<p>Alright so I filled out the FAFSA form just as it said too. I did the worksheet and did everything how I was told to. So on previous "EFC calculators" my EFC was around $26,000, but when I did the FAFSA it went up to $34,000. There is NO way my parents can pay $34,000/yr for college even if we used loans. ***? They barely make a $100,000/yr combined living in the San Francisco Bay Area (one of the most expensive places to live in the country). Not to mention, my mom has been on disability for the past two years and may never be able to work again. I was accepted to Georgetown SFS EA and I really want to go there, but that's not gonna happen if I have to pay $34,000/yr. My parents said they could afford UC at $25,000/yr, and I wouldn't mind going to UCLA, but I really want to go to Georgetown. I am applying for private scholarships, but I don't know what else to do. Is there anything else I can do?</p>
<p>Well, first I would want to know what went so wrong when you used the EFC estimators. For the same input numbers, they should give the same results as the FAFSA. </p>
<p>Did the input change unexpectedly from what you assumed before to the actual input? Did you make mistakes on the calculators? Or maybe you made a mistake on the FAFSA that can be corrected, which is what you are hoping for. </p>
<p>Before you start considering less desirable options you should eliminate the possibility that you don't actually have a problem.</p>
<p>Also-- Georgetown requires the Profile, I think, in addition to the FAFSA. Your Profile and FAFSA EFC's will be different-- when you ran the calculator did you check for "Institutional Methodology" (=Profile) or "Federal Methodology" (=FAFSA)? Make sure you're comparing apples with apples.</p>
<p>And if you have any significant assets in your (student's) name, see if you can spend these down on upcoming expenses, prior to completing/correcting the FAFSA or Profile, in order to get your EFC down a bit.</p>
<p>Adding- Georgetown runs about $48K with tuition, room/board, books, and miscellaneous expenses. The UC's run about $24K. With an EFC of about $26K (if this holds up after doing the Profile, which it may not), the difference in cost (to your parents) of attending the two schools may not be that much different.</p>
<p>UC with no financial aid (since your EFC exceeds the cost of attendance) would be around $24K. At Georgetown, were you to get a near 100% aid package, the up front cost to your parents would be around $48K - $26K = $22K. Now, that would include some student loans, maybe work study, and there's no guarantee that Georgetown would meet full need. But don't rule it out just because of the difference in costs.</p>
<p>You are bright, and exceptional. You were accepted into the SFS program at GU. You will find a way to make it work, I just know it! Go online to check out scholarships-ie fastweb.com, ask everyone you know about scholarships, loans. Your parents will do what they can to help, and you will work together to fulfill your dream! Good Luck =)</p>
<p>Wow, thanks a ton APOL for the compliments and optimism. Hopefully, these private scholarships will work out. I'm on fastweb a lot, and have looked into many of the scholarships they pointed out. </p>
<p>Sblake, I am by no means ruling out GU. I'm just trying to figure out how I can go there, if this EFC of $34,000/yr holds. The EFC I did before was the "Institutional Meth." so maybe that's why. I don't have any assets so there is no worry there. </p>
<p>Dt123, I'm pretty sure I didn't make any mistakes, thanks tho. </p>
<p>Any one else got any advice?</p>
<p>Hmm. It is unusual to get that much higher on FAFSA than on Institutional Method. Can you pinpoint where the difference lies between the two apps? Does GT use its own app instead of PROFILE?<br>
You may want to talk to fin aid at GT. Colleges that have their own forms or use PROFILE tend to award based on their own numbers and use FAFSA to get the government aid a student can get as a base for their package, so you might be all right. But you do not qualify for govt grants even at the lower number, so that isn't going to make a difference. There is a chance that a school may use the higher of two EFCs, so you do need to ask GT what you can expect from them based on your situation, since it can affect whether you go there or not. Schools that use institutional methodology tend to have a lot of flexibility in defining need.</p>
<p>I'll definitely give them a call after I complete the CSS.</p>
<p>Hey Akajjred, I'm in a similar situation. My parents and I used an EFC calculator and got around 29kbut then we got a 34-36k EFC on the real FAFSA. My parents make a little over 100k and I live in Montgomery County MD which is also a very expensive place to live in. I am also applying to Georgetown SFS (RD though)... they require the CSS which takes a lot more stuff into consideration like home value, which will work against me in my situation unfortunately. Things aren't looking so good for need-based so I applying to outside scholarships frantically. And praying for merit-based. <em>sigh</em></p>
<p>Me too. My dad makes about 110,000 and our EFC is around 52,000
But there is no way my parents are willing to pay full tuition to schools that cost 45,000-50,000 per year</p>
<p>ugh I doubt I can get 200,000 worth of merit scholarships off of fastweb haha</p>