I have not filled out the FAFSA yet, but I ran my family’s information through a calculator and it looks like I’ll get a whopping 0.
This is because my parents apparently earn a lot of money. The thing is, they’re divorced and I live only with my mother and stepfather. My mother earns /much/ less than my father does, and because my stepfather is currently in CC and my father is single, she is supporting a family of 3 with ~140k while my father has ~170k.
I, however, do not see the benefit of my father’s income. My father has agreed to pay for half of instate tuition (so, ~10k/year) and that is all. My mother cannot cover the rest of tuition at any OOS or private schools. Is there any chance that this circumstance would sway a financial aid office to be more generous? It doesn’t look like I need help on paper, but in reality the situation is different.
Your mom earns $140,000 a year. Right there…you would have a family contribution of at least $35,000 a year…and that doesn’t include your stepdads income…or any assets…and that is only for,the fafsa.
Did you include spousal and.child support because if your mom receives either, those are counted too!
For schools using the Profile…you will be including your mom and step dad on the Profile. If the school requires the non-custodial parent Profile, your dad and his spouse would need to complete that.
Your dad is willing to contribute $10,000 a year. And you say that is half of the instate tuition. YOU can take a $5500 student loan in your name. So…now you have $15,500. Can your mom contribute enough to round out that instate cost?
It sounds like YOU would prefer to go to either an OOS expensive public or an expensive private college. It does not sound like this will be within your family budget.
What are your ACT or SAT scores…and your GPA? There are some colleges where you could get merit aid. If you could get full tuition someplace…that $10,000 from your dad plus the $5500 student loan…could cover your costs.
What schools did you have in mind? If your mother can’t afford to pay the difference for an OOS public or private school, then you will have to stay instate like many students. Can your mother afford to pay what an instate school would cost after taking your father’s contribution and the Stafford loan into consideration? What circumstance do you think would possibly sway the FA office to give you more money? Even if you attend a school that meets full need, you would still need to pay your EFC which appears to be at least $35,000… possibly more.
What is your GPA? Test scores? Maybe you would qualify for merit.
If I’m going to be honest the calculator sounds pretty spot on. I agree with the above^^ if you really want to go OOS look into colleges that offer merit aid scholarships.
@thumper1 My stepfather is unemployed and has negligible assets. My mother does not receive child support or spousal support.
I’m not in love with my state flagship. SAT 1550 GPA 4.0. I’d like to get out of state if possible.
The reason I’m here is because my mother works so hard just to support me and my stepfather. It hurts me to see her have to support all three of us when my stepfather does nothing. My father expects that I attend a top school — he attended Yale and comes from a long line of Ivy graduates. My mother cannot afford the 45k a year on top of being the sole wage earner for my family. I’m willing to take on debt, but I would also like to attend grad school and so must be careful. Which schools might give me merit scholarships?
Your scores are excellent. Is your 4.0 unweighted or weighted? What can you mother contribute? Can she contribute $25,000 -$30,000 ( or more?) to meet your EFC ? Your father expects you to attend a “top” school yet will “only” contribute $10,000 a year? Where does he expect the difference to come from? What do you mean about him having $170k?
You have several options-
Stay instate- you are not the first student to complain about his instate options.
Apply to schools where you will receive merit- I need to know what your unweighted GPA is.
Apply to schools that meet full need… If your mother can meet her EFC.
Unfortunately you do not have any special circumstances for which a school will give you more FA. $140,000 a year for a family of 3 is considered to be a good income. If your unweighted GPA is a 4.0 - you will have some nice merit options.
This above link is an old one…of lower cost colleges. It’s likely that they are STILL lower cost…but you will need to check the costs on each college website for current costs.
If your father wants you to attend HYPSM or some other elite school…and he will only contribute $10,000 a year…I’m going to guess…it’s not going to happen. Your mom’s income alone would necessitate a cost of $35,000 plus from the family. Add your dad’s income in…and likely your family contribution will,exceed the cost of attendance.
