<p>Our EFC was $26,000, and out of state COA for UVM is $43,236. We got $5,000 in scholarships and grants, but the balance of the FA package is loans, for over $38,000. I thought that our outlay should only be about $26,000? I already called the school to appeal, and they said that EFC is only a guideline. Anything else I can do?</p>
<p>The EFC is only a guideline. I don’t know a single school that guarantees to meet need as defined by the EFC. OOS schools are notorious for being stingy with money as they are supposed to be taking care of their own first. To get any grant money if pretty good, from what I have seen. What did your state U offer you? Any merit monies at all? My son got more than a full ride from one of our state schools, but not a dime from the one OOS public where he applied.</p>
<p>The school is giving you the opportunity to use loans for your EFC in addition to the gap between your EFC and COA-$5000. COA is $43,236; subtract the $5,000 grants/scholarships, and what you need to come up with is $38,236 for your son to attend the school.</p>
<p>Most schools do not meet full financial need; there is a “gap” between the EFC and the COA. Your gap is $12,236.</p>
<p>If you have $38,236 in hand to pay for this school, that’s great – pay the cash and decline the loans. If you have your EFC in hand, that’s $38,236 - $26,000 = $12,236 that you still need to come up with somehow, and one possibility is loans, as the school is suggesting. </p>
<p>Your son could take the $5,500 Stafford loan, which leaves you with $6,736 to finance through cash or loan.</p>
<p>If you have to borrow $38,236 for your son to go to this school – meaning you don’t have the EFC saved somewhere – it could be that the school is too expensive. Borrowing $38,236 for one year is … well, I couldn’t afford to do that, but your mileage may vary, of course. (I think it’s crazy to go into deep debt for undergrad.)</p>
<p>This is the very reason that my older son did not apply to expensive OOS public schools in the NE. He did apply to a public in the south and one that in MD (supposed to be good for merit aid, but he got nothing). Now many of the public schools to the south are getting too expensive for us as well. My younger son will apply to one public in the south, instate publics, and private schools that do not gap too much and do not leave students with a huge loans (all relative) to meet need.</p>
<p>From the FAFSA website</p>
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<p>The vast majority of schools do not promise to meet full need and a great many of them (especially State Us) do not have the money to offer much, if any, need based aid outside of Federal or State aid. Federal Grant aid is *very *limited (the max for the largest fed grant, the Pell, is $5350 for 2009-2010 and that requires a 0 EFC, an EFC over 4617 is ineligible for any Pell, and most other federal grant aid requires Pell eligibility). Even with student loans and WS federal aid is insufficient to cover the cost of even most 4 year instate schools.</p>
<p>We did get full tuition and then some from in-state school, but school doesn’t offer her desired program. Can we use this as a bargaining tool?</p>
<p>banditmom, some states seem to have agreements with other states if a major is not offered. I guess a phone call or email to find out would not hurt. You have nothing to lose.</p>
<p>Some OOS schools do offer tuition reciprocity with other state schools if the program a student wants is not available at his state school. Georgia Tech is a good example. You can call UVM and ask if there is any reciprocity with your state for that reason if there is no state school in your state that offers your D’s program.</p>
<p>I have seen cases where an OOS does give generous money to a student but that is rare and not something you can count on getting. Anyone who needs money, has to cast a wide net. No problem taking a few chances by putting some long shots for aid in your basket, but be aware of and make sure you have some safeties in there too.</p>
<p>My son did not get any awards from the one OOS public that interested him though he got money from most of his private and in state publics schools. However, I know kids from him school that did get generous awards from that school where he got zilch. Just the way it happens some time.</p>
<p>Bandit mom, if your school is a New England University (UNH, UMaine, UMass, etc), UVM does offer reciprocity if your in state school does not have the program but UVM does.
Also, UVM is notorious for NOT giving any aid to OOS as that is how the school funds itself. Even for instate it ain’t cheap! According to Peterson’s, UVM meets 76% of need. That still sounds high for OOS. I think some instate %'s must be in there as well.
Check out the reciprocity deal and let us know, I think that is the ticket!</p>
<p>Reciprocity in New England works only if no public college or university in your home state offers the particular area of study. So if d is in Massachusetts and got into, say, UMass which doesn’t offer the major, but didn’t apply to Bridgewater State, which does, no reciprocity will be available. But, for example, because Massachusetts doesn’t have a public law school, a Mass. resident could go to UVM’s law school at 110% of instate rates.</p>
<p>It is still worth looking into.</p>
<p>I looked into tuition reciprocity and found this, might be helpful?</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.sheeo.org/finance/t&f_web/Section%20B-7.pdf[/url]”>http://www.sheeo.org/finance/t&f_web/Section%20B-7.pdf</a></p>
<p>And here’s the link to the New England consortium:
[New</a> England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) - Tuition Break](<a href=“Home | New England Board of Higher Education”>Home | New England Board of Higher Education)</p>
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<p>Probably not…you pay taxes in YOUR state…not in the other one.</p>