<p>I'm starting this thread to report the NPC estimates and the actual aid awards that my nephew received. </p>
<p>By way of background, he's an independent student with a 0 EFC (my husband and I are legal guardians). He is an honors student, top 5% of his class, and an AP Scholar as a junior. Our state of residence (South Dakota) also helps him out. Other factors: first generation college, varsity athlete, artist, Horatio Alger national scholar, challenging background including some time in foster care. Planned major: Business. I realize his particular circumstances are different from most, but I still thought the following comparison might prove helpful.</p>
<p>The following numbers include GRANT AID ONLY (both institutional and federal). They do NOT include loans or work study.</p>
<p>Babson: NPC 50,645 Actual 50,645
Beloit: NPC 31,900 Actual 39,460
Bentley: NPC 38,550 Actual 47,645
Case Western: NPC 35,071 Actual 39,885
Gustavus Adolphus: NPC 34,136 Actual 36,677
Kalamazoo: NPC 41,390 Actual 36,478
Lawrence: NPC 31,400 Actual 32,745
Macalester: NPC 46,193 Actual 47,135
College of Wooster: NPC 47,086 Actual: 39,745
Franklin & Marshall: NPC 51,965 Actual: still awaiting award
St. Olaf: NPC 39,400 Actual: still awaiting award</p>
<p>It sounds like this child had a very simple financial picture…very low or no income and little/no assets.</p>
<p>Others with more complicated situations…retirement accts, home equity, non-taxable income, NCP income, business income, etc, will likely have more varied results.</p>
<p>I think so, too. 0 EFC on an independent 18 year old is a situation almost no one here faces. The other stats mean more than the NPC estimate isn’t a surprise either, especially at a school where merit comes into play.</p>
<p>Yes, it’s certainly true that my nephew’s circumstances are not common (thankfully!). All of these financial aid packages included merit awards as a component of the package except for Macalester.</p>
<p>Congratulations to your nephew! It looks like he has some wonderful choices. To me these calculations always make more sense if you list how much you have to pay for the school each year, rather than what the school gives you. It’s nice to see if a school is really affordable for a 0 efc or if the gap is just not doable.</p>
<p>Good point! Here are the gaps (these figures are based only on grant/scholarship aid…loans and work study are NOT included):</p>
<p>Babson 7,017
Beloit 9,046
Bentley 6,910
Case Western 15,293
Gustavus 10,259
Kalamazoo 11,447
Lawrence 16,977
Macalester 8,309
College of Wooster 11,855
St. Olaf (FA package came in this afternoon’s mail): 7,935</p>
<p>With work study, summer work and his $4,000/year Horatio Alger scholarship, the schools under $10,000 are very doable for him with no loans! My husband and I contribute his books and his travel back and forth to our home. </p>
<p>I came out of this process (and that of his older brother who has an outstanding package at Carleton and will also come out debt free) believing that kids with 0 EFC can get affordable options (less than the state school would cost) IF they do really well in HS.</p>