EFC Questionssss!

[trackdude410]

<p>Ok I just submitted my fafsa, my efc is $5601. I really dont understand if this is a "good" # to have? I am applying to some pretty good finaid schools, most say they meet almost all need, but i just dont understand, for a 45k cost school, take out the efc and thats 40k left is this all going to be paid by me with loans or what?? thanks for all your help</p>

[sblake7]

<p>Expected Family Contribution is $5601. If the Cost of Attendance at a given school is $45,000 (tuition, room/board, books, transportation, misc), the difference between the two is your “need.” In this case, about $39K.</p>

<p>Not all schools meet full need, most do not. But for purposes of example, if a school meets 90% of need on average, and if your finaid offer was average, they would offer a package worth about .90 X $39K = $35K. Now, that package will likely include grants (which is free money you don’t pay back), student loans (subsidized is best) which you pay back after college, and probably work study (where you work on or near campus to help support yourself).</p>

<p>So, a typical hypothetical example might be 25K grants (federal, state, and school grants); 8K student loans, and 2K work study.</p>

<p>But each college is free to handle the EFC as they wish. And remember that if you’re applying to Privates, you’ll likely fill out both FAFSA and Profile and some separate school forms.</p>

<p>Go to College Board and look up your schools. Click on Financial Aid for each, and you can see what % of need they meet, on average. You can also see how their typical finaid package is weighted: what % loans vs what % grants.</p>

[Muffy333]

<p>It really depends on the school. The “meet almost all need school” might decide your family can pay $6,000 from present funds, that you should get a work-study job paying $3,000, and take out a loan for $3500, so then you might get $32,500 in various grants. An efc of $5601 usually assures you some type of aid.</p>

[trackdude410]

<p>thanks alot
that helps because im really worried about just getting a ton of loans, because i dont want to be screwed after graduation</p>

[sblake7]

<p>Go to College Board, and look up your school. Under Financial Aid it will say what % need they meet, on average. Also, take a look at their typical finaid offer, how much $$ in grants, and what % is grants and what % is loans. Look for generous schools that meet a high % of need, with a low % of loans.</p>

[sybbie719]

<p>Stay with me this is going to be long:</p>

<p>From your posts, some of the schools you are interested in attending are:</p>

<p>Boston College (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>Columbia (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>Cornell (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>Duke (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>MSU (In-state) </p>

<p>U of M (In-State) Will require the FAFSA + CSS profile. According to the college board they will meet 90% of your demonstrated need.</p>

<p>Northwestern(Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>Williams (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>Yale (Will require CSS Profile will meet 100% demonstrated need with large amounts of grant aid)</p>

<p>You may have a dfferent EFC once you file the profile because the FAFSA and the profile look at different things.</p>

<p>

The difference between financial aid using the federal methodology and institutional methodolody (schools that use the profile or their own FA forms) are as follows:</p>

<p>The fafsa and the CSS profile use 2 different set of methodologies when calculating your EFC. </p>

<p>At minimum you file the FAFSA (at almost every school) to determine your eligibility for federal aid (Pell/ seog grants, stafford and perkins loans). Most public univeristies will just require the fafsa (the exception may be UVA, UNC- CH, Mich and a few others which may require their own forms)</p>

<p>The CSS profile is used at different colleges that distribute their own institutional aid (Many of these schools have much deeper pockets).</p>

<p>Many schools that use a federal methodology to determine EFC will require only the FAFSA. </p>

<p>Schools that use an instutional methodology or a combination of the 2 will require the CSS profile or their own FA forms.</p>

<p>Differences between the IM and FM models are</p>

<p>IM collects information on estimated academic year family income, medical expenses, elementary and secondary school tuition and unusual circumstances. FM omits these questions.</p>

<p>IM considers a fuller range of family asset information, while FM ignores assets of siblings, all assets of certain families with less than $50,000 of income, and both home and family farm equity.</p>

<p>FM defines income as the “adjusted gross income” on federal tax returns, plus various categories of untaxed income. IM includes in total income any paper depreciation, business, rental or capital losses which artificially reduce adjusted gross income.</p>

