<p>Hi all. I have a question about the CSS profile. One question asks about scholarships, grants etc. this year. Does this just mean college aid, or should I include the aid my son receives at his private high school? (We qualify for need-based aid and they essentially charge us just 2/3 of the usual tuition.)</p>
<p>Second question is about amount paid for tuition. I assume this includes HS tuition and not just college, but it says not to include amounts "borrowed". I have put the tuition on my credit card for a couple of years now and have a balance (owed) that is over twice what we pay annually. So can I legitimately say I pay 0 for tuition, since I have borrowed it all? Seems a little arbitrary not to include borrowed amounts since I will have to pay those back, but that seems to be what they're saying.</p>
<p>I don’t believe balances on your credit card are considered “borrowed”. Borrowed means you took out loans to pay these bills.</p>
<p>The question on the Profile refers to high school tuition. The amount you paid should be put there (I’m not an expert, but this would include the amount you charged on your credit card…plus any other tuition payment you made…it would NOT include scholarships or grants your kiddo received).</p>
<p>Hopefully someone else will weigh in.</p>
<p>I know you didn’t ask…but my free advice for the day…i would suggest you STOP charging tuition costs to your credit card. you will have staggering debt if you continue to do this. colleges do NOT consider consumer debt when determining the awarding of need based aid.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. Of course I wouldn’t have run up my credit cards if I had ANY other option. Being newly self-employed (not by choice) in one of the most expensive places on earth with a one of the lousiest job markets, horrendous public schools and dwindling assets sometimes leaves one with hard choices. To top it off, because I own a one-half interest in my home property (shared with family members who also live there), but am “jointly and severally” liable on the whole mortgage (though I only pay 1/2 of the monthly payment, if my family members stopped paying the bank could and would come after me for the whole deal), I can’t qualify for loans despite having “impeccable” credit (never missed a payment in over 25 years, no smears at all on my record).</p>
<p>If I’d had better options I would have taken them. </p>
<p>So, next question. What if I had borrowed the funds to pay my son’s high school tuition from a family member? A legitimate loan, which I am actually paying back (religiously) every month, with interest (the debt, equal to about three times annual reduced tuition, is almost half paid back)? Would you say that counts as “borrowed” funds (if, as you say, credit card debt does not), on the Profile?</p>
<p>(And yes, I know CC debt does not “count” for FA purposes. I really don’t have to worry about that, basically I have no assets to speak of and income just above the Pell Grant threshold. What I don’t know is how these “how much did your parents contribute to your education last year” factor into the Institutional Methodology and determination of contribution using the Profile. I have read “Paying for College Without Going Broke” and the question is not answered in there, either.)</p>