<p>*
UW-Madison…Financial Aid
Average percent of need met: 78%
Average financial aid package: $9,579
Average need-based loan: $4,385 *</p>
<p>Swimcat…does this suggest that UW gaps students an average of 22%? Or, would those numbers include OOS kids who’d likely have bigger unmet need - so the numbers aren’t accurate for in-state kids. I’m not sure how to read that.</p>
<p>To be honest I always find the “average” financial need met statistics very misleading (except for 100% need schools of course). If someone has $3000 in need and they get a $3000 Stafford then their need is 100% met. If someone has need of $20,000 and gets grants and loans for $12,000 then they have a gap of $8000 and only 60% of need has been met. If you averaged the 2 students the “average need met” is much higher than the number for the really needy student. The average is heavily influenced by fully meeting the need of the student that does not actually have much need at all. Student A has 100% need met. Student B has 60% need met. The average need met is 80%. But that is misleading and student B is likely to be very disappointed if he is expecting 80%</p>
<p>I think the OP needs to go and talk to the financial aid folks at her school. Simply put…she is not an independent student by choice. If she was a dependent last year, it sounds like her last parent died this past year also. </p>
<p>In addition to the status of her financial aid application changing (and the subsequent loss of grants as pointed out by Swimcatsmom), if this student had any financial help from her parents to pay for college, and the parents are now both deceased…that would also not be available to this student.</p>
<p>To me…this sounds like a circumstance that needs to be laid out to the finaid folks. It’s not like this student has parents who can take out a Plus loan or a HELOC. She is on her own for this upcoming year with the likelihood of much less federally funded assistance.</p>
<p>Is it possible that her increased income was also used to pay her living expenses…because she didn’t have parents to live with?</p>
<p>I would suggest a discussion with a financial aid officer from the school. The OP should bring ALL information with her…living expenses, pay, death certificates, everything that documents the change in her financial situation and WHY. It may not help with federal funding as that IS driven by FAFSA EFC…but maybe the school can help in some way.</p>
<p>Swimcat…very good points about misleading averages. </p>
<p>*Is it possible that her increased income was also used to pay her living expenses…because she didn’t have parents to live with?
*</p>
<p>Perhaps, but it sounds like she lives in a dorm. </p>
<p>It sounds like her parents’ home is nearby and the sibling is living with a relative/guardian until the OP can become the guardian. The sibling gets SS. I don’t know how the parents’ home (which I guess is now the OP and sibling’s legal home), is being paid for. </p>
<p>If the OP is paying the mortgage on that, would that qualify as “providing” for a dependent once declared the guardian?</p>
<p>I agree that the OP needs to go to the FA office and talk to them about the situation. They may not even be aware of the loss of parents.</p>
<p>Mom2collegekids…I believe the UW the OP is referring to is U of Washington since she has posted many other posts on that forum…not U of Wisconsin. </p>
<p>Re: the parents’ house. For all we know, it was rented, or belongs to another family member.</p>
<p>Quick question to the OP. In what calendar year did your last parent die? If it was 2009, the estate would have to file a final tax return (assuming the estate is settled) and you may or may not be able to be claimed as a dependent (consult a tax attorney) on that tax return. And I believe FAFSA looks backward at 2009 to determine your dependency status not forward (2010). Something to investigate.</p>
<p>I agree that with this situation, OP needs to sit down with the most experienced person in the FA office.</p>
<p>Ahhh…UW is UWashington…thanks for the clarification.</p>
<p>I don’t know if the family home is owned or rented, but it sounds like the OP still has access to it. see below…</p>
<p>Not really, I live at the dorms in school. But my house is nearby.</p>
<p>COA for UWashington… :)</p>
<p>2009-2010 Student Budget Nine-Month Living Expenses Traditional Undergrad
Books …$1,035
Room/Board …$8,949
Personal …$2,265
Transportation… $504</p>
<h2>Resident Tuition… $7,692 </h2>
<p>Res Total Costs …$20,445 </p>
<hr>
<p>On UWash’s website, it has a FA calculator. I put in the OP’s info, including that the OP is an independent, and this got calculated…</p>
<p>Award Type of Award </p>
<p>$2,900.00 Federal Pell Grant </p>
<hr>
<p>$6,876.00 State Need Grant </p>
<hr>
<p>$2,695.45 Other Grants </p>
<hr>
<p>$0.00 Work Study </p>
<hr>
<p>$2,000.00 Federal Perkins Loan </p>
<hr>
<p>$3,473.55 Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan </p>
<hr>
<p>$0.00 Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan </p>
<hr>
<p>$0.00 Federal Parent Loan </p>
<hr>
<p>$17,945.00 Total Estimated Award Eligibility </p>
<p>Your Estimated Need Calculation </p>
<p>$20,445.00 Cost of Attendance </p>
<hr>
<p>$2,500.00 Expected Family Contribution (EFC) </p>
<hr>
<h2>$17,945.00 Financial Need </h2>
<p>Does this look about right?</p>
