Can this be a mistake?

Paying for College
1

<p>Hi all, I was recently accepted to USC and it was definitely one of my top choices. I received a financial aid award but am extremely disappointed with what they expect me to pay. My FAFSA EFC is roughly $24,000 while my CSS profile EFC is $20,000 for the federal methodology and $29,000 for the institutional methodology. My USC EFC is $48,000 and they basically gave most of the aid ($9,000 total) in terms of loans. Another private school that I was accepted to that also uses the CSS profile has me with an EFC of $10,000, and that is without any merit-based scholarships or loans, with all of it being need-based federal grants. I sent the same information to both schools and it is completely accurate. </p>

<p>Is there a way that USC could have such a different formula in determining EFC that it would be so much higher?</p>

2

<p>The Profile is for institutional funds and each school uses their own policies and calculations to determine your need. There is no one EFC for the Profile like there is for FAFSA.</p>

3

<p>Yes, USC’s parental contribution could be much higher than other schools. You are not alone: there is another poster who says that USC gave her family a package that was very different from other private schools.</p>

4

<p>It could be a mistake, and it could just be the way USC determines aid. Go over the numbers with the financial aid folks there just in case there is a major mistake made.</p>