<p>Hey,
My efc number from FAFSA was 05547 (which is probably higher than the actual, since we found some $ input that was too high), and I was wondering if anyone knows what that might translate to approximately in dollars. I applied to UCs (about $25,000 total I think, but public), Pomona and Swarthmore colleges (~$50,000 which are both private but have full need met programs), Columbia (~$50,000 whose policy i'm not really sure about), and NYU (~$50,000 or less, who I know isn't very good about fin aid). If someone might be able to give me a rough estimate of what that might mean aid-wise at these schools, or generally at public and private schools, it would be greatly appreciated... thanks!</p>
<p>UC’s don’t meet need so don’t count on much there. NYU will give you money if you’re a top applicant but will probably be heavy on loans. For the others we’d need to know your Profile EFC, but they are generous in general and could likely be cheaper for you than a UC if your Profile EFC is also low.</p>
<p>Your EFC (Expected Family Contribution) is $5,547. You’ll likely pay more, though.</p>
<p>Cost of Attendance (tuition, fees, room & board, books, misc) minus EFC = Need.</p>
<p>So, for example, your need at a UC where COA is $24K would be $24K less $5547 = $18,453. Your need would be much higher at a private where the COA is $50K: $50K less $5,547 = $44,453.</p>
<p>So each school where you’re accepted will put together a financial aid package to cover most (or perhaps all) of the Need. That package will likely include grants, loans, and work study.</p>
<p>Some schools meet full need, some meet nearly full need, on average, and some schools meet a relatively low % of need. You can find out for each school what their average % need met is by going to College Board and looking up the school, and checking the financial aid section. That’s an average, but it will give you an idea.</p>
<p>When the school puts together a finaid package, it includes federal and state aid, if available. So a UC might include a federal Pell Grant, a Stafford Loan, a Cal Grant, a University grant, and some work study.</p>
<p>Many of the Privates also use the Profile to get a better handle on your finances, and that will produce a different EFC than the FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>With an EFC of 5547 you will probably not qualify for any federal grant aid. The maximum EFC for the Pell is 4617. Other federal grants tend to be dependent on being Pell eligibility. So as far as federal aid is concerned you will be eligible for loans and possibly work study.</p>
<p>If you are in a state that has state grant money you may be eligible for that depending on their cut offs. Whether you will get institutional grant aid depends on your school and whether they offer their own grants. </p>
<p>It is impossible to give you much idea of what you may get as it depends very much on the school. Many public schools do not have their own aid so aid is dependent of federal and possibly state aid. Some schools promise to meet full need. Many (most?) do not. Of those that promise to meet full need some promise to meet it without loans. Many will meet it with a large amount of loans.</p>
<p>You may be eligible for Cal Grants even if you don’t get the Pell grants. Cal Grants will help almost cover your in-state UC fees.</p>
<p>You said that some of your reported FAFSA numbers were too high, so be sure and file a corrected FAFSA immediately, if you haven’t done so already.</p>
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<p>I can only tell you about our experience, but my D’s “financial aid” package from UC consisted of $1000 grant and the rest was loans and work/study – seriously, it felt like a slap in the face. They even had the nerve to include the parent PLUS loan as an element of their so-called offer.</p>
<p>By contrast, one private school not only met but exceeded our demonstrated need (large merit scholarship, larger grant, and the loan/work study components were much smaller than UC’s).</p>
<p>hey guys i wanna go to uci but im an out of state transfer and my costswere 47000 and my efc was 14000. uci only gave me 1900 for the year…is there any way i can get them to lower my costs or give me more money?</p>
<p>Your EFC gives you no assurance of any money other than PELL if you meet the cutoff for that and Stafford loans. The rest all depends on the college and your state.</p>
<p>Schools that meet full need tend to define need their own way, and I don’t know any of such schools that use FAFSA alone. You will very likely need to fill out additional forms such as PROFILE and/or a college’s own financial aid form.</p>