From Prospie to Prospie: Cornell's Financial Aid Policies

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
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<p>I'm going to go all copypasta from another thread because I know it took me a while to sort this whole mess out and as a prospie who is dependent on financial aid, it's the biggest thing for me in the college search process. I figure this will make it easier for people like me to save themselves a bit of time and a lot of confusion.</p>

<p>I'll try to give a clear overview of who gets what under the new financial aid policies Cornell announced in November.</p>

<p>Everyone that qualifies for financial aid gets a small (like $2,000 or something around that number) work study award which can be met by working a few hours a week on campus (you get the money--the award is just the feds subsidizing your job--and use it to pay off the bursar for room and board or tuition that isn't met with other parts of your financial aid package or use it to cover the rest of the Cost of Attendance [which includes stuff that the bursar isn't involved in, like books n' such]) plus a summer contribution of around $2,000 (you can work to pay this off [can easily make $2000 over the summer AND send some $$$ back to Mom and Dad--it is a recession and they're probably struggling too!--or take out a loan]; the same rules apply here as they do to work study...you may need to apply this to tuition/room and board if your package doesn't otherwise cover those OR you may just use this as book/personal expenses money).</p>

<p>Now for the rest of the package:</p>

<p>Family income under $60,000 with assets below 100K.
*No parental contribution. This means your full cost of attendance is covered.
*No loans.
*Basically, you're getting free tuition, room, and board from Cornell. Yippee!</p>

<p>Family income under $75,000
*You WILL have to pay a parental contribution. This will vary based on your family's situation with regards to assets, sibs in college, etc.... Just google any financial aid calculator to figure it out.
*No loans (unless of course you need to take one out to meet the parental contribution).
*Unless your family has a lowish income but owns a ton of stuff/was responsible and saved for college (the fact that the current system of financial aid for higher education in this country PUNISHES those who save is for another time, but I suppose the thinking is some families [like mine] used that money for like, um, food), you'll have an easy time paying for Cornell.</p>

<p>Family income under $120,000
*Same rules for parental contribution as above.
*You will receive loans in your financial aid package, but they will amount to no more than $3,000 a year.
*Depending on the size of your parental contribution, you could be making a fairly sizable investment (with, depending on how you use your degree, what should be a MUCH, MUCH larger return-- Which</a> College Grads Earn the Most? - BusinessWeek ). Even so, you're still getting QUITE a bargain.</p>

<p>Family income above $120,000
*If you qualify for financial aid outside of work study (and it's a big "if" at this level), loans as a part of your package will be capped at $7,500 a year.
*If you NEED financial aid, this the level where I would suggest (but what the heck do I know) to hold off on falling in love with the school and to make sure to compare packages (no comment on the "compare packages" bit...LOL).</p>

<p>Now, I'm just a prospie who needs financial aid and is at the first level mentioned. So, I'm gonna pull the trigger on ED...heck, it's not like I'm even going to get in. My only knowledge comes from my crazed midnight combing overs of the Cornell website, so take advice from actual Cornellians before you listen to mine (if any of you have any corrections, let me know). But, I mean, the University is going to abide by its published policies so I don't think any of the info is WAY off. Hope I helped.</p>

<p>Cornell</a> Chronicle: Cornell enhances financial aid program</p>

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<p><you will=“” have=“” to=“” pay=“” a=“” parental=“” contribution.=“” this=“” vary=“” based=“” on=“” your=“” family’s=“”></you></p>

<p>Where Can I found Out how Much Will my Family contribute?</p>

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<p>Family income under $60,000 with assets below 100K.
*No parental contribution. This means your full cost of attendance is covered.
*No loans.
*Basically, you’re getting free tuition, room, and board from Cornell. Yippee!</p>

<p>im in this category. You still have a student contribution but it is really and extremely low!</p>

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<p>I wouldn’t call it a free ride, though the cost is significantly lower than the sticker price. $3,000 can still be a huge burden for some families.</p>

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<p>That is amazing.</p>

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<p>^ i can tell u this, I do fit into that category, and I did notice something about my student contribution. My student contribution is exactly 10% of which my family makes. But im not sure if its ironic or something. So maybe that will give you an idea of what yoru student contribution is if you fit into that category.</p>