You could look for Profile schools that do NOT ask for or use non-custodial parent information…but you may find…they also aren’t quite as generous.
If you need significant merit aid…absolutely…you will need to look at less selective colleges where your stats stand out from the crowd.
There seems to be a big disconnect in his thinking since this is the same father who said that he is only willing to pay $10k, half the cost of attending in-state. I know that he knows that Yale is more than 10K. Taking in to consideration his and your mom’s income/assets, you would be full pay at Yale. Most top schools that meet 100% demonstrated need will require the income and assets of both of your parents.You can only borrow $5500 as a freshman. You already know that your mom cannot afford to pay much (or at least you don’t want to burden her with paying much). as previously stated, dad will only pay $10k.
You really need to chase merit at places where you can get full tuition or close to it. This way, your dad’s 10k, your $5500 loan and whatever your mom can contribute will cover room/board and misc expenses.
You can consider applying to UChicago, which is a FAFSA only school and Vanderbilt, which will only look at the income/assets of your custodial parent. If your EFC is $35,000 and and your dad pays $10k, you borrow your $5500, will can your mom afford the 20k?
Try supporting a family of three on $40,000/year. People do it, and in NYC too. You have no idea what life is like outside of your bubble. Need based aid is for people who need it. The fact that your father will only contribute a small amount does not mean that you are entitled for aid. That is your family issue.
You will need to go to a college that gives merit aid or to a SUNY.
Apparently not.
There are families earning what your father intends to give you for school.
Suck it up and apply to schools that you can afford on your dime.
You have a ton of affordable SUNY colleges in NY state. Start looking at those options too. For an instate student…they are mighty affordable. You are lucky to have so many choices.
You would get guaranteed very decent merit aid at University of Alabama. Lots of folks from the northeast there…as it’s a great bargain for high stats students.
Also, with your stats, you would have a chance at good merit at at University if Pittsburgh. Not guaranteed…but worth a shot. Apply as soon as their application goes live.
You mention you live in the metro NY area…But then you mention a “flagship” TBH…NY doesn’t really have a flagship university. What school are you “not fond of”?
Why not apply to Stony Brook or one of the other SUNYs? If you get $10k from your dad, take the $5500 federal student loan, and add what you can earn by working summers ($2-3k), your mom would only need to contribute $4-5k/year. Can she do that?
Your stats are high enough for you to apply to schools such as Cornell and Vanderbilt, etc… but your parents can’t or won’t pay for them. Join the club… there are MANY in your situation. This is not unique… At all. Geneseo, Binghamton, Stony Brook and Buffalo honors colleges are filled with these students. You may also qualify for the NYS stem award if you are interested- that’s an extra few thousand to put toward school.
You need to apply to some SUNY schools. You may also get merit aid to schools such as Alabama, Pitt, Case Western, Ohio State, Lehigh ( you need to show a tremendous amount of interest), Lafayette, Michigan State, Tulane… I am sure there are more. What will your mother contribute? That will determine how much merit you need - put in an app to Alabama.
Throw in a few competitive scholarship apps to schools such as Vanderbilt, Duke, Emory etc…but recognize that these are incredibly difficult to get. If you don’t get the scholarship and don’t get enough FA… You will have to walk away from these schools. You will not be the first- this happens all the time. Students turn down these schools every year because they can’t pay their EFC. “Lower” schools are packed with students such as yourself.
How much will your mother pay every year towards your college expenses? Right now you have $10,000 from your father and a $5500 Stafford loan. Will she contribute about $8000 -$10,000 a year for a school such as Binghamton? The smaller SUNYs cost a little less and would require a smaller contribution.
Be glad that you live in a state where you could attend a college for $20,000 a year. My daughters friend went to Geneseo and is now in medical school.
You have a lot of options - and you need to recognize that the four years go by fast. Keep your eye on the bigger picture. And please don’t think you need special considerations because your mom “only” makes $140,000 a year.