<p>Let say you were awarded a small Finaid package from a private school. Then you decide to commute to the school in order to save money. Is the school going to change its offer since now your spending less money?
Came up in a conversation with a friend. She thinks they are getting 10K in aid. So 55 minus that is about 45 and if the kid commutes then it will be 10k less, down to a 35 which they could pay.
My kid is not there yet so I do not know all about finaid. Just wondering though...
(This is a school that does not offer merit)</p>
<p>It depends on the school. Many schools have a different overall cost of attendance for students who live at home with their parents…and that cost is lower that for students residing on campus. </p>
<p>It is very possible that the aid will be adjusted down…your friend needs to check with the college.</p>
<p>^^Yes, it depends on the school. Aid is based on a school’s Cost of Attendance. Some schools just have one cost of attendance whether you are living on campus or not (my daughter’s school was like this). Others have different COAs for students living on or off campus (my son’s school was like this). Some even have 3, On campus, Off campus not living with parents, off campus living with parents. She would need to check with her school.</p>
<p>Interesting. I checked the web site of the school and they do not allow living outside campus with exception to local families. In the web site only one COA is mentioned.
I live really close to a number of private schools so this opens possibilities.</p>
<p>Both schools S is still seriously considering will not adjust his award if he commutes (mostly merit aid along with a subsidized and unsubsidized loan). A third school had said the same thing, so my sense is that schools will not adjust downwards.</p>
<p>It depends upon the school as everyone says. It also can depend upon the type of award it is. My son got a full tuition award from a local school, but it was merit based and the school had no requirements about commuting.</p>
<p>However, a friend of mine did get into a tiff with a school over this very issue. The school gave their DD a merit/aid combined package which made it barely affordable for them. It was her first choice school, so DD accepted the offer. She then found a very nice, high paying, flexible job near home, and decided to commute rather than live at the school. She had applied as a residential student. The school cut her aid. They would not budge. This was Loyola in Chicago, by the way. So, yes, some schools will adjust downward.</p>
<p>Sometimes they must. If federal aid is involved and COA ceilings are exceeded upon change of status from residential to commuter, the federal aid has to be reduced. That is an exception even with PELL grants under certain circumstances. Also many schools, like Loyola, have internal policies that require a reduction. Also, some schools require a student to live on campus in the college’s housing for freshman year at least, and a waiver has to be filed to get out of that requirement. What implications that has for financial aid is up to the school. In fact, I remember another such case, where a commuter lost aid when she applied for a waver of the school’s residential requirement for freshmen. The COA for commuters was a lot less than for those staying on campus with the required room and board packages.</p>