<p>So I just finished my FAFSA for next school year and the EFC that was calculated was almost 3/4 of my parents income. I don't see how that is possible. Last year the EFC was a little over $5000 when my parents combine income was about $45,000. This year however, it is about $30,000, but the EFC calculated was over $19000! I can't find what is causing such a huge jump. The only difference I've been able to find is that my mom went from being a dislocated worker to now having a job. If anyone could elaborate as to why this might have occurred it'd be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>If your parents’ combined income went down ($45K to $30K) while your EFC nearly quadrupled, assuming nothing else changed, you should go back and check your work, because that doesn’t make any sense.</p>
<p>Go back through the two SARs line by line and see where the differences are. I do believe EFCs have risen as ours as risen the past couple years even as our assets and income have fallen. Dislocated worker may have something to do with it, but I thought that was one of those discretionary items that didn’t impact the EFC but was handled individually by the colleges.</p>
<p>I checked everything before I submitted it, however now I can’t go back and view it until after it has been processed. I know corrections can be made after it has been processed if an error has occurred, but the deadline is today in Indiana and I don’t know if the new corrections will still be taken into account after the deadline.</p>
<p>Compare THIS year to LAST year as soon as you can view it again. Always a good idea to save a pdf before you submit. Did you parents go through it or did you do this all on your own and input their pin?</p>
<p>I went through it myself, however they were right beside me as I typed everything in. I had them read off the various lines that the FAFSA was asking for, and then I got the pin from them as well. It just doesn’t make much sense, unless it takes family assets in as a major consideration, but that is practically the same as last year.</p>
<p>It could be the assets if they are high. When your Mom was a dislocated worker, you may have been eligible for the simplified needs test which ignores assets (it requires an AGI below $50,000 and meeting one other criteria, one of the criteria is a parent being a dislocated worker). If she is no longer a dislocated worker, and you do not meet any of the other criteria (eligible to file a 1040A or EZ, received means tested benefits such as food stamps etc), then assets would now be taken into account.</p>
<p>Assets have a certain amount of asset protection. Anything over the protected amount, up to 5.6% will go to the EFC.</p>
<p>Ah ok thanks! That could’ve been the game changer. The assets were around $500,000 so that could’ve substantially changed it, especially if the formula used this time takes that into account.</p>
<p>Please tell us about the $500k in assets. This is a lot for a family with your parents’ income. What are the assets? It is possible that some may not need to be reported (retirement accounts, personal home, small business …).</p>
<p>I believe a lot of it is their retirement, Roth IRA, 401 k, etc.</p>
<p>None of that is supposed to be reported in the assets. If they are protected retirement accounts - which IRAs, 401ks, 403bs, etc ARE - you don’t report them as assets. You have to report the amount contributed to them each year, but NOT the total amount in them. Have your parents read the instructions VERY carefully, and fix the asset amount after it has been processed.</p>
<p>It is quite possible you will be selected for verification as a result of fixing the asset amount, but that’s okay - you would be telling the truth, so being verified will just be a formality.</p>
<p>And you have made the deadline by submitting your FAFSA - the school will still use the original date, even if you make adjustments later.</p>
<p>Alright thank you very much! That helps a lot. I’ll be sure I change that as soon as possible. Turns out my parents and I have been making that mistakes for the past 3 years when filling out my FAFSA.</p>
<p>Visit with your financial aid advisor at indiana
They have the authority to make adjustments and submit immediately.</p>
<p>You are already in school? It is probably best to talk to someone at your school’s financial aid office about this. They are able to fix your assets themselves, but not all schools want to do it that way … they may tell you to fix it yourself, or they may say they will do it for you. They will want an asset verification form completed if they are going to do it. Find someone with a clue … make sure it is someone with authority to make changes. Ask to talk directly to a financial aid officer. I say this from experience - I worked at a large state U in finaid, and the first person many students would be connected with truly did not know how things worked if they were at all out of the ordinary. I would often be contacted by students because their friends suggested they call me … they had visited the financial aid office or called & were not properly helped. So be sure that the person you speak with about this is actually a financial aid officer. You have the right to ask to speak directly with one, and it is a good idea in this case.</p>