<p>Hey guys, this question might seem a little out-of-topic to the forum, but if FAFSA determined my 2008-2009 EFC (Expected Family Contribution) to be around $5,900-$6,100, how would the financial aid package from Cornell look? Would we (parents and myself) be paying less than the calculated EFC mentioned above, more than it, or about equal? Cornell has a good reputation for generous financial aid, so I'm hoping it'll be less than our EFC, because that number is very inaccurate in my opinion. If they expect me to pay $2,000-$3,000 per year as the student, what would my parents pay? The FA booklet that came with The Case For Cornell didn't really provide any clear answers. I should be getting my financial aid package in the mail within a week, since there are only nine days left until I move in, but I just want to gain a better idea of how much the semester will cost. Can anyone answer these question(s)? It would also be great to receive answers from current students who are more familiar with the FA program at Cornell. I would appreciate any help!</p>
<p>Please help! :D</p>
<p>i think all need will be met...and if your family income is less than 60k your parents do not pay anything...</p>
<p>Yeah I know that part, but unfortunately my parents earn a little more than that lol. My concern is: how much would my family have to pay with an EFC of around $6,000? Would Cornell offer a package that requires us to pay less, more, or equal to it? I know I'll be stuck with loans, but I just want to estimate how much damage will be dealt to my parents. :(</p>
<p>Did that no EFC policy go into effect immediatly, or not until next fall? I qualify for it rather easily, but I am a spring transfer and wasn't sure if it had already taken effect since I didn't see it on the article from when it was announced.</p>
<p>If I read the article correctly, it begins during the 2009-2010 school year:</p>
<p>You will have to pay 2500 dollars for the student contribution, and your parents will have to pay 5k-6k</p>
<p>That's what I was kind of thinking. Thanks chendrix! But if our EFC is $6,000, wouldn't Cornell just figure out my parents' contribution by subtracting my own contribution of $2,500 from the EFC, which in this case would end up being $3,500? It just seems weird to me that they would ask for an amount that is higher than our EFC. But no complaints, since the FA is very generous to begin with and I'm thankful for that. For an Ivy League education, it's a bargain! :D</p>
<p>EFC stands for expected family contribution, which is what your parents are expected to pay. Your student contribution and work study are separate and in addition to the efc.</p>
<p>Thanks for that link btw. I had only seen the original article from when it was first announced back in nov.</p>
<p>yeah, exactly what hermanns said. Your expected student contribution is separate and different from your expected family contribution.</p>
<p>They either expect you to make that money for the student contribution by working all summer, or getting a job while at Cornell (possibly in addition to work study eligibility)</p>
<p>you can always forego work study and apply for additional loans (if you're not maxed out for that year)</p>
<p>Ohhh, okay. That's not a big deal. As long as the total cost per year is around $8,000 (Me + Parents), then I'll be satisfied. Hopefully they consider other factors that would lower the amount. My only worry now is the shrinking time frame we (spring transfers) have to take care of everything, especially when the FA packages haven't been sent out yet. I just realized we only have eight days until move-in day! :D Thanks for the answers guys. I really appreciate it!</p>
<p>Okay, so let's say my parents will have to contribute $6,000 per year, while I contribute $2,500 or whatever. I'm aware that the rest of the bill turns out to be the amount of financial aid Cornell will award me. However, will this aid (around $25,000?) be given in the form of a grant, or will there be a mix of loans AND grants? The booklet as well as the website don't specify what type of aid is awarded. They try to make it sound like we'll only have to pay the $6,000 and $2,500, but then I'm finding out that other students are taking out additional loans as part of the financial aid package? In my opinion, loans are NOT financial aid. It's paying money to borrow money. They don't aid in any way and instead just put you in a poor situation where you'll have to pay back the amount plus interest. So, in my situation where my family makes between $60,000 and $120,000, would we be awarded some loans as part of the financial aid package despite the fact that we'd pay a total contribution of around $8,500, or would our financial need (the difference between total cost minus contribution) be completely funded by university grants? I would really appreciate answers for this!</p>
<p>First of all, educational loans IS financial aid. The interest rates are often very reduced compared with what you can obtain at a bank. I challenge you to find a private loan with lower interest rates than what you'll see in the FA package.</p>
<p>Secondly, for your family (making b/w 60,000 and 120,000), your loans are capped at $3000/yr. This means that your family will pay the $6000 EFC, you'll contribute $2500, and at most you'll receive an additional $3000/yr in loans. This is actually very generous, even compared with FA packages awarded a few years ago. I recently graduated Cornell with approx. $30,000 in loans and my EFC was around $10,000/yr with my parents making approx. $100k a year. Under the new plan, I would've graduated with $12,000 in loans at most.</p>
<p>Yeah after I posted that last question, I finally remembered the $3,000 loan cap which pretty much answered everything haha. I feel so stupid. But thanks a lot for verifying everything so that it's 100% clear. Ouch, $30,000 in loans? I would hate that. I'll probably end up with $6,000 in loans after graduation, which is amazing! The FA at Cornell is definitely generous. It was one of the reasons why I'm transferring there. I just can't believe I forgot about the whole capped loans topic haha. Once again, thanks for the information norcalguy.</p>
<p>I'm taking out an additional $160,000 for med school so my undergrad loans are only a drop in the bucket compared with that. I actually worked last year and started paying off my loans using my fellowship money and it wasn't too bad. Obviously, at age 22, I didn't have any responsibilities other than to myself but I was able to comfortably make my monthly payments on a $25,000/yr salary and still saved around 20% of what I was making. Something like $6000 would be very easy to pay off regardless of what job you get.</p>
<p>Yup, it'll be like paying for a cheap car. :D</p>
<p>To anyone else transferring for the upcoming semester:</p>
<p>I just found out that FA still hasn't reviewed and determined my financial aid package, so they said it may take over a week to complete. Most likely this goes for many new transfers as well. At that pace, we'll find out our packages during orientation haha. Ugh, this kills me...</p>
<p>Guess I will go ahead and send my deposit tomorrow then. I don't see anyway I don't get a huge FA package (household income is well under 60k), but it would be really nice to know. I can't believe that the FA aid office waited so long to get to us transfers since we needed it waaaaay sooner than ED'ers.</p>
<p>Yup, I have a feeling they just mixed our applications in with everyone else (ED's, RD's), and would just review them at random times, even if we start in like a week! Who knows, maybe they're considering more generous packages for us with the economy slowing down and what not. :D</p>