<p>FM does not assume a minimum student contribution to education; IM expects the student, as primary beneficiary of the education, to devote some time each year to earning money to pay for education.</p>

<p>FM ignores the noncustodial parent in cases of divorce or separation; IM expects parents to help pay for education, regardless of current marital status.</p>

<p>FM and IM apply different percentages to adjust the parental contribution when multiple siblings are simultaneously enrolled in college, and IM considers only siblings enrolled in undergraduate programs.</p>

<p>The IM expected family share represents a best estimate of a family’s capacity (relative to other families) to absorb, over time, the costs of education. It is not an assessment of cash on hand, a value judgment about how much a family should be able to use current income, or a measure of liquidity. The final determinations of demonstrated need and awards rest with the University and are based upon a uniform and consistent treatment of family circumstances.</p>

<p>Except in the most extraordinary circumstances, Colleges classifies incoming students as dependent upon parents for institutional aid purposes, even though some students may meet the federal definition of “independence.”</p>

<p>Students enrolling as dependent students are considered dependent throughout their undergraduate years when need for institutional scholarships is determined.</p>

<p>For institutional aid purposes a student may not “declare” independence due to attainment of legal age, internal family arrangements, marriage or family disagreements.</p>

<p>Your COA (cost of attendance) is tuition, room board, books travel expenses and some misc. expenses associated with attending college.</p>

<p>I suggest going to the college board and running your numbers through the FA calculator (use the federal and the institutional methodology)

</p>

<p>for example</p>

<p>according to the U Mich’s website the cost of attendance at U Mich (in-state) is $21,658</p>

<p>[University</a> of Michigan Office of Financial Aid: Sample Aid Packages](<a href=“http://www.finaid.umich.edu/Financial_Aid_Basics/packages.asp]University”>http://www.finaid.umich.edu/Financial_Aid_Basics/packages.asp)</p>

<p>[College</a> Search - University of Michigan - UM - Cost & Financial Aid](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)</p>

<p>your EFC is $5601 (this number could change depending on the information in the CSS profile.</p>

<p>Demonstrated need = cost of attendance- EFC</p>

<p>right now you have a demonstrated need of 16057</p>

<p>YOu aid package will consists of the following:</p>

<p>Stafford loan $3500
work study ~ 2000
If you get the average grant according to the college board $7883</p>

<p>your aid package would be $13,383 (school has met 83% of your need)</p>

<p>there will be a gap of $2674 (which you could make up working over the summer or possibly working now)</p>

<p>YMMV.</p>

[trackdude410]

<p>thanks sybbie that actually clarifies alot</p>

[SENI08]

<p>Just so you know…it says above that Williams will meet 100% of need with few loans, but they actually just instituted a no-loan policy, so you theoretically wouldn’t HAVE any…theoretically.</p>

[daffymom]

<p>Boston College is known to have an enrollment-management strategy that results in some students receiving very poor financial aid offers (mainly loans). Although, I am sure there are students receiving good financial aid packages, BC also offers appallingly poor assistance to many top students. The word is out in some New England Area schools to avoid BC - if you need financial aid.
Today I was unable to open the article below - but it is about how BC and other schools practice admit/deny that is admitting students but then providing such poor financial aid that there is no way the student can attend.</p>

<p>Economist’s View: Changes in the Cost of College across Income ClassesCalled “admit-deny,” this practice allows a college to keep poor students out… Syracuse, Boston College, and Boston University are among the highest-profile …
economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2005/10/changes<em>in</em>the_.html - 108k</p>

<p>See also, the Best Class Money Can Buy</p>

<p>[The</a> Best Class Money Can Buy](<a href=“http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200511/financial-aid-leveraging]The”>The Best Class Money Can Buy - The Atlantic)</p>

<p>“USC, Carnegie Mellon, Tulane, Washington University in St. Louis, NYU, Syracuse, Boston College, and Boston University are among the highest-profile schools committed to ambitious enrollment-management strategies.”</p>