<p>I just checked my financial aid package for northeastern university. In addition to the dean's scholarship, it also lists federal loans and grants. But the combined federal aid I recieved was only around $4500. Considering that my family's annual income is around 30,000, is it normal for the federal aid to be so low? Even with the 16000 scholarship, without significant federal aid it would be hard for me to attend the school. </p>
<p>The finaid website also states that my parents 2007 tax returns have not been recieved yet, so I'm thinking if I resend those they will up my federal aid. </p>
<p>I'm so confised a bout the whole fafsa thing. Will I recieve the same amt of fed aid from every school that I apply to or do the schools themselves det. fed aid/loans?</p>
<p>your federal aid all depends on what your EFC is -- was it $0?</p>
<p>Federal aid is exceptionally limited -- and in no way will it pay the cost of attendance at a four year college (but you could pay your way at a community college if you live at home).</p>
<p>if your EFC is $0, you are entitled to a PELL Grant in the amount of about $4500, subsidized and unsubsidized student loans in the amount of $3500. there are some additional SEOG funds, but the school choses how to distribute that money and the funds are very limited. Same for Perkins Loans -- the schools chooses who gets them and they are very limited.</p>
<p>As your EFC increases, the amount of your PELL grant decreases.</p>
<p>Most students are also awarded a scholarship (like you) and/institutional grants (depending on the school) and work-study. they also typically expect the student to work during the summer and contribute money from those earnings.</p>
<p>Not all schools have large endowments, so many, many schools "gap". This is when the school does not award you the amount you demonstrate you need -- and it seems like this has happened to you.</p>
<p>As to whether federal aid will differ from school to school -- your pell grant amount and stafford loan amount should not differ. Another school may give you SEOG funds and/or Perkins loans. Where the biggest difference in financial aid award amount are found is in the amount of institutional aid -- grants that are from the school itself. If you look up the different schools on collegeboard.com you can see what percentage of need they typically meet and what the typical mix of loans and grants are.</p>
<p>Hi hsmomstef, thanks for the reply. According to fafsa and css my efc is 0, but I only got 2900 Pell grant and 1800 loans. That means I will be paying around half of the 40000 in tuition/room/board if I choose to attend the university. I guess I will wait to see offers from other colleges. Now I'm glad I didn't do ED. I was going to ED an Ivy league school because they claim to meet 100% of needs. Do those schools really meet 100% fin need?</p>
<p>Something isn't right -- the PELL grant amount is completely driven by your FAFSA EFC. The only time that you wouldn't get the full amount is if your cost of attendance was less than the PELL grant amount (like if you went to a community college and lived at home).</p>
<p>You need to contact the school and ask why your PELL and Stafford loan amounts were less than the amount they should have been. Schools are authorized to reduce your EFC if the information you provided them (tax forms, etc) indicate that the numbers you put on your FAFSA were incorrect -- so that might be case, but it really sound like your EFC should be $0. </p>
<p>As far as ivies -- yes, they do meet 100% of need and typically are very generous as far as FA packages. Princeton, Harvard, Yale Columbia and Dartmouth would have given you a free ride with no loans.</p>
<p>if you applied to some private schools with good endowments that meet 100% of need, you should have better packages from them.</p>
<p>Yes -- you would also get the full FA from the federal government for the state school.</p>
<p>It is strange. With a zero EFC you should get the full Pell grant of $4731 and I would have expected you to get a subsidized Stafford loan and possibly a Perkins loan. Alos possibly a SEOG grant. </p>
<p>Yes State Us give ederal aid (in fact most need based aid at State Us is federal as they do not have the funding for institutional aid that some private schools have). My daughter is at a State school and has a zero EFC and has the full Pell and also was offered the SEOG this year.</p>
<p>I have a $0 EFC (and have for the past two years) and have not gotten the SEOG funds, so that is a little more difficult to know whether to expect (it can be random) -- but the PELL is a guaranteed amount.</p>
<p>The only thing I can think of is that the FA department changed the numbers on your FAFSA due to additional info. definitely contact them.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I have a $0 EFC (and have for the past two years) and have not gotten the SEOG funds, so that is a little more difficult to know whether to expect (it can be random) -- but the PELL is a guaranteed amount.
[/quote]
Yea - i don't like that about the SEOG. We had no idea if my D would be offered it or not this year so were happy she was as it replaced loans. Even though i am obviously glad she got it I think it would be more logical for it to be part of the Pell and you get so much based on your EFC and not so much up to the discretion of the school.</p>
<p>I agree -- the SEOG grants seem very random. I was told at our school (which has a large percentage of older/non-traditional students like me) that the SEOG funds usually go to students with a $0 EFC that also have small children -- so they are needing to pay childcare. That is just how my university prioritizes it.</p>
<p>A Pell Grant has a maximum outpay of 4500 a year, plus your state grant maybe another 3000 a year... Plus loans and stuff it should have been more. Only question is.....</p>
<ol>
<li><p>is that 4500 a semester????</p></li>
<li><p>when you filed your fafsa did you include you did not want loans and work study????</p></li>
</ol>
<p>But yea if everything was correct something had to be wrong</p>
<p>omg I just checked again, and the pell grant I got is around 4500 a year (the school listed around 2200 per semester so I got confused, and glanced at it too quickly so it got processed in my brain incorrectly). I also got 1500 for SEOG and a stafford loan of 1750. That's around 10k in federal aid. Not bad I guess. </p>
<p>Wow sorry for the mix-up everyone....thanks for your replies!</p>
<p>
[quote]
btw does anyone know about the new york TAP program? That's the SEOG grant right?
[/quote]
No - the SEOG grant is another federal grant. It is 'for those with the most need' which seems to mean a zero EFC for many schools (though not all as HSM experienced). Schools are given a limited amount of SEOG funds and they decide how to distribute them and what their maximum will be - at my daughters school the max SEOG is $2000 a year.</p>
<p>TAP is different - it is a State grant - I believe for NY residents attending school in NY only but I may be completely wrong about that.</p>
<p>Found a link for it. You do have to be a NY resident attending a NY college About</a> TAP</p>
<p>Depends on the State and the grant. Our State has a need based grant for State residents that is available for both State Universities and private instate universities.</p>