<p>So I was on a thread the other day and found out that for FAFSA, if you are in grad school, you are considered an independent. That being said, couldn't you get practically your whole grad school paid for if you are coming right out of undergrad and are not making a significant salary? But then grad school would be free for everyone coming out of college. I feel like I am missing something here and that is not possible... Can anyone please explain.
By the way, I am currently a high school senior trying to make my college decision. After college, I want to go to grad school, so this could greatly affect my decision.</p>
<p>Yes, you are independent for Grad school. No, this does not mean Grad school will be free.</p>
<p>Having a low FAFSA EFC does not in any way guarantee that your need will be met in either grad or undergrad school. Most schools do not promise to meet need and many students find they have a significant gap in aid or that they are offered a lot of loans. A very few of the most competitive schools promise to meet full need for undergrads.</p>
<p>The only federal aid available for grad school is unsubsidized loans of up to $20,500 a year. Low income federal grants such as the Pell and the SEOG are only for undergrad and are not available for graduate students. (And even for undergrads, they do not anywhere near meet the cost of even most public schools - the maximum Pell is $5550).</p>
<p>Grad schools in general do not offer much in the way of need based aid. Sometimes they may offer a stipend (not necessarily need based) that the student must earn by working as a teacher’s assistant or research assistant. This will vary from school to school and even within different departments of the same school. For instance my daughter and her fiance will both be grad students in the same school but in different departments - they will both be TAs or RAs, but will receive different stipends. Their combined stipends will be enough to live on on a tight budget without any loans. The accounting department at the same school gives stipends but they are less than a third of what either my daughter or her fiancee get and nowhere near enough for a student to live on without considerable loans…</p>
<p>Haha, if only…</p>
<p>There is also Federal Graduate Work-Study, which is apportioned out by need but also by merit within the group of students with need.</p>
<p>Doctoral and some master’s students may have full tuition remission and stipends, but they are allocated entirely based on merit.</p>
<p>Having an EFC of Zero (or low) means nothing for grad school. Grad schools are largely “merit based” in awards. or loans.</p>
<p>There aren’t any Pell grants for grad students.</p>
<p>Ok. This makes a lot more sense. Thanks!</p>
<p>My son got Perkins loans and Stafford before a stipend helped him out second year. Yes, “zero” looks good but not the same as stated.</p>