will be based on 2018 tax year.
So…if your dad is retiring in 2018, on,y your senior year will have that reduced income for financial aid application purposes.
I’m not sure what there is to explain? Your dad is employed. He will remain employed until 2018. Right?
But…nothing ventured, nothing gained. Sure…ask if there is any chance for more money.
Oh…and remember too… Quinnipiac does NOT guarantee to meet full need. Most accepted students have a gap. And it is highly unlikely the school will give you aid to fund the calculated family contribution.
But ask…why not? Just have a plan B…in case the answer is no.
ETA…younsay only your dad’s income was on the fafsa. Are your parents divorced and do you love with your dad? Or does your mom not work?
According to them:
The cost of attendance is $61,000
Your EFC is $34,500
You need $26,500
You package consists of
&13,000 scholarship
$ 5,500. Loan
Total $18, 500
There is a gap in your financial aid package of $8,000
Since they are a school that does not meet 100% demonstrated need, it is up to your family to figure out how to fill the gap. Any outside scholarships will go toward filling your gap. The only problem with this approach is that many outside scholarships are for a small amount of money and are a one time deal.
You need to figure out how to finance this over 4 years taking into consideration that your costs are going to rise each year.
No matter how you slice it, this school is unaffordable to your family (especially when your father is looking to retire in two years).
What is your home state? Did you apply to your local state university. Your focus now needs to be making sure that you have an affordable option. This may mean living at home and commuting
Wow congrats on getting accepted to Quinnipiac. We have lots of kids around here who are looking to go there. The COA is about average for a private school here in NE and as you are discovering, it is expensive. This school might be a financial reach for you as it looks like you will need to be paying about $43K /year. Your situation is the same as ours. The schools my son likes are all around that $40-$45K per year mark and it is just out of reach. You need to look into a financial safety school if you have not already done so. This particular school might just be too costly. As was stated, it is unlikely they will offer more aid. Can’t hurt to ask though.
Did you look at UCONN? If too big, then look at some of the local city schools. They are much more reasonable in cost.