Interesting development on this thread…we have a particularly $ state school @ 37k…my son didn’t apply but MOST his friends did…the average in state aid I’m hearing is about 5k putting it at about 13.5% support. The interesting part is that on these CC threads Im reading OOS awards at about 17,500-23,000 on average (33% on 60K). Like I said, I have no skin in this game it is just an observation I’ve been making.
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For those who have been patient with my panicking, thank you. I got a notice today that ALL of our materials are in at USC and our financial aid case is in review. This is a huge relief. Come what may, at least we are no longer missing any mysterious pieces or have anything else we need to create or confirm. Whew.
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We have pretty much those same numbers of % support in-state vs. private in another state. It is a sad state of affairs that a huge number of in-state kids can’t afford our own in-state university. I always thought that’s part of the role of a State U, to make sure its own state kids can benefit from it as a real option. 
My kid is not interested compared to his other possibilities, but if he were, it is surprising to me that we’d be paying the same price as Loyola. Or only 3k less than going to Colorado.
Same here in CT…If my son got the average scholarship his peers are receiving (he didn’t apply) UNT would still be about 20k cheaper!
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What makes it all the more frustrating, as you know being from Texas, is our state schools are sitting on ridiculous amounts of money in their endowments. I saw a figure once that someone estimated that UT and A&M could give full 4 year scholarships to virtually all their incoming freshman classes with just the interest they earn on the endowments each year. If that’s true, that is insane and frankly kinda criminal that they don’t do it.
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I’m not from Texas, but that’s crazy! That should be offered to every student. How amazing would that be!
Sorry, I guess I mistook you for another poster that had mentioned Texas
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Just today I realized that my son’s award is only from Jacobs and he hasn’t heard anything from IU yet. Is there any way to find out if he is getting any scholarship from IU? Should we contact them or wait?
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When my D was accepted to Jacobs many moons ago, she got an auto academic scholarship from IU…and merit from the music school. My understanding was that they changed that more recently to the music school packaging and doing the full awards. Still I don’t follow it very closely. So on Monday you should reach out to music admissions and ask for a clarification.
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Three years ago, my kid received academic merit award and music talent award from IU and Jacobs in the same correspondence but clearly delineated as two separate awards.
Agree with @bridgenail to call and ask. It seems from other posts that IU/Jacobs has been less organized or communicative than other programs. It is an excellent program, but I hear from others that one needs to be proactive with gathering information.
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My son received his academic merit notice in February and Jacob’s package yesterday. JSOM was in the email but IU was only in the portal. Have you checked in the portal?
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Thank you! I’ll tell him to check the portal.
I decided to run the USC aid calculator for fun while we wait, thinking I’d see the kind of average package you find when you google our income. 
Our income is 83k per year; the calculator said we will receive anywhere from $0 to $1800 aid per year, making the cost come out to 85% of our annual income. Hopefully, I filled it out wrong or it’s broken. It is from 2021, at a time when I think they still counted home equity.
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Hmmm, I ran it without our house, and it estimated we would received aid that brings it down to 45k, and then loans and work study to bring it down to 37k. If that’s what we actually get offered, it’s still too high but within the realm of appealing. That would mean that their estimate of our need is around $37,000 vs our FAFSA EFC of $22,500.
Mind you, this is all from an old calculator and in no way represents a real offer.
Just passing the time. 
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Work-study and loans are also considered aid, and many schools don’t promise to meet 100% of need. The EFC in aid terms is often a starting point for what you’ll pay. Which is why shopping for merit aid can really help.
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Oh yes, I was stating it the way the calculator did it. “Aid” and then “work study and loans” were separate on their results. But I get that those are aid.
Yeah, before we even started the college search, I’d heard most schools won’t actually get a family to their EFC. I didn’t realize how huge the gap would be at some schools. I’m thrilled that my kid’s current favorite is coming in very close for us.
I’m curious about USC, because they’re well known for generous aid, but, as one parent on CC told me, they happened to be in the 10% of families whose need wasn’t met at all. That could be us, too. I’m excited for the opportunity, but it will be ok if it doesn’t work out.
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Just double checking that you didn’t comingle 401k/IRA assets with regular assets and that you reported all 529 accounts as parent assets not student assets.
Thank you!
H and I reviewed the form one more time. My kid’s assets add up to less than 20k, because of a modest educational trust from his grandfather. I had made a mistake in that section, which I’ve corrected with USC (but which probably had an impact on his offers from Miami and Berklee).
I’ll ask H one more time about the 401/IRA issue. I think our major problem is our home equity, and for USC that shouldn’t be an issue.
(BTW, I am not pursuing corrections with the other schools, because S has decided not to attend either of them.)
Is the educational trust in a 529 or a “regular” trust? If the latter, I think it will be assessed at 20% of the total each year, so that is about 5k less aid each year. If it’s in a 529, then it would be assessed at 5.6% of the total each year.
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Or is it in a coverdell Esa?