<p>Do all the students who apply for financial aid for college receive it?</p>
<p>Absolutely not.</p>
<p>Aid is based on all of these factors:</p>
<p>What your family can afford to pay</p>
<p>What federal aid you might qualify for</p>
<p>What a school can afford to give</p>
<p>Citizenship/PR status</p>
<p>Many people apply for aid and get NOTHING. Or they may just get a small loan. Most schools do not have much aid to give. They may only be able to offer federal aid, and only low income students get free federal grants…and those grants are small.</p>
<p>No. You have to qualify for it. Schools vary on what the qualifications are. There are some schools like the military academies, Curtis Institute, Cooper Union where there is no tuition cost, but if you are applying for a financial aid program, the reason you have to apply and give your family financials is because the award will depend upon those numbers and you can get zero up to full COA depending on what your need is defined to be.</p>
<p>
And when Mom2 says what your family can afford to pay, this means what the school thinks they can afford based on their income and assets, not what your parents think they can afford. Usually the school will think your parents can afford much more than your parents think they can afford.</p>
<p>No, not all students that apply for aid will receive it - well other than loans which most will receive. I don’t really think of loans as aid, though they are presented that way in FA awards.</p>