<p>Does anybody know which forms are needed to apply for financial aid if I'm applying to Columbia's engineering school?</p>
<p>I think I read somewhere that they have their own separate form (one only for Columbia), but I can't find it.</p>
<p>I believe you need to submit the FAFSA, and signed tax returns for both you and your parents(if you did not file a tax return, you need to submit a nonfiler form).</p>
<p>You also need to submit the CSS Profile in addition to the FAFSA. 2007 Tax returns are due by March 1. All the information is available at the application tracking site.</p>
<p>How much financial aid does Columbia usually give?</p>
<p>^average package is 27000 and average grant size is like 20000-21000, but it's irrelevant, you're getting a fraction of that if you rich enough to afford it, and you'll probably get more if you can't.</p>
<p>my parents make 200k combined and i'm not seeing a cent
not even a loan package</p>
<p>so rediculous... 200k isn't nearly enough to support my family pay off the mortgage on the house, pay for retirement and insurance and pay for my 52k a year tuition(and rising at 6% a year)</p>
<p>I applied early decision so this is really screwing me in the buthole</p>
<p>so far i've received 1.3k in scholarships
yes! 1/250th of the way there!</p>
<p>^200 K is unfortunately just above the threshold, you wouldn't get a cent anywhere, unless you have several siblings. from a university's perspective college education for the children is supposed to be the second biggest expense during a parent's lifetime. I'd personally be worried if they gave you any aid, because that you be dollars taken away from acceptees whose parents earn much less than yours.</p>
<p>How does Columbia handle outside scholarships? On the finaid packet I received it said that whether scholarships can be used to decrease the parent contribution is decided on a case by case basis.</p>
<p>wow 200k i feel so bad for you, NOT</p>
<p>200k may seem like a lot but it really isn't considering all our expenditures
plus my parents have just started to make this kind of money(coming from working in restaurants and working as nannys)</p>
<p>200k is really not a lot, especially since we havn't finished paying for our house and medical fees and my parents have to pay both a NJ and a NY tax for working and living in different states. It sucks... other ivy leagues like Brown, Yale, Princeton, Upenn have adjusted tuition rates and have accommodated the middle and upper middle class</p>
<p>im sorry but 200k a year is a lot of money</p>
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im sorry but 200k a year is a lot of money
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<p>200k, particularly in NY/NJ, is nothing. The tax rates are outrageous, the cost of living is through the roof, etc.</p>
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<blockquote> <p>200k isn't nearly enough to support my family pay off the mortgage on the house, pay for retirement and insurance and pay for my 52k a year tuition</p> </blockquote>
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<p>Colleges don't expect you to be able to pay tuition with disposable income. They expect that you will have saved a significant sum over the years, be living below your income currently to have some available income, and meet any remaining gap with loans.</p>
<p>I'm not saying you fall into that category, TGOR, but college financial aid officers tend not to have a lot of sympathy for folks who have a relatively high income but drive nice late-model cars, have an expensive home, etc. I do know that $200K doesn't stretch as far in NJ as in the Midwest, but they would no doubt prefer that your family had budgeted at, say, $180K and socked the difference away into a college fund. </p>
<p>Showing up at college application time with reasonable income but without savings and spending 100% of income on living expenses is a recipe for an aid package that won't help.</p>
<p>The financial aid person you'll deal with makes a whole lot less than $200K, may not own any car at all, and probably lives in a marginal Manhattan apartment with a couple of roommates or has an long subway ride in from a slightly better place in Brooklyn. (One aid officer, not from Columbia, commented to me that she was amazed that people begged for more aid because their Lexus payments were so high. I'm sure it happens.)</p>
<p>Having said that, it really is tough to apply one-size guidelines to families from San Francisco or NYC along with those from small towns in Texas or Ohio. People driving cheap, old cars and living in very modest homes still have it rough.</p>
<p>Did you run an EFC calculator before applying ED? One slightly misleading thing that colleges say is that they "meet 100% of need." That's true enough, but they are the ones who define need, and the number they come up with may not be affordable.</p>
<p>Good luck, I hope things work out. If it's that dire, you should start thinking about a financial safety.</p>
<p>"200k, particularly in NY/NJ, is nothing. The tax rates are outrageous, the cost of living is through the roof, etc."</p>
<p>A dreadful sweeping generalization.
