Dear forum,
I hope that you are all doing well.
I have a problem with my CSS profile. I’m an international student doing his high school in the US. I got here because I got a full-ride scholarship in a local school (I will not say the name for confidentiality). That scholarship includes tuition, room, food, airfare and pocket money.
So I have a huge problem with my financial aid application. In the CSS Profile, it asks me how much money my parents have in their bank account. Here is the problem:
in my mother’s bank statement, it is said that she has 30000$. However, 25000$ in that account is a loan (specifically a consumer loan). This loan was made by my mother in order to add more flexibility for the family, and also because we need to start the construction of our house (we currently do not live in our own house).
One key factor to consider is that she has to pay that money back in 5 years (which means, by 2021). Therefore, she needs to cut down some things every time in order to pay that back.
My question is: does the fact that 30,000$ appear on her bank statement affect my financial aid? Her income is of 19,000$/year, and my father’s is of 7,000$/year.
Thank you guys, and have a nice day.
The colleges have a complicated formula for looking at finances, which I can’t really say anything more about. Someone else will probably chime in and tell you the exact percentage of savings that colleges expect parents to pay. Of course it’s not really savings in your case.
There is a place in the Profile to explain unusual circumstances and possibly you could write something up for each college.
Thank you for your response.
That is exactly what I have done. I did mention it in the special circumstances section, and in great details in order to be as clear as possible.
I am just very stressed about this as I absolutely do not consider going back home to get a higher education degree. Therefore, staying in the US is my only possibility and it is incredibly stressful to think that I might not be able to get a bearable offer… : /
Where did you apply and what are your stats?
You need to write to the financial aid officers at ALL schools you are applying to, as soon as you submit your FA paperwork to explain your situation. Nothing is guaranteed but you can try.
On the other hand- why your mom has to keep all this money in her account? If there a way to prepay some of her construction bills? If she can reduce the amount to less than 20K, she doesn’t have to report the exact amount on the FAFSA.
@tulachka32
OP is an international student and would not be filing the FAFSA as OP is not eligible for any Federal aid.
In this case, don’t think it is a big problem. Parents’ assets are assessed at 5.6% on CSS profile. And some of them are likely to be sheltered. In the worst case scenario, OP is looking at additional $1680, if the FA aid officer decides to count this money.
@tulachka32 not correct!
The parent assets are assessed at 5.6% for FAFSA purposes.
Schools using the Profile can assess those assets any %age they choose.
I applied to:
Carleton, Reed, Middleburry, Sarah Lawrence C., Clark University, Lewis and Clark C., College of Idaho, and University of Oklahoma.
I am applying to these schools because I have a potential $20,000 scholarship because of the school that I come from (Search davis scholarship UWC if you want some information). This is also an important factor to consider.
My mother is willing to contribute to my education but she will be able to do that if and only if the expectations are solely based on her income.
I really do not want to put a over-significant burden on her.
@tulachka32 She made the loan this year. As I left the US and my sisters are growing up, she was expecting to see an increase in the household costs.
Try to explain that to the colleges. It is up to them to decide.