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<p>

I work to make money for my family during the school year and summers and can say that if you take the initiative to get a part time job over the summer, you can EASILY make $3000 (which, as I stated, is mostly going toward stuff like books and expenses–you ARE getting a full ride as far as room, board, and tuition goes). If you’re already doing this b/c need to make money for the family (like me), basically you need to cut your own expenses and your family needs to cut their expenses in order to make up for that lost $3000 you were making to help the family out. WORST CASE SCENARIO, you have to take out a loan for all of it and your entire debt at the end of four years of a education that costs $200,000+ for other students is a measly $12,000. I think you have to think twice about calling that a “huge burden”.

<a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml[/url]”>Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid;
This will give you a ROUGH estimate of what the parental contribution for you will be if you are not in the first category.</p>

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<p>Obviously you have not seen how typical low-income households work ; ). (I kid.)</p>

<p>By low-income I mean below the poverty line. What you said is certainly accurate for most families whose incomes are above 30K. </p>

<p>Most low-income families already have huge debts (just to cover living costs, enormous medical bills because they couldn’t afford insurance, etc), without much capacity to pay off even the interest. That makes it much harder just to balance the monthly budget, or get a reasonable loan. Although I suppose if your parents were still able to work and didn’t need you to pay off, oh, a little bit shy of 200K in loans, 12K certainly is like pocket change. </p>

<p>I totally agree with you that Cornell truly has a generous financial aid program. No doubt its efforts to reach out to even the financially disadvantaged have been successful. I just felt the statement: </p>

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<p>… could be misleading for some. It’s not as simple as “You’re getting a lot of money, yippee!” Even the best package doesn’t cover absolutely the full cost of attendance. Students will still need to take out loans if their summer earnings goes into helping the family. People whose families are screwed beyond typical screwage need to think carefully about paying for Cornell. Perhaps two years at a community college (free!) and then transferring to a university might be a better idea. Or maybe college for one sibling could come at the expense of another. </p>

<p>I just think that if someone read that and committed (ie. Early Decision) to Cornell expecting a complete full ride, that person might be in for a rude surprise.</p>

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<p>I’m sorry, but even if a student whose family lives below the poverty must contribute his/her summer savings to the family, then taking out 12,000 in loans is minimal.</p>

<p>If you really have that low of an income, then you qualify for loans that don’t require repayment until after you graduate, and the job he/she can get out of Cornell will easily pay those 12,000 in loans soon enough.</p>

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<p>Of course, I never disagreed with that. The problem is if you’re also paying back your parents’ loans. Then you have to make your decision as if you are incurring a large amount of debt.</p>

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<p>

Since when is community college free? Maybe in some areas, but I definitely don’t think it’s the case throughout most of the country. It certainly isn’t anything close to free where I live.

Exactly. Couldn’t you just use the subsidized Staffords that someone at that level would qualify for?

Okay, so you’re objecting to the use of “full ride”. Fine, “tuition, room, and board are paid for but you have to cover the personal expenses by working over the summer” (I thought this was pretty clear, but w/e). I’ve always considered “full ride” to mean tuition, room, and board. Even at a community college, you’re going to have to pay for books, food, etc.<br>

Are we talking about that first income level (that’s what I was referring to in the three bullet points you quoted–those statements only apply to incomes under 60K)? Because in that case, your parents won’t have any loans (believe me, when looking at schools that require a parent contribution, I’ve been adding that to whatever student contribution/loan requirement they put into financial aid packages and I know what you mean, that can add up fast). Unless you’re referring to debt your parents may already have from credit cards, car loans, etc…in which case, I don’t really think that’s on the student.</p>

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<p>I dont think Cornell does a credit check lol. They base your financial aid solely on your assets, W-2 Forms, tax returns, and IRS form…</p>

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<p>its sad house isn’t considered as an asset. there are so many people where i live in fancy houses worth 1m+ driving luxury cars and at the same time making 30000 and getting basically a free ride to college.</p>

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<p>wouldnt those luxury cars count as assets though.</p>

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<p>100000 is a lot for assets, besides doubt they count for full price of the luxry cars.</p>