<p>My FAFSA EFC underestimated what MIT feels my family can contribute by almost $10,000. :-(</p>
<p>My parents are officially in freak mode.</p>
<p>I submitted a letter about very high, ongoing medical expenses and it seems they actually took it into account. MIT's estimate of EFC < FAFSA EFC. The difference is not too large, but the FA we did receive was a welcome surprise, since we were told elsewhere we are full pay.</p>
<p>They did not ask for additional documentation at this time, but I was very specific in my letter.</p>
<p>My dad's pretty convinced that MIT is NOT on my side, whereas I still hold out hope for the FinAid meeting in April at CPW...</p>
<p>I shall just have to wait and see.</p>
<p>Alas!</p>
<p>Yeah, I'm going to need some help too.</p>
<p>Question: How likely with MIT reconsider your financial package if you make an appointment during CPW and explain your circumstances to them? </p>
<p>My family is in a situation which I don't believe was communicated well through the addition information sections of the FA forms. I also read through the FA brochure in my admit packet, and by the looks of it, MIT is more than willing to explain why they did what they did. But, are they also willing to change the package?</p>
<p>At CPW, we had the opportunity to discuss the FA package for our D which was adjusted based on additional information supplied. MIT was extremely understanding and in the end the package met our expectation.</p>
<p>i just got my award and was very pleasantly surprised :-D</p>
<p>What if you cannot attend CPW - is there another way to discuss financial aid packages?</p>
<p>^^Yeah, I need to discuss my package (MIT EFC is ~20K greater than FAFSA EFC...ugh. Not good.), but I don't think I can attend CPW or visit MIT anytime soon. Do we have to actually physically go to campus, or can we discuss on the phone/etc.?</p>
<p>yeah... MIT gave me $0</p>
<p>I seriously have no idea how I'm going to find 200 K...
I know we could do it if my parents were willing to make some sacrifices... but there's no way they're going to give up their retirement fund when I could go to the local state college for free... ugh. looks like I'm stuck. </p>
<p>"Commitment to affordability"... sure, if 50K a year were affordable. </p>
<p>People give you all this crap about "following your dreams," but in the end, it really is all about the money. I feel like crying.</p>
<p>You can cry some, bananaland. I did a little bit. :(</p>
<p>WHAT HALF YOUR FAFSA EFC!?!</p>
<p>lol...mine was 5ish below the EFC but with the self help it was basically the EFC...</p>
<p>so uh...the people who got the insane good fin aid..were you in the <75k range?</p>
<p>i got $0 financial aid & my loan offer is only $4000/semester :(
it's ridiculous</p>
<p>I too got $0 from finaid. I find MIT's financial aid to be extremely suck for upper-middle class families that make too much to get any financial aid, but not enough that tuition is negligible in any sense.</p>
<p>Now before everyone jumps up and says "oh but you've got enough money to pay!" please hear me out, because I've been thinking about this for some time.</p>
<p>My parents are doing basically this: they are giving me a 0% interest loan for a while that will pay my MIT tuition, which means they will have to cut quite a few corners here and there. They expect me to start paying them back very soon after I graduate.</p>
<p>I'm not sure what to do. I feel like career options are starting to get limited. I wanted to go into academia. I'm starting to feel that this is going to be nearly impossible. </p>
<p>I'm not the only one in this situation. I have many friends at MIT who are facing similar situations, and things aren't looking good for them either.</p>
<p>I'm not complaining that people who really really need financial aid aren't getting any. But I do think that MIT is ignoring that one spot just around $150k where some families are getting hurt. Especially when I have siblings who will enter college just as I leave college. </p>
<p>It seems unfair to me that my parents came here with just $100 and struggled for two decades (at one point going through poverty) before their hardwork paid off and we acquired some wealth. I want my parents to enjoy the money they made from working hard. I want MIT to be affordable so that I as a student can independently pay for it myself without winning the lottery. For once (and just this once!), MIT should take a leaf out of Harvard's book.</p>
<p>Edit: Also, in a recent Tech article on campus that I read, the writer explained that if a student's parents suddenly decide not to pay, unless that student can quickly put together however much he/she needs to pay, they can't continue their MIT education. I would be severly dissappointed if MIT let go of a single student for this reason.</p>
<p>my mit fin aid was very good & very generous. i'd have to say it was an insanely pleasant surprise. i was so afraid part of it would be loans, but i didnt get any loans</p>
<p>aznfishy- I think the loans might be "built-in" to the self-help? I didn't get explicit loans, but I got a self-help part which they ask how I want to divide up between work-study and loans</p>
<p>i agree with differential.. i'm not against the people who don't have much money getting some help. but i think upper middle class is kinda screwed. like, i'm getting aid this year mainly because i have two siblings in college and my parents are paying both of their tuition and housing. in years to come i'm going to be completely screwed. my fin aid offer was kind of dissappointing.. i just don't understand how they really think we could afford that.</p>
<p>but they also do say it's an "investment for the future".
but i was still pretty upset about it and i'm scared for years to come</p>
<p>According to MIT, I qualify for 3500 in loans a year and 1500 in "MIT Work."</p>
<p>Is the "MIT Work" designation self help or work-study?</p>
<p>So I do have to say that I have been reading this thread with a growing sense of unease. This thread doesn't provide the background to understand how any of your individual EFCs were determined (note that no one is stating, "here are the 45 questions I answered on the FAFSA and Profile"). I am truly concerned that those of you who are unhappy and are stewing here are not taking action to deal with the financial aid which you perceive is unfair.</p>
<p>So, listen, not everyone applying for financial aid is going to get MIT grant or scholarship. There will be some families whose needs analysis result is greater than our cost of attendance, and as such, these families will only qualify for Federal Work Study (or MIT Job) and some student loans. But we do listen... If you think we have not taken something into consideration, let us know. If you are unsure about how we determine our EFC, read through my blog -- there are posts there that explain the entire process. </p>
<p>And lastly, remember (and it seems that no matter how many times and in how many ways I try to say this, it isn't being heard), many families with incomes over $100,000 will still qualify for financial aid at MIT (some with incomes over $150,000 still qualify for MIT grant and scholarship). In fact, nearly 4 out of 10 students who receive MIT grant or scholarship come from families with greater than $100,000 of income.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that our financial aid policy is perfect. I’m not arguing that some families who feel that they can’t afford the cost may not be given support by MIT. I am stating that if you feel you need help, the best place to direct your call or email is to our office. Let us work with you to listen to what you and your family are facing and explain our decision to you. Hopefully together we can work to make your dream of an MIT education a reality for you.</p>
<p>Just thought I'd chip in to say that MIT's financial aid for me was very reasonable, and about $15k lower than both my FAFSA EFC and what, for example, Williams was willing to give me. It seems like MIT takes into account location (I live in NYC) and such to come up with a reasonable number in some cases where income alone would appear to be solidly middle class. Or maybe they're just better at math than the other places =P</p>
<p>Please tell us all about it. </p>
<p>It's important to a lot of families to get a reality check on where the best financial aid is.</p>