<p>We just finished our first year of boarding school. Our student attended with FA. We are suppose to receive our FA information in the mail this month for school year 2014/2015. We are new to boarding school and FA. My question is, if our financial situation has not changed, will our FA be more or less the same? I know the FA office has just finished giving out FA packages to all of the newly accepted students with need.. Does the FA office usually have funds already slated for existing students? I am just worried that if suddenly we don't get the amount we still need to attend we will need to leave. I am very confused how all of this works! Help!. Thank you! </p>
<p>I’m pretty sure (though not positive) that you can count on receiving aid, and I would expect it to be a similar amount. If you do the math, the millions of dollars allotted to financial aid each year cannot all go to the incoming freshman class, so I assume that it is also doled out to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Additionally, schools do not want students dropping out, so if you do not receive enough aid you probably have a solid argument to appeal the offer. </p>
<p>A separate pool of dollars is allocated to each incoming class and is expected to follow that class through to graduation. The amount allotted to your child’s incoming class also accounts for predicted fluctuations in need, such as loss of a primary job or unusual medical costs, that may occur in that class over the course of its stay. The dollars allocated to this new class are independent of the dollars allocated to your child’s class and should cause you no concern. If your financials have not changed, you should expect to receive the same amount of FA you received for this year. If your situation changes in a significant way anytime during your child’s time at the school, notify the FA office immediately to discuss how your FA award might change to accomodate. Good luck.</p>
<p>Standard operating procedure is that you can expect to receive the same level of FA unless there is a drastic positive change to your finances.</p>
<p>Or negative- loss of jobs, medical expenses, etc.</p>
<p>As the above have said, most schools offer aid at the same level all four years, with appropriate adjustments up or down depending on circumstances. However, most schools also tell continuing students their new financial aid offers when they get their re-enrollment contracts in February. That way the school knows exactly how much FA money is available for new students (e.g., if some FA students don’t return, they’ll have more for the new students). Your school’s web page should have information on its FA policy for returning students.</p>