<p>OP needs to find out how PENN came up with that number. I’m puzzled too with the $17K NW payment. But we don’t know the whole story. There may have been another is college at that time, and any other issues that have not been revealed.</p>
<p>Do keep us apprised, OP. I don’t get the PELL eligibility either even if the EFC were halved. THere are some things here that make no sense without a NCP or family owned business in the picture. Unless this is a mistake, we are missing some piece of info and I am interested as to what it is.</p>
<p>I don’t either, Thumper. But I think, two students were used, but even then, I get an EFC that is over PELL eligible, certainly not close to what the PELL amount is.</p>
<p>There is only ONE in college this year, in which the OP’s sibling is paying $17k for Northwestern (if he or she is correct in that). The OP will be a freshman.</p>
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<p>Yes, but you’re largely wasting your breath in this venue. Many cc parents advise shopping on price above all. If that’s the only criteria, ED is moot, because one college is as good as another.</p>
<p>For some families, price is a very important, essential point. If they are already struggling financially, taking on another monetary commitment is not a good idea. </p>
<p>Most of us do NOT just look at price for all students and situations.</p>
<p>These numbers seem odd to me. We have a written financial aid pre-read (for an athlete) from UPenn with the same financial aid eligibility of about $24,000 but family income with non-custodial parent is over twice what OP’s is. The UPenn pre-read came back significantly higher than most so I would not assume that Northwestern would be the same. Our pre-read from Duke resulted in no FA and the NESCACs ranged from 0 to $6,000.</p>
<p>If CC parents do sometimes seem that way its because so many students come on here and seem to have no comprehensible concept of how to pay for it, and are focusing monomaniacally on a single school (NYU, or an out-of-state public university are common themes but NOT the only targets). They pin all their hopes on this, then when they get their aid package back and see a $35,000/year gap between what their aid provides and the tuition they start talking about loans and refuse to even consider the possibility that the school is unaffordable.</p>
<p>I agree that the difference is substantial.
Another inconsistency: A Pell family with a $35,000 EFC. It just doesn’t seem right.
Call Penn ASAP, or send an email over the weekend. Ask how they came up with a Pell AND EFC 35,000. This combination should raise huge red flags in the financial aid office!
Could someone had put an extra zero somewhere when filling out the financial aid papers?</p>
Do you parents each have a substantial 401K? If so, each can take loans from their 401K, up to 50% of the 401K or $50,000, whichever is less. A lot of folks in their mid-40s will have more than $100,000 in their 401K (if they have one). It’s a loan, but guess who gets the interest - your parents’ 401Ks! Great option some do not consider, it is NOT the same as an early distribution, no penalties. Not all 401Ks offer loan programs though, but education and buying a home are two valid reasons to take a 401K loan.</p>
<p>2) Have you retried the NPC with your parents’ latest numbers? Or do they own a good part of their house? We are getting a decent net price from running the Penn NPC, but we found that some changes in where our money is - in the house, in the bank, in investments, matters a LOT to the net price. </p>
<p>3) Can your parents qualify for a PLUS loan?</p>
<p>I’m a little shocked about the $35,000 EFC (yearly, correct?). My family makes about twice what you state for your parents, and we are below that (will have only one in college). Must be something somewhere causing a discrepancy. Maybe their FA office slipped a digit somewhere?</p>
<p>Good luck and hope it works out for you. I was on campus today and it is just a beautiful place to be.</p>
<p>Hey everyone, I contacted the financial aid office, filled out an official appeal form, sent it in, and now I’m just waiting on results. Probably won’t get any response until well past the holiday season.</p>
<p>They had a big pool of ED applicants, but they did not accept more than usual in terms of numbers, so it is not like they are spreading themselves thin. Penn has the same number of undergrads as when I graudated in the early 90s.</p>