I hope you mean for those residents of the Upper East Side exclusively, otherwise, I would accuse you of not being a native New Yorker and thus unqualified to speak about such matters.</p>
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"200k, particularly in NY/NJ, is nothing. The tax rates are outrageous, the cost of living is through the roof, etc."</p>
<p>A dreadful sweeping generalization.
I hope you mean for those residents of the Upper East Side exclusively, otherwise, I would accuse you of not being a native New Yorker and thus unqualified to speak about such matters.
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<p>Because 200k is a lot of money in Midtown? UWS? SoHo? Tribeca? The Village? Westchester?</p>
<p>Well after looking at the data and seeing that like 50% of the ppl get fin aid and like the average person gets like 15k (don't know the actual numbers)
it's kind of disappointing that I do not get any... Personally, I wouldn't mind paying this debt until im 30 but I feel bad for my family who now have to scrap for every penny while i'm living it up at Columbia.</p>
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<blockquote> <p>50% of the ppl get fin aid </p> </blockquote>
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<p>I'd be surprised if it wasn't even a higher percentage than that. The problem is that a $200K family income ranks that family in the top 2.7% of US families, making financial aid unlikely unless there are unusual circumstances (e.g., three kids and a parent in college simultaneously).</p>
<p>Don't feel bad for your family. Some parents assume they are responsible for paying the full cost of educating their kids. Some don't. College didn't exactly sneak up on them - they've had 18 years to plan for it. Apparently, that plan didn't include saving. But that's OK - I'd never say it's a kid's absolute right to get a $200+K education paid for by his/her parents. That's a decision they have to make. I've seen parents who refused to pay a nickel, and others who emptied their IRA to pay tuition.</p>
<p>The best approach, IMO, is to have a frank financial discussion and ask how much of your education they are willing to fund - whether from income, savings, home equity loans, or whatever. It's not uncommon for families to adopt an intermediate approach, e.g., offer to pay up to $15K per year max, whether the college costs $15K or $50K. You'll have to come up with the balance using loans. Be realistic about how much debt you'll be able to handle after graduation. If between you and your parents you can afford Columbia, you are good to go. If the number left looks unmanageable, start weighing the options. Inability to pay is one reason to back out of ED, and if you have a financial safety school that might be the way to go.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>200k is a lot. The median income for the families in the US is around 41K a year from the latest official figures. So your family make almost 5 times what the average family in the US does. 52K should be affordable in your situation as long as you are willing to cut back on some luxuries that a high income family is generally accustomed to.</p>
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200k is a lot. The median income for the families in the US is around 41K a year from the latest official figures. So your family make almost 5 times what the average family in the US does. 52K should be affordable in your situation as long as you are willing to cut back on some luxuries that a high income family is generally accustomed to.
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<p>Do you make 200k, or are you just talking out of your rear in saying what "should be affordable"?</p>
<p>After taxes in a state like NJ/NY, 200k gets cut in half. What are "some luxuries that a high income family is generally accustomed to"? Are they supposed to move out of their house?</p>
<p>"Do you make 200k, or are you just talking out of your rear in saying what "should be affordable"?</p>
<p>After taxes in a state like NJ/NY, 200k gets cut in half. What are "some luxuries that a high income family is generally accustomed to"? Are they supposed to move out of their house?"</p>
<p>I think C02 has a point that 200k in ny/nj doesn't take you nearly as far as it does elsewhere, that being said, since there still are far poorer applicants in the ny/nj area and comparatively poorer applicants from around the country, for columbia to give FA to a 200k family would be having its priorities muddled. they expect that parents spend years accumulating money for college and that they live frugally when the kid is in college. i imagine most parents' incomes don't shoot up from 60k --> 200k in one year. it's an investment, even paying full fees at columbia is well worth it in the long term, if you make something out of your degree.</p>