<p>My parents earn a lot of money but they refuse to pay 50K+ per year for college. Should I just not apply to schools that cost that amount of money? Is there a cutoff for how much parents need to earn in order to quality for any aid?</p>
<p>What do you think is “a lot of money”? Your parents and you should run their numbers (income and assets) through one of the online calculators to get an ESTIMATE of the minimum amount schools will be expecting them to contribute (that would be called your EFC). </p>
<p>In addition, you need to discuss college finances with your parents. It is very important to know what they are willing to contribute to your college costs annually. After you have that discussion, you will better be able to craft your college application list. You might still be able to APPLY to some more expensive schools, but you might also need to understand that if the aid is not sufficient, you may not be able to attend if accepted.</p>
<p>Re: a cutoff…Hmmm…I would say if your parents earn $150,000 or more and you are the only college student in the family, you will likely NOT qualify for need based aid most anywhere.</p>
<p>If your family earns enough money that your EFC is above about $5000 a year…you will not qualify for any federally funded need based aid.</p>
<p>“a lot” = over $300,000 annually. They currently have a big loan though for an investment and most of that money goes to paying it off.
so I guess I shouldn’t expect anything (I really wasn’t in the first place). My parents have the attitude that since I’ll be 18 they should not be responsible for paying my living expenses anymore.
I’ll make them run everything through an online calculator, though. Thanks a lot for the advice =)</p>
<p>If your parents have income in excess of $300,000 it is HIGHLY unlikely you will qualify for need based aid of any sort anywhere. If their investment has any value, that will also be included as an asset on the financial aid application forms. </p>
<p>The FAFSA and Profile (the two financial aid application forms) do NOT consider any kind of debt in the computation…well…the Profile does only count home equity in the primary residence (so that would be value minus debt). No consumer debts or loans are considered in the formula.</p>
<p>I’m sorry but with an income of $300,000 per year, your family would be considered to be at the top of wage earners in this country.</p>
<p>haha what makes it worse is that I’m not even in the country, I’m in the European Union so I guess I’ll be looking more at UK schools. In the US only the top top top schools give out aid to international applicants and I guess I wouldn’t qualify for that anyways…</p>
<p>I’m sorry if this was an extremely stupid question, it seems a bit silly to me now =/ I guess I knew it was a longshot but I thought I’d ask anyway.</p>
<p>furiousflutter…there is no such thing as a stupid question. You are correct…your status as an international student would lend a different hue to your questions as well…but even so…with an income in the $300K per year range…not even the top top top schools would offer you need based aid.</p>
<p>My bet is you will find a great school!!</p>
<p>thanks =) I guess I’ll be having a serious conversation with my parents then.</p>
<p>As a parent I consider sending my kids to college as one of the best investments I can make.</p>
<p>You say that your parents don’t want to pay $50k per year. Are you also saying that they won’t pay ANYTHING? Or, are they willing to pay a lower amount?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t apply to any colleges that cost more than your parents are willing to play. That’s just good advice, because if you do you’re going to come back in here in a couple of months sobbing over getting into Princeton, Dartmouth, and Harvard and not being able to go because your EFC is 99999. </p>
<p>What is the max they’ll be willing to pay per year?</p>
<p>They are willing to pay the 3-4 thousand pounds a UK education costs annually (which is I think about 5 thousand dollars) plus some bare living expenses (I’d probably be expected to have a job). I’d receive my bachelor’s degree in three years.
I don’t know how much they’d be willing to pay for a US school (I will talk to them in the morning).</p>
<p>Depending on your stats, you might be eligible for merit scholarships.</p>
<p>I hope they are willing to pay more for a US school, because $5000 isn’t that much and if you are international student it will be more difficult for you to get money from public schools. Private schools might actually be a better option because they are more likely to meet your financial need or provide significant merit aid opportunities if you don’t have any need but still need money.</p>
<p>To be fair: Before states ran into such financial turmoil some state universities used to be incredibly inexpensive – I paid a couple of hundred dollars a quarter to attend the University of California back in the 70s. Some countries still have really inexpensive universities, and if you were a parent in one of those countries and felt your child could get a reasonable education at one of them, would you be jumping through hoops to let him pay $55K a year just to go to school in the States?</p>
<p>Absolutely not. I know people who were able to send their children to UK schools. Certain countries do have really bad university systems, but the United Kingdom is not one of them. If I were British, there would have to be a really good opportunity in America for me to even consider destroying my future to afford an American school. However, that’s because I lack the financial means to support something like that; the OP’s parents might be able to work something out that would make a US school affordable to them (but I doubt it; $5000 is nowhere near enough to meet the Cost of Attendance even at a UC for an international student, and financial aid is severely restricted).</p>