<p>Is it true that only people that are of low income or poor only get money from the FASFA?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>Noone gets money from FAFSA. FAFSA is a formula defined by the federal gov’t to show what a family’s expected financial contribution should be. If your EFC is lower than what a college costs then you can expect to get no aid from the school. In any case, if you fill out a FAFSA and are not deemed to be needy, you can still borrow via an Unsubsidized Stafford Loan that is guaranteed by the federal gov’t. The only difference between unsubsidized and subsidized Staffords is when the interest starts to accumulate for the student (immediately for unsubsidized, 6 months after graduation for subsidized).</p>
<p>Nobody gets money “from” FAFSA. The FAFSA is a financial aid application form that provides colleges with information to disperse federally funded need based aid. In addition, some schools use only the FAFSA information to determine financial need even for their institutional funds.</p>
<p>Federally funded need based aid is for students with demonstrated financial need. That money is used for students who have family incomes on the lower side.</p>
<p>The FAFSA just determines your eligibility for certain federal financial aid programs. Those can include various grants and also loans and workstudy. Anyone who files a FAFSA, regardless of income, will be eligible to borrow (up to $5500 for freshman year, it goes up for subsequent years) through the Stafford loan program.</p>
<p>The grant programs are available to students who meet certain guidelines for income and assets – but not all people who receive grant aid would consider themselves “poor.” My kids get smallish, partial grants (around $1300 this year) and we are middle class as a family of 4 with a gross income in the mid-60K range. Schools can award federal workstudy funds according to their own formula, as far as I know, but of course it will go to students with financial need as they define it.</p>