I’d like to know what universities are the most generous in terms of Financial Aid Appeals. If you have had success or failure in appealing financial aid, please reply with the name of the institution, the amount appealed/granted, and the conditions of the appeal. thanks
Success in appealing depends on the reason for the appeal, and most likely you would really be asking for professional judgment, no?
Lost a job? Don’t want to sell/borrow against farmland/investment real estate? Don’t want money sent to support overseas family to count as an asset? It is just going to depend on the situation, case by case. I don’t know if you are only talking about the set of schools listed in your post. But not Georgetown. Never Georgetown for generosity of financial aid.
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I understand that the conditions of the appeal are the most significant factor, but some universities may weigh the significance of those conditions more greatly than others, and some may allocate more funds to financial aid than others. My conditions are less significant than most other applicants submitting appeals, but full tuition or financial aid dependent primarily on fafsa would prevent commitment to most universities I’m looking to attend. The universities included in the post aren’t the only ones I’m looking at, and appeal success information on any university would be helpful. thanks
You have to run the NPCs to get cost estimates at each of the schools on the list. The meet full need schools generally use CSS Profile to determine need according to their FA formula, not FAFSA. If you tell us the situation/circumstance, posters will be able to provide better direction.
It’s tough to know how they would weight the significance of the conditions ahead of time, or in a vacuum. Call the schools on the list and ask how they would treat the circumstance you are concerned about.
IMO Bowdoin is among the most generous and flexible schools when asked to apply professional judgment to a given situation, including some of the examples I listed in my initial post.
The thing is, it’s really difficult to get accepted to most of the meet full need schools. The only way to get full tuition from many FAFSA only schools is via merit aid/discounting, not need based aid (unless one is talking state schools with programs that offer full tuition+ for low income families).
With all that said it’s critical you apply to at least one safety school that is affordable…or you have that school identified?
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Most reach schools that I’m looking to apply to would not provide enough financial aid through either fafsa or css. The conditions of the appeal include a high income household, which prevents all federal aid and most css aid, siblings in professional school and siblings in undergrad, as well as a high value mortgage and student loan debt, with minor medical expenses, external support, and other minor expenses that may be applicable. I understand that most schools would not find this as sufficient grounds for an appeal, though I’d like to know of any outliers, if they exist. I do intend to call the schools that I’m planning on applying to, though I thought it would be helpful to also look for others’ experiences with other schools that I may want to look into applying to and the conditions that allowed for the success of those appeals. thanks
These just sound like normal financial circumstances that FA offices will take into account in their determinations of financial need (subject to variations like CSS Profile schools accounting for siblings in college, while FAFSA “discounts” for this are disappearing.)
Are there any special circumstances that would be grounds for requesting professional judgement, like a temporary/one-time household income boost, a job loss, etc.?
As mentioned, you should run the numbers in NPCs, keeping in mind that some of the largest variations you’ll see among schools that meet full need are rooted in how they treat home income equity relative to income.
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Any additional thoughts @kelsmom?
I can’t say for the css, but the fafsa does not typically include independent siblings in household size, and often fails to accurately account for mortgage/debt payments, and the same is true of the conditions of FA appeals at some universities. There are not certain special circumstances that alone would be significant enough to necessitate a substantial grant, the appeal in my case would more likely be to account for the discrepancy between the EFC and the actual possible contribution based on the previously mentioned factors, if any universities would actually grant an appeal on those grounds. I plan on contacting the target schools soon to see if they can provide more insight on the process. thanks
The FAFSA that releases this December won’t include any siblings in the calculation of one’s SAI (formerly EFC). FAFSA still will ask the question tho. For CSS, most schools will still give benefit for other siblings in undergrad college AFAIK.
Did you apply to any CSS schools EA/ED/SCEA/REA?
Do NPCs show you as full pay/unaffordable contribution? What is your budget?
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While the FAFSA formula won’t consider additional students in college next year, professional judgment does allow some flexibility to consider the actual, documented costs that parents are paying for tuition for children in college. This would be done by reducing income by the documented tuition expenses. Schools will consider the request through their professional judgment processes; whether or not they will consider independent or graduate or professional school tuition is school dependent. Some will not include them. They likely will expect that they are named as dependents on the parent tax return.
Minor medical expenses will most likely not be considered. For FAFSA, the regulations are very clear on what can be considered high medical expenses. Minor “unusual” expenses will most likely not result in any adjustments.
Mortgage and debt are not considered for professional judgment consideration.
You are looking for a school that wants you so much that they will provide funding in excess of your need. Concentrating on schools that offer really good merit will probably yield better results than trying to find a meets-need school that will provide the type of adjustments you seek.
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I’m not sure the name of the university matters as much as WHY a student requests reconsideration of their aid package.
