<p>My dad is the only member of my family with a full-time job, and I just heard a rumor that his company is thinking about removing all of its branches, which would leave him out of a job. Currently, he is earning enough that we would not receive much financial aid (~$90,000/year with $400,000 in assets).</p>
<p>How would this affect my financial aid opportunities at colleges? I am currently a rising senior, and I'll be applying to colleges in the fall.</p>
<p>Will your dad receive any severance pay? </p>
<p>Your financial aid for the 2015-2016 school year will be based mostly on your family earnings for 2014. A couple of things are possible…your dad might not lose his job. If he does lose his job, it is possible he will find another one. </p>
<p>If not, I believe you would have to request a special circumstances consideration because your main source of income will be different from 2014 earnings.</p>
<p>Thanks for explaining, @thumper1. I’m not sure about severance pay. Nothing is definite yet, and I’m probably overreacting, but I would like to be prepared for the worst-case scenario.</p>
<p>Well, apply to the schools that interest you and let them know the situation.</p>
<p>However, you are not over-reacting, and you need to have a back up plan. Your dad’s assets are substantial and your dad’s earnings from this year will still count (especially if he gets a severance). </p>
<p>Find out from your dad how much he can pay for school if he is unemployed. If the answer is zero, then that will be an issue. Most schools wont cover all costs. Most will expect your family to pay some/most costs.</p>
<p>What are your stats? major? You need to apply to a couple of schools that will give you huge merit for your stats.</p>
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<p>Now, I’d prefer not to waste too much time preparing for an additional standardized test (I’d rather spend my time on my classwork, essays, ECs, etc.), and I would probably do fine on the SAT, but I’m afraid a weaker score might hurt my chances at colleges that require all test scores. Even though the PSAT predicts a 2200+ SAT score, I’m sure the additional essay component on the SAT will hurt me since I got a 7 on the ACT essay.</p>
<p>What do you think? Should I just take the SAT without preparation and try my best, or should I take a few practice tests to make sure I do well?</p>
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<p>OK…you’re a likely NMF…be sure to apply where that will get you huge merit for your stats…those can be your safety schools.</p>
<p>You are only a likely NMF if you take the SAT. So…take the test. If the score is t what you want, then submit the ACT 35 on your college applications.</p>
<p>The OP is correct, Stanford requires all SAT and ACT scores taken.</p>
<p><a href=“Standardized Testing : Stanford University”>Page Not Found : Stanford University;
<p>Still, Stanford’s admission rate is very low and with the financial situation, NMF could help a lot in finding an affordable solution. OP, it sounds like you test well, I would prep well and take the SAT to complete the the NMF process and let the chips fall where they may. NMF can get you significant merit aid at some good schools.</p>
<p>Practice for the SAT before you take it. Consider it an investment.
Budget your time; you can study & still finish the other stuff.
Good luck & I hope your dad keeps his job.</p>
<p>Edit: Your 35 on the ACT will also qualify you for merit scholarships at other schools - check the the pinned threads on the Financial Aid forum. Apply to a couple you like for safety. </p>
<p>@thumper1: Just to clarify, the question @mom2collegekids reposted above was referring to colleges, like Stanford, that require students to submit all test scores. That said, I will definitely be taking the SAT next fall. I asked that question before all of this financial-aid mess became important, so I will be taking the test and preparing for it.</p>
<p>With our family’s assets, my mom’s part-time job, and my savings we could theoretically pay our current EFC for 3-5 years of undergraduate education, but if (1) my dad were laid-off and (2) didn’t get a job in the near future and (3) I attended a college with no merit aid, I might feel compelled to enter the industry (CS) immediately, instead of pursuing graduate school.</p>
<p>Also, @mom2collegekids: I said I was probably over-reacting because (1) this has happened before, and everything worked out fine and (2) my dad does some other work for the company, and he’s a valued, fairly-high-ranking employee, so he might be offered a different job for the same company. I see what you mean about the need for a back-up plan, though.</p>
<p>EDIT: Since no one seems to know about severance pay yet, I checked my dad’s company’s website, and they are very vague, saying that they may offer severance pay “from time to time.”</p>
<p>EDIT #2: Incredibly, neither of my parents seem very phased about this. So that’s a good sign, I guess.</p>
<p>Entering the CS workforce out of undergrad is NOT the worst thing in the world. If you have to defer grad school for a few years…so be it. A good CS job should put you in the position to save some money. It’s also possible that your company might actually help,pay for grad school courses.</p>
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With our family’s assets, my mom’s part-time job, and my savings we could theoretically pay our current EFC for 3-5 years of undergraduate education</p>
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<p>You are assuming that their savings is for college. Have they said that? It may be for their future. </p>
<p>@mom2collegekids: Actually, it’s a combination. They’re willing to spend a large portion of it on my college tuition, though, provided I help them out post-graduation (i.e. contribute what I can, but not extraordinary amounts).</p>
<p>Design your list so that your safety plan includes safety schools which will be for sure affordable even if he loses his job, but you do not get a financial aid adjustment for that. This means automatic merit scholarships, or low enough list prices to be affordable in that situation.</p>
<p>Take a look at the automatic merit scholarship and the National Merit scholarship lists.</p>
<p>One problem with NMF scholarships is that most of the top schools offering them request to be listed as a first choice. USC is one of my top match-level colleges, and I could get a 1/2 tuition scholarship there if I list them as my first choice with NMF. However, I could get a full ride at the University of Arizona, which is a school that would not be on my list if money was not an issue, but listing it as my first choice would preclude me from attending USC at 1/2 tuition if I was accepted there and determined that it was worth the cost.</p>
<p>Gah, this is frustrating.</p>
<p>You don’t have to list a first choice until you get all your FA in and decide then. You can also list a first choice and change it at that time. That is the least of your worries.</p>
<p>Most NMF schools do NOT require you to name them as first choice until May 1st…so dont worry about that. And NMCorp lets you change your mind if you name a #1 before that, and then name another one.</p>
<p>You dont have to name a #1 now anyway.</p>
<p>Look to see what USC’s deadline is to name #1. BTW…the USC award may not help you much at all since it would get applied to “need” (which you would get ANYWAY). </p>
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<p>That does not sound like a good plan. </p>
<p>Even if you name one school as first choice, you may change it anytime until May 30 I think.</p>
<p>As others have said, because you KNOW that there is a strong possibility that your family may have financial issues in the near future, look for schools that will have merit money available that you can get. No school is going to give you financial aid until the actual numbers show need. That’s the way it works. Yes, you can let the school know when your father actually stops drawing a paycheck, but how a given school will react to this financially, and when is up in the air Fin aid is based on the prior year income numbers, and assets are usually hit up at at least 5.6% of the total each year after the protection allowance. It’s decided on a case by case basis as to what exceptions are to be made to all of this.</p>