<p>Say I have a FAFSA EFC of $3000...is it possible my college could calculate a higher EFC based on both the FAFSA and the PROFILE? How much higher could it possibly be, and what things on the PROFILE would cause this?</p>
<p>Thanks!!</p>
<p>It won’t actually change your FAFSA EFC, but a college could well determine that your family can pay more than your FAFSA EFC suggests. This could be due to the value of your home, income and assets of a non-custodial parent, trusts or accounts held by others to which you are a beneficiary, certain investments… it just depends you and your family’s financial situation. The CSS Profile asks more questions and probes more deeply into resources available to the student.</p>
<p>The FAFSA EFC really just determines what federal aid you may be eligible for. That won’t change. However, how much the college itself expects you to contribute toward your costs is a calculation that is their own. It’s not uncommon for the amount a Profile school expects you to contribute to be higher than your FAFSA EFC. On some occasions the school’s determination might actually be a little lower than the FAFSA EFC, too. It has been in our case, but the difference is pretty slight.</p>
<p>How much higher could my EFC possibly be?</p>
<p>It depends on what, if any, additional information you had to report on CSS. For instance if your parents are divorced then on FAFSA you would have only reported the custodial parent and spouse, on CSS you may have to report the noncustodial parent. On FAFSA certain types of businesses may not have to be reported, on CSS they may take them into account. On FAFSA the primary home is not reported as an asset, On CSS it is reported. Fore some people the difference may be none or negligible. For others it may be huge.</p>
<p>If a Profile school determines that your family can pay more than the FAFSA EFC determines, What do they call that new number? A CSS EFC? or something else?</p>
<p>My son’s college breaks it down into “Parental Contribution” and “Student Contribution” (the latter only refers to earnings from summer work, not work-study.)</p>
<p>Well, if on the PROFILE, I said I owned a $200,000 home, and owed $150,000 on it…this should lower my EFC, right? Because my parents have to pay a lot of their income towards their home?</p>
<p>No it probably won’t lower it. But it probably won’t increase it either.</p>
<p>The FAFSA EFC is not changed by profile so your eligibility for federal aid will not change. Schools requiring profile use FAFSA to determine federal aid eligibility and profile to determine their own institutional aid.</p>
<p>No, it wouldn’t necessarily lower it. That they owe quite a bit on it is less relevant than what their monthly mortgage payment is. If they had a lot of equity in the home (meaning the mortgage was substantially paid on it) that could raise your EFC depending on how any individual school used that information… or it could have no effect.</p>
<p>How much they owe, though, isn’t relevant because the college doesn’t assume the responsibility to support your parents in their long-term investments.</p>
<p>Anyway, the main thing you need to understand is that no one will be able to answer your specific question about how your CSS Profile will affect your aid award. This is because there is no uniform formula about how this information is used. It is entirely up to the colleges themselves and their individual policies regarding FA. All the Profile does is collect information and deliver to the colleges you specify. That’s it. Nothing else.</p>
<p>One thing…you want to be sure that any entries that come from your 2009 taxes are the SAME on the Profile and the FAFSA. They should be the same.</p>
<p>Schools don’t care if you have a big mortgage payment. They consider that a lifestyle choice.</p>
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<p>Can someone answer this… If a Profile school determines that your family can pay more than the FAFSA EFC determined, what does the school call that new number? A CSS EFC? or something else?</p>
<p>They don’t call it anything. As far as I know there is no “profile EFC”. Not one that is ever communicated to the student/family like the FAFSA EFC anyway.</p>
<p>mom2CollegeKids, the CSS Profile asks specifically about the amount of your monthly mortgage payment. Be careful about broad generalizations. The Profile also asks about private school tuition costs for younger sibs. That is a “lifestyle choice” too, but is relevant to some Profile schools when calculating a student’s FA package.</p>
<p>The CSS Profile question for the amount of your monthly mortgage payment is PE-150A. (In the “Parental Expenses” section.)</p>
<p>Swimcatsmom, when my son gets his financial aid award each year the college breaks down the various components of it. They identify the amount we are expected to pay as “Parental Contribution” and the part he is expected to pay out of summer earnings as “Student Contribution.” They don’t refer to those amounts as “EFC”, though. That’s just a FAFSA term – and, yes!, I know you know that already. ;)</p>
<p>By the way, you are an amazing gift to this forum.</p>
<p>Thank you :o</p>
<p>I think we often refer to a CSSprofile EFC on CC because it is just easier to do so. When I remember I put profile “EFC” I am pretty clueless about profile. FAFSA is easier to explain because it is more cut and dried with a set formula.</p>
<p>*They identify the amount we are expected to pay at “Parental Contribution” and the part he is expected to pay out of summer earnings as “Student Contribution.” *</p>
<p>Ahhh…thanks…</p>
<p>I figured they must call the amount by some name. Thanks.</p>
<p>I think we often refer to a CSSprofile EFC on CC because it is just easier to do so.</p>
<p>I understand. :)</p>
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<p>My kids both attend(ed) Profile schools. When their financial aid awards came…the cost of attendance was listed at the top. Their financial aid awards (grants, scholarships, work study, loans) was then listed…and subtracted from the Cost of attendance. The balance was then listed on the bill so the family would know what they would be expected to contribute. THEN they also listed “billable costs” those that are billed by the university (tuition, room, board, fees) so that the parents would be able to differentiate from the costs they had some “control” over (travel, personal expenses, books etc).</p>
<p>No “Profile EFC”. </p>
<p>The Profile does ask for your mortgage payments…and your primary residence equity. In fact, there are optional questions on the Profile about car payments (optional…by most folk’s thoughts), and balances in retirement accounts…to name a few.</p>
<p>It’s very important here to differentiate information that pertains ONLY to the FAFSA from that on the Profile.</p>
<p>Keep in mind also, that some schools use their OWN financial aid forms. The ones I’ve seen have very similar questions to the Profile.</p>
<p>*When their financial aid awards came…the cost of attendance was listed at the top. </p>
<p>Their financial aid awards (grants, scholarships, work study, loans) was then listed…and subtracted from the Cost of attendance. </p>
<p>The balance was then listed on the bill so the family would know what they would be expected to contribute. </p>
<p>THEN they also listed “billable costs” those that are billed by the university (tuition, room, board, fees) so that the parents would be able to differentiate from the costs they had some “control” over (travel, personal expenses, books etc).
*</p>
<p>Ok…so is it possible that some schools do the above, and some schools do what 'rentof2 experienced…(below)</p>
<p>*They identify the amount we are expected to pay at “Parental Contribution” and the part he is expected to pay out of summer earnings as “Student Contribution.” *</p>
<p>So, could each CSS school generate their own format for what they send out, perhaps using different terminology?</p>
<p>(I feel sorry for kids with divorced parents. I can’t imagine the anger/resentment when the “balance” is high and incomes are different, and one side won’t pay their “fair share.”</p>
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<p>I’ve looked at financial aid notices 20 times (between all the freshman ones and the annual renewals and grad school for one kid). NO TWO schools looked the same.</p>
<p>Yeah, the car questions are in the Profile SQ (supplemental questions) section, so whether you’re asked depends on whether you listed a college that wants to know. My son’s school evidently doesn’t, so I have never in fact ever even seen the car questions. They just don’t come up because his school hasn’t elected ask about that. I only know the questions exist because of reading here on CC.</p>
<p>My kid’s school does ask about your credit card debt in the SQ section, which seems unusual based on what I’ve read here too.</p>
<p>What about the 2010 estimates you have to make on the PROFILE? Can that affect your EFC and the aid you get? Or is 2009 data the one that really matters?</p>