In addition, colleges with deeper pockets are more likely to increase aid.
If you are looking at a FAFSA EFC, and the school uses the CSS Profile, in my opinion, you will have an uphill battle unless you have a family financial reason for requesting the change (loss of income, unforeseen and unreimbursed medical expenses, etc.) that make your family financial picture now very different than the prior prior year used in the financial aid forms.
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100% this.
If the NPC shows you can’t afford the school, do not count on an appeal being successful. You are much better off hunting for merit if the stats are there.
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Adding…merit aid doesn’t change if your financial aid picture gets better in future years. Need based aid at most colleges is recalculated annually.
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We aren’t eligible for much FA (when we had 3 in at once some of the federal loans were subsidized), and there is no way we can afford to pay what FAFSA determines what we can afford to pay. Therefore, it’s either in state or attending a school that offers enough merit to bring costs down to in state. Many middle class families are in this boat. We have thousands in medical bills not covered by insurance (high out of network deductible, actually high in network too but we meet it mid year), mortgage, two in undergrad, one in grad, eight years away from retirement. It means many colleges were off the table from the start.
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You need to be well organized in any appeal.
High income-- that can be a factor if the year in question was an unusual year earnings wise. So the sale of a business which showed a high taxable income vs. the past 5 years, and is unlikely to repeat itself? A “one time only” bonus due to a payout of some sort? A company which did not pay any bonus during the covid years but for last year paid out what was essentially accrued income, distorting the taxable income vs. the history? Any of these can be a factor but you need to document. Your family just makes a lot of money? Typically not a factor.
Siblings in professional school? Probably not. Siblings in undergrad? Worth a shot- but again, document. Not just “we pay a lot in tuition” but a brief table showing who is where and what the net cost to the family is.
High value mortgage? No. Choosing to buy a house which chews up your cash flow? That’s a choice- and many people choose to borrow against a high value house via a HELOC or second mortgage if they’re in that situation. Student loan debt- whose debt- a parent? A sibling?
Medical expenses- depends on what “minor” means. Again- document. Family needs to use a provider out of network because a sibling has a rare and chronic disease so only a specialist out of state is capable of treating? You’ll likely get a sympathetic hearing (again, a brief table- showing what the total billing was, how much was paid out of pocket).
External support- ? Supporting other family members who don’t live with you? Unlikely but if there are mitigating circumstances maybe.
Your best bet is- as everyone noted above- merit aid where none of this comes into play. Apply wisely.
Good luck.
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I’m actually applying as a transfer student, so EA/ED/SCEA/REA aren’t applicable, and merit scholarships are far more limited, though because the transfer application/admissions schedule is later in the year, I still have plenty of time to apply to different universities that may grant more based on the CSS application or merit scholarships. For context, I’m a sophomore at a state university, I’ll have a GPA of 3.93 after this term, and I have no notable extracurriculars aside from high school sports and work experience that is not relevant to my field of study. I’ll have access to tax forms and more specific finances later tonight so I’ll be able to update with an accurate NPC. My family’s budget isn’t set in stone but I’d say potentially up to 25/30k for the reach schools. thanks
Please please remember…if a net price calculator doesn’t ask if you are a transfer student…it’s very likely that the results will be for what incoming freshmen receive.
Even in terms of need based aid, many colleges just aren’t as generous with transfers as with first year students.
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The conditions of the appeal include a high income household
your parent household income as well as assets are the things that contribute the most to your family contribution for college. If these are high…need based aid could very well be unavailable to you.
siblings in professional school and siblings in undergrad
Siblings in professional school are likely independent for financial aid, and therefore can not be included on your forms. Other siblings in undergrad are no longer counted on the FAFSA, but as noted, some colleges might consider this. But don’t count on it giving you half of the cost of attendance in aid.
as well as a high value mortgage and student loan debt
Consumer debt is not considered when need based financial aid is calculated. That includes other college loans.
with minor medical expenses
Minor medical expenses likely won’t make any appreciable difference.
external support
if you mean supporting other extended family relatives…this usually doesn’t count either. It is considered a choice.
and other minor expenses that may be applicable.
Everyone has “other” minor expenses and sometimes for necessary things (e.g. a new furnace, a new roof, etc). These are consumer expenses that do not factor into awarding need based aid.
Correct me if I am wrong…but it sounds like you are hoping to get reduced out of pocket costs because a college you want to attend is too costly for your family. That is not a reason for need based aid to be increased.
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Is your current college affordable? And why are you looking to transfer?
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From your previous thread…
poor academics, unsatisfactory competition, little prestige, no social life, limited clubs and extracurriculars. I’ll likely look into better public schools to transfer to I was just being somewhat optimistic
Are your instate AZ public universities affordable for your family?
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