So I’ve decided to attend my state flagship’s honor program in the fall. Our tax forms were messed up by the govt. so we were only able to send in our 2013 taxes to get estimates for financial aid. The estimate said would get around 20k in grants and scholarships and I would have to take out 10k per year in loans.
Last week we were able to file out 2014 taxes and I sent those in for an actual financial aid award. Our state grant is almost 4k less than what it was estimated before. I honestly don’t know if I can go to college anymore. Our income is 17k a year. We have very little savings. My dad is our only source of income, his job is very physical and he’s sick from having a stroke a while ago. We have some land which might be the reason why we got less than we anticipated.
I always thought that taking 10k out per year would be the maximum amount I would borrow but now it seems like I have to either make 4k this summer to make up for it plus work during the school year or borrow 4k more. What would be the best course to take?
“Our income is 17k a year. We have very little savings.”
You need to speak with the financial aid office again. There may be an error in the way that you completed the FAFSA, and you might qualify for more aid.
Unless you have been awarded a Perkins loan, you can only borrow $5,500 on your own for your first year of college. So ask the financial aid office about the loan amounts as well. And yes, working more this summer and holding down a part-time job during the school year would be much better than borrowing even more money.
What is the net value of the land you mentioned? Did you enter it in fafsa and how much did you put? If your AGI on the tax return was under $24k you could qualify for the auto 0 EFC. The other requirements for the auto 0 are on pages 4 and 5 at this link:
But the state grant could still take assets into account even though the fafsa formula wouldn’t. Have you contacted the flagship finaid office to find out why the grant went down?
ETA: $10k per year is still a lot of loans, is there a school you can commute to?
You can absolutely make up the missing $4k with summer and school year earnings. And don’t forget about Christmas and Spring break - try to find a job that will let you return to work during those vacations.
And absolutely go back to the financial aid office and ask them to take another look at your FAFSA, and also explain the circumstances and ask if they can make an adjustment based on your family’s current circumstances, even if your family income was higher last year.
And even though you can’t do it this year, look into becoming an RA (resident assistant in a dorm) for future years. That would probably get you free housing (and possibly even free room & board) and would dramatically cut your costs. So even if you have to borrow $10k this year, it would be less in future years.
Please clarify exactly what loans (in what amounts) you were awarded.
@dodgersmom I was offered $3800 in Clark Loans, $3500 subsidized stafford loans, and $1500 unsubsidized stafford loans (and $1600 in work study, I forgot to mention this as well, so I wouldn’t be taking out exactly 10k a year in loans)
Thanks for the advice everyone. There is no school I can commute to. My family lives in another part of the country for a few months out of the year. We have hundreds of thousands in land, if I recall correctly.
As noted above, the land shouldn’t be taken into consideration (for federal purposes anyway) if you qualify for $0 EFC. But perhaps it was taken into consideration for state aid.
What’s a Clark loan, and what are the repayment terms?
If I were you, I’d definitely ask for a financial aid review, in light of your family’s current circumstances. If they absolutely cannot increase your grant aid, they may still be able to replace part of the Clark or unsubsidized Stafford loan with additional work study. (Ask them to cut back on whichever loan is the most costly.) You can cover the missing $4,000 with summer and part-time school year earnings (weekend babysitting and such), and you really need to reduce that debt, if you possibly can. And, worst case scenario, if you later find that you can’t come up with the entire $4k, you can ask them to add back a small portion of the loan.
It is possible to come up with $17,000 AGI if there are write-offs. In that case, the parents wouldn’t be able to file a 1040A or 1040EZ … so unless someone in the house received federal means-tested benefits (for example, free/reduced lunch) in the prior two years, or unless a parent qualifies as a dislocated worker, no Auto 0 EFC (and assets will count).
Also, @mom2collegekids, even if the student has an auto 0 EFC, that wouldn’t dictate his or her eligibility for state aid. Think about Cal Grants - even if a family has zero income, excess assets can make the student ineligible for a Cal Grant.
The OP received a subsidized Stafford, so she was treated by the fed’s as being low income, and she may also have received a large Pell grant. Since she’s attending a state university, it could be the state’s eligibility guidelines that are the problem.
@kelsmom I’ve had free lunch for years. @dodgersmom according to the website, “The Clark Loan is a UVM Loan that has a fixed interest rate of 5.0%.” Payment begins 9 months after graduation. I think I am definitely going to ask for a financial aid review by the school’s financial services. I am just scared of bringing this up to my parents as they were so excited for me to be able to attend college and now it looks like it will be a bit more complicated. I also tried contacting the agency that provides state grants as to why the estimate and the actual amount are so different. @mom2collegekids we don’t receive any income from the land and I think we just used a standard tax form to file… forgive me, I don’t know much about these things
@thumper1 - @dennael stated in the opening post that s/he’s receiving about $20k in grants and scholarships. Post #6 was a response to my request for a breakdown of the loans only.
@thumper1 dodgersmom was just asking about the loans I was offered… that’s not my total package. I was offered around 20K of grant and scholarship money, which included a full pell grant. However, I’m now offered a few thousand less because my state grant was way less than anticipated.
@dennael - I looked up the Clark loan. (Now that I know it’s UVM, it was easy to find!) Interest does not start to accrue until after you graduate (or withdraw or drop below half-time), so that’s good. So the loan you’d want to try to replace with work study is the unsubsidized Stafford - that’s the one that would cost you the most money. And that one is easy to add back in later if you decide you need it - it doesn’t need to be done before school starts.
Keep trying to reach the state grant agency, and also reach out to the financial aid office at UVM. See if your package can be adjusted. And let us know what they say.
Ask about the change in the state grant. It may not be due to changes in your financial paperwork at all. It could be due to projected changes in state funding.
