<p>Sike- I don’t get the transition in your attitude, you began this post worried and asking for help, not you are blatantly ****y and have a hostile attitude.</p>
<p>The forms are confusing, people make honest mistakes and some people lie. Finaid offices are charged with the responsibility to help people correct their errors and to catch the cheaters. </p>
<p>A large public will be generally slower and less responsive that a small private- I have had kids at both- but the people working in each office just want to do their jobs correctly. </p>
<p>You stated that you had to redo the form after showing up with a bag full of receipts, wouldn’t it have been easier for the finaid dept to just have had you intuitively do the form properly the first time? But the forms are confusing esp for self employed people so they have an office staffed to help you, but yeah, you needed to wait your turn.</p>
<p>I had a DD at a large flagship public, there were several errors in her aid over the years and even a small appeal once. I never went in, I just handled it via email, provided all copies of tax returns and clarified things as we went along. It was an extra thing to do, but it went smoothly. Any time I pointed out an error (initial years of ACG/SMART there was some confusion) I showed what they had, what I thought she should have as aid and my reasons for thinking that. The person could easily double check the rules and my Dds situation and make a quick decision.</p>
<p>The people working there are just people, no one is setting out to make life difficult for you; they probably just want to get your file dealt with and put away!I would not think of a state school (you did say UW didn’t you?) as an example of capitalist greed. Yeah, if you are attending, say USC and paying the full $50-60k out of pocket whilst some one else gets merit or need based aid, you might feel unfairly treated or feel you are subsidizing others.</p>
<p>In your case, you are asking for govt based need based aid, you have to fill out all the silly papers just the way they want them and you have to be prepared to explain when your numbers don’t fit the usual formula. As a mater of fact, if you went to USC and had an income of $0 or something below the poverty line they would ask you to provide info on monthly income and expenses- they just need to understand how you are living.</p>