<p>Ok, I am flipping out. I got my "package" today which said I get NOTHING. My mom has a secretarial job and my dad farms. He "makes" a lot of money, but has to invest most of it back into the farm to keep it going. I thought my parents had this explained quite well on the forms given, and we did do the "business/farm" supplement thing. This is devastating, I was expecting BIG money. I flat out CANNOT attend at $48,000 per year. Help.</p>
<p>I also have a sister still in college, I thought that would have helped.</p>
<p>Yes, but apparently I don't "demonstrate" any need! I think the culprit may be that, on paper, my dad has $2,000,000 in assets tied up in the farm. But he'd have to basically sell all the land to pay $48,000 a year, and then we'd have NO income! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!</p>
<p>I don't know how one sells farms assets, but 4 years of U Chicago education will cost 200,000 which is only 10% of your farm's assets of 2 million. Considering that most assets rise at least 4% a year.</p>
<p>Talk to them, but don't expect much aid. 2 million in assets converts to 240,000 a year in income by federal methodology. Assuming your farms can return 10% of asset value per year in income, your income is $440,000 a year by FAFSA standards.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, it doesn't really matter that it's not a liquid asset. When they look at assets, they add in business interests, farms, home equity, etc. To what degree those are factored in can vary.</p>
<p>If you call the admissions office and ask about merit scholarships, the lady on the other end of the line will tell you no decisions will be made until all the regular apps are in; she told me it would be late March or April. (I have heard rumors that once in a while some people are offered the partial awards sooner than that, but I don't know if it is true, and I think it is very rare if it actually happens at all).</p>
<p>How'd you get your package already?! When do I get mine...??</p>
<p>That is horrible. I have a sneaking feeling I'm in a similar bind. On paper, we're pretty well off. Nice house, two working parents making good incomes (my dad gets a $30,000 pension, and my parents both make somewhere in the neighborhood of $60-80,000)...but we've moved a lot, bought and sold houses at TERRIBLE times, and just generally invested poorly. Oh god did they invest poorly. And I think they have grown accustomed to living slightly beyond their means.
But I ramble.</p>
<p><em>whimper</em> This is no good. I live with my mom who is divorced from my dad. She's an elementary school teacher and makes next to nothing. My dad however makes a beastly sum somewhere in the neighborhood of $600,000. The problem? He isn't helping for college... There was a detailed letter from my mother's lawyer detailing the situation, but now I guess that isn't going to work...</p>
<p>Yeah that sucks Mandy, I mean there's not really much you/the school can do for you if your dad just out and out refuses to pay for anything! That's horrible! </p>
<p>And for those discussing FAFSA: My sister goes to a school that only looks at the FAFSA, and I perused her forms from last year. Our EFC was like $20,000 or something in that ballpark. Which is why I was expecting some serious dough. I guess the details in the Profile and the supplement did me in.</p>
<p>Oh and the farm returns more like 3-5% of assets per year, about 60,000-90,000 after you account for all the expenses.</p>