So here’s the situation. FAFSA came back with a surprisingly okay (still too high but not insane) EFC. However, next year my mom is likely going to start making much more. That would then affect my FAFSA for school years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, assuming this appears on our 2018 and 2019 tax forms. But just because she is getting a raise doesn’t mean that we could afford thousands more on school. I’m sure this is a problem for many people. I got a hefty financial package to Boston, and it’s “assured” meaning it doesn’t ever decrease despite FAFSA. Do the pros of a package like this outweigh the uncertainty of a similar package from a school that is cheaper? I guess what I’m asking is: is the cost of Boston left after the scholarship (even if it is more than another school) worth it because I know it will be that much every year? Sorry this was long…
Are you talking about Boston University or Boston College?
The question here is…can your family afford your family contribution at the college? If yes…fine. If NO…not fine.
My kid went to Boston University. When he started in 2003, the cost of attendance was about $38,000 a year. Costs increased about 3-5% a year…IIRC. By the time he was a senior…the cost was $50,000 a year…or so. As you know…it’s now closer to $70,000.
You package isn’t going to decrease…but it is also NOT going to increase, if you are talking about BU. And that includes if your income goes down or another kid goes to college in your family. We know…been there…done that.
So…your question to be answered…can your family afford the cost of BU with the aid you received understanding that the costs WILL increase annually…and your aid probably won’t.
Look, we love the school. But it’s expensive.
@thumper1 yes BU! Wow I didn’t realize how much it increased each year, that’s scary. In that respect, I suppose the assured aspect doesn’t mean too much, because an increase in tuition would be similar to a decrease in aid at another school. Okay thank you so much!
The increases sneak up on you. $2k here, $3k there…pretty soon you are talking real money! When we first looked at the cost of my daughter’s school when she was a senior in hs, it was $32k for tuition. Before she even started, it was up to $34k. Pretty steady increase of $2k per year, so now it is almost $42k. Room and board increases too, except not as much and she doesn’t live on campus anymore. The only thing that stayed steady were the two fees at $375/sem. I don’t know why they didn’t.
Things that haven’t increased? Her merit award (set as a freshman), federal student loan max, bright futures for her (for some it did go up for this final year). She did have a slight increase in a state grant.
Would the following work as a rough math exercise?
Assume a 4% annual increase in cost at every school you are comparing except for any that guarantee to freeze cost for incoming freshmen for their 4 years. (BU says right on their website that historically their costs have gone up 3.8% annually.)
Assume that you will keep the non-need-based portions of any package (i.e., you’ll generally need to maintain at least a 2.0 GPA to do this).
For your sophomore, junior and senior years at schools that make you requalify for need-based each year (i.e. not BU), assume that your need-based grant will go down by 1/3 of the increase in your parents’ income for 2017 over 2016, 2018 over 2017, and 2019 over 2018.
Don’t forget that any income YOU earn in 2018/2019 as well (summer jobs, non-work-study jobs) will also be expected to increase your EFC and thus decrease your need-based grant for your junior and senior years at schools that are year-to-year on recalculating aid. Gurus here should be able to say what fraction of student earnings is expected to go toward EFC.
@twoinanddone thank you for the advice! A couple thousand adds up really fast. Out of curiosity, where did she go? My parents are sold on UF because they believe it will be “free” with Bright Futures, I’m trying to tell them the the cost it covers per credit hour is decreasing (but mostly because I want out of FL lol).
@illiniowl That helps a lot, and I was reading that student assets tend to affect EFC more because students don’t spend money on other things (ie: kids). Thank you so much!
My daughter goes to Florida Tech. It is private, so she gets a FRAG of $3300 based on 40% of public school tuition.
I don’t think UF tuition has risen more than $1000 in the last 5 years.
With the new BF paying tuition and books, I don’t see how you can pass it up. You have 3 really big schools to pick from or a number of smaller ones. Every student should be able to find one he likes.
Take the sure thing. Get out of Florida 4 years from now.
@twoinanddone thank you for the advice!
The biggest mistake people make in their calculations as to if they can afford a school is they only look at one-year costs. They don’t anticipate what might happen if a sibling graduates, or if they need a major repair on a vehicle/home.
It is great that Boston gave you a sizeable, renewable grant, but they won’t tell you how much more it will cost for the next 3 years. They usually aren’t guaranteeing you a net cost, but they might say they are giving $xx,xxx per year for the next 4 years. Or, they may say you have a full or half tuition scholarship, but then they jerk up the fees and room/board, so your year to year costs increase dramatically.
Kudos to you for taking a few more minutes to think about the four-year implications of your decision