<p>After filling out the CSS profile from the college board a few months ago, it told me that my family's expected contribution was up to $90,000. The college I will be attending only costs about $60,000 a year so we won't have to pay 90, but 60 grand is still a HUGE stretch for my family. With an income of a little bit under $180,000 for my entire household, how can the expect us to be able to pay $90,000 a year???? Half of our income? This seems absurd to me.</p>
<p>As a result, the school is not giving me any grants (they cover 100% of expressed need), which will force me to take out heavy loans to pay for the education that I have worked so hard to be able to receive. Something needs to be rethought here.</p>
<p>OUR EXPRESSED NEED DOES NOT EQUAL OUR ACTUAL NEED.</p>
<p>Does anyone else have this dilemma?
Is my family just the only ones who filled out the CSS profile honestly?
I am confused. Can anyone shed any light on this?</p>
<p>An income of $180,000 is very high, and almost no one gets needs based aid with that level of income. Lots of people are honest and do not receive need based aid. Even people who only make $150,000 often get little or no aid from schools that only give out need based aid. </p>
<p>The education you “work hard for” either means getting accepted where others may not and paying what’s required, or possibly getting merit aid from a school that offers it to their topmost students. To get merit aid you usually need to select a school where your grades etc. are in the top 10% or so of accepted applicants.</p>
<p>I think most people would agree that the CSS Profile expected contribution doesn’t equal the comfortable level of payment for most families unless you are very wealthy. It is the way it works though.</p>
<p>Most families with the income you describe (which is far higher than the great majority of American families) have put aside savings for their childrens’ educations over many years and also have some disposable annual income. So it’s not unreasonable for financial aid formulas to determine that your college costs can be paid from a combination of current income, past savings, and, if needed, loans. But nobody “expects” you to do anything other than make a reasoned decision about what school to attend based on its costs and what you and your family feel you can afford.</p>
<p>The above two posters are being so nice to you! My immediate feeling is that your idea of being entitled to financial aid, just because you feel like you worked hard needs to change. Your family’s income is very high. True, it’s not your fault if they didn’t save anything to send you to college, but the fact is that schools are not too sympathetic to that. Financial aid is reserved for those students who truly need it, based on very low family incomes (need-based), or for those students whose grades demonstrate excellent scholarship (merit-based). It seems that you don’t fit into at least the first of those categories, so you need to find a place your family will pay for. You probably won’t get need-based aid, but you still might be able to get merit aid if your grades and scores are high enough. Have you looked into that aspect? For many scholarships you still need to fill out the FAFSA, even if your income is high. So if you haven’t done that, there still might be time to look into merit aid, but those deadlines might also be past.</p>
<p>Happens all of the time. It is so easy to spend every bit of your income and not save a dime. There are always needs. Your family is in the upper 5% income wise. You really expect to get need based aid at those numbers? Your college costs are supposed to be met by past, present and future earnings, with the past met through savings, present by current pay and future through loans, and both you and your parents are expected to contribute that way. My son had college money saved, and yes, he is using a chunk of it for college. He is working this summer and had a job during the school year to pay for incidentals since his school year hours were sparse, but, hey, every bit helps. He took a Stafford loan this year because he wants to go on a trip this summer which means not as much in earnings and because he had to cut work hours this term due to his schedule. By doing this, he can stay on track of his planning for expenses and also take advantage of a great opportunity that has arisen. We are tapped out so can’t help him.</p>
<p>Really? Is this something new? Last I knew, the CSS Profile did NOT yield a family contribution when you complete it. This is because EACH college takes the financial data and does their own computations with the numbers. </p>
<p>Are you talking about the FAFSA EFC? That is standard regardless of the school.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>This is not the college’s concern. This is your family’s concern. The assumption is that your family will help you pay your college costs out of past income (savings), current income (current income), and future income (loans). If you cannot afford a $60,000 school, you will have to go somewhere less expensive like the VAST majority of college students.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I hope ALL families complete these forms (FAFSA and Profile) honestly. If you do them DISHONESTLY to gain need based financial aid, it is considered FRAUD…and you not only risk losing any aid you might get, but you would also likely lose your offer of admission to the schools.</p>
<p>I apologize for the rash post last night, I was frustrated. I do know that my family makes a lot of money, but the school that I have been accepted to, Columbia University (which I am very very excited about), gives no merit aid and justifies that by having a “no debt plan”. Yet I am going to have to have debt.</p>
<p>Also, my parent’s high income is somewhat false as they own a business and much of their income has to be put back into that business in order to make money the next year. Finally, I have a brother who is also going to be attending college next year.</p>
<p>So, after writing this, I guess my problem is with the “no debt” term that the school throws around.</p>
<p>PCase…the no debt plan is regarding those LOW INCOME students who receive need based aid. If there is a no debt plan, it means that need based aid is awarded to those in NEED without loans.</p>
<p>Families who own their own businesses get in this snag very often. Some of the things your parents use as business deductions are added back into their income by these generous schools. </p>
