<p>Each year, my financial aid shrinks by 2,000 despite my family income is still the same. I go to a private school. Is this normal (for both private and public schools)? Thanks</p>
<p>Private colleges generally use information not only from FAFSA but from their own forms/PROFILE to determine monies available for expenses- besides income.
Does this school meet 100% of need?
Most schools do not, and many gap between need and the amount of loans & grants available.</p>
<p>Many schools (public and private) increase the amount of the expected student contribution each year (and thus correspondingly decrease the amount of need-based aid). </p>
<p>That could be part of what’s happening.</p>
<p>Since federal student loan amounts increase each year, that may be the issue.</p>
<p>Does your school promise to meet need? If not, that can also be the issue. </p>
<p>Also, schools go up in price each year.</p>
<p>Are your grants getting smaller or what? </p>
<p>Wowmom is right that some schools expect students to earn more over each summer to help pay for college.</p>
<p>By this year, I didn’t receive any federal grant. Also, the grant from the school shrinked by a couple thousand.</p>
<p>If you didn’t receive any federal grants this year, then that means that your EFC increased beyond Pell limits. The school had nothing to do with that.</p>
<p>You need to look at your FAFSA…what is your EFC this year, and what was it last year? and the year before?</p>
<p>Was your EFC adjusted? </p>
<p>Income, assets, or family size must have changed?</p>
<p>If your grant from the school decreased as well, then either the school doesn’t meet need or income did go up.</p>
<p>One reason you may not have received Fed Aid this year is due to the changes in the automatic zero EFC. Last year income at $30,000 and below was given an automatic EFC. The amount was reduced to $23,000 for the zero EFC for 2012-13.</p>
<p>Also as others have said the student loan amount increases over time (+1k for sophomore year, +1k junior year). Lastly the student contribution typically increases over time and the cost of the school increases over the years. All these factors contribute.</p>
<p>Even at a full need/no loan school the student contribution portion increases every year.</p>