This year’s CSS Profile drove me to the brink of insanity with its seemingly endless train of questions probing to get the most financial minutiae ever (arrggh!). I understand that there’s a purpose to the questions (hidden in there somewhere…), but there comes a point where some of the questioning becomes redundant, etc. And don’t get me started on the actual construction and wording of some of the questions…
Wondering what everyone else thought/thinks/hates about the beast(?).
If you don’t want to do it, you certainly don’t have to. No one’s forcing you to ask this college for money.
But if you’re going to ask for funds to pay your student’s (or your own) education costs (possibly up to the entire cost of attendance!), then you really have no cause to complain that the college wants to know something about your finances first.
Perhaps I should have been clearer as that I think my message has been misunderstood. I found that the form is needlessly long as that there’s confusion, redundancy and overlap in its questions. As I noted, “I understand that there’s a purpose to the questions” -meaning that I realize that, in the eyes of any PROFILE institution, it allows them to award funds more equitably as that it gives a clearer picture of financial need for families when their fin aid offices are looking to award institutional funds, etc. I just happen to think there’s room for streamlining and clarity.
My 2nd point was that I was curious as to how others found the experience, etc.
Some Profile schools require supplemental answers, but for the most part it’s a one-size-fits-all deal. I think that contributes to the perceived redundancy and overlap – the form is trying to be all things to all schools. Not every school uses the answer to every question. Each school decides which data to use based on that school’s specific FA formula.
Yeah, it’s a PITA to complete it, but if you make notes the first time through, the following years should be much easier. At least that’s my experience.