<p>Are you saying that your parents’ AGI is $180,000? What was their NET income? If $180K is their AGI, it is very possible that for financial aid purposes, their income was actually viewed as HIGHER due to added back expenses.</p>
<p>Also, do your parents have assets (a second piece of real estate for example, or significant savings)? These count too.</p>
<p>Your $10,000 in savings would add $2000 to your family contribution.</p>
<p>Thank you for clarifying that it was the SCHOOL that sent you that information.</p>
<p>Have you received an acceptance AND financial aid package from Columbia? Is your family able to pay your cost of attending the school (you need to talk to your parents about this)? If not, you will need to choose a less expensive option.</p>
<p>I haven’t filled out PROFILE for a while, is there a place to indicate siblings who “will” be attending college? If there isn’t, I think it is worth notifying the aid office as that will make a difference re:available funds.</p>
<p>But I also will say that it is more common than not for those who run a business or are otherwise self employed to have a much higher estimated expense than they anticipated .</p>
<p>PCase, you can borrow $5500 from Staffords, to take about 10% off of the burden from your parents. You can start working now, weekends and after school–high school is done, it’s time to look at college needs , that 's what my cousin’s son did the minute he realized he was going to need more money–got a job with food services at a nursing home. You just might with your savings and earnings come up with another $5500. or 10% right there. NYC is full of jobs. My son lives right up the road from Columbia and he juggles 3 part time jobs along with auditions, and so you can pretty much make another 5% of cost right there. That’s a quarter of the cost that you are taking. Hopefully your parents can throw in some savings, pay out from current income as you go and take out loans for the rest. That’s the way most people do it.</p>
<p>I don’t think 3-part time jobs is feasible for a college student, especially a Columbia student, since the atmosphere here is already so stressful. OP, have you asked your parents how much they can afford to pay for you?</p>
<p>I did not intend for the 3 job comment to be interpreted as something the student should do. It’s just that there are so many part time jobs are available in NYC , in that area specifically, that he could find 3 of them. There are some areas where it is nigh impossible for a student to find a part time job off campus. Not in that area. One job my son has is in 2 hour increments and pays well. Some weeks he works 10 hours, some weeks none if his variant schedule does not permit it. It is possible at Columbia to find such work more easily.</p>
<p>What the government and the schools consider “need”, and what you consider “need” are two very different things. The formulas allow for basic needs, and income above that amount is considered to be available to pay for tuition. Yes, I know that sometimes it doesn’t seem fair. Sometimes it seems like people get penalized for working hard and being successful. Your family makes $180,000, and you’re used to the lifestyle that level of income provides, so you think that you “need” it. If a kid with a $1 million dollar a year trust fund started whining about his “needs” and wanted financial-aid, would you be willing to listen to his arguments? He probably thinks he “needs” that expensive car and trips to Europe, too. Wrap your head around the difference between “wants” and “needs” and the fruits of your labors will ultimately be more rewarding.</p>
<p>The OP did not say where they live or how many in the family, but in many high cost of living places like So Cal where we live, the OP’s income is not that high and does not provide for an extravagant lifestyle. We have 3 kids and a similar income. We own (with a mortgage) a modest 1400 sq ft house in a solid, but by no means upscale neighborhood, two of the kids share a room, we drive 10 year old cars that we bought used, rarely eat out except at the local takeout, and have taken only one vacation where we had to fly in the last 10 years. Our kids go to the local public school, but we have spent money to enable our kids to play sports and play musical instruments. </p>
<p>That being said, we have saved a considerable amount for the 3 kids college educations, enough for 3 full pay educations at the UC’s, but nowhere near the almost 750K currently needed for three full pay private educations. My husband works 12 hour days and will get no pension, so we must provide entirely for our own retirement with a 401K and whatever is left after the kids college. We have not always had this high income and he worked very hard and sacrificed much family time to reach this level. </p>
<p>My kids are all limited to in state publics or lower level privates/out-of-states that may give them some merit aid. At the same time, my son’s low EFC friend who goes to his high school will be going to USC for 3K a year with no loans. My son will be declining his own acceptance at USC that he worked equally very hard for, because we as the “high” income family can simply not afford it. So, although 180K may seem like alot, the ready availability of financial aid is clearly driving the costs of college up for everyone, especially for the full pays, and I am not sure that anyone, of any income, should be “entitled” to it.</p>
<p>Like the previous poster mentioned, some families get penalized for an increase in income very near to the time when the child graduates. They don’t have anything to save until maybe the last two years before the kid moves off to college, and then they are expected to “catch up”? Nothing is fair in this game, I guess. I can give you a better example: The Michigan “Tuition Incentive Program” basically give a free community college education to anyone who was on Medicaid for any two straight years between 6th grade and graduation. So a kid could be poor for 6th and 7th grade, then Dad gets a good job for the next 5 years and the kid still gets the free tuition. On the other hand, a family limping along barely above that income level, or one who lost their job and put the kids on Medicaid during their senior year won’t qualify. It doesn’t have anything to do with current need, just past need!</p>