<p>If so, then if the OP earns a similar amount this year ($14k) or more, and doesn’t have to use her income towards the family home, it looks like s/he’ll have enough for college. Or am I overlooking something?</p>
<p>goaliedad - FAFSA only looks backward for income, not for dependency status or anything else. Dependency status is based on status as of the day you file FAFSA. Remember being claimed as a dependent on a tax return is irrelevant to FAFSA dependency status. (my son has not been a dependent for taxes for years but is for FAFSA).</p>
<p>^^^ OK, I stand corrected.</p>
<p>I wish you were right in the OPs situation :(.</p>
<p>*Personal …$2,265
Transportation… $504
*</p>
<p>The above was figured into the COA, and then $2500 is taken away for EFC. So, hopefully, the OP’s earnings of $14,500 will be enough to overcome that.</p>
<p>The OP should complete the FAFSA, and print it out and print out the SAR. Then she should make an appointment with the financial aid folks at her college as soon as she can. She should bring all supporting information with her regarding why she worked to support herself, when her last parent died, etc.</p>
<p>I DO believe this is a very extenuating circumstance. Most college students do not become forced into being independent due to the death of a parent…and thus have to become self supporting…as the OP has become. Please…explain this to the financial aid folks. It might not help…but then again…it might.</p>
<p>And good luck to you. I hope it all works out in your favor.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>I agree. I hope it all works out. :)</p>
<p>I have nothing more to add, but also wanted to wish the OP much luck!!!</p>
<p>Wow, I logged on today to a ton of advice…thanks everyone.</p>
<p>And yes I am a female, yes I attend University of Washington (as an in-state student), not Wisconsin.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Federal Pell Grant — 5350
State (of Washington) Need Grant — 6876
Federal Supplemental Grant — 411
Federal Work Study — 3000
Federal Perkins Loan — 1000
Federal Sub Stafford Loan — 4080
Total Aid: 20717 (equals cost of attendance)</p>
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</p>
<p>Ouch, not what I like to hear. Okay, I will make an appt with my FA office.</p>
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<p>Yes, because I worked full time from January through September, when I then quit my job and enrolled in school. So I do not have that income now. Does that matter at all?</p>
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<p>Not yet, actually it just recently happened.</p>
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<p>Well, kind of. Without going into too much detail about the story of my life — my dad passed away a couple of years ago — and he was the sole breadwinner of the family. So I took a gap year (I graduated high school in June 2008, did not enroll at UW until Sept. 2009) to work and help support the family so that my mom could get back on her feet. Now she has passed away as well.</p>
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<p>I am kind of uncomfortable posting all the details — but to be brief…no I am not paying the mortgage. I will be the legal guardian, another relative will be the physical guardian and have physical custody, for the time being.</p>
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<p>My last parent actually died just a couple of weeks ago. The estate is not yet settled, actually everything is still a whirlwind, but I knew the FAFSA had to be completed as close to Jan 1 as possible, so I went ahead and did it. I am not sure if I am going to be claimed as a dependent on that tax record or not. Like I said — I worked for my own money and I believe that technically, I provided over half of my own support. Would it be beneficial if I was claimed as a dependent?</p>
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<p>Okay, thank you. What kind of documents exactly should I bring?</p>
<p>I don’t think it is possible for you to be a dependent. Dependency is based on your current situation, which is that you are now independent. Being claimed as a dependent or not on a tax return is not relevant at all for FAFSA (plus with a income of $14500 you could probably could not have been anyway).</p>
<p>Looking at your aid package the good news seems to be that your school (or State?) seems to have fairly generous need based grant - much more so than our State does. Do you have any idea how that is determined? </p>
<p>My suggestion would be that you make an appointment for a sit down with an FA officer. Make sure it is an officer, not a student aid. Take your SAR and go in and talk to them and explain your situation as you have explained it here. Ask them if there is any possibility of an special circumstances adjustments being made for you. Explain that you were working to help out your Mom after your dad passed away and that she has now passed away also and that you are not working. Also explain that you will be your sibling’s guardian. Hopefully they will be able to help you out. They will tell you what you will need to provide in the way of documentation for any sort of special circumstances adjustment. </p>
<p>I really wish you the best of luck. You have touched a lot of hearts here with your situation. Please let us know how it all turns out. Good luck.</p>
<p>Goodness.</p>
<p>My first observation is that you are a woman mature beyond your years, to be dealing with such a difficult life and be so well organized to move forward. </p>
<p>Moving onto your situation, I think it will be more complicated than any of us can deal with online. </p>
<p>Some things to keep in mind/consider…</p>
<p>1) There is no hurry to settle your mother’s estate. Hopefully, someone else besides yourself was left as the executor, as it can be very complex. There is no legal requirement to do it quickly. My mother’s estate took well over a year and my sister (a CPA) who handled it (as well as her finances the last 5 years of her life). However, there are some issues (like 2009 taxes) that need some decisions made by the executor. Hopefully there will be a lawyer/accountant involved soon to help start this process.</p>
<p>2) With regards to dependency questions, given from swimcats answer about your being considered an independent student (you are one now), there is only one question you might consider. You said that you took a gap year to work to help your mother get on her feet. Is that because she did not have a job and could not work (due to poor health in her final year)? Strangely enough (please get professional tax advice about this), it may be possible for you to claim your mother as a dependent if you were an adult last year and provided more than 50% of you mother’s support (in addition to claiming your sister if you can claim your mother. Like I mentioned, you will want professional tax help with this if it is the case. Needs to be coordinated with the estate. </p>
<p>3) As much as you want to get your FA paperwork done quickly (I am amazed that you are getting it together so close to the death of your mother), please take the time to talk to a tax/estate professional as well as the FA department at UW. This will take more than one meeting (with both). Advise them of the situation. A good professional will ask plenty of questions. If they are not (either the FA person or the accountant), you are not being served well.</p>
<p>Once again, you are an incredibly mature woman. You are doing great to have gotten this far. Just make sure that you get good advice from professionals going forward, as there are not enough experts here to answer all of your questions without knowing things about your family’s business that you don’t want to put on CC.</p>
<p>However, keep posting here with your general progress in this. I think there are plenty of people here who will give excellent suggestions as to how to move forward.</p>
<p>*Yes, because I worked full time from January through September, when I then quit my job and enrolled in school. So I do not have that income now. Does that matter at all?
*</p>
<p>Again, please let me offer condolences. I didn’t realize that you just lost your mom a few weeks ago. I am so sorry to hear that. </p>
<p>Definitely, go to the FA office. </p>
<p>Tell them that you’re no longer working and why (they’ll likely understand why).</p>
<p>Of course you’re not comfortable sharing details here, but please share details with the FA office. They need to know when your dad passed, why you took the gap year, why you earned a lot last year, why you’re no longer working, what your responsibilities will be to your sibling and the family home, etc. They need to appreciate all that you’re dealing with so they can give you a fair package. </p>
<p>However, they may think that you’ll need to earn some money this year - either thru part-time work during the school year or work during the summer.</p>
<p>Good luck! And, let us know what the FA office does for you. (prayers that it all works out for you!)</p>
<p>I want to add that I have been filling out the FAFSA for many years (for myself as an older student, and for three of my four children - the youngest still in HS). I have never filled it out before the end of January; usually in February. You do have a little bit of time. I wouldn’t hit “submit” until you have clarified some things with the financial aid office and perhaps a financial aid advisor of your own.</p>
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<p>You need to adhere to the deadlines for YOUR school. It is certainly very possible that others have deadlines for submission in February…but if your school says January, that is when you should file.</p>
<p>Also…susgeek, some federally finded financial aid is on a first come/first served basis like the Perkins loans. Once the school has dispersed money, it’s gone and they do it on a first come/first served basis.</p>
<p>Please…everyone…you need to check the financial aid application deadlines for YOUR school and adhere to those. The deadlines vary wildly from school to school and what is the case for one school may not be the case for another.</p>
<p>Doing the FAFSA using estimates is not a bad idea. Once the 2009 taxes are complete, the FAFSA can easily be amended to reflect the numbers from the 2009 tax return.</p>
<p>Also, in the OP’s case, if there is any chance she is going to get some assets from her recently deceased mother, she was wise to complete the FAFSA now. Those assets are not currently in her account. Assets are COMPLETE as of the filing of the first FAFSA for the year…they are NOT